The Utterly Enchanting Charmed Rewatch

[amensisterfriend]

It's been so fun chatting about this show with you guys! Since we're always talking about various episodes anyway, I was wondering if anyone would be up for a casual group rewatch. I'm assuming that rewatching the whole series would be too daunting an endeavor, so maybe each person participating could just nominate a few episodes that they think would be most fun tor rewatch and gush/snark/ask questions about? We could try to do 1-2 episodes per week. If anyone is interested, let me know! 

[magicdog]

I have almost all the dvds so I could join in.

[amensisterfriend]

Awesome! Start thinking of any episodes you might want to nominate :)

Edited April 13, 2015 by amensisterfriend

[4evaQuez]

I'm interested! The show is also on Netflix streaming for anyone who doesn't have the DVDs.

[amensisterfriend]

Yay!

 

I'll get us started with my two S1 nominations---any of which you guys can reject if you're averse to rewatching them :) 

 

1. Something Wicca This way Comes---I think it will be so interesting to rewatch the pilot and think about which aspects of the show's characters and overall tone did and didn't change! 

 

2. The Truth is Out There...and it Hurts---I'm always fascinated by the idea that, contrary to what many modern talk shows and self-help books tell us, some truths may be better left untold. 

[helenamonster]

I'm so down for a rewatch! I was just saying in the other thread that it's been years since I've watched the show and that it'll be the next one that I binge. I think I was 9 when I first started watching (somewhere towards the beginning of S6, the fact that it was rerun constantly on TNT helped me catch up and fill in the holes) so I'm curious about how my perception of different aspects of the show has changed now that I'm 20.

[amensisterfriend]

So how do you guys want to do this?! I'm the most dreadful organizer ever, but I'm up for whatever you guys are. If you don't like the idea of each of us nominating random episodes from each season and watching them chronologically, maybe we could watch according to themes---picks for funniest episodes, favorite Paige-centric episodes, etc. etc. etc.! It's totally up to you :) 

[4evaQuez]

I like the idea of choosing episodes by the season. I think it's easiest and it would allow everyone a chance to participate. 

Edited April 14, 2015 by 4evaQuez

[amensisterfriend]

Okay, great! 

 

Just to recap, my two S1 nominations are 1. Something Wicca This Way Comes and 2. The Truth is Out There...and it Hurts

 

What other S1 episodes do you guys want to nominate?! 

[4evaQuez]

Dead Man Dating and Deja Vu All Over Again

[kiddo82]

I'm down with this. I'd nominate Wicca Envy and Woogy.

[amensisterfriend]

I'm so excited! 

 

Here's our list in chronological order so far:

 

1. Something Wicca This Way Comes

2. Dead Man Dating 

3. The Truth is Out There...And It Hurts 

4. Wicca Envy

5. Is There a Woogy In The House?

6. Deja Vu All Over Again 

 

...We'll wait to see if a few more people want to stop by and nominate episodes, but I'm thinking maybe we could aim to individually watch and then chat about the first two episodes within the next 7-10 days or so...? 

[kiddo82]

This is going to be fun. I like the idea of select episodes. Sometimes these things fizzle out and we're dealing with a show that, for all its flaws, ran for 8 years. I've done my own rewatches and it is an endurance event. I think focusing on episodes we know we want to watch again will keep things from getting stale or feeling like an obligation. And if there's one someone wants to skip? C'est la vie.

[Lady Calypso]

Oh, I am definitely in for this. I was fairly young when the show was airing (I'm twenty one now) but I did really love the show. I do wonder how I'll feel about it watching some of these episodes for the first time in quite a few years.

 

I'd really like to nominate Power of Two and Love Hurts as well. I liked other episodes like The Wendigo (I was weirdly obsessed), Which Prue Is It Anyway and even The Witch is Back, but the first two are ones that were really strong for me, and I would love to watch again in their entirety. I do think that season 1 has fairly rewatchable episodes, though. It's not my favourite season but now that I think about it, there's many episodes I would gladly rewatch. 

[amensisterfriend]

Here's our updated S1 rewatch list: 

 

1. Something Wicca This Way Comes
2. Dead Man Dating
3. The Truth is Out There...And It Hurts
4. Wicca Envy

5. Is There a Woogy In The House?

6. Power of Two

7. Love Hurts
8. Deja Vu All Over Again

 

I'm so happy that people are on board with this! Behold the Power of...well, of however many we are by now :) 

 

Should we plan to rewatch/chat about the first two episodes within the next week or so?

[magicdog]

Just finished the pilot:

 

• It's nice to see the cast have heart and enthusiasm!  Since it's so early in the show's run, they weren't phoning it in as they would by season 7.

 

• Jeremy from the get go was "Chekov's Boyfriend".  You just knew he'd either be the victim or the villain.

 

• It was never explained why the dead witch had a triquetra tattoo.  Was she supposed to be on the lookout for The Charmed Ones?  In fact, how did Jeremy know the Halliwells were Charmed?

 

• Loved the introduction of Andy!  He and Prue had great chemistry from day one and were believeable as a couple/former couple.

 

• The Andy character also seems to be strongly influenced by Fox Mulder.  Early on, he is shown to be a believer (or at least open minded) in witches and the craft. 

 

• I liked how the magic from the beginning was not only tied to their emotions, but the magic as we saw it practiced was similar to what we saw in "All Halliwell's Eve" - the use of poppets, candles, spells, and herbs.

 

• The powers as they manifested seemed fairly natural.  Prue's however did vary when she "choked" Roger (if anything, he should have been gasping for air and holding his throat not his tie) and the coffee creamer should have "jumped" from the pitcher to the cup rather than in a manner similar to Paige's TKO.

 

• The photo.  It was always a symbol of how things changed between the sisters.  I wish they had done something similar with Paige to help bring their relationship full circle.  Trivia:  The sister on the far right in the photo is NOT Alyssa Milano!  I originally thought is was Lori Rom, but after seeing this pic from the unaired pilot, I'm thinking it's a stand-in.

 

• The sisters themselves.  Their personalities were in place firmly despite being just the pilot.  Sure they loosened up a bit more as the seasons went on, but each actress seemed to have a handle on their characters from the beginning. 

 

• Prue must have been really lonely to have taken up with Roger.  I also had an issue with her believing him over Phoebe regarding "the incident". 

 

• The spirit board.  It's a shame it was all but forgotten in subsequent seasons.  It was never mentioned who did move the pointer, although I like to think it was Grams.

 

• Even from the very beginning, Piper was all about the "Nancy Drew"!

