Harry is now living
with the Charmed Ones which comes with funny little misunderstandings around
the bathroom which apparently doesn’t have a lock. What bathrooms don’t have a
lock?
Also Harry in a dressing gown? Yes. Yes we can have that. Yes yes we can. Oh yes
This episode actually
contains a lot of good which is a little surprising after the last couple
episodes have kind of raised progressive issues and then dumped all over them…
but this kind of followed through and then dropped something pretty awful to
ruin it all.
So, the elders have
the Book of Shadows for vetting and research and everyone has relationship
issues. Maggie feels super guilty because Parker kissed her and now he’s dumped
Lucy and she’s super super sad and is recruiting Maggie to try and figure out
who Parker is cheating on her with. Which is awkward. And Macy is having
problems because Galvin has pretty much given up on her and is now with
beautiful, successful woman Summer.
But the main issue is
Mel. Last episode Tripp, Niko’s partner, was killed and the elders both faked
his suicide and had him confess to being a serial killer in his suicide note
and dumped lots of evidence on him as well. Needless to say Niko is pretty
traumatised by this - not only that a man she cared about and respected killed
themselves and was a serial killer but she’s a detective and noticed nothing so
she’s beginning to doubt her own abilities and self worth and believing
everyone who disparaged her.
Naturally seeing this
utter self destruction in the woman she loves is devastating for Mel. But Niko
has received messages from Tripp which point to him having evidence about the
death of witch elders - several women being murdered including Mel’s mother.
She also learns that Tripp has hidden evidence including DNA - she’s super
excited about this and thinks Mel will get on board because, of course, Mel has
been insisting her mother was murdered since the first episode. This is why Niuko
broke up with her - because of her obsession with her mother’s murder. So Mel
suddenly saying that nah they shouldn’t investigate this strikes Niko as rather
odd.
But there’s motive -
a shapeshifting demon is trying to track down this information and that
evidence and is willing to kill to do it. He’s faking being an FBI agent, is
able to assume Tripp’s shape and follows Niko to Tripp’s fishing cabin where he
has lots of evidence for the conspiracy and hidden witch elder DNA. As one
does. Niko finds it (honestly her only just remembering this exists kind of
makes me think that maybe she isn’t that brilliant a detective) and the
shapeshifter arrives to knock her out and set the place on fire with eerie
green hellflame. Mel manages to save her despite the time magic resistance
The demon makes
another attempt in the hospital, stopped only because Mel realises there’s two
nurses and actually (and perhaps most shockingly) calls Harry for help - he’s
also been the one offering most comfort and support for her in this hard time.
I like this because it’s dealing with their antagonistic relationship and
developing a new level between them.
To the others - Macy
is super jealous of Summer who has an amazing resume and is just practically
perfect in every way and Maggie suggests (having read her mind to get in on the
whole drama) that she’s a demon. Macy refuses adamantly to demonise another
woman in the name of jealousy but Maggie suggests that maybe Summer is an
actual demon. Consulting Harry, he concedes she could be a succubus and gives
some pointers on how to identify one (I actually like the idea that demons with
wings and tails etc hide them but then replicate them as tattoos because it’s
overtly giving the nod to a trope that is used a lot with little explanation).
And she has those tattoos.
My eyes rolled -
because saying it’s wrong to demonise women is easy when the writers will go on
to demonise her for you: this is a tool we’ve
seen used a lot. But they
don’t go there - the two sisters try to banish her which doesn’t work because
she’s not actually a demon. She’s just a skilled, educated, successful,
beautiful woman - and one decent enough to put her boyfriend’s ex acting like a
fool as one of those things she’s willing to let go and cover up. Points to
Summer and points to the writers - a competitive love interest who isn’t evil?
My applause.
Galvin does have a
weird mark on him - which Macy manages to copy while also recognising his point
that she has repeatedly turned Galvin’s invitations down and he has every
reason to think that she’s not interested.
A break up where
everyone is respectful and understanding and reasonable! I AM SHOCKED SHOCKED
SHOCKED!
While Maggie finally
succumbs to guilt and tells Lucy that she was the one who kissed Parker -
especially since Parker is clear that he broke up with Lucy because he had
feelings for her. And again, I have to give kudos because even though Lucy is
super angry with Maggie for this and is willing to cut her from kappa, she’s
not demonised for this. At no point does this episode present Lucy as the bad
guy or having anything less than legitimate reasons to be angry with Maggie
here - nor does Maggie deny her own guilt. Again, it would have been easy - and
typical - to demonise Lucy in order to make Maggie look justified or give her
moral high ground. But instead Lucy has been nothing but good and trusting
towards Maggie.
So good stuff. Now
for the not good
So Mel is concerned
that she cannot keep Niko safe from demons - and that these demons are
targeting her because she’s in a relationship with Mel. More, that Niko
wouldn’t even be in the demon rich neighbourhood if she hadn’t transferred to
be with Mel.
She decides to solve
this by casting a power of three spell to alter time - so Mel and Niko never
met. A spell that will have lots of knock on consequences and leave the four of
them with only memories of their time together (including erasing photographs -
and all that evidence that Tripp collected). Harry also reveals that
Whitelighters go through something similar - when raised as whitelighters they
have their memories of their past lives erased so they won’t be distracted.
All upset, Mel
insists they go ahead and in an utterly tragic scene, Niko is removed from
Mel’s life.
Hey, we have feminist
Charmed with a lesbian lead and she has a relationship and her love
interest finally has an episode focusing on her before having that relationship
not just end but be COMPLETELY ERASED
Charmed you need to fix this.
So some more
aftermath I need to address before I leave to fume. So much fuming:
Because Niko wasn’t
around to wake Mel up for an interview she no longer has her job.
And learning Harry’s
tragic past the sister decide to embrace him as family which he finds very
emotional and American
We learn the Hunter
was actually after witch DNA which was among the episode and now he has to
focus on the Charmed ones. And he’s working for some super rich science guy who
all of Macy’s colleagues are rhapsodising over. Science guy is obviously evil
but honestly he was called Alistair Caine. No character is called Alistair
Caine without being evil. Alistair is already super suspicious but you could,
maybe, spin it as sinister antihero. Add in Caine and there’s no way he’s not a
villain
