I’m definitely a watcher of the original Charmed. It was fun, interesting, well written and indulged me in the world of magic - something I fight for everyday against ‘reality’ that normalises the most amazing things.
But behind the scenes there were problems. The original three charmed ones hit road blocks. For years we were unsure of the reasons, blame was cast, a new sister entered with big boots to fill. It did well to traverse this but it left me tainted. In my world I want to believe that there’s good and decent people behind our entertainment. The key word here is ‘believe’. A good magician makes you think, for a second, magic might be real. I never truly got over this in spite of my hope that Grams, Patty and Prue would show up as the generational new power of three.
So here I am, accepting a Charmed that, above all, was done well but had a slight aftertaste.
Along comes a reboot - and a lot of anger, frustration, annoyance. How could they? Are they just forgetting the original? We want the original to come back!
I didn’t. I don’t know why. I never felt the ladies in question would be too old (though that might be the executives wrong take) and I never thought they had missed anything in the original run that needed expanding. It wrapped up nicely. I wanted to see where they were going with this.
Of course the first hook is the diverse cast. It’s a complete lie to say the public won’t identify with anyone that isn’t white or straight, it’s just for years straight white characters have been fleshed out, layered, allowed to have personality and defining characteristics above the colour of their skin. We’re finally entering a time where, certainly more than before but not enough, characters are characters, not stereotypes. It’s looking good.
But the thing that has really caught me - and I know it shouldn’t matter - is the behind the scenes interactions. Short tweets and videos from the cast and crew, interviews and snippets that clearly show what the show is all about. Family. They care. They joke. They laugh. They have created what they show on screen. And I can feel it.
If a show has any right to do this then Charmed has - it’s warming my soul. And I can’t explain it.
If, as difficult as it may be to do, the original cast had been more supportive, some of this feeling I’ve got would be falling into the original charmed but it’s not. (Special mention to SD who has been positive - Prue rules. - will update if any more are brought to my attention)
A good television show entertains. A legendary show makes you feel. For me CharmedCW is already legendary. They did it in one season.
I don’t know if this is enough to keep it going but if there were any justice, it would.
