Sabrina the Teenage Witch #1 Review – Mysterious, Spooky and Vibrant
Light your seance candles and break out your broomsticks, everyone! Your favorite teenage witch is back in Sabrina the Teenage Witch! Our teenage years are some of our most tumultuous. They’re the time of our lives where we’re consumed with growing into our bodies and learning ourselves, while simultaneously trying to fit in with our peers. Now imagine trying to live as a normal teenager when one day a fainting spell leads to the discovery that you’re actually only half mortal. The other half? Witch. Suddenly, you have to navigate the complexities of teenage parties and magic rituals.
Sabrina the Teenage Witch #1 is taking us back to that exact start point. We meet Sabrina on Halloween night immediately following her awakening as a witch. She’s stopped on her way to a Halloween party with Harvey and her usual pals by her aunts, Hilda and Zelda, and her familiar, Salem. Hilda, overjoyed but reasonably worried about their new witchling niece, is approaching the situation with love. Zelda and Salem? They’re clearly more of the tough love types. Corinna Bechko’s writing is so masterfully tight that the personalities of the Spellman family are laid out quickly across a spread of about four pages. Bechko uses the fact that these are well-established characters to her advantage and breaks straight into the plot. Sabrina is trying her best to hold onto her mortal ways, while Salem is sussing out a mysterious creature he believes is somehow connected to Sabrina’s powers.
From the opening page, it’s clear Salem is going to be an absolute scene stealer. The first page offers a striking scene of Salem hunting down a mysterious rat. At first, you see a vicious beast, only for the panels to pull out and show the signature black housecat sprinting across a field. Kano’s artwork uses body language and posing to show you that Salem can be stern when needed, an attribute later backed up by Bechko’s writing. His signature biting sarcasm is keenly captured by Bechko as he almost parents Sabrina through this first issue. His caustic tone is so clear that it reads like Bechko had a blast writing it. One of my favorite elements of his characterization was the choice to make his eyes flicker between a standard cat-yellow to a more sinister red. The toggle between the two colors really drove home the idea that Salem is cunning and conniving, though he’s using these traits to protect his witch. His relationship with Sabrina is a central aspect of this story which I hope future issues continue to explore.
Sabrina’s character design is a wonderful blend between modern elements and the signature Archie Comics style. Kano draws her so expressively it’s impossible not to fall in love with Sabrina all over again. She’s a character who has stood the test of time because of how relatable she is. Coming of age stories will never go out of style and Sabrina Spellman is one of the coming of age stories. Bechko has a clear knack for balancing Sabrina’s normal teenage ineptitude with flashes of a quick-thinking witch. It’s clear that Sabrina could grow into a powerful being if she learns to hone her skills. She’s written so loveably that you want to ride along that journey with her.
It goes without saying that this book has autumn and Halloween written all over it, but readers will likely be pleasantly surprised by the horror elements sprinkled throughout. Sabrina and Salem are attempting to quell an eerie creature masquerading as a rat to mortals. The climax and backend of the issue lightly lean into the macabre in a way that satiates horror lovers without alienating those who usually steer clear of gore.
Sabrina the Teenage Witch #1 is mysterious, spooky, and vibrant, and perfectly timed with an October release. This first issue really felt like everything you could have hoped for in a new Sabrina story. It feels like something fans old and new will curl up next to their caldrons to enjoy. It’s a testament that some characters are simply timeless.
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