Edited April 17, 2015 by magicdog

[amensisterfriend]

Awww...the Pilot! It's definitely not one of my favorite episodes, but it's one to which I'm very sentimentally attached :) 

 

Magicdog so awesomely covered most of what I would have brought up, so just a few random comments:

 

I agree with Magicdog that the sisters' personalities were so immediately and clearly defined. I love later seasons, but I do appreciate that these early incarnations of 'the Charmed Ones' were more sharply and consistently defined and more distinct from one another.

 

I think they did a good job of establishing preexisting conflict between Prue and Phoebe without making either of them seem too unsympathetic. We (at least mostly!) could understand where both sides were coming from. That said, I'm glad the tension between them was already thawing by the end of the episode and that they didn't overdo it---watching the two of them constantly at each other's throats would have gotten really tiresome for me. 

 

Speaking of Phoebe, I have to give Alyssa Milano and the writers kudos here, because I generally haaaate the 'woo hoo---aren't I just so fun and wild and uninihbited!' type of characters who are selfish and thoughtless in the name of being a "free spirit" or whatever. It still surprises me that I find Phoebe so much more likable than I'd ever have expected to, and I credit both the actress and the writing. Phoebe was just so infectiously enthusiastic, warm and well meaning, especially in these earlier seasons. I guess it helps that most of her real wild child phase took place off screen in New York :) 

 

I LOVE S1 Piper. I get that we're supposed to cheer her on for becoming less timid and more confident and assertive as the series progresses, and the discovery and use of her powers now and becoming the oldest sister later on make those realistic changes for the character. But she was just so endearingly lovable and relatable to me at this early stage of the series. She really is the sweetheart who serves as the "glue" of the family now, while later on it's a lot harder for me to see her that way even when the writers told me I was supposed to. I love that she was a chef as opposed to the running a 'cool and trendy' nightclub, because I just don't see Piper as the type who'd even especially enjoy going to clubs like that, let alone owning one. And I love that she was still slyly snarky then without being so relentlessly negative and put upon like she is later on. 

 

I have trouble believing that someone as direct and intolerant of BS as Prue was ever interested in the so obviously smarmy Roger, let alone in such a serious relationship with him. 

 

I had forgotten that these first episodes felt a little bit more like a crime-of-the-week procedural to which the sisters lent some supernatural assistance. (I'm not describing that well, but hopefully you get what I mean!) I remember being genuinely surprised to discover that Jeremy was a bad guy as opposed to just a really dull guy. I was even more clueless when I was younger than I am now! 

 

Um, this early part of the first season really didn't feature the girls' best hairstyles, did they?! Piper's hair is always gorgeous and I actually kind of like the bangs, but I definitely prefer Prue's hair when it's a little longer...and the less said about Phoebe's hair in these earliest episodes, the better ;)

Edited April 18, 2015 by amensisterfriend

[magicdog]

 

I love that she was a chef as opposed to the running a 'cool and trendy' nightclub, because I just don't see Piper as the type who'd even especially enjoy going to clubs like that, let alone owning one.

 

They did explain Piper opened a club because it was less risky to opening a restaurant but I agree that I would have sooner expected her to have had a food truck or run a catering business out of her home than running P3.  IMO, someone at WB wanted to get some cross promotion with the artists signed to the Warner Records label.  At least I credit them for introducing me to the music of Barenaked Ladies and Tal Bachman.

 

 

I had forgotten that these first episodes felt a little bit more like a crime-of-the-week procedural to which the sisters lent some supernatural assistance.

 

 

Monster of the week? 

[helenamonster]

Well, as usual when I go back to watch a series from the beginning, I have this quick moment of "Oh my God they're babies" when I see the main characters.

 

I'm watching on Netflix, and I think I remember reading somewhere that the show let the rights to the music in the opening credits lapse, which sucks. I always liked the theme song, it always put me in the mood for the show. Not stoked about having to go through 8 seasons with this generic nonsense.

 

I forgot how gung-ho Phoebe was about the witch stuff from the start. Very endearing.

 

It was hard for me to make out exactly what Jeremy was saying as he was being vanquished, but it sounded something like, "You will never be safe, you will never be free." Pretty interesting foreshadowing, considering how much the witch life would weigh on the sisters in the years to come.

 

Piper is too cute. I liked her all the way to the end, no matter how snarky she got (if anything, that only made me like her more). I forgot she had quite the moment of awesome when she hit Jeremy over the head with that wood beam.

 

"What was your question?" "Is Prue gonna have sex with anyone besides herself this year?" "That's disgusting! ...Please say yes."

[manbearpig]

In terms of must watch episodes, I'd nominate...

 

That '70s Episode - For the fun time travel aspect, but also for being endearingly sentimental without being terrible. It's nice seeing the sisters interact with their younger selves, and Phoebe's desire to learn more about her mother is understandable and relatable. I love Prue's confusion about which tenses to use while in the past, too.

 

Deja Vu All Over Again - Already been mentioned up thread, but it's a really well done version of a time loop. I like the humour and the way Phoebe's power ties into the storyline. Some good acting from Doherty as Andy is written out, too.

 

Morality Bites - Another time travel episode, but it's so good! I like the idea that a small, seemingly insignificant moment could spiral into a huge mess. I love the glimpse into the future and the advances in their powers. I also love anything that features someone literally pointing and screaming 'witch!' because I'm easily amused. Shannen Doherty is given the worst wig ever to wear, which also amused me. Phoebe burning at the stake is a great moment which all three actresses nailed.

 

Pre-Witched - The bond between the three sisters is really the best thing about the show, so any episode that highlighted that was always going to work for me. I liked the flashbacks and the present day storyline with the demon or warlock or whatever was a lot of fun.

 

All Hell Breaks Loose - Best episode ever! It's just a really fun ride with good action scenes and stunning performances from Doherty and Combs. Piper getting shot is gutting, and seeing Prue lose it by throwing people out of the way with her telekinesis and eventually being covered in her sister's blood is really affecting. Prue/Piper was always my favourite relationship on the show and they had some really good scenes together in this episode, like the snarking over which talk show they would go on.

 

Charmed Again / Hell Hath No Fury - There are a bunch of moments in these episodes that don't do much for me, like the complete silliness of Paige's magic boob job, but I have to mention them anyway because I love the way Piper and Paige's relationship is handled at this point. I love Piper's reluctance to accept Paige because it feels like it belongs on a better show, and they were never going to have the same bond that the rest of the Halliwell siblings had. At the same time, Piper's attempt at bonding with Paige by bringing food to her work place at the end of 4x03 works for me, because I want to see them get along, even if I wish the writers had lengthened the storyline. Obviously have to mention Piper's grieving, too, because it made a whole lot of sense to me because Piper/Prue were so close and HMC was amazing throughout these episodes.

