Anti Charmed discussion?

[sol]

Any of you have ever thought that all the sarcastic criticism addressed to Charmed may inhibit any debate?


It’s one thing if we talk of the plot the episodes, the characters chatting pleasantly even when we disagree but it's different if we obsessively only talk about now mucht the writers were awful, the sisters were awful, the children were awful, all disgusting
except season one and Prue

I think that those who loved Charmed, who grew up enjoing Charmed, followed the story of the sisters for eight years, loving in a different way-for example I do not like so much the venerated second season- the various seasons, never will have the desire to talk about it here

The members are many, but few speak, too many disappear, perhaps because it is politically correct only the extreme criticism, very close to disdain


Can be a room for those who still love the sisters or it's mandatory to argue endlessly about Kern, Spelling etc?

[Deleted]

The members are many, but few speak, too many disappear, perhaps because it is politically correct only the extreme criticism, very close to disdain

This is happening not just here, Soledad, but at many message boards.

The main reason is the rise of Social Media like Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr.  A lot of people, particularly the younger crowd, prefer those, to message boards, because there are far fewer rules, and no Moderators.  Also, there is no "clubhouse" mentality that can form at a lot of boards that a new member might find intimidating.

And even if you don't factor Social Media in, another problem that all message boards have are people I call Sleepers.  These people join, but never post, or they make one or two posts, and then are never heard from again.  Why they go through all the bother of joining a board, never to take part on it, is a mystery to me.

Sadly, it seems that the age of the Message Boards is slowly coming to an end.  It has nothing to do with the like of dislike of Charmed, but rather a changing Internet. 

[erikamarie]

Maybe if we talk of Charmed, forgetting the writers, ceasing to simplify the problems, because in the magic world of the television productions the economic criteria are the first in the ranking list, before show runner and producers, the Cafè will become more attractive

[Esmeralda]

Agreed, totally. But what exactly do you mean by "ceasing to simplify the problems?"

[erikamarie]

I meant that a production is complex process, but here all is simple, it's enough to blame Kern
Only Spelling had the power to fire Doherty, everyone knows that Kern could not have any say in the matter; hard to know what happens but Doherty was convinced that she must be the undisputed protagonist, Spelling knew that the approval ratings indicated Phoebe as the most popular character
Among them, things must have gone very wrong seeing that Spelling has practically canceled two seasons already written
I like the fourth season but it is true that the following seasons are obviously botched, it was impossible otherwise having squeezed two seasons in one and then it was a normal resulting that they were running out ideas for the fifth season
It's easier to write a story than a script,a writer has to tell the story using only dialogues, Charmed was highly appreciated by the language often humorous and fun, I can easily imagine all the difficulties faced after the third season: it was a pity, but it happened, Spelling took the risk

This is Charmed Cafè not I hate Brad Kern Cafè, it's always nice to talk of the sisters

[Deleted]

Sorry, Erikamarie, but you're wrong here.  Spelling may have been in overall charge, but he had nothing to do with the day to day running of Charmed.  That was Brad Kern's job.  Any major decision regarding Charmed, including the hiring and firing of people, was his call to make.

Brad Kern, not Aaron Spelling, fired Shannen.  As to why, well, we still don't know.  Nearly fifteen years later, and no one has given a clear answer as to what was going on. 

I wonder if someday, we'll see a tell all book on the subject.  That would be an interesting read.

[sol]

Erika was right, in an interview Shannon said openly she was fired by Aaron Spelling, I wrote it some time ago

what happened to prue???
Sep 23, 2015 at 6:10pm

About Shannen's layoff, I read years ago that the risk that Shannen was forced to leave Charmed had already presented when the filming of season 3 were in the middle, between late December 2000 and early January 2001, at the time of her arrest.
It was only thanks to the extension that she got that she was able to complete the season until April 2001, the month in which, among other things, she changed her statement of innocence in admission of guilt

Only Spelling and Shannen knew that this would have serious consequences on her work in Charmed
She admitted that in thas period she was very tense and nervous, even on the set and the rest of the staff, including Alyssa and Holly; however, they had no idea that such a thing could have happened
Then she was sentenced to three years of community work for five days a week but she had risked up to three years in prison

I also found an interview of Details Magazine, August 2001,by Brantley Bardiny in which she told that Spelling behaved exactly as he had all of Hollywood and that can crush anyone and anything that got in his way.

