Agatha All Along has been dropping some seriously big hints about the secret identity of Aubrey Plaza's Rio Vidal, and though the clues point in a different direction than we initially thought, they seem to indicate that Rio is actually a Marvel Comics character whose history is both strange and dire.
And while Rio's true identity still remains unconfirmed, so we're speculating about who she really is, we'll have to discuss some Agatha All Along spoilers to get into it, so if you're trying to avoid all spoilers, turn back now.
Again, we can't stress enough that this is unconfirmed, but Agatha All Along is heavily hinting that Rio Vidal is actually the personification of Death, who, in Marvel Comics, is often depicted as a partially skeletal woman - and who has occasionally taken on human hosts to conduct her ghastly work on Earth.
In Marvel Comics, Death is a night-omnipotent cosmic being in addition to a constant of mortal life, who is depicted as the "sister" and opposite force of Eternity, who was adapted into the MCU as part of Thor: Ragnarok.
Before we get too deep into Death's comic book history, let's look at the clues for Rio Vidal actually being Death itself, most of which come from Agatha All Along episode 4.
First off, she literally climbs out of Sharon/Mrs. Hart's grave when summoned by the coven to fill the spot of their Green Witch, saying she was close by - possibly claiming Mrs. Hart for the afterlife. Then, later, Agatha Harkness pleads with Rio when Teen is dying, asking her not to take him. And finally, it seems to be implied that Rio is partially responsible for the fate of Agatha's lost son, Nicholas Scratch.
All of this seems to point to Rio being the personification of Death, or at least her manifestation on Earth, which would also make sense given the romantic implications between Agatha and Rio - because the history of Death in Marvel Comics is, strangely enough, inextricable from one of Marvel's most devastating love stories.
We're talking of course about the often one-sided infatuation between Death and none other than Thanos, who, in comics, is romantically obsessed with Death herself. In fact, in comics, Thanos' scheme to use the Infinity Gauntlet to eliminate half of all life in the universe is all a bid to win the attention of Death by sending countless trillions of souls to her doorstep.
And though their bizarre, on-again-off-again romance has continued over the years, with Thanos often courting Death, Death testing Thanos' loyalty in brutal and bloodthirsty ways, and both of them wreaking havoc in their wake, Thanos isn't Death's only paramour in the Marvel Universe.
Oddly enough, Death has also had strange romantic interactions with Deadpool, who is thought to be all but incapable of dying thanks to his healing factor. Still, it all comes back to Thanos, who made Deadpool's immortality official by cursing him to remain forever out of the reach of Death, just to keep them apart.
But Death later retired - apparently something cosmic beings can do in the Marvel Universe - imbuing a human named Marlo Chandler, who Death had previously possessed, with all her power as her replacement. Death took on the human form of Roberta Marshall, the deceased daughter of a woman who came face-to-face with Death trying to get her back.
Even though Death had the protection of the secret superhero team known as the Illuminati, Thanos found her and fought his way through all her protectors to absorb her essence into a new Infinity Stone - the Death Stone - seemingly leaving Marlo Chandler as the permanent new Death.
What that points to for Agatha All Along, and for the MCU, is the strong precedent for Death as a cosmic being to have an agent on Earth, either someone she possesses to do her bidding, or an avatar whose appearance changes based on the species of the being witnessing her. Could that be Rio Vidal, for the MCU?
We'll find out more as new episodes of Agatha All Along premiere Wednesday evenings on Disney Plus.
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