Unpopular Opinions

Apprentice79 · June 16, 2017

18 hours ago, whateverhappened said:

I don't really agree with the popular sentiment that Constance's vision of the show was so superior. For one thing, despite all the talk about how Constance didn't want any love interest overpowering the sisterly relationships, S1 and S2 actually have A LOT of pointless romantic melodrama---at least as much as later seasons, in fact. I'm not even sure I'm convinced that the first two seasons delved any more deeply and accurately into witchcraft, but even if they did, that's not what some of us ever loved about the show anyway :) I'm far less interested in the nitty gritty of who developed which powers to what degree and just love Charmed for the fun, engaging, touching, warmhearted and empowering show that it so often is both during AND after Constance's time on the show. Honestly, part of me enjoys the higher energy of the post-Constance seasons and how the show embraced it strengths rather than coming off as self-serious in an awkward, forced sort of way like it sometimes did while Constance was in charge. Just my take on the whole "Constance was perfect and would have made the rest of the show far better" narrative :)

Did Constance truly run the show unencumbered and without any glitches the first 2 seasons? She wanted Andy to continue throughout the series and the actor left. She never wanted Leo to remain on the show, after his stint in season 1, but, Holly asked her to make Leo permanent as Piper's love interest. I personally feel that the stupid love triangle in season 2 was all Brad Kern. This is the same man that wanted Piper to have who is the baby daddy storyline with Chris, until Holly put her foot down and said No. Before season 3 started, Brad Kern ran Constance out of her own show based on her and her older sisters. I don't think Constance really had a chance to really fulfill her vision, as she intended all along. I do think that had she remained the show would have had a different tone and Shannen Doherty would have remained as well. Shannen's biggest problem was not Alyssa Milano, but, Brad Kern. Holly did say that if the producers had stayed out of their "girly" problems, Shannen and Alyssa would have resolved it on their own. I believe Holly..

Esmeralda · June 17, 2017

I also believe Holly. But I don't think the problem was Brad Kern; I think it was The WB and/or Aaron Spelling who wanted to use Charmed for something different than what Connie wanted. I've always believed that Kern was to The WB and Charmed what Shax was to The Source and Prue.

I would love to know what exactly Connie's own plan was for Charmed, had it gone according to her own plans. Except for only wanting each guy to be part of a single season so that being sisters would be more important than being girlfriend, wife, mother, we really don't know. Would Dan have been used to get Prue and Andy together, so during 'Morality Bites' it would be Prue and Andy who had the daughter rather than Piper and Leo? Maybe. Would Dan be used to help Piper get over Leo? Again, maybe. I think either storyline would've made the entire series better, since it couldn't/wouldn't include the Elders (not elder whitelighters aka "They") or witchlighters (aka half-whitelighters), both brought in by Kern, both which in my eyes ruined Charmed.. But again, we just don't know.

Edited June 17, 2017 by Esmeralda

closeyoureyes · July 7, 2017

You are all so eloquent and insightful! I'm not, but I can't resist adding my opinions because the only thing I love as much as watching this show is talking about it. I've been reading this thread for a few days and am ready to make that transition from lurker to participant.

Season 1 is my favorite. I recently saw a Tumblr survey where Season 1 was voted second to last, behind only Season 8, and it wounded my fangirl soul. (FanWOMAN soul? I'm almost a senior citizen!) The sisters are so easy to love and relate to in the first season. I agree with the posters who like the crime and mystery component to many first season episodes. More than any subsequent season, the focus is on sisterhood and helping those in need while carving out identities as witches and women. There was some romantic drama, but it felt like a relatively minor aspect of the show. I liked Andy and how he revealed a softer side of Prue. Their conflict felt organic, rooted in their contrasting roles as detective and witch rather than just there for the sake of giving viewers the requisite romantic angst. I'm among the small group here who'd rather be at Quake than watching Piper run a suddenly wildly successful nightclub despite its "two drink maximum"and also part of the not quite as small group who thought Phoebe and Piper were both more lovable characters this season than any other.

Prue, prickly, protective prideful and so fiercely loving in her own unusual way, was the hardest sister for me to like at first and now is probably my favorite, though Prue, Piper and Phoebe take turns being my favorite depending on the season and episode. I don't think Prue is coldhearted at all, just extremely guarded. She's got a lot of depth and nuance, in my opinion, or maybe I'm just reacting to the fact that the writing in general had more depth and nuance while Prue was still one the show.

You might have noticed that I excluded Paige from my list of favorites. It's nothing against her, and I agree that she often bothers me less than Piper and Phoebe in later seasons of the show. The problem is that while her worst is not that bad, I never really love and get her nearly as much as I do Prue, Piper and Phoebe at their best. A couple other people have described it better than I can, but she just feels like a hastily thrown together character. She really was "all over the place" as a character, so inconsistent but not in ways that felt like a deliberate choice by the writers.

During the Prue seasons, each character and their role in the family felt so carefully designed and thought out. If you gave me a scenario, I'd have had a pretty solid idea of how each sister would likely react to it. I felt like I had a firm grasp on their similarities and differences and how those traits affected their sisterhood and shaped their identities as witches. I could tell you what Prue and Phoebe were likely to connect on or come into conflict about, or sometimes I could identify certain dialgue or behavior as being so very Prue, so very Piper or so very Phoebe.

Then Prue died and Paige arrived, and like others have said it wasn't just an issue of missing one individual character or getting used to a new one but of how the entire dyamic, feel and focus of the show became almost unrecognizable. I kept trying to figure out who Paige really was, but I honestly don't think the writers ever gave it much thought other than a vague idea that since she was now the youngest, she should be a little like Phoebe was as the youngest. Which meant, to the writers, that Phoebe had to suddenly become a radically different woman to leave Paige to inherit the title of the family's free spirit. I kept searching for the Phoebe I once knew, but by Season 5 she's completely MIA. Some will say she just grew up, but if anything she seemed to regress, losing her spririt, independence and the qualities that made her unique. And then we have Piper becoming, as someone else described her as, a "bitter shrew." She was always a little grouchy and snippy, but at the beginning it was more related to herself and came out when she was worried she couldn't handle something well, upset at having to shake up her life and give up the normalcy she always valued, or fearing for the safety of the people she loves. She was as much softness as cynicism. After Prue's death, everyone in her path seemed a target for her sniping even when no one had said or done anything to deserve it. Leo, who the TWoP recaps used to just refer to as The Dolt, existed just to listen to her criticize him and attempt the increasingly impossibe task of making her happy or at least not as unhappy. About everything. All the time. :-)

I also agree with whoever pointed out that Piper seemed more happy and realxed with Mark Chao in just one episode and even dull Dan and Greg the S6 plot device than she ever did with Leo.

Oh dear, where was I? The perils of aging is that I tend to digress more than ever! Anyway, I don't think Paige was ever given a consistent personality, I don't like how Phoebe and Piper both became so much less likable out of some misguided notion that a change in birth order has to completely alter grown women's previously established personalities, and Piper, Phoebe and Paige just never seemed to have anywhere near the rich sibling relationships that Prue, Piper and Phoebe did.

You probably figured out from the above rant that I wish Leo had disappeared from the show in Season 2. I know that's unpopular, but I think it would have been so much better for Piper's character, and I'd have remembered Leo a lot more fondly if he hadn't stuck around to become more and more boring and sometimes petulant and self-pitying. Even better, the writers would have been forced to be more creative and thoughtful if Leo hadn't been there as a far too convenient plot device: the magical healer, exposition provider and the elders' go between.

Even as early as Season 2, I missed watching the women figure things out for themselves. I don't even think the show needed elders and whiteligters at all!

I not only agree that Piper as we knew her in S1 is the sister least likely to ever want to spend all her time in a nightclub, but I don't think the show needed a place like P3 at all. Even a quiet, cozier bar as their usual hangout spot would have been better.

This show was not good at writing interesting male characters, which is interesting given that how much I love Prue and the original versions of Piper and Phoebe. So I know the writers were capable of writing great caracters, but when it came to males, they almost never did. Maybe because of what someone posited about Constance never expecting any of them to stick around longer term?

I never liked Victor. Like someone said, he just came off as smarmy to me even when we were supposed to like him and feel touched by some of his interactions with his daughters.

I love the show so much, but it's hard to watch season 1 and even parts of seasons 2, 3 and 4 without feeling disappointed by what it became.

Apprentice79 · July 10, 2017

On ‎7‎/‎7‎/‎2017 at 6:27 PM, closeyoureyes said:

You are all so eloquent and insightful! I'm not, but I can't resist adding my opinions because the only thing I love as much as watching this show is talking about it. I've been reading this thread for a few days and am ready to make that transition from lurker to participant.

Season 1 is my favorite. I recently saw a Tumblr survey where Season 1 was voted second to last, behind only Season 8, and it wounded my fangirl soul. (FanWOMAN soul? I'm almost a senior citizen!) The sisters are so easy to love and relate to in the first season. I agree with the posters who like the crime and mystery component to many first season episodes. More than any subsequent season, the focus is on sisterhood and helping those in need while carving out identities as witches and women. There was some romantic drama, but it felt like a relatively minor aspect of the show. I liked Andy and how he revealed a softer side of Prue. Their conflict felt organic, rooted in their contrasting roles as detective and witch rather than just there for the sake of giving viewers the requisite romantic angst. I'm among the small group here who'd rather be at Quake than watching Piper run a suddenly wildly successful nightclub despite its "two drink maximum"and also part of the not quite as small group who thought Phoebe and Piper were both more lovable characters this season than any other.

Prue, prickly, protective prideful and so fiercely loving in her own unusual way, was the hardest sister for me to like at first and now is probably my favorite, though Prue, Piper and Phoebe take turns being my favorite depending on the season and episode. I don't think Prue is coldhearted at all, just extremely guarded. She's got a lot of depth and nuance, in my opinion, or maybe I'm just reacting to the fact that the writing in general had more depth and nuance while Prue was still one the show.

You might have noticed that I excluded Paige from my list of favorites. It's nothing against her, and I agree that she often bothers me less than Piper and Phoebe in later seasons of the show. The problem is that while her worst is not that bad, I never really love and get her nearly as much as I do Prue, Piper and Phoebe at their best. A couple other people have described it better than I can, but she just feels like a hastily thrown together character. She really was "all over the place" as a character, so inconsistent but not in ways that felt like a deliberate choice by the writers.

During the Prue seasons, each character and their role in the family felt so carefully designed and thought out. If you gave me a scenario, I'd have had a pretty solid idea of how each sister would likely react to it. I felt like I had a firm grasp on their similarities and differences and how those traits affected their sisterhood and shaped their identities as witches. I could tell you what Prue and Phoebe were likely to connect on or come into conflict about, or sometimes I could identify certain dialgue or behavior as being so very Prue, so very Piper or so very Phoebe.

Then Prue died and Paige arrived, and like others have said it wasn't just an issue of missing one individual character or getting used to a new one but of how the entire dyamic, feel and focus of the show became almost unrecognizable. I kept trying to figure out who Paige really was, but I honestly don't think the writers ever gave it much thought other than a vague idea that since she was now the youngest, she should be a little like Phoebe was as the youngest. Which meant, to the writers, that Phoebe had to suddenly become a radically different woman to leave Paige to inherit the title of the family's free spirit.  I kept searching for the Phoebe I once knew, but by Season 5 she's completely MIA. Some will say she just grew up, but if anything she seemed to regress, losing her spririt, independence and the qualities that made her unique. And then we have Piper becoming, as someone else described her as, a "bitter shrew." She was always a little grouchy and snippy, but at the beginning it was more related to herself and came out when she was worried she couldn't handle something well, upset at having to shake up her life and give up the normalcy she always valued, or fearing for the safety of the people she loves. She was as much softness as cynicism. After Prue's death, everyone in her path seemed a target for her sniping even when no one had said or done anything to deserve it. Leo, who the TWoP recaps used to just refer to as The Dolt, existed just to listen to her criticize him and attempt the increasingly impossibe task of making her happy or at least not as unhappy. About everything. All the time. :-)

I also agree with whoever pointed out that Piper seemed more happy and realxed with Mark Chao in just one episode and even dull Dan and Greg the S6 plot device than she ever did with Leo.

Oh dear, where was I? The perils of aging is that I tend to digress more than ever! Anyway, I don't think Paige was ever given a consistent personality, I don't like how Phoebe and Piper both became so much less likable out of some misguided notion that a change in birth order has to completely alter grown women's previously established personalities, and Piper, Phoebe and Paige just never seemed to have anywhere near the rich sibling relationships that Prue, Piper and Phoebe did.

You probably figured out from the above rant that I wish Leo had disappeared from the show in Season 2. I know that's unpopular, but I think it would have been so much better for Piper's character, and I'd have remembered Leo a lot more fondly if he hadn't stuck around to become more and more boring and sometimes petulant and self-pitying. Even better, the writers would have been forced to be more creative and thoughtful if Leo hadn't been there as a far too convenient plot device: the magical healer, exposition provider and the elders' go between.

