Episode 01 - Pilot Review
Am I going to miss all of the 90s references because I was born in 2001? Definitely.
Episode Synopsis
The series chronicles our loveable protagonist, Sabrina Spellman, attending Westbridge High School. This first episode introduces the main cast for the first season and delves into the dynamic of what it's like to be the dreaded new kid at school.
Review
Coming into this episode, I had very little idea of what to expect about the beginnings of a long running 90s show. Has it held up well? Has it not? Is it funny?
Talking of laughs, I guess my mind has been prepared to hate laugh tracks by Disney sitcoms over the years but here they were used really sparingly and I really liked that. There was never a reliance on the laugh track at all and Sabrina (the show as a whole) does have so funny laugh out loud moments.
The star of this episode is undoubtedly Melissa Joan Hart, it's crazy how young she looks as she was only 20 here. I say as I'm younger than 20. Her facial expressions and vocal delivery were honestly great.
I think that viewing this in the 2020s and being from England really did make some things harder to understand like the GAP references which I think I have some idea about but then there was the Brad Pitt reference. Obviously, I know who that is but it really stood out as quite dated.
There's also something that needs to be said about Sabrina's fashion choices in this episode because either 90s fashion is a complete enigma or people really dressed like that when going to school?
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I love her bitchy delivery and her "How'd you know that?" coupled with her facial expressions is gold. I felt like I was really in the room with them.
I would definitely watch just a Libby centric spin off. How much did they pay poor Jenna to have to do that scene where she smeared lipstick over her face?
Sabrina's reaction to her doing her first spell is super understated. I guess it's because she'd already been talking to her father in a book but it's interesting.
While watching the episode the "you're not like other kids" thing really means something else nowadays that got a huge eyeroll from me. Also, I hate hate the ball of wax rule. It's stupid and doesn't make any sense and I will never understand it.
Drel is such a weird character because we never see him again after this season (just like Jenny) and to hear him yelling at Sabrina to establish him being aggressive and unlikable was a weird choice that still unsettles me throughout the first season.
I really like the groundwork that is laid in this episode. Sabrina's feelings of insecurity about being normal (only made worse by being a witch). Libby just being Libby but also just the dynamic between Harvey and Sabrina is established so quickly and yet it feels so natural.
The first lesson Sabrina is seen in is science and I always thought that Sabrina should've gone into a science related career rather than journalism. Women in stem representation!
Although, "mine too!" why did Sabrina say that so enthusiastically? No one is going to question that? Also, she seems so unhinged because she's so much louder than Libby and then she grabs pineapple Libby and runs off and of course she's going to look weird.
"It's over...my life is over!"
Even I rolled my eyes at that but it's so real, I love how Melissa really taps into that teenage petulance where your problems can feel so monumental even if you can look back and see they were minor.
I've never realised why Libby was popular. It just doesn't make any sense. I know, it's stereotypical and the character development in Libby is forever lacking and it's the 90s but still.
I think it took a more serious tone than I had originally anticipated. I mean, there were some really sombre moments among the sitcom ones. The scene where Salem is saying how the sound of tuna can opening is one that keeps him alive was actually really sad and there was a nice little, subtle pause which showed to me that it wasn't played for laughs.
So, Sabrina gets the chance to redo the day all over and she does it over perfectly and her aunt Hilda's reaction of "Teens" was just so nice and for me, the episode had a good beginning, middle and end. It was honestly such a subdued and perfect start. You can really see why it took off as such a phenomenon even decades later.
The ending makes you feel the same things for Sabrina and you're happy that she got what she wanted. The audience positioning in this to make us like and feel for Sabrina really works and makes the happy ending nice and impactful.
Characters
Sabrina - Sabrina is introduced as a really likeable teen with a weird penchant for fashion that seems older than she is, considering she's meant to be 16 here. Sabrina carries the pilot on her back (as she should). She's not a pushover which is something I really like, any other show would've probably had Sabrina cower away from Libby but she can give it back just as good.
- Salem - Salem, I felt, was used less well here. I get it, he was a supporting character for this pilot but we really didn't get a huge sense of who Salem was. Yes, the sarcasm was prevalent but the Salem we know and love is reserved here.
Aunt Hilda - "Toughen up or toughen up." Probably the funniest character in this pilot and that's a testament to Beth Broderick's acting chops.
Aunt Zelda - The perfect foil and her purpose here is kind of unnecessary because at this point in time, the whole show feels very grounded. Whereas, later on she becomes pivotal in keeping the show grounded but as the show is so much more subdued she kind of blends in a little.
Harvey - Harvey has zero personality in this pilot. He's charismatic but Sabrina's kind of shallow, clearly. There's really not much to say about him, he could've been replaced with anyone else. There's nothing to Harvey at the moment (obviously that changes pretty quickly).
Libby - Libby's personality is probably the most defined and is typical to how she continues to act. It's not exactly hard to craft a mean girl but there's something undeniably special about just how easy it is to hate Libby and she brings so much to the series and I still think it's a crime that she wasn't in season 4.
Jenny - Poor Jenny. I remember reading an interview where the writer who came up with her character left and then so did she, there's also another possibility that they just wanted to replace her with someone to be more diverse (but then they replaced her with Valerie, so not sure I believe this one) and I'm not sure the 90s cared too much about diversity, glad we're a lot more encompassing nowadays but there's still progress to be made.
I feel like Jenny always gets the short end of the stick and I do wish she would've stuck around because her dynamic with Sabrina is one of an equal and it's a really nice friendship (whereas with Valerie, she obviously sees Sabrina as better in every way). In this first episode, Jenny talks about she never wants to fit in and I wish we got more of a look into her psyche and how being the odd one out feels.
Freak Count - 03
- She tells Sabrina to use the freak's bathroom from now on.
- She directly says that Sabrina is an "even bigger freak" than she originally thought after she's turned back from a pineapple.
- After Sabrina gets hit by the football (when Libby is walking off) she calls Sabrina a freak to herself.
Technically, two of these ended up being erased because Sabrina went back in time but I'm still counting them.
Rating
I'm going to give this a 7/10. This was a very strong pilot episode but is it the best that Sabrina can offer? Obviously not. There's not a lot of nostalgia associated with this specific episode because this is kind of like a time machine lookback for me, so at least there's none of that clouding the rating.
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