Season 2 General Discussion

[The Matriarch]

Season two of the supernatural drama series Charmed marks two major additions to the regular cast: Greg Vaughan as Dan Gordon, the handsome young contractor whom "Charmed One" Piper Halliwell (Holly Marie Combs) hires to help her renovate her newly opened P3 club; and Lochlyn Munro as Jack Sheridan, a new employee at Buckland's Auction House, who tries to hit it off with Piper's sister Prue (Shannen Doherty) -- who in turn has resigned from Buckland after her harrowing experiences with the firm's former owner, malevolent warlock Rex Buckland. As for the third Halliwell sister, Phoebe (Alyssa Milano), she remains unemployed, though still very much a key player in the action. In the course of the season, Piper begins dating Dan, even though she is aware she is fated to have a baby with guardian angel (or "Whitelighter") Leo Wyatt (Brian Krause). For his part, Leo is punished for saving Piper's life without permission, and is briefly transformed into a mortal, during which time he is hired as the P3 club's bartender. Also, Prue gains the power of astral projection, is hired as a photographer for "415 Magazine," and lets slip to police inspector Darryl Morris (Dorian Gregory) that she and her sisters are witches. The season ends with Piper, dolefully aware that her love for Dan can never truly be consummated, enlisting the aid of a friendly genie (played by 3rd Rock From the Sun's French Stewart) to convince Dan to move out of town and start life anew.

Discuss everything season 2 here.

[Dark Witch.]

OMG! I realized, that this month...February 2009, Phoebe was said in the future to be burned at the stake for killing Cal Greene...this is so real...seeing it be that date? What are you guy's thoughts on this?

[temporalcombustion]

It's weird that we are the year they traveled too, there's no MTV on the moon
This is one of my favorite seasons and Witch Trial is one of my most favorite episodes.

[Harrison]

Wouldn't it be very ironic if Alyssa Milano died this month then? Haha, let's just hope that doesn't happen.

Yeah, same as Glenn, this and Witch Trial are my favorite episodes of this season and Morality Bites is one of my favorite out of the series.

I definitely have to comment though on the acting in this season. It really pushed through from the first season and was a great stepping stone to the perfect acting of season 3. That great acting really shone through in Morality Bites.

All in my opinion, of course.

[temporalcombustion]

I have been thinking about this thing lately, I watched Reckless Abandonned this week and I wondered why Prue and Phoebe were damaging those bones of the ghots?

Why would they do that intead of throwing the potion on it immediatly so that the ghost didn't know and so that that woman didn't need to kill herself.

[The Matriarch]

I know, right! Why would Prue poke is bones anyway? She must have known that he could probably feel that. If they didn't make that little error, Martha wouldn't have had to flung herself over the railing to save Baby Matthew.

I think season 2 was one of my favourite seasons. I liked the premiere due to the fact that they were celebrating their one year anniversary of being witches. this was the first & last time they did it. One thing I didn't like about the episode is Piper getting it on with the banker fellow for the loan for the club. That is so un-Piper to do something like that.

The introduction of Dan was a good one, it gave us some more eye candy to drool over but I really think Jenny was a waste of script time. What was the point in actually having her on for a couple of episodes & even having her in the credits if she wasn't going to be sticking around for the whole season?

Phoebe was awesome in this season. She was still, you know, Phoebe. Quirky & funny but still heartfelt. She didn't need a man to complete her & she actually gave other girls the strength to be themselves & not to be defined by a guy.

Prue also loosened up a bit which was a welcome change. She became more lovable & more comedic in a sense instead of always being the serious sister.

Piper in my mind, didn't change too much from season 1. She became a bit of a stronger character in a sense, not being afraid to speak her mind anymore but she was still the delicate middle sister.

[Lexi]

I was watching the episode where Piper was in the coma the other day and I've got to say it made me see what I actually liked in Phoebe. She was all about the innocents and other people before herself. She was definitely Phoebe in Season 2, definitely her best season.

[temporalcombustion]

@the Matriarch: I think they wanted to keep Jenny but after a few episodes I think they realized that her character wasn't important for the series. I read this somewhere.

The episode with Phoebe I really liked is the episode where she gets her glasses. I know a lot of people who reacted like she did in the beginning of the episode and it also learned me that wearing glasses is nothing to be ashamed about.

[Deleted]

I first posted my reviews of each season during S8 at a different site. My feelings for them haven't changed much in the last few years. Because they're a bit controversial and always get conversations going, I decided to post them here so here goes.

Since the Season One thread is locked, I'm going to post my review of both Season One and Season Two here.

