Part 3 of the Chilling Adventures of Sabrina is certainly a bold season of TV, with large tone decisions and story moments that will effect the show forever. It is probably my least favourite of the 3 seasons so far, but it does have some good elements too.
The older cast all have less to do than usual but Miranda Otto, Lucy Davis, Michelle Gomez and Richard Coyle all do a good job, and hopefully they all have more to do going forward.
The young cast are all very charismatic again, but the majority of them had less development this season and were much more just there to service Sabrina’s story. There has been much talk about ‘Nabrina’ but I am of the less popular opinion that Harvey and Sabrina are best together, and Ross Lynch and Kiernan Shipka just work so well as a duo.
One of the most interesting relationships, especially in the first half of the season, is between Ambrose and Prudence. They were like sexy witches hunting evil, and unfortunately faded off into the background in the later part of season.
The whole show increased the sex factor, which is something I imagine will continue in further seasons as the cast ages up. It had strong vibes of certain elements of Riverdale (which I hope it doesn’t become an alternate version of) including the odd character development and the awkward musical numbers.
Sabrina herself is a fascinating protagonist. Kiernan Shipka is so perfectly cast and she brings a striking visual look, great charisma, and a rebellious spirit to Sabrina. While I really like the character and understand she is a good person deep down, she constantly makes selfish and reckless decisions that put the people she ‘loves’ in real danger (which is probably a good reflection of what would happen if a teenager had such power) and I hope part 4 will really delve into the consequences of her actions.
Nothing this season matched up to the ‘Straight to Hell’ music video they launched to advertise the season. However, I am really looking forward to where this undeniably fun show goes next.
Rating = 3/5
Howe's World of Film and TV 