Even as early as Season 2, I missed watching the women figure things out for themselves. I don't even think the show needed elders and whiteligters at all!

I not only agree that Piper as we knew her in S1 is the sister least likely to ever want to spend all her time in a nightclub, but I don't think the show needed a place like P3 at all. Even a quiet, cozier bar as their usual hangout spot would have been better.

This show was not good at writing interesting male characters, which is interesting given that how much I love Prue and the original versions of Piper and Phoebe. So I know the writers were capable of writing great caracters, but when it came to males, they almost never did. Maybe because of what someone posited about Constance never expecting any of them to stick around longer term?

I never liked Victor. Like someone said, he just came off as smarmy to me even when we were supposed to like him and feel touched by some of his interactions with his daughters.

I love the show so much, but it's hard to watch season 1 and even parts of seasons 2, 3 and 4 without feeling disappointed by what it became.

I love your post and I wish that I could like it a million times.. Prue, Piper and Phoebe were the best incarnation of the power of 3. I wish Constance had written long live the Queen.. Prue vs. evil Phoebe would have been both epic and cathartic for all of the sisters.. We got a glimpse of it when Phoebe was under the influence of the Shadow, in season 1...It just made me wonder how Constance would have written Phoebe's descent into evil...What would have triggered Phoebe's dark side to emerge and why. How would the fallout from that would have impacted the sisters' relationship and the power of 3, after Phoebe became good again.. So much stories could have emerged from that...

Edited July 10, 2017 by Apprentice79

nightwing877 · July 15, 2017

Prue vs. evil Phoebe was so long in the makings. Neither sister really got over the issues they had in season 3, so it was definitely something that I wished Prue lived to be apart of, even if Prue was killed off at the end of season 4.

Notice how Paige not trusting Cole came out of nowhere, that was most likely storylines planned for Prue.

Apprentice79 · July 15, 2017

3 hours ago, nightwing877 said:

Prue vs. evil Phoebe was so long in the makings. Neither sister really got over the issues they had in season 3, so it was definitely something that I wished Prue lived to be apart of, even if Prue was killed off at the end of season 4.

Notice how Paige not trusting Cole came out of nowhere, that was most likely storylines planned for Prue.

Exactly! I would want Constance's wish for Cole to be a full demon, using Phoebe, to destroy the power of 3. Cole would underestimate Phoebe's premonition powers. Phoebe with her advanced powers of premonition would orchestrate his death. The fallout would be that Phoebe would fall into a deep depression and her duality starts to manifest itself in strange ways, as she finally gets an awesome offensive power. Phoebe's descent into evil should have been a slow burn during season 4. Evil Phoebe trying to steal the book of shadows for herself and using her advanced premonitions to thwart her sisters would have been a hoot.

nightwing877 · July 15, 2017

6 hours ago, Apprentice79 said:

Exactly! I would want Constance's wish for Cole to be a full demon, using Phoebe, to destroy the power of 3. Cole would underestimate Phoebe's premonition powers. Phoebe with her advanced powers of premonition would orchestrate his death. The fallout would be that Phoebe would fall into a deep depression and her duality starts to manifest itself in strange ways, as she finally gets an awesome offensive power. Phoebe's descent into evil should have been a slow burn during season 4. Evil Phoebe trying to steal the book of shadows for herself and using her advanced premonitions to thwart her sisters would have been a hoot.

That would of been much better than what we got. I so like all of these to have happened.

I wonder if Cole going after the nexus in season 5, was originally planned as a storyline with Cole and evil Phoebe?

Apprentice79 · July 15, 2017

1 hour ago, nightwing877 said:

That would of been much better than what we got. I so like all of these to have happened.

I wonder if Cole going after the nexus in season 5, was originally planned as a storyline with Cole and evil Phoebe?

Season 5 was a mess in my opinion. Whatever plan that Brad Kern had for Cole was scrapped when the actor left. Cole like Leo lasted too long on the show and hurt Phoebe and Piper's growth respectively. These relationships hurt them in the long run. Whereas, Andy gave Prue more depth and layers.

Season 4 seemed to be 2 seasons condensed into one. It seemed like the producers did not know if the fans would accept Prue's death and Paige's place in the power of 3. I would have had the original sisters have their 9 powers at their advanced levels to defeat the source. The source was defeated too early in season 4. Phoebe had no active powers to fight him and defend herself. Al the source had to do was kill Phoebe and the charmed ones would no longer be a threat to him. He killed Prue who was more powerful than Phoebe, as the first born. The new power of 3 was not powerful enough to do that. The shadow should have come back and try to influence Phoebe again in subtle ways. Perhaps, with the help of Cole or another powerful demon. I always felt that as the sisters became more powerful, the manor would become impenetrable by demons. So, the nexus, would always stay on the side of good. Pratt should have come back and become a test for Phoebe, after she came back from her stint as Evil Phoebe.

nightwing877 · July 15, 2017

28 minutes ago, Apprentice79 said:

Season 5 was a mess in my opinion. Whatever plan that Brad Kern had for Cole was scrapped when the actor left. Cole like Leo lasted too long on the show and hurt Phoebe and Piper's growth respectively. These relationships hurt them in the long run. Whereas, Andy gave Prue more depth and layers.

Season 4 seemed to be 2 seasons condensed into one. It seemed like the producers did not know if the fans would accept Prue's death and Paige's place in the power of 3. I would have had the original sisters have their 9 powers at their advanced levels to defeat the source. The source was defeated too early in season 4. Phoebe had no active powers to fight him and defend herself. Al the source had to do was kill Phoebe and the charmed ones would no longer be a threat to him. He killed Prue who was more powerful than Phoebe, as the first born. The new power of 3 was not powerful enough to do that. The shadow should have come back and try to influence Phoebe again in subtle ways. Perhaps, with the help of Cole or another powerful demon. I always felt that as the sisters became more powerful, the manor would become impenetrable by demons. So, the nexus, would always stay on the side of good. Pratt should have come back and become a test for Phoebe, after she came back from her stint as Evil Phoebe.

Yeah, I agree with you on that. Too bad they didn't keep Leo gone and kept Andy on. I always wonder what Charmed would be like if Andy never died?

Yeah, season 4 felt more like a final season. That when it got picked up, all the storylines ran it's course. They had to think of more ideas to continue after season 4. Since season 4 should of been all about introducing Paige, mourning Prue with the original Source's defeat at the end of season 4.

Pratt would of been great if they did do the story of Morality Bites in present with how it changed since that future visit apart from Prue dead and Wyatt being born. Even if it meant, having season 8 time jumping a few years later before the Charmed Ones return to their lives.

The sisters having their 9 powers to defeat the Source would of been cool. I still don't get how the most powerful witches needed their ancestors to defeat the Source. Give me a break, it made no sense. That just means they are not capable of killing the Source alone, and needed more powers. But again, The Source being known as the Source of all evil made it seem like evil can be defeated. Otherwise, how is that possible. That is just a title right? Charmed didn't know what they were doing half the time with storylines.

Apprentice79 · July 15, 2017

1 hour ago, nightwing877 said:

Yeah, I agree with you on that. Too bad they didn't keep Leo gone and kept Andy on. I always wonder what Charmed would be like if Andy never died?

Yeah, season 4 felt more like a final season. That when it got picked up, all the storylines ran it's course. They had to think of more ideas to continue after season 4. Since season 4 should of been all about introducing Paige, mourning Prue with the original Source's defeat at the end of season 4.

Pratt would of been great if they did do the story of Morality Bites in present with how it changed since that future visit apart from Prue dead and Wyatt being born. Even if it meant, having season 8 time jumping a few years later before the Charmed Ones return to their lives.

The sisters having their 9 powers to defeat the Source would of been cool. I still don't get how the most powerful witches needed their ancestors to defeat the Source. Give me a break, it made no sense. That just means they are not capable of killing the Source alone, and needed more powers. But again, The Source being known as the Source of all evil made it seem like evil can be defeated. Otherwise, how is that possible. That is just a title right? Charmed didn't know what they were doing half the time with storylines.

I never really had a problem with the original charmed ones destroying the source. It did not mean that the sisters would eradicate evil...There would always be evil. I just took it that they would be the ones to diminish it in some way by destroying him. It would be cool to see the sisters continuing the fight via their descendants who would never match them in power and wisdom. I always wanted the show to go darker with the sisters facing off individually and collectively with adversaries that would make them stronger before their eventual showdown with the source. I wanted the sisters to test the limitations of their powers, just like Prue did in season 3 and Phoebe in season 1.

I hated Wyatt being the anointed one.. It made the sisters obsolete. I also wanted the sisters face off with evil human beings. I would love to see the sisters bless human beings with abilities that would help mankind as a whole, for example, blessing certain doctors and scientists with wisdom to cure diseases. I also wanted to meet other members of the sisters' family.

Edited July 15, 2017 by Apprentice79

Esmeralda · July 15, 2017

10 hours ago, Apprentice79 said:

Exactly! I would want Constance's wish for Cole to be a full demon, using Phoebe, to destroy the power of 3. Cole would underestimate Phoebe's premonition powers. Phoebe with her advanced powers of premonition would orchestrate his death. The fallout would be that Phoebe would fall into a deep depression and her duality starts to manifest itself in strange ways, as she finally gets an awesome offensive power. Phoebe's descent into evil should have been a slow burn during season 4. Evil Phoebe trying to steal the book of shadows for herself and using her advanced premonitions to thwart her sisters would have been a hoot.

WOW!! Now there's a fanfic I'd LOVE to read!

2 hours ago, Apprentice79 said:

Season 5 was a mess in my opinion. Whatever plan that Brad Kern had for Cole was scrapped when the actor left.

This is SO not true! Julian didn't get 'Nip Tuck' until after he left "Charmed". There was a TV Guide interview with Julian where he didn't know what he was going to do once his stint on "Charmed" was over and that Kern had told him at the end of Season Four not to worry about his character, that he planned on keeping him around until the 100th episode, so what we saw is exactly what Kern had in mind - which stunk! My least-favorite storyline because it was conceived and written so poorly and like the Chris-story, could've/should've been the strongest arc rather than a big mess.

Edited July 15, 2017 by Esmeralda

Apprentice79 · July 15, 2017

18 minutes ago, Esmeralda said:

WOW!! Now there's a fanfic I'd LOVE to read!

This is SO not true! Julian didn't get 'Nip Tuck' until after he left "Charmed". There was a TV Guide interview with Julian where he didn't know what he was going to do once his stint on "Charmed" was over and that Kern had told him at the end of Season Four not to worry about his character, that he planned on keeping him around until the 100th episode, so what we saw is exactly what Kern had in mind - which stunk! My least-favorite storyline because it was conceived and written so poorly and like the Chris-story, could've/should've been the strongest arc rather than a big mess.

I stand corrected. I remember reading that Julian was frustrated with his storyline on the show and wanted to leave the show. I always found it weird that Julian remained on the show, after Shannen got fired. They were dating in real life. I remember the sexy pictures of them in St Barth..

helenamonster · July 15, 2017

Re: season four feeling like two seasons crammed into one...it actually kind of was. The original plan was for "Charmed and Dangerous" to be the season 4 finale, with Cole becoming The Source as the cliffhanger and then season 5 would be about the sisters finding out/deciding what to do/Phoebe turning evil/killing Cole. I forget why they changed course on that.

Esmeralda · July 16, 2017

10 hours ago, helenamonster said:

Re: season four feeling like two seasons crammed into one...it actually kind of was. The original plan was for "Charmed and Dangerous" to be the season 4 finale, with Cole becoming The Source as the cliffhanger and then season 5 would be about the sisters finding out/deciding what to do/Phoebe turning evil/killing Cole. I forget why they changed course on that.

They changed course due to getting rid of Shannen and not knowing whether the fans would accept Paige. So just in case Season Four would be the last season, they crammed Four and Five into one.

There was also the problem where both Alyssa's and Holly's first contracts were up after Season Four and there was a good chance that Holly wouldn't sign her new one, just like the reason for the Chris-storyline was that Brian Krause may not have signed his new contract after Season Five.

I still find it weird that for all her grumbling, Rose signed a big enough contract that it lasted through Season 8. The only thing she didn't want was the title "producer" that Holly and Alyssa got because it didn't include more money.

Esmeralda · July 16, 2017

19 hours ago, Apprentice79 said:

I stand corrected. I remember reading that Julian was frustrated with his storyline on the show and wanted to leave the show. I always found it weird that Julian remained on the show, after Shannen got fired. They were dating in real life. I remember the sexy pictures of them in St Barth..

This just shows how things can be spun. Because in that same article, Julian made it clear that he really didn't care what was going on - even when he was dating one actress while his character was romancing a different one - he just did his part. It's the three actresses who I heard were getting frustrated with the storylines. Shannen particularly wanted it bigger and darker.

