Since it was revealed on last week’s Game of Thrones episode that Sabrina is Jon Snow’s aunt, it’s a good idea to see if that revelation happens in the comic books as well. That’s a joke and apologies to any Jons out there who have aunts named Sabrina. However, what’s in fact true is that fans are going wild for The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina season two.
Half of the reason the show is so entertaining is due to the fact that it’s based on a fantastic comic book with the same title. All adaptations change some aspects from the original source material. Check out the list to see the biggest differences between The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina comics and television show!
Ambrose
If viewers didn’t know, Sabrina and Ambrose are cousins. This is a necessary reminder due to the fact that Ambrose NEVER calls Sabrina “cousin.” Obviously, that isn’t true. In fact, Ambrose’s signature catchphrase (cousin) is completely absent from the source material. Despite being cousins, Ambrose verbally calls Sabrina cousin only once or twice in the comics. Dang, cuz.
Another significant change is that the television series explains that the witch council punishes Ambrose by land locking him to Sabrina’s house. However, comic book Ambrose is sent to live with Sabrina after he gets thrown out of his English boarding school for fighting with another student. Another change is that Ambrose’s familiars are two snakes in the comics. The snakes never make an appearance in the show which is an absolute bummer for people who happen to own snakes.
Salem
We’re gonna let the cat out of the bag right now….There are some big differences between the comic book and television versions of Salem. A surface level change that the show makes is that Salem is a Bombay cat. The comic book, on the other hand, depicts Salem as a Norwegian Forest Tuxedo cat.
Another aspect that separates the show from its source material is Salem’s backstory. Salem in the Netflix series is a goblin that takes the form of a cat and becomes Sabrina’s familiar. Conversely, the comic book Salem is a warlock that gets turned into a cat as a punishment for breaking sacred witch laws. Of course, the most obvious difference is that Salem doesn’t speak at all in the show. The comic book Salem is a catty cat who loves to talk. Did we squeeze in enough cat jokes?
Harvey Kinkle
Harvey Kinkle is played by Ross Lynch. The love child of Ross Geller and director David Lynch. Even though that’s not a real thing, what is real is that Harvey Kinkle is a football jock in the comic books. One could say Harvey in the television show is more introspective. The guy loves being cooped up in his room and drawing cool stuff.
It’s safe to assume both versions of the character love Sabrina equally. So much so that comic book Harvey gets caught up in some really nasty witch business for Sabrina’s sake. Let’s just say Harvey’s character arc is more or less similar to his brother’s fate in the show. Also, Harvey doesn’t date anyone else except for Sabrina in the comics. The second season depicts a romantic fling between Harvey and Rosalind. Another addition to the show is that Harvey’s family are witch hunters. The only interests comic book Harvey has are playing football and kissing Sabrina.
Madam Satan
It’s understandable why Madam Satan prefers to be called Ms. Wardell. There’s a less horrifying ring to that name. Both the comic book and television versions of the character pretend to be on Sabrina’s side in order to lure her into Satan’s grasp. What’s different is how Madam Satan returns from the dead.
Unlike the Netflix series, Madam Satan has a direct connection to the Archie universe. Madam Satan is brought back by none other than Betty and Veronica. We’ll go ahead and let some folks pick their jaws up off the floor. Betty and Veronica attempt to come up with a love spell that will finally make Archie pick between which of the two girls he loves the most. The spell backfires and ends up bringing Madam Satan back to life. What’s cool about this element in the comic book is that it proves the Riverdale and Sabrina universes can naturally crossover if the producers ever want to take the shows into that direction.
Signing The Book
If Chilling Adventures of Sabrina and The Witch taught viewers anything, it’s that if a terrifying goat-man asks someone to sign a book they should immediately run in the opposite direction of said goat-man. The show’s first season culminates in a tragic (or triumphant depending on how one perceives it) moment where Sabrina signs over her life to Satan. Sabrina is granted crazy God-like powers and burns down a bunch of old ladies dressed like pilgrims. Just to clarify, these old ladies also happen to be witches.
None of that happens in the comic book. The closest Sabrina ever comes to signing the devil’s book takes place in a comic book issue similar to the show’s depiction of her sixteenth birthday. Sabrina fully rejects Satan’s offer and chooses to embrace her human side. Unfortunately, Sabrina’s actions have devastating effects on Harvey. All of this plays out like some sort of brilliant mix of Stephen King horror meets George R.R. Martin-esque tragedy. The point is that the comic book is awesome and everyone needs to read it. Like, right now.
Aunt Zelda
Who would’ve thought that Sabrina’s aunt was a Nintendo character? Wait, that’s a different Zelda. Something else that’s different is the way Aunt Zelda is portrayed in the Netflix show.
A major change in the show is that Zelda has a long and complicated backstory with Father Blackwood. Zelda’s relationship with Father Blackwood is completely absent from the comic book. In fact, Zelda and Hilda rarely leave their home in the comics. It’s a necessary creative choice to give Zelda a meatier backstory since television shows demand multiple plot lines in order to keep everything interesting.
Aunt Hilda
It’s reasonable to say everyone is waiting for the episode where it’s revealed that Hilda is actually the evil mastermind behind all of the bad stuff that happens on the show. There’s just no way a witch can be as nice as Hilda. We’re kidding, Hilda is actually awesome.
The similarities between the show and the comic book are that Hilda’s core character traits are left intact. Hilda is kind, caring, and clever. That’s where the similarities end. The show features a subplot where Hilda gets a job at a horror-themed book store. It’s there where she meets her love interest, Dr. Cee. Both the book store and Dr. Cee never appear in the comic books. Rather, Hilda is always busy running the funeral home. Can someone please open up a real-life version of that book store?
Academy of Unseen Arts
The Academy of Unseen Arts has to be the smallest school of all time. It’s literally just a lobby. Regardless of its small size, the Academy of Unseen Arts is a big part of the television show.
However, the Academy of Unseen Arts isn’t in the comic books. The comics depict Sabrina learning about witchcraft from her aunts. All of the teenage drama in the comic books comes from Sabrina’s high school experiences in the mortal world. This particular change to the show seems like something that has really resonated with viewers. The Academy of Unseen Arts is like Hogwarts except that it’s filled with much hunkier warlocks.
Love Triangle
Are viewers team Snick (Sabrina + Nick) or Habrina (Harvey + Sabrina)? We gotta work on those nicknames. Anyway, the television show features a love triangle involving Nick, Sabrina, and Harvey.
So much of the drama comes from Sabrina’s feelings for these two guys. Nick has even become a fan favorite character. None of this is in the comic book. In fact, Nick isn’t even a character that existed until the television show. The comics feature a much more straight forward narrative that solely revolves around Sabrina and Harvey’s relationship. We apologize to anyone who had been planning on reading the comic books just for Nick.
Sabrina
The biggest difference is that Sabrina is actually not named Sabrina in the comics. Rather, her name is actually Jughead. This was a test to make sure everyone is still paying attention.
All jokes aside, there’s a few changes the show makes to Sabrina’s character. One major change is that Sabrina is a high school political activist in the Netflix show. Sabrina’s fight for feminism is completely absent from the comic books. Another deviation from the source material is that Sabrina doesn’t ever dip her toe into the dark side. The show, on the other hand, has fun with Sabrina’s conflict of wanting to do good while being tempted by Satan. Either way, both versions of the character never lose sight of Sabrina’s timeless appeal. Even though Sabrina is a witch, she is someone who goes through the same teenage experiences as any other mortal.
