A Marvel-ous Mitzvah

There’s plenty I can say about Agatha All Along. Like how it made me care for an antiheroine who murders other witches. Or how, despite being a spin-off of WandaVision, it stands on its own. Or even how its lyrical motif is a banger, which shouldn’t be surprising when the songwriters penned Frozen. All of this is great, but my money’s on a scene I think deserves more praise: the Bar Mitzvah in Episode 6. Because while I may have gripes, which I’ll cover too, it’s the most authentic bit of Jewish representation in The MCU to-date.

It’s no secret that, even with comics being started by them, Jewish representation in The MCU’s sparse. There are many Jewish superheroes in comic books, but you wouldn’t know that with how frequently they’re scrubbed of their roots on film. This is true of Wanda Maximoff, an antiheroine who was made a generic, Eastern European witch in The MCU. Nothing against Elizabeth Olson, she did a fantastic job humanizing her, but that lack of authenticity was always a sore spot. Though I’m getting ahead of myself…

The role of Teen in Agatha All Along was routinely teased. Even his true name was as a mystery, such that it was blocked with a sigil. So when it was revealed halfway through, I thought that’d be the show’s biggest ace in the hole. I was proven wrong with the next episode, which delved into his backstory. And it began with a Bar Mitzvah.

(FYI, from here on in there’ll be spoilers.)

It’s clear the writers did their homework. The Bar Mitzvah wasn’t Orthodox, judging by the female rabbi and mixed seating, but it didn’t matter. Not only was the Torah reading authentic, the recitations of the blessings and the sound of the words were spot-on. It’s not easy mastering the guttural sounds of Hebrew, especially since there aren’t English equivalents, but actor Joe Locke nailed it. He wanted to be as accurate as possible.

Another aspect that was so great was the afterparty. Yes, it was overly-extravagant. And yes, the kid’s family had way too much money. But that’s how Bar Mitzvahs are nowadays. They’ve become a rite of passage, even rivalling weddings. Considering the vibe of the show proper is magic, it also made sense that there’d be a Taro card booth there. Also, it had a “Hava Nagila” chair dance, and a Jewish celebration’s never complete without one!

The last point that really worked is naming the character William Kaplan. The writers could’ve easily been lazy and used a generic last name. Nothing against the Cohens and Steins of the world, but they’re overrepresented as Jewish names. Having a name like Kaplan shows the writers weren’t afraid to think a little. Plus, for whatever reason, Kaplan fits him.

That’s not to say the Bar Mitzvah couldn’t have been improved upon. The most-glaring omission is the lack of a recognizable trop for the Torah reading. I know that’d have required extra time and planning, but a Torah trop is how most Jews read the Torah. There are a variety of melodies to choose from, but the Torah, like a good song, needs one to complete it. Could the show not have relied on the generic Ashkenazi trop? It’s not as melodic as alternatives, but it’s common amongst Ashkenazi Jewry, which William appears to be.

Another issue I have is less the show and more the casting. Joe Locke, perfect as he is, isn’t Jewish. He’s Manx Christian. He’s openly-gay, which fits his character on-screen and in the comics, but a Christian playing a Jewish character instantly loses points for me. Jews are different culturally than Christians, complete with different life experiences, so a Christian playing a Jewish teenager is disappointing. Could The MCU not find a gay, Jewish actor?

This isn’t the first time The MCU has done this. Remember Moon Knight? Remember when Marc Spector had an emotional breakdown at his mother’s Shiva, which caused his alter-ego to take over? It was a great moment, showing Marc’s complicated relationship with his mom, but Oscar Isaac’s not Jewish. I love him as an actor, and he nailed it there, but it highlights how superhero movies consider Judaism an identity you can switch off at will. As any Jew would tell you, even a convert, that’s not true.

But that speaks to a bigger issue. Yes, The MCU has made progress on the representation front recently, and it’s yielded mostly-positive results. But with Jewish representation, it still has a long way to go. As we’ve seen with Sabra, The MCU needs to not be ashamed of its roots. It needs to fully-embrace them.

It sucks that table scraps are what excite me these days. Like with Marc Spector’s Shiva breakdown, William Kaplan having a Bar Mitzvah and reading from the Torah isn’t enough. The franchise needs to take bigger risks. This means more Jewish moments and more Jews playing Jewish characters. It’s no different than with other minorities.

Does that mean I’m unhappy with the Bar Mitzvah? Of course not! Pathetic as it may be, I’ll take whatever I can get! But it’s not enough. And until moments like these are commonplace, it’ll continue to not be enough.