On the eve of her sixteenth birthday, the young sorceress Sabrina Spellman finds herself at a crossroads, having to choose between an unearthly destiny and her mortal boyfriend, Harvey. But a foe from her family's past has arrived in Greendale, Madame Satan, and she has her own deadly agenda. Archie Comics' latest horror sensation starts here! For TEEN+ readers. Compiles the first six issues of the ongoing comic book series Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.
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This was a bit of a disappointment for me and I am really bummed about that because I thought this was a guaranteed 4/5 star read for me. I thought it was going to be such a favorite of mine because I am super pumped for the show and because "the book is better than the adaptation" is a rule that proves to be true more often than not, I thought this was obviously going to be amazing. And now I am actually a little worried about my future enjoyment of the show, depending on how close they stay to the original text. However, I feel like I need to be transparent and say I haven't read any of the Archie comics, I am not into the Riverdale show, and I didn't like the 90's Sabrina the Teenage Witch sitcom. But for some reason, the Chilling Adventures of Sabrina felt like it was going to be my kind of thing, so maybe I was just wrong? I really hope I respond more positively to the show.
Some of the characters were fun. I really enjoyed Sabrina and Ambrose. Harvey was what I expected and although I prefer Salem as a black cat, he was pretty great. I like that he's still snarky and he's a good guide to Sabrina. The scene where he comforts her is super sweet. I also liked the villain in this story, she's extremely creepy and terrifying. However, I didn't like the aunts at all. I felt like they didn't really love Sabrina, but instead were pretending to and mostly just focused on teaching her to be a witch, hoping she chooses the path they have carved out for her.
There were specific moments that I didn't like. One being that a character uses the word "lezzie" without any pushback from any of the characters, and honesty it just rubbed me the wrong way. The second specific issue I had is the moment where a character is outed as a closeted gay man in a room of people. I get that this is set in the 60's but this comic was published in 2016 and when those kinds of actions aren't challenged it's not a good look. Some of my more broad issues is that I wasn't really into the plot. The whole the about the witchcraft coming from the devil seemed boring and uninterested me entirely. I think it's a personal preference, and it's more of a me thing than something to do with the comic. It just wasn't my favorite and I was disappointed with the choice. Although, the ending did take me by surprise. I didn't like it, but I was surprised.
The art was my favorite part. I think it looks both like the old Archie comics mixed with a more modern look and I really liked it. The color scheme throughout the entire volume is super great and there were definitely pages I'd love to have prints of. One in particular is the one where Sabrina is hovering with a broom in her hand, blood markings behind her. Most of the art in between the volumes were really cool. I think the art was very spooky and atmospheric and perfect for Halloween.
Overall, I have to admit that I am disappointed. From what I can tell online the majority of people who pick up this comic volume give it a pretty good rating and there are very few of us who gave it less than three stars. I think what I've seen readers either love it or feel lukewarm about it. So if you're interested in reading this volume I say check it out. It's perfect for this time of year and the art is amazing. Personally, I have my fingers crossed that the show is better. I am not sure if I'll be continuing when the second volume is released.
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