'Agatha All Along': A Look At Wiccan's Relationship With The Scarlet Witch In The Comics

WARNING! SPOILERS for Agatha All Along 1x07, 'Death's Hand In Mine'.

While many saw it coming, fans were nonetheless delighted with Agatha All Along's episode five ending reveal that the mysterious Teen was actually Billy Maximoff, the son of Wanda Maximoff, the Scarlet Witch. Unfortunately, those same fans were largely disappointed in episode 7, when Billy denies Wanda's status as his Mother in favor of Rebecca Kaplan, the Mother of his host body, William.

"She's not my Mom. I have a Mom."

Some have heaped disdain upon Billy for this, claiming that he is disrespecting Wanda and what she went through for him in WandaVision and Multiverse of Madness.

This may be a little unfair. We have to consider the fact that Billy/William does not actually remember the events of WandaVision, or Wanda as his Mother, at this point in time. He has pieced together his identity from his own research. He doesn't even truly remember his twin, Tommy, for whom he is walking the Witches' Road, instead only feeling his presence.

Unfortunately, the relationship between the Scarlet Witch and Billy's comic counterpart, Billy Kaplan/Wiccan, is no less complicated.

First Life and Death

In the comics, Billy and his twin brother Tommy were born to the synthezoid The Vision and his wife Wanda Maximoff, the Scarlet Witch. The conception of the twins was initially attributed solely to Wanda's magic, and they were adored and doted upon by both their parents and extended family. Sometime after the boys' births, Wanda and Vision join the West Coast Avengers, with Tommy and Billy left in the care of their Nanny/Wanda's mentor, Agatha Harkness when their parents are away on missions.

It is eventually revealed that Wanda unknowingly incorporated two fragments of the soul of the demon Mephisto when creating the twins, and to their Mother's horror, they are killed when Mephisto reabsorbs the fragments. At this point, Agatha erases Wanda's memory of the twins to spare her the grief of their loss. The memories of the Avengers also fade. Unfortunately, Agatha's plan backfires some years later when Wanda's memories return, and she murders Agatha in a rage over being forced to forget her children, sparking the events of 'Avengers Disassembled' and 'House of M'.

Rebirth and favourite Avenger

Eventually, the soul fragments that had been the twins break free from Mephisto, and are reborn into new bodies, that of Tommy Shepherd and Billy Kaplan. While Tommy's childhood is sadly less than perfect, Billy has a relatively happy life as the eldest son of Jeff and Rebecca Kaplan. However, he always feels a connection to the Scarlet Witch.

Unfortunately, as a teenager, Billy endures bullying over his sexuality. After one such incident, Wanda stumbles upon a bloodied Billy Kaplan outside the Avengers Mansion, helps clean him up, and encourages him to find the courage to stand up to his bullies. When Billy's powers manifest, he returns to the mansion seeking the Scarlet Witch's help to control them, but by then, the Avengers have temporarily disbanded due to 'Disassembled'.

Search for the Scarlet Witch

Soon after joining the Young Avengers as Wiccan, Billy Kaplan meets his strangely identical teammate Tommy Shepherd, aka Speed, and forms the theory that they are the reincarnated twin sons of the Scarlet Witch, who was missing at the time. The older Avengers discourage this idea, because they have deemed the Scarlet Witch dangerous. The situation comes to a head when Wiccan briefly loses control of his powers during a battle, and the Avengers, fearing another Scarlet Witch, decide to hold Billy for observation and study. His Young Avengers teammates break him free, and they embark upon a search for the Scarlet Witch.

While the team successfully locates Wanda, the situation is immediately complicated by the fact they find her in Latveria, suffering amnesia and about to marry Doctor Doom. However, Wanda ultimately recovers her memory, confirming Billy's suspicions that he and Tommy are her reincarrnated sons. Around this time, the events leading to 'Disassembled' and 'House of M' are revealed to have been at least partially engineered by Doom.

Family is complicated

So, what has the Scarlet Witch and Wiccan's relationship been like since? Well, it's complicated, and sometimes varies between writers. Wanda accepts both Tommy and Billy as reincarnations of her children, and they, in turn, accept that the magic used in their creation means that she is still at least partially their Mother, regardless of birth, and in Billy's case, he shares a close connectiom with Wanda due to their similar magical abilities.

However, the waters are muddied slightly by the fact that Billy, unlike Tommy, has a biological Mother whom he loves and has a positive relationship with in the form of Rebecca Kaplan. Wanda, for her part, has always been respectful of that relationship, and the fact that her own role in Billy's life may not be a traditional Motherly one, as that is not necessarily what he needs from her.

What Wiccan does need, and gets, is the ultimate magical mentor in the form of the Scarlet Witch. He often seeks her out for advice, or answers to questions, which she is all too happy to give. And, in moments where Billy is feeling particularly vulnerable, or sometimes playful, he will drop the formalities and call Wanda Mom.

At the end of the day, The Scarlet Witch and Wiccan are family, even if not in it's most traditional form, and each one will always be there for the other if they need them. Perhaps, in time, if the MCU's Wanda returns and MCU Billy overcomes his current identity crisis, they will reach the same positive place as their comic counterparts.