‘Just Add Magic’ Is A More Than Worthy Addition To The Teenage Witch Sub-Genre

Somewhere in the television-maker’s bible there is a hard and fast rule that no generation shall be left without a live-action teenage witch to cheer for. Sabrina’s been out of the game for over a decade and the Waverlys hung up their metaphorical broomsticks in 2013. Thankfully, Kelly Quinn and her two best friends, Darbie and Hannah, have come along to fill the void in the new Amazon Studios show Just Add Magic (Season 1 premieres today on Amazon Prime Video).

The set-up is simple: middle-schooler Kelly doesn’t know she’s a witch yet, but she knows she loves to cook. She particularly enjoys cooking with her Grandma, but Grandma Quinn (played by Dee Wallace, who also played the mom in E.T.) has not been herself lately. She doesn’t speak, doesn’t seem to remember who she is or what’s going on, and spends most of her days staring at nothing with a bewildered look on her face. (Don’t worry, Mom and Dad are concerned and bringing Grandma to a series of doctors.)

When Kelly’s younger brother accidentally dumps the batter for Grandma’s favorite brownies on the floor, a chase ensues. Brother Buddy leads Kelly and her two friends into the attic, where his shenanigans inadvertently reveal a mysterious cookbook in a box of Grandma’s belongings.

So begins an entertaining discovery process that leads to the moment when the girls realize the recipes within the cookbook are actually magic spells. Cleverly, there’s a catch. For every spell that’s cast, the book tells them, there is always a price to be paid. This sets up a pretty creative and consistent examination of benefits versus cost to be carried out by our three tween heroines whenever they’re tempted to solve a problem using magic.

I appreciate this little wrinkle. Where so many other television witches were most concerned with just being discovered as magical, Kelly and company have to grapple with what they’re willing to potentially lose far beyond a reputation. In one episode, Kelly temporarily loses the use of her arm on the day she’s supposed to try out for the basketball team. And it quickly becomes clear that the stakes may be much higher; that the ultimate price may be their treasured friendship.

We learn that Grandma Quinn had a bestie trio of her own back in the day, but the cookbook tore the three girls apart and that feud could be the reason that Kelly’s grandma is now under a spell. Kelly is left to decide what she’s willing to give up in order to get her grandma back.

There are some surprising but age-appropriate (meaning not too confusing) plot twists scattered throughout the season and the performances are good enough (though I have to admit to wincing a couple of times at some classic “kid-acting” moments). I also liked the way technology is woven into the story without ever becoming the story. Each of these twelve-year-old girls has their own cell phone and they frequently FaceTime with each other or their parents, but there’s nothing overt about it. I suppose the only reason I even noticed was because of the characters’ ages and my own concerns over when to give my kids a phone.

The tension really ramps up in the last few episodes as Kelly realizes she might never be able to break the spell that’s been cast on her grandmother. Hannah begins to question all the sacrifices she and Darbie have made, and the loyalties of two key characters, Mrs. P. and Ms. Silvers (yes, the other former teenage witches), remain in doubt until the very end. All of this – and a cliffhanger lead-in to a second season – says to me that the teenage witch sub-genre has been resurrected!

[Watch Just Add Magic on Amazon Prime Video]

Angela Arsenault is a freelance journalist and a reformed cable subscriber. Feel free to follow her infrequent tweets with no discernible theme: @justthisbreath.