SEASON ONE:

The more I watch this season on DVD, the more I enjoy it. I remember coming into it excited to see Alyssa, who I knew from "Who's the Boss?" and Holly, who I knew from "Picket Fences." I'd never watched Beverly Hills 90201 and everything I'd heard about Shannen was negative, so I wasn't looking forward to seeing her, but Prue had me caught before the end of the season, just because she was so much like me.

I liked the relationship Prue had with Andy, and with Darryl, too and still cry when I watch the last episode of that season, when Andy dies. So much of this season reminds me of what Charmed was and what I wish it remained:

• I wish that whitelighters and Elders (darklighters, too,) remained more the way Leo described them back then.
  
  
• I wish that when the sisters used magic for personal gain that it would just fade away like Phoebe's lottery ticket.
  
  
• I wish that saving innocents remained more important than personal desires.
  
  
• I wish that Piper could still want a normal life without constantly whining about it.
  
  
• I wish Phoebe was still our Phoebs rather than PhoeME/Freebie--more interested in magic than sex.

Favorite eppis includes all the ones that include Leo, least-favorites include all the ones that don't, except for "That Seventies Episode", which is my favorite of that season with "Love Hurts" just a little bit behind it--I LOVE the sacrifice Piper is willing to make in that one; a sacrifice she won't make in S6-8--she SOOO should've given up her powers before she had kids!

B+// 8 out of 10 // Very Good!

SEASON TWO:

This is my favorite season of Charmed! I loved the fact that Prue continued to mourn Andy and the fact that she found someone she could just have fun with--I got a kick out of Jack! No other Charmed One has grieved for the one who was supposed to be *her* guy beyond the episode following that one's death. Prue was still mourning Andy halfway through the season in "Murphy's Luck"

I loved the whole bit with Piper choosing between Leo & Dan. Personally I still think she should've chosen Dan, especially if Leo could've learned to love Prue or Phoebe or Paige. To me, Dan represented the normal life Piper craves so much. If Piper had married Dan, Leo would still be a whitelighter, his calling, what he's destined to be. Leo represented the wicca life that Piper doesn't want. For the one who wants to be a witch the least to end up with a magical guy just doesn't make sense. Unfortunately, Dan ended up being a creep, but only after Awakened, when he discovered Piper's true feelings, even before Piper did! And Piper & Leo *are* soulmates, no matter if they should be or not!! I miss Leo my angel *so* much!!

I loved Phoebe going back to school and the way she cared about the innocents and her sisters *so* much. As I said about in my S1 review, I miss Phoebs dreadfully, even more than Leo my angel!! She was still a bit of a PhoeME, but in a loveable way, since she's the baby, a way that didn't translate once she was forced to become the middle sister. And she definitely wasn't Freebie!! We also discovered that her soulmate is a demon--Anton. No wonder she was attracted to Cole! He reminded me *so* much of Anton!! All of Phoebe's guys were tall, dark and dangerous-looking--just like her soulmate, Anton!

Some of my favorite innocents were part of this season and so were some of my favorite demons. And my all-time favorite eppi, "Morality Bites", was part of it. Each time the sisters (or Piper's younger son) forget that Wrong Things Done for the Right Reason are still Wrong, and We're Supposed to Protect the Innocent, Not Punish the Guilty, I cringe!

There were a few eppis that were very simply bad, but even they always helped push the season along, like "Animal Pragmatism" (I LOVED Leo's Valentine for Piper!) and "How to Make an American out of a Quilt"--Piper first making it clear how little she wanted to be a witch and why she should've chosen Dan and not Leo.

A+/ 10 out of 10/ EXCELLENT!

[David]

So I've been watching a bit of season two (Living have reached it in their cycle of repeats) and it's made me realize just how much I loved this season. Although nothing major happened this season it was a fantastic season, sort of taking what they had learned from the first and making it better. This was definitely a high point in Charmed's run. It was just so...magical is the only way I can really describe this season.

Phoebe was my favourite this season, and I think it was probably her last season as a great character, because I have said it many times before, when Cole arrived her character just changed and after he was vanquished she went a bit slutty, kind of mellowing a bit at the end. I only wish she had stayed so likeable.

I was watcing P3H20 yesterday and I actually enjoyed the Piper/Leo/Dan thing which dominated the season, poor Dan he never really had much chance did he? But I could see just how much Piper liked him and I think it was because he reminded her a bit of her normal life pre-Charmed, which we know was something Piper yearned for throughout the entire series.

So yeah, I just wanted to spill my thoughts on the season after casually becoming a fan again of it.

