Sabrina, the Teenage Witch
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Sabrina, the Teenage Witch is the name of a comic book series published by Archie Comics about the adventures of a teenage fictional character named Sabrina Spellman. The comic's characters have also appeared in various other media formats, including a long-running television comedy series.
Sabrina, who's really a witch (or a half-witch---her mother was a "mortal", as the comics called ordinary humans, while her father was a warlock), lives with her two aunts, Hilda and Zelda (both witches themselves) in the fictional town of Greendale, which was located somewhere near Riverdale, the home of Archie Andrews. Also living with the three women was the family pet, Salem the cat.
Most of Sabrina's adventures consist of Sabrina either trying to use her powers in secret (witches generally not being allowed to tell "mortals" about their abilities), learning more about her powers (either through her aunts or from trips to the "Other Realm," an extradimensional plane that was the home of various magical creatures, including witches), or trying to deal with the day-to-day trials of being a teenager. Sabrina also has a ("mortal") boyfriend named Harvey Kinkle, who like nearly all the other "mortals" in Sabrina's world, is unaware his girlfriend is a witch.
Sabrina also occasionally appears in other Archie Comics as a visiting acquaintance of Archie, Betty Cooper, Veronica Lodge and Jughead Jones.
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Characters
- Sabrina Spellman: the lead character of the series.
- Hilda Spellman: Sabrina's aunt.
- Zelda Spellman: Sabrina's aunt.
- Harvey Kinkle: Sabrina's boyfriend, a "mortal" who's unaware of Sabrina's being a witch.
- Salem: the Spellman's cat; Salem was formerly a warlock turned into a cat as punishment by the Witch's Council (a council of powerful witches that oversees the Other Realm and establishes various rules for witches to follow) for attempting to take over the world. Salem has the ability to talk, and possesses a sarcastic and somewhat self-centered attitude.
- Ambrose: Sabrina's cousin, a warlock.
- Esmerelda: Sabrina's young cousin, also a witch; Esmerelda has an obnoxious, bratty attitude.
- Shinji: A teenage warlock who Sabrina met in the early 2000s while attending a spellcasting school. Tries to compete with Harvey for Sabrina's affections.
History
Sabrina first appeared in comics in the October, 1962 issue of Archie's Madhouse #22, published by Archie Comics. Sabrina was created by Archie Comics writer George Gladir and longtime Archie artist Dan DeCarlo.
December, 1969 brought the first issue of another comic book, Archie's TV Laugh Out, in which Sabrina was one of the leading characters. Sabrina eventually received her own comic book in 1971, with the comic running until 1983, after which Sabrina was reduced to occasional guest appearances and specials in the various Archie comics.
In the late 1990s, Sabrina received her own comic again thanks to the success of the live-action television series Sabrina the Teenage Witch. The book, after briefly diverging into the adventures of Sabrina as a preteen in junior high school, gave Sabrina and, more so, her two aunts a makeover; up until this point, Sabrina's aunts were always portrayed as looking like the stereotypical depiction of witches (complete with pointy hats and Puritan-style dresses). This makeover gave both of them more conventional, contemporary appearances.
Even later, in the early 2000s, the book was given yet another makeover, this time being drawn in a Japanese manga style. If and when the comic will revert back to its previous traditional look has yet to be determined.
Other Media
Animated Series
Sabrina debuted in animated form as a supporting character in the 1969 series The Archie Comedy Hour. Thanks to Sabrina's popularity in this show, she soon began appearing on all types of merchandise, including jelly glasses, paper dolls and coloring books.
The following year, Sabrina gained her own series, Sabrina and the Groovie Goolies, sharing the bill with a group of various classic movie monsters. In 1971, Sabrina was spun off into her own show in 1971 which ran on CBS Saturday mornings until 1974.
In 1977, Sabrina returned to the airwaves in two short-lived shows, The New Archie-Sabrina Hour and Superwitch.
In 1999, Sabrina returned to animated form in Sabrina, the Animated Series, presenting the adventures of Sabrina as a 12-year-old in junior high school.
Made-For-Television Movie
Sabrina first appeared in live-action form was in a Showtime made-for-television movie. Melissa Joan Hart was cast for the main role in 1994, and the movie was released in 1996. In this movie, Sabrina's last name was "Sawyer." Sabrina's two aunts were played by Sherry Miller (as Hilda) and Charlene Fernetz (as Zelda).
Sitcom
The most long-lasting of Sabrina's various spinoffs, a sitcom featuring Sabrina and her supporting characters debuted on ABC in 1996, and ran for seven seasons, until 2003 (it switched to the WB television network toward the end of its run). Melissa Joan Hart once again played Sabrina (with her surname changed to Spellman); the aunts were played by Caroline Rhea (as Hilda) and Beth Broderick (as Zelda). Among the regulars were Salem the cat(a puppet that was voiced by Nick Bakay of Angry Beavers fame), and Sabrina's boyfriend Harvey, played by Nate Richert. Hart's real-life sister Emily played Sabrina's cousin, Amanda.
The sitcom often dealt with Sabrina using her magic in an attempt to help either herself or one of her friends, frequently bringing disastrous (but always humorous) results.
Originally, the program centered around Sabrina's adventures in high school; in the series' latter seasons, Sabrina graduated from high school, and enrolled in college.
In this series, the characters lived in the fictional town of Westbridge, located near Boston, Massachusetts.
Characters that appeared in the Sabrina, the Teenage Witch sitcom included:
- Roxie King: Sabrina's college roommate. Tended to be quite cynical.
- Morgan Cavanaugh: Sabrina's college roommate. Tended to be fairly superficial and fashion obsessed.
- Josh: Sabrina's boss at the coffee shop she works at during the show's college seasons.
- Miles Goodman: Conspiracy theorist; Sabrina's college roommate.
- Valerie Birkhead: Sabrina's best friend in high school.
- Dreama: A friend of Sabrina's in high school, and also a witch (but a fairly inept one).
- Mr. Kraft: Principal of Westbridge High School who issued detentions to students at the drop of a hat (sometimes literally).
- Libby Chessler: Sabrina's nemesis in high school. A stereotypical mean-spirited cheerleader.
The show has fans all over the world, some of whom celebrate Bobunk, a holiday accidentally destroyed by Salem.
Feature Film
A feature film based on the comic is in production for a scheduled 2005 or 2006 release, with Sarah Michelle Gellar playing the role of Sabrina. Melissa Joan Hart will have a minor role in the film.
External links
- IMDb entry for the TV movie (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0117534/)
- IMDb entry for the TV series (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0115341/)
- Official Archie Comics website (http://www.archiecomics.com/acpaco_offices/askthearchivist/ask_june.htm)
- Transcripts of the live-action TV sitcom (http://www.bccnet.force9.co.uk/transcripts/)
- Toonopedia entry (http://www.toonopedia.com/sabrina.htm)
- Bobunk fan site (http://www.bobunk.tk/)