Oh, oh. I wonder if that means *THAT''S* what we'd get in the retcon. That I wouldn't like one bit!

nightwing877 · July 16, 2017

21 hours ago, helenamonster said:

Re: season four feeling like two seasons crammed into one...it actually kind of was. The original plan was for "Charmed and Dangerous" to be the season 4 finale, with Cole becoming The Source as the cliffhanger and then season 5 would be about the sisters finding out/deciding what to do/Phoebe turning evil/killing Cole. I forget why they changed course on that.

That would of been better. Just goes to show how firing Shannen ruined some potentially juicy storylines and forced them to cram and rush story-arcs.

Apprentice79 · July 16, 2017

2 hours ago, Esmeralda said:

This just shows how things can be spun. Because in that same article, Julian made it clear that he really didn't care what was going on - even when he was dating one actress while his character was romancing a different one - he just did his part. It's the three actresses who I heard were getting frustrated with the storylines. Shannen particularly wanted it bigger and darker.

Oh, oh. I wonder if that means *THAT''S* what we'd get in the retcon. That I wouldn't like one bit!

In hindsight, Shannen was right. Constance should have been given the freedom to create her art. The sisters as written by Brad Kern were caricatures and lost what made them lovable. Piper and Phoebe were at their best with Prue. The dynamic was special.

nightwing877 · July 16, 2017

1 minute ago, Apprentice79 said:

In hindsight, Shannen was right. Constance should have been given the freedom to create her art. The sisters as written by Brad Kern were caricatures and lost what made them lovable. Piper and Phoebe were at their best with Prue. The dynamic was special.

That is what happens when you force characters into roles not meant for them and try to write these three sisters with Prue dead as if they have been sisters growing up and Prue never existed. Just because Paige is now the younger sister, doesn't mean Phoebe suddenly becomes the middle sister. Yes she is in theory, but still she is the baby sister at heart. I just liked Phoebe and Piper better when they were the middle and younger sister with Prue and I love the magic of the original sisters and always will. The dynamic was just so great.

Esmeralda · July 16, 2017

42 minutes ago, nightwing877 said:

That is what happens when you force characters into roles not meant for them and try to write these three sisters with Prue dead as if they have been sisters growing up and Prue never existed. Just because Paige is now the younger sister, doesn't mean Phoebe suddenly becomes the middle sister. Yes she is in theory, but still she is the baby sister at heart. I just liked Phoebe and Piper better when they were the middle and younger sister with Prue and I love the magic of the original sisters and always will. The dynamic was just so great.

That's because the original Power of Three were based on Connie and her two sisters (with Phoebs based on Connie). And that's what made them sisters who happen to be witches and not demon-slayers who happened to live in the same Manor. That'--the emphasis on family and not demons - is what I'd love to see come back.

Apprentice79 · July 16, 2017

1 hour ago, Esmeralda said:

That's because the original Power of Three were based on Connie and her two sisters (with Phoebs based on Connie). And that's what made them sisters who happen to be witches and not demon-slayers who happened to live in the same Manor. That'--the emphasis on family and not demons - is what I'd love to see come back.

The fact that Connie based Phoebe on her meant that she had great plans for Phoebe in her evolution as a witch and a woman. I grieve that we never saw it on the show. I have always felt that Connie would never have given Phoebe that awful levitation power. Something that Prue could do with her telekinesis. There were so many ways that Phoebe's original power of premonitions could have evolved into mind reading, empathy , mind control and possession.. The same goes for Prue and Piper.

Edited July 16, 2017 by Apprentice79

Esmeralda · July 16, 2017

27 minutes ago, Apprentice79 said:

The fact that Connie based Phoebe on her meant that she had great plans for Phoebe in her evolution as a witch and a woman. I grieve that we never saw it on the show. I have always felt that Connie would never have given Phoebe that awful levitation power. Something that Prue could do with her telekinesis. There were so many ways that Phoebe's original power of premonitions could have evolved into mind reading, empathy , mind control and possession.. The same goes for Prue and Piper.

I would hope that Connie would never give Phoebe mind control or possession, unless she turned evil. Now an Evil Phoebe with *those* powers could be a lot of fun. Otherwise she'd totally be forgetting that the wrong things done for the right reason are still the wrong thing and only murder is worse than mind control and possession, and unlike Kern, I don't think Connie would forget that.

Edited July 16, 2017 by Esmeralda

Apprentice79 · July 16, 2017

6 minutes ago, Esmeralda said:

I would hope that Connie would never give Phoebe mind control or possession, unless she turned evil. Now an Evil Phoebe with *those* powers could be a lot of fun. Otherwise she'd totally be forgetting that the wrong things done for the right reason are still the wrong thing and only murder is worse than mind control and possession, and unlike Kern, I don't think Connie would forget that.

True, with her advanced premonitions, she could have been able to do that. I always wanted to see the sisters original powers advanced exponentially, before receiving their other two powers. Prue's powers evolved organically. Astral Prue having telekinesis would have been cool...I always envisioned Prue at her most powerful, creating a third Prue to fight, paying homage to the power of 3. It would have been a cool throwback to that spell in season 1, that conjured 2 other Prues to help her fight.. Piper's freezing power had potential as well, with Piper slowing down time, speeding it up, while not affecting those around her. Not to mention. Piper projecting herself in time. Piper could have used this to fight Evil Phoebe. Advanced Premontions vs. Advanced freezing. Evil Phoebe vs Piper could have been cool to see as well..

blueray · July 18, 2017

I liked Piper's powers the way that they were. To me it made sense that if she could slow down stuff (to the point where it looked frozen), she should be able to speed stuff up to the point where it "looks" like it exploded.

Esmeralda · July 18, 2017

2 hours ago, blueray said:

I liked Piper's powers the way that they were. To me it made sense that if she could slow down stuff (to the point where it looked frozen), she should be able to speed stuff up to the point where it "looks" like it exploded.

And I hated it because the exploding powers made her much too powerful - she could get rid of demons with no need of help from her sisters while Prue's power could never kill.. Her being able to speed things up and move them that way made a lot more sense, especially once Prue was gone (and then Paige wouldn't have had to learn how to ricochet - calling things to her would've worked just fine) , and, then like Prue, she would still need her sisters and not become the Power of One.

Apprentice79 · July 20, 2017

On ‎7‎/‎18‎/‎2017 at 6:38 PM, Esmeralda said:

And I hated it because the exploding powers made her much too powerful - she could get rid of demons with no need of help from her sisters while Prue's power could never kill.. Her being able to speed things up and move them that way made a lot more sense, especially once Prue was gone (and then Paige wouldn't have had to learn how to ricochet - calling things to her would've worked just fine) , and, then like Prue, she would still need her sisters and not become the Power of One.

I actually felt that Prue with her advanced telekinesis would have been able to explode things as we saw in morality bites in season 2, when she blew up the attic. I hated the exploding powers for Piper because it did not fit her at all. Kern never bothered to advance her freezing powers. I would have given Piper a passive power to match her freezing power. Like I have said before, Piper being able to manipulate time would have been a good way to advance her freezing powers. I did not think that it was a coincidence that Piper got that exploding power during the last 3 episodes of season 3. I think that Kern had already decided to fire Shannen, so, he needed Piper to immediately become the most powerful in the new power of 3, in season 4. Plus, Prue being the first born witch meant that her magic was more stronger than her little sisters. It did not mean that her active powers had to be more lethal than theirs. It was possible that Phoebe could have had a more lethal offensive power than Prue. It would not take away from Prue being more powerful than her.

Edited July 20, 2017 by Apprentice79

SarahPrtr · August 27, 2017

On 2/10/2017 at 0:01 PM, Esmeralda said:

Penelope "Penny" Johnson [Jennifer Rhodes - no, in mine, Penny is not a Halliwell – and neither was the sisters' mother, Patience "Patty" Johnson Halliwell [Finola Hughes], until she married Victor Halliwell [Tony Dennison]. Halliwell women do *not* keep their maiden name, just like the 20's cousins who were Baxters, Bowens and Russells didn't, hence why the sisters are Halliwells and not Warrens.

Wait, wouldn't Patty be a Halliwell, since her father was Allen Halliwell, the one who was killed by a warlock? And wasn't Victor's surname Bennett? So, really, it should be Prue, Piper and Phoebe Bennett. Funny how Penny decided to call herself and the Charmed girls The Halliwell Sisters, seeing as Allen was a mortal without magical powers.

Kohola3 · August 27, 2017

Trying to be logical with any of this will give you a headache.

Esmeralda · August 27, 2017

15 hours ago, SarahPrtr said:

Wait, wouldn't Patty be a Halliwell, since her father was Allen Halliwell, the one who was killed by a warlock? And wasn't Victor's surname Bennett? So, really, it should be Prue, Piper and Phoebe Bennett. Funny how Penny decided to call herself and the Charmed girls The Halliwell Sisters, seeing as Allen was a mortal without magical powers.

That happened in Season Six. In Season One, Tony Dennison was credited as "Victor Halliwell". Since that's first, that's canon. And if Victor is Victor Halliwell, Halliwell can't be Patty's maiden name, which means it can't be Penny's name. All part of why I think Season 3-8 is an alternate-universe spin-off that has little to do with actual Charmed (S1-2), since Brad Kern screwed up so much of the canon set up during S1-2.

Now most Charmed fans like to pretend that "Thank You for Not Morphing" (the only time Tony Dennison played Victor Halliwell, long before James Read played Victor Bennett in Season Three), so if you want to not include that episode as part of your head canon, you certainly can. Me, because my Dream Charmed doesn't include Wyatt, (which is why I think Kern decided to have Piper keep her maiden name - he was already planning to replace Melinda with Wyatt) prefer it this way, especially since Grams obviously didn't keep her maiden name, since in S6 it says she married Allen Halliwell. Either way, she only became a Halliwell after she was married, meaning she lied when she told Piper that Halliwell women keep their maiden names.

Edited August 27, 2017 by Esmeralda

Esmeralda · August 27, 2017

On 7/20/2017 at 9:27 AM, Apprentice79 said:

I actually felt that Prue with her advanced telekinesis would have been able to explode things as we saw in morality bites in season 2, when she blew up the attic. I hated the exploding powers for Piper because it did not fit her at all. Kern never bothered to advance her freezing powers. I would have given Piper a passive power to match her freezing power. Like I have said before, Piper being able to manipulate time would have been a good way to advance her freezing powers. I did not think that it was a coincidence that Piper got that exploding power during the last 3 episodes of season 3. I think that Kern had already decided to fire Shannen, so, he needed Piper to immediately become the most powerful in the new power of 3, in season 4. Plus, Prue being the first born witch meant that her magic was more stronger than her little sisters. It did not mean that her active powers had to be more lethal than theirs. It was possible that Phoebe could have had a more lethal offensive power than Prue. It would not take away from Prue being more powerful than her.

Kern didn't fire Shannen - he wouldn't have the authority. Aaron Spelling did. I always say that Kern was to Spelling and The WB what Shax was to the Source. But otherwise, I agree with you.

Edited August 27, 2017 by Esmeralda

Kohola3 · August 27, 2017

I thought Alyssa pushed her out. I wasn't watching back then but I think I read about that on the old TWoP forum.

Apprentice79 · August 28, 2017

6 hours ago, Esmeralda said:

Kern didn't fire Shannen - he wouldn't have the authority. Aaron Spelling did. I always say that Kern was to Spelling and The WB what Shax was to the Source. But otherwise, I agree with you.

He was the architect of her firing,. He pushed Constance out of her own show by convincing Aaron Spelling to side with him in regards to Cole and Constance left. She did not want to compromise her beliefs..

Edited August 28, 2017 by Apprentice79

SarahPrtr · August 28, 2017

On 2/13/2017 at 10:30 AM, Lady Calypso said:

I also wish Paige stuck with her career as a social worker. I do think having her stick with it in season 5, at least, would have been nice to see. I thought her being a social worker was a noble career and it's a career not presented much on TV.

And yeah, I wish Quake remained a part of the show, and I wish Piper didn't own the club...at least until much later in the series. It just felt very off in terms of her character back in season 2. She really stopped cooking as much because of it and she became incredibly grumpy (more so than ever before). It's why in the finale, when the voiceovers at the end indicate that Piper opens her own restaurant, it made me sad for what we missed out on. Now that's the career I wanted Piper to eventually lead into, not a damn nightclub just so the show could get their Very Special Guests.

Yeah, to think that she would have worked so hard to become a social worker and then to not pursue it further was disappointing. That was a decision she made all on her own, not because of her friends, parents or anyone else and it was before she knew about her Charmed destiny. I know that a lot of people change careers, especially after a major life event, but she definitely should have kept her job as a social worker.

Also, why didn't Piper run a restaurant instead of a nightclub? She has natural talent with cooking and Grams was impressed with how she knew what to add to dishes without even thinking about it. Being a restaurant owner would have suited her personality and skill better.

