The Rundown: This adaptation of Sabrina takes notes from the 2014 comic reimagining from Archie Horror and the 90s TV sitcom, running them into some new and awesome directions. Where the show doesn’t deepen the lore of the old show, it reinvents aspects to connect all the different residents of Greendale to the larger plot.
I will admit that before this show my experience with the story of Sabrina was caught in occasional reruns of the show on TV, and in long-forgotten copies of Archie comics that I’d find in the magazine racks at the houses of my parents’ friends. Still, I always loved the concept and there was a charm to the depiction of Sabrina and her wise-cracking cat. Her struggle to hide all the wacky magical shenanigans from her mundane boyfriend Harvey. Setting arcane magics loose in the house. It was charming, supernatural, and full of sitcom-y shenanigans that were familiar (the house has been set on fire by a runaway demon! Need to clean it up before my aunts get home! Oh no!) but unique in that supernatural way that only the tale of Greendale’s lone teenage witch could provide.
Netflix’s new show, set in the Riverdale universe, seeks to recapture the magic of the wholesome town of Greendale, but bring it up to the quality of the long-form narrative television we’ve been privy to this past decade. Sabrina Spellman is the only half-witch in Greendale, and her 16th birthday is fast approaching. This Halloween she will have her dark baptism and take her place amongst her aunts’ coven, leaving the mortal world behind. Despite her reservations, Sabrina doesn’t want to give up the magical power she’s enjoyed her whole life to remain fully mortal, and her father’s legacy in the world of witches calls to her. Despite having to give it all up on her birthday, Sabrina is determined to enjoy the company of her mortal friends and boyfriend for as long as possible before she has to leave it all behind.
While I was not quite sure what to make of this new show, another attempt to take what was the light-hearted tone of the Archie comics universe and make it ‘real’ or ‘edgy’, Sabrina is able to retain some of the light-hearted tone of the original. It does this while also juxtaposing it with some really spooky stuff. Yes, the Spellman’s are witches, but these witches make blood sacrifices while wearing large black hats, they cannibalize one of their own while reciting humdrum religious oaths. Painting witchery in this strangely religious light gives structure to some of the old show’s witchier elements.
The Spellman’s are on the outskirts of witch society, sometimes receiving the head of the local coven, Father Blackwood, for dinner. Here they are rebuked for not being evil enough, their blood sacrifices are do, and please pass the salt. The entire witch coven is painted as a religious counterpart to the Christian church, following Satan instead of, as they call him, ‘the false god’. As someone with a religious background I was fascinated by all the questions and scenarios the show presents. Most religions have a bloody history, but few are as blatantly savage as the suggested history of the witch religion.
A large theme of the show is choice. What do the choices we make say about us? Is something questionable done for love acceptable? What is the obligation of powers wielded, if any? All of this is in a context of sixteen-year-olds with access to dark and forbidden magics. At points in the show it feels like watching a story about a teenager who was given the nuclear codes. These are emotional, hormonal teenagers and they are able to wield the primal powers of the universe. As you’d expect, it doesn’t always go so well.
This school of witches is full of other playfully evil characters. Amidst the mundane trappings of a high school are books bound by human skin. While the very modern students suggest wanton murderous intent, some of the more extreme aspects seem to be beyond them. That is, until an act of savagery reminds you that these are people who have dedicated their lives to Satan. It all comes together to form a compelling world full of interesting and engaging characters. Each character’s motivation ties them to the town, or to Sabrina, or to her mortal friends. The conflicting tones from mundane teenager life to the savagery of blood magics is what gives the show its unique hook, and I was hooked for all of it.
A story like this cannot be told without some great performances. Michelle Gomez is killer as Madam Satan, trying to corrupt Sabrina to the side of Satan. Kiernan Shipka as Sabrina brings all the innocence of the character to life, while still giving a performance that shows you just how far she’ll go to protect the ones she loves. Richard Coyle as Father Faustus Blackwood is almost comical but can quickly remind you that he’s one of the most powerful warlocks alive. All of it comes together to create a spellbinding story about childhood innocence crossed with interdimensional peril.
Chilling Adventures of Sabrina keeps the premise of a teenage witch trying to manage two worlds and drives it with pure emotion. The relationships between the characters are what drive the narrative, and this allows the show to get caught in some of the same kitschy sitcom situations, but with an overarching emotional thread that leads you along to the next juicy plot point in the larger narrative. I honestly don’t know how big fans of the originals will take this reinterpretation, but I was all in from episode one.