Charmed was the golden show of my childhood. Following the fiercest trio ever, Piper, Phoebe and Prue (Paige in later series); each episode was filled with kickass demon showdowns and the now-relatable world of 20 somethings navigating post-grad life. Seriously where are these post-teen, pre-serious-thriller shows now?! I'm having major withdrawals ...
So I'll admit when I first heard about the reboot, I was skeptical but hopeful. I loved the series and was open to seeing a new direction or expansion of the Charmed universe. But then came the trailer .... and that changed everything. Granted this is only two-minute preview, but lord ... I've seen enough. Purely based on this alone, I have no doubt that the Charmed Reboot will be cancelled after it's first season. This is why ....
1. Unoriginal Jigsaw Plot Collage
To take an already brilliant show and slice together every single plotline created is not only insulting, but it's sour as hell to the original creators and my fangirl soul. They've exploited a pre-made series and sandwiched together the entire first four seasons for a way to make 'easy money'. Why the hell would I want to watch that, when I can just see the original?
If you are going to recreate the power of three, at least do it with style and with new storylines that embrace the spirit of the fandom. Or better yet, why not look into a spin-off series with Wyatt and Chris, or Patty? New material, new take on the Charmed world. Win-win for all.
2. Caricature Characters
Every single character is literally a replica of the original cast, and that is a dangerous move to play CW. Taking a beloved show and recreating characters, you have to do it really well or not at all. It just makes this look cheap already - and that's before we've even discussed the terrible special effects! I mean seriously, trying to turn sage-dad Leo into a pseudo-sexy whitelighter with a British accent to add the 'exotic' factor ... it feels so ungenuine. Just no.
3. Not Another Teen Drama
Why did this feel like I was watching a mashup of Pretty Little Liars, Shadowhunters and almost every single teen TV drama on the air right now? Even if I could look past the above, the Charmed reboot could not stand its own without the branded name. It lacks charm and intrigue. Every cliche in is literally packed in there!
Where's the spirit and the heart of this show? Why do I feel like fake-Patty is lecturing me rather than offering me soul guidance? Why do I not feel any empathy towards the girls for losing their mum? I just don't believe the character's struggles. With that, I have no sense of attachment what so ever.
4. Too Soon
To bring back a series as a completely new show, it needs to be either different telling in this era or forgotten by the previous generation. Charmed only ended 12 years ago. Not only do we remember it well, but there is also nothing unique about this reboot. There aren't any major major changes in terms of life experiences. Save from modern technology advancing and all ...
The only thing great about this is to see women of colour take centre-stage, but that does nothing to improve the creative choices made, does it?
In conclusion, the creators could have explored the universe outside of the original show by following the Charmed legacy. But instead, the CW saw a chance to make 'easy money' by exploiting an already well-established story and dedicated fanbase ... You brought in nothing new and that at the moment had really diminished any hope of success it could have had. I doubt this will outlive its time off the air like Charmed has. Feel free to prove me wrong. I'll be waiting ...
What do you think of the Charmed Reboot so far? Let's discuss!
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