REVIEW: Chilling Adventures of Sabrina Part 4 Does Not Do the Series Justice
Chilling Adventures of Sabrina is coming to an end with Part 4 debuting tomorrow, December 31. However, the final 8 episodes of the series pay no justice to what could have been a creative and unique end of the series. The series kicks off with the Sabrina dealing with the consequences of coming into contact with another Sabrina in Part 3 and having to harbor that secret. This is the reason for why the first three episodes of the season feel more like fillers than actual episodes. Sabrina spends more time moping around and feeling sad over losing her boyfriend and feeling like the fifth wheel that she essentially becomes a Mary Sue.
But then, in episodes 4-7, the show finally finds it’s footing again and is a great reminder as to why viewers were have been tuning in. It felt very reminiscent of the show’s first season. The episodes were funny and they focused on the main arc of the season rather than the nonsense that were the secondary stories. By the time the finale hit, you are so hyped for the grand exit that is becomes a true disappointment when it turns out to be a let down.
On a positive note, all our favorite characters are featured in the final 8 episodes, but for some, it feels like they are just there as set pieces. Most of our characters are mainly used as plot pieces this season with no actual development or arc in sight. Harvey (Ross Lynch), the Aunties (Miranda Otto and Lucy Davis), and Theo (Lachlan Watson) basically get pushed to the back burner while Ambrose (Chance Perdomo) is really only used to help push the plot along. The only exception to this is Roz (Jaz Sinclair). Roz plays a big part this season and has multiple storylines going on, but none of which feel fully told. The writers establish these big moments for her and than drop them the very next episode.
On top of all of that, one of my biggest problems with the series, in general, was how it portrayed Sabrina (Kiernan Shipka) in certain scenes. Sabrina is suppose to be the leading lady of this ensemble and a powerful one at that. And yet, time and time again, the writers make you wonder if they were actually telling her story or if she was just a secondary character. That constant stream of nonsense continues in these final eight episodes.
But this is how it felt for ever story created or continued this season. The writing felt disjointed and at some points almost as though they threw in the towel. Their choice of things to focus on this season distracted from the main story and wasted precious time. Time that could have been spent developing an even juicier main arc or the relationships between characters that we as viewer fell in love with over the last few seasons.
Fans of the series will find some things to love about the final episodes, but overall won’t be satisfied with the conclusion. I feel that the ending doesn’t do Sabrina, her family or friends justice. It may be because they weren’t 100% sure if they were coming back, but I feel like our favorite characters deserved more in their final season.
Photo credit: Netflix