Agatha All Along Episodic Coverage: “Death’s Hand In Mine”

“Death’s Hand in Mine” Has Such Amazing Writing

“Death’s Hand in Mine” confirmed what I had suspected: that this story was going to progress by standard story rules. And, also, seemingly my main plot theories were correct. Despite the wholly unnecessary death fake-outs that ruin some of Agatha All Along’s rewatch value, each witch will get their trial, and through each trial, they are given “back” their powers.

But “Death’s Hand in Mine” also paid off the big plot point I was waiting for. All those random statements throughout the show were clearly snippets of the future—that much was obvious. And I figured they’d all pay off in her trial. But I didn’t realize how intricate it would be. Her declarations were parts of sentences. Her predictions were all over the timeline. And—most interestingly—the timeline is apparently fixed. Nothing can be changed.

The Episode Poses A Lot Of Questions About Time

And framing an episode around this, around a rapidly edited, non-chronological framework, could’ve been confusing. Could have been. But the writing in “Death’s Hand in Mine” is so well-crafted, that it’s clear the whole time what’s happening. Never once was I uncertain of the order of things. It’s all artistry. The jumping across centuries, moments, and minutes, from both ends of her life, leads to this exciting, fast-paced story that still gives us more to expect in later episodes.

And, to top it all off, the trial this time was both understandable and creative. The solution made sense but wasn’t obvious. The danger for failure was clear and followed the established rules of the timer, without a grace period. In short, it handled so many complaints I’ve had about the trials.

It’s Mostly Possible To Figure Out The Trial’s Rules

But I do have questions about the stuff around the plot. Like the esthetic. I guess having everyone dressed as famous pop-culture witches relates to Lilia’s ability to see through time. That makes enough sense. But it does seem a little random compared to how visually tailored some of the other trials have been to their “challengers.” It also isn’t clear why reversing the card works the way it did. Maybe I’m missing something, though, as there was clearly a lot of thought put into each of these characters’ backstories, into the exact cards pulled, and the symbolism. So much so, the pre-planning for “Death’s Hand in Mine” had to be seeded from episode one.

The takeaway that is clear to me, though, that I can state, is that this show is quite good more often than not. We’ve had two bangers in a row. And now we will—maybe—get Billy or Rio’s trial. Both of which could be just as wildly creative. In any case, I can’t recall the last series that I so eagerly awaited each new episode.

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