Chilling Adventures of Collecting Sabrina

With a new Netflix series just around the corner, let’s talk about Sabrina. If the show is half as good as the rebooted source material, it should be a hit. CW’s Riverdale has introduced a new generation to Archie and bumped up the price on many books. I expect this new show to follow that same trend.
Most of the Sabrina keys are scarce in mid to high-grade. Compared to Marvel and DC, the available supply is much smaller. Finding these issues in any condition with good eye appeal in a win. Even with money to burn, finding a single copy of certain books can be challenging. Here, presented in chronological order, is a brief history of the character’s appearances and other books that may be of interest to collectors. Enjoy….

Madhouse 19 is the first appearance of Hilda the Witch. Madhouse stories did not follow a strict continuity. Hilda’s character model and relationship to Sabrina will morph with time. What we have here is a proto-type narrator but “Aunt Hilda” will eventually become a major figure in the Sabrina mythos.

Madhouse 22 is Sabrina’s first appearance. It is also the first appearance of Della, The Head Witch (who will probably be the villain in the Netflix show) and Salem the Cat. There are 12 cent and 15 cent variations of this book. The 15 cent copy is extremely rare.

madhouse23

Madhouse 24 is her second appearance. The cast of characters in the Archie universe is relatively small. There are not many first appearances to collect. This makes early appearances, classic covers and other minor keys popular among Archie collectors.

madhouse25

Madhouse 25 is her third appearance. Another book with a high demand.

madhouse27

Madhouse 27 is her 5th appearance and first cover. I collect some first covers for my PC but generally do not put stock in them. I believe this book to be an exception. First off, this is one of the more challenging Madhouse books to find. It’s not a “ghost” but they are not readily available. Secondly, she will not make another cover appearance for six years. When Hannah Barbara called to ask for Sabrina’s license for the Archie cartoon, Archie executives asked “why?” Hannah Barbara informed them that she was one of their most popular characters. Archie Comics had no idea. In her first seven+ years, they only used her on this one single cover!

Madhouse36

**Madhouse 36 has long been advertised as the first appearance of Salem the Cat. Salem has multiple named appearances that pre-date this book, beginning with issue 22. There is nothing extra-ordinary about his brief appearance in this issue. Be aware.

Madhouse 37. First time Hilda the Witch is referred to as “Aunt Hilda.”

Madhouse 45. First appearance of Sabrina’s red-headed rival, Rosalind.

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Madhouse 65. First appearance of Aunt Zelda.

archiestvlaughout1

Archie’s TV Laugh-Out 1. Sabrina’s second cover appearance. The first appearance of Harvey Kinkle (her first reoccurring boyfriend) and Cousin Ambrose. In the new series, this tubby, middle aged Ambrose has been rebooted into a sexy, young warlock and Sabrina’s main confidant. This also features Aunt Hilda’s new character design.

Sabrina 1

Sabrina 1. First self-titled series.

Sabrina1novaro

Travesuras 154. Published in Mexico by Editorial Novaro. Only known international edition at this time and only foreign Sabrina key I could find. I strongly believe there is also an Editorial Novaro “Greco” edition that was published in Colombia, as other Greco editions from this series have been found.

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