With the anticipation of part 4 of Chilling Adventures of Sabrina comes great sadness as the second half of the second season will be the last of this occult series. We’re grateful that at least the cliffhanger of part 3 will be resolved. But still salty that Netflix decided to pull the plug on Sabrina. A lot rests on the last eight CAOS episodes. And part 4 is just one more reason we can’t wait for December 31. To prepare for the final chapter of Sabrina Spellman and her immortal and mortal companions, let’s do a little recap of what happened in the last three parts.

Warning: major spoilers!

Part 1, Chapters 1-11

Sabrina Spellman is just like any other teenage girl about to celebrate her sixteenth birthday. Other than the fact for her it will mark her dark baptism in which she will pledge loyalty to the Dark Lord aka Satan aka Lucifer Morningstar. Things go south on the actual day when she refuses to sign her name to the Book of the Beast. Many think she’s being unreasonable, unwilling to let a little thing like free will go so easily.

Sabrina’s decision splits her life in two as she must reconcile being a mortal and living her life with her high school friends Susie and Roz and her boyfriend Harvey or embracing her witchy destiny. To ensure she does pledge her loyalty to him and become the Herald of Hell, the Dark Lord sends his servant Madam Satan aka Lilith, in the guise of Sabrina’s teacher Ms. Wardwell to guide her on her way. Sabrina’s aunts Hilda and Zelda are concerned about their niece. And after a little legal dispute, Sabrina agrees to attend the Academy of Unseen Arts part time.  

Meanwhile, the High Priest of the Church of the Night and Sabrina’s principle proves himself to be a shady character – even for a Satanist. Sabrina, however, is a little more preoccupied with the resident mean girls of her new school, the Weird Sister. Throughout the season, Sabrina deals with hazing or “harrowing,” blood sacrifice, a possessed uncle, and an ugly instance in which she must reveal to Harvey her true nature. In the end, Sabrina is forced to sign the book to save her coven from the threat of the Greendale Thirteen.  She gained some powerful magic from her choice to sign. But she also loses Harvey and steps further into the realm of darkness.

Part 2, Chapters 12-20

Sabrina has now fully embraced her witch side and chooses to attend the Academy of Unseen Arts full time. She butts heads immediately with Father Blackwood, who reveals his misogyny when he refuses to allow Sabrina to run for the position of “Top Boy.” Back at Sabrina’s old school, Baxter High, Susie is going through her own battle with discrimination as she tries to land a spot on the boys’ basketball team. We learn that Susie is trans, and he begins to go by the name Theo. Roz and Harvey find themselves falling for each other. In the other realm, Sabrina has a new beau in the handsome warlock Nick Scratch.

Father Blackwood continues to be the worst as he tries to create a misogynistic group called the Judas Society to make warlocks superior to witches. His sordid little scheme includes assassinating the Anti-Pope to gain power. And framing a particular warlock student, Ambrose, for the murder. With Zelda’s help and ultimately the Dark Lord’s intervention, Sabrina thwarts Father Blackwood’s plan. But the dastardly villain manages to poison most of the coven before he escapes into the night.

However, Sabrina’s main challenge through this season is struggling to deny the Dark Lord’s claim to her as her herald. It’s revealed Lilith has a stake in the matter since if Sabrina fulfills her role, Lilith is free to finally take her place beside the Dark Lord as his queen. Sabina attempts to subvert the prophecy by making a doppelganger of herself. She gives it all her power in the hopes that she’ll no longer be of use to the Dark Lord without her abilities. The plan backfires when she kills her doppelganger and inadvertently fulfills the prophecy. And the Dark Lord, now restored to angelic form on Earth, reveals his plan to crown Sabrina the Queen of Hell. All is not lost, as Lilith strikes a deal with Sabrina to turn things in their favor.

At her coronation, Sabrina appears before the Dark Lord. In another shocking turn of events, the Dark Lord turns out to be her real father. She charms him with a stunning performance of The Phantom of the Opera’s Masquerade (a rendition that will haunt our memories). That allows her to set up her plan of trapping the Dark Lord in a tricky bit of magic known as the Acheron Configuration. They manage to trap the Dark Lord and send him back to Hell. The only hitch being Nick was forced to sacrifice himself as the vessel of imprisonment. Lilith takes the place of Queen of Hell, and Sabrina, her powers fully restored, is tasked to rescue Nick.

Part 3, Chapters 21-28

Times are changing for the Spellmans and their coven. Zelda proposes they begin worshipping Lilith instead of the Dark Lord. Meanwhile, Sabrina’s got her own problems. On her journey down to Hell to free Nick, Sabrina meets with a new challenger, Caliban. He warns her of his mission to claim the throne of Hell. Sabrina has no choice but to take her place as queen to prevent him from usurping the position. But Caliban has a trick up his sleeve. He informs her of his plan to race her to find the three ancient artifacts of the Unholy Regalia. Whoever finds the three items first will be the ruler of Hell.

Bad things are brewing up on Earth as the coven find their powers draining. A traumatized Nick still has Lucifer living rent-free inside his head. And it’s taking its toll on his body and mind. Due to his turmoil, Nick ends his and Sabrina’s relationship. Zelda and Hilda also have to deal with the appearance of the Pagans. The Pagans come to town in a carnival and have plans to resurrect their god, the Green Man. With the world unraveling around her, Sabrina is enlightened by Lilith that there is an unbalance between Earth and Hell as Sabrina’s full attention is not focused on ruling the latter. Lucifer is finally ousted from Nick. But he escapes before Sabrina can capture him in a new prepared vessel, Father Blackwood’s body.

The situation with the Pagans becomes dire as they issue an ultimatum to the witches to pray to their god or be slaughtered. The Pagans use their magic to wreak havoc. They transform Hilda into a giant, ravenous spider and Roz into stone. The Pagans search for a virgin to sacrifice to summon their god. This leaves Theo, Harvey, Roz, and Ms. Wardwell in a precarious position. Blackwood, who was discovered to be hiding in a place outside of time with the aid of a powerful magic tool known as the Time Egg, is brought back to face justice. In a horrifying turn of events, Blackwell joins forces with the Pagans. And together they murder many members of the coven. Ambrose survives the attack and escapes with the Time Egg. Harvey is not so lucky and becomes the Pagans’ first sacrifice.

Sabrina searches for the three items of the Unholy Regalia, which include King Herod’s Crown, Pontius Pilate’s Bowl, and Judas’s Iscariot’s 30 Pieces of Silver. On the last mission to obtain the pieces of silver, Caliban traps Sabrina, Lucifer, and Lilith in a prison of stone. Decades later, Sabrina is awoken from her prison by her future self, who explains they are in a time loop likely caused by the Time Egg. The two switch places so Sabrina can travel back to the time before Blackwood, and the Pagans attacked. After her family and friends are saved, and the witches kill the Pagans, Sabrina presents Caliban from tricking her and instead seals him into the stone.

Now, two Sabrinas occupy the same space, creating a paradox in time. Instead of righting the natural order, the Sabrinas decide to take advantage of the situation. Sabrina Spellman, the current self, goes to live on Earth while Sabrina Morningstar, the past self, rules Hell. The final episode ends with the threat of time itself being unraveled by the unchecked paradox. And an abomination hatching from the enigmatic Time Egg.