[Criminally Vulgar]

Like I said in the Season 1 General Discussion thread, a couple of weeks ago, I decided to go watch the entire series, in order, from the very beginning. I just made it to Witch Trial, and I must say, I really didn't give this episode enough credit. I think it did a perfect job of reflecting everything they've faced in their first year as witches. There were so many scenes and shots that, I think, were purposely similar to things that happened in the series premiere:

The first (and most obvious) is the return of Jeremy, who looks nearly, if not IDENTICAL to how we last saw him in the first episode. The second is probably the spirit board scene, which includes Piper and Phoebe in the solarium, just like in the premiere. There was something very This Way Goes...? about this scene, in the way it was shot and acted, you could easily tell it was done in reference (and am I the only one who thought the board was going to to spell "attic" again? :S lol). There was even a shot of Kit's collar being examined (by Andy 1x01, Phoebe in 2x01), as well as a shot of the famous picture of the girls. And, if I'm remembering correctly, this episode was the first time since the series premiere in which the girls' first spell, "the power of three will set us free" was said.

I also loved the return of the Woogy and Nicholas, even if he was played by a different actor, this one got the character down perfectly, and, had I not just seen the episode, I would've totally been convinced that he was the same person.

One thing that I noticed this time around that I never noticed before, the first spell that the Abraxas read backwards was the Love Spell (or was it Love Potion?... ahh well, it doesn't matter, they're right next to each other). Although the consequences of all the other pages he read backwards were immediately shown, this one wasn't. And, knowing what we know already, Dan (who was introduced in this very episode) and Leo (who returns in the very next episode) both get romantically involved with Piper. Could the reversal of the Love Spell have affected Piper's love life? D:

Or maybe it was just foreshadow, which I love.

Also, Shannen's acting in this episode was amazing. Overall, a great start to the season, an excellent followup to the first season.





"....................wine?" omg I literally LOL'd at that XD

[Glenn]

Witch Trial, being one of my most favorite season two episodes, is one which I've seen thousands of times and I never noticed that.


Abraxas was reversing the Love Spell but what he actually read backwards was the Love Potion text.

[Criminally Vulgar]

May 8, 2010 8:40:40 GMT Glenn said:

Abraxas was reversing the Love Spell but what he actually read backwards was the Love Potion text.

You speak Backwards? lol How do you know that??

[Glenn]

May 8, 2010 9:59:35 GMT Criminally Vulgar said:

May 8, 2010 8:40:40 GMT Glenn said:

Abraxas was reversing the Love Spell but what he actually read backwards was the Love Potion text.

You speak Backwards? lol How do you know that??

They subtitle Abraxas when he reads the spells backwards. I also checked the script and the writers had written every spell backwards too.

[Terry]

Whether it is the Love Spell or Potion that he reads doesn't really matter: if it doesn't have any effect, it it because neither the spell nor the potion were in use at the time -- none of the sisters were in any relationship created by magic, so none could be affected. Now it could have had some nice consequences had it been "uncast" in 1x05 Dream Sorcerer, aha.

[Criminally Vulgar]

May 8, 2010 10:21:02 GMT Glenn said:

May 8, 2010 9:59:35 GMT Criminally Vulgar said:

You speak Backwards? lol How do you know that??

They subtitle Abraxas when he reads the spells backwards. I also checked the script and the writers had written every spell backwards too.

Ahh, I forgot that season 2 had subtitles, since season 1 didn't. I see. Thanks for clarifying!

May 8, 2010 14:12:52 GMT Terry said:

Whether it is the Love Spell or Potion that he reads doesn't really matter: if it doesn't have any effect, it it because neither the spell nor the potion were in use at the time -- none of the sisters were in any relationship created by magic, so none could be affected. Now it could have had some nice consequences had it been "uncast" in 1x05 Dream Sorcerer, aha.

It didn't have any effect that was shown. For all we know, Hans (the guy Phoebe attracted in Dream Sorcerer... I think that was his name :s) could be running around San Francisco, thinking about Phoebe (whom, at the end of Sorcerer, he had no recollection of ever meeting).

Which brings me to my next point: could the Abraxas' backwards Book reading have unearthed all the demons that the girls were faced with throughout the rest of the series? One that comes to mind in particular is Barbus, who was supposedly banished for another 1,000 years or so, and suddenly returns less than a year later (and then almost every other year after that...)??

Thinking about it now, it really bothers me how the Abraxas read through the entire book, cover to cover (except for most of Dominus Trinus), yet only three of the girls' past evils were brought back. Technically, every single evil that they vanquished using a spell in the book, should be unvanquished. That doesn't even include evils that the generations before them had already vanquished. And, since it was never explained or even addressed, what I stated above is very much possible...

[Temporal Death]

Which brings me to my next point: could the Abraxas' backwards Book reading have unearthed all the demons that the girls were faced with throughout the rest of the series? One that comes to mind in particular is Barbus, who was supposedly banished for another 1,000 years or so, and suddenly returns less than a year later (and then almost every other year after that...)??

