CHARMED-season 8: ep 169: Repo Manor to ep 174: The Torn Identity to 178: FOREVER CHARMED (finale)

 

CHARMED-season 8: ep 169: Repo Manor  to ep 174: The Torn Identity to 178: FOREVER CHARMED

 

 

 

169 13   "Repo Manor"   Derek Johansen Doug E. Jones January 22, 2006      62015-08-168        3.67[13]

Phoebe, in an attempt to move on with her own life, signs a lease for a new apartment, much to the worry of Piper, while Paige considers telling Henry she's a witch. Demons attempt to steal the Power of Three by taking the form and place of each sister, one by one, as each sister is shrunk and placed into a dollhouse replica of the manor.

 

The first really great episode in a long time and certainly superior to anything so far in season eight. A clever idea that there are female demons who have studied the Charmed Ones for the sake of doing evil. They even have practiced their powers. Added to that is a play on a previous plotline---this time it works and that hasn’t happened in a long time---this time it is the dollhouse that Wyatt once had Leo and Piper in.

 

I think the writing went from zero in season eight’s previous episodes to 100  in this episode alone. Everything feels back on track and more natural. Given that Charmed is almost always about some threat from demons, warlocks, evil witches and other magical threats, the play around with that format and the following  five episodes really takes things to a stretched new level…and for the first time, season eight works.

 

 

 

170 14   "12 Angry Zen"  Jon Paré       Cameron Litvack  February 12, 2006   62015-08-170        3.28[14]

During Chinese New Year, a demon attempts to steal a mystical wooden staff that is protected by the Zodiacs, and the staff's guardian enlists the aid of Piper to stop him. However, the staff concentrates each of the Charmed Ones' desires: Phoebe throws a housewarming party that gets out of control; Paige tries to get through to Henry about her magical abilities by taking him on a round-the-world orb; and Piper drops everything to run to her children's outing. Meanwhile, the guardian teaches Billie how to use her power of projection to find Christy and enlists her help to save the staff from the demons.

 

Love the title and glad they finally made Billie find her sister. Now, what the show does with that…may be another thing but in these six episodes, it works for me in a way that didn’t the first time I sampled some of this season. This happens to be the first time I’ve seen everything in every season and the first time I am seeing all of this and…I’ve been entertained by these six episodes in a way that the previous season eight episodes did not do. Perhaps I just needed a break from CHARMED.

 

The desires at the party happened almost out of left field and a bit too fast to happen that way but I’m guessing, without being told, that it was Phoebe’s desire? There’s also, as ever in Charmed, another cute guy that’s her neighbor.  

 

Did the staff affect everyone there? That wasn’t really made clear or was the Phoebe’s obsessions? A bit wonky that part. It’s also a good plot that Phoebe wants to move out but is that practical? They say time and again she’s likely to be attacked alone there. Holly does a great acting job of acting VERY upset when Phoebe moves out and leaves for the apartment to settle in for the first time elsewhere. I also love ALL the Henry/Paige stuff. I’m glad they settled on a romantic lead for Paige rather than have her sleep around as previously. I think the character makes Paige better and the actor makes Rose better.

 

Henry is a very easy going guy and for this show, that says a lot. He’s probably the best guy in the entire series, taking all the magic stuff well and handling it.

 

My mind kept comparing a lot of their scenes, favorably to Sam and Darrin in BEWITCHED, which I also like a lot, too.

 

Love when Henry proposes to Paige.

 

 

 

171 15   "The Last Temptation of Christy"        John Kretchmer Story by : Rick Muirragui

Teleplay by : Liz Sagal     February 19, 2006        62015-08-171    3.89[15]

Paige learns the difficulties of dating a mortal when Henry becomes too involved in the magical world and has to deal with another magical suitor hoping to convince her to marry him so they can become the ultimate magical couple. Meanwhile, Billie finally finds her missing sister Christy; Piper faces a romantic decision when she runs into an old flame, and Piper must explain that Leo is coming back despite it looking like he abandoned his family.

 

 

I liked the British witch guy who wanted to marry Paige and how Henry handled him with a big assist from Paige. Greg’s another great character and a nice guy, too. Not sure which episode has Phoebe trying to teach Christie to be civilized but some of that isn’t very funny but sort of works to milk that plot of what it is worth.