SarahPrtr · August 28, 2017

On 2/27/2017 at 2:32 AM, Apprentice79 said:

Freezing time and premonitions could have grown to a tremendous level and the writers never did anything with them. Piper should have been able to rewind, show down and fast forward time at will. At her most powerful, she should be able to project herself and others in time.

Oh, I LOVE that idea! Of course! That makes total sense to be able to rewind and fast forward time, since her first power is to freeze.

SarahPrtr · August 28, 2017

On 7/17/2017 at 0:51 AM, nightwing877 said:

That is what happens when you force characters into roles not meant for them and try to write these three sisters with Prue dead as if they have been sisters growing up and Prue never existed. Just because Paige is now the younger sister, doesn't mean Phoebe suddenly becomes the middle sister. Yes she is in theory, but still she is the baby sister at heart. I just liked Phoebe and Piper better when they were the middle and younger sister with Prue and I love the magic of the original sisters and always will. The dynamic was just so great.

Very true. I'm an only child and if I were thrown into a family where I suddenly became the youngest sibling, I wouldn't behave that way. Actually, I have much older cousins who are the youngest in their immediate families, and I become like the older sibling when I'm with them. I didn't lose my parents as a teenager like Paige, but because my parents are very irresponsible, I had to take care of a lot of things by myself when I was young and had nobody to ask for advice, so I had to make difficult decisions on my own. That's not going to change because my physical age is younger than someone else's. I would still be the serious and protective one.

SarahPrtr · August 28, 2017

Man, I love this site. I used to frequent imdb, but this is so much better. You can actually have discussions here without someone cursing at you just because your opinions are different from theirs. Even if it is, people give you intelligent responses and reasons on why they disagree with you. I definitely appreciate the thoughts that go into people's opinions.

My UO is that I liked Victor and hated the way that Grams treated him. It's like she stored up all the resentment from her past husbands and general disdain for men and unleashed them on him. He was just a regular guy, a mortal, and he came to a very magical family and was expected to accept every single thing that was happening. Even Piper, with her strong magical powers, was always talking about how she wanted to be normal and when presented with the opportunity to live a non-magical life by Angel of Destiny, she wanted to take him up on the offer. Give the guy a break, for goodness sake. He was portrayed as a deadbeat dad, but I don't see him that way. Prue also bought the he-just-left-us bs. No, he was tormented and pushed out by Grams. Remember, he was by Prue's side when she was sick as a little girl ('We all scream for ice cream').

Maybe I'm more biased towards Victor because I've seen too many good men and loving fathers who were treated terribly by their ex-wives, their families and the divorce court. They would send gifts and letters to their kids all the time, but their exes would get to them before the kids did, and the children wouldn't receive anything their fathers sent them and believed the toxic bs their mothers told them. Grams' behaviour was often bordering on being misandrous. She even refused to acknowledge and pick up Wyatt because she was expecting a girl! WTF! He's your great-grandson! Hug him! She also discouraged Patty from seeing Victor when she was pregnant with Phoebe.

Paige kept referring to Patty as "Mom" but never warmed to Sam, her biological father. Patty is not your Mum, your adoptive mother is. Actually, we didn't even get told what Mr and Mrs Matthews' first names were. Why do you accept Patty but not Sam? I mean, by all accounts, she's still close to her adoptive family because in one of the episode, she's talking to her uncle and says "Uncle Dave, I have to go. I love you."

I didn't like the way the sisters expected the mortal men to just accept every single magic-related thing about them without even a second to process the concept. You yourselves didn't know how to accept that part of yourselves, and Piper never really accepted it, and you're expecting just regular people to be fine with it immediately? Like, when Prue gave Andy one minute to think about it. Actually, he was okay with her being magical, but being a cop, he wanted to come home to a quiet, calm life, and not be thrown in all directions with the demons and warlocks. That's not just a mortal thing, a lot of people with dangerous jobs want to have a quiet home life. I like that Andy got a mention from Cupid in season 2 who looked at Prue and said "Andy. My sincerest condolences."

What's up with the ridiculous way that Phoebe dressed for work??? You work in a newspaper and you're wearing midriff tops and jackets?!!! Alyssa is beautiful and has a smokin' body, but they should've dressed her up in sexy clothes for going out or hanging out in P3. NOT for going to work in a corporate environment!! Having her breasts out to go to work made me feel really uncomfortable. Are you seriously expecting anyone you work with to respect you for your... brains?? Actually, Old Phoebe said something similar in season 4. Also, Paige used to wear mini skirts to work. She worked at Social Services! In the mermaids episode where she comes into her boss's office with soaked clothes from the rain, it was like she was wearing underwear! You're a social worker! At least wear a jacket!

I liked how Prue didn't get intimidated easily. It's pretty amazing how Alyssa and Shannen kept it together during the episodes, especially towards the end of season 3, because you couldn't really see the tension between the two. Onscreen, they were affectionate and loving. If nobody had said anything about why Shannen left, I don't think anyone would have known that they were having a major feud.

Didn't like the Cole-Phoebe relationship. At all. Every time I saw them on screen, I was like "Ugh"

I would have liked Billie and Chris, if they were played by other actors. Just not a fan of Drew Fuller and Kayley Cuoco.

I liked Dan and Jenny. I felt bad for Dan, because Piper was always going to choose Leo and was using Dan. He was a nice guy with a good heart and truly cared about Piper and saw a future with her. He was also a famous baseball player, and a total catch (pun!). I don't blame him for getting resentful every time he saw Leo. Nobody wants to see their partner's ex at every turn. It will constantly make you question everything. Yes, he definitely would have been a better match for Phoebe. I know that lots of people didn't like Jenny, but I think she was there to show yet another side of Dan's - a good-looking single guy who could just be doing whatever, whenever he wanted, dating every woman in San Francisco, but instead, he was being really responsible by taking care of his young pre-teen niece. After Piper dumped him, she was at a restaurant with Leo, and Dan and his date were at the next table and Piper got pissy because Dan was with someone else. What did you expect him to do??? You broke up with him for someone who was always in the background!

Does anyone not remember how Piper full-on STALKED Leo's first wife online and even went TO HER HOUSE to meet her??? If another female character did that, people would be screaming "Bunny boiler!!! Craaaaazzzyyyyyyy!!!"

When a lot of things were happening and one of the sisters would say "It's getting too crowded in here" or "There's not enough room around here" - umm, WHAT?! You live in a giant mansion with essentially FOUR FLOORS of space (including the basement and the attic)!!! Two hundred people could be at your house at the same time, and you could still find room somewhere. Also, when Phoebe was on her laptop in the kitchen with the others and she kept shouting "Could everybody pleeeeaaaase be quiet?!!" - again, WHAT?! You're in a common area of the house. Nobody needs to be quiet for you. Go to your freaking bedroom!!! Or the other 50 rooms in the house!

I wonder how the show might have been, had Eliza Dushku played the part of Paige. She was one of the actresses considered for the part. I mean, I like Rose, but I do sometimes wonder about that because I'm a fan of Eliza's as well.

I liked The Witch is Back, but the one thing that's always annoyed me about the episode was when Melinda said "In the blink of an eye? It's called Blinking." - duuuuh, really??? Couldn't she have said "Almost instantaneously? It's called blinking." or "In a split second?" although I don't know if people would have been able to observe any type of sundial moving in that measure of time in the 1600s. Just not 'In the blink of an eye'!!!

I've read people's comments on not liking Witch Way Now? but I really enjoyed it. I also liked the idea of having a witch hunter chasing them. He was a very real threat to them, even though the witch hunter was a mortal without any magical powers. Actually, in Sabrina the Teenage Witch, she had a boy at school who was also a decendant of witch hunters. He didn't know that he was one, but he just sensed that something was different about Sabrina and treated her coldly.

Esmeralda · August 28, 2017

8 hours ago, Apprentice79 said:

He was the architect of her firing,. He pushed Constance out of her own show by convincing Aaron Spelling to side with him in regards to Cole and Constance left. She did not want to compromise her beliefs..

Again, all of that is the spin. During Season Three, Shannen got into legal trouble (which she doesn't like to remember or talk about, so she does her own spin about quitting rather than being fired) that could've landed her in jail at the time they were filming. So to prevent that, Aaron Spelling fired Shannen. I keep saying I believe what Holly said in that TV Guide article because it was shortly after it happened and she said she didn't care what happened to herself for telling what truly happened. Now some of what *she* said might have been spin, but I do think the part about being able to take care of their "girly" problems on their own is true.

Besides, both Shannen and Alyssa are professionals., and have been since they were both kids. No matter what was going on personally, I do believe they could've /would've acted like sisters once the director said "Action". It's why the legal problems makes more sense as the reason why Shannen was fired. I will keep saying that Brad Kern was to Aaron Spelling (and The WB) what Shax was to the Source. Who do you blame for Prue's death? Shax or the Source? I blame the Source, so I blame Aaron Spelling for Shannen's firing, not Kern.

And Brad Kern did *not* shove Burge out. Both brought their vision regarding Cole to Spelling and Spelling liked the idea of making Cole more like Angel on "Buffy", especially because they probably knew by then that "Buffy"was going to jump ship from The WB to The UPN and they wanted Charmed to pick up the slack. So "Buffy" had more to do with Cole actually becoming half-demon than Kern actually did, because had Spelling chosen Burge's vision, he would've been pure demon and only part of one season.

Edited August 28, 2017 by Esmeralda

Esmeralda · August 28, 2017

12 minutes ago, SarahPrtr said:

Man, I love this site. I used to frequent imdb, but this is so much better. You can actually have discussions here without someone cursing at you just because your opinions are different from theirs. Even if it is, people give you intelligent responses and reasons on why they disagree with you. I definitely appreciate the thoughts that go into people's opinions.

My UO is that I liked Victor and hated the way that Grams treated him. It's like she stored up all the resentment from her past husbands and general disdain for men and unleashed them on him. He was just a regular guy, a mortal, and he came to a very magical family and was expected to accept every single thing that was happening. Even Piper, with her strong magical powers, was always talking about how she wanted to be normal and when presented with the opportunity to live a non-magical life by Angel of Destiny, she wanted to take him up on the offer. Give the guy a break, for goodness sake. He was portrayed as a deadbeat dad, but I don't see him that way. Prue also bought the he-just-left-us bs. No, he was tormented and pushed out by Grams. Remember, he was by Prue's side when she was sick as a little girl ('We all scream for ice cream').

Maybe I'm more biased towards Victor because I've seen too many good men and loving fathers who were treated terribly by their ex-wives, their families and the divorce court. They would send gifts and letters to their kids all the time, but their exes would get to them before the kids did, and the children wouldn't receive anything their fathers sent them and believed the toxic bs their mothers told them. Grams' behaviour was often bordering on being misandrous. She even refused to acknowledge and pick up Wyatt because she was expecting a girl! WTF! He's your great-grandson! Hug him! She also discouraged Patty from seeing Victor when she was pregnant with Phoebe.

Paige kept referring to Patty as "Mom" but never warmed to Sam, her biological father. Patty is not your Mum, your adoptive mother is. Actually, we didn't even get told what Mr and Mrs Matthews' first names were. Why do you accept Patty but not Sam? I mean, by all accounts, she's still close to her adoptive family because in one of the episode, she's talking to her uncle and says "Uncle Dave, I have to go. I love you."

I didn't like the way the sisters expected the mortal men to just accept every single magic-related thing about them without even a second to process the concept. You yourselves didn't know how to accept that part of yourselves, and Piper never really accepted it, and you're expecting just regular people to be fine with it immediately? Like, when Prue gave Andy one minute to think about it. Actually, he was okay with her being magical, but being a cop, he wanted to come home to a quiet, calm life, and not be thrown in all directions with the demons and warlocks. That's not just a mortal thing, a lot of people with dangerous jobs want to have a quiet home life. I like that Andy got a mention from Cupid in season 2 who looked at Prue and said "Andy. My sincerest condolences."

What's up with the ridiculous way that Phoebe dressed for work??? You work in a newspaper and you're wearing midriff tops and jackets?!!! Alyssa is beautiful and has a smokin' body, but they should've dressed her up in sexy clothes for going out or hanging out in P3. NOT for going to work in a corporate environment!! Having her breasts out to go to work made me feel really uncomfortable. Are you seriously expecting anyone you work with to respect you for your... brains?? Actually, Old Phoebe said something similar in season 4. Also, Paige used to wear mini skirts to work. She worked at Social Services! In the mermaids episode where she comes into her boss's office with soaked clothes from the rain, it was like she was wearing underwear! You're a social worker! At least wear a jacket!

I liked how Prue didn't get intimidated easily. It's pretty amazing how Alyssa and Shannen kept it together during the episodes, especially towards the end of season 3, because you couldn't really see the tension between the two. Onscreen, they were affectionate and loving. If nobody had said anything about why Shannen left, I don't think anyone would have known that they were having a major feud.

Didn't like the Cole-Phoebe relationship. At all. Every time I saw them on screen, I was like "Ugh"

I would have liked Billie and Chris, if they were played by other actors. Just not a fan of Drew Fuller and Kayley Cuoco.

