Charmed - Series 1 (Box Set) > Reviews > Charmed Season 1

Author's product rating:   

Did you enjoy it?	Loved it
Story	Outstanding
Characters / Performances	Outstanding
Special Effects	Outstanding
How does it compare to similar films?	Outstanding

Advantages:	22 episodes to watch over and over again
Disadvantages:	No extra features .  .  . unfortunately

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

I am writing this review on Charmed Series 1, which is where it all begins there is 8 series in total unfortunately there will not be a series 9 which i am gutted about as it really was a good program to watch.

About Charmed

It is based around 3 witches, who are sisters and are the "power of three" very strong modern day witches. The 3 Halliwell sisters are Piper (Holly Marie Combs), Phoebe (Alyssa Milano) and Prue (Shannon Doherty). Its only when there grandma "Gramps" dies and they inherit the luxury house (this is the base for the show and spoken of as the Manor) and found "the book of shadows", Pheobe is the one who finds it and reads out aloud the first page which is off course a spell to give the 3 sisters there powers. They protect the innocent and vanquish the evil demons and off course being sisters they bicker alot!! There mum died when they was young to a water demon, there dad divorced there mum when they was younger as the mum went off with her "white lighter" these are basically guardian angels which guide the witches along there way, The 3 girls do have a white lighter called Leo (Brian Krause), Leo makes out that he is a handy man to help out for odd jobs around the house but it is until phoebe catches him orbing that his secret is no longer a secret, but will the other sisters believe her?? So the girls were raised by there "gramps". They come from a line of witches in there family.

The 3 sisters and their powers

• Piper (Holly Marie Combs) can freeze time (Piper is very much for her family and the middle sister and she is always caught in the middle)
• Prue (Shannon Doherty) can move things with her mind (Prue is into her work and the eldest sister)
• Phoebe (Alyssa Milano) can see the furture (Pheobe is very easy going, the naughty one, the youngest of the trio)

The Dvd set comes in 6 disc, in a purple colour box sleeve and when you take the sleeve off inside it opens like a book.(All three girls are on the front)

Disc 1

"Something Wicca This Way Comes" - is the pilot epidsope where you see Pheobe find the book and they recieve there powers, but little do they know that they have to fight demons as they are the "pray" for the demons!
"I've Got You Under My Skin" - Pheobe cant resist a peek into the future, this epidsode is based on a photographer and they learn that there first lesson in witch craft is that demons come in all shapes and sizes!
"Thank You For Not Morphing" - There father Victor Halliwell is introduced in this one, they are really happy to see him but Prue is suspicious he is here for other reasons than seeing his 3 daughters, she is right!!
"Dead Man Dating" - Its Prues birthday and she is avoiding the celebrations, Piper becomes involved in a ghost which was killed by a gang leader to make out he is someone else who died, The sisters must save his soul and Piper gets very attached to him, They learn a valuable lesson about life.
(personally this is an emotional one for me, i love every bit of it and is one of my favourites)

Disc 2

"Dream Sorcerer" - An overworked Prue battles a sleep demon in the guise of a handsome man, while Pheobe casts a spell to attact men which backfires.
"The Wedding From Hell" - A demon Bride-to-be is only interested in creating more demonic babies, the sisters battle her in the wedding party but is thwarted by Prue's won investigation of a mysterious knife??
"The Forth Sister" - Aviva (Dannielle Harris) is a troubled teenager and befriends Pheobe with the hopes of becoming apart of the Halliwell Sisters, Aviva has a mirror which a witch is actually in a bit like Snow White...who wants the Halliwells powers, Aviva manages to cause conflicts between the 3 sisters especially Prue and Pheobe as Prue knows she is up to no good!!
"The Truth is Out There And It Hurts" - The sisters cast a truth spell which makes them have to tell and hear the truth for 24 hours, this epidsode is very humourous- its a must watch!!