 

 

 

 

172 16   "Engaged and Confused"      Stuart Gillard   Jeannine Renshaw   February 26, 2006        62015-08-172    4.07[16]

Piper organizes an engagement party for Paige and Henry, but the wedding is put in jeopardy when the couple begins to get cold feet. Phoebe notices a strange man following her, and soon discovers that he is a Cupid. Meanwhile, a demon kidnaps Christy in order to lure the Charmed Ones into attacking the Triad, thus preventing them from taking over the Underworld. In a battle with the Triad at Magic School, Paige and Piper vanquish one by orbing him in front of a fireball and Piper blows up the second. The third flees, but unlike how they expected, Leo is not returned, showing that defeating the Triad was not the battle that they have to win to get Leo back.

 

Honestly, loving the show again. The humor isn’t fully back to what it once was but it is there. The show also feels as if it’s edgy again and not predictable which is why this round of watching it (the first full watch really), I like the Christy/Billie stuff where as the first time I dipped into it and never fully committed to that story line. The show, more than ever, resembled a soap opera in this part of its life and that’s not a bad thing….if the scripts were up to par, which in the first half of the season they were not.

 

I also think the Christy stuff is shocking and surprising with more to come. The show, thanks to this storyline, felt dangerous again and it was brave of them to do what they did. Though Holly’s idea that Billie should die along with Christie might be just the actress being jealous of the Billie character. Had Billie died, it would have been awful. Holly must have been jealous and just wanted a prettier (in her mind?) actress (and a good one, I can see why Kaley went to a larger career than being fourth fiddle). 

 

 

 

 

173 17   "Generation Hex"     Michael Grossman        Rob Wright April 16, 2006    62015-08-173        2.98[17]

Two former students of Leo's from Magic School turn up at the manor to inform the Charmed Ones that Noxon demons that Leo had imprisoned in the Magic School dungeons have escaped and are seeking revenge. Christy tries to get Billie away from the sisters, and Billie wants Christy to reunite with her parents. Paige goes on her honeymoon, and Coop continues to follow Phoebe. One of the Noxon demons is eventually vanquished by Piper and the students sending him to the Astral Plane in a perpetual vanquish, but beforehand, the two demons kill Billie and Christy's parents under orders from Candor, the last remaining member of the Triad. In retaliation, Christy vanquishes Candor, but he claims that by doing so she passed her final test to become evil.

 

I was sure, as in the past, that the magic students seeking help from the CHARMED ones were going to die but Ryan and Jen live! Yay! This is the show bypassing our expectations and being dangerous and unexpected again. Yay! And Ryan’s cute.

 

Billie and Christy’s parents being killed was also shocking. I didn’t expect that. They were largely, in their previous appearance, comedy relief as they were taken over by something or other and the actors were a great set of guest stars, especially the woman playing the mother. To have them so brutally murdered (even if most of it is off screen, in fact, all of it is—we just see mom lying face down, a pool of blood around her face! Eeek!), is shocking and again, dangerous and brave of the show. Did not see that coming!

 

 

 

174 18   "The Torn Identity"  LeVar Burton        Andy Reaser       April 23, 2006    62015-08-174 3.39[18]

Coop comes to the conclusion that he has fallen for Phoebe. Piper is on the hunt for the remaining Noxon demon in order to interrogate him about who he's working for, but Christy just wants to kill him as soon as possible. Paige finds it hard balancing life as a Charmed One with that of a married woman. When both the Halliwells and the Jenkinses find the Noxon demon, Billie and Christy combine their powers to vanquish an unvanquishable demon making Piper realize that Billie and Christy may be the ultimate power whom they must face in the coming battle.

 

 

The big bad being Christy and Billie is shocking enough but Christy being so unredeemable is almost unheard of AND she sways Billie. It is borderline almost unbelievable but having someone see the Charmed Ones as fallible works for me, especially since they were so selfish the first half of this season.

 

The show is not only watchable again, it’s entertaining and I care about the situation. Christy really does need to die, though!

CHARMED season 8: ep175: THE JUNG AND THE RESTLESS to the finale: ep 178: FOREVER CHARMED

 

 

 

9     "The Jung and the Restless" Derek Johansen     Cameron Litvack      April 30, 2006        62015-08-175    3.17[19]

Christy continues to try to corrupt Billie with the help of the demon Dumain, who work for the Triad; the two conspire to throw the sisters into a dream world so Billie can determine their true desires. Meanwhile, Piper consults an Elder who says that they may have to fight Billie and Christy to the death, and Paige gains a new charge in trouble with a Darklighter. Paige's charge is killed while Paige is in the dream world but becomes a whitelighter and later saves an injured Paige. After seeing the Charmed Ones' goals for normal lives, Billie opts to join Christy's plan to eliminate them because of their selfishness. After coming out of the dream world, Phoebe and Paige finally accept the truth about the Jenkinses.

