Charmed

Charmed is a U.S. television series about three fictional sisters who are witches; they reside in San Francisco, California where they use their powers to fight evil and fulfilling their destinies along the way.

Charmed
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Format Supernatural Drama
Run time approx. 1hr (per episode)
Creator Constance M. Burge
Starring Holly Marie Combs
Alyssa Milano
Rose McGowan
Shannen Doherty
Brian Krause
Country USA
Network WB
Original run October 7, 1998
– ?, ????
No. of episodes 156


The original lineup of sisters was Prudence Halliwell, Piper Halliwell and Phoebe Halliwell, played by Shannen Doherty, Holly Marie Combs and Lori Rom respectively. Lori Rom only played Phoebe Halliwell in the original series pilot, but left the show due to personal reasons. Alyssa Milano took on the role of Phoebe Halliwell shortly after and portions of the pilot were reshot to incorporate Milano into the episode. The original pilot was never aired, but can be found circulating around the Internet.

Charmed's ratings were very stable until rumors arose about disagreements between Doherty and Milano, Shannen left Charmed at the end of the third season. However, this is never confirmed nor denied by Doherty or Milano's publicist. As the fourth season continued Prue was killed off permanently, and an episode covering the events which lead to the two sisters finding a previously unknown fourth half-sister called Paige Matthews was written in (played by Rose McGowan). The ratings have sunk as seasons have passed, but currently in the end of the seventh season ratings are coming back up. Charmed is currently on a summer hiatus until the Charmed Season 8 Premiere set to air on the WB on September 11, 2005.

The series, which has been running since 1998, is shown on the WB television network in the United States and on CTV in Canada. The show has been licensed to other networks, such as the Turner Network Television channel, to show reruns. In addition, Charmed can also be seen on satellite and cable channel Living TV and Five (Ch 5) on normal British terrestrial television in the United Kingdom, and on TV3 (Ireland) in Ireland.

The theme song for the show is a cover version of "How Soon Is Now?", originally by The Smiths, but covered by Love Spit Love. Since its inception, Charmed has also featured musical guests on a regular basis, including Pat Benatar, Dave Navarro, Barenaked Ladies, The Corrs, The Cranberries, Dishwalla, The Goo Goo Dolls, Orgy, Steadman, and many more.

On May 17, 2005 the WB network announced Charmed will be renewed for an eighth--and possibly final--season. However, this is not confirmed to be the last season of Charmed.

Season 1 of Charmed was released on DVD in February 2005.

Contents

Cast

Main Cast

The Charmed Ones

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Prue with her camera

Prue was the eldest sister character in seasons one to three. She was romantically involved with Andy Trudeau in season 1, but at the end of season 1 he died in an attempt at saving her life. During the season 1, she had developed the power of Telekinesis, which is the ability to move objects with her mind. She worked at Bucklands Auction House until halfway through season 2, when she quit to become a photographer. Prue had soon gained the power of astral projection, which is the ability to project a non-tangible form to a distant location, during the run of season 2. Prue had trouble with the right balance of work and play right up until her death by the hands of the wind demon Shax at the end of season 3. Prue spent a lot of time and energy becoming a more powerful witch, referred to sometimes as the "superwitch" of the family.

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Piper loses her head in episode 5.14

Piper Halliwell born the middle child had been the mediator between Prue and Phoebe's fights. Piper, from the first episode always had an "unlucky in love" storyline, and featured as the central player in the main love storyline of seasons one to three between her and Leo. Piper was blessed with the power of temporal stasis or "freezing time" that she controlled to a tee. Piper worked as a chef and then manager of a restaurant "Quake" until the end of Season 1, when she quit and started her own nightclub in season 2, called "P3". In Season 3, Piper and Leo decided to finally get married, but Prue's astral projection form seemed to not agree by causing problems. Piper felt that if everything is supposed to happen, it will and thought that she wasn't supposed to marry Leo, even after getting the Elders' consent. In season 4 she took over from Prue as the eldest sister character of the TV show, continuing a new line of Halliwells, with the most offensive power, and is known for desiring a normal life. She developed the power of molecular combustion or "blowing up objects". In season 5, she gave birth to her first baby boy, Wyatt, and at the end of season 6, baby Chris was welcomed into the world as well. Wyatt was feared to be the strongest source of magic. In Season 6, Chris visited from the future to stop Wyatt turning evil. During season 6, Leo and Piper separated from each other due to Leo becoming an Elder. During mid-season, Leo had been tested to choose his destiny - whether he wanted to be an Elder or live powerless with Piper. Leo had been influenced by the Elders, but eventually "fell from grace" and became useless to his family. At the end of season 7, Leo and Piper are somewhat more happy together.

