‘Agatha All Along’ doesn’t feature a single post-credits scene. Hallelujah!
Ah, the Marvel Cinematic Universe post-credits scene. At this point, you either hate them or love them. It seems there’s very little gray area left.
Some post-credits scenes have simply given us a glimpse of future projects, like Ant-Man’s first look at Captain America: Civil War, while others have hinted at the danger that is still to come, like Thanos’ reveal at the end of the first Avengers movie. Then there are the scenes that jokingly tell us off for staying in our seats in the first place, like Cap’s after-school special in Spider-Man: Homecoming. Post-credits scenes are an art form, of sorts. They are notoriously difficult to get right, and lately, the MCU has been struggling to make them count, and more importantly, make them stick. Phases 4 and 5 have had a hard time with this, especially.
How many post-credits scenes have we seen that will seemingly never be addressed at all? How many have there been that will only pay off years later, when we’ve already forgotten about [insert random character here]? Perhaps the most egregious recent example of this is Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ first post-credits scene, which felt like it was tacked on by some Disney executive somewhere, against director Sam Raimi’s will. Not only did it cut down the intensity of the film’s final horrific moment, in which Stephen Strange gains his third eye, but it introduces a character that only people who have ever read the comics will know. Charlize Theron’s Clea has no meaning for anyone else outside that pool of dedicated fans, and as such, her introduction is sorely lacking.
Spoilers ahead for the Agatha All Along finale.
This is why, when the non-pretty credits began to roll on the Agatha All Along finale and I realized we hadn’t seen a single post-credits scene throughout the show’s run, I breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, here was a Marvel project that knew how to stick to its ending. The final scene with Ghost Agatha and Billy leaves several potential storylines open. The hunt for Tommy, the repercussions of creating the Witches’ Road out of thin air, Death’s role in the multiverse; there’s so much to explore. Why ruin that finale with a cheap tease that may never amount to anything?
Even just a glimpse of Tommy running somewhere would have been too much. A proper post-credits scene is a promise, perhaps even more so than an open-ended finale. Including a post-credits scene that teases a future event, character, or team-up is like Marvel saying “We are definitely going to do this. This character and/or event will be important somewhere down the road.” Even though it feels like the MCU may be getting back on track with its upcoming projects, it’s always disappointing when that promise isn’t followed up on.
Would I enjoy a second season of Agatha All Along? Absolutely (though it should probably be called “Billy All Along” instead). Thankfully, the Agatha All Along finale leaves the door open for more without explicitly promising us that there will be more. At this point, the MCU is so vast and dense that any future teases will only ever make this franchise’s already complex narrative web even more complicated. With all the delays and cancelations and shuffles and casting changes that have plagued the MCU recently, not including a post-credits scene is absolutely the right choice. Hopefully, Marvel Studios will finally realize that not every project needs one, or that they should all just include our favorite heroes eating shawarma and leave it at that.
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