WandaVision episode 7 featured the most revelations of the series thus far. In the new Disney Plus episode, we learned that Wanda’s Westview alternate reality is at least partially controlled by Agatha Harkness, who was disguising herself as Wanda’s neighbor Agnes. Episode 7’s shocking ending now has fans searching for an explanation — will the Darkhold book make an appearance? Is Mephisto still somehow behind all of this? And what was with that “snooper’s gonna snoop” post-credits scene?
Who is Agatha Harkness in WandaVision episode 7?
Agatha Harkness is a long-standing Marvel character, though she hasn’t always been a villain. First introduced in the comics in Fantastic Four #94 way back in 1970, Harkness became a super-powerful nanny to Franklin Richards, the son of Reed Richards (Mr. Fantastic) and Susan Richards (the Invisible Woman). It was revealed she had existed for thousands of years, even before the fall of Atlantis, and that she had been a part of the Salem witch trials.
Harkness went on to train the Scarlet Witch, a.k.a. Wanda Maximoff, helping her hone her powers. However, she and Wanda eventually became enemies, with Harkness revealing that Wanda’s two children were made from parts of Mephisto, the Marvel universe’s version of the devil. Wanda killed Harkness as a result, and as is typically the case with comic characters, she has died a couple of times throughout her various appearances.
However, in the MCU, this is the first time she has shown up. It’s unclear if the character is quite as old as her comic counterpart, but if that is the case, then why has she waited until now to make an appearance? Plenty has happened on Earth that would have surely brought a super-powerful witch out of hiding, and SWORD previously had Agnes/Agatha’s picture on a board of those trapped within Westview, indicating that no one has seen this character before. So how has she avoided detection for this long? That’s a mystery that will likely be resolved in a future episode.
Was that the Darkhold book and what does it mean for the multiverse??
When Wanda ventures to Agatha Harkness’ basement, she looks around the room at various magical artifacts. The camera pauses on one in particular — a mysterious, glowing book. Fans have theorized that this is the Darkhold, a.k.a. the Book of Sins or the Book of Spells, which is an incredibly powerful piece of literature belonging to the Hell Dimension.
In the comics, the Hell Dimension exists in the multiverse and is the source of Darkforce energy. If the Darkhold exists, then the Hell Dimension potentially exists, which once again points to the existence of the multiverse and the future of the MCU.
The Darkhold’s presence could also point to some future crossovers in the MCU. Darkforce energy is utilized by the Ancient One, Doctor Strange’s mentor, though she prohibits others from accessing it out of fear of what it will do. Doctor Strange’s appearance in WandaVision has long been speculated, so the Darkhold could be the connective tissue between the two.
However, the Darkhold has actually made an appearance in an MCU show before. The book appeared in Agents of SHIELD, and it had a much different appearance in its debut. It also prompted the appearance of Ghost Rider, who was able to take the book back to where it belongs by opening an inter-dimensional portal — another reference to the multiverse.
Where is Mephisto?
Wanda’s children caused many to speculate that Mephisto would make an appearance in WandaVision, but the character now seems to be in Marvel’s rear-view mirror. Given the ties between Wanda’s children and Mephisto, it was widely believed that the villain would be revealed as WandaVision’s antagonist. However, given Agatha Harkness’ reveal, this now seems unlikely.
WandaVision has already pulled a bait and switch with regards to who is responsible for Westview, suggesting that Agatha is behind it all, not Wanda. If it was to now switch it around again and reveal Mephisto is actually the big bad, this could overly complicate things. Still, Mephisto may be involved in some way, just not in the way we think he is. Given that he’s one of Marvel’s most prominent villains, particularly in relation to the multiverse given that he’s an extra-dimensional demon, it only feels right that he should appear eventually.
Who is Pietro and what did the post-credits scene mean?
Pietro Maximoff a.k.a. Quicksilver continues to experience an identity crisis. Played by Evan Peters, who portrayed the character in Fox’s X-Men series, we already know he’s not the same Pietro that Wanda knows. Fans speculated that Pietro being “recast” could suggest that he’s been pulled from the X-Men universe, giving more credibility to the multiverse theory.
In WandaVision episode 7, Agatha is shown controlling Pietro during the scene in which he greets Wanda. Now, as far as we’re aware, everyone in Westview is a real person who has been pulled into the alternate reality. The four people we’re not so sure of are Vision, who is dead in the real world, Wanda’s children, who disappear at the end of episode 7, and Pietro.
Agatha controlling Pietro either suggests that she has manifested him, perhaps based on her knowledge of who Pietro is as she maybe originally existed in the X-Men’s universe, or that she has pulled him out of the X-Men’s universe and placed him in Westview.
In a post-credits scene, Monica Rambeau — who seems to have gained superpowers in her revisit to Westview and has eyes reminiscent of her comic book alter-ego Spectrum — is caught by Pietro entering Agatha’s basement. “Snooper’s gonna snoop,” Pietro says, with glowing purple eyes indicating that he’s being controlled by Agatha, who employs purple magic over Wanda’s red magic.
If Pietro is being controlled by Agatha or is just a manifestation, both signs point to the X-Men becoming involved in this story. Vision actor Paul Bettany has already teased a larger cameo later in the season (via SuperHeroHype), saying that it’s an actor he’s “longed to work with.” Could Bettany be talking about a fellow UK actor such as Ian McKellen or Patrick Stewart?
There’s plenty to discuss after WandaVision episode 7, and we’ll have to tune in next week to see if these theories hold up.
In other news, Cruella fans have been wondering if the film will launch on Disney Plus. It was also recently rumored that Disney might recast Cara Dune and replace Gina Carano.
