Sanctuary: A Witch's Tale

It's not awful; a bit heavy on the "Harper Valley" small-town drama and teen angst (..especially for what looks to be a British-produced series), but it's still developing characters and story. It doesn't kick straight in like a "Penny Dreadful" but it held my interest.

For only one episode the acting is very passable, writing as well, and I like that they don't give up the whole season in the first ep. Post-episode previews are flashy, but this first one is subtle on the special and practical effects so not a whole lot of "eye-candy" on the way in. It may be that they're going out of the way a bit in terms of suspending disbelief, but it's still a fun watch so far.

Welcome to the enchanting and magical hamlet known as Sanctuary, a place supposedly dedicated to providing solace and haven for witches against persecution. Basking in the town's benevolence is the presence of a lone witch family, as the beacon of all magical prowess. Not just any ordinary witch family, mind you; the illustrious Fenn family is one where the manifestation of witch power appears to have escaped both the character's mother and daughter. Yes, you heard it right - leaving the protagonist, Sarah Fenn, as the sorcerous elite, and the official representative of witchforce and witchdom in a town, that has a grand total of one officially registered witch. Bravo, Sarah!

Of course, the makers decided to christen both the town and the series with the grandiose title "Sanctuary", because nothing says magical refuge like a place with just one witch, right? But wait, there's more! In this modern benevolent utopia, anyone can casually point fingers at anyone else, accusing them of witchcraft. It's like a community potluck, but instead of bringing casseroles, you bring accusations of spellcasting. How quaint!

And then there is the real star of the show - Abigail Whithall, the grieving mother, the narcissistic friend, the cheating wife, the blackmailing neighbour, what-have-you. Her performance is so stellar that it makes you want to enroll in an anger management class to cope with the desire to repeatedly punch her in the face. Ah, the wonders of brilliant acting - or as I like to call it, facial-punch-worthy theatrics.

Cheers to the magical-bewitching world of Sanctuary!

While there is a central fantasy element with the presence of witches and magic, those simply add complexity to the efforts of residents of a small town to solve a murder (or prove that it wasn't one), rather than being an end unto themselves.

The magical hand movements seem to have come straight out of The Magicians, but work in this series as well. Nothing about the fantasy element is particularly innovative, except perhaps combining it with a crime genre and setting it in a community where witches can live openly among their non-witch neighbors.

The acting is good and the script gets the job done without being unduly annoying. The teenage drama is fortunately kept to a minimum, and focused only on the central plot points thus far. Some misogynists may be upset about the plethora of strong female leads, but there's more than enough relevant guys in the story to satisfy a reverse-Bechdel test.

It's an easy and enjoyable watch.

I think the intrigue is there - it's not Broadchurch by any means but it's an okay crime show. All in all, this is a solid six or seven, in my opinion, as in it would get a passing grade for decent British crime/mystery TV with or without witchcraft. It treats witchcraft as mundane and commonplace, which is interesting in itself. The characters are pretty interesting, and there is enough world-building. It doesn't need all the special effects to be a decent show, and it doesn't need to be groundbreaking. Exaggerated 1 and 2/10 star reviews do this site a disservice and make it unusable over time.

One of those pieces, where first episodes are bland and won't catch, but if you make it past that, you will be hooked and suddenly wait for more. I saw six episodes so far and I still don't know, how it will end, which is impressive, as on most of current series, I know mostly after two episodes all basic story lines. IT IS UNPREDICTABLE and annoying, and I love it.

I really don't understand why are people making those 1 or 2 rating reviews after seeing one episode (mostly not whole) and writing total nonsense. Watch it first and then come back again. You won't be disappointed. But if you are only about special effects and glorious, but bland story lines, then pass. Its not for you.