I liked Dan and Jenny. I felt bad for Dan, because Piper was always going to choose Leo and was using Dan. He was a nice guy with a good heart and truly cared about Piper and saw a future with her. He was also a famous baseball player, and a total catch (pun!). I don't blame him for getting resentful every time he saw Leo. Nobody wants to see their partner's ex at every turn. It will constantly make you question everything. Yes, he definitely would have been a better match for Phoebe. I know that lots of people didn't like Jenny, but I think she was there to show yet another side of Dan's - a good-looking single guy who could just be doing whatever, whenever he wanted, dating every woman in San Francisco, but instead, he was being really responsible by taking care of his young pre-teen niece. After Piper dumped him, she was at a restaurant with Leo, and Dan and his date were at the next table and Piper got pissy because Dan was with someone else. What did you expect him to do??? You broke up with him for someone who was always in the background!

Does anyone not remember how Piper full-on STALKED Leo's first wife online and even went TO HER HOUSE to meet her??? If another female character did that, people would be screaming "Bunny boiler!!! Craaaaazzzyyyyyyy!!!"

When a lot of things were happening and one of the sisters would say "It's getting too crowded in here" or "There's not enough room around here" - umm, WHAT?! You live in a giant mansion with essentially FOUR FLOORS of space (including the basement and the attic)!!! Two hundred people could be at your house at the same time, and you could still find room somewhere. Also, when Phoebe was on her laptop in the kitchen with the others and she kept shouting "Could everybody pleeeeaaaase be quiet?!!" - again, WHAT?! You're in a common area of the house. Nobody needs to be quiet for you. Go to your freaking bedroom!!! Or the other 50 rooms in the house!

I wonder how the show might have been, had Eliza Dushku played the part of Paige. She was one of the actresses considered for the part. I mean, I like Rose, but I do sometimes wonder about that because I'm a fan of Eliza's as well.

I liked The Witch is Back, but the one thing that's always annoyed me about the episode was when Melinda said "In the blink of an eye? It's called Blinking." - duuuuh, really??? Couldn't she have said "Almost instantaneously? It's called blinking." or "In a split second?" although I don't know if people would have been able to observe any type of sundial moving in that measure of time in the 1600s. Just not 'In the blink of an eye'!!!

I've read people's comments on not liking Witch Way Now? but I really enjoyed it. I also liked the idea of having a witch hunter chasing them. He was a very real threat to them, even though the witch hunter was a mortal without any magical powers. Actually, in Sabrina the Teenage Witch, she had a boy at school who was also a decendant of witch hunters. He didn't know that he was one, but he just sensed that something was different about Sabrina and treated her coldly.

I don't have time to go through all of this, but I'm with you - I'm also an ex-IMDber (I was JustEs there since Esmeralda was already taken) and I definitely like this site better, since it's okay to have differing opinions.

I'll just tell you that at this site, a lot of your "unpopular" opinions aren't.

Apprentice79 · August 28, 2017

2 hours ago, Esmeralda said:

Again, all of that is the spin. During Season Three, Shannen got into legal trouble (which she doesn't like to remember or talk about, so she does her own spin about quitting rather than being fired) that could've landed her in jail at the time they were filming. So to prevent that, Aaron Spelling fired Shannen. I keep saying I believe what Holly said in that TV Guide article because it was shortly after it happened and she said she didn't care what happened to herself for telling what truly happened. Now some of what *she* said might have been spin, but I do think the part about being able to take care of their "girly" problems on their own is true.

Besides, both Shannen and Alyssa are professionals., and have been since they were both kids. No matter what was going on personally, I do believe they could've /would've acted like sisters once the director said "Action". It's why the legal problems makes more sense as the reason why Shannen was fired. I will keep saying that Brad Kern was to Aaron Spelling (and The WB) what Shax was to the Source. Who do you blame for Prue's death? Shax or the Source? I blame the Source, so I blame Aaron Spelling for Shannen's firing, not Kern.

And Brad Kern did *not* shove Burge out. Both brought their vision regarding Cole to Spelling and Spelling liked the idea of making Cole more like Angel on "Buffy", especially because they probably knew by then that "Buffy"was going to jump ship from The WB to The UPN and they wanted Charmed to pick up the slack. So "Buffy" had more to do with Cole actually becoming half-demon than Kern actually did, because had Spelling chosen Burge's vision, he would've been pure demon and only part of one season.

What was the legal trouble that Shannen got involved in? could it have been resolved? I wish that Constance had continued on, since she created the sisters based om herself and her sisters. In hindsight, she was right about the sisters and Cole.

Apprentice79 · August 28, 2017

3 hours ago, SarahPrtr said:

I didn't like the way the sisters expected the mortal men to just accept every single magic-related thing about them without even a second to process the concept. You yourselves didn't know how to accept that part of yourselves, and Piper never really accepted it, and you're expecting just regular people to be fine with it immediately? Like, when Prue gave Andy one minute to think about it. Actually, he was okay with her being magical, but being a cop, he wanted to come home to a quiet, calm life, and not be thrown in all directions with the demons and warlocks. That's not just a mortal thing, a lot of people with dangerous jobs want to have a quiet home life. I like that Andy got a mention from Cupid in season 2 who looked at Prue and said "Andy. My sincerest condolences."

I do think that if Andy had continued on the show, instead of Leo. This could have been an organic conflict for Prue and Andy to overcome. I personally wanted Piper to continuously meet men that she could not be with; for one reason or another. We never see women casually dating on television. It could have been a journey for Piper to take as she becomes more comfortable with her growing powers and her awesome responsibilities. Then, when she least expects it, she meets somebody wonderful offering the normalcy that she always craved.. Phoebe would re-assess herself after Cole and her stint as Evil Phoebe. She would be rebuilding her fractured relationships with Prue and Piper, while saving innocents.. In my version of season 3, Phoebe would figure out that Cole was pure evil and using her to destroy the power of 3. With her advanced premonitions, she and her sisters would use their combined 6 powers to vanquish Cole, in the season 3 finale, foreshadowing the Source's vanquish, when they will use their combined 9 powers. Season 4 would be the unraveling of Phoebe, as she falls into a deep depression, slowly turns evil and undermining her older sisters. The first half of season 5 will be Evil Phoebe against Prue and Piper. All three will get their third powers. The source would become more of a threat to the sisters, throughout this season, sending powerful demons and warlocks, to test the sisters' powers, individually and collectively. In the season 5 finale, Piper gets kidnapped, by an emissary of the source, setting up a direct confrontation for season 6..

Edited August 28, 2017 by Apprentice79

Esmeralda · August 29, 2017

10 hours ago, Apprentice79 said:

What was the legal trouble that Shannen got involved in? could it have been resolved? I wish that Constance had continued on, since she created the sisters based om herself and her sisters. In hindsight, she was right about the sisters and Cole.

I wish I could remember what the legal trouble was. I do remember that It was resolved with her only having to do community service, not jail-time,, but it wasn't resolved until after filming was done. She didn't like them not standing up for her, hence why she kept bad-mouthing Charmed and Spelling, and why she refused to have Prue's image shown (but show only - she had nothing to do with the Season 2 DVD coming out late - that had more to do with getting permission from all of the performers at P3 - or the comics. Using images in comics don't require permission or there would be no comics. They just require the permission of the company owning the rights to the show, and that's CBS Entertainment. Again in both situations, just spin).

My problem with Burge is I'm not all that nuts on the episodes she wrote on her own (with 'Something WIcca This Way Comes' the exception) and actually like the ones co-written by her and Kern, while not liking the ones he wrote on his own. - 'Charmed Again, Part One, the only exception to that rule. I love the sisters most in the episodes written by Sheryl J. Anderson, even when I"m not nuts on the episode, like 'Wrestling with Demons'. Sheryl stuck around for S3, but wasn't part of the latter seasons. Personally I think the show missed *her touch in S4-8 much more than Burge's.

And, yes, Burge was probably right about Cole and the sisters, but had they gone with her vision, I wonder if "Charmed" would've ended halfway through Season Four - no Prue and no Cole? I think that would've been too much for most fans. Paige wouldn't be able to fill in that big of gap.

Edited August 29, 2017 by Esmeralda

Kohola3 · August 29, 2017

I don't know which issue occurred during the Charmed brouhaha but there was a drunk driving arrest and an arrest when she smashed a car window with a bottle.

Esmeralda · August 29, 2017

Just now, Kohola3 said:

I don't know which issue occurred during the Charmed brouhaha but there was a drunk driving arrest and an arrest when she smashed a car window with a bottle.

That might have very well been the one that happened during Season Three. It sounds familiar. But Shannen was such a wild child (even if she was in her 20's) and got in so much trouble that I'm not sure.

Apprentice79 · August 29, 2017

3 hours ago, Esmeralda said:

And, yes, Burge was probably right about Cole and the sisters, but had they gone with her vision, I wonder if "Charmed" would've ended halfway through Season Four - no Prue and no Cole? I think that would've been too much for most fans. Paige wouldn't be able to fill in that big of gap.

I think the show would have had 6 solid seasons with Burge.. I think that Prue would have been there till the end.. With Prue Piper and Phoebe closing the manor door together...

SarahPrtr · August 29, 2017

9 hours ago, Esmeralda said:

I wish I could remember what the legal trouble was. I do remember that It was resolved with her only having to do community service, not jail-time,, but it wasn't resolved until after filming was done.

If it's the one where she did community service instead of going to jail, then it's the time when she got a DUI.

Esmeralda · August 29, 2017

2 hours ago, SarahPrtr said:

If it's the one where she did community service instead of going to jail, then it's the time when she got a DUI.

Okay, so sounds like my memory is worse than I thought it was. If the DUI ended up with community service, does anyone know what actually happened due to her smashing the car window with the bottle? I'm pretty sure that that's what got her fired. They just used the so-called feud as spin.

7 hours ago, Apprentice79 said:

I think the show would have had 6 solid seasons with Burge.. I think that Prue would have been there till the end.. With Prue Piper and Phoebe closing the manor door together...

But again, Burge had nothing to do with Shannen staying. She would've still been fired due to off-screen stuff. Burge would not have been able to save her.

If you wanted Prue, Piper and Phoebe closing the door together, it would've best been done after Season Three, which never would've happened due to Buffy jumping ship. So if you followed Burge's vision, you would've had no Prue and no Cole in Season Four. It wouldn't have worked.

I HATE when Real Life gets in the way of my shows! Which is why I love fan-written ones - you don't have to worry about what happens in Real Life!

Edited August 29, 2017 by Esmeralda

Apprentice79 · August 29, 2017

1 hour ago, Esmeralda said:

Okay, so sounds like my memory is worse than I thought it was. If the DUI ended up with community service, does anyone know what actually happened due to her smashing the car window with the bottle? I'm pretty sure that that's what got her fired. They just used the so-called feud as spin.

But again, Burge had nothing to do with Shannen staying. She would've still been fired due to off-screen stuff. Burge would not have been able to save her.

If you wanted Prue, Piper and Phoebe closing the door together, it would've best been done after Season Three, which never would've happened due to Buffy jumping ship. So if you followed Burge's vision, you would've had no Prue and no Cole in Season Four. It wouldn't have worked.

I HATE when Real Life gets in the way of my shows! Which is why I love fan-written ones - you don't have to worry about what happens in Real Life!

I know what you are saying, but, I am hoping that Shannen's dismissal had more to do with her backstage problems with Kern primarily. Even with her DUI, she did not kill anybody. I remember she wanted to leave in the middle of season 3 due to problems with Kern and Alyssa that and they threatened to sue her. So, she had to stay. She expected to come back in season 4, she directed a lot of the episodes in season 2 and 3. Season 3 was very much about Prue and Cole/Phoebe. Plus, sometime in season 3, Alyssa and Holly extended their contracts to include seasons 4 and 5. While Shannon was the holdout and would not sign an extension, unless she had some creative control over her stories as Prue and for Kern to be gone. She did not get her way causing even more acrimony behind the scenes. Don't forget the Producers trying to force a reconciliation between Alyssa and Shannen that ended up making things worst. I doubt that we will ever really know the truth. I remember a very telling interview in season 7 with Holly, Alyssa and Rose and the subject of Prue/Shannen came up and Alyssa was adamant that the producers did not want Shannen to ever come back. If it was just her DUI that got her fired, I doubt that the producers would still keep Shannen out, just for that..

Esmeralda · August 30, 2017

21 hours ago, Apprentice79 said:

I know what you are saying, but, I am hoping that Shannen's dismissal had more to do with her backstage problems with Kern primarily. Even with her DUI, she did not kill anybody. I remember she wanted to leave in the middle of season 3 due to problems with Kern and Alyssa that and they threatened to sue her. So, she had to stay. She expected to come back in season 4, she directed a lot of the episodes in season 2 and 3. Season 3 was very much about Prue and Cole/Phoebe. Plus, sometime in season 3, Alyssa and Holly extended their contracts to include seasons 4 and 5. While Shannon was the holdout and would not sign an extension, unless she had some creative control over her stories as Prue and for Kern to be gone. She did not get her way causing even more acrimony behind the scenes. Don't forget the Producers trying to force a reconciliation between Alyssa and Shannen that ended up making things worst. I doubt that we will ever really know the truth. I remember a very telling interview in season 7 with Holly, Alyssa and Rose and the subject of Prue/Shannen came up and Alyssa was adamant that the producers did not want Shannen to ever come back. If it was just her DUI that got her fired, I doubt that the producers would still keep Shannen out, just for that..

