'Charmed' season 2: New villains, more mysteries, and a new world emerges as the reboot presses the reset button for the Vera-Vaughn sisters
Spoiler Alert for the Season 2 premiere of the 'Charmed' Reboot!
'Charmed' is back with its second season and it looks like it has attempted to cut off any ties with the original show. This may prove to be a good thing. With new storylines, the reboot will have its own mysteries and demons for the Vera-Vaughn sisters to overcome, and now with Harry as the only Whitelighter left in the world, things look dire for them.
"Man" in a Mask
As the episode starts, the sisters are celebrating Maggie's birthday. Both Maggie and Macy are in the party spirit -- possibly to forget their significant others whom they recently lost -- but Mel is thriving in her role as leader and protector of the magical community. She wants to focus more on the witches asking her help to locate their Whitelighters. Mel tells her sisters they have to be more careful, but hey, it's Maggie's birthday, so she agrees to relax for one night.
That turns out to be a mistake as in the middle of a hangover the next day, they are ambushed by a mysterious hooded demon in a mask, so powerful even their Power of Three can't stop them. This demon then destroys the Book of Shadows, which opens up an emergency portal for the sisters. The sisters are able to go through, but not before the demon's weapon hits Macy. Harry, unfortunately, is left behind.
Elders HQ
The sisters find themselves transported to what looks like a control room for the Elders, which is now empty because all the Elders were killed last season. The sisters learn that they have been stripped of their powers, which means they cannot be traced by any magical being, "witchness protection" as Macy calls it. This "HQ" is somewhere in Seattle and while the sisters leave it to see where they are, we are introduced to the new characters - Katrina, who runs a botanical shop and Jordan, a gym trainer. When Maggie asks Jordan for some medical supplies to treat Macy, Jordan is surprisingly antagonistic.
While they debate whether or not to wait for Harry or go looking for answers themselves, Macy is getting worse. The reboot has been updated for 2019 as the Elders are high-tech now. They monitor witches around the world through a digital map that projects a blue light for every witch. When Maggie sees a big red button, she pushes it, opening a portal to a town in Seattle -- where the red light indicates a witch in trouble. Before the sisters go through it,
Rats in Seattle
As the sisters walk into a bed-and-breakfast, they are attacked by rat demons. Without their powers, Mel uses rat poison to kill one of them, while Macy uses her still-intact demon powers to fry the other one. Then another demon shows up, saying there is a war now and that the demons are coming for the witches -- they have already started killing them.
Macy and "Harry"
With Macy drifting in and out of consciousness, she hallucinates a version of Harry. But this Harry gives off suspicious vibes and keeps asking her to come home. It mostly is caused by the wound from the demon's weapon. As she keeps seeing this Harry, we are also getting very intimate vibes and this could be what the showrunners meant when they said they would explore Harry and Macy's relationship in an unexpected way.
We're not in Hilltown anymore
Harry then shows up and transports the sisters back to the Elders HQ. He removes the poison in Maggie by absorbing it, leaving him weaker. They also find the Book of Elders which will be what the sisters now consult for the magical spells and potions.
Surprisingly, not the biggest spoiler in the episode, but it looks like 'Charmed' will be set in Seattle from now on as Harry leads them outside, saying they can never go back to Hilltown for their own safety. The good thing is, their house is now bound to them, so they will have a place to live in Seattle -- probably a good thing since house-hunting could make for a very boring episode.
There's Something About Harry
Harry is shaken up by the fact that he is the only Whitelighter remaining -- although, now that the sisters have the Book of Elders, we could maybe see more Whitelighters being created along the way. Harry had died while fighting the mysterious demon, and for some unknown reason, he was resurrected. But it is something else that leaves him more disturbed. As he was fighting the demon, he manages to pull off the mask, only to face himself under the hood. The demon "Harry" is who killed the real Harry.
The season 2 premiere has certainly shed off most of what was there from season 1. Does this mean we don't get to see Niko or Lucy or others from Hilltown? It is possible the sisters might be able to move back to their hometown, but presumably not for a while. In this new world, the sisters are again given the choice of whether they want to start anew or continue their fight. This time, without the pressure of an imminent demon attack, the sisters readily agree to keep on fighting.
We also have to consider the sisters have no magical powers except for Macy's demon powers, and therefore no Power of Three. This leaves them defenseless if they are attacked by more powerful demons. Perhaps with the Book of Elders, they might find a way to get their powers back. We also see something develop between Macy and Harry from her hallucinations, and it is more likely the relationship we will get to see is one between her and the demon "Harry".
The second season feels more cinematic with more urgent and serious threats, and the pacing has also vastly improved within the first episode. This holds promise for a bright season ahead.
'Charmed' airs on The CW on Friday nights.
