Last week we got the first two episodes of Sanctuary: A Witch’s Tale, a British fantasy-mystery-thriller set in a world where witchcraft is a registered occupation. The town of Sanctuary is a place that witches have been calling their safe haven for years; however, things are about to get nasty after a young boy falls to his death at a party in an abandoned warehouse. In the first two episodes, we learn that Sarah is the only registered witch in Sanctuary, and her daughter Harper isn’t like her mother. However, with the news of Dan the hunk’s death, everyone has been blaming Harper. A boy named Jacob, who was clearly in love with Dan, believes he has evidence against Harper, proving that she used witchcraft against Dan. Could Harper have killed Dan? What was Dan really like? Let’s find out in episode 3 of Sanctuary: A Witch’s Tale.
Spoilers Ahead
What Happens In Episode 3?
While Sarah is trying to figure out how to save her daughter from her own best friend Abi’s slander, Harper is going through something much worse herself. The scandalous video from the party is released on the internet, and Harper’s devastated. In the meantime, Abi is threatening to get Harper arrested if Sarah doesn’t bring Dan back to life. She’s basically blackmailing her, thanks to Jacob’s words. On the other hand, Sarah’s office is vandalized with a “Satanic Pentagram,” while Abi is preparing a public fight with Sarah by going to the press. The Magic Investigator makes it to Sanctuary and notices there was something really eerie at the party. This power is much stronger than Sarah’s and much darker. Fortunately, though, the MI doesn’t notice Sarah at the warehouse while investigating because of this other power, or she would’ve put Harper at risk. Elsewhere, Maggie meets Jacob on the street and casually asks him about the video online. He tells her it was Dan who recorded it but blames Harper for making him do it. He then proceeds to tell Maggie that he can’t talk to her without adult supervision. His father, on the other hand, has decided to completely erase anything Maggie is doing by telling the press that he’s taking time off to help his son deal with the events (ugh, men).
At home, Abi’s husband Michael gets violent when he sees the press article that shares personal details of their family with all of Sanctuary. Abi gets terrified and runs off to meet a mystery man who wants nothing to do with her anymore, despite having loved her once. She’s got nobody on her side now. Back at home, Sarah finally learns the truth about Harper and Dan. Sarah tells Harper about Abi’s blackmail, and Harper’s reaction is quite shocking to Sarah. She wonders why Harper would say Dan deserves to die, and Harper puts the facts on the table. Harper tells Sarah that she broke up with Dan about a month ago very quietly so it wouldn’t hurt his reputation. She had learned that he was a very different person than she had imagined. Dan had supposedly moved on with Bea, but it was simply a one-off thing. At a party later, Dan tried to talk to Harper and even apologized for mistreating her. But this was only to lure her into his disgusting plans. Dan then proceeded to drug Harper, sexually abuse her, and record it. The video that is now online has a soundtrack over it, so nobody can hear Harper’s protests.
Sarah feels awful for her daughter and wants to be there for her, but at present, her safety is the most important. Sarah believes it’s better for them not to talk to the press about the truth because that will make Abi fight them even harder. Harper, of course, doesn’t care about a word her mother is saying because she’s obviously broken and hurt. She also feels like even her mother doesn’t believe her, which makes things much worse. On the other hand, the MI confirms that Harper was not, in fact, doing any witchcraft in the video that Jake has shared as hard evidence, proving Sarah right.
The MI’s words almost make it seem like witchcraft in this world is parallel to the queer community in our world. They talk about working with law enforcement in order to give the witches a chance of being treated fairly. They also don’t work for the Moot because they’re pretty useless in such matters.
What Does Abi Decide In The End?
In the meantime, the other two friends from Sarah’s coven try to talk some sense into Abi. They remind her that Sarah is the reason she got six more years to spend with her son Dan, who had actually died all that time ago. Sarah had brought him back to life, despite it being an illegal act, just out of her love for Abi and because everyone had been desperate for him to come back. Somehow, this works on Abi, and she’s reminded of how kind Sarah had been all those years ago. She apologizes to Sarah, and Sarah asks her to promise she’ll tell the whole town the truth about Harper and retract her statement against her, as well as Jake’s. Everything finally seems to be back on track until the ladies are called in to look at what’s happening on the TV. At the end of the episode of Sanctuary: A Witch’s Tale, Harper decides to go to the press about Dan’s true nature. Sarah is shocked to see her daughter speak her mind when she knows that Abi will not take this slander lightly. Abi’s love for her son is immeasurable, and she will not believe anything against him. Abi realizes Sarah knows the truth and declares war against her and Harper.
In the preview of the next episode, we see that Abi has turned the entire town against Sarah, the “witch.” At the same time, Harper is brutally bullied by her classmates because Dan was the prestigious poster boy of the town, and saying a word against him is picking a fight against the whole town! Especially if it comes from a witch’s mouth.
