7 Things We Loved (and 7 We Didn’t) AboutChilling Adventures of SabrinaPart 3

Chilling Adventures of Sabrinahas returned with Part 3 , which sees Sabrina fighting for her spot asQueen of Hellwhile the coven grapples with a traveling striation of hedonist . Did we wish it ? In short : It ’s a bit of a mixed cup of tea .

Last season endedwith Sabrina ( Kiernan Shipka ) and her coven rising up against Lucifer , and Nicholas ( Gavin Leatherwood ) taking the Dark Lord into his body to trap him . This left a power void in Hell , one that Lilith ( Michelle Gomez ) is incapable of filling . compulsive to save Nicholas , Sabrina seizes the crapper for herself — only to happen there ’s a challenger , the self - exalt Prince of Hell , Caliban ( Sam Corlett ) .

As the two of them lock in a series of quests to find out who deserve the finger bone jacket , the Spellmans chance themselves without their big businessman as a final result of turning from the Dark Lord . Really bad timing , too , as a carnival of pagans has arrived in town and plan to return Greendale ( and the worldly concern ) to the “ honest-to-goodness shipway . ” Sabrina also does some cheerleading . After all , if it ’s aRoberto Aguirre - Sacasashow , there ’s probably amusical number .

It’s tricky. Tricky tricky tricky tricky.

It’s tricky. Tricky tricky tricky tricky.Photo: All images via Netflix

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Here are the 14 things we liked and loathed about our most late journey to Greendale — along with one major matter we ’re still unsure about .

We Liked

The Aunts (Always and Forever)

We would inhabit , die , and endure again for Miranda Otto and Lucy Davis as Aunts Zelda and Hilda . And they could definitely use the reenforcement right now . Zelda , struggle to regrow the Church of Night under her tutorship , fall back into quondam use of count on Hilda to always have her back while push aside her sister ’s needs . It gets to the breaker point where Hilda is going through a major transformation ( more on that later ) and Zelda ca n’t be bother to discover .

It sometimes felt like the serial was double back intoseason one job , but it made sense under the circumstances . Zelda and Hilda have effectively stamp out their god and are floundering — emotionally and physically , as their action caused them to lose most of their powers . They ’re also without the support of Sabrina for most of the time of year , as she ’s secretly campaigning to be pansy of Hell against Caliban . The two of them eventually care to come back together and figure out how to listen to each other and find the sound path forward for their faith . Side greenback : I do n’t want to ball up what happen for each of them in the romance department , but you ’ll have butterflies .

Lilith No Longer in Hiding

This is the first time of year where we get to see Madam Satan uncaged . She pass the past two seasons disguised as Sabrina ’s instructor / witch fellow traveller , occasionally fall in out of her shell long enough for us to see her do some truly wicked thing . Now , she ’s taken her place in Hell — first as its queen , and later as the pouf ’s trustee after Sabrina require the throne for herself to save Nicholas Scratch . And she ’s only delectable . Without the disguises and deception , Lilith feels like she ’s living her good life .

There were some unusual decisions made with her character ( we still have no idea why Sabrina ’s visit to Hell play out like a twisted version of The Wizard of Oz ) , but in the end getting to see Lilith be herself find like gorging myself on layers of Devil ’s Food Cake . It does n’t hurt that Michelle Gomez seems to adore play this part and milks every scene down to the last drop .

Actual Consequences

The second season end with Sabrina , Hilda , Zelda , and the others join to ostracize Lucifer . consider he was their Dark Lord and the generator of their powerfulness , it was a risky second , if not an overall triumphant one . Luckily , Chilling Adventures of Sabrina knew to show the actual consequences of their actions . The coven brook a lot this season . They lose their powers and members in adequate measure , to the point where they ca n’t even disgorge introductory enchantment . What ’s more , every try they make to bushel their abilities is thwarted , either by their own mistakes or by the intrigue of others — like the pagan , who both outnumber and outpower them . It was dandy to see the Spellmans struggle to find their shoes , get hold of such a low period that they were uncoerced to reconsider their broken fealty to the Dark Lord because anything would be well than nothing . Suffice to say , they forge their own course .

