Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Vol. 1: The Crucible by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I was a huge fan of Aguirre-Sacasa’s AFTERLIFE WITH ARCHIE (please release the second volume already, you guys!), so when I heard he was also writing CHILLING ADVENTURES OF SABRINA I was psyched to read it. It didn’t let me down. In fact, it was everything I’d hoped for and more!
Aguirre-Sacasa moves Sabrina the Teenage Witch’s story to the 1960s, the decade her character was first introduced, in order to keep it separate from the contemporary setting of AFTERLIFE WITH ARCHIE (although she appears briefly in that one, too), and it turns out to be a great choice. Instead of feeling dated it feels classic, adding a special layer to the story’s atmosphere. I was particularly pleased with Aguirre-Sacasa’s decision to make Sabrina and her aunts’ magic Satanic in nature rather than making them Wiccans or “white witches.” Sabrina herself remains decent and good-natured, even when she’s sacrificing a goat in the woods, and Salem, her talking-cat familiar, steals all his scenes with excellent wry commentary. Add cameos from Betty and Veronica and the return of classic back-up story villainess Madame Satan, and I’m champing at the bit for volume two. Hopefully I won’t have to wait too long.
CHILLING ADVENTURES OF SABRINA is a must-read for fans of horror comics as well as fans of the classic character — just keep in mind that this is about the furthest you can get from Melissa Joan Hart territory.
Leave a Reply