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t the end of last season, Sara Pezzini (Butler) reversed time to save those she cared about. This one-time deal allowed her to stop the deaths of Jake (Chokachi) and Gabriel (John Hensley), but not without a cost, as Sara loses most of her hard-sought knowledge about the Witchblade. The series' second season begins before Sara and the Witchblade merge, and things quickly deviate from last season.
Sara is still reeling from the death of her good friend, Maria, but her partner, Danny (Lee), is alive and well. Sara believes mob fellow Gallo was responsible for Maria's death. When Sara and Danny end up in an altercation with Gallo, Sara chases one of his men into a museum. Instantly, Sara is drawn to the Joan of Arc exhibit, which displays the Witchblade gauntlet, and she has her first run-in with Nottingham (Etebari). But as Gallo's man opens fire, Sara takes cover, and the Witchblade flies onto her wrist, saving her life. When an explosion rocks the building, Sara is the only one to emerge, but she's unsure of what has happened.
Nottingham informs millionaire Kenneth Irons that the Witchblade has chosen someone to wield it. Irons has been waiting for a long time for this to happen, with hopes of controlling the woman who wears the Witchblade. But he's not happy. He had a dream that makes him believe Sara Pezzini will end up destroying him. Nottingham admits he had the dream, too, but he can't bring himself to follow Irons' orders, which would have him cut the Witchblade off of Sara's wrist.
Meanwhile, Sara and Danny are investigating the murder of the owner of an Internet Web site where girls dance live. Sara runs into a strange woman named Christina, who is part owner of the company.
Sara begins to see and feel things that lead her to make different decisions than last timeline. Once again, Sara faces the possibility of losing Danny, as she goes up against Nottingham and Christina. However, even as Sara and the Witchblade become more connected, Irons brings another powerful ancient talisman into play, leaving the course things altered forever.
An edgy series takes further risks
Witchblade did well last year for TNT, and its future looked about as secure as you can get on television. Then there was the sudden announcement that production had been halted on the series so star Yancy Butler could seek treatment for a problem with alcohol. With only six of the planned 13 episodes filmed, the fate of the series and Butler's place in it are both now in question. The official word is that filming will resume in a few weeks.
That aside, Witchblade's second-season premiere kicks off with a bang, and fans should enjoy the new developments. The writers of last season took a big chance in killing off just about the entire cast, only to rewind events, and on another series it might not have worked. To the show's credit, the creative staff pulls it off pretty effectively. By the end of the second hour, fans will discover that nothing will be the same for the characters in this series.
There are elements that give pause. Why, when a specific item or person was around the first time, did it wait until this rewind to show up? But that's being picky, considering the benefits to the storyline. First, Will Yun Lee is back as Danny, and he's not a ghost spouting mystical nonsense. Second, Gabriel (played by Hensley) shows up right in the beginning. Both Gabriel and the non-ghostly Danny are rich characters played by very appealing actors.
Butler's performance in the premiere is as edgy as last season, and the role of Sara Pezzini fits her like a glove. Hopefully she'll overcome her demons, so she can get back to the business of Sara Pezzini's demons.
Witchblade's creative team did a good job last season realizing what worked and what didn't work as they went along. The special effects got better and the mystical gobbledygook eased up as the series progressed. Now, in taking the series back to the beginning, the viewers will know more about the Witchblade than Sara does. At least that's true through episode six. After that, what will happen is anybody's guess. — Kathie
Also in this issue:
Star Trek: The Next Generation—Season Two DVD
and
The Dead Zone
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