This isn’t a chilling adventure, nor is it all farce! Is anything scarier for Sabrina than school life?
Sabrina The Teenage Witch No. 1
Writer: Kelly Thompson
Artists: Veronica Fish & Andy Fish
Letterer: Jack Morelli
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Considering how many of the stars of Archie Comics debuted during the “Golden Age” of the 1940s, it almost seems modern to run into their Silver Age creations. Sabrina the Teenage Witch debuted in 1962’s Archie’s Madhouse No. 22, which was the same year that Spider-Man and Thor kicked off their careers at Marvel. Yet out of all of Archie’s cast, Sabrina may have reached the highest levels of mass media success over the past 20 years. In fact, until Riverdale debuted on The CW in 2017, it was the young Miss Spellman who enjoyed prolonged network TV success in the modern era.
Image by Archie Comics
Much like the rest of the Archie gang, Sabrina’s first stab at small success was in a cartoon in 1970 thanks to Filmation. Yet this was nothing compared to the success of 1996’s Sabrina The Teenage Witch TV series. Beginning as a TV movie and starring Melissa Joan Hart, it ran for 7 seasons across two networks (ABC and The WB). It also spun off into two similarly themed animated series and affected the comic book version greatly. Sabrina’s comics have seen almost magical levels of imagination. Forty-three issues of her main series became a manga story by Tania Del Rio, while a horror reboot, The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, has inspired a Netflix TV series.
Image by Archie Comics
Just How Will the Teenage Witch Recreate Herself This Time?
Kelly Thompson, of Jem & the Holograms and Hawkeye fame, has been tasked with relaunching the comic as a mini-series in conjunction with Archie Comics’ “New Riverdale” push from 2015. It was the editorial movement which brought on Mark Waid’s historic (and wonderful) three year run on Archie. While Sabrina had guest starred in three issues of Jughead, she hasn’t had a piece of the action yet. The main goal was to recreate her in a way which was neither all chills, nor endless comedy.
Image by Archie Comics
In other words, not many shades removed from most mainstream superhero comics, or other licensed comics. The trick would come from Thompson’s recreation of the cast and their world, along with her trademark dialogue. The end result is the start of a five issue series that looks like a magically fun ride. It begins with a spooky scene which foreshadows the start of Sabrina Spellman’s first day at Greendale High School. She barely wants out of bed until Salem comes along.
Image by Archie Comics
Salem the cat is arguably almost as famous as Sabrina herself. The version voiced by Nick Bakay from the sitcom and cartoons of the turn of the century is usually the version most associated with him. He was the sassy, talking cat of comic books who was memorable long before Lying Cat of Saga came around. In fact he’s one of the only members of Sabrina’s cast who debuted alongside her. A former warlock cursed to a feline existence, he dolls out some wisdom and tough love while also living out the life of a cat. That means shoving his butt in people’s face, and dreading clothes. He naturally is named after the town most associated with witchcraft.
Image by Archie Comics
Is Anything Scarier Than High School?
Sabrina also has a non-traditional family beyond a talking cat. She lives with her aunts, Hilda and Zelda, who unlike her are “full” witches. They have gone through various incarnations and recreations both before and after the TV show. In this incarnation, Zelda appears as the somewhat stilted face of a modern corporate sorceress. She dresses in a power suit and is all about yucky vegan drinks. Hilda is more down to earth, offering a Pop Tart as well as some advice about school.
Image by Archie Comics
Like many teenagers, Sabrina sees the first day of high school as being worse than a hellish parallel dimension. Unlike many teenagers, Sabrina has good reason as well as comparative experience! She also strives to not get herself into trouble by using her hexes and spells recklessly. While she may do it to change her hair from white to blonde, this is only in the name of fitting in and avoiding trouble. Unfortunately, that gets hard when she’s greeted by the “mean girl” of the school.
Image by Archie Comics
Fortunately, things pick up not long after as Sabrina runs into one of the hunks of Greendale High. It’s none other than Harvey Kinkle, who in the comics is her longtime beau. In the traditional incarnations, he’s oblivious to her status as a witch, but there’s no telling where things will shake out in this mini-series. He manages to be sweet enough that Sabrina is willing to shake off her mean girl experience to flirt with him. Yet he’s hardly the only boy who gains her attention!
Image by Archie Comics
“Splat” Goes the Bully!
As much as Sabrina may loathe the conformity in “mortal” school, she may hate the dull curriculum even more. In particular, “American history.” As a witch, Sabrina is aware of the power that history can hold — sorcery is ancient, after all. Yet when she encounters a textbook full of half-truths at best, which is over twenty years out of date at worst, she can’t resist putting her own magical spin on it. The only problem is which “truth” is she revealing? It often is the eye of the beholder.
