Mika

Charmed brings back thematic elements from the original, while coming into its own identity as the season progresses. While I loved the original, I tried staying as objective as possible when watching the entirety of the first season of this reboot. What I found at the end, was a story that was all it’s own. While it paid homage to the original, and got a little frazzled teetering the line between staying true to the source material, and finding its own identity, throwing the script near the end was the best possible choice the show writers could make. The original Charmed will always have a special place in my heart, and it will always be there. When you watch this newer reboot you really do have to compartmentalise and separate the two as their own, individual stories. While parallels can certainly be drawn with characters and themes, fans of the headstrong Prue, may not be as receptive to the analytic Macy. This newer charmed gives us more impactful stories that fall in line with our current political climate. The writing is done really well, and if I dare say... better than the original. 90’s television, while nostalgic, was prone to loopholes and illogical retcons. Revisions were made as lazy writing decisions. Need examples? Prue’s astral projection power introduced in season 2 is now just a “spell” that any witch can do in season 8. This retcon’s only purpose was to lazily progress a plot line that, really, could have been handled much better. While I love the original charmed, I’m also not so disillusioned to its flaws, which there are plenty of! I could write an entire essay on the retcons done to the show, and why they shouldn’t have been done in the first place! That is also to say that this newer charmed is not immune to flaws. While I found the story more consistent than the original so far, I sadly found the acting lack lustre. This is where the original exceeds. Alyssa, Holly, Shannon, and Rose showed bigger ranges of emotion, and conveyed the story incredibly well despite the plot holes that covered their scripts. While I was impressed by Madeline Mantock’s (Macy) performance, I found Sarah Jeffrey’s (Maggie) emotional performances to be... well... cringey, sad to say. I feel like Melanie Diaz did alright with what she was given, but I still think her performance could have been a bit better as well. All three actresses still have time to develop into these characters, however, and I think they’ll do well with better direction. All in all, the show certainly has its ups and downs, but I would give it a good 7/10. I’d recommend it to anyone whether they’re fans of the original or not. Though I would say, to the fans of the original, please try to watch this show objectively. Try not to draw parallels that don’t exist. Don’t see the characters as “old piper and new piper”, as Melody and Piper are vastly different. As are all the characters. That in itself makes this new show refreshing. Finally, realise that the original will always be there for us, and that we haven’t lost anything from it with this new reboot. I understand where this “righteous backlash” comes from, but it has become TOXIC, and it needs to stop. Three women of color are at the forefront of a television series in 2019, and instead of being supportive and offering suggestions where the show can succeed, much of the fan base simply refuses giving the show a proper chance. Most reviews I read can be summed up as “it’s trash because it’s not the original”. Which is coming after the show for the wrong reasons. If you want to hate this show and wish it’s doom, at least do it for the right reasons. And when you do, CONSTRUCTIVELY criticise. Don’t simply throw shade because it’s not what you remember. Grow. Up.