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Phoebe peers through window in episode 2.2

Phoebe Halliwell was the youngest child, until Paige was discovered, and was very free-spirited in discovering her powers. The show focused a lot on her, how she developed as a character and her occupation. She had been given the power of foresight or "seeing the future", since Prue had earlier said, 'She never looks towards the future...'In season 2, Phoebe decided to leave unemployment to go back to college and complete her degree. She then achieved the ability to levitate and fly for short periods. During season 3, Phoebe came in contact with an attorney, who, unbeknownst to her was a half-demon named Cole Turner (Belthazar). Her love for him featured prominently in the show through seasons three and four, to the extent that she crossed to the dark side. She became the Queen of the Underworld for a short time and was carrying the 'Heir to the Source'. In season 5, however, Pheobe left Cole, and eventually vanquished him. Cole would return in later episodes to try and revive his love with Phoebe, never successfully. Around season 6, she developed a power that she couldn't control very well: empathy. Empathy is the ability to feel and hear emotions, often allowing control of others' powers. During a magical mission, Phoebe saved a columnist from a perilous situation. The columnist decided as a token of her appreciation to give her her job. Phoebe soon became a columnist for the column, later titled 'Ask Phoebe' at the 'Bay Mirror', and became very attracted to her new boss, Jason Dean - until she was possessed by Mata Hari, where she explained all the weird occurrences were because she was a witch. They briefly separated from each other due to this. She went on sabbatical for a short time and got a ghost writer to take her place, named Leslie, who she fell in love with. They were a short-lived couple and he had to leave on account of his temporary position. Her powers were stripped for a short period of time from the end of season 6 to the beginning season 7 as a punishment for using her empath powers for personal gain. Phoebe had fallen in love with one of the teachers, Drake, at Magic School, but finds that her love won't last, for he is set to die within two weeks. She is currently single as the season ended. However, there is much talk about a new love interest in her future.

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Paige gets arrested in episode 5.11

Patti, the girls' mother, had an affair with her Whitelighter, Sam, and gave birth to Paige Matthews. However, this had to be kept secret, so Sam and Patti took her to a church. There, Paige was given to the courteous, warm Matthews. She was found by Piper when she cast a spell to find a "lost witch". She attended Prue's funeral and reunited the Charmed Ones. Since Paige is half witch/half whitelighter, she is equipped with numerous powers. She has the ability to orb and call for objects (sometimes known as telekinetic orbing). She was a social worker in season 4, when many troubles occurred. When she first met Piper and Phoebe, she was attacked by the demon Shax who had killed Prue. She helped vanquish Shax (her first demon vanquished) and became a Charmed One. In season 5, she decided to take a year off to pursue her destiny of being a witch. Paige was seriously romantically involved with fellow witch Richard Montana during her temp job in season 6. The job was a magical one, where there was a feud between two families, escalating to cause many deaths in the families. He left because he went crazy with the use of magic. During season 7, Avatars came, and the late Agent Kyle Brody fell in love with Paige while in search of them . He was killed by an Avatar, believing that the Avatars killed his parents, which they did not. Paige became headmistress of the Magic School, because of the evil Gideon who tried to kill Leo and turn little Wyatt evil. She quit Magic School eventually, to concentrate on her Charmed duties and to help her newly-assigned Whitelighter charges.

Supporting cast

Recurring Guest Stars

Synopsis

Spoiler warning: Plot or ending details follow.

