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. “Chapter Two” showed us just how grounded Sabrina is in the Mortal world. She chose not to sign her name in the Book of The Beast. So what consequences await the teenage witch? Be warned, there are spoilers ahead.
1. Fascism Afoot
At least that’s what Roz says regarding Baxter High’s curriculum and book policy. It seems that there was a “soft purge” of “bad books” a few years back(which by the way, WHAT YEAR IS IT?! The Bluest Eye was published in 1970). Naturally, W.I.C.C.A. gets its chance to finally do some good, this time without Sabrina’s magic, cause how often do bad things happen due to magic? (See the Weird Sisters in “Chapter 2.”) After Roz starts handing out flyers supporting the removed books, classic pieces of great literature, Principal Hawthorne almost appears out of thin air to tell the girls that he has made some calls so the school board could review if the book is appropriate. The last thing this guy needs is students voicing their opinions. This subplot is an example of the show delving into social themes and it sets up another way for Sabrina to get hurt. As it turns out W.I.C.C.A. is successful, or will be in three months, and the school will review the grievance. Only as we find out later, Roz has myopic atrophy, which will cause her to go completely blind. “I even counted how many books I can realistically read before it’s too late. That’s why every single one is important,” Roz says. We’ll come back to this later, but we see Sabrina isn’t the only one facing adversity in her world. Again, I want to stress that her connection to her friends is tethering her to the mortal world. She draws her strength from her friends and uses that strength to continue fighting, even in the face of eternal damnation.
2. Guilty Until Proven Innocent
That’s right. You know how we have this saying “innocent until proven guilty?” Well that’s not how Witch Law operates. Witch Law not only affects Sabrina though. No, she’s been summoned to the Court of Witches with Hilda and Zelda. As Sabrina’s legal guardians, they are punished as well. Until the trial ends, Zelda and Hilda are stripped of their powers and immortality, causing the sisters to rapidly age. Hilda’s teeth begin falling out. Of course,there are some dark, but humorous scenes because of this. Zelda becomes more deeply embarrassed and pissed off than Hilda, wearing a veil and sunglasses to a midnight trial. She scolds Sabrina and tells her that no Spellman has ever been summoned to the Court of Witches. Zelda even asks Father Blackwood if she could settle things with him and The Dark Lord herself. He assures Zelda that as long as Sabrina admits her wrongdoing and signs the Book of the Beast, all will be well. When has Blackwood ever assured someone of something being well again?
The Court of Witches is bananas, though. There sits three “dishonorable” judges and Father Blackwood is Sabrina’s prosecutor But what about her defense? Good ol’ Ambrose sets Sabrina up with Daniel Webster, a man we learn sold his soul to the devil much like Keanu Reeves did in The Devil’s Advocate. In fact Webster’s story is the same exact story as The Devil’s Advocate, except one of Baxter’s wicked convicts viciously kills his daughter.
We get confirmation that Zelda is completely awful. When Sabrina asks her aunt if she has a choice in the matter she says “No, not really,” and boy she isn’t kidding. It turns out that Zelda and Sabrina’s father pledged Sabrina’s soul to The Dark Lord three days after she was born, a horrible betrayal by one of the women who raised her. Thankfully Hilda is awesome. She tells her sister she’s not the only one with secrets and produces a Catholic baptismal certificate, dated a day before Sabrina’s father and Zelda pledged her to the devil. Hilda was the witness. This essentially gives Sabrina a free pass, as she has two worlds claiming her, one of light and one of dark. You get where I’m going with this. Sabrina will keep her mortal life, but will also attend the Academy of Unseen Arts. She, like her father has forged a third path for herself, though it may have cost Webster his soul. He tells her to take advantage of this opportunity, that no one has ever beat the devil, but maybe, just maybe she could.
Continued below3. Ambrose Is Flirting With Danger
Another side plot focuses on Ambrose, Connor the dead warlock’s familar, an iguana and a mysterious young man named Luke. Luke claims he’s a warlock as well, had dated Connor a few times, and after some cheeky dialogue and a few scenes later he creepily appears in Ambrose’s room, and the two proceed to sleep together, while the iguana seemingly. The next morning Ambrose awakes alone, but Luke’s number is carved into Ambrose’s ceiling. The iguana is dead, and it looks pretty disgusting. Despite the iguana looking perfectly healthy, Ambrose links its death to that of his master’s. In fact, Zelda tells him earlier in the episode that there is no greater agony for a witch’s familiar, something that could have been throw away line, however it could have a deeper connection to this young man Luke. Maybe he’s actually the one who killed Connor and targeting Ambrose next.
4. Harvey and Kinkle Mines
So just like Sabrina, Harvey has some family issues going on. Harvey’s old man is a piece of shit. He calls the local comic book shop owner a pervert after Harvey expresses some interest in working in the store, and gives Harvey a “real man’s job” slaving away in those mines.
Harvey doesn’t like those mines though. He knows what lives below. It’s likely The Devil’s Doorway beneath the Kinkle Mines is actually a gateway to hell (just like Sunnydale, eyy Buffy fans?), and Harvey has seen the devil face to face. He’s so afraid of the mines that he freezes up and Harvey’s brother bites the bullet and spares him the manual labor and possible death. This only provokes Mr. Kinkle more, and one way or another, I think Harvey will see the Beast again.
Harvey also sees a little more of Sabrina too as the two have a teen romance moment in the woods. It’s strongly suggested that the two love birds see all of each other for the first time, as Sabrina has to check if she has a “Witch’s Mark,” something she’s really unaware if she has or not. You would think that with two midwives raising her, they could have sealed that plot hole but we need that Sabrina/Harvey flame burning bright to entice our younger audiences, right? If anything it’s endearing, and foreboding at the same time. This sweet little high school romance isn’t going to end well, right? Right?
5. Ms. Wardwell
Sabrina has gone toe to toe with Father Blackwood. She defeated the Devil in court. Things are looking up for her and her friends, huh? No one would ever have guessed that the Devil would have an ace up his sleeve. Except Webster. She should really heed his advice, but she’s 16 and who wants to listen to some old guy? Ms. Wardwell has been manipulating Sabrina since “Chapter One” and she really has some interesting moments to shine in this episode. Unlike Blackwood, she gets that Sabrina is tied to the mortal world by her friends. Where Blackwood seeks to bend her to his will or break her, Wardwell tells him she’s different than he is. He is a man who uses “brute force” to get what he wants. She tells him earlier that she feasts on men as the two rivals compete to deliver Sabrina to their master. “But real corruption is a thin, subtle blade,” Wardwell tells Blackwood. She’s already messing with her friends. She causes Roz to see herself go blind. The moment is quick and is a little creepy, it’s “subtle”. She forms a secret book club and menacingly tells everyone that she has something in store for each of them. The girls think she’s referring to books, but we know she’s got diabolical plans in store for Sabrina’s friends. Moving forward, I think it’s safe to assume that while Blackwood will be a thorn in Sabrina’s side, Wardwell is the real villain, the one who gains Sabrina’s trust and will stab her in the back.
So tune in next week as Sabrina goes to Witch School. With most of the coven screaming that she was guilty, I’m sure she’ll have no problems at all.
