Welcome one and all to Multiversity’s very own ‘Witching Hour,’ in which we take a look at Netflix’s The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. Join me every Wednesday for a recap of the first season. We’re getting closer and closer to the end of the line and Sabrina has delved into some pretty dark stuff–raising the dead isn’t as easy as she thought it would be. But what could go wrong? Spoilers ahead.
1. Tommy Kinkle Lives! Sort of.
That’s right. This episode wastes no time getting to its focus. Through that dark magic Sabrina and her fellow witches performed Tommy Kinkle is alive. The episode opens after he has come back. Harvey looks like he’s gotten a puppy on Christmas when he tells her that Tommy has come back “somehow” though things get a little sketchy when he says “he should be talking and eating again soon.” Uh… What? I can’t tell if Ross Lynch is actually acting kind of badly, or if Harvey is supposed to really be in shock, but this episode doesn’t do either of them any favors. Harvey just comes off as a kind of an idiot, and what’s supposed to be his excitement, makes him look foolish.
Sabrina has the same reaction. There’s a sense of wrongness in the opening scene, when she sees Tommy for the first time. As the episode goes on, we discover that Tommy is nothing but a soulless husk. Tommy as Harvey knew him is dead. Harvey and Sabrina are the only people who seem to be in denial of this fact. Even when Harvey really starts to suspect things are amiss he still can’t find it in him to believe that his brother is nothing but a body. Ambrose wants to tell his aunties what Sabrina did, especially when she describes Tommy’s condition. She doesn’t really know, though. She says that she never really talked to Tommy but we can all see through that. Sabrina begs Ambrose to keep this between them, that when Zelda and Hilda find out, it’ll be like the rest of the town. Deep down, however we can tell that she knows something is terribly off about this whole situation. Hell, even Mr. Kinkle, who isn’t exactly father of the year, knows something’s off about his first born son. The truth is that Tommy’s soul is lost while his body remains on Earth. And the death that was promised last episode is slowly killing Agatha.
2. Unholy Godmother
Zelda and Father Blackwood continue their affair this episode and Zelda is loving it. She’s none too keen on sneaking around though. Blackwood mentions how he misses the old days when monogamy was strictly for mortals. Instead of agreeing with Blackwood about the polyamorous ways of witches of days past, she says she finds it special to suffer the pains and passion of unholy confession with a singular special someone. And Blackwood immediately changes the subject. We’ve seen Zelda do some bat shit crazy things. She’s often miserable living with her family and even admitted it in the last episode. But under that rough exterior, there lies a loving aunt and sister. She helped raise Sabrina out of tight situations already, and we know her literal nightmare is living life without Hilda. Despite being a stone cold bitch, Zelda does have a heart, and over the course of this past season we’ve seen glimpses of it, and if it breaks here, Miranda Otto does a wonderful job of convincing the audience that Zelda is completely fine with living as Blackwood’s mistress, even if she truly isn’t.
But Zelda is offered something other than a meaningful relationship. Father Blackwood still holds his wife’s transgressions against her and doesn’t really think she’ll have the spine to raise twin warlocks alone and asks Zelda to be their Nightmother–essentially a godmother for evil babies. In addition to that punch in the gut, Blackwood also offers Zelda his wife’s position at the Academy as the choir director. Through gritted teeth and (maybe) some satisfaction Zelda accepts both.
3. Hilda’s Hell Fury
Lucy Davis’s performance as Hilda has hit a high point. It’s is one of the best things about this show and I haven’t talked about her much. From the beginning she’s been nothing short of delightful. She brings a natural charm to her character with her cheeky one liners and tremendous otherworldly knowledge. Though she’s often there for some light hearted comedic relief, it’s clear that Hilda is an extremely powerful and practiced witch. There’s a scene in which two bullies are harassing Susie when Hilda intervenes by revealing some dark secrets about their past. She’s very sympathetic to the boys that she’s basically torturing with hidden truths, but she does it so whimsically that we don’t feel a sense of malice in her. Overall she’s one of the show’s hidden gems.
Continued belowHilda also has a couple heartbreaking moments with Sabrina and Hilda. She’s usually the lax aunt. She is always the first to defend Sabrina and her mistakes. This time, it’s clear that Sabrina has crossed the line. When Sabrina disrespectfully dismisses Zelda, Hilda calls her out immediately, now rushing to defend her sister. She asked Sabrina not to attempt a resurrection, told her not to even think about it, and yet Sabrina’s ego got in the way. What’s worse is that Hilda isn’t even raging like Zelda. You know when your parents tell you their “not angry, just disappointed?” Well that’s Hilda in this episode and it’s a punch to the gut for Sabrina. Once again, Sabrina’s overconfidence and youthful naivety work as both her greatest strength and weakness. She tries to get one of her family members to help her cross over into “mortal limbo,” a feat Hilda questions is even possible for Sabrina, and not a single one of them want to help her. Ambrose even says that no one will do so, to which Sabrina replies “Someone will.”
4. Stuck in Limbo
With Sabrina’s family teaching her a valuable lesson and letting her clean up her own mess so to speak, of course she’ll go to the one witch who has taught her some shit for help. Remember, real corruption is a subtle blade, as Ms. Wardwell said very early in the season. I bring that up because Wardwell has masterfully cemented herself into Sabrina’s life. She’s been the one in the shadows using Sabrina’s good intentions and constantly twisting them to her whims. Who gave Sabrina the Book of the Dead in the previous chapter? Maybe not directly, but she definitely put the idea in her head. With only an episode left, Ms. Wardwell’s plans are coming to a head, and she pushes her even further in this episode.
Wardwell explains to Sabrina that a monster known as ‘The Soul Eater’ will await her in Limbo, and it really doesn’t sound like something she wants to meet. Nevertheless, tethered to Ms. Wardwell, Sabrina ventures into an unknown abyss in search of Tommy’s lost soul. She instead finds her mother! Diana has some ominous words for Sabrina about witches taking her. After their brief encounter, Sabrina finds Tommy but it’s all for naught and The Soul Eater catches Tommy, ensuring his demise.
Wardwell encourages Sabrina to tell Harvey the truth, hoping it will sever her mortal ties for good.
5. “Sabrina, You’ve Done Enough”
I kind of figured this was coming from the beginning, ever since Sabrina first told Harvey she was a witch. Their relationship was always destined to fail. The whole plot is centered on Sabrina’s dual lives and how they clash with one another. After telling Harvey the hard truth, he asks her to leave and promises to take care of Tommy himself. Naturally she’s heartbroken. Once again I have to give all credit to Kiernan Shipka. She sells Sabrina’s remorse and broken heart in excellent fashion. Sabrina is left to walk home alone to Zelda, now, with the love of her young life truly knowing her and rejecting her. We also are shown that Roz and Susie both know, or suspect, that Sabrina is a witch and are left pondering just what that means. The episode ends exactly how Zelda predicted, Sabrina running to her for guidance. Only it’s not guidance, it’s emotional support. Zelda, who can never say no to Sabrina, holds her while Sabrina cries into the night.
With Sabrina ties to the mortal realm slipping away Ms. Wardwell can make her move. Things are set in motion that can’t be undone. Come back next week for the season finale.
