"Charmed" The Courtship of Wyatt's Father (2004)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Joel J. Feigenbaum

Writers:

Constance M. Burge (creator)
Brad Kern (writer)

TV Series:

"Charmed" (1998)

Original Air Date:

22 February 2004 (Season 6, Episode 16)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Fantasy | Mystery | Romance

Plot:

A darklighter accidentally sends Leo and Piper to another plane of existence. |

Plot Keywords:

Wiccan | Reference To Oprah Winfrey | Sisters | Witchcraft | Demon

Cast

Alyssa Milano	...	Phoebe Halliwell
Rose McGowan	...	Paige Matthews
Holly Marie Combs	...	Piper Halliwell
Brian Krause	...	Leo Wyatt
Drew Fuller	...	Chris Halliwell
Edoardo Ballerini	...	Damien
Lou Beatty Jr.	...	Clarence
Bruno Gioiello	...	Lieutenant Darklighter
Derrick McMillon	...	ER Doctor
Gildart Jackson	...	Gideon
John Eric Staley	...	Darklighter (as Jon Erik)
Linda Tran	...	Sara
Ellis Williams	...	Bus Driver (as Ellis E. Williams)
Wayne Mitchell	...	Frank
Jenni Pulos	...	Mom #1

Runtime:

42 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Certification:

Mexico:B | USA:TV-PG

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

The title refers to the television series and movie entitled The Courtship of Eddie's Father (1963).

Quotes:

Phoebe Halliwell: Somebody's got a bunch of Darklighters after us and one of them's got Piper and Leo trapped.
Paige Matthews: In the ghostly plane.
Phoebe Halliwell: Or the spirit realm.
Gideon: Same thing.
Phoebe Halliwell: Right. We made contact with them but then we lost them.
Paige Matthews: And we lost Chris too, although we're not sure why because she can tell if Piper's dead.
Phoebe Halliwell: Yeah, and I can't.
Paige Matthews: So she must still be around somewhere, we just don't know where.
Phoebe Halliwell: So we need to figure out how to use the Darklighter's portal to get them out.
Paige Matthews: And if you follow all that, you really are a *very* powerful Elder.

Movie Connections:

References "The Oprah Winfrey Show" (1986)

Soundtrack:

Strict Machine

He's dying to be born

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

This is a good, solid episode with huge stakes, a lot of action, an eerie trip to another plane and a major revelation at the end, so what could I complain about ? Chris has been increasingly (and understandably) worried about being conceived and he's gotten his two aunts to help him -none too subtly and none too efficiently. As the deadline (isn't that word apt ?) approaches, he starts to fade away and even meets an Angel of Death -though that part feels a bit like a filler.

However, logically enough, we mostly focus on Leo and Piper and on the big question : will do it or not ? Unfortunately, someone wants Leo killed and Darklighters start popping out all over the place, so romance is a bit low on everybody's priorities... until Leo and Piper find themselves stranded in the ghostly plane : an empty, greyish, magic-less place which only dying people can reach. And by an extraordinary coincidence, they've got one at hand ! The transitions from one plane to the other are well done and the hints that allow the sisters to be reunited create a very tight plot. The atmosphere in the ghostly plane is nicely eerie, with the added tension of having a persistent crossbowman hunt Leo.

The episode's conclusion also offers a lot of great moments : Chris's triumphant "YES!" when he reappears, Leo's painful decision to leave his family, Piper's look of astonished wonder when she discovers that Chris is her son (by the way, is it me or is the camera very carefully avoiding her stomach?). And finally, the big revelation that the Big Bad is actually good old Gideon. The thing is, technically he's not really evil. Just very pragmatic, sacrificing people like pawns for what he considers as "a greater good". So the season's stakes go up one big notch as poor little Wyatt is now targeted by the Underworld AND an Elder. It's becoming very difficult to draw a line between good and evil, and over the next years, the words "for the Greater Good" are going to become a very, very dubious motto.