Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Charmed: Awakened (2.12)

I've mentioned it several times before, but for this episode I once again need to reiterate that logic was never Charmed's strong suit. Nevertheless, I never really understood why Leo and the Elders wouldn't step in when one of the sisters was endangered. In Awakened, Piper lies dying on a hospital bed, and reference is made to Leo not even being the Charmed Ones' Whitelighter anymore. When did this happen? I thought his powers were just taken away? Or am I blanking? Regardless, the sisters are seemingly without any kind of protection at this point, leaving them open to fatal attack. It just seems all so reckless and ridiculous. Won't somebody think of the [Charmed Ones]!!??

Awakened is very much an episode of two halves. The first half is a pretty underwhelming medical drama, with Piper afflicted with a disease and stuck in a hospital bed, Phoebe being shrill and obnoxious with the hospital staff, and an annoying ninja doll coming to life. Then, midway through, things suddenly become interesting. The idea of long-term consequences to saving Piper's life and not the countless others threatened by the same virus is intriguing, while the imagery of Piper's 'death' and her subsequent resurrection is profoundly moving.

I don't think Awakened is the classic so many folks claim it is (a lot of the hour involves treading water, and the tone veers from cloying sentimentality to silly sitcom shtick constantly), but it is a pretty strong hour in general. It's kind of buried in the middle of a bunch of pretty awful episodes, though, so I find it a little forgettable. Eh. C+

Crimes of Fashion There was always a rumor (not really) that Eilish was frequently found in trash cans, hunting down old rags to use for her costume designs. Clearly Phoebe is showcasing Eilish's latest discovery in her final scene at P3. Yep, she does appear to be wearing the rear of some denim jeans as a shirt. Obviously. And it's pretty funny to see that the Eilish Monster has tapered in the sister's hospital gowns, making even the drabbest of outfits boob-heavy.

Credits
Guest stars Brian Krause (Leo Wyatt); Matthew Glave (Dr. Curtis Williamson); Andrew Ducote (Nathan); Lochlyn Munro (Jack Sheridan)
Writers Vivian Mayhew, Valerie Mayhew Director Anson Williams

3 comments:

  1. I always thought it was such a cop out post-season 3/4, when Leo could suddenly heal everybody in the whole wide world ever without getting permission and he could also just orb anyone anywhere, even though I'm sure he said in one episode that he was just going to do it the once.
    Of course, I know that this was only done so that the sisters were never ever in any real danger, there were no high stakes, no tense moments and that Brad Kern hates us.

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  2. Heh, absolutely. It's a major cop out that I always disliked. It just takes away any real threat or danger.

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