I found in a Spanish site so I translate

"Three years ago he asked me to be the star of his new series on the WB ... wanted me and no one else.
I was the main character in the show according to the contract, but suddenly Mr Spelling didn't want this: he wanted that Alyssa was the protagonist because Alyssa Milano is the most beloved and popular American actress, especially among the kids who make up the majority of the audience of the channel WB.
Alyssa did'nt want this because she wanted more time for herself, Aaron and the network, however, wanted only to promote Charmed as if Holly I and the rest of the cast count for nothing
The problem was not Alyssa: she first didn't like the situation. The problem was with the network and Aaron , their conception of what was best for the show.

You know what? "she says," I was tired: the lack of appreciation that Aaron is showing for me as a human being and as an actress is really too much. It 's like a big deja vu from BH90210.
He doesn't care about my views, my ideas and so on: they wanted a program for boys, is what they got, and well, I've had enough! "

Details Magazine, August 2001,by Brantley Bardiny: find that interview Shannen was very clear

In a Spanish Charmed site, where no one cares such a lot of writers and actors, I read a Shannen interview, while there was talk of her layof, in which she said that Brad Kern had written a lot of Prue as she wanted and asked

As mentioned above, Kern had made the story of the triangle to give more prominence to Prue character and he was in trouble due to the elimination of the character on which he had built part of the season


Apart Shannen, a showrunner can ask to remove an actor but the production has the power to do it

Mowever if you think of the interviews the story is clear: Shannen says she was hired as a protagonist not one of the three protagonists, Shannen endangered to block the third season with her judicial misadventures, Shannen didn't agree with Spelling 's decision, Shannen, tense for the fear of ending up in prison, caused a series of problems with the whole staff
Instead, Spelling had popularity data that indicate that Phoebe was the favorite sister and maybe he was fed up with Shannen claims: more money, more power, more visibility

It's easy to see how it would end

[Esmeralda]

Oct 12, 2015 13:35:35 GMT -5 erikamarie said:

I meant that a production is complex process, but here all is simple, it's enough to blame Kern
Only Spelling had the power to fire Doherty, everyone knows that Kern could not have any say in the matter; hard to know what happens but Doherty was convinced that she must be the undisputed protagonist, Spelling knew that the approval ratings indicated Phoebe as the most popular character
Among them, things must have gone very wrong seeing that Spelling has practically canceled two seasons already written
I like the fourth season but it is true that the following seasons are obviously botched, it was impossible otherwise having squeezed two seasons in one and then it was a normal resulting that they were running out ideas for the fifth season
It's easier to write a story than a script,a writer has to tell the story using only dialogues, Charmed was highly appreciated by the language often humorous and fun, I can easily imagine all the difficulties faced after the third season: it was a pity, but it happened, Spelling took the risk

This is Charmed Cafè not I hate Brad Kern Cafè, it's always nice to talk of the sisters

Ah, I get you now. Thanks for the explanation.

[Esmeralda]

Oct 13, 2015 3:10:34 GMT -5 sol said:

Erika was right, in an interview Shannon said openly she was fired by Aaron Spelling, I wrote it some time ago

what happened to prue???
Sep 23, 2015 at 6:10pm

About Shannen's layoff, I read years ago that the risk that Shannen was forced to leave Charmed had already presented when the filming of season 3 were in the middle, between late December 2000 and early January 2001, at the time of her arrest.
It was only thanks to the extension that she got that she was able to complete the season until April 2001, the month in which, among other things, she changed her statement of innocence in admission of guilt

Only Spelling and Shannen knew that this would have serious consequences on her work in Charmed
She admitted that in thas period she was very tense and nervous, even on the set and the rest of the staff, including Alyssa and Holly; however, they had no idea that such a thing could have happened
Then she was sentenced to three years of community work for five days a week but she had risked up to three years in prison

I also found an interview of Details Magazine, August 2001,by Brantley Bardiny in which she told that Spelling behaved exactly as he had all of Hollywood and that can crush anyone and anything that got in his way.

