Mother Striga, the legendary "First Witch," will debut in September's SABRINA ANNUAL SPECTACULAR from Archie Comics.

The press release follows:

Media Release -- Sabrina the Teenage Witch's rogues gallery is going big with a brand new villain in September! Fan-favorite baddies Amber, Jade, and Sapphire — known as The Wicked Trinity — will conjure up Mother Striga in the pages of SABRINA ANNUAL SPECTACULAR, a one-shot comic book kicking off a rare three-part crossover from Archie Comics written by Ian Flynn (SONIC THE HEDGEHOG) with art by Steven and Lily Butler (SPIDER-MAN).



"I'm a fan of the wild and magical world of Ms. Spellman, and I'm always eager to explore it in ways that are more narratively meaty," Flynn said. "Amber is a great foil and rival for Sabrina, but they've always been on relatively equal footing. The new evil we're introducing — Mother Striga — is on a whole other level. How will Sabrina manage when she's completely outclassed in terms of raw, magical might?"

As will be revealed in the series, Mother Striga is an esoteric witch from whom all other witches in Sabrina's world descend. An ancient juggernaut of malefic power, she is summoned by Amber in an attempt to defeat Sabrina, her earthly adversary, once and for all. Born on the same day as Sabrina and unable to exist in the mortal realm simultaneously as a result, Amber wants to take her place — but the consequences of Amber's actions set off a chain of events that can't be contained in one comic. The story will continue in October with ARCHIE HALLOWEEN SPECTACULAR and conclude with JOSIE AND THE PUSSYCATS ANNUAL SPECTACULAR in November.

"In Sabrina's world, Mother Striga is the first witch, the mother of all witches, and very malevolent," Steven Butler explained. "Mother Striga exists as the 'Darkseid' or 'Thanos' of Sabrina's world, the ultimate evil presence who shows up to cause havoc for everyone. In designing her, I wanted her to look regal yet emaciated like an ancient mummy — she even wears wrappings like a mummy — with thick, viscous black hair that's alive and can morph into a cloak or weapon."

Amber Nightstone's first appearance in 2022 sold out instantly and went to a second printing. Sapphire Gill and Jade Kazane were introduced a year later, their respective water- and wind-based powers rounding out Amber's fire-based magic to form the Wicked Trinity and adding a note of danger to Sabrina's world that's further amped by Mother Striga's power. Sabrina, one of Archie's most popular and globally recognized characters, was the star of a Netflix streaming series, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, as well as numerous stories for readers of all ages in Archie's current ongoing monthly comics and digest magazines.

SABRINA ANNUAL SPECTACULAR releases September 4 in comic shops nationwide, with colors by Glenn Whitmore, letters by Jack Morelli, and a cover by Vincent Lovallo, Steven and Lily Butler, and Rosario "Tito" Peña. It's available for pre-order now.



SABRINA ANNUAL SPECTACULAR (ONE-SHOT)

BRAND NEW STORY: It's an all-out battle at Eyegore Estates as Sabrina's nemesis Amber Nightstone makes her return! But when the evil Amber unleashes is more powerful than even she expected, it's going to take more than just two magical beings to set things right!

Script: Ian Flynn
Pencils: Steven Butler
Inks: Lily Butler
Colors: Glenn Whitmore
Letters: Jack Morelli
Cover: Vincent Lovallo, Steven Butler, Lily Butler, Rosario "Tito" Peña
On Sale Date: 9/4
32-page, full color comic
$3.99 U.S.



ABOUT ARCHIE COMICS

Archie Comics is the leading mass market comic book publisher in the world and the home to a wide array of the most popular humor, action-adventure, and superhero characters in entertainment, including Archie, Jughead, Betty and Veronica, Kevin Keller, Josie and the Pussycats, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Li'l Jinx, and many more. Archie comics are published around the world in a number of languages with over 2 billion sold and counting. The iconic Archie Comics characters have also appeared on The CW's Riverdale TV series, the Netflix streaming series Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, and have been featured in animation, television, film, and music throughout Archie's 80+ year history.