'Agatha All Along': Joe Locke's 'Teen' Is Described As A Human Familiar. So, What Is A Familiar?

We are just over a week away from the premiere of the long-awaited WandaVision spin-off Agatha All Along, and the mania surrounding WandaVision's first-run is beginning to return, with fans already developing theories based on tiny clues in the series' trailers. Many of these theories are based around the identity of Joe Locke's 'Teen' character, who cannot reveal his name to the rest of the Coven due to a curse.

Most believe that the Teen will ultimately be revealed as Billy Kaplan, who in the comics is the reincarnation of Billy Maximoff, one of the Scarlet Witch's lost sons, who eventually becomes the superhero Wiccan, a founding member of the Young Avengers. However, this article will not be concerned so much with who 'Teen' is, but rather, what he is. Cast lists for Agatha All Along refer to Joe Locke's character as a human Familiar.

Anyone with knowledge of wiccan tradition and lore would understand why this is slightly odd. For the uninitiated, let's explain some more about the meaning and function of a Familiar.

Familiars through history

A Familiar is a guardian spirit meant to guide and protect new witches as they come into their powers, often appearing in the form of a small animal, such as a rat, toad, or cat, although pigs and occasionally swarms of insects were also possible. Black cats are commonly depicted as Familiars, which may have added to the widely-held superstition that black cats are bad luck.

During the Witch Trial period of the 16 and 1700s, Witch-Hunters spread the word that Familiars were demons in disguise. They declared that the presence of such a creature in a woman's home marked her as a witch, urging the public to report suspects.

Some Indigenous cultures believed in the summoning of a spirit animal or totem to guide them, in a concept very similar to the classic Familiar.

During the English Civil War of 1642 to 1644, Prince Rupert of the Rhine was often accompanied into battle by his dog, a rare white Poodle he named Boy. Boy was the target of propaganda by the Prince's enemies, referring to the dog as a Familiar and crediting him with such impossible acts as catching bullets in his mouth. They even claimed that the dog may be the Devil himself.

Unfortunately, Boy was killed in the Battle of Marston Moor in 1644, shot dead after escaping the Royalist camp to look for Rupert. The loss of Boy devastated both the Prince and his followers, who had embraced the dog as their mascot and an honorary Sergeant. Even after his death, the dog continued to be a topic of artwork and myth.

Some present-day Wicca practitioners believe Boy was a Familiar, albeit based on a more modern, less-demony interpretation of what that means.

Familiars Today

Anyone can have a Familiar. They are an animal to whom you are particularly close, a part of you, the special pet that owners have come to refer to as their Heart Dog/Cat, etc. However, they are still most commonly associated with witches.

While a Familiar can be any animal to whom a witch is bonded, cats are still the most prevalent. This is largely due to their historical connection to Bastet, an Egyptian Goddess. Many witches enjoy having their cat present and participating in rituals. Their whiskers, considered good luck, factor into a number of rituals. Cats are also popular companions of those who practice energy work, as their purr is naturally pitched to the powerful 432 frequency.

What being a Familiar means for 'Teen' In 'Agatha All Along'

Obviously, as mentioned above, Familiars are traditionally animals. In the comics, Agatha Harkness's familiar is a seemingly normal black house-cat named Ebony, who can take the form of a panther when she or Agatha are under threat.

In the 2015 'The Vision' comic series, Agatha kills Ebony as part of a ritual to gain a vision of the future through the Wundagore Everbloom, but she is later resurrected off-page. A purple 'kitten', Walpurgis, birthed from Ebony, is gifted by Agatha to Brielle Brooks, daughter of the hybrid vampire hunter Blade, to serve as her own Familiar.

With this in mind, the reference to the Teen as a Human Familiar, likely Agatha's, is somewhat outside of the norm. Some fans believe Teen exists to act as Agatha's moral compass as she relearns who she is not just outside Wanda's spell, but free from the evil influence of the destroyed Darkhold. He may guide her towards some sort of redemption, if not exactly a hero, at least away from straight villainy towards the more morally ambiguous nature of her comic book counterpart.

If the Teen is in fact Billy Kaplan/Maximoff, his role as a possible guiding light places him in good stead for his character's role in the long-rumoured adaptation of the classic 'Young Avengers: The Children's Crusade' storyline.

In the aforementioned story, Wanda Maximoff's reunion with Billy is the catalyst for the beginning of a long-running redemption arc for the Scarlet Witch.

Hopefully, we will start getting some answers when the first two episodes of Agatha All Along premiere on Disney Plus on September 18.