Does Agatha Harkness have a child in the comics?

Marvel Studios has free rein to adapt comic characters as it sees fit, and Agatha Harkness is one of those cases. Introduced in WandaVision, the power-hungry witch is a far cry from her comic counterpart.

Contrary to popular belief, Agatha has a more heroic past in Marvel. Generally connected with the Fantastic Four, Agatha was hired as a governess for Reed Richards and Sue Storm’s children. She reveals herself to be a witch and helps them with varying conflicts. But when it comes to her offspring, Agatha All Along seems to be more in line with comic canon.

The first clue occurs in episode 1 of the new Marvel series. Trapped in the fugue state that Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) left her in at the end of WandaVision, Agatha (Kathryn Hahn) struggles to endure her new reality in a Mare of Easttown-esque show. The similarities are undeniable, down to Agatha’s trauma over losing a child. In this new reality, Agatha has a room in her house belonging to a child who is obviously no longer there, with a plaque reading Nicholas Scratch. While this could be a sly reference to series like Mare of Easttown and True Detective: Night Country where female detectives need to have dead children, it actually has a deep connection to Marvel comics.

Who is Nicholas Scratch?

Anyone with significant knowledge of lore or even a cursory understanding of Netflix’s Chilling Adventures of Sabrina will recognize the name. Nicholas Scratch is one of the many names for the devil. However, Nicholas Scratch is a character that has been in Marvel canon for some time. Agatha may differ slightly in the comics, but that isn’t necessarily the case for her offspring.

In the comics, Agatha does have a son named Nicholas Scratch whose reputation precedes him. True to his moniker, Nicholas Scratch is a heavy-weight villain in the comics. Nicholas was raised in the secretive magical community of New Salem, Colorado, which was founded by the survivors of the Salem Witch Trials. Agatha would go on to leave the community so she could integrate with the human population, but Nicholas grew into his villainy. He ultimately takes over the leadership of New Salem and turns against his mother, whom he believes to be a traitor against her own kind. He would also go on to sire the Salem Seven, seen at the beginning of Agatha All Along.

The Marvel television series has twisted canonical events but may have plans to make everything come full circle. Nicholas Scratch has yet to make a corporeal appearance in the series — that we know of — but is still likely to have abandonment issues because of his mother’s dealings. Agatha is rumored to have traded her own flesh and blood for the Darkhold, otherwise known as the Book of the Damned. Should Nicholas Scratch make an appearance, we can confidently count on him being none too pleased about his circumstances — if that is indeed the truth of the matter. Agatha All Along has already had many twists, and fans should stay tuned to see what happens next.