It is hard to explain the ending of The Haunting of Hill House. The hauntings in Hill House, the scary, ghost-filled house in Mike Flanagan’s Netflix series, do not really end.
This idea is one of the main points of the show, showing the endless nature of this multi-room monster sitting alone in Massachusetts.
As Shirley Jackson wrote in the creepy introduction to the original book, “It had stood for 80 years and might stand for 80 more.” But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Were you confused by the ending of The Haunting of Hill House? Then look no further, for your questions will be answered here… That is, if you dare to enter.
‘The Haunting of Hill House’ Focuses on the Crain Siblings
Flanagan’s dark story is less about the ghosts in the house and more about the people who mostly survived.
The main focus is on the Crain siblings, who have a much more troubled life than the Bluths from Arrested Development, with terrible trauma taking the place of funny conversations.
The siblings include horror writer Steven (played by Michiel Huisman), mortician Shirley (Elizabeth Reaser), semi-psychic psychologist Theodora (Kate Siegel), drug addict Luke (Oliver Jackson-Cohen), and his twin sister, Nell (Victoria Pedretti).
Nell takes her own life inside Hill House at the beginning of the series. The family dynamics in this series are powerful. The shifts between the past and the present show how strained the Crain family truly is.
The show often shows important questions about grief, trauma, and how the past affects the present. The characters are deeply impacted by their childhood experiences in Hill House.
Each sibling deals with their trauma in different ways. Some become strong and resilient, while others struggle with their demons. The relationship between the siblings is complex and filled with tension. This tension adds to the full feeling of dread and horror in the series.
The Crain Family’s Background
The Crain family moves to Hill House to renovate it. They plan to sell the house for a profit. However, their plans go horribly wrong.
The house has a dark history filled with tragedy and pain. As the family tries to fix up the old mansion, they start to experience strange occurrences. Ghosts haunt the house and create chaos in their lives.
The show also gives us a view into their past. We see flashbacks of their childhood in Hill House. The kids are often scared and confused. They see things that others cannot.
Still from The Haunting of Hill House (Credit: Netflix)
These experiences shape their lives and create lasting scars. The fear they feel as children follows them into adulthood. The Crain siblings become disconnected from each other, struggling to cope with their trauma.
The Haunting Nature of Hill House
Hill House itself is an important character in the story. It is not just a backdrop for the events. The house is alive in its own way. It influences the characters and feeds off their fear and pain.
Anyone who enters Hill House is vulnerable to its powerful grip. The ghosts inside are not just random spirits; they represent the family’s fears and regrets. Each sibling has a unique connection to the house, and it reveals their deepest insecurities.
The series often blurs the line between reality and hallucination. The characters experience vivid nightmares and disturbing visions. The audience is left wondering what is real and what is not. This uncertainty adds to the horror and keeps viewers on edge. Hill House is a place where the past and present collide, and the characters must face their demons.
The Grief and Trauma of the Crain Family
The theme of grief is central to the story. The characters grapple with the loss of their mother, Olivia Crain (played by Carla Gugino). Her tragic fate haunts them throughout the series. Olivia’s struggles with mental illness and her connection to Hill House play a crucial role in the family’s downfall.
The series portrays grief as a heavy burden that the characters cannot escape. They are haunted by memories of their mother and the terrible events that unfolded in Hill House. Each sibling reacts differently to their grief. Steven, for example, becomes a successful author but cannot let go of the past.
He writes about horror but does not fully confront his own fears. Shirley, on the other hand, tries to be strong and keep her family together, but her facade cracks under pressure.
Luke’s battle with addiction is another way the series shows how trauma affects the family. His drug use is a way to cope with the pain and memories of Hill House. Nell’s tragic story is perhaps the most heartbreaking. Her experiences in the house lead her to despair, and she struggles with her own mental health.
The Role of Olivia Crain
Olivia Crain is at the center of the tragedy in The Haunting of Hill House. Her character is complex and deeply affected by the house. Olivia has psychic abilities, but she tries to suppress them. She believes her powers are just migraines. The house manipulates her fears and insecurities, convincing her that her family needs to die to escape their pain.
The show presents Olivia’s actions as an extension of her love for her children. This makes her tragic choices even more heartbreaking. She wants to save them from suffering, but she is misled by the malevolent force in Hill House.
The show sets up a chilling scenario where Olivia believes that killing her family is the only way to help them. This idea leads to the tragic climax of the story.