That's why I think it was the bottle smashed into a car window that got her fired, not the DUI. That would've meant jail time - you don't have to kill someone in order to be put in jail. You can try to blame Kern as much as you want - but it was all Shannen herself, especially because Kern did *not* have the power to fire her. That was Aaron Spelling and Paramount who wanted her out because she was causing too much bad publicity, the reason they used the feud as an excuse - fans can accept that easier. Holly obviously didn't mention anything about the bottle because she obviously was trying to put her then-best friend in the best light possible - her own spin.

So again, your dream sounds wonderful, but in reality, if you follow Burge's vision, you end up with no Prue and no Cole in Season Four, and all due to Shannen being a wild child, *not* Brad Kern!

Besides, even if the bottle incident hadn't happened, Shannen wanted to stretch her wings (in that you're right - but again, that would not get her fired) and would not have signed her second contract so with the original three, the show probably would not have gone past four years at the most. DON'T I WISH! Now those three accepting their destiny, finding out Piper's pregnant and Prue using her power to close the door - to me, that would be the perfect ending for Charmed, also setting up a spin-off with the kids rather than the alternate-universe spin-off we got stuck with!

And I should make this clear on what might be another unpopular opinion. I love Prue,, but I do not like Shannen, just like I like Holly, but I do not like Piper. I do not like Rose, but I do like Paige, while I LOVE Phoebs (up to 'Sleuthing with the Enemy' - when she lied to her sisters about vanquishing Cole, that's when the Power of Three should've died) but I HATE PhoeME ('Sleuthing with the Enemy' and beyond) and not really sure what I think of Alyssa. Unlike a lot of fans, I can separate the actress from the character.

Edited August 30, 2017 by Esmeralda

Apprentice79 · August 30, 2017

3 hours ago, Esmeralda said:

That's why I think it was the bottle smashed into a car window that got her fired, not the DUI. That would've meant jail time - you don't have to kill someone in order to be put in jail. You can try to blame Kern as much as you want - but it was all Shannen herself, especially because Kern did *not* have the power to fire her. That was Aaron Spelling and Paramount who wanted her out because she was causing too much bad publicity, the reason they used the feud as an excuse - fans can accept that easier. Holly obviously didn't mention anything about the bottle because she obviously was trying to put her then-best friend in the best light possible - her own spin.

So again, your dream sounds wonderful, but in reality, if you follow Burge's vision, you end up with no Prue and no Cole in Season Four, and all due to Shannen being a wild child, *not* Brad Kern!

Besides, even if the bottle incident hadn't happened, Shannen wanted to stretch her wings (in that you're right - but again, that would not get her fired) and would not have signed her second contract so with the original three, the show probably would not have gone past four years at the most. DON'T I WISH! Now those three accepting their destiny, finding out Piper's pregnant and Prue using her power to close the door - to me, that would be the perfect ending for Charmed, also setting up a spin-off with the kids rather than the alternate-universe spin-off we got stuck with!

And I should make this clear on what might be another unpopular opinion. I love Prue,, but I do not like Shannen, just like I like Holly, but I do not like Piper. I do not like Rose, but I do like Paige, while I LOVE Phoebs (up to 'Sleuthing with the Enemy' - when she lied to her sisters about vanquishing Cole, that's when the Power of Three should've died) but I HATE PhoeME ('Sleuthing with the Enemy' and beyond) and not really sure what I think of Alyssa. Unlike a lot of fans, I can separate the actress from the character.

Real life sucks sometimes. Okay, going with my wish, that Shannon did not do anything wrong, she did not get any DUI and things were good behind the scenes between her, Alyssa, and Kern. Plus, Burge being there, to ground Kern's craziness. I could see Shannen being there till the end. Six seasons would be enough to tell a cohesive story about the Halliwell sisters and their journey as the Charmed ones. I think that Shannen would do it for Holly. Prue, Piper and Phoebe closing the door together would have been the perfect ending, showing how close and powerful they were...It would also leave the door open for a new series featuring their descendants in the future.

Esmeralda · August 31, 2017

13 hours ago, Apprentice79 said:

Real life sucks sometimes. Okay, going with my wish, that Shannon did not do anything wrong, she did not get any DUI and things were good behind the scenes between her, Alyssa, and Kern. Plus, Burge being there, to ground Kern's craziness. I could see Shannen being there till the end. Six seasons would be enough to tell a cohesive story about the Halliwell sisters and their journey as the Charmed ones. I think that Shannen would do it for Holly. Prue, Piper and Phoebe closing the door together would have been the perfect ending, showing how close and powerful they were...It would also leave the door open for a new series featuring their descendants in the future.

Again, I love your dream and wish it could've been true, but still not realistic. Even if none of the legal stuff happened, I doubt if Shannen would've stayed beyond four years. The studio wanted them to sign new four-year contracts after that - the reason why they had the glamouring (as if Piper and Phoebe could glamour...) in S8 - the three actresses wanted a break. Originally it was supposed the glamours were supposed to last the entire season with us only seeing the actresses when they were in the Manor, but when they did a test audience, the audience didn't like it, so we got what we got... Shannen wanted to stretch her wings and move on. I doubt she would've agreed to another four years, even for Holly. But perhaps she would've been able to leave more gracefully and even agree to let Prue's image to be shown and her ghost, so she could've been part of the finale. That's all I ever wanted.

It's reminding me of something I wrote a long time ago. I know I posted my Dream Charmed when I first joined, but we did a different thread at the other site regarding what we'd do if we were the executive producer rather than Aaron Spelling and The WB said I had to include kids, so I adjusted my Dream Charmed to include them, and while I was at it, had fun basing it on what I thought was Real Life, not just my imagination like what you're doing. This was written before I knew about the legal problems when I also thought Shannen's firing was due to the feud, which I no longer believe, and also before I knew that Julian didn't leave left in order to do 'Nip Tuck' . Perhaps after you read it, you can come up with your own Dream Charmed, either with children or without, one that only lasts six seasons and include Prue for all six seasons. I'd love to read it.

Quote

This is MY Dream version of Charmed IF

-You have to have a sister die... and three sisters end up still alive at the end. (I prefer both Piper and Phoebe dying at the end and Paige and Leo left to raise any kids.)

-There has to be children. (I prefer there being none so the focus remains on the sisters.)

-Dead men can sire children. (That will never make sense to me.)

-Demons can mate with mortals. (Witches should be able to mate with warlocks, not demons – demons are a different species.)

SEASON ONE
Starring Shannen Doherty, Holly Marie Combs and Alyssa Milano
Costarring Carlos Gomez and Brian Krause

My Dream Charmed...with Children begins the series by showing the townspeople of Salem, MA getting ready to hang Melinda Halliwell [Tyler Layton - Melinda Halliwell rather than Melinda Warren so Grams isn't a liar when she says Halliwell women keep their maiden name)] as a witch as she tells them her vision of the future Charmed Ones. Even as she drops, we cut to modern-day San Francisco.

Like my real Dream Charmed, which only lasts three season, the rest of Season One is similar to the original with some differences, mainly in the backstory and what comes from it.

Prue [Shannen Doherty] has never had a boyfriend because she closed her heart after the death of her mother. Instead she’s been taking care of her sisters and Grams [Jennifer Rhodes]. Roger [Matthew Ashford] isn’t her fiancé but just her supervisor, who is fired after her boss finds out that he stole her ideas, so their boss makes her one of the Buckland managers instead. Just like the original, she’s a bit stiff, a bit strait-laced, but loosens up as the season goes along, as she feels sympathy for the innocents they are saving and anger at the villains (both male and female, both magical and non-magical) who are after them.

Piper [Holly Marie Combs] is the same as the original, except that she was never a banker…she didn’t have to be, since Prue was the one who took care of Grams, so since graduation from high school, she has always worked at Quake, even when she was at cooking school. Otherwise, no need to change her or her and Leo’s [Brian Krause] story. Just like the original, she’s the one who least wants to be a witch, but goes along with her sisters, especially when she sees how much their powers can help people.

Although Phoebe [Alyssa Milano] was the wild child and moved away to New York after Grams’ death, she found herself there and now wants to go back to school, the reason why she moves back in with her sisters. Just like the original, she’s the one who finds the Book of Shadows and says the spell that activates their magic, and she’s the one most fascinated with magic.

The other major difference is that Andy is not part of this first season. Instead Inspector Rodriguez [Carlos Gomez], a warlock, spends the whole season trying to expose the Charmed Ones, working with the various magical villains to try to frame the Charmed Ones for crimes by placing them at the scene where innocents that he himself killed died.

Other than these and the changes that would obviously be needed thanks to them - like the fact that it's Piper who thinks that Phoebe slept with her former boyfriend, while Prue treats them like two children who should be sent to their rooms - the season is pretty much the same.

But this season also deals with the theme that with great powers comes great responsibility, something that is important for the sisters to learn right away, before they start having relationships - that protecting innocents must always come before their personal lives - if it doesn't, they will either lose their powers or lose their lives. They can use their magic as they please, but they can't expose magic to non-magicals who don't know about the existence of magic, the definition of innocents in my Dream Charmed.

After the Charmed Ones first receive their powers, they use them to protect innocents but also use them to punish non-magicals who they think have done wrong. At the end of the season, the Elders send them to a future similar to 'Morality Bites', where all three sisters are arrested for being witches and will be burnt the next day by Prosecutor Rodriguez, not Nathaniel Pratt.

While in the future, the Charmed Ones discover that Rodriguez is a warlock, even as they learn that magic is to be used to protect the innocent, not punish the guilty. Once they learn their lesson - and unlike the original series, they won't forget it - they are transported back to their present just as each of them begins to feel the agony of the fire. There, when Rodriguez shows up to arrest them for some trumped-up charge, the Charmed Ones vanquish him.

This is also when the Angel of Destiny shows up. Now that the Halliwells finally realize just what they are in for, they are given the option of keeping their powers or losing them and forgetting that they ever had them, as has happened with other sets of three sisters descended from Melinda Halliwell (like the 20's sisters who kept their powers but became warlocks - no, in mine, they're sisters, not cousins so P. Bowen is actually Patty's favorite Great-aunt Phoebe and not her second cousin twice removed...and all of their last names is Halliwell). But despite what happened in the future, this set of sisters agree that they’re going to have to stick together through it all. All of their petty disagreements with each other are forgotten as they agree to continue to walk towards their destiny.

SEASON TWO
Starring Shannen Doherty, Holly Marie Combs and Alyssa Milano
Costarring Brian Krause, Ted King and Neil Roberts

Andy [Ted King] takes Rodriguez's place as the inspector who works with the sisters, and reunites with his high school sweetheart. He is amazed by how much Phoebe has matured, while Phoebe is just as amazed to find out that her once just-as-wild boyfriend is now a San Francisco inspector. After one of her premonitions helps her and her sisters help him solve one of his most-difficult cases, she decides to change her major in college and starts taking forensic classes, so they continue to work on cases together. She uses her power of premonitions to find out what’s going to happen and her visions of the past (which she gets when she touches one of the pieces of evidence) to find out what has happened. Before saying a word to Andy, she brings the cases home to her sisters, where they are able to figure out how to protect the innocents by getting rid of the perpetrator. If the perp is non-magical (which happens just as often as them being magical), Phoebe helps Andy solve it so that he can arrest the perp. If the perp is magical, the Charmed Ones figure out how to vanquish the perp.

Halfway through the season, Andy discovers Phoebe’s secret. Just like the original, he can accept her as a witch, but not as a wife, until Phoebe almost dies trying to save one of the victims. That’s when Andy realizes that he loves her no matter if she's a witch or not and pops the question, and she gladly accepts.

Meanwhile Piper becomes the manager of Quake, while her relationship with Leo grows more serious, and she starts wondering if a whitelighter can marry his charge. The Elders think they are growing way too close, and this may interfere in their work just like it did with Piper’s mother and her whitelighter – the reason why the rule of whitelighters and witches aren’t allowed to marry was even created.

Piper doesn’t know anything about this – she just knows that she’s falling in love with Leo. The only problem that she can see is when they try to date and Piper discovers that dating a man who is dead and has no identity can definitely be a problem. She continues to bemoan the fact that as a witch she can’t have a normal life.