I found in a Spanish site so I translate

"Three years ago he asked me to be the star of his new series on the WB ... wanted me and no one else.
I was the main character in the show according to the contract, but suddenly Mr Spelling didn't want this: he wanted that Alyssa was the protagonist because Alyssa Milano is the most beloved and popular American actress, especially among the kids who make up the majority of the audience of the channel WB.
Alyssa did'nt want this because she wanted more time for herself, Aaron and the network, however, wanted only to promote Charmed as if Holly I and the rest of the cast count for nothing
The problem was not Alyssa: she first didn't like the situation. The problem was with the network and Aaron , their conception of what was best for the show.

You know what? "she says," I was tired: the lack of appreciation that Aaron is showing for me as a human being and as an actress is really too much. It 's like a big deja vu from BH90210.
He doesn't care about my views, my ideas and so on: they wanted a program for boys, is what they got, and well, I've had enough! "

Details Magazine, August 2001,by Brantley Bardiny: find that interview Shannen was very clear

In a Spanish Charmed site, where no one cares such a lot of writers and actors, I read a Shannen interview, while there was talk of her layof, in which she said that Brad Kern had written a lot of Prue as she wanted and asked

As mentioned above, Kern had made the story of the triangle to give more prominence to Prue character and he was in trouble due to the elimination of the character on which he had built part of the season


Apart Shannen, a showrunner can ask to remove an actor but the production has the power to do it

Mowever if you think of the interviews the story is clear: Shannen says she was hired as a protagonist not one of the three protagonists, Shannen endangered to block the third season with her judicial misadventures, Shannen didn't agree with Spelling 's decision, Shannen, tense for the fear of ending up in prison, caused a series of problems with the whole staff
Instead, Spelling had popularity data that indicate that Phoebe was the favorite sister and maybe he was fed up with Shannen claims: more money, more power, more visibility

It's easy to see how it would end

Yes, it is.

All part of why although I will always love Prue, I didn't like Shannen. She will always be one of my favorite actresses because she's so talented, but as a person, she had a lot of growing up to do. I'm glad that it appears that she has, just like Alyssa.

[Deleted]

what happened to prue???
Sep 23, 2015 at 6:10pm

About Shannen's layoff, I read years ago that the risk that Shannen was forced to leave Charmed had already presented when the filming of season 3 were in the middle, between late December 2000 and early January 2001, at the time of her arrest.
It was only thanks to the extension that she got that she was able to complete the season until April 2001, the month in which, among other things, she changed her statement of innocence in admission of guilt

Only Spelling and Shannen knew that this would have serious consequences on her work in Charmed
She admitted that in thas period she was very tense and nervous, even on the set and the rest of the staff, including Alyssa and Holly; however, they had no idea that such a thing could have happened
Then she was sentenced to three years of community work for five days a week but she had risked up to three years in prison

I also found an interview of Details Magazine, August 2001,by Brantley Bardiny in which she told that Spelling behaved exactly as he had all of Hollywood and that can crush anyone and anything that got in his way.

I found in a Spanish site so I translate

"Three years ago he asked me to be the star of his new series on the WB ... wanted me and no one else.
I was the main character in the show according to the contract, but suddenly Mr Spelling didn't want this: he wanted that Alyssa was the protagonist because Alyssa Milano is the most beloved and popular American actress, especially among the kids who make up the majority of the audience of the channel WB.
Alyssa did'nt want this because she wanted more time for herself, Aaron and the network, however, wanted only to promote Charmed as if Holly I and the rest of the cast count for nothing
The problem was not Alyssa: she first didn't like the situation. The problem was with the network and Aaron , their conception of what was best for the show.