Charmed begins when the three Halliwell sisters come together after the death of their grandmother. Upon moving into the old family manor in San Francisco, the youngest sister, Phoebe, discovers an old book in the attic. Reading an incantation from the Book of Shadows, she sets in motion events that fulfill an ancient prophecy. The sisters discover that they actually are descended from a long line of witches. The first witch in the line, Melinda Warren, prophesied that from her line would come the Charmed Ones. A force of good, they would be three sisters gifted with powers to battle the forces of evil. Prue Halliwell, the oldest sister, has the power of telekinesis and astral projection. Piper, the second-oldest, has the power to change the speed of molecules in objects and people, either slowing them down to the point where they are frozen in time or accelerating them, which effectively causes explosions. Phoebe, the third sister, has premonitions and the power to levitate; in addition, she is an empath (supernatural ability to read others' emotions).

After Prue is killed, it is revealed that there is a fourth sister, Paige Matthews, their mother's illegitimate child. She has the power to "orb" in and out from place to place like teleportation, and to orb objects to herself or another place. She has the same mother, Patty Halliwell, as the other three, but her father was their mom's whitelighter Sam. Patty and her Whitelighter lover gave Paige up for adoption, with the sole condition being that the adoptive parents give her a first name beginning with "P".

The sisters become romantically involved at different points in their lives. However, their magical abilities and the need to keep them secret from the rest of the world puts them in a difficult position with respect to their lovers. Prue falls in love with Andy, a police investigator looking into unsolved and occult murders. Piper falls in love with Leo Wyatt, a Whitelighter, but their affair is frustrated by Leo's bosses, the Elders. It takes some heavy persuading before Leo and Piper can get married. They split up for awhile when Leo became an Elder, but that was hardly the end for Piper and Leo. Phoebe falls in love with Cole Turner, the human half of the demon Balthazor who conspires to kill the Charmed Ones. Their relationship is intense but ultimately doomed. (Updating Coming Soon)

Magical spells

The WB series Charmed features many spells, many of them shown only in one episode to "vanquish" a particular demon. Listed here are for the most part more general spells, ones that have been used on several occasion for various purposes.

Spirit of the witches rise
Course unseen across the skies
Come to us we beg you near
Come to us and settle here

Prudence, Patricia, Penelope, Melinda
Astrid, Helena, Laura, and Grace
Halliwell witches stand strong beside us
Vanquish this evil from time and space

Let the object of objection become but a dream
As I cause this scene to be unseen

Ashes to ashes
Spirit to spirit
Take this soul
Banish this evil

Powers of the witches rise
Course unseen across the skies
Come to us who call you near
Come to us and settle here

Take my powers
Blessed be
Multiply their strength by three

I am light
I am one too strong to fight
Return to dark where shadows dwell
You cannot have this Halliwell
So go away and leave my sight
And take with you this endless night

Magic forces black or white
Reaching out through space and light
Be he far or be he near
Bring us the demon Belthazor here

Hear these words
Hear my cry
Spirit from the other side
Come to me
I summon thee
Cross now the great divide

I call apon this ancient power
To help us in this darkest hour
Let the Book return to this place
Claim refuge in its rightful place

Hear now the words of the Witches,
The secrets we hid in the night,
The oldest of Gods are invoked here,
The great work of magick is sought
In this night and in this hour,
We call upon the ancient power
Bring your powers to we sisters three,
We want the power,
Give us the power

The Power of Three Will Set Us Free
The Power of Three will Set Us Free
The Power of Three Will Set Us Free

Write down the characteristics of your perfect man and drop them into the potion while chanting
A perfect man we summon now
Another way we don't know how
To make our sister see the lighit
Somewhere out there is Mr. Right

I call upon the powers to be
Prudence,Piper,Phoebe,and Paige
Hear my call
Give me the powers to be

See also

External links

See also: Charmed, 1998, Alyssa Milano, Andy Trudeau, Astral projection, Barbas the Demon of Fear, Barenaked Ladies, Belthazor