The Red Room: A Symbol of Control
One of the most significant symbols in the series is the Red Room. This room is always locked and serves as a central point of mystery in Hill House.
The Red Room can change to meet the needs of its inhabitants. For Nell, it becomes a place of play, while for Shirley, it transforms into a family room. The room represents the house’s ability to manipulate reality and keep the residents complacent.
Nell describes the Red Room as a stomach, saying, “Mom says that a house is like a body. And that every house has eyes, and bones, and skin, and a face. This room is like the heart of the house.
No, not a heart. A stomach.” This quote highlights how the Red Room feeds off the emotions and experiences of those who enter it. The house uses this room to trap souls, keeping them from escaping.
The Significance of the Bent-Neck Lady
The character of the Bent-Neck Lady adds to the horror of Hill House. The Bent-Neck Lady is a ghost that haunts Nell from a young age. She appears as a terrifying figure with her head twisted at an odd angle. Nell’s fear of the Bent-Neck Lady grows as she gets older, and it becomes a recurring nightmare.
As the series progresses, we learn a shocking truth about the Bent-Neck Lady. She is not just a ghost but Nell herself from the future. This twist adds depth to Nell’s character and shows how time is distorted in Hill House. The house has a unique way of warping time, and Nell’s fate is tied to the tragic events that unfold.
The Final Tragedy and the Ending
The ending of The Haunting of Hill House brings together all the threads of the story. The Crain siblings confront their past and their relationship with Hill House. They face the pain of losing their mother and the impact of their experiences in the house.
In a climactic scene, the siblings relive the worst moments of their lives. They are forced to confront their guilt and regrets. Steven reflects on the nature of ghosts, saying, “Ghosts are guilt. Ghosts are secrets. Ghosts are regrets and failings.” This moment emphasizes how the characters are haunted by their pasts and how their family dynamics shape their present.
Hugh Crain, the father, makes a pact with Olivia’s ghost. He sacrifices himself to save his children. He takes his own life, allowing him to be with his wife and youngest daughter in the afterlife. The ending shows that love and family bonds endure, even in death. The siblings escape Hill House, but the scars of their experiences will always remain.
The Dudley Family’s Connection
The Dudley family is another crucial part of the story. They serve as the caretakers of Hill House and have their own tragic history. The Dudleys’ connection to the house adds another layer to the narrative.
Mr. Dudley (played by Robert Longstreet) tells the Crains about his family’s experience with the house. He explains how his mother changed after working there, hinting at the dark influence of Hill House.
After the deaths of Olivia and Abigail, the Dudleys insist that Hugh must leave Hill House standing. They believe that as long as the house exists, they can interact with the ghost of their dead daughter.
This connection between the living and the dead highlights the theme of loss and the lengths people will go to maintain their bonds with those they love.
The Final Scene: A New Beginning
The series ends on a bittersweet note. An older Mr. Dudley carries his wife through the woods to Hill House, so she can reunite with their daughters. The ending suggests that even in death, love continues. The final voice-over by Steven gives us a sense of closure. He recites a poem about love, implying that the ties of family and love remain strong.
Still from The Haunting of Hill House (Credit: Netflix)
The closing scenes show the surviving Crain siblings finding their paths. Steven finds peace in his writing, Shirley embraces her family, and Luke battles his addiction.
The series concludes with the idea that while the hauntings of Hill House may never truly end, the characters can find a way to heal and move forward.
The Legacy of The Haunting of Hill House
The Haunting of Hill House is a powerful scheme of family, trauma, and the lingering effects of grief. It stands out for its rich character development and complex narrative. The show forces us to confront our fears and the impact of our past on our present.
The series has resonated with audiences due to its emotional depth and haunting atmosphere. It invites viewers to reflect on their experiences and the relationships that shape them. The legacy of Hill House will likely continue to be felt, long after the final credits roll.
The mix of horror and human emotion makes this series a unique entry in the genre. The legacy of The Haunting of Hill House will live on, reminding us of the power of love, loss, and the indelible scars of the past.
This week’s episode of Agatha All Along, called “Familiar by Thy Side,” looks back at how Billy Maximoff (played by Joe Locke) was brought back to life.
After the ending of WandaVision, Billy’s soul escaped and took over the body of William Kaplan in a traumatic way. Billy then starts to learn about his origins.
This search leads him to Ralph Bohner (Evan Peters), who is not doing well, and eventually to Agatha Harkness (Kathryn Hahn).