You know what? "she says," I was tired: the lack of appreciation that Aaron is showing for me as a human being and as an actress is really too much. It 's like a big deja vu from BH90210.
He doesn't care about my views, my ideas and so on: they wanted a program for boys, is what they got, and well, I've had enough! "

Details Magazine, August 2001,by Brantley Bardiny: find that interview Shannen was very clear

In a Spanish Charmed site, where no one cares such a lot of writers and actors, I read a Shannen interview, while there was talk of her layof, in which she said that Brad Kern had written a lot of Prue as she wanted and asked

As mentioned above, Kern had made the story of the triangle to give more prominence to Prue character and he was in trouble due to the elimination of the character on which he had built part of the season


Apart Shannen, a showrunner can ask to remove an actor but the production has the power to do it

Mowever if you think of the interviews the story is clear: Shannen says she was hired as a protagonist not one of the three protagonists, Shannen endangered to block the third season with her judicial misadventures, Shannen didn't agree with Spelling 's decision, Shannen, tense for the fear of ending up in prison, caused a series of problems with the whole staff
Instead, Spelling had popularity data that indicate that Phoebe was the favorite sister and maybe he was fed up with Shannen claims: more money, more power, more visibility

Uh, nowhere in that post does it say that Spelling fired Shannen.  Either something got mistranslated from that Spanish site, or said site was just plain wrong.

And there was no way Shannen knew she was leaving before the season finished production.  The way Season Three ended and Season Four began clearly indicated that, at that point, everyone suspected that Shannen would be back (including Shannen herself).  The way Season Four began, with everyone back at the Manor mourning Prue, and the throwaway line about how they escaped the Underworld showed that this was a last minute re-write.  Clearly the writers were taken by surprise by Shannen's firing.

The Dark Phoebe story line was supposed to happen at the start of S4, not the end.  They had to push it back because they needed to introduce Paige.

Watch the Dark Phoebe story line, notice how Paige's distrust of Cole comes right out of left field.  Clearly, those lines were originally written for Prue (this story line was no doubt already in development when Shannen got fired).  When Shannen was fired, they just crossed off "Prue" and put in "Paige".  However, it was clear that the scripts were originally written with Prue in mind.

She will always be one of my favorite actresses because she's so talented, but as a person, she had a lot of growing up to do. I'm glad that it appears that she has, just like Alyssa.

Let's just hope she manages to beat that breast cancer she's currently fighting.

[Deleted]

Oct 13, 2015 11:38:55 GMT -5 @tim66 said:

Uh, nowhere in that post does it say that Spelling fired Shannen.  Either something got mistranslated from that Spanish site, or said site was just plain wrong.

And there was no way Shannen knew she was leaving before the season finished production.  The way Season Three ended and Season Four began clearly indicated that, at that point, everyone suspected that Shannen would be back (including Shannen herself).  The way Season Four began, with everyone back at the Manor mourning Prue, and the throwaway line about how they escaped the Underworld showed that this was a last minute re-write.  Clearly the writers were taken by surprise by Shannen's firing.

The Dark Phoebe story line was supposed to happen at the start of S4, not the end.  They had to push it back because they needed to introduce Paige.

Watch the Dark Phoebe story line, notice how Paige's distrust of Cole comes right out of left field.  Clearly, those lines were originally written for Prue (this story line was no doubt already in development when Shannen got fired).  When Shannen was fired, they just crossed off "Prue" and put in "Paige".  However, it was clear that the scripts were originally written with Prue in mind.

Tim's right here.  While there were rumors going around back in Season 3 about one of the leads possibly leaving, they were just that, rumors.  Shannen, Holly, and Alyssa all expected to return for Season 4, and as far as we know, they had already started planning out a storyline for Season 4 before Shannen was fired.  The cliffhanger ending of "All Hell Breaks Loose" clearly pointed towards it.  It was merely a lucky coincidence that the same ending allowed them to easily write Prue out of the show at the last minute.

