"What Went Wrong With 'CHARMED'?"

[TMC]

https://seldonp38.livejournal.com/538760.html

Morality:

For me, this was a major problem with the series. The audience was led to believe that the Halliwell sisters aka the Charmed Ones were the epitome of goodness, yet the writers have allowed them to get away with some very despicable acts. I am not one of those who demand that protagonists of a fictional story - whether in print, movies, plays or television - be flawless or ideal. I realize this is impossible, due to human nature. But I believe that when a work of fiction allows its protagonist to make a mistake or crime, I believe the writers should allow that character to face the consequences of his or her actions. Unfortunately, this rarely happened on "CHARMED" - especially in regard to the Charmed Ones and their whitelighter, Leo Wyatt. On the other hand, the Charmed Ones, Leo and the series' show runners and writers made certain that others - like Cole Turner - pay the price for their actions. Whether they deserved it or not.

Portrayal of Men:

Another problem I had with "CHARMED" was its portrayal of many male characters. I understand that the series had wanted to portray women in a positive light - strong and intelligent. There was nothing wrong with that. By why did the series' portrayal of men had to be basically negative? "CHARMED" was supposed to be about feminism. However, my idea of feminism was not male bashing or emasculation. Unfortunately, the series was guilty of both. During most of Seasons One and Two, the sisters had a tendency to make many unnecessary quips at the expense of the male gender. And there was the (2.05) "She’s a Man, Baby! She’s a Man!" episode that I would dearly love to forget. And what happened to male witches? I can only recall seeing one so-called male witch on the show - Max Franklin from (1.14) "Secrets and Guys" - and at age thirteen, he was too young to be practicing witchcraft.

Magical Powers:

How can I put this? One of the more confusing aspects of "CHARMED" has always been its portrayal of magic. The series' portrayal of magical beings and various abilities have struck me as contradicting. Another problem with the series was that the show runners and the writers had allowed its black-and-white mentally to label what kind of abilities that its characters can practice.