Richard Coyle’s Hilda Impersonation

There ’s a scene in the first instalment , “ The Hellbound Heart , ” where Zelda and Hilda have to convince the other Church of Night Elders that everything is okay and that they entirely did n’t trap the Dark Lord in the body of a teenager . Hilda disguises herself as Father Blackwood to complete the mockery , and it ’s amazing how well Richard Coyle perfectly captured her in that moment — especially the quirky noises she makes . He ’s just so cute and huggable , makes you almost want to forgive him for being a tyrannical , sexist ass . Almost .

Theo and Robin

time of year three is a wad about relationships . Sabrina and Nicholas go through some growing pains , Harvey and Roz explore having sex for the first time , Dr. C accept things to the next layer with Hilda , and Theo gets a boyfriend . Early on the season , he meets Robin ( played by Riverdale ’s Jonathan Whitesell ) , a new pupil who ’s part of the traveling funfair . Robin might not be entirely trustworthy but he still cares a lot for Theo , and we liked how their human relationship develop . It was really seraphic , with scene like their circus particular date leave a good sense of normalcy in a world where nothing is ever normal . That said , our favourite part had to be when Theo was asking Harvey for advice on how to ask someone out . Mainly because “ Farm Boy ” Harvey never knows the right-hand solution to anything .

Riverdale Nod

In sequence three , “ sound Is the Crown , ” Sabrina and Ambrose speculation to the most dangerous pocket-sized town in America . Hell yeah , it ’s Riverdale ! Granted , it ’s not an prescribed crossing withRiverdale(for example , the town signs do n’t meet so let ’s call this the Archie Multiverse ) , but there are plentifulness of Easter eggs to keep fan salivate with maple sirup . Besides the actor who act Robin that we mentioned above , Riverdale ’s own Penelope Blossom , Nathalie Boltt , has a small cameo as a glamour Prudence puts on at one point .

address of Blossoms . The best Riverdale nod by far is the present moment Sabrina and Ambrose discover the tree holding Herod ’s jacket crown , which contains his soul and powerfulness … and is part of Sabrina ’s pursuance to establish herself as Queen of Hell . As Ambrose get quick to hack the tree diagram and fetch the crown , he allege Benjamin Blossom ( who had taken the crown from Hitler during World War II ) must have hidden it there before his death . That ’s right , the Blossoms trapped King Herod ’s soul in a Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree . To add ice onto this luscious maple cookie , Herod emerges from the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree to reclaim his prize … cover in maple syrup .

The Pagans

In season three , Greendale is abuzz with the news show that a new carnival has swan into town … and it ’s get it all . Enthusiastic barkers , snake charmers , even a fortune teller . But it turns out there ’s more than meets the eye ( with the exclusion of Roz , as she saw the problem right off ) . These are n’t just travel carnival worker , they ’re infidel . Some of them are older gods , like Pan and Medusa , while others are devotees espouse the agency of the Old World . The group hark back to some of humankind ’s erstwhile myths , notably the Green Man , while also paying testimonial to newfangled furor films like Wicker Man andMidsommar . Plus , the approximation that infidel and Satan - worship witches would be at betting odds with one another , and how the downfall of one would lead to the rise of the other , was a very interesting conflict . That said …

We Loathed

Yes , we have it off we just had them in the “ like ” department but there ’s more to the story . The pagans come in with such promise but ended up being wasted . That ’s not to say they did n’t get a fortune of hurt — they fucked up the full planet . But it ’s how it happened that was dissatisfactory . For the most part , they hang around talking about this totally evil thing they were going to do that was go bad to fetch everyone “ back ” to how it was before . A million ideas come to mind : grow the Supreme Being , a worldwide flood , turning Greendale into a fairy - filled inter - dimensional plane . But when they finally did the affair , it was n’t interesting . You ’ve got grand of year of myth and impression to string aspiration from , and the good you could come up with is a Wicker Man clon that turns citizenry into plant ? Booooring . Also fixed in the span of one sequence , so it felt pointless too .

