'Chilling Adventures of Sabrina' Part 4: Eldritch Terrors seem familiar? Here are the sci-fi references you missed
Spoilers for 'Chilling Adventures of Sabrina' Part 4
The final villains of Netflix's 'Chilling Adventures of Sabrina' had been teased from the previous season. The Eldritch Terrors were called upon by Father Faustus Blackwood (Richard Coyle) with the aim of, well, just pure destruction. We learn in Part 4 that there are eight Eldritch Terrors, but if a few of them seemed familiar, it is because the Eldritch Terrors -- a classic sci-fi invention -- has long been part of the science-fiction genre ever since author HP Lovecraft invented the sub-genre of "Cosmic Horrors." In fact, a more direct reference to this influence is seen when we see that Father Blackwood calls himself Reverend Lovecraft to his new set of followers.
Lovecraft's sub-genre is made up of different elements including the supernatural, mythological, human and extraterrestrial. It's been used in a variety of popular shows such as 'Doctor Who', 'American Gods', 'Wynonna Earp', 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer', 'Charmed', 'Game of Thrones', 'Power Rangers', 'Star Trek', 'Stranger Things', and 'Supernatural'. And a couple of Eldritch Terrors as shown in the final season of 'Chilling Adventures of Sabrina' bear a strong resemblance to other sci-fi television shows, mainly, 'Doctor Who'.
Lovecraft has also made an appearance in the 'Sabrina' comics when Sabrina Spellman is thrown into a mental institution run by a character called Dr HP Lovecraft (a direct reference to the original source) in the 'Afterlife with Archie' horror series, written by none other than 'Chilling Adventures of Sabrina' showrunner, Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa. In these comics, she has encounters with Cthulhu and other creatures from the Lovecraft universe
The first resemblance comes when the first Eldritch Terrors brings out resurrected miners wearing gas masks. As fans of 'Doctor Who' would know, the gas mask is a special prop for the series and always accompanies the line, "Are you my mummy?" This plot comes in the first season of the rebooted 'Doctor Who', all the way back in 2005, featuring Christopher Eccleston as the 10th incarnation of the Doctor. We cannot help but feel that 'Chilling Adventures of Sabrina' may have picked up more than just one source of inspiration from the British series.
Another direct similarity comes from the squid-shaped Eldritch Terrors, though in defense of 'Chilling Adventures of Sabrina', there are a few Lovecraft creations that take the shape of an octopus. For us, we were most reminded of the true form of the Daleks, a classic 'Doctor Who' villain, as seen in the two-part Season 4 finale in the new 'Doctor Who' version, featuring David Tennant as the 11th Doctor. A tentacled monster also appears in 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer'.
There are many other sci-fi shows that 'Chilling Adventures of Sabrina' seems to take inspiration from. In the original 'Charmed', there is a creature called "The Nothing" which is imprisoned in another dimension located in an ice cream truck, quite similar to the last two Eldritch Terrors that Sabrina faces. Sabrina's encounter with an angel named Metatron reminded us of 'Supernatural', where Metatron is a significant character.
In fact, there may be many more references to Lovecraft creations. If you've spotted some we may have missed, let us know in the comments below.
All seasons of 'Chilling Adventures of Sabrina' are now streaming on Netflix.