Charmed hit the screens back in the day when sassy women heroes were the “In” thing. Buffy was kicking vampire butt; Xena was kicking warlord butt; Kathryn Janeway and Sam Carter were kicking alien butt, and there was a definite opening for some female heroes to kick demon butt. Enter the Charmed Ones. Three good sister witches with magical powers who fight against the forces of evil while attempting to have “normal lives.” Fluffier than some of its peers, Charmed was a hit mostly because of its, well, charm.

The premise was certainly strong and appealing, if not particularly original: three very different sisters each with a different magical power, fighting evil together. While later seasons had overarching arcs, primarily, Charmed fell happily into adventure-of-the-week format with each episode neatly packaged: the sisters would fight about something, some demon would appear to challenge them, they would band together to save the day and resolve whatever relationship difficulty they had. It was easy to watch and digest, undemanding of any kind of deep thought, and, unsurprisingly for an Aaron Spelling production, very easy on the eye.

The primary cast consisted of incredibly beautiful and well-known actresses: Shannen Doherty, Holly Marie Combs and Alyssa Milano. When Doherty moved on, (amid many rumors of unhappiness at the fluffy plots and tension with co-star Milano), she was also replaced by the incredibly pretty Rose McGowan. However, perhaps because the women were all undeniably gorgeous and any excuse was used to get them into skimpy and revealing outfits, Charmed is sometimes overlooked for the quality of its acting.

Yes, you did read that correctly and I’ll even give it to you again: the quality of the acting.

While both Milano and McGowan had their moments of glory throughout the years, I’m going to highlight Doherty and Combs. Doherty deservedly acquired two Saturn Award nominations for her performance as oldest sister Prudence. Her portrayal of Pru’s grief at the loss of childhood love Andy in “Witch Trial” (02.01) and potentially being suicidal “Murphy’s Luck” (02.16) were particularly outstanding. When Doherty herself left, Combs’ portrayal of Piper’s grief at the loss of her sister was also superbly done -- the episode “Hell Hath No Fury” (04.03) in particular showcasing the anger and pain at Pru’s death.

Indeed, for a show that was so fluffy on the outside, dealing with death was something that the show actually did very well. Whereas other shows often had characters dying only not to even be mentioned in the following episode (Stargate, I’m looking at you), Charmed made a point of showing the characters grieving for lost loved ones -- sometimes even showing that the grieving process continued for a long time, as in the case of the sisters and the loss of their mother. While it is true that once they dealt with Pru’s death, she was rarely mentioned and never shown again, not even in a picture, (possibly related to the off-screen issues surrounding Doherty’s departure), the immediate aftermath of her removal was well done.

The other aspect the show did remarkably well was in the examination of relationship dynamics between sisters and between men and women. The former especially so, in that the sisters’ relationship was at the heart of the show. The journey as the sisters learn to work together (both the original three and later with the reformed three after the addition of McGowan’s Paige) but to also achieve as individuals is something of a joy to see unfold. And their relationship often becomes the focus of the episodes, such as with “Power Outage” (03.07), in which they are manipulated into losing their powers over minor slights and sisterly bickering; or “Chris-Crossed” (06.10), in which they are forced to contemplate no longer living together in their ancestral Manor.

The other focus was definitely on the sisters’ relationships with their various paramours. The most successful depiction was the love story between Piper and Leo (Brian Krause). The relationship traveled the course from forbidden love to marriage to separation to reconciliation and a happy ending. Personally, a lot of the charm about Charmed for me was the way the show really showcased this relationship with all its up and downs, although by the end the constant relationship-in-peril stuff was getting irritating. Phoebe’s relationship with often-evil demon-spawn Cole (hottie Julian McMahon) was also very popular with the fan base, even if its later depiction glossed over that this was a woman effectively trying to escape an unhealthy relationship. On the plus side, the never ending search for love and romance did mean there was never a shortage of great guy candy on the show.

And talking of guy candy, I do want to give a shout-out to the men who helped make the show a success: Brian Krause and Dorian Gregory [Detective Daryl Morris - Ed.]. Both actors played characters that provided the sisters with great sidekicks for years. Krause even got to take the lead with Leo in the closing of Season 6 with “It’s a Bad, Bad World” (06.22 and 06.23) and the story arc with his sons Wyatt and Chris (Drew Fuller; and yes, he is a grown up; it’s complicated, okay?).

It is problematic though, to me at least, that the overall message delivered by the show was that to have a “normal” life for a woman means having a guy and kids. The finale even showcased this further with its look into the future showing the many babies the sisters produce in their wonderfully happy marriages. For me, while it was an undeniably fan pleasing ending, it kind of took the edge off the incredible power that these women owned as independent, sassy heroines in their own right.

Having said that, Charmed may be fluffy, and filled with unrealistically beautiful people getting the fantasy happy ending, but there still remains something magical about the series. Charmed is one of my guilty pleasures, and I’ll happily stick in a DVD and watch the three sisters, in whichever formation, kick demon butt again and again.

  -- Rachel Day

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Further Reading

After the Fall: Charmed, by Sara Paige and Rachel Hyland

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