Meanwhile, Prue's boss from the first season turns out to be a warlock trying to figure out how to steal the sisters' powers now that Rodriguez has failed. Rex Buckland [Neal Roberts] make Prue's job a living hell such as making her work long hours without paying her overtime, constantly setting things up so it appears that she has either stolen items or embezzled funds, sending her to clients that he knows are magical bad-guys, etc. until he finally teams up with Tempus [David Carradine] at the end of the season.

The season finale plays out much as it did in the original Charmed’s Season One finale, with Rex taking Rodriguez’ spot, except no one intervenes. Each time the Charmed Ones keep missing out on the fact that it's Rex who is the warlock working with Tempus. Also, rather than a Charmed One or Andy, it’s an innocent who dies during each time loop.

The Elders realize what is happening and summon Leo to them, telling him what’s going on. They also warn him that he must stop seeing Piper or suffer the consequences, because the Elders’ fears have come true – Piper and Leo’s emotions, and the fact that they keep trying to protect each other, is the reason why it's the innocent who keeps dying rather than one of the Charmed Ones.

But Leo can’t let Piper die. He orbs in and interrupts the time loop. Even though he helps the Charmed Ones vanquish Rex and save the innocent, Leo is forced away, just like in “Magic Hour,” which is the last scene in the season. (Nope, in my dream series, the season doesn’t always end with the door closing…)

SEASON THREE
Starring Shannen Doherty, Holly Marie Combs and Alyssa Milano
Costarring Brian Krause, Ted King and Julian McMahon

Leo has now been missing for three months and Piper does everything she can to find him or bring him back. When she still can’t find him, she goes on strike, just like she did in the beginning of the original Season Three, and just like then, it's when she's almost the cause of a young girl losing her life that she changes her mind and helps save both the little girl and the fairy. The Elders return Leo, but now his wings are clipped - he is mortal, because whitelighters and charges who fall in love and can’t do their jobs aren’t allowed to be together - and unlike the original, he never gets them back.

But because my Elders are truly good, as well as just, they thank Leo for everything he did during his 80 years as a whitelighter by having the Angel of Destiny give Leo back the life he would’ve lived had he not died in World War II - as far as the world is concerned, he has always been a full-fledged doctor with his own clinic, caring for patients who can’t afford to pay others.

The following episodes are similar to the early ones in the original Season Two that didn’t include Leo, but with Leo playing Dan’s role, while continuing to use his knowledge that came from being a whitelighter for 80 years to help the Charmed Ones protect the innocent. Piper falls for this Leo even harder than she had for the whitelighter, because they can now have a semi-normal relationship, and we never again hear Piper whine about wanting a normal life.

Meanwhile, Phoebe and Andy continue to solve crimes with the help of her sisters, keeping the focus of the show on innocents, as we see all of the innocents and villains that we saw in the original Season Two, even as they happily plan their wedding, which will include both a hand-fasting and a big church wedding.

We also see another villain, one of the two Big Bads of the series, although if this was truly the first time we’d see the show, we wouldn’t know it. When the sisters end up having to testify at a trial, Prue takes a liking to District Attorney Cole Turner [Julian McMahon], and he returns the favor. But when he asks her out, she refuses. Only after she meets Cupid [Michael Riley Burke] and becomes his ring, does she open her heart and accept Cole's offer.

They fall madly in forbidden love even as he tries to kill Piper and Phoebe with the Triad's help, while trying to turn Prue evil. The season plays out like the original Season Three did with Prue taking Phoebe’s role, until she finds out that Belthazor [Michael Bailey Smith] is actually Cole.

Unlike the original Phoebe, Prue doesn’t lie to her sisters and instead joins them in trying to vanquish Belthazor who they now know is actually Cole, no matter how much the idea breaks her heart. But he escapes and then he tries everything he can to get back with Prue, just like in the original Season Three and Five without him being either crazy or invulnerable with sometimes crazy, other times heart-breaking results.

Finally she agrees to let him back into her life if he turns good for her. He agrees and pretends to be good, even as he continues to try to turn her evil.

In the season finale, Andy and Phoebe are hand-fasted in front of family and friends, but right after Grams tells Andy to kiss his bride, Shax [Michael Bailey Smith] attacks. The Charmed Ones vanquish Shax, but in the process, they are exposed.

Unlike the original, the Charmed Ones stick together – unlike the original Phoebe, Prue has never considered the idea of a potion to turn Cole good – she’s still determined to turn him good all by herself no matter if he wants to or not. He doesn’t - unlike the original Cole, he's not half-human/half-demon, but instead is a pure warlock who wants to kill the Charmed Ones so he can steal their powers, except for Prue who he wants to turn into another warlock, since as the oldest Charmed Ones, she would make a very powerful warlock. Instead his mother cast a spell on him, giving him his demonic alter-ego, Belthazor.

When things go from bad to worse and Piper is shot, Phoebe and Leo take Piper to the hospital where Piper dies even as Phoebe and Leo are shot by the snipers.

Meanwhile, Prue summons Cole and tells him to have Tempus turn back time so she can save her sister and best friend. He agrees to do this only if he can have what he wants.

A deal is struck - time is reset by Tempus after Prue stays in the Underworld and joins the dark side, including drinking the Seer’s [Debbi Morgan] potion which truly turns her evil.

Again the hand-fasting takes place, but Phoebe, whose power has helped her remember what happened before, insists that just the family of the Charmed Ones attend. Phoebe is upset that her big sister isn’t there, but insists that the hand-fasting takes place. Again no sooner does Grams tell Andy to kiss his bride than Shax attacks and because without Prue, the Charmed Ones can’t even ward him off, everyone is hurt, and Piper and Phoebe, who have been thrown through the wall, appear dead.

SEASON FOUR
Starring Shannen Doherty, Holly Marie Combs and Alyssa Milano
Costarring Brian Krause, Ted King and Michael Bailey Smith as Belthazor
(The WB has warned me that unless I stop all the bad publicity being generated due to the bad blood between Shannen and Alyssa, they will pull the plug on the series. Rather than firing someone, I announce to the actresses that this will be the last season, and Shannen and Alyssa agree that they can act like friends for one season, especially because the plot will be set up so they won’t have many scenes together.)

The season starts where we left off. Prue is now evil and in the Underworld. Piper and Phoebe are near-death. Leo, who also appeared near-death, regains consciousness and is able to stabilize Piper and Phoebe using his doctor skills instead of the supernatural abilities he no longer has before calling 911.

Once the sisters are out of the hospital, and after Phoebe and Andy have their big church wedding, they try to rescue Prue and instead find that she doesn't want to be rescued; that she's enjoying being evil, made worse each time she drinks more of the Seer's potion.

With Prue at his side, Belthazor no longer even pretends to be Cole and we never see him looking like Cole again. Instead they raise hell. Prue manages to turn the entire magical community against her sisters just like the Jenkinses did in the original Season Eight.

Belthazor and Prue now proclaim themselves the leaders of the Underworld, but the evil denizens have gone for centuries without any leaders and don't like that idea now, so Prue and Belthazor have to put down a few revolts while Piper and Phoebe struggle to save innocents with only a power of two and the need to overcome their personal feelings regarding what they should to do about Prue and Belthazor, unable to bring themselves to vanquish their sister, even if she is now evil. The danger is more real than ever because Piper and Phoebe have to find a way to avoid high-level demons, since they are short one in the Power of Three.

Eventually Belthazor and Prue put down all of the revolts and are crowned Leaders of the Underworld in a ceremony much like the one in the original Season Four. Belthazor then sends his most powerful minions after Piper and Phoebe, attacking them personally and playing on their weaknesses.

In the midst of all of this, Phoebe graduates from college and begins working at the police station with Andy. They don’t try for children at all due to the danger that’s swirling around them.

Instead, it’s Prue who finds herself five months pregnant, so not certain what the Seer's potion will do to her child, she stops drinking it, which lets her sisters finally be able to reach her, like the original ones did with Billie and with Evil Phoebe.

With the Power of Three reunited, they are finally able to vanquish Shax, but not Belthazor. Their bond as sisters has been broken and they can’t vanquish Belthazor that easily. As the season ends, he tells them that he's going to come back for his son, his heir.

SEASON FIVE
Starring Shannen Doherty, Holly Marie Combs and Alyssa Milano
Costarring Brian Krause, Ted King and Michael Bailey Smith as “Belthazor”
(“Charmed” has received higher ratings during Season Four than ever before, the highest any cable series has ever received, even higher than most network shows, and even won a number of Emmies, including one for Charmed as best drama and me as best executive producer—hey, it’s my Dream Charmed, so if I’m going to dream, I’m going to dream big!

Thanks to this, despite me telling Shannen and Alyssa that Season Four was going to be the finale, The WB told me before the season ended that they want the actresses to sign new four-year contracts. But Shannen is getting bored and wants to move on, even though both Holly Marie and Alyssa want to continue the series and sign their new contracts. Shannen agrees to stay for one more season as long as I agree to let her do a lot more directing. We also agree that since this will be her final season, I will give her character the great send-off her fans deserve.)

Piper and Phoebe are still having a hard time trusting Prue, and this trust is made far worse by the fact that Prue is still pregnant with Belthazor's child, and despite the fact that they beg her to get rid of it, she refuses because she already loves her unborn child. This weakens their bond and makes them vulnerable until halfway through the season when they finally forgive one another.

Their bond becomes complete when Phoebe tells Prue that she’s also pregnant, and Piper tells her that she and Leo are going to be married and despite Prue’s advanced pregnancy, she wants Prue to be her matron of honor.

Belthazor eventually accepts the fact that Prue is done with him, especially when he finds out that she plans to keep their child away from him, while he still wants to raise his son as his evil heir, including giving his son his own demonic alter-ego. Belthazor kidnaps the sisters and has the Seer try to steal the child, but unlike the original, that doesn't work and the sisters are able to escape with Prue still pregnant.

Near the end of the season, Leo and Piper are first hand-fasted by Penny and then married in a small church wedding just as Prue goes into early labor. She gives birth to the child, but rather than the son who Belthazor expected, it’s a girl who she names Patricia Victoria after her parents, and who she and her sisters call Trish.

In the season finale, they convince Penny to perform a wiccaning so the baby has a chance to be good. Penny agrees only if the sisters agree to let her first bind her powers until she’s old enough to handle them…whatever they might be. Penny wants to cast the same spell she used on the sisters after the happenings of ‘That Seventies Episode’, which will not only bind her powers, but also keep her off of Evil's radar until when and if her powers are unbound.

Right in the midst of her casting the spell, Belthazor appears, trying to prevent this and the wiccaning from happening to his daughter. But he knows the Charmed Ones too well. With him he has an innocent and he has an athame to her throat. He tells Prue either give him his daughter who he will rename Elizabeth after his own mother, or he'll kill the innocent. The sisters are in a quandary, especially Prue - she can't give away her daughter to Belthazor to be raised evil, but she can't allow an innocent to be killed just so Trish will be saved. After a bit (with Belthazor taunting her during all of this), Prue decides what to do.

She has Piper freeze Belthazor and then she uses her TK to throw the innocent across the floor, although this knocks the innocent out. Then Prue begins chanting the spell the sisters had tried before, but hadn't succeeded because their bond wasn't strong enough. But now it is and it succeeds in vanquishing Belthazor, but the power of the vanquish throws them across the room before the flames from the vanquish rush towards their innocent. Although it won't reach the sisters, it will kill the innocent.

Piper tries freezing it, but she can’t. Instead Prue, whose power to move thing with her mind has grown over the years, especially while she was evil, is able to use her power to keep it back, telling her sisters to grab their innocent and run. They beg her not to do this, but Prue tells them to take good care of Trish for her.

Crying, Piper and Phoebe grab their innocent and then run out of the door just as Prue is no longer able to hold back the flames. Piper and Phoebe quickly return with fire extinguishers and put out the flames, but it's much too late to save Prue.

Penny’ ghost returns and first she finishes binding Trish's powers and then wiccans her. Then, even as Piper and Phoebe cry over their lost sister's burnt body, Penny helps Prue’s ghost make the crossing to the other side, where we see Patty welcome her, as the season ends.

SEASON SIX
Starring Holly Marie Combs, Alyssa Milano and Rose McGowan as “Paige”
Costarring Brian Krause, Ted King, Oded Fehr and Ivan Sergei
(Alyssa’s agent isn’t happy about her not having the lead credit now that Shannen is gone, but she’s under contract...They continue to be listed in the order of the Charmed Ones’ ages.)

Piper and Phoebe are mourning their sister, and Andy and Leo are also broken up while trying to comfort their wives. Piper uses Trish to try to cast a “find a lost witch” spell and it plays out just like the original “Charmed Again” with a couple of major exceptions.

First, Piper doesn't try this until the third episode - the first two are dedicated to letting Piper and Phoebe (and Prue's fans) remember and mourn their sister (the funeral is full of flashbacks) before being forced to accept another one.

Second, we do get a chance to get to know Paige [Rose McGowan], but only as the innocent who Prue saved during the Season Five finale, including seeing her at the funeral, not due to the spell but due to the fact that she wants to be able to thank Prue for saving her life...unknown to the Charmed Ones or Belthazor, the innocent Prue saved is their younger half-sister.

