13 great magic TV shows: from good comedies to dark stories

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Two versions of "Sabrina" at once, the famous "Charmed" and one of the main projects of 2019.

13. Sabrina - the little witch

• USA, 1996-2003.
• Comedy, fantasy.
• Duration: 7 seasons.
• IMDb: 6, 6.

The famous sitcom tells about the young witch Sabrina, who lives with two aunts and a talking cat Salem. According to the rules, she is forbidden to use witchcraft in ordinary life. But the heroine often disobeys, which invariably leads to problems.

With all the charm of Sabrina herself and other characters, a significant part of the public most of all fell in love with the sarcastic cat Salem, who constantly commented on the actions of all the characters.

12. Charmed

• USA, 1998-2006.
• Fantasy, drama, detective.
• Duration: 8 seasons.
• IMDb: 7, 1.

The legendary TV series of the late 90s tells about three sisters who return to the family mansion. One of them finds an old book that awakens magical powers in the heroines. The girls learn that they are witches and now must fight the dark forces to protect the world.

The original series ran for eight seasons, glorifying Alicia Milano, Shannen Doherty and other leading roles. And in 2018, The CW relaunched the story. Only the new version has very low ratings.

11. Secret circle

• USA, Canada, 2011-2012.
• Horror, fantasy, drama.
• Duration: 1 season.
• IMDb: 7, 3.

After the death of her mother, Cassie Blake moved to her grandmother in a small town. And soon the heroine finds out that all women in her family are witches. Cassie will have to join the clan, which just lacked the sixth member. But gradually she realizes that the members of the Secret Circle are hiding a lot from her.

The series is based on the series of novels by Lisa Jane Smith, who wrote the famous "The Vampire Diaries". Like the original works, it combines elements of fantasy and traditional romance novels. Unsurprisingly, many critics took the show extremely negatively.

10. The Good Witch

• USA, Canada, 2015 - present.
• Fantasy, comedy.
• Duration: 5 seasons.
• IMDb: 7, 3.

The series continues the plot of the film series of the same name from the Hallmark channel. The main character is Cassie Nightingale, a witch who lives with her family on the outskirts of a small town. Dr. Sam Radford lives next door with his son Nick. And soon a strong friendship is struck between new acquaintances.

The first film was released back in 2008, and since then, Hallmark has regularly released new feature-length episodes and extended seasons of TV series. Starring Catherine Bell has been playing the witch Cassie for over 10 years.

9. Legacy

• USA, 2018 - present.
• Fantasy, horror, drama.
• Duration: 2 seasons.
• IMDb: 7, 5.

Legacy is a spin-off of The Originals. And that, in turn, was an offshoot of the popular "Vampire Diaries". Such is the complicated story.

The plot of "Heritage" is dedicated to the children of the main characters of the original projects. Hope Michaelson goes to a teenage school where young vampires, witches and werewolves learn to control their abilities.

8. My wife bewitched me

• USA, 1964-1972.
• Fantasy, comedy.
• Duration: 8 seasons.
• IMDb: 7, 5.

The classic sitcom is dedicated to the family life of a young charming witch Samantha and her usual husband, Darrin. She had to break the prohibitions of the Council in order to be with her lover. And for a long time he did not realize that he was married to a very unusual girl. Samantha honestly tries to be a simple housewife, but still regularly conjures to cope with household chores.

The hilarious popular TV series eventually became a real legend, and in 2005 a full-length remake with Nicole Kidman in the title role was released in the United States. And in 2008 in Russia they released their own version called "My Favorite Witch."

7. Witches of the East End

• USA, 2013–2014.
• Drama, fantasy.
• Duration: 2 seasons.
• IMDb: 7, 6.

The powerful witch Joanna is immortal, and this is a real curse for her. After all, she is forced to watch how people close to her die. Joanna has two adult daughters, but her mother tries not to tell them about magical powers in order to protect them from harm.