Thinking about it now, it really bothers me how the Abraxas read through the entire book, cover to cover (except for most of Dominus Trinus), yet only three of the girls' past evils were brought back. Technically, every single evil that they vanquished using a spell in the book, should be unvanquished. That doesn't even include evils that the generations before them had already vanquished. And, since it was never explained or even addressed, what I stated above is very much possible...

About Barbas, I'm pretty sure they didn't use a spell from the Book to vanquish him. Prue simply throws him telekinetically and overcomes her fear or whatever.

And now that I look back, excluding the evils that were shown in the episode, only Javna, the Shapeshifters, and the serial killer ghost were vanquished by using spells from the Book. The others merely gave them information on how to defeat them, and maybe potions.

So perhaps those were back in the Charmed-verse? Iunno. A possible reason for them to not return all of the other evil that was vanquished, and hey, this might seem a little farfetched, but maybe, just maybe, it was because it was a 42-45 minute show? No? Silly theory then, ignore me.

Edit: I enjoyed the beginning of this season much more than the latter bits, until it turned into a Piper/Leo/Dan lovefest. It had some of its sweet moments and episodes, "Awakened" being another one of my favorites.

Another thing about this season I feel that should have played out had Prue been kept alive post-S3 is the whole Prue/Bane relationship. It was interesting, far better than Prue/Andy. I believe this was the last (well, only) season that stayed true to the concept of magic that was developed in the first season.

Also, who hated Jenny?

[Terry]

May 8, 2010 19:46:00 GMT Temporal Death said:

About Barbas, I'm pretty sure they didn't use a spell from the Book to vanquish him. Prue simply throws him telekinetically and overcomes her fear or whatever.

And now that I look back, excluding the evils that were shown in the episode, only Javna, the Shapeshifters, and the serial killer ghost were vanquished by using spells from the Book. The others merely gave them information on how to defeat them, and maybe potions.

Yeah, the girls manage to overcome their fears and then midnight strikes, which ends Barbas' stay on earth. So no spell. And I think that all but one of his three reappearances were pretty much explained: in season 5 he manages to escape purgatory, and in season 6 he is summoned by higher beings. His season 2 appearance is the only real one without a "plausible" explanation.

Now, indeed, there wasn't that much time to show every vanquished demon returning to the world of the living -- that's even ASSUMING that all past generations have written every single spell they cast in the Book. After all, Penny had her little black book, so others before her could have notebooks for spells that wouldn't be required later. After all, except for demons with the ability to return every so many years, i.e. Javna, Barbas, the Spider Demon, etc. and breeds of demons à la Vampires, Kazis, etc., once a demon's vanquished, he's vanquished so there would have been no need for the witch that killed him/her to write the spell down in the Book. Am I making myself clear?

Brandon: Jenny was a teenager, enough said

[Criminally Vulgar]

May 8, 2010 19:46:00 GMT Temporal Death said:

About Barbas, I'm pretty sure they didn't use a spell from the Book to vanquish him. Prue simply throws him telekinetically and overcomes her fear or whatever.

Oh yeah. Mmkay, nevermind that one. lol Just overthinking things again, haha

And now that I look back, excluding the evils that were shown in the episode, only Javna, the Shapeshifters, and the serial killer ghost were vanquished by using spells from the Book. The others merely gave them information on how to defeat them, and maybe potions.

So perhaps those were back in the Charmed-verse? Iunno. A possible reason for them to not return all of the other evil that was vanquished, and hey, this might seem a little farfetched, but maybe, just maybe, it was because it was a 42-45 minute show? No? Silly theory then, ignore me.

Also true, but given the fact that they were still in the Book when they were reversed, they should be running loose... :s And I know that there were time restraints (Prue's TK shot in the opening credits is a deleted scene from 2x01), so it's understandable as to why they didn't bring back every evil they've faced thus far, but I don't think it'd be too hard for them to at least mention something like "thank god we vanquished Abraxas, now everything's back to normal again" (yeah, there's a reason I'm not a writer. lol), if only just to address the fact that all the spells he undid had no effect on the rest of the series.

Also, who hated Jenny?

Don't even get me started. lol From the second she showed up at their door, "can I borrow your phone! please it's an emergency!" -_- iCringed.

BUT, since I'm watching it with a fresh eye, and haven't gotten to the rest of the season, I don't really want to pass judgement on her just yet. But I will return. lol

[Glenn]

It could be that some demons that were vanquished by Grams or Patty were unvanquished again by Abraxas but just didn't go after the Charmed Ones immediately. But then, wouldn't they disappear again after Abraxas was vanquished, since he brought them back? Anyway, I also thought that by the time Abraxas was reversing the "A Spell to Invoke the Power of Three" spell (not Dominus Trinus) more demons would have been brought back.

Jenny, I liked her... when she left.