Slowly but surely, Sabrina the Teenage Witch is approaching her sixteenth birthday. Meanwhile, a sinister creature is making her way toward Greendale, with every step uprooting and destroying anything close to a normal life. Robert Aguirre-Sacasa and Robert Hack return to the darker, more eerie world of “Sabrina” and holy cow it’s fantastic.
Written by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa
Illustrated by Robert HackAfter the shocking revelations of last issue, Sabrina’s mortal boyfriend Harvey doesn’t quite seem himself. In fact, he doesn’t seem human. His body’s there, but his soul is… elsewhere. When the Witches’ Council refuses to help her, Sabrina turns to Madame Satan for comfort, playing right into her evil schemes. This dark re-imagining of everyone’s favorite teen witch continues!
Of course, the thing that everyone is going to want to talk about is the sixth month gap between “Sabrina” issues 1 and 2. I’ll admit when I found out this book was finally coming back, I found my first copy filed away in the back of a short box with other comics that might or might not continue. (“Sandman Overture”; “Orc Stain.”) And when you have something that’s been delayed for so long, when such a huge amount of time passes with neither word nor whisper of its existence, rumors start to appear. In the letters page, Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa admits to a “myriad of reasons” why this book was delayed: he apologizes for it but doesn’t elaborate, though I suspect part of this “Archie Comics” relaunch had something to do with the delay.
And when the book is finally announced, our expectations start to rise and we approach the thing with like astronomical anticipation.
Part of me definitely can see some frustration with story elements in “The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina” #2. Aguirre-Sacasa devotes the first fourteen pages to Madam Satan as she crosses the country, seeking vengeance on those who she feels wronged her. We don’t actively see Sabrina doing anything until a dream sequence, and the book has little interest in exploring her life as a teenage witch. It’s slowly paced, based more on mood and atmosphere and evoking eeriness than pummeling you with jump scares or scary sequences. But I think we also need to remember that what we want from a story isn’t what’s best for that story, and judging from these first two issues, Robert Aguirre-Sacasa and Robert Hack definitely have a strong idea about what’s best for this story.
The Archie Horror “Sabrina” has been far more concerned with atmosphere, mood, and tension, anyway. The slow pace and building dread help make moments like Madam Satan revealing her hellish face all the more gruesome and terrifying. Her path of destruction and revenge in the first half of the book (because, hey, the wait may have been long, but it’s 26 pages of story, and Aguirre-Sacasa and Hack try to pack as much into the narrative as they can — so it also feels more substantial and fulfilling) helps build up a sense of danger and tension for Sabrina as Madam Satan makes it to Greendale.
“Sabrina” strikes me as sort of Buffy the Vampire Slayer by way of Rosemary’s Baby. Growing up obviously plays a huge part of what’s happening in the story, with Aguirre-Sacasa and Hack finding a lot to explore with the high school setting. There’s a huge emphasis on Sabrina turning sixteen and having to deal with accepting the Dark Lord and also attending the school dance with her boyfriend, Harvey. She levitates while sleeping, is embarrassed by her aunts, and receives conflicting advice from her family and friends. She’s the end product of all these big decisions her ancestors have made, and her own decisions will have consequences and repercussions that you can tell Aguirre-Sacasa is having the best time setting up.
There’s a strong humor to it, too, but one that fits better within the context of the narrative. What I like better about this book than the other offering from the Archie Horror line, is that Aguirre-Sacasa and Hack don’t approach the book like one big joke. “Afterlife with Archie” has been fun and clever and featured some genuinely scary moments, but I feel like so much of how that book works is modeled on a wink-wink-nudge-nudge familiarity with the Archie universe. The humor in “Sabrina” works to help lead you through the tensions and anxieties that come from a horror title. That way, Aguirre-Sacasa and Hack can sell Madam Satan stealing some girl’s face with the same intensity as Sabrina lost in a dream-wood.
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Robert Hack, though, is where this book’s at. He uses dark, semi-sketchy lines for his figures, which gel well with the autumnal colors — they look like they were watercolored to me, and that imperfection and inconsistency contribute strongly to the mood. He doesn’t go overboard with his staging, with having characters burst out of the frames or panels stacked on top of each other or with these relentlessly perspective-driven images. He’s not afraid to go off-model, especially if he feels that it will help deliver the narrative stronger. He can turn in sometimes goofy images like a pair of eyes hovering over a town or two high schoolers making out on the bleachers and you feel like both are appropriate and work for the story. Small details showcase his attention to detail: Madam Satan walking away from scenes of chaos with the same slight grin on her face; the Sabrina clan at breakfast, all dressed up and ready for the day, except for Cousin Ambrose, disheveled and in boxer shorts; and his eyes, those simple two lines that carry all the excitement and terror and confusion occurring in this book. The dude is turning in some top notch work and every single page of this comic is gorgeous and successful.
It’s clear Aguirre-Sacasa and Hack have a longer, more sustained narrative in play for Sabrina, and their work so far on it has been beyond exceptional. I feel this is easily one of the best horror comics, and definitely one of the coolest all-around comics, you’ll find. Turn yourself over to this world.
Final Verdict: 9.4 – “Sabrina” #2 ups the horror game and delivers an assured and expertly delivered sustained narrative of terror.
