Caroline Preece has more than 15 years of experience writing entertainment content. Her work for outlets including Den of Geek, Backstage, Tom’s Guide, CultBox, and Starburst prioritizes sharp analysis and reader-first reporting with a particular interest in the ways storytelling, audience behavior, and digital culture drive modern entertainment trends.
More than 20 years after she last cast a spell on network television, one of the most beloved teenage witches of the '90s is officially coming back this Halloween. For anyone picturing Melissa Joan Hart slipping back into the role, though, the return might not be what you're expecting.
Long before the ABC sitcom turned Sabrina the Teenage Witch into a TGIF staple, the character first appeared on the page in Archie's Mad House back in 1962. That is where she's heading once again in a relaunch that leans into the bright, mischievous magic the live-action series was known for rather than the darker route Netflix later took.
Oni Press and Archie Comics have confirmed (via ScreenRant) a new ongoing Sabrina the Teenage Witch comic, with issue #1 arriving in October from writer Corinna Bechko and artist Kano. Bechko is a Hugo Award nominee whose recent work includes Oni's EC Comics revival, while Kano, an Eisner nominee, has drawn for both Marvel and DC; he is also providing the cover for the first issue, with logo and trade dress by Rian Hughes.
The book is one of three Archie titles Oni is rolling out this fall, marking the first time the publisher has partnered with an outside company on its characters. Archie kicks things off in September, now written by Tracker creator Ben H. Winters, who replaced W. Maxwell Prince, alongside artists Fábio Moon and Nick Cagnetti. Sabrina follows in October before the horror-tinged Archie in Hell lands in November, all three running as monthly ongoing series. Oni Press president Hunter Gorinson framed the line as an "adults' idealistic version of what their childhood should have been," pitching it as a fresh start for the characters.
The 32-page first issue, priced at $4.99, picks Sabrina up just after the surprise reveal of her magical birthright, with Halloween on the horizon and the ordinary chaos of being 16 years old still very much in play. Things tip over when her familiar, Salem, deposits a mythical trickster on her doorstep and threatens to collide her two worlds — a setup that sits far closer to the warm, comedic tone of the sitcom than the occult horror of Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.
That tonal choice will matter to fans who have spent years hoping for a proper sitcom revival. Hart has repeatedly downplayed the odds, citing the "red tape" around rights for a property split across multiple studios, and co-star Caroline Rhea recently advised against holding out hope for a nostalgic continuation. The character has not exactly been dormant, mind you, having resurfaced via Kiernan Shipka's Netflix incarnation and a later stint on Riverdale. A new comic doesn't scratch quite the same itch as seeing the original cast back together, but it is the most concrete Sabrina news in a while, and, fittingly, it will be on shelves in time for spooky season.