Agatha All Along is done being subtle. Last night’s episode was easily the gayest thing Marvel has ever done. Which, granted, isn’t saying much, but we’re still excited!

When Aubrey Plaza’s Rio showed up on the scene, it was clear there were vibes between her and Agatha (Kathryn Hahn). To any queer person watching, it seemed as though they were exes, though they never explicitly said as much. Even though it seemed blatantly obvious to me and my peers, it was subtexty enough that straight people could convince themselves it was a platonic friends-to-enemies situation. I thought that was as much as we’d get. Vibes and hints and winks.

Until last night.

After losing their green witch on The Road, Agatha’s makeshift coven needs to replace her, so they perform a summoning spell. And who should literally claw her way out of the ground, but Rio herself, much to Agatha’s chagrin. The way they look at each other is so intense, you can feel the energy crackling between them like electricity. I’m surprised no one burst into flames. (Well, they do later, but it’s unrelated.) Jennifer (Sasheer Zamata) and Alice (Ali Ahn) are struck by Rio immediately, Jennifer saying she doesn’t know if she hates her or wants her phone number, and Alice wholeheartedly agrees. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: All witches are queer and the witches in this show are no exception.

With Jennifer’s trial finishes, they all move on to Alice’s trial, where they are transformed into 70s rock gods. Here’s where we start to learn much more about Rio’s true connection to Agatha. At one point, the two find themselves alone and as they talk they inch closer and closer together. Agatha asks her for a truce, saying they can have “one more big adventure.” Then Rio puts her hand on Agatha’s thigh and says, “like old times?” to which Agatha responds, “work and play.” ON HER THIGH. Of course, Agatha is playing her. She’s keeping her ex at arm’s length, her heart under lock and key. It’s safer that way. Meanwhile, she tries to turn the other witches against her, saying it’s been Rio’s plan all along to show up and kill the other witches so she and Agatha could have The Road’s power all to themselves.

I think this is where I stopped breathing.

Then later, in case that was too subtle, they double down. The witches are all sitting around a campfire, talking about scars they have. Agatha shows one of hers off, but Rio smirks before she even exposes it as if she knows exactly what it looks like already. Then, Rio says, “I have a scar,” and without missing a beat, Agatha says, “No, you don’t,” as if she’s memorized every inch of her body. But Rio goes on to explain that her scar isn’t physical. Rio says she loved someone once, and had to do something that hurt her. She says, and I quote, “She is my scar.” Which is, hands-down, the GAYEST SHIT I’VE EVER HEARD.

Hearing this, Agatha decides she wants to take a walk, and Rio follows her. Rio puts her hand on Agatha’s back, and Agatha turns around and holds her. She wasn’t being honest before about wanting a truce, but it seems she is now. She puts her hands on Rio’s face and GOES IN FOR THE KISS. But before she does, Rio has to tell her something. She says, “That boy isn’t yours,” referring to the Teen who Agatha has been mom-arming and accidentally caring about all season. Rio doesn’t move in case Agatha still wants to kiss her, but Agatha smiles sadly at her and walks away without her kiss. From this context we can presume that Rio was the one who had to take Agatha’s son away when she traded him for the Darkhold, but I’m sure more details about that whole situation will come out in time.

I still can’t believe I didn’t dream this scene.

Before this confirmation, I was already having a damn blast with the show. With the characters all being women plus one gay teen, the vibes are excellent. Queerness has been a thread in the tapestry of this show from the start, not only because of the inherent queerness of witches, but because of the presence of queer actors and queer subtext. That said, I’m beyond thrilled it’s becoming maintext.

I genuinely don’t know how they got this approved through Marvel. Maybe with Deadpool & Wolverine the MCU is moving toward more risk-taking, maybe they only approved scripts and by the time they saw the on-screen chemistry between Kathryn Hahn and Aubrey Plaza it was too late to turn back, maybe actual witches work on the show behind the scenes. Whatever the reason, I’m very grateful.

One thing I do know is that the creators of the show knew what they were doing all along. Showrunner Jac Schaeffer was quoted as saying, “In our research into the history of witches, contemporary witches, witches in pop culture, there is a very strong intersection between the LGBTQ community and witchcraft. That was undeniable and needed a place in the show.”

And it’s true, there is a long history linking witches and queerness. In last week’s episode, alewives even got mentioned, which I learned from Heather Hogan have deep queer roots. Alewives being independent women and therefore demonized by the patriarchal church is also where we get a lot of modern traditional witch stereotypes, like black cats, broomsticks, and pointy hats.

I’ve been a Marvel fan for a long time despite not having much queer representation to sink my teeth into. We always find a way. We cling to Valkyrie’s off-screen backstory and hail our queer King. We celebrate small wins like America Chavez having two moms and wearing a pride pin. We ship characters who will probably never happen, and we celebrate the strong women and hope they don’t get shoved in the refrigerator with the women who came before them.

But Agatha All Along feels like a gift. It feels like they said, thank you for your patience, here’s everything you’ve been waiting for. If you loved Marvel enough to watch Wandavision, and you loved Wandavision as much as we did, you’re going to love this. And they’re right. I do. I love it so much, and we’re not even quite halfway through.

Will this be the first Marvel property to give us an on-screen sapphic kiss? It would feel so right for it to be the witchiest show. It would feel right for it to be Aubrey Plaza. But only time will tell. Until then, down, down, down we go, down the witches’ road.

Agatha All Along is now streaming on Disney+.

Before you go! Autostraddle runs on the reader support of our AF+ Members. If this article meant something to you today — if it informed you or made you smile or feel seen, will you consider joining AF and supporting the people who make this queer media site possible?

Join AF+!