SABRINA ANNUAL SPECTACULAR (ONE-SHOT)
Story: Jamie L Rotante
Art: Holly G!, Dan Parent, Vincent Lovallo
Archie, $3.99
Here's another anthology, which I found more hit than miss.
The weakest part of the book is, for me, where it starts: the cover. I don't care much for Dan Parent's art, as I find it a poor Dan DeCarlo pastiche with little internal consistency. But being only a cover, I can flip past it quickly.
The first story is, I think, the only new one. "The Power of Three" is by writer Jamie L. Rotante and artist Holly G! I have never seen any work by either, although I know that Holly G! has also gone by Holly Golightly and Fauve, and is married to Jim Balent (Catwoman, Tarot: Witch of the Black Rose). I don't know how I know that, but I do. I also know all the names of the Kardashians, and don't know how that happened, either.
The story begins in media res, with Sabrina confronting the witches Amber Nightstone, Jade Kazane and Sapphire Gill. I've read elsewhere that Nightstone (introduced last year) was born on the same day as Sabrina, and wants to take her place as the only witch who can mingle with mortals. (Yes, there are other witches in Sabrina stories. I don't know how this "rule" works.) Anyway, I was led to believe that this story would introduce Jade and Sapphire, but here they are, without introduction. Maybe they were introduced wherever this story started.
I should also mention that Sabrina's two aunts and the head of her coven have been kidnapped by the "WIcked Trinity," as they style themselves.
Sabrina defeats the three (rather handily, I thought, but it is only a five-page story), and searches for Aunt Zelda, Aunt Hilda and head witch Enchantra. This takes us on a quick tour of the Archieverse, which starts in Greendale (Sabrina), with stopovers in Riverdale (the Archie gang) and Midville (Josie and the Pussycats). Sabrina rescues the trioi while once again defeating the Wicked Trinity, this time with the aid of Alexandra Cabot (of Josie fame), who adamantly refuses to return to witch-ery. (I either didn't know or had forgotten she ever was a witch).
It's not really a story so much as an intro to Sabrina's world, which is OK, because that world has changed quite a bit since I was familiar with it. When I was reading Sabrina, for example, the head witch was named Della. And her aunts were cranky old crones, whereas now they're young, hip and attractive.
I like Holly G!'s art. She does ape the DeCarlo house style like Parent, but shows enough originality and internal consistency to be attractive as well. For example, her version of the characters are softer and more natural than the way most Archie artists depict them.
The second story is Sabrina's five-page intro by George Gladir, which I imagine anyone who's read any Archie comics has probably read. Titled "Presenting Sabrina the Teenage Witch," it's from Archie's Mad House #22 (October 1962). This one is drawn by the actual Dan DeCarlo, whose work I adore. The story sets up the "rules" for an ongoing Sabrina feature, which contradict every other story in the issue, which all contradict each other. Evidently, Sabrina's status quo has almost always been in flux.
The third story is another five-pager, "Sabrina Spook-Out," from Sabrina the Teenage Witch #5 (April 1972). Aunt Hilda sends Sabrina to a nearby haunted house for some bat wings for her brew. Apparently Sabrina lives in Riverdale in this continuity, because Archie and Jughead give her a lift (in Archie's old red jalopy, if you remember that). This is more an Archie and Jughead story than a Sabrina story, whose powers conveniently do not work in a haunted house. It's actually pretty funny, in an Abbot & Costello kind of way, with a terrific punchline. The story and art are by Al Hartley, one of my least favorite Archie artists, but he does OK here. The inking, interestingly, is by Joe Sinnott.
Harry Lucey, who is one of my top three Archie artists, take on the art chores for "The Court Jester," an eight-pager from Sabrina the Teenage Witch #2 (July 1971). Once again Sabrina is in Riverdale -- Riverdale High, in fact. This story, by Dick Malmgren, is what I consider a "traditional" Silver Age Sabrina story, in that she casts a spell to help her friends, which goes disastrously awry, and she has to undo it. Once again, it is mostly an Archie (and Reggie) story, and fairly entertaining.
The last story is the five-page "Scaredy Cat," starring Salem the Cat when he was a boy. (I think I knew that in current continuity Salem was once human, but forgot.) Written by Ian Flynn and drawn in a modern style by Chad Thomas, it's set in Medieval times, where Salem Learns a Lesson (by his beefy Uncle Mort, a new character for me). I don't care much for this new, Sonic-looking approach to Archie art, and I'm not much interested in Salem's pre-feline life, so this one doesn't do much for me.
Also, I imagine it's a reprint, but the book doesn't say from where.
But that's not all! There's a text piece on the Wicked Trinity, as well as an afterword by Arche Editor-in-Chief Mike Pellerito. That's a lot for $3.99!
Replies