[sol]

The interview was from Details Magazine of August 2001, the Charmed site only transcribed, if you have doubts, look in the newspaper archive

Shannen was afraid to not being able to finish the third season because she risked to be arrested, not fired, this is reason she was so tense and quarreled even with the staff during the last months of the season

I loved Prue, I think they'ld have written two good season and I am sorry for what happened, but enough with the boring research of Kern's responsibility in every little thing, I really can't understand

[Deleted]

Shannen was afraid to not being able to finish the third season because she risked to be arrested, not fired, this is reason she was so tense and quarreled even with the staff during the last months of the season

Again I point out that this says nothing about Spelling firing Shannen. 

enough with the boring research of Kern's responsibility in every little thing, I really can't understand

Again I point out that Kern was in charge of the day to day running of the show.  He made all the major decisions, good or bad, in regards to what happened on Charmed in the final seasons, including the hiring or firing of anyone. 

Spelling may have been in overall charge, but he had very little to do with the actual running of Charmed (and let's not forget that his health was starting to fail at this time).  He delegated all the actual running of the show to Brad Kern.

[sol]

Think as a mini butterfly effect:if Shannen, as likely, had been arrested while they were filming the third season, could you image which disaster would have been?

Only Spelling and Shannen knew this and she was so scared of becoming unbearable with all, Spelling'll not have been happy with the situation and the risk incurred, futhermore Shannen, by her own admission, statred to claim a prominent role

Perhaps at the beginning Spelling thought to a prominent role for her -remember it was Vincent Duke who wanted three sisters and not three roomate, Burge's idea and it was Aaron Spelling who wanted Shannen-but the fans loved three sisters and the favorite was Phoebe not Prue: no producer in the world will never go against the approval ratings!

Shannen said: You know what? "she says," I was tired: the lack of appreciation that Aaron is showing for me as a human being and as an actress is really too much. It 's like a big deja vu from BH90210.
He doesn't care about my views, my ideas and so on: they wanted a program for boys, is what they got, and well, I've had enough! "


Shannen said:"Spelling behaved exactly as he had all of Hollywood and that can crush anyone and anything that got in his way"

About Kern, she only said she was happy because he had written a lot of Prue, I know you think that this man is a Big EVil but who'ld be so stupid to write a lot of a characters he demanded to erase?


If you prefer hate, for your personal reasons, Kern, it's up to you, but it's a great boredom that isn't impossible to speak of the sisters without finding Brad Kern in every row!

[Deleted]

Oct 13, 2015 11:38:55 GMT -5 @tim66 said:

what happened to prue???
Sep 23, 2015 at 6:10pm

About Shannen's layoff, I read years ago that the risk that Shannen was forced to leave Charmed had already presented when the filming of season 3 were in the middle, between late December 2000 and early January 2001, at the time of her arrest.
It was only thanks to the extension that she got that she was able to complete the season until April 2001, the month in which, among other things, she changed her statement of innocence in admission of guilt

Only Spelling and Shannen knew that this would have serious consequences on her work in Charmed
She admitted that in thas period she was very tense and nervous, even on the set and the rest of the staff, including Alyssa and Holly; however, they had no idea that such a thing could have happened
Then she was sentenced to three years of community work for five days a week but she had risked up to three years in prison

I also found an interview of Details Magazine, August 2001,by Brantley Bardiny in which she told that Spelling behaved exactly as he had all of Hollywood and that can crush anyone and anything that got in his way.

I found in a Spanish site so I translate

"Three years ago he asked me to be the star of his new series on the WB ... wanted me and no one else.
I was the main character in the show according to the contract, but suddenly Mr Spelling didn't want this: he wanted that Alyssa was the protagonist because Alyssa Milano is the most beloved and popular American actress, especially among the kids who make up the majority of the audience of the channel WB.
Alyssa did'nt want this because she wanted more time for herself, Aaron and the network, however, wanted only to promote Charmed as if Holly I and the rest of the cast count for nothing
The problem was not Alyssa: she first didn't like the situation. The problem was with the network and Aaron , their conception of what was best for the show.

