Charmed: Blind Sided (1.19)

It's funny seeing all these episodes featuring the first use of a notable plot device, all of which would end up getting run into the ground over the following seven seasons. But, when this show was young, fresh and new, something like the sisters being threatened by an outsider who wants to expose their powers is remarkably effective. And it's also interesting to see the show coming up with some neat resolutions to the story, instead of pulling a ridiculous slice of retcon from their butts to wiggle the storyline away from a dead end.

The late Scott Plank is hilariously sleazy as tabloid reporter Eric Lohman, and his interaction with the sisters (Prue, especially) is fun. He's a guest character with actual fire, played with real conviction and presented as somebody entirely worthless. No last-minute redemption moment for this guy.

Equally great is the demon storyline. The Grimlocks are the first real monsters in a while, and there's a surprising amount of creepiness about their whole existence: abducting children, blinding them, finally killing them. It's pretty darn nasty, which is a little out of the ordinary for Charmed.

In terms of the sisters, this is also a fine episode. Prue's powers evolve so she now can channel them out of her hands (I guess Shannen requested no more close-ups of her noted eye-wonk, heh), Piper came to the inevitable conclusion that she's still hung-up on Leo and dumped that charisma vaccuum she's been dating for a while, and Phoebe has a neat subplot with the only surviving Grimlock victim. Andy also discovers the girls' powers, and it lead to a classy ending. Instead of running and screaming, he's actually trying to deal with the discovery. Where do they go from here?, he asks Prue. Indeed. A

Credits
Guest stars Shawn Christian (Josh); Scott Plank (Eric Lohman); Raphael Sbarge (Brent Miller); Scott Terra (David); Matt George (Grimlock)
Writers Tony Blake, Paul Jackson Director Craig Zisk