 

I re-watched the first three and a half seasons last year so those episodes are still relatively fresh in my mind. Picking season four back up again and it's just not working for me as much as it used to, even though I'm still quite fond of the first three seasons. I plan to finish four and then watch a few of my old favourites from the final four seasons, because there's no way I'm watching those last few years from start to finish again!

[kiddo82]

I just rewatched the pilot. Let me just say, I typically hate pilots, especially on rewatch. They are usually so slow moving and full of exposition but this one isn't too terrible to sit through over and over again. It is pretty jarring to see though, what a different series it was in the beginning vs the end of the run.

Some thoughts:

The opening scene had a very late 90's slasher flick revival feel to it. The serial killer boots were reminiscent of Scream and the slicker was reminiscent of I Know What You Did Last Summer. Not sure if that was intentional to capitalize on the demographic overlap between the WB audience and the popularity of those films at the time or if was subconscious.

Speaking of trends, I didn't think the clothes and hair were too dated. I know the show's not *that* old but 17 years can be an eternity as far as trends go. Imagine watching a show from 1983 in the year 2000. Yowsers. Anyway, Phoebe's hair probably wasn't having its finest moment, but if you saw anyone walking around today the way any of the three looked in the pilot, you might not look twice. Really, the only bit of fashion that screamed outdated to me was Roger's glasses.

And speaking of Roger:

• Prue must have been really lonely to have taken up with Roger. I also had an issue with her believing him over Phoebe regarding "the incident".

I never thought about it before but perhaps Roger reflected what Prue thought she wanted at that point in her life: stability and safety, even if the guy was a boring a douche bag. She always had to be the responsible one and Roger was a very secure choice. He also may have been there to contrast to Andy was more of a wild card (dangerous job, open minded, most importantly NOT a douche bag). I loved Andy. Loved. Loved. Loved. He and Prue were so right for each other and they were my favorite couple of the series.

•It was never explained why the dead witch had a triquetra tattoo. Was she supposed to be on the lookout for The Charmed Ones? In fact, how did Jeremy know the Halliwells were Charmed?

I just assumed he knew grams was a witch, perhaps he knew her as a descendant of Melinda, and put two and two together about her granddaughters. Even though the Charmed One had never heard about themselves until 1998, they had been prophecized for centuries. It's possible he just did his homework. As for the witch with the triquetra? I got nothing.

Also regarding Jeremy, dude was obviously a creep. I mean, in real life, if you see someone crying in a hospital, are you going to go up to them and hit on them? At such a vulnerable moment? Goodness.

I think they did a good job of establishing preexisting conflict between Prue and Phoebe without making either of them seem too unsympathetic. We (at least mostly!) could understand where both sides were coming from. That said, I'm glad the tension between them was already thawing by the end of the episode and that they didn't overdo it---watching the two of them constantly at each other's throats would have gotten really tiresome for me.

Speaking of Phoebe, I have to give Alyssa Milano and the writers kudos here, because I generally haaaate the 'woo hoo---aren't I just so fun and wild and uninihbited!' type of characters who are selfish and thoughtless in the name of being a "free spirit" or whatever. It still surprises me that I find Phoebe so much more likable than I'd ever have expected to, and I credit both the actress and the writing. Phoebe was just so infectiously enthusiastic, warm and well meaning, especially in these earlier seasons. I guess it helps that most of her real wild child phase took place off screen in New York :)

Yes and Yes. The sisters' relationships are clearly defined without spelling it out for the crowd (remember when this show could actually be subtle?) and you could definitely see where all of them were coming from. Nice scene in the pharmacy with Phoebe continually suggesting Pru drink tea for her headache and Pru insisting on Aspirin. Also agree about Phoebe and the potential for her to be annoyingly flaky and irresponsible in the name of being a "free spirit." (which is why, although I love Phil Dunphy on Modern Family, I persistently find myself siding with Claire Dunphy during their fights. But that's another tale for another thread.) In any event, the writers/Alyssa struck a nice balance with the character. Phoebe was definitely annoying about it in the Power of Two, but again, that's a topic for another time.

As an aside, why did all the "bad" kids from the WB at that time come from New York? Jen from Dawson's. Phoebe from Charmed. Jess from Gilmore Girls. "New York" was code at the time for "this one is trouble."

You can also see the attempts at tattoo cover ups in these early seasons, especially in the scene in Phoebe's bedroom where you can see the rosary over her shoulder. It made sense to cover up Holly's/Piper's but it would have been believable for Phoebe and maybe Pru (we now know about her rebellious phase) to have them. Why go to the trouble of covering them up then completely abandoning it around season 4? Maybe it became too much of a bother and not cost effective enough. It never bothered me one way or the other. Just something I noticed.

Piper is too cute. I liked her all the way to the end, no matter how snarky she got (if anything, that only made me like her more). I forgot she had quite the moment of awesome when she hit Jeremy over the head with that wood beam.

"What was your question?" "Is Prue gonna have sex with anyone besides herself this year?" "That's disgusting! ...Please say yes."

Hee! That's a great line. And I agree, I loved Piper to the bitter end. Jaded, cynical, kinda mean, Piper. Still loved her.

Definitely not my favorite, but all in all an okay episode. I'd give it a 5 or 6 out of ten on a rewatchable scale which, again, I think is decent for a pilot episode.

Edited April 19, 2015 by kiddo82

[helenamonster]

You know, for a pilot, it wasn't too pilot-y (I know, I know, not a word). Yeah, there was obviously a lot of exposition, but I think one of the things that helps is that we are discovering this world along with the Halliwells. Overall, I'm really not that into fantasy, but Charmed had two elements that helped me to get into it: 1) as I said, we didn't have to play catch-up with the magic stuff, since the sisters were learning it as well, and 2) it was rooted in the real world. The main reason can't I get into things like Game of Thrones or LOTR but had no trouble with Harry Potter was because the first two take place in their own realms/universes, while things like Harry Potter and Charmed simply just bring magic to the world we already know. Idk, I guess I like my fantasy with an extra heaping of relatable humanity.

 

Anyway, I was kind of struck by how little actually happens in this episode, and I don't mean that in a bad way. I feel like a lot of pilots try to cram as much as possible into them (understandable, as that's all a show really has, more so back then, to present when trying to get picked up), but this one was really good at just setting the stage and easing us in. It's not the best pilot of all time but it doesn't give you whiplash trying to keep up. It establishes the relationship, introduces the world/mythos, and just sets things up really nicely.