 

 

Another dream land episode. Well, okay. This one barely hangs together but it does work in the plotline. Not sure what Billie is seeing about the Charmed Ones that they need to be defeated but this is one of the weaker aspects of this plot and this is one of the weaker later episodes of season eight. It’s still way above anything over the first part of the 8^th season.

 

 

 

176 20   "Gone with the Witches"      Jonathan West     Jeannine Renshaw   May 7, 2006        62015-08-176    3.39[20]

Christy has now managed to convince Billie that the Charmed Ones are too self obsessed to help the 'greater good' so when Paige, Phoebe and Piper attempt to involve the rest of the magical community, Christy and Billie cast spells on the sisters that turn all the leprechauns and other creatures against the Halliwells. With their support, Christy and Billie then directly attack the Charmed Ones who attempt to escape to Magic School but find that it has been blocked from them and so end up in the underworld...

 

The magic community turning against the Charmed Ones does make sense as they ARE canon fodder, even if the Charmed Ones don’t mean for them to be. A great many die here including Liam. I seem to remember a lot of them dying before, too. It’s annoying though. I dislike when heroes turn on each other and not only do we have the magical community turning on the Charmed Ones but also Billie turning on them as well in a major way. Still, it makes for an uncomfortable episode but one which holds surprises anew. And I was really wondering how this was all going to turn out. I remembered only the basics of it.

 

 

 

 

 

177 21   "Kill Billie Vol. 2"      Jon Paré       Brad Kern      May 14, 2006    62015-08-177        3.72[21]

In the first half of the two-episode series finale, Billie and Christy have managed to turn everything around: while the two of them are now at the Manor and demons are at Magic School, the Charmed Ones are forced to hide in the Underworld. A battle of competing potions ends up injuring both sides, who each decide that they need to become more powerful. The Jenkinses and the Halliwells each absorb part of the Hollow, which the Jenkinses then use to steal Wyatt's powers and the Halliwells use to vanquish the Triad for good. The two sets of sisters attack each other in the Manor, not knowing the deadly consequences of their actions — Phoebe, Paige, and Christy are all killed and the Manor is destroyed in a massive explosion. The Angel of Destiny returns Leo, although the battle did not end as expected. Billie flees from Piper.

 

The house exploding again is shocking enough but this time, the effects team and stunts really went wild and the house (the set?) really looks as if it is exploding inside out and it’s very upsetting to see Leo and Piper in the next episode talking inside the bare bones of the destroyed house, no roof, just charred remnants.

 

Did the handsome Rik Young's demon get away scott free? I don't remember him dying. His henchman, Zohar, wasn't bad looking either.

 

 

178 22   "Forever Charmed" James L. Conway        Brad Kern    May 21, 2006    62015-08-178        4.49[22]

Reeling from the death of her sisters, Piper and Leo, using Coop's ring, travel back in time to change the events that led to the deaths of Phoebe and Paige. They encounter Patty (then pregnant with Phoebe) and Grams (just after Patty's death). While time-traveling, Piper and Leo also meet their future selves, indicating that they succeed. Meanwhile, Billie also tries to go back in time, but her past self ignores her. Patty and Grams help Piper recreate the Power of Three and vanquish the Hollow during the fatal battle, but the Jenkinses then disappear. Billie finally realizes that her sister has become evil after Christy admits being in league with the Triad. Grown-up Chris and Wyatt return from the future to find Wyatt's stolen powers, just as Billie comes to the Manor seeking the help of the Halliwells to save Christy. Dumain and Christy steal Coop's ring to time-travel and warn the Triad, but Billie (tracking Christy) transports the Halliwells to the same place, and the Triad and Dumain are again permanently vanquished. Billie tries to convince Christy, but when Christy launches a fireball at the sisters, Billie deflects it, accidentally killing Christy. At the end, everyone is returned to the proper time, and the sisters write down a narrative covering their future: Phoebe continues writing her column, marries Coop (permitted by the Elders), and has three daughters, with Billie looking after the first two when Phoebe goes into her third labour; Paige and Henry have twin girls and then Henry Jr., as Henry stays a parole officer and Paige becomes a full-time Whitelighter; Leo remains the headmaster of Magic School until retirement; Piper opens a restaurant; and Piper and Leo have a daughter in addition to Wyatt and Chris. In the final scene at the Manor, Piper's granddaughter, named Prudence, closes the front door with telekinesis (just like Prue) while the triquetra appears on the screen.

