Sabrina is put on trial for her actions, and though even a legendary occult lawyer struggle to fight some damning evidence, Hilda has a secret.
Following her visit from Satan, Sabrina vomits in the school bathroom, and Wardwell catches her by surprise; she assures the woman she's fine and rushes out.
At the house, Ambrose finds Connor's iguana and asks Zelda and Hilda about getting it to talk. Zelda she says he can't have a familiar due to his house arrest and the familiar won't speak to him, but he decides to try anyway. Sabrina is zoning out at school when Roz arrives to talk about the "fascism" of the school, since her teacher won't let her do a book report on The Bluest Eye. They take the fight to Hawthorne, who is confused as Sabrina stares, and though he claims Baxter High doesn't ban books, he doesn't like the graphic imagery in hers. He points to other questionable titles and says impressionable youths shouldn't have certain books, so they go to the library, where a failed search leads to the librarian admitting there was a "soft purge" years before of "bad books." At home, Sabrina tries to tell her aunts, but Zelda interrupts with an Infernal Summons; she's been charged with Breach of Promise for not signing Satan's book. Zelda angrily says this is the first time a Spellman has been summoned before the coven in such a way, and Sabrina is just shocked that Satan is suing her. She tells them about Hawthorne, and though they're concerned with Satan's anger, she says it doesn't matter because she's not joining the coven or going to court. Her aunts reveal that, as her guardians, her actions are theirs, so they're also on trial, under "guilty until proven innocent" law. Zelda produces Hilda's tooth to show they're aging rapidly until a verdict is reached, and states her trial begins at midnight. Confused since she never signed the book, Sabrina talks to Ambrose, who says she can win with the help of lawyer/occultist Daniel Webster. Though mortal, his specialty is witch law, and he's supposedly beaten the Devil before; Sabrina takes a card with his address, wondering why such a man lives in Greendale. Zelda pleads with Blackwood to just have her, him, and the Devil settle things. He says it's too late, but suggests she have Sabrina come admit her wrongs and beg for mercy. She promises Sabrina's total submission, and after he takes note of her aging; a strand of her hair comes out in his hand; she leaves. Knowing he's being watched, Blackwood calls out to Wardwell, who doesn't want Sabrina, her charge, to be handled by "lesser hands." They argue about who's fault it is, and after he claims he'll drive the nail home like a hammer, Wardwell urges him to not underestimate Sabrina and demands his respect.
Sabrina visits Webster, who at first denies his identity but takes her in because of hers, and she tells him about her family being punished even though she didn't sign.
He turns her down, claiming he doesn't practice anymore, and after noting the case is tricky, wishes her luck. She leaves, frustrated, and he grows sad looking at a photo. Meanwhile, Harvey's brother Tommy compliments his strange drawings, and Harvey reveals Dr. Cerberus is letting him design posters for the store and maybe work there. His father enters, disgusted at the thought of him working at a comic store, and orders him to start a shift at the mines, ignoring Tommy's protests. Zelda leads Hilda and Sabrina to the coven and runs through their choice-less matter. Inside, Blackwood explains the situation to the court and says if guilty, Sabrina will renounce her mortality and will burn in Hell for 333 years after death. As she stammers out a plea, Webster enters and says she's not guilty, and though everyone is shocked, he tells them he's welcome there since Sabrina's his client. Zelda fumes outside, remembering Webster being involved with Sabrina's father. He surprises her by saying Edward is the reason he came to Greendale, having helped him when he needed it and taught him witch law; he wants to return the favor. Blackwood runs through the semantics of Breach of Promise and compares it to a wedding, claiming Sabrina was essentially courting Satan, in a wedding dress. He claims she broke a promise by running at the time of "consummation." Webster demands signatures if this was indeed a "wedding," and though the coven is enraged when he demands the groom, he says there's no contract or promise. Blackwood brings out Satan's book and points to a page; Sabrina is shocked to find her name signed, dated days after her birth. Webster calls it a forgery, but Blackwood calls Zelda, who claims she witnessed Edward sign while she was on an altar.
Later at home, Sabrina rants at Zelda about the betrayal, angry and confused why her dad did this and she was left in the dark. Zelda reveals Edward was only able to marry Diana if he signed her name in the book, a fact which angers her further.