[amensisterfriend]

Overall, I'm really not that into fantasy, but Charmed had two elements that helped me to get into it: 1) as I said, we didn't have to play catch-up with the magic stuff, since the sisters were learning it as well, and 2) it was rooted in the real world. The main reason can't I get into things like Game of Thrones or LOTR but had no trouble with Harry Potter was because the first two take place in their own realms/universes, while things like Harry Potter and Charmed simply just bring magic to the world we already know. Idk, I guess I like my fantasy with an extra heaping of relatable humanity.

 

YES! Where were you a few weeks ago when I was hopelessly inarticulate in trying to explain to my friend why I love, love, LOVE stuff like Charmed, Harry Potter, etc but can't get into Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones etc. despite getting why they're considered such high quality pieces of work. 

 

Just a reminder that Dead Man Dating is the next one we're chatting about :) 

[magicdog]

Also regarding Jeremy, dude was obviously a creep. I mean, in real life, if you see someone crying in a hospital, are you going to go up to them and hit on them? At such a vulnerable moment? Goodness.

 

 

Exempting his true motives, I took it a bit differently.  I pictured Piper crying her eyes out, and Jeremy came to her to offer comfort.  I can imagine him talking to her, telling her some jokes to make her feel better, letting her rest her head on his shoulder and then giving his number to her telling her she could call him anytime for additional support.  Then he had her.

[helenamonster]

I think one thing I didn't like about the pilot was how calm everybody, especially Piper, appeared to be about vanquishing Jeremy, and kind of the witch thing as a whole. I suppose the writers might have considered it a waste of time; in reality, yes, if anyone found out they had super magical powers it might throw them for a loop, but we know and they know that we're watching a television show, can easily suspend disbelief, and would rather skip the "Holy shit, what is happening?!" phase and get right to the meatier stuff. But, idk. The Halliwells find out that they have these extraordinary powers, that their mother and grandmother were probably witches as well. And then Piper's boyfriend not only tries to kill her (something that would send any relatively stable person straight into therapy), but is a supernatural being that tries to kill her. Then, she and her sisters kill him, and not just in a "stab him and hide the body" way, but in a "vanquish with a spell" way. It's a minor problem in the scope of the whole thing but I wouldn't have minded more focus on the sisters realizing that, wow, this is really happening, the world used to be so simple, we are lethal weapons, stuff like that. And also on the fact that people that they know, trust, and love could brandish an athame their way at any moment.

 

I must say, though, that even though it's been years since I've seen this episode (or any of them), I could almost talk along with it word for word, especially the first few scenes in the house with the sisters. And this wasn't even one that I had rewatched that much.

[magicdog]

Dead Man Dating:

 

This was a good episode but it is also the beginning of the inconsistent way the dead/ghosts are depicted on the series.

 

 

• Hard to believe Jon Cho would become so popular thanks to the Harold & Kumar movies!   I'd like to see him in something other than a latter day Cheech & Chong series.

 

• Plenty of contradictions in this ep about ghosts - Mark couldn't be seen by anyone except the sisters, and couldn't turn the TV on, but he could sit on their couch and Piper even opened the car door for him!

 

• No way the gangster could have been mistaken for Mark - huge difference in height and build.  Not to mention dental records early on should have confirmed who the charred remains were.

 

• I don't know if the legend of Yama is real in Chinese folklore, but it was interesting to have to keep hiding Mark's soul.  I'm assuming it's only Chinese souls he's after? 

 

• I felt sorry for Mark's mom by episode's end;  she had already lost her husband and had no other children and was now alone. 

 

• A sweet scene when Prue & Phoebe comfort Piper over losing her latest "boyfriend".  Poor girl had a bad track record wtih men.

 

• The final scene at the funeral in which Mark and his dad go off into eternity was quite sweet, but again, seems to contradict what we'd see later on with The Angel of Death.

 

• Regarding the B-plot with Phoebe at the hotel:  was she really giving a premonition to the manager to convince him to hire her or just faking it?

 

• I would have loved it if she could have kept that job a bit longer - it did help her help one innocent and maybe she could have found more.  Her past self (P. Russell) did the same thing.

[kiddo82]

I would have loved it if she could have kept that job a bit longer - it did help her help one innocent and maybe she could have found more.  Her past self (P. Russell) did the same thing.

Good pick up. I never put those together. I agree it would have been fun for her to keep the hotel job a little longer but I think they were committed to the "Phoebe can't hold a job" running story. It would have been a good away to find innocents but it was also just silly enough to not feel cheesy. This exchange always cracked me up:

Piper: Are you out of your mind? Again?

Phoebe: No, I'm the Amazing Phoebe.

[kiddo82]

Not a double post since it's been 4 days so...Dead Man Dating:

This is one of only a handful of early season one episodes that I can rewatch randomly, without doing a season long rewatch. It's the first one that doesn't feel so bogged down with exposition and more importantly, it's just a really sweet hour. Like I said, I don't rewatch a ton of season 1 so it's been a while since I've seen early Phoebe but my goodness was Alyssa Milano charismatic in these early episodes. Phoebe was just eager and sweet and funny with an acceptable amount of flakiness. Even after all this time it was really a joy to watch. I've never been as hard on later seasons Phoebe as the majority seemed to be (mostly because I eventually tuned out a lot of her drama) but there is a noted difference in the character in these early episodes vs. post season 3.

On that note, it doesn't make much sense that she can't hold down a job. Early Phoebe would've made a killer hostess, bartender, or saleswoman in a retail shop. She would have been great really at any job really which required connecting with people. Plus, she survived on her own in NY so we know she has skills if not a formal education. As I said above though, the producers seemed to be committed to the whole floundering without a job thing she had going on but it's not as if she was a bad hire at this point in the series.

On to the A plot, there are very few Piper centric episodes that I don't like and this one is no exception. Not the hardest hitting episode ever but an entertaining one none the less. Piper and Mark were cute together and I "heh"ed when Mark said he couldn't go into the room protected from spirits and Piper just just casually picked up the amulet and dropped it on the ground. I also liked Mark building up the danger about the gangsters to scare Piper which would help her freeze them. I did like jaded cynical Piper at the end, but panicky Piper is pretty darn cute.

This is probably the first episode though that started a trend that would bug me to the end of the series: Piper throws a coffee mug through Mark to prove that he's non-corporeal and thus, a ghost. Who just throws breakable objects across their home? And they would do this all the time! "My powers don't work." Drops glass. Glass doesn't freeze. Glass smashes. "See?" Why are you dropping glass around your home!? Throw a pillow or sock or something.