Disc 3

"The Witch is Back" - Prue comes across a locket which holds a very angry warlock inside and is furious as one of the halliwell ancestors trapped him inside!! Prue gets attacked by the warlock who is played by Billy Wirth, The problem is the warlock can copy powers...can the chamed ones stop him??
"Wicca Envy" - Prue's boss who is a secret demon called Rex (Neil Roberts) frames poor Prue for stealing a priceless tiara and she ends up in jail. The sisters manage to jailbreak Prue out of jail and catch the nasty demon.
"Feats of Clay" - Pheobe's ex boyfriend Clay (Victor Browne) comes back into town looking to get back with Phoebe but as usual there are strings attach, he brings with him an egyptain urn which is cursed which the charms one have to deal with.
"The Windigo" - A supernatural creature attacks piper and she turns into a windigo, Prue and Pheobe have to vanquish the beast in order to save Prue, But its he middle of night and they are in the woods how can the sisters know which one is Piper as they look so similiar....

Disc 4

"From Fear to Eternity" - Every 1,300 years a demon appears who feeds on people fears, he can make there fears come to life and he targets the girls...Prue's fear is of water and receives help from the spirit of her mum to help her through her fear as she is near to death. (This is a personal favourite of mine, i really enjoy it as shows you how close the sisters really are and how prue feels it is quite an emotional one too)
"Sercets and Guys" - A kidnapped boy (David Netter) who has special powers sends Prue a cryptic cry for help...In search of the boy leads to unveilling of a special secret about Leo....
"Is There A Woogy In The House?" - Phoebe's fear of a "woogy man" who lives in the basement of there house has always been such amusement for the two other sisters, But until now they realise she wasn't making it up, there is an earthquake which unleashes the shadow demon and it takes over pheobe and turns her against her sisters, it is only that Pheobe remembers the story as her "gramps" told her it as a child that she can vanquish the shadow demon,
"Which Prue is it Anyway" - This is a personal favourite again...Prue casts a spell to multiply her strenghts but she multiple herself so there is 3 of her and the only way they can tell the Prue's apart is by the colour of the jumpers they wear. (very comical this one is)

Disc 5

"That 70's Episode" - A definate one to watch absolutely brilliant, the girls go back into time in order to save themselves from a demon who wears a ring that is immune to there powers as there mum blessed the ring when the girls were little, You see little Prue and Piper in this one, and you meet gramps...with the help of the girls mum and gramps can they unbless the ring...
"When Bad Warlocks Turn Good" - Pheobe tries to help Piper make a love connection in this one while Prue meets an old friend who has traded his life to become a demon can Prue and her sisters save him??
"Out of Sight" - A child has been kidnapped by a grimlock and the girls must save him, Prue secret is shattered when a reporter sees her using her powers.
"The Power of Two" - Piper has gone to meet the "elders" (higher than whitelighters) with Leo, with Piper not around, Prue and Pheobe have to work out how to vanquish a ghost of a serial killer before he murders someone again...

Disc 6

"Love Hurts" - Leo asks the Halliwell sisters to protect an innocent woman who is being stalked by a demonic suitor...Piper finally learns how much she loves Leo when he is hurt and dying and she has to say goodbye...but she learns the key to saving Leo...
"Deja Vu All Over Again" - This one is a favourite too it is brilliant and emotional...the sisters have to relive the same day over and over again...as the tiem sorcerer Tempus Fugit (Davis Carradine) has created a loophole...Its is a race against time as the sisters try to get themselves out of the recurring fates...unfortunately Prue loses her love in this one, which is why it is a bit sad and emotional...

It is Rated suitable for persons of 12 and over

Total running time is 929 minutes
Subtitles available

I brought this dvd when it first came out for £42 but now you can get it much cheaper, on play.com it is currently priced at £24.99.

It is a really good series unfortunately there are no extras which is a real shame to be honest as it would have been really good to have seen some out-takes and interviews etc..I got into this as i really liked the film The Craft with the school girl witches etc...and one day i was at my aunts and she was watching it, from that day on i was hooked, i loved every minute of it...the only thing i hated was the adverts luckily you dont have them on the dvd. Some people do say that this is kind of on the lines of Buffy, I think not, it is totally different. It stands out from other witch/vampire shows etc...There is something for everyone in the shows which make it so sucessful, as you see the girls dealing with losing loved ones, Pheobe past of a terror teen is always brought up along with her taste in men and stealing her sisters boyfriends etc...I would definately recommend buying and watching Charmed, it is one of those shows you will get hooked and never get tired of it.