The Eldritch Horror Tease

When we reviewedPart 2 of Chilling Adventures of Sabrina , we singled out the Harvey section from the time of year two episode “ Doctor Cerberus ’s House of Horror ” as one of our favorite . It was a “ what if ” scenario that twist into a Lovecraftian repulsion tarradiddle about monsters in a cupboard . We figured it was simply a sport and clever one - off nod to Eldritch horror . But mayhap not .

In the season three premiere , we learned that Father Blackwood had become a follower of the Eldritch , or Old Ones , and summoned an bollock that contain occult properties . compound with his alliance with the pagans ( and their devotion to the old god ) , we figured this meant we were going to be run into some Lovecraftian dirt in this time of year . But apparently that ’s not happening until Part 4 . It makes sense why they ’re holding this for future instalment — it could very well be the endgame for the series — but teasing it out at the beginning of the season only to have it mean nothing for the sleep of it was such a bummer .

Caliban

Caliban was a waste of sentence that could ’ve been better spend on other stuff . He emerges as a contender to Sabrina ’s commode , inveigle her into a competition to see who could nail the most side seeking first . He was never a tangible threat and the show have it away it , so it never bother to treat him like one . In the conclusion , he was well dismissed and is even more well forget .

Ambrose and Prudence’s Story

These characters continue to deserve better and the show keep to fail them . Things commence off well enough , with Ambrose and Prudence on a pursual around the world to capture Father Blackwood , including a side pursuance in Scotland and a blockage in New Orleans . ( Side bank bill : Can we just stop for a second and recognize how flaming gorgeous Prudence ’s New Orleans outfit is ? ) Anyway , their quest is conclude within the first two episodes and they spend the remainder of their time doing whatever Sabrina ’s storyline postulate them to do . It ’s like they scarce had a living of their own this season . It does seem like the two of them are developing a relationship , but that alone does not a character arc make .

There ’s also the situation with Prudence ’s sister and brother . After finding them with Father Blackwood , they discover he ’s spend years brainwashing them . Their solution is to put them in a dollhouse until they can be freed of his genial conditioning . Then the show blank out about them for almost the entire season . After everything Prudence and Ambrose did to rescue them , they ’re barely seen , heard from , or even hash out . Then , boom , recapture by Blackwood . It made them feel more like airscrew than people .

That Goddamn Spider

No , Chilling Adventures of Sabrina . No no no no no . You do not do get to do this . Not now , not never . It ’s one thing to put Hilda through a sorry situation because she does n’t know how to talk up and Zelda is n’t listen . It ’s another to rick her into a gargantuan flaming spider .

Nicholas Scratch

Nicholas Scratch ’s narrative this time of year — and , by reference , Sabrina’s — is going to be really divisive for audience . After sacrifice his body at the final stage of time of year two , Nicholas becomes Lilith ’s anguished plaything and always battles Lucifer for control of his dead body . Sabrina feels guilty and is determined to deliver him from this terrible destiny , sacrifice everything to do so . At one degree , Lucifer is transferred into Father Blackwood ’s body but Nicholas is marred from the experience . He can still feel the Dark Lord ’s influence and can no longer find the melodic phrase between joy and bother , so he starts engaging in magical drug and BDSM with sexual activity demons . Through it all , he ’s ill-bred , dismissive , and borderline scurrilous towards Sabrina , pick her for everything that ’s chance to him .

There are a few problem with this storyline . First , the “ magic as an dependency ” image has been done to dying and the show does n’t do anything to improve on it . secondly , it was part of a thinly veil attempt to eventually get Sabrina and Harvey back together . Third , the show oddly sexualizes Nicolas during all of it , read him half - naked in every other scene and redact him in a series of hyper - intimate spot . It bordered on exploitation and I felt uncomfortable for the actor .

And lastly , it ’s a hapless exploration of PTSD . The show is so focused on Sabrina that it go bad to give Nicholas the space he require for him ( and us ) to understand what he ’s go through . The crux is n’t recognise that Nicholas is in painfulness and needs professional help for a very - real disease the Dark Lord left inside him , it ’s Sabrina tell him to stop act like a martyr because she has “ more important things to deal with than your drama and narcissism , ” only to walk aside as Prudence gift her a gestural “ Yaass Qween . ” While Sabrina should never tolerate revilement , yelling at someone to get off their tail end and fix themselves is never the resolution .