The funeral scene was very sweet, both with the girls comforting Piper and Mark going off with his dad. Bonus points for the use of Sand and Water. If we started listing musical moments, Mark's funeral would probably be one of mine.

Pru's birthday party made me laugh because where did all those people come from? We know these girls don't have any friends. Like on Friends when they would throw parties in the apartment I'd be like "You only know the six of you...and Gunther. Who are all these people?" I guess since this was early on, the girls hadn't started alienating everyone they knew in favor of their Charmed duties.

No way the gangster could have been mistaken for Mark - huge difference in height and build. Not to mention dental records early on should have confirmed who the charred remains were.

Bugs me to this day. Edited April 26, 2015 by kiddo82

[amensisterfriend]

I definitely don't dislike this episode, but I think I'm a little more 'eh' on this one than you guys were. It as mildly to moderately entertaining for me, but not one I'm likely to rewatch. Early S1 has a definite clunkiness to it that's charming (lame pun unintended!) and fun at times and mildly cringe-worthy at others :)

 

I always like John Cho, but these girls meet and 'connect' with so many different random guys, all of whom they forget within the next couple of episodes, that I can't be too moved by any of them. I do love ghost stories overall, though as you guys have noted, this show was a bit all over the place with regards to what ghosts can and can't do.  

 

Why am I not liking Prue/Andy nearly as much as I had recalled?! They don't have as strong a chemistry as I'd remembered, and the actor who plays Andy is...not exactly Emmy worthy, you know?! 

 

On a brighter note, I continue to love sweeter, more relatably vulnerable Piper of these early episodes than the chronically bitter complainer she (in my unpopular opinion!) became later on. I never get to the point of hating Piper, but I just find her so much more likable and easy to identify with at this stage of the series. And a huge YES to what kiddo pointed out re. Alyssa Milano/Phoebe's effervescent warmth in these early episodes. As I've rambled about elsewhere, she takes a character who on paper might drive me crazy and makes her incredibly endearing to me. Her stint as a psychic was the definite highlight of this episode for me.   

 

I think The Truth is Out There...and it Hurts is our next episode! 

[helenamonster]

"Dead Man Dating":

 

Aw man, I got all choked up at the end. I don't think I'd ever put this on my list of favorite episodes, but it's a really sweet little nugget.

 

Ok, I always knew I liked Piper, but I'm positively adoring her this time around. HMC is fantastic. She's great at the deadpan funny stuff but can also bring the waterworks when she needs to.

 

I was always pretty neutral on Phoebe. I didn't hate her with the heat of a thousand fiery suns like I think a lot of people did, but she was always kind of just there. But I loved all of the Amazing Phoebe stuff, and wish that had stuck around for awhile. She was really endearing in these early seasons. It'll be interesting throughout the binge watch to see how/why that changed for me (or if it even will; I'm fully anticipating a lot of my opinions to be different now than from when I was younger).

 

Mark's insistence that Prue celebrate her birthday (with the subtext being that she'll never know when it'll be her last one) is downright spooky in hindsight. It's just so weird to think that she's in the final three years of her life (but I get that way whenever I go back to rewatch shows that feature early/tragic/violent deaths).

 

"My life is in the hands of a cop named Andy." "Oh, that Andy." Man, why did Mark have to be dead?

 

The production quality of this show was...not great in its early stages. I forget when it starts improving.

 

ETA: Piper's "of course I'd fall for a dead guy" is totes magotes foreshadowing for Leo. I've decided to watch the series through, not just the episodes we're discussing here, and he showed up for the first time in the episode before this, "Thank You For Not Morphing" (a really shitty episode, by the way; the stuff with OriginalRecipe!Victor was good, but the demon plot was awful). I'm assuming they had the Leo stuff mapped out from the beginning.

Edited April 28, 2015 by helenamonster

[magicdog]

I'm assuming they had the Leo stuff mapped out from the beginning.

 

 

They did.  Of course he wasn't meant to become a regular character.  Fans (and presumably TPTB) liked him and Piper so he stayed on.   

 

 

I was always pretty neutral on Phoebe. I didn't hate her with the heat of a thousand fiery suns like I think a lot of people did,

 

You should have been around when we had the "...and Phoebe died in the process" thread. 

 

Phoebe was endearing but once SD/Prue was gone, her character went off the rails;  I don't know if it's due to her influence or not (Brad Kern had a habit of playing favorites and AM seemed to get what she wanted back then) but Phoebe as a character truly suffered after Season 4.

 

 

The Truth is Out There...and it Hurts is our next episode!

 

• I loved the truth spell but even the writers messed up when Prue was able to lie when she was directly questioned by the 3-eyed demon. 

 

• I DID love how Phoebe was able to get around answering Andy - by preventing him from asking her anything!  A very Phoebe move!

 

• Double on the love of seeing the truth come out when it came to Hannah and the demon.

 

• I was disappointed in Prue using it to gauge Andy's reaction - I understand why she did it but it wasn't fair to Andy.  How many times have we answered a question that was truthful at the time it was originally asked but you have since come to a new truth?  Andy was forced to answer on the spot as the spell was ending, and given that choice, he gave his answer which could have been different if he had time to discuss it more with Prue.  Before he died, he probably would have tried to make it work with Prue eventually.

 

• This episode began another inconsistency for the series - in how the magic is passed on in the Warren line.  In this episode, Prue answers (truthfully since it was said while she was under the spell) that boys could be born to Warren women, but only women would have the powers.  By season 5, Grams claims not a male was ever born to the Warren women, yet the infamous family tree also proves this wrong.  I wish they had kept it with only the women have the powers but males could father witches.  In fact, I wish we could have seen more Halliwell/Warren cousins in the series.  Surely not all of them were killed by demons.  If they had kept with boys having been born to Warren women, we could have had plenty of witchy relatives.

 

• I loved Piper's truthful response to her boss, only to learn that when the spell ended he had no knowledge of the day's events.  I loved it whenever Piper stood up for herself.

 

• The spell would be used by Paige later on, but she left off the last stanza and unfortunately the spell worked differently.  I don't give credit to the writers claiming it worked differently because Paige didn't read the complete spell.

 

• Interesting about the future demon (who was occasionally referred to as a warlock) looking to kill those who would end his kind.  However, I had a problem with the concept of a vaccine to stop a race of creatures from being born.  If it had been other witches (or the Charmed Ones themselves) who created a potion or spell to cleanse this evil from a potential child it might have made a bit more sense. 

[kiddo82]

The Truth is Out There and It Hurts:

 

For my money, this is the first truly good episode of the series. 