While Webster prepares, Wardwell visits as his daughter's ghost, with her throat slashed, asking why he let her die and why he's defending a worthless half-breed. The next day while walking to school, Sabrina brushes off her fight with Zelda, but Harvey tells his dad, and reveals he doesn't just hate the mines like she thinks. Eight years before, he got lost in the mines playing with Tommy, and saw a goat-like creature that smelled of brimstone. Tommy found him crying hours later, and though no one ever saw the creature, he worries that it's down there waiting for him. They arrive as Roz is passing out fliers about banned books at Baxter, and her excitement fizzles when Hawthorne. To their surprise, he doesn't plan to punish Roz; he actually talked to the PTA and school board about reviewing her book matter. At the house, Ambrose spies a young man named Luke (Darren Mann) standing at the edge of Connor's funeral, and learns he's a warlock and former lover of Connor's. Their conversation doubles as flirting and hinting at each knowing the nature of the iguana. Ambrose invites him to his room to see the lizard, but Luke has to go. While Sabrina is in class, Wardwell creates a scrapbook with newspaper clippings on Webster, and casts a spell to freeze everyone in the classroom except Sabrina. She follows the grisly ghost of Webster's daughter to the library and finds the scrapbook, which tells of the "Defender of the Damned," with reports of criminals going free after horrific crimes thanks to Webster defending them. She goes to Webster and demands answers; he explains he made a deal with the Devil to become the greatest lawyer, only to discover his clients were all monsters. One man had done terrible things to women, and after going free, did them to Webster's daughter; he now believes he can save Sabrina if she'll let him help. As the episode closes, Webster's next trick gets turned on them, but Hilda has a secret to reveal that helps but hurts her, and Harvey and Roz face their own demons.
For the most part, I enjoyed this episode and was glad one complaint I had about the previous one seemed better this time around.
Whenever the show focuses on Sabrina's adventures in the magical world and the tough spot she's in, I find myself interested in the twists and turns that come. The introduction of Daniel Webster brought an interesting piece to the puzzle, as he's got ties to her family and is a sort of take on classic devil deal stories. According to his biography from the Blues Foundation, musician Robert Johnson supposedly traded his soul in exchange for skill at the guitar. This has famously been alluded to in "O Brother Where Art Thou" with the character Tommy, and typically in such stories, deals are made at crossroads. Webster's story also feels reminiscent of the Charlie Daniels classic The Devil Went Down to Georgia, where a young man named Johnny battles the Devil in a fiddle contest betting his soul against a fiddle of gold. Usually the deals that people make in these stories leave them at the Devil's mercy, but like Johnny, Webster seems to have gained an advantage in a way. He did tragically lose his daughter as a result of the deal, but being the greatest lawyer makes him a great adversary for the Devil in his dealings. Webster shows keen intellect and ingenuity in this episode trying to help Sabrina, and gets further aid from Hilda later in the episode. For the most part, however, I find myself rolling my eyes whenever Sabrina is doing things at school with her friends. I see the point in their messages and the characters are admirably passionate about what they believe, but it feels obnoxious listening to them at times. Roz's assertion that the school is being "fascist" because her book was turned down seemed dramatic at the start of the episode, and the way they directly state they should get to read what they want made this feel like a cheesy after school special. Later this episode we get insight into why Roz is upset about the situation, but initially she seems obnoxious, especially as they are immediately critical of Hawthorne, when he tries to help, though admittedly has questionable beliefs about certain books. I'm also interested in the situation with Harvey as he struggles with his fear and his demanding father, and Ambrose's digging into Connor's death. The familiar is a good start and gives him a semblance of normality he needed after being stuck int he house, and he also meets Luke. I wasn't exactly surprised by the reveal of Ambrose's sexuality, and I wonder what new information Luke can provide Ambrose about Connor. Of course a key point of success for the episode is Sabrina as well, as she shows intelligence like Webster in court but continues showing youthful emotions. Learning that her dad signed her name away when she was a baby is a harsh blow to Sabrina, and now she is likely wondering who her parents really were. The discovery further turns her away from the church, as well, since the assurance that they're based around free will continues to be proven wrong. Zelda says she was meant to never know and simply choose the church willingly, but even in this case, she was still being influenced and never really had a choice. With the information Hilda dug out and the court's decision decided, I'm wondering what Sabrina and those around her will do now.
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