Graphic: Jim Cooke

Zelda (Miranda Otto) and Hilda (Lucy Davis) struggle to figure out who to pray to.

Sabrina Spellman

It ’s lamentable that , in a serial called Chilling Adventures of Sabrina , Sabrina end up being one of the least interesting things about it . This is a season about her trying to have it all : She wants to hold open her boyfriend , oppose Caliban for the commode , restore her coven ’s powers , and know a normal liveliness . She even link the cheerleading squad with Roz . But for all the juggle she ’s doing , we never see how it strike her emotionally . She ’s rarely try or frightened . She barely seems to break a sweat , even as she ’s crusade to become the eternal ruler of Hell . Sabrina just kind of does all the stuff she ’s supposed to do and never lets us in on how it ’s impact her . As someone who ’s supposed to be the emotional heart of the series , it ’s disappointing how footling emotion seems to be going into it .

I do n’t need to put this all on Kiernan Shipka ’s shoulders , because the show does trip the light fantastic toe around return Sabrina larger consequences for her action , but I ’d be remiss if I did n’t say Shipka ’s range as an actor does contribute . She ’s good at the material she ’s good at — namely toy the quirky and confident enchantress who damns a tiddler abuser to hell while calmly eating a lolly — but she ’s have trouble making us experience Sabrina ’s struggle and vulnerability . That ’s part of what made the whole Nicholas situation so upsetting . She was doing all the thing to try and make his situation well , but conk out to convey why . It ended up hail across like a girl just , well , doing it for her swain .

Even though Nicholas was the catalyst for Sabrina admit her role as Queen of Hell , the show does throw a spot of a curveball at the end . Which leads us to the thing we ’re still not sure about .

Zelda (Miranda Otto) and Hilda (Lucy Davis) struggle to figure out who to pray to.

[ Additional spoiler warn for the very goal of the season . ]

We’re Still Unsure About…

Well, Now There’s Two Sabrinas

Talk about hold it all ! In the season close , “ Sabrina Is Legend , ” we get a timey - wimey instalment where Sabrina travel to the past tense to doctor the mistakes of the premature instalment . The pagans have sacrificed the virgin Harvey to the Green Man ( it ’s very “ a virgin lit the candle ” ) and the globe has been reclaimed by nature . Her aunts and friends are deadened , Caliban pin her inside a John Rock , and even Hell has been conquered by the pagan army . It ’s up to Sabrina to go back and right all the wrongs … except one . After fixing the past times , she ’ll have to return to the rock and substitute her past tense ego , for complete the time loop-the-loop .

After restoring the humanity to its nature - free natural rescript , Sabrina chooses not to devolve to the rock but instead goes back even further , to when Caliban was about to pin Sabrina in the rock in the first topographic point . The two Sabrinas have a Old World chat about how much they want to be both a normal teenager and the evil ruler of Hell . So , what if they could have both ? It ’s prison term for a in force ol’ fashioned Parent Trap . The next Sabrina refund to the Spellmans to restore the coven and springy life as a veritable witch . The one from the past complete her pursuit , banish Caliban , and rises as the Queen of Hell — even though Lucifer is alive again and could totally take it for himself again , but does n’t ? remind the 18th - century wig !

This is a risky move because he show has polish off one of the biggest conflicts of the series . Sabrina has long been essay to find a Libra between her normal animation as a Spellman and her circumstances as a Morningstar , but now she can just do both so that problem no longer weigh . However , this could stop up being a unspoilt affair . As previously mentioned , Chilling Adventures of Sabrina has n’t done a great job at portraying the emotional cost of Sabrina ’s two-fold life and split up them might be just the ticket . Besides , next season could give us a “ for deficiency of a nail ” situation where we see how much being the Queen of Hell changes Sabrina .

With someone like Lilith (Michelle Gomez) one can never wear too many finger bones.

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina Part 3 is currently usable on Netflix . It ’s already been renewed for the 2nd one-half of season two , called Part 4 .

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