 

Sometimes the wiccan hijinks missed and sometimes they hit.  In this ep they hit.  I think it's because it's so relatable to wonder what a day would be like if we couldn't tell white lies to our family, significant others, friends, bosses, etc.  It's also really well done as I love the scene between the sisters on the morning of the truth spell realization. 

Prue:  "Although I admire your confidence and your fearlessness your utter lack of responsibility frustrates me to no end."  hee!   

 

Andy was adorable when he admitted to Prue that his heart was "pounding like a sedge hammer." 

 

 

 

Interesting about the future demon (who was occasionally referred to as a warlock) looking to kill those who would end his kind.  However, I had a problem with the concept of a vaccine to stop a race of creatures from being born.  If it had been other witches (or the Charmed Ones themselves) who createda potion or spell to cleanse this evil from a potential child it might have made a bit more sense.

 

Maybe it's because I've been watching the X-men movies lately but this is the first time I've questioned the ethics of the vaccine.  Was it to rid the world of a race of supernatural creatures who were inherently evil?  Or a race of supernatural humans who could potentially be a threat but were no more inherently good/bad than the rest of us?   The girls did what they had to do in the episode, the antagonist was clearly a killer, but who's to say he wasn't doing to wrong things for the right reasons?  I found it particularly interesting that in the same episode Prue tells Andy she can't change who she is regarding her Charmed abilities which kind of ties in with using a vaccine to change who (or what) an entire race is.  Or maybe I'm just reading too much into it.  The episode certainly doesn't get into the gray areas that the X-Men movies do. 

 

I loved the vanquish.  I do like it when the girls get to be bad asses but there is something really charming (please forgive the pun but I couldn't come up with a word I liked better) about how green and squeamish they were early on.

 

 

 

I was disappointed in Prue using it to gauge Andy's reaction- I understand why she did it but it wasn't fair to Andy.  How many times have we answered a question that was truthful at the time it was originally asked but you have since come to a new truth?  Andy was forced to answer on the spot as the spell was ending, and given that choice, he gave his answer which could have been different if he had time to discuss it more with Prue.  Before he died, he probably would have tried to make it work with Prue eventually.

 

Agreed on all counts. 

Edited May 3, 2015 by kiddo82

[helenamonster]

"The Truth Is Out There...and It Hurts"

 

• I definitely agree that the production value of this episode is leaps and bounds ahead of the previous six (though the pilot wasn't too shabby). I guess someone's check finally cleared or something.
• Friendly reminders that this episode aired in the '90s: Phoebe doesn't have her own laptop and needs to borrow Prue's. Prue accuses her of not being computer-friendly. Phoebe says that she frequently visits chat rooms. Sometimes rewatches are great for the outdatedness alone.
• I was convinced the whole episode that the actress playing Tanya was Lola Glaudini but it was not. So there's that.
• I forgot the more complex elements of the original casting of the truth spell. It definitely added a whole other dynamic to the episode, but I'm glad that by leaving out the stanza it could also be simplified for future uses, like with Paige and Norman Reedus (totally blanking on his name right now). I liked how the two plots of this episode intertwined but it's the kind of thing I think only needed to be done once.
• Loved Piper being able to stand up to her boss when not under the spell, though I think him admitting that he only took advantage of her because he could definitely helped push that forward. It was a nice contrast to have something positive come out of it for her (along with future husband and father of her children Leo waiting in the wings) compared to a negative outcome for Prue.
• I did feel bad for Prue. I understood she was under a time crunch, but agree that maybe with more time Andy would have come to accept it. Based on the pilot, and a lot of things in subsequent episodes, he seems to be into the supernatural stuff, and I feel like he would have eventually come around on it. But SD really sold the defeat, imo.

Edited May 6, 2015 by helenamonster

[amensisterfriend]

I guess someone's check finally cleared or something

 

Ha!!! 

 

I was convinced the whole episode that the actress playing Tanya was Lola Glaudini but it was not.

 

I didn't even think of the resemblance while I was watching, but now I'll never be able NOT to see it! 

 

Loved Piper being able to stand up to her boss when not under the spell, though I think him admitting that he only took advantage of her because he could definitely helped push that forward. It was a nice contrast to have something positive come out of it for her

 

I continue to be amazed at the degree to which Piper's character changed throughout the course of the series. I can definitely see why many view it as growth, but for me she's almost a completely different character. I find this early incarnation of Piper far easier to root for and relate to. 

 

I chose this one (or enthusiastically agreed with whoever DID choose this one---I've already forgotten!) because I really love the amusing and sometimes insightful exploration of how raw, unfiltered candor can be both an asset and a liability. 

 

I'm just not loving Prue/Andy this time around nearly as much as I had recalled. I think maybe something I read about how Shannen Doherty couldn't stand the actor who plays Andy (yeah, I know---Shannen not getting along well with someone she works with is just such a shock!) may be subtly influencing my perception of their chemistry, or relative lack thereof. 

[kiddo82]

Friendly reminders that this episode aired in the '90s: Phoebe doesn't have her own laptop and needs to borrow Prue's. Prue accuses her of not being computer-friendly. Phoebe says that she frequently visits chat rooms. Sometimes rewatches are great for the outdatedness alone.

For me it was Piper's beeper. I'm sure some professions still use them (healthcare professors in a hospital maybe?) but not the general population and certainly not a 25 year old restaurant manager.

Although, as I said earlier about the pilot, aside from the obvious technology relics (chat rooms, beepers, cell phones as big as VCR's, *actual* VCR's, etc.), the show isn't terribly dated. Almost twenty years later, the clothes, hair, and dialogue don't seem exceptionally out of place. I know Phoebe gets in a "you go, girl" at the end of The Truth is Out There, which was outdated even in 1998, but I don't recall many cringeworthy "what were we thinking?" moments thus far. Don't get wrong, there *will* be cringeworthy fashion choices, but that won't have anything to do with being in or out of style.

Edited May 7, 2015 by kiddo82

[helenamonster]

Don't get wrong, there *will* be cringeworthy fashion choices, but that won't have anything to do with being in or out of style.

 

Oh God, this entire show's wardrobe department was on meth, especially in the middle seasons. Even when I was in middle school with literally zero fashion sense, I would wonder wtf these grown-ass women were wearing.

 

I'd also forgotten that even in these early episodes, the ever-present "family emergency" excuse was alive and well.

