By Jamie Miller – 2:15 a.m.
Cheerio denizens of these bewitching hours. It’s me, the shaman of strange ideas and facts, Jamie Miller, here with yet another edition of Night Light. Tonight, my restless readers, I am here to give a review of a show that is still in the process of its first season. But my, oh my, what a season, what a show. I know you’re probably wondering why I say that. Well, well, well, you’ll just have to keep reading to find out.
“Motherland: Fort Salem,” which premiered March 18th on the Freeform network and on Hulu, tells the tale of an alternate world where traditional gender roles are reversed. Many of the people in charge of this world are female, from the protagonists, to the soldiers and their generals, to even the President of the United States. In this world the persecution of witches ended 300 years ago during what the witches call the Salem Accords, because the witches agreed to serve in the U.S. army and use their powers to fight in our wars.
The series is the tale of three young witches who, upon conscription, train to become soldiers. They find sisterhood in each other and come to trust one another. However, a darker threat looms in the form of The Spree, a supernatural terrorist organization that seeks to put an end to the conscription by carrying out horrible attacks against non-magical civilians using destructive spells, leaving death and chaos in their wake.
The series stars Taylor Hickson, known for roles in “Deadpool” and “Deadly Class,” in the role of Raelle Collar, a young rebellious recruit with a chip on her shoulder. Her father is a civilian and her mother was a witch soldier, which is frowned upon, and she is looked down at. However, she is incredibly powerful. There is also Ashley Nicole Williams in the role of Abigail Bellweather, Collar’s sister-in-arms who comes from the storied Bellweather family and is a bit arrogant. The last of the trio is Jessica Sutton as Tally Craven, a shy young witch who answered the call in spite of her mother’s wishes and many members of her family who died in service.
The show also features Demetria McKinney, known from Tyler Perry’s “House of Payne,” in the role of Anacostia Quartermain the drill sergeant of the Witches, and Lyne Renée, who was in “Split,” as General Sarah Alder, the commander of the United States witch armed forces.
The season starts off with a compelling albeit dark and disturbing bang. The show also has a very rich lore which is impressive, as I can find no record of “Motherland: Fort Salem” being based on anything, be it book or movie. It is impressive for a show to have this much lore right from the start. Even shows like “True Blood” and “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” were at least inspired by some established backstory.
For a show like this to grab my attention so quickly and easily is an impressive feat indeed. I hope this show has a very long and bright future. All in all a stupendous show, I give it eight and a half torches out of 10. You should watch this show.
And that’s all for this addition of Night Light, enjoy the dream realm.