 

One might think with all the time travel, all the many characters involved (in one scene I believe there are 11 characters!) and all the subplots going on, this wouldn’t work.

 

IT SO DOES. And unlike the BUFFY finale, this one is satisfying and ties it all together (of course the comics of CHARMED do stand alone stories but also mostly a season nine and ten!).

 

Coop’s a great addition to the show and Victor Webster not only looks fine he acts fine, too. Henry is also a great addition to the show and I’m glad that things work out for Paige and Henry. In fact, things work out for everyone here. Phoebe and Coop are given to each other BY the Elders, a nice change of pace for those stuffed shirts who learned not to fight such things. We get to see, for the only time, characters from the past alive (Grams and Patti) interacting with characters from the future (adult Chris---be still my heart and adult Wyatt---be still my heart again!) in an easy going manner. The script could have been stilted and mundane but it’s not. It’s fun and it ALL works.

 

In addition, Patti, who comes from a time where she didn’t know she was dead (but finds out) and didn’t know she was divorced (or had an affair with Sam and had Paige, a fourth sister), interacts with the present day father of the Charmed Ones (dad). It’s funny and the actors all hit their high notes. Grams is always funny (“I need a drink.”). Love Chris. Love Wyatt.

 

I also love that Billie stops Christy by …sending her own fireball at her. The only thing that doesn’t work much is having the three Charmed sisters standing over a Billie who is devastated that she had to kill her own sister. Billie’s on her knees crying hysterically and all they can do is stand there, coldly. It makes them nasty and cold hearted. At least one of them should have put their arms around her and/or all of them should have thanked her. Or something.

 

The ending of finding out what happens to all of them and the myriad of children they had (I lost count and track but one was named Prue) was positive and uplifting.

 

We also saw two great actors playing old Leo and old Piper. It’s a shame they could not use Prue at all or even have her photograph (having it would mean they had to pay Shannen a full ep salary according to the commentary but Shannen wouldn’t allow it anyway).

 

 

 

Here’s a fan made return:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHmlYx5GlWg

 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHmVaPvxTuA

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAaKn3fboH4

 

 

The only thing I didn’t like was that past innocents die in the comic book, innocents once saved by the Charmed Ones. Yes, it is a viable story option but it’s annoying and threatens to ruin past episodes.

 

A good, entertaining run. Took me a short time to do eight seasons and over 178 episodes (the unaired pilot was watched, too).

 

CHARMED may not be BUFFY but in many ways, right now, I think it is superior. Back in the day, I never missed BUFFY but was usually disappointed. Now, I’m disappointed in the BUFFY verse for other reasons: mostly that the forces behind it are homophobic (the gay slayer they had planned for a spinoff was introduced in the season nine comic book series and due to some vocal minority homophobes and letters from them, they dropped the character entirely; that plus all the homophobic BUFFY episodes in the actual series and that was that). At least the CHARMED comic book had a major “innocent” the fire starter boy grown up and gay and a part of the storyline.

 

All in all, CHARMED is a fun and dangerous show, with horror, shocks, and a lot of laughs, despite anything that went on behind the scenes. I loved watching every episode at last!

 

 OH ONE LAST THING about the blu rays: all the seasons seem to have the music restore where the earlier versions of the DVDs and the syndicated reruns didn't. BUT this last box set of season eight HAS THE FUCKING generic music instead of the actual theme song as aired. WTF? Does that mean they tampered with the season eight music and left it that way on this release? Do I need to check the full series box set, too? I also wish there were more extras on all the releases: what they have is scanty and not great. At least put the unaired pilot on there and BTS stuff. 

a few things: in one ep two young guys oggle Phoebe from afar; Wyatt the baby has a bit more personality here but not much; I cried when Henry proposed to Paige; Paige's nervous jitters were normal; and there an episode with an African American demon, Dreylock, who kills an almost shirtless minion, a Scather Demon (the FINE Josh Feinman). Also having Paige INSIDE Henry's head a switch from the body switch stuff this show and others have done far too much. This was a nice take on something different so that Henry had to appear to act like the witch Paige was with her inside him!