[magicdog]

 

I'm just not loving Prue/Andy this time around nearly as much as I had recalled. I think maybe something I read about how Shannen Doherty couldn't stand the actor who plays Andy

 

I've heard this before but TW King has denied over and over again that SD wasn't the reason he left Charmed.  I know it's standard operating procedure in Hollywood to deny rumors, regardless of how true they may be, but I'm convinced he's telling the truth.  Armin Shimmerman (who played the wizard in Season 4)   had no problem mentioning that he hated his time on the Charmed set, and SD was long gone by that time.  I'm guessing the set itself (with those in front of and behind the camera) may have contributed to his negative experience.  Some sets/crews can be like that;  some are big happy families, others are nightmares.

 

 

For me it was Piper's beeper. I'm sure some professions still use them (healthcare professors in a hospital maybe?) but not the general population and certainly not a 25 year old restaurant manager.

 

 

I give that one a bit of slack.  A manager is high enough to warrant a beeper since they have so many responsibilities.  Especially when you consider how Piper was being worked to death and her boss was keeping her on a short leash.  Where I work, even if you have a cell phone/iPhone, the office still issues a "work phone" for those they deem to keep in touch with at a moment's notice.

 

 

 

 

this entire show's wardrobe department was on meth

 

Hee!

 

Actually it was their wardrobe manager, Eilish.  The first season had a different person handling the girls' wardrobe.  They still look quite timeless and very much dressed in character.  Piper I think was the only one who dressed fairly well consistently after season 1.  I don't know how much influence the actresses had on their looks, but I'm certain HMC wouldn't allow her [character] look too ridiculous.  

[kiddo82]

I give that one a bit of slack.  A manager is high enough to warrant a beeper since they have so many responsibilities.  Especially when you consider how Piper was being worked to death and her boss was keeping her on a short leash.  Where I work, even if you have a cell phone/iPhone, the office still issues a "work phone" for those they deem to keep in touch with at a moment's notice.

The beeper made total sense in 1998 but is out of place watching in 2015. Today, even if she had a designated work phone, it would still most likely be a phone.

[helenamonster]

Hee!

 

Actually it was their wardrobe manager, Eilish.  The first season had a different person handling the girls' wardrobe.  They still look quite timeless and very much dressed in character.  Piper I think was the only one who dressed fairly well consistently after season 1.  I don't know how much influence the actresses had on their looks, but I'm certain HMC wouldn't allow her [character] look too ridiculous.  

 

Yeah, I think they tended to keep Piper in pretty plain clothes, lots of earth tones, which worked for the character. Although I do remember a couple occasions, besides "Coyote Piper," where she wore leather pants. Nothing can convince me that Piper was a leather pants-wearing kind of woman.

 

Phoebe and Paige were the most egregious. Paige I can kind of get because she was a little out there, but you can indicate that a character is quirky without making her look like she was dressed by five-year-olds. In the dark dead of night. Also, when Rose had her red and then reddish-blonde hair, they frequently dressed her in clothes that clashed horribly. They had trouble working with her skin tone, too.

 

Ok, I promise I'll shut up about it now. More snark for when we actually get to those episodes. ;)

[kiddo82]

Took a bit of a hiatus but I watched Wicca Envy today. I have all the DVD's yet still watched on Netflix. It was literally something about the fact that I needn't get off the couch at all that made my decision for me. If the plot elements in Sin Francisco happened to me in real life, my sin would be sloth without question. In any event, on to the episode:

While I've enjoyed the episodes we've singled out to far, this one is the best one of the early (mid?) season one bunch and a pretty historical one in terms of the series. The girls chose to continue on their Charmed path by burning the relinquishment spell, Piper and Leo consummate their relationship, and we learn Leo is magical for the first time. I liked the mini arc of Rex and Hannah as the villians and they have provided the toughest test for our heroines thus far.

It's also a good episode for sister scenes. I've always liked the one at the beginning of the ep and in the morning after scene. The gentle teasing of Piper has always been a nice moment. Also, Piper "dusting" Phoebe while she was on the phone with Rex. The girls are still in their defined roles at this point with Phoebe's enthusiasm, Prue's conservativeness, and Piper navigating the waters between them.

The scene in Prue's bedroom with the tiara always makes me giggle with astral Rex pulling the strings the reactions of the characters. However, it has a lot of issues. First, ladies, don't touch the evidence. Fingerprints. DNA. All that jazz. I just yell at the TV (iPad screen) every time. Second, the girls, Phoebe in particular, have the worst poker faces ever. Nothing suspicious here, detectives. Third, Andy and Darryl are terrible investigators. I get that Andy's heart wasn't really in tracking Prue as a lead but they spent what? All of five minutes searching one room of that massive house? Brisco and Green would've torn that place apart if they had to.

It also always bothered me that Jaime died instantly from that whack on the head. I know you can have severe internal injuries from head trauma but if that artifact was heavy enough to kill him with one blow, it's heavy enough to cause external damage, no? I mean, how can they even conclude so instantly what the murder weapon was with no external signs of injury?

I said earlier that I like Rex and Hannah as villians but what exactly was Hannah's power? To morph into a panther? That was pretty lame. Although, I probably wouldn't think so if a panther was actually pouncing at me but I'm a mere muggle. Also, not that I need to see gaping head wounds and spurting jugulars, but Rex looked like he was peacefully sleeping for someone who was just mauled by a jungle cat. Not really important though, I know.

In spite of all that though, I still really like the episode and a necessary stop if you're just looking for the tent poles of season one.

Edited May 18, 2015 by kiddo82

[helenamonster]

"Wicca Envy"

 

I liked this episode a lot. The chemistry between the three leads really started to heat up in this episode. I always bought them as sisters but they just really played off of each other well. Piper/Holly is still the best. It seems like a lot of the little things Piper does (like dusting Phoebe, lol) are improvised, but she never went overboard with them. Idk, I just find her so adorkable and hilarious.

 

I'd be curious to hear from anyone who watched this episode when it originally aired, or when first watching the series watched it straight from the beginning (as opposed to discovering it in later seasons and watching everything out of order like I did), how they reacted to finding out Leo was magical. I think the show made it pretty obvious that he was supposed to be good; he helped the sisters by healing the book, and the music at the end was plinky plonky happy happy and not doom-and-gloom, but still...without knowing about the whole scope of this world like we do now, I wonder what people assumed Leo was before learning about whitelighters. If I didn't know this show back to front already, that ending would definitely have kept me hooked for the next episode.

 

Also interesting is how the show subtly expanded both ends of the morality spectrum this episode by hinting at a magical universe larger than just witches, warlocks, and demons. On one end we have Leo, a whitelighter and the epitome of good (although one could make the argument that that would really be the elders, though they were usually pretty hard to like, despite their good intentions) and on the other we have Hannah begging to be spared by, I assume the Source (Right? It's been so long since I've watched these early episodes). Subtlety was never this show's strong point so I appreciate it here.