This series was created by Maggie Friedman, who previously directed another project about witches, Eastwick. And the plot is based on the eponymous series of books by Melissa de la Cruz, albeit with significant changes. Unlike "Charmed", with which the series is often compared, in "Witches of the East End" most of the time is devoted to the dramatic component of the plot without an abundance of monsters.

6. Chilling Adventures of Sabrina

• USA, 2018 - present.
• Fantasy, drama, detective, horror.
• Duration: 2 seasons.
• IMDb: 7, 6.

This series is based on dark comics about the young witch Sabrina. The heroine still lives with her aunts, but on the day of her majority she must give her soul to the devil. Sabrina herself does not agree with this, because she cannot choose between the world of witches and her friends from ordinary people.

The new version of Sabrina is often accused of being too social, which harms mysticism and horror. But all this does not negate the very beautiful visuals and interesting characters.

5. Wizards

• USA, 2015–2020.
• Fantasy, detective, drama.
• Duration: 5 seasons.
• IMDb: 7, 6.

The withdrawn and depressed Quentin Coldwater discovers that magic is real. And soon he enters the Breakbeels school of wizardry. Now Quentin and his friends have to go through many trials and even visit other worlds.

At first glance, it may seem that the series is somewhat similar to "Harry Potter". However, "The Magicians" is a more adult and darker story, in which magic coexists with harsh jokes and violence.

4. Once upon a time

• USA, 2011–2018.
• Fantasy, adventure, melodrama.
• Duration: 7 seasons.
• IMDb: 7, 7.

The Evil Queen enchanted all the fairy-tale characters, and they were transported to another world - to the modern city of Storybrooke. Once Emma Swan arrives there, considering herself a simple girl. But in fact, she is Snow White's daughter, and it is Emma who will have to free the city from the curse.

The authors of the series came up with an interesting concept - to send fairy-tale characters to our reality, where everyone has forgotten about magic. But gradually magic returns to the world of Storybrooke. And in parallel, the plot tells about the past life of the main characters in a fairy-tale world.

3. Merlin

• Great Britain, 2008-2012.
• Fantasy, adventure.
• Duration: 5 seasons.
• IMDb: 7, 9.

The young wizard Merlin, on the instructions of his mother, goes to Camelot, where, as it turns out, any magic is forbidden. At first, he even ends up in the dungeon of King Uther and discovers there a chained dragon. He tells Merlin that he is destined to become Prince Arthur's mentor.

The series has very loosely dealt with the canon story of the famous wizard, for example, Merlin and Arthur are shown here as peers. In general, the story unfolds very simply: in each episode, someone is plotting against the king or prince, and Merlin exposes the villains with the help of magic.

2. Discovery of witches

• UK, 2018 - present.
• Fantasy, drama, melodrama.
• Duration: 1 season.
• IMDb: 8, 1.

Diana Bishop is a historian. She accidentally discovers an enchanted manuscript in the library and, trying to figure out its contents, plunges into the world of magic. She is helped by geneticist Matthew Claremont, and soon the heroes grow closer. But Diana turns out to be a hereditary witch, and her companion is a vampire.

This series is based on the first part of Deborah Harkness's book trilogy "All Souls". Moreover, the author of the original was directly involved in the creation of the film adaptation and fully approved all the changes in the plot.

1. The Witcher

• USA, Poland, 2019 - present.
• Fantasy, action.
• Duration: 1 season.
• IMDb: 8, 3.

Mutant Geralt hunts monsters for a fee, saving people from danger. Although those around him are still afraid and even hate. In parallel, the story of Yennefer unfolds, who was sold to a witch's apprentice. And the young princess Ciri escapes from the kingdom captured by enemies. But all of them are united by purpose.

One of the most anticipated premieres of 2019 and, perhaps, the main replacement for the famous "Game of Thrones" came out ambiguous. The series was criticized for its too complex plot and significant differences from the original books of Andrzej Sapkowski. Nevertheless, the investment of Netflix paid off: the majority of viewers liked The Witcher and the project even set the records for views for the platform.