Now that Agatha All Along has shared its big secret, many wonder how Billy returned to life and how it connects to his new powers.
The answers are found in the history of the Scarlet Witch’s children, which involves demons, changing reality, and a superhero team or two. This story is quite complicated, so Agatha All Along’s showrunner, Jac Schaeffer, and her team of writers had to simplify things for the series.
Billy and Tommy Maximoff’s Comic Birth and Rebirth Involved Demons and a Reality Shift
Billy Maximoff and his twin brother, Tommy, were born in Vision & Scarlet Witch #12, created by Steve Englehart and Richard Howell. Wanda Maximoff, also known as the Scarlet Witch, loved the Vision but wanted a family. With her mutant powers to change reality, she gave birth to twin boys.
What Wanda did not know was that she took souls from the demon Mephisto to create her sons, and Mephisto wanted those souls back. One of his agents, Master Pandemonium, eventually takes back Billy and Tommy’s souls. To help Wanda, Agatha Harkness wipes her memory of the twins.
During this story, Billy and Tommy briefly come back to life but disappear again when Doctor Strange defeats Wanda in a magical battle.
After Avengers: Disassembled, Bendis and Olivier Coipel continue the story in House of M. In this tale, Wanda’s brother, Pietro, who is also known as Quicksilver, convinces her to use her powers to create a world where their father, Magneto, rules over mutants.
However, when Wolverine and other heroes start to remember the real world and want to destroy the House of M, Wanda declares, “No more mutants!” This strips many mutants of their powers. What Wanda did not know was that her sons were reborn, and she had already met one of them.
Wiccan and Speed Join the Young Avengers
Billy Maximoff is reborn as William “Billy” Kaplan. He grows up loving the Avengers and dreams of being a hero. One day, he encounters the Scarlet Witch outside the gates of Avengers Mansion after a fight with some bullies. She encourages him to stand up for himself.
The next day, Billy stands up to a bully, but his hidden powers of changing reality awaken. This almost kills the bully. After this incident, Billy works hard to control his powers.
Still from Agatha All Along (Credit: Disney)
After the Avengers disband, Billy gets a chance to be a hero. Iron Lad, a mysterious young hero, recruits Billy, Elijah Bradley (the grandson of Black super-soldier Isaiah Bradley), and Teddy Altman (a shapeshifter) to form the Young Avengers.
The team quickly grows to include Kate Bishop, who takes on Clint Barton’s name of Hawkeye, Cassie Lang, who inherits her father Scott’s size-changing powers, and a young version of the Vision.
Tommy Shepard, who is known as Speed and can run very fast, also joins the team.
Billy is shocked when he sees how much he looks like Tommy. They soon realize that they are both the Scarlet Witch’s sons, reincarnated.
In this story, the Young Avengers search for the Scarlet Witch. During their journey, Billy and Tommy meet their grandfather, Magneto, and learn that Wanda is alive but does not remember her past actions. They also find out that she was set to marry Doctor Doom!
How ‘Agatha All Along’ and ‘WandaVision’ Streamline a Complicated Origin
Like many projects in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, WandaVision and Agatha All Along take stories from the comics and simplify them. Both Billy and Tommy are born just like in the comics, but in the series, they disappear when Wanda ends her hex in Westview.
Billy’s return to life also happens differently. William Kaplan is in a serious car accident, and during this event, Billy’s spirit enters William’s body. Unlike in the comics, Billy is aware of who he is, and his powers activate immediately, allowing him to read minds.
Many elements of Billy’s comic character are kept in the series. For example, he has a Jewish background and is in a loving gay relationship. Billy’s goals have also shifted. In the comics, he is searching for his mother.
However, in “Familiar by Thy Side,” he confesses that he wants to find Tommy because he feels that his brother is out there somewhere. This hints that the Marvel Cinematic Universe may adapt the Young Avengers story in the future, as many members of the team have appeared in either Marvel Studios or Marvel Television projects.
As Agatha All Along progresses, it may even tease the location of Speed. With the upcoming series VisionQuest, which will show more about the aftermath of WandaVision, it is clear that the Maximoff family will continue to play a significant role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
The Complicated Relationships of the Maximoff Family
The relationships within the Maximoff family are complex and filled with emotional struggles. Wanda Maximoff, as the mother of Billy and Tommy, has faced immense challenges throughout her life. Her powers, while extraordinary, have also caused pain and loss.