 

"I don't think you've ever called me by my first name. I didn't even think you knew it." "I heard Prue say it." Oh, Darryl.

 

Um, yeah, Rex should have been looking much bloodier after being mauled to death by a puma. Even if Hannah had just sliced his jugular, there'd be blood everywhere. It looked like she was just snuggling him. I don't even think her claws were out when Piper froze her.

 

Prue sneaking in and out of jail ended up being a nice parallel to Paige later doing the same thing in "The Importance of Being Phoebe."

 

Prue was such a bitch to Hannah right up until the end. I loved it.

 

ETA: Lol at Phoebe being stoked about seeing The Verve. Hope you enjoyed it, girl, cuz they ended up being one-hit wonders with "Bittersweet Symphony." You know, the greatest song ever, apparently. This show is so '90s. It's great.

Edited May 19, 2015 by helenamonster

[magicdog]

It helps to keep in mind this episode was considered a series finale of sorts.  When TPTB got the go ahead from The WB Network, they were granted to make about 10 episodes and if they did well, they'd get "the back nine" (although in Charmed's case it was 12).  If there was a chance the show was to be dropped, Connie Burge wanted to make sure it ended on a positive and definite note.

 

 

I've always liked the one at the beginning of the ep and in the morning after scene. The gentle teasing of Piper has always been a nice moment. Also, Piper "dusting" Phoebe while she was on the phone with Rex. 

 

 

The actresses were all friends with one another at the time and it reflected on screen.  All the gentle teasing and such felt very natural and you'd expect it to occur between siblings or tight friends, or a spouse.

 

 

The scene in Prue's bedroom with the tiara always makes me giggle with astral Rex pulling the strings the reactions of the characters. However, it has a lot of issues. First, ladies, don't touch the evidence. Fingerprints. DNA.

 

 

Andy and Darryl are terrible investigators. I get that Andy's heart wasn't really in tracking Prue as a lead but they spent what? All of five minutes searching one room of that massive house? Brisco and Green would've torn that place apart if they had to.

 

 

Right on all counts.  Plus Andy and Darryl would have brought several uniformed officers with them to turn over the entire house. 

 

I also thought it funny when Rex called Piper a "miserable witch" and due to the subconscious direction, she expressed the desire to see a shrink!

 

Prue sneaking in and out of jail

 

 

  This and the polaroid of them escaping was ridiculous to me.  The photo proved nothing, and could have been taken at anytime.  It was pretty poor blackmail bait IMO.

 

 

I'd be curious to hear from anyone who watched this episode when it originally aired, or when first watching the series watched it straight from the beginning (as opposed to discovering it in later seasons and watching everything out of order like I did), how they reacted to finding out Leo was magical.

 

 

That would be me.  I had a hunch something was up with Leo and he could have been good or evil.  At the time I had a hunch he was likely going to be good since Piper had such a bad track record with Jeremy.  Of course the whole Whitelighter explanation didn't come down until the episode, "Secrets and Guys" (when he told Phoebe who he really was).  Leo was only meant for those episodes he originally appeared in so we were just left to speculate about him and how he saved the girls' magical bacon.  Since then he didn't seem to have that kind of power (reversing the spell and give the girls back their powers), so I thought he had to have been a very powerful being.

 

Plus in hindsight it's kind of creepy that Phoebe was also putting the moves on him, since he ultimately became Piper's husband.

 

what exactly was Hannah's power?

 

 

It would appear to be shapeshifting although we only saw her as a panther.   They were described to be warlocks and it appeared they were sent directly by "The Source".  Rex was also awarded powers periodically to help him defeat the sisters.  Rex made mention of missing Hell and looked forward to returning "with honors" when he had the sisters' powers contained.  Yet we had been led to believe since then that all warlocks lived "up top" while demons were regular residents of the underworld.

[helenamonster]

Piper's "I feel the sudden need to see a shrink" was definitely a highlight. Man, I can't believe I forgot how awesome she was. Rewatching this show has definitely bumped her way up on my (very, very long) list of favorite female characters.

[amensisterfriend]

This first season has been such a trip down memory lane for me! Parts of S1 are a little---okay, A LOT---clunky, and you could argue that it contains few to none of the series' all-time best episodes, but there's also just so much I love about this season. For me this season actually features all three Halliwells at their very most lovable. I also like how the three of them had different, clearly distinct relationships with one another---as opposed to the Paige seasons, where Paige, Piper and Phoebe all seemed to have more or less the same dynamics more often than not. Even though the sisters' love lives were a big focus even back in S1, I like the emphasis on the girls' familial history and watching them first discover and experiment with their powers. I love the lack of P3 (I'm just not a fan of that quasi-trendy club and most of the scenes there and, yes, I am very very very uncool and old!)  I didn't like Prue/Andy nearly as much as I'd recalled, but I still adore Prue. S1 Leo looks his very most adorable and, yeah, I'm THAT shallow.  

 

I'm almost nervous to move on to S2---I hate the Dan/Piper/Leo stuff, couldn't care less about Jenny, don't like the establishment of P3, etc. I'm more excited for S3, which has some of my very favorites, but in another way I'm so enjoying this pre-Cole incarnation of Phoebe that I'll be sad to see her go! 

Edited June 4, 2015 by amensisterfriend

[Kohola3]

The latest rewatch included my favorite line of the whole show.  "I'm sorry about your demon wife".  Hee!

[amensisterfriend]

So since I'm constantly rewatching parts of this show anyway (no, I don't have a life outside of TV!), I thought I'd see again if anyone is interested in a casual rewatch where we pick, say, 2-3 episodes to watch in a given week and then just chime in with observations, opinions, praise, snark, etc. I know it's too overwhelming to watch the entire series on chronological order, so maybe each person participating could nominate a few favorites and/or episodes that you think would make for an interesting group discussion even if they're not favorites :) 

[helenamonster]

I liked when we were doing it before! And I'm actually in the middle of my own rewatch right now (just finished "Chick Flick"). I like watching the show on my own but it's so much more fun when there's people to snark about it with.

[Lady Calypso]

I'm definitely game for this! I think it would be fun! I love snarking, but I never got to snark on this show with people before! 

[amensisterfriend]

Yay! So how should we do this? Do you guys want to each nominate at least five or so (or six...or seven...!) episodes to rewatch? Once everyone submits their nomination, we can oput them in chronological order and come up with some sort of schedule :) 

[4evaQuez]

I'm in!