Chilling Adventures of Sabrina Part 1 (2018) Review

So the much loved Chilling Adventures of Sabrina is coming to an end with its 4th part at the end of December so I have decided to start watching the show and I have just got through Part 1 and here is my review for it. The premise of the season sees a young half witch have to decide on her 16th birthday whether she will be with her witch family or human friends. 

Main Character

Kiernan Shipka plays Sabrina here and I thought she did a really good job, Sabrina was just a really cool person and character and Shipka does a really good job of conveying that. When she is has dilemmas I actually cared about them and wanted to see her come out of it unscathed, the witch side of her life is pretty interesting and does a good job of creating intrigue throughout the show and just having a likeable protagonist really helps this show. 

Supporting Characters

Miranda Otto plays her Auntie and I just think she is a fun element on this how and you can just really tell she is enjoying herself. Her character hasn't got lots of depth but Otto uses her charm to make you like her and care about the character. Ross Lynch plays her boyfriend Harvey and I actually think they have a nice relationship, Shipka & Lynch have good chemistry and work well together, I mean his own stuff away from her isn't particularly interesting but when they are together they are both fun. But then the rest of the cast didn't do much for me, Lucy Davis plays Sabrina's other Auntie and she is her usual, silly self and for me just doesn't work alongside the other characters and I thought she was the comic relief done poorly. Then we get to Sabrina's cousin Ambrose and this guy is so over the top and condescending it is unreal and I never found a reason to care about him during the show. Also her human friends, these people I did not care about any of them, and the show really wants you too but they are so dull and at least it made me wonder why Sabrina would even consider staying with these people, but maybe that is just me. Also the villains didn't have plenty of depth, they are pretty cheesy and entertaining but there is little intrigue there to make them stand out. 

Story

The story is interesting as Sabrina and us the audience are exploring the witches world and there are some really fun things, the best part of the show is when it looks into the witch culture and their society. But the show also focuses on her human life and this is just not interesting, it has all the usual things, a romance, some weird friends and high school drama and every time it is on screen I just wish it wasn't and we go onto more witch stuff. 

Script

The script is okay, there are some charming moments and nice humour here but not all of it lands. The drama is a mixed bag too, it's mainly because the drama is so low key, it isn't a surprise because it is an issue for most shows that involve teenagers and high school and when there are more interesting things it didn't work enough for me. 

Style 

The style has some really good and unique visuals, it uses the magic and demonology incredibly well and it feels really unique. It is darker and has more graphic violence then I expected and it makes this show really feel more bloody and intense then some other young adult shows and films. But this season suffers from having a few too many episodes and the finale feels low key with nothing to really anticipate for a second season. 

Overall 

Overall, this is an above average first season of this show, it does some interesting things but also suffers with being a young adult show. If you are a fan of witch shows then this could be up your street and hopefully it improves as it goes on. 

Ranking - 6/10