The trauma of losing her children, even if they are eventually reborn, affects her deeply. Wanda’s journey is marked by her desire for family and love, but her powers create obstacles that often lead to tragedy.
Billy and Tommy, on the other hand, face their own challenges. As young heroes, they deal with the expectations of being the children of the powerful Scarlet Witch. They also face the struggles of understanding their identities and powers.
Billy, in particular, grapples with the weight of his abilities and what it means to be part of a legacy that is both heroic and tragic. The connection between the brothers is strong, and their desire to reunite reflects the bond they share, despite the difficulties they have faced.
Billy’s Journey of Self-Discovery
Billy’s journey is not just about finding his brother; it is also about discovering who he is as a person and a hero. As he develops his powers, he learns to control them and use them for good. His experiences with the Young Avengers help him grow and understand the responsibility that comes with being a superhero. He learns that being a hero is not just about having powers but also about making choices that reflect his values and beliefs.
Billy’s identity as a Jewish character in the Marvel Universe adds another layer to his journey. He grapples with his cultural heritage and what it means to him personally. This aspect of his character allows for representation within the superhero genre, showcasing the diversity of experiences that exist in the world. It highlights the importance of identity and belonging in the lives of young heroes like Billy and Tommy.
The Role of Agatha Harkness
Agatha Harkness plays a crucial role in both WandaVision and Agatha All Along. She is a complex character who has a deep understanding of magic and the supernatural. Her interactions with Wanda and Billy reveal much about their powers and the nature of reality in the Marvel Universe. Agatha serves as both a mentor and an antagonist, guiding Wanda while also challenging her.
In “Familiar by Thy Side,” Agatha’s relationship with Billy becomes more significant. As he learns about his origins and powers, Agatha acts as a bridge between his past and present. She provides insights into the complexities of their abilities and the dangers they face. Agatha’s presence adds depth to the story, showing how past actions can affect the future and how characters must confront their histories to move forward.
The Significance of Family in the MCU
Family is a central theme in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and the story of the Maximoff family is no exception. The struggles, losses, and reunions within the family reflect broader themes of love, sacrifice, and redemption. Wanda’s desire for a family leads her down a path filled with both joy and sorrow. Her journey highlights the importance of connections and the impact of family ties on individual identity.
Still from Agatha All Along (Credit: Disney)
Billy and Tommy’s story also emphasizes the significance of family. Their bond as brothers drives their actions and decisions. The desire to find each other and understand their origins reflects the universal quest for belonging and connection. In the superhero context, this theme resonates strongly, as many heroes grapple with their roles within their families and the world.
Setting Up for Future Stories
As Agatha All Along unfolds, it sets the stage for potential future storylines within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The views of Billy’s powers, the search for Tommy, and the complicated dynamics within the Maximoff family hint at larger narratives that could emerge. With characters like Speed and Wiccan being introduced, fans speculate about the formation of the Young Avengers and the adventures they may go on together.
Additionally, the relationship between the Maximoffs and other heroes in the MCU opens up possibilities for team-ups and conflicts. The upcoming series, VisionQuest, promises to goes deeper into the fallout from goes deeper into WandaVision, potentially leading to more significant interactions and developments for the Maximoff family.
Fan Reactions and Theories
The release of Agatha All Along has sparked various fan reactions and theories about the direction of the story. Many viewers express excitement about the possibilities that lie ahead for Billy, Tommy, and Wanda. The connections to the Young Avengers have fans theorizing about how these characters might come together in future films or series.
Social media platforms are buzzing with discussions about the potential for new characters to be introduced and the implications of Billy’s resurrection. Fans are eager to see how the story unfolds and how the Maximoff family will show their complex history while facing new challenges.
Conclusion
The journey of Billy Maximoff, from his resurrection in Agatha All Along to his scheme of identity and powers, is a compelling narrative within the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
It showcases themes of family, loss, and self-discovery while setting the stage for future stories. As viewers continue to engage with the series, the impact of the Maximoff family’s journey will resonate deeply within the larger Marvel narrative.
In the end, Billy’s story reflects the power of hope and the importance of connections. Whether it is finding his brother, understanding his powers, or showing his identity, Billy’s journey is one of growth and resilience. As the MCU continues to evolve, the Maximoff family will undoubtedly play a crucial role in shaping the future of its stories.
New episodes of Agatha All Along are released on Wednesdays at 9 PM ET on Disney+ in the U.S.
