SummaryThree sisters - Prue, Piper and Phoebe Halliwell - reunite in their ancestral home, Halliwell Manor. When the youngest sister, Phoebe, ventures into the previously-locked attic, she recites a passage from an ancient book which unlocks their dormant powers to transform them into The Charmed Ones - the most powerful witches ever to exist. ...
SummaryThree sisters - Prue, Piper and Phoebe Halliwell - reunite in their ancestral home, Halliwell Manor. When the youngest sister, Phoebe, ventures into the previously-locked attic, she recites a passage from an ancient book which unlocks their dormant powers to transform them into The Charmed Ones - the most powerful witches ever to exist. ...
This series is part of my childhood and present. It has a feeling of warmth and genuinness that is rarely captured in ANY tv show since. The seasons may have gotten a bit wobbly but what always holds them together is the acting of the extremely talented actresses.. They managed to radiate a feeling of REAL magic, and conveyed such a naturalness. Watching, every scene the actresses were in came off as if they weren't even acting. This is truly a case where the actresses were the saving grace of the show. They did beautifully... and this series holds up throughout time. It doesn't age. I love it.
Charmed has an entertaining little way about it, with Spelling and company mostly striking a solid balance between escapist slap-schtick and mild horror. If the opening hour isn't terribly concerned with issues of believability, relatability and self-parody (pilot is notably short on humor), it's likely a saucy enough brew for the WB's target 12-24 demo to swallow. [7 Oct 1998, p.5]
Doherty and Milano, together with some silly dialogue and plots, promise some good campy fun. The problems come whenever their third sibling, played by Holly Marie Combs ("Picket Fences"), is on screen. You see, Combs can actually act, and whenever she starts to emote, she gives the trashy proceedings a bit more reality than they can handle. [7 Oct 1998, p.39]
The combination of witchcraft fantasy with the female empowerment message may be enough to charm the show's target young-girl audience. The rest of us, however, should hold out for something a bit more bewitching. [7 Oct 1998, p.3D]
I have to disagree with the negative critic review because charmed has magic and some black magic that is contained with it demons, Witches time traveling and of course a cat the los angeles times reporter must have only watched the pilot to it something this Wicca way comes.
I'm not sure why the critic reviews are low, but I don't agree with them at all. This show was interesting and has a lot of magic stuff if you're into that, which I am so it was a real good show to watch for me. You get your favorite characters like in all shows, but it's always something neat to watch because you don't know what to expect next. I could say sometimes it seemed a bit repetitive but still, it had good romance and action along with plot twists. So overall I think it's worth rating an 8.
On the surface, Charmed looks to be just another WB teen show. After all, the cast is loaded with former teen idols. Looks however can be deceiving! Charmed is a very solid mix of comedy and science fiction that leaves the fan craving more. I could sit and watch episodes of this show for hours!
Three sisters reunite for the funeral of the grandmother that raised them. After the funeral, they are going through the house and find a lot of things that lead them to believe their grandmother was into witch craft. After being attacked, investigating more, and being visited by some ghosts, the sisters learn that they are the decedents of a very powerful family of magicians. They are in fact legendary witches known as the charmed ones, who for thousands of years have been prophesized as the ones who finally tip the balance between good and evil to our side!
The show starts with them learning about their powers and ends with them trying to fulfill their destinies. Holly Marie Combes plays older sister Piper and while never the big name star of the show, she is by far the most interesting and entertaining character. Eventually the show comes to center around her and her family within the show. Personally, I think this is what saved the show after the early departure of one of its stars.
Charmed is eight seasons of magic, action, comedy, love, tragedy, and just plain fun. Being that it has a cast of all former teen idols, with low rating, on what is nowhere near a major network, the show didn't get the recognition that it deserved, but it is a terrific show! You can currently catch re-runs early mornings on TNT and of course watch it online. If you've got some time, I'd defiantly suggest checking it out!
Charmed is a prime example of a show that fell apart the longer it went on. The first few seasons are held back by low 90s quality, though unfortunately this is also when the writing and characterization is at its best. The show becomes glossier and showier as it continues, with really neat magic displays and great picture quality. But it also loses sight of what the show is supposed to be about: the bond of sisterhood, and it sadly spirals into centering on constant relationship whining and being inconvenienced by magic instead. The female leads become pettier and pettier as the seasons drag on, as well as overtly sexualized. Once you get into about the middle of the series and beyond, expect a lot of cleavage bouncing around and arms being manically waving in the air as shrill complaints about men and magic spew until a slew of demons get killed and the credits roll on a happy, sentimental note. It just all starts to bleed together and every mildly interesting trick, like body swaps and possessions, are used a dozen or more times. In short, it quickly becomes pointless after about season 4, and even in all of that time it never really manages to surpass "pretty good". Rarely will you get anything too deep or original. Go ahead if you're a giant genre fan but be prepared to wonder why you're even bothering after already putting in quite a bit of time. You might become trapped in feeling obligated to finish the whole thing despite no longer being very invested or having a lot of excitement in where it's going.