My Rating
“Awakening!”
Monsters everywhere, as far as the eye can see! Amber Nightstone has surely done it this time. First, she tried to put the heebie-jeebies on the students of Riverdale during the festivities at the Lodge estate. Now Sabrina’s magical rival has opened the door to something far more dangerous. Creatures from the mysterious Fae-Light Zone have invaded the mortal realm. Dun! Dun! Duuun!
With Salem at her side, Sabrina must uncover exactly what Amber has planned before this supernatural invasion gets completely out of control. Unfortunately, all roads seem to lead toward the creepy Eyegore Estates, a place that looks less like a neighborhood and more like the gateway to Hell.
What sinister plot have Sabrina and Salem uncovered? Why does Eyegore Estates look like something out of a Halloween nightmare? Can Sabrina stop Amber before the Fae-Light Zone changes the magical world forever? More importantly, is it too windy to ride a broom side-saddle?
“Grounded”
UFO! Aunt Hilda saw a UFO—and inside the house, nonetheless! Has she been reading those ridiculous supermarket tabloids again? Sabrina isn’t buying it. Then again, maybe Hilda isn’t imagining things after all.
Wait a minute. Reggie!
“Haunt Taunt”
It’s move-in day at the new Spellman house, but why is the Realtor acting so peculiar? So what if the place is haunted? That’s awesome! Sabrina certainly isn’t afraid of a few ghosts. In fact, those spirits had better be real after all this buildup.
Hold on. What was that rustling sound inside the walls?
“January White Sale”
What in the magical realm is Aunt Hilda going to do with all this junk? The attic desperately needs a good cleaning, but Sabrina isn’t ready to part with everything. Some of those boxes contain childhood toys and plenty of memories.
Meanwhile, Harvey wants to play salesman outside in the freezing snow. Has he lost his mind?
“Strange Love”
Harvey has never even looked at another girl—until today! Who is this mysterious new love interest, and why is Ethel Muggs suddenly throwing accusations around?
Something doesn’t smell right, and Sabrina intends to get to the bottom of it. It’s time for a little magical detective work. Maybe a love spell will straighten everything out.
Then again, when has one of Sabrina’s spells ever made her life less complicated?
Reviewer Notes
Sabrina Spellman has a new enemy, and Amber Nightstone isn’t fooling around! With enough magical power to potentially change both the mortal and supernatural realms, Amber makes a great foil for Sabrina. “Awakening!” also feels like a natural continuation for anyone who picked up the Archie Halloween Spectacular. If you enjoyed that book, you’ll definitely want to add this annual to the collection. There is even a little Scarlet Witch-influenced dome’age thrown into the mix. What’s not to love? The artwork alone delivers plenty of awesome sauce.
Most of Sabrina the Teenage Witch Annual Spectacular 2024 consists of remastered stories from older Sabrina comics. Normally, that might sound like a drawback, but Archie has decades of wonderful material sitting in its vaults. The older stories give readers a nice dose of classic Sabrina humor, while “Awakening!” provides the modern supernatural adventure that anchors the book. I especially enjoy how easily these older stories sit beside the newer material. Sabrina has changed over the decades, but the basic formula of magic, monsters, teenage problems, and spells going sideways remains timeless.
I’m giving Sabrina the Teenage Witch Annual Spectacular 2024 five out of five stars. The new story is fun, the classic reprints still have plenty of charm, and the artwork throughout makes this a great book to revisit when Halloween rolls around. Archie Comics continues to embrace monsters, witches, ghosts, and everything that goes bump in the night better than just about anyone. As far as I’m concerned, Archie Comics truly deserves the title of Official Comic Book of Halloween.