The other difference is that unlike the original, the Elders have always known about Paige - they knew when Patty was pregnant. They were the ones who wanted her kept away from her sisters since they knew that the Power of Four would be too much and if the sisters cast a Power of Four spell, it would kill all four sisters. They also wanted her power to orb (her only power at birth) bound in order to protect her from evil and to keep her from exposing magic. Like I've said before, my Elders are both good and just.

Meanwhile, Phoebe is so upset by Prue's death that she ends up miscarrying her baby, which also upsets Andy. This puts a huge strain on his and Phoebe's relationship, and they decide to separate for now while considering divorce. Phoebe even quits the force so she doesn’t have to work with him.

Once the sisters do reconstitute the Power of Three - similar to Charmed Again, although different since there is no Shax or Source and because this is three episodes into the season - Paige now has Prue's power to move things with her mind, which works exactly as Prue's did (and like Prue, she never gets the power of astral projection). Her power to orb remains her only whitelighter power - she is just the daughter of a whitelighter who inherited one of his powers; she's not a whitelighter herself since she's not dead. Meanwhile Piper continues to just have the power to freeze time and Phoebe continues to just have the power to have premonitions when the Elders grant them and the power to see the past when she touches objects. There have been upgrades, but only in control and distance, not in different powers - except for Paige's orbing, their own powers are Melinda Halliwell's three.

Meanwhile, the denizens of the Underworld have gotten used to having leaders. During the first couple of episodes, with Belthazor vanquished and Prue gone, they battle each other for supremacy, but no one is truly strong enough to take over as Belthazor and Prue did. Finally, around the same time that the Power of Three is reconstituted, the Seer talks them into releasing the previous leader who was imprisoned centuries ago after a revolt. He is the other main Big Bad of the series.

Zankou [Oded Fehr] wants to stop this new set of Charmed Ones before they can become too powerful, but Paige chooses to be with her newly-found half-sisters, and Zankou leaves…for now.

Instead, during the rest of the season we constantly see him in the background, wearing various disguises, but watching the sisters and plotting with the help of the Seer.

Meanwhile Leo’s practice has become very successful as he continues to help people who need it but can’t afford it, while Piper has decided that life is too short to stay with a job she hates, so she quits and uses the money she made as a manager to open up her own restaurant, which she names P4 after her and her three sisters, and it’s a huge success.

At the same time, Piper and Phoebe are determined to keep their niece – the only piece of Prue that they have left – safe to the point of interfering with their destiny of protecting innocents. They also refuse to let Paige have anything to do with Trish.

Paige feels like an outcast in the family and feels like they only need her to take Prue's place in the Power of Three (she’s right – both Piper and Phoebe do..), which causes her to grow close to her best friend Henry [Ivan Sergei] and they take things to the next level.

Halfway through the season, Paige finally confronts her sisters about her feelings, and they have an emotional blowout where they finally truly accept her as part of the family, and offer her the chance to move into Prue’s old room. For the first time, they also let her hold her niece and spend some time with the little girl.

The new Charmed Ones’ bond finally becomes strong, and they’re finally able to vanquish high-level demons, something they couldn’t do before—they could make them vanish like the original Prue and Piper did to Shax during “All Hell Breaks Loose”, and like Piper and Phoebe did while Prue was evil, but they couldn’t vanquish them.

The season ends with Phoebe and Andy no longer able to stand being apart. They plan to meet up, and Phoebe arrives to find Andy dead by Zankou's hands. Zankou smiles evilly at her and us before flaming away.

SEASON SEVEN
Starring Holly Marie Combs, Alyssa Milano and Rose McGowan
Costarring Brian Krause, Ivan Sergei and Oded Fehr

Phoebe is obsessed with getting revenge for Andy’s death, and no one can comfort her until the Avatars turn to her for help in creating Utopia in exchange for having a world where Prue and Andy are still alive, and magical perps aren't part of their everyday life. Phoebe accepts and convinces her sisters to join the cause for a better world.

During the 150th episode, a mysterious young woman [Charisma Carpenter] appears and warns them that the Avatars are not to be trusted. They don't listen to her and Utopia is created without them realizing that free will has been taken away. The woman, who says her name is Chris, turns to the one person who was responsible for starting it all, Phoebe.

With Chris’ help, Phoebe remembers all the losses and what they learned about the wrong thing done for the right reason is still wrong, and she finally admits that taking away the world's free will just so she can have her own little utopia simply isn't right. She sets out to convince her sisters to stop the Avatars. With help from the Elders, and from Prue and Andy who are allowed to become corporeal ghosts so they can help, even though Prue no longer has any powers, since Paige now has hers, the war is finally won. Utopia is reversed and the Charmed Ones say goodbye to Andy and Prue in a tearful farewell as they rejoin Patty and Penny in the Afterlife.

The Elders try to reward Chris by making her the Charmed Ones’ new charge, something she insists she can’t do; that she must return home, and instead asks to be returned to the Halliwell attic.

Once she’s there, we see a triquetra portal open just as Leo happens to walk into the attic. He wants to know what is going on.

This is when Chris finally admits that she’s from the future which is why she knew when to come back in order to stop the Avatars and prevent the world that she came from from happening. With the Avatars in charge, the world was anything but utopia…

He asks her who she really is, so after making him promise not to tell the Charmed Ones, she first apologizes for misleading them and then finally admits that Chris isn’t really her name. She is engaged to a phoenix witch named Christopher Perry and she decided to use a form of his name so they wouldn’t suspect that she is actually a future form of Trish. Before he can ask anything else, she steps through the portal and is gone, the end of the 150th episode, the only time "Chris" appears in the series.

The sisters continue with their lives, finally having them back on track. Leo and Piper couldn't be happier. The restaurant is doing well along with Leo's practice, and they’ve finally decided to start trying for children. Paige and Henry are still together and going strong, while Paige is now a full-time social worker. Phoebe feels left out but is content taking care of her niece. She has also returned to her police work, keeping her sisters’ focus on protecting innocents.

Then, near the end of the season, Zankou returns. Doing some research, they discover that the only way to prevent Zankou from taking over the Manor and turning the wiccan nexus into a center for evil is to truly sacrifice themselves. This is an extremely difficult decision, but even Leo and Henry agree that it’s something that must be done, and the men agree to take good care of little Trish while never unbinding her powers, since they wouldn’t be able to help her handle them.

During the season finale which combines both “Something Wicca This Way Goes” and “Forever Charmed” the Charmed Ones risk their lives in a big, fiery finale, fully expecting to die. But Paige manages to panic-orb away. Piper and Phoebe are left for dead - the first time any of the Charmed Ones have died except for Prue. Paige finds the same spell in the Book of Shadows that “Chris” used to come back in time. She uses it to go back in time herself to try to save her half-sisters. She never goes forward in time so we never see any of the Charmed Ones or Leo as old - that's saved for the spin-off...

Instead Paige finds herself with the earlier versions of the Charmed Ones, from circa Season One or Two, with the three actresses dressed to look like them, like they did during ‘Pre-witched’. Paige tells them that she’s one of their innocents from the future who they saved. She refuses to give them any clue as to her name or how they met her or when they met her, telling them she doesn’t want to change the future too much.

But there is a huge piece she would like to change – and she tells them she wants to try to figure a way to save the sisters after a fiery vanquish killed them. Prue wants to know if they used the Power of Three spell to protect themselves. Paige, who has never heard of the Power of Three spell, has to admit that she doesn't think so, so Prue suggests they try it. The sisters teach her the simple spell: "The Power of Three shall set us free" and Paige promises to teach it to the Charmed Ones. Then she thanks all of the sisters before the original Charmed Ones use the spell from ‘That Seventies Episode’ to send her home.

Paige phases back into her body as soon as she arrives - just like time travelers to the future always have - just as the Charmed Ones cast the spell to vanquish Zankou. Even as the flames go towards them, Paige grabs her sisters' hands and starts chanting the Power of Three spell. Her half-sisters join in, even as their hearts ache, thinking that had they remembered it before, Prue might still be alive. The spell protects them from the explosion, which is what killed Piper and Phoebe the first time around, and, of course, is also very similar to the explosion that killed Prue.

In the happy but not sappy ending, we see the sisters six months later. Piper now pregnant with her own child, Phoebe holding Trish, and Paige showing off her engagement ring decide to write down all the things that went on since Piper and Phoebe became witches, so that they can pass it onto the next generation. As they walk up the stairs towards the attic and the Book of Shadows, they stop to reminisce about the various pictures on the wall:

• Paige and Henry’s brand-new engagement picture
• Piper and Leo’s wedding picture
• Phoebe and Andy’s wedding picture
• a picture of the sisters hanging out at P4
• a picture of Leo standing in front of his practice
• a picture of Paige standing in front of South Bay Social Services
• a picture of Phoebe standing in front of the San Francisco Police Department
• a picture of Prue holding a newborn Trish
• a picture of Piper inside Quake
• a picture of Prue inside her Buckland’s office
• a frame showing various old pictures of Paige at various ages with her adopted parents and Henry
• a frame showing various old pictures of the Halliwells at various ages with Penny, Patty, Victor and Andy
• the picture of the original Charmed Ones that Penny took the day she died

As the Charmed Ones open the door to the attic and pass through, closing the door, the camera goes back to the picture Penny took of the original Charmed Ones.

Then there’s a bit of magic and Paige becomes part of it, too, which is the end of the season and the series…or is it?

SEASON EIGHT
(Yeah, there’s a Season Eight, sort of – because even as Season Seven was being filmed, The WB demanded an eighth season to set up a spin-off. But as the executive producer of “Charmed”, I refused to do that, especially when Holly, Alyssa, and especially a very unhappy Rose all want a break. So after the success of "Chris" aka adult Trish during the 150th episode (I received more email about her than any other character introduced during the series), I offered an alternative and The WB took me up on it.

So instead of airing an eighth season but with the stars still under contracts, a spin-off of “Charmed”: “Charmed – the Next Generation” with a whole new theme song and a whole new cast, debuts in the same time slot. It stars Charisma Carpenter as Trish, along with her cousins, but their names and their powers (including whether Trish's were ever unbound) and even their parents will be up to the new executive producer since I retire before it gets going, since I have absolutely no interest in it, and would rather let someone who *is* interested decide what to do with the characters.

But before I release an unhappy Rose McGowan from her contract, so Paige will not be part of the spin-off, only as a very occasional guest star. In order to do that, Paige will be dead in the spin-off, killed by a darklighter, and will only appears as a ghost, as will Prue, meaning there are no longer any Charmed Ones, which is what allows the next generation to take over.

Holly, Alyssa, Brian and Ivan all want to be part of the new series, but only as recurring guest stars, giving them the break away from all things Charmed that they want while still being part of it. They would then have a choice whether to sign a new contract after the first season is over (if it's a success, of course, and naturally in my dream world, it would be), and that would help decide what happens to their characters.

But what actually happens is all up to the new executive producer...)

So? What do you think? And what would YOUR six-season series with the original Power of Three part of all six seasons be like? I'll bet people will find unpopular opinions in yours the way I'm sure people will find them in mine.

Apprentice79 · August 31, 2017

You have gone into depth for all 8 seasons. 6 seasons would be enough to tell a good story. I would want Prue till the very end. The three sisters would evolve as women, sisters and witches. Andy would be on the show. Leo would not be. Cole would have been evil with Phoebe orchestrating his death with her premonitions. Season 3 would have been about the sisters' powers and their growth, culminating in Cole's vanquish. Phoebe gets an awesome offensive power. Piper would have gotten her second power at the end of season 2. Prue would be able to use her telekinesis in astral form. Season 4 would have been about Phoebe turning evil slowly. Her complete transformation would be the season 4 finale. The first 6 episodes of season 5 would be evil Phoebe versus her sisters. They would all get their third powers. Pratt is also a major factor in this season. The source becomes even more of a threat knowing that his end is near. An emissary of the source would kidnap Piper as the season 5 finale. Season 6 would be freeing Piper and setting up the showdown between the source and the sisters..

In this alternative version of the show, there would be no babies and obsession with men. Prue/Andy would be the main couple of the show with Prue and Andy never really able to come together as a couple. Shannen is great at playing angst. At some point, I would want Piper to stop whining about a normal life, embrace her powers and go for broke. She would become the owner of Quake and open up chains around the country. Phoebe would become a psychologist, specializing in at risk teens. She would also help Darryl with cold cases and missing children. This would be how Pratt would become entrenched in their lives. I would want the sisters to also encounter evil human beings. How do they deal with them? a dilemma could have been a good story. Throughout the series, we would meet past Warren witches that the sisters would summon for one reason or another to help them defeat enemies. Gram's brother and his descendants would also appear. Would they have powers? What about relatives from their dad's side? The focus would always be about sisterhood and the ties that bind Prue Piper and Phoebe.

Edited August 31, 2017 by Apprentice79

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