Introducing the opening theme of “Cassie Workman is Witchy AF,” the host pulled off a clever bait-and-switch. She begins her monologue by describing a hypothetical character born into great privilege. A small sketch of Elon Musk lurks in the foreground, but she never glances sideways at its frame.
Workman continued that due to arrogance, laziness and drug use, the client finds it easier to bribe, talk nonsense and give up on reality. After finishing speaking, she placed another photo in front of Musk and said: “That person is Aleister Crowley.”
Check out the Aussie comedian heading into her season. As Gen Z turns en masse into the world of courtship and anti-trans legislation pollutes politics at home and abroad, trans immigrant Workman is unapologetically promoting the lighter side of pop witchcraft in her fictional occult bookstore. “I expect there will be some pushback online,” she deadpanned.
Maybe not. “Witchy AF,” produced by Lilly Wachowski, is undeniably entertaining. You can think of it as a cocktail combo of Etsy casters’ “Mystery Science Theater 3000” and “Drunk History,” starring Patsy Stone and the love child of Bauhaus frontman Peter Murphy. Most of Workman’s stories are based on fact and reenacted with puppets, although she occasionally goes to a local dive bar or apartment to watch “Interview with the Devil” segments. Accompanied by her assistant and patron of the underworld, King Grimsquark, a baby raven wearing a crown and holding a scepter, Workman delivers one of the funniest small-screen comedies not officially aired on television.
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But its good witchcraft also connects the quest for sanity in crazy times like ours with a comforting look at the role of mysticism in times of social upheaval.
“If something messy is happening right now… I don’t know, I’m not paying attention,” she joked, “just remember that historically speaking, epic enlightenment is probably not that far away.” If that’s true, may Workman’s sweet and intoxicating humor hasten its arrival.
New episodes of Cassie Workman is Witchy AF premiere every Wednesday on Etch’s YouTube channel.
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Taken from Salon Culture Newsletter “The Swell”