The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina was recently released on Netflix, to thousands of rave reviews on social media.
Who would have thought that a cute sitcom about a teenage witch learning how to handle her powers could grow into such a hair-raising, spine-tingling show featuring devil-worshipping witches?
I remember watching the original 1996 series – Sabrina The Teenage Witch – when I was a child. I loved the humour. I loved Salem the talking cat. I loved Sabrina’s signature finger pointing and winking. I became obsessed. And I can see it happening all over again!
But although both series are based on the Archie Comics character Sabrina, these two shows could not be more different: different directors, different themes and different mood.
Unfortunately none of the original cast makes an appearance in the new version. But maybe Melissa Joan Hart – who played Sabrina in the first series – will guest star in a future episode. Or Ryan Reynolds, who played Seth in the 1996 Sabrina The Witch movie. A girl can hope, right?
The storyline of the new version manages to strike a perfect balance between being cute and eerie. Relationships are at the heart of the show. There’s the one between Sabrina (Kiernan Shipka) and her boyfriend Harvey Kinkle (Ross Lynch). Then there are Sabrina’s relationships with her best friends Ros Walker (Jaz Sinclair) and Susie Putnam (Lachlan Watson). The relationship she has with her aunts – Hilda (Lucy Davis) and Zelda (Miranda Otto) – is more complicated, but still loving. Added to that there’s all that Witch Coven business that she must figure out. And this time round the more sophisticated special effects, masks, make-up and costumes help make the show even more riveting and thrilling to watch.
Sabrina herself is still a lovable character. She’s brave enough to stand up against the Dark Lord, and her occasional bullies The Weird Witches – particularly to protect her friends, who she will do anything for.
The other characters are equally entertaining. Sabrina’s cousin Ambrose Spellman (Chance Perdomo) is easy to fall in love with – what with his witty remarks and charming smile. And Prudence Night – one of the Weird Witches – manages to both repeatedly bully Sabrina and yet win your affection.
All in all, by managing to be both chilling and full of warmth, the new series succeeds in being the follow-up that Sabrina fans deserve.