Image by Archie Comics
While Sabrina sees her spells as harmless ways to get through her day, or quietly mete out a little justice in a mundane mortal world, Salem had a point. Things tend to start small and then escalate in ways that can’t be imagined. Part of this begins when Sabrina meets the other hunk of the day, Ren. Unlike Harvey, he seems to be fully aware of how handsome he is, and seeks to bedazzle the young witch with his knowledge of apples. They truly are the fruit of temptation, aren’t they?
Image by Archie Comics
What isn’t the fruit of temptation is gym class. It’s Sabrina’s second most hated class, especially since it gives an excuse for lamer clothing and physical violence. She also has had enough of watching one girl get picked on, and decides to make a friend. Sabrina may be the “new girl,” but not even she is as low down the social pecking order than Jessa Chiang, frequent target of “alpha girl” Radka Ramone in terms of grief. And when Sabrina stands up for her, things get ugly fast.
Image by Archie Comics
They Ain’t Afraid of No Ghosts?
Seeing Radka get on her last nerve by using a dodge-ball as a weapon, Sabrina casts a hex on her. Yet it isn’t merely to get the statuesque oppressor to trip in some mud; it’s to reveal her “true” evil and dark self. If anything sounds like a spell which may have unintended consequences, it’s that one. The most immediate consequence is spending the first day of the semester in detention, alongside Jess and Radka. Sabrina also learns that dreamy Ren is the brother of the bullying Radka.
Image by Archie Comics
A day of detention means a late night exit from the school, and through the woods. The story up to this point has been fairly comedic, as well as dedicated to introducing the cast. But it’s time to go full circle, with Sabrina staring down a monster. Is it a Wendigo, a Jersey Devil, or what? What matters is that it’s hurt Sabrina, and now she’s in a panic trying to protect herself and her friend. But what is the “truth” behind the monster, and is Sabrina somehow herself to blame for it?
Image by Archie Comics
Kelly Thompson may have signed an exclusive contract with Marvel Comics, but that hasn’t stopped her from doing this. Maybe it was in the works long before the ink was dry, or the contract excludes mini-series. Regardless, as great a job as Thompson is doing for “the house of ideas,” it is equally fun — if not more so — to see her take on some other franchises. Her run on Nancy Drew was brilliant yet short, cut off too soon. At least with a mini series structure, the climax to this arc will feel more organic.
Image by Archie Comics
It Probably Would Take Magic to Increase Most Schools’ Budgets!
Thompson does with Sabrina what she does with many franchises she spearheads — get to the heart of the character while modernizing the details. In the case of Sabrina, it’s the clash between her life as a witch and her life as an “ordinary” teenage girl. It’s the pressure of heritage versus social norms which has been the backdrop to many characters, from Superman to Kamala Khan. While Sabrina is a bit shy and introverted, Thompson gives her some sass as well as a strong moral code.
Image by Archie Comics
The issue does a brilliant job of summing up who Sabrina is and what her dynamic is about in less than twenty pages. Her family is introduced, as is the main conflict. Sabrina earns a friend, an enemy, and finds herself in the middle of a love triangle. Add in a monster appearance and Salem stealing all of his scenes, and this is a very economical first issue which leaves the reader wanting more. It is easy to relate to Sabrina and the challenges she faces, as well as the voice with which she responds. Sure, all of us would love having magic in high school, but isn’t all fun and games.
Image by Archie Comics
Veronica Fish delivers some incredible art, alongside co-artist Andy Fish. She was the second artist on Waid’s Archie run, picking up where Fiona Staples left off. And here, she has clearly not missed a trick. Fish has some terrific redesigns for characters originally co-created by the legendary Dan DeCarlo, making them recognizable yet contemporary. Sabrina, as always, dresses like a modern teenager, and the diverse cast makes the high school feel relevant, even though it’s set in a neighboring town from Riverdale (the symbol of “small town America”).
Image by Archie Comics
Is This Comic so Good, It’s Downright Supernatural?
There is hardly any flaw here. Some readers could probably have used more of Salem, but it is wise to be sparing with him initially. Like many “cool pet” characters, he can easily take over an entire story from overuse. Come to think of it, Thompson includes pets in nearly every run she does, whether canon or otherwise. Lucky the dog showed up in Hawkeye, and Jeff the Land-Shark is regaling readers in West Coast Avengers. Even Gambit has some cats in Mr. & Mrs X!
Image by Archie Comics
All in all, this is just about everything anyone could ask for in the debut of a reboot. It has a lot of fun dialogue, terrific art and designs, and it quickly establishes itself. Able to mix both comedy with suspense, it is the take on Sabrina which isn’t seeped in horror, yet isn’t an endless slapstick routine. In other words, a run which could be accessible to readers big and small, young and old. It isn’t magic which makes this a stellar debut, just a creative team with a solid vision and almost enchanted execution. Just what spell will Sabrina cast next month?