Label Volunteer, Isaac Cave brings you a spellbinding review on the new Netflix Original The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.
Hands up if you remember watching Sabrina the Teenage Witch as a child? Based on the classic character from the original “Archie” comics, it gained a bit of a cult following (no pun intended) back in the day and those of you who are familiar (again no pun intended) will find Netflix’s new series starring the half mortal, half witch to be a blast.
The arc of the entire series follows Sabrina (played brilliantly by Kiernan Shipka) as she prepares for her dark baptism while selling her soul to Satan to become a fully-fledged member of her coven. **Spoiler alert** She refuses (typical Sabrina) and spends the rest of the series attempting to outwit the Dark Lord, maintain her friendships at school and uncover the mystery of her deceased parents. Now, I was convinced that this entire show was going to suck because as a 21-year-old misery guts with no interest in teenage high school dramas, I wasn’t exactly the target audience for it.
However, I have to say that this show did not pull any punches and wasn’t afraid to dive into its horror setting by raising the dead, making pacts with demons and featuring cannibalism as well as throwing some emotional turmoil in there like the world’s worst cake ingredients. One episode in particular shows Sabrina crossing lines she shouldn’t, and it has awful, gut-wrenching consequences. Before I continue, I should discuss the satanic themes in this show. Being the major religion and source of magic for the characters, it is handled excellently and is very well balanced, Sabrina often showcases the flaws and cracks in the system around her as well as the power she can wield as a result of it.
Despite the negative aspects associated with satanic worship, Sabrina herself is a kind hearted and committed friend as well as a cunning and devious trickster and it blends together beautifully. The sets, cinematography and characters all do a wonderful job adding to the plot. The set design clearly takes inspiration from “Riverdale” and “The Addams family” and Sabrina’s aunts larger than life personalities just means the show gets better and better.
In summary, The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina is a spellbinding watch from start to finish, with well-rounded characters and more twists and turns than a pile of spaghetti. This show will keep you enchanted right till the very end. Also, Salem the cat makes a return and that’s cool.
Featured image by: Omeiza Haruna