You know what? "she says," I was tired: the lack of appreciation that Aaron is showing for me as a human being and as an actress is really too much. It 's like a big deja vu from BH90210.
He doesn't care about my views, my ideas and so on: they wanted a program for boys, is what they got, and well, I've had enough! "

Details Magazine, August 2001,by Brantley Bardiny: find that interview Shannen was very clear

In a Spanish Charmed site, where no one cares such a lot of writers and actors, I read a Shannen interview, while there was talk of her layof, in which she said that Brad Kern had written a lot of Prue as she wanted and asked

As mentioned above, Kern had made the story of the triangle to give more prominence to Prue character and he was in trouble due to the elimination of the character on which he had built part of the season


Apart Shannen, a showrunner can ask to remove an actor but the production has the power to do it

Mowever if you think of the interviews the story is clear: Shannen says she was hired as a protagonist not one of the three protagonists, Shannen endangered to block the third season with her judicial misadventures, Shannen didn't agree with Spelling 's decision, Shannen, tense for the fear of ending up in prison, caused a series of problems with the whole staff
Instead, Spelling had popularity data that indicate that Phoebe was the favorite sister and maybe he was fed up with Shannen claims: more money, more power, more visibility

Uh, nowhere in that post does it say that Spelling fired Shannen.  Either something got mistranslated from that Spanish site, or said site was just plain wrong.

And there was no way Shannen knew she was leaving before the season finished production.  The way Season Three ended and Season Four began clearly indicated that, at that point, everyone suspected that Shannen would be back (including Shannen herself).  The way Season Four began, with everyone back at the Manor mourning Prue, and the throwaway line about how they escaped the Underworld showed that this was a last minute re-write.  Clearly the writers were taken by surprise by Shannen's firing.

The Dark Phoebe story line was supposed to happen at the start of S4, not the end.  They had to push it back because they needed to introduce Paige.

Watch the Dark Phoebe story line, notice how Paige's distrust of Cole comes right out of left field.  Clearly, those lines were originally written for Prue (this story line was no doubt already in development when Shannen got fired).  When Shannen was fired, they just crossed off "Prue" and put in "Paige".  However, it was clear that the scripts were originally written with Prue in mind.

She will always be one of my favorite actresses because she's so talented, but as a person, she had a lot of growing up to do. I'm glad that it appears that she has, just like Alyssa.

Let's just hope she manages to beat that breast cancer she's currently fighting.

I do believe Shannen was blindsighted by her firing as apparently things had calmed down by the end of filming S3 and she was expecting to be back for S4. However, I definitely think the writers/Kern put in the cliffhanger and Piper's sudden exploding power as contingencies in case they did need to fire Shannen, it was too convenient.

I do agree that the Paige/Cole rivalry was clearly meant for Prue, luckily it worked well for Paige though as she was 'the outsider' who would be able to see Cole for who he is better than the rest of the family. 

It would be interesting to know what people what would've happen in S4 if Shannen had come back. Do you think Phoebe would've been trapped in the Underworld and that's how the Dark Phoebe storyline would've begun?

 

[Esmeralda]

Oct 23, 2015 19:58:08 GMT -5 @deano said:

I do believe Shannen was blindsighted by her firing as apparently things had calmed down by the end of filming S3 and she was expecting to be back for S4. However, I definitely think the writers/Kern put in the cliffhanger and Piper's sudden exploding power as contingencies in case they did need to fire Shannen, it was too convenient.

I do agree that the Paige/Cole rivalry was clearly meant for Prue, luckily it worked well for Paige though as she was 'the outsider' who would be able to see Cole for who he is better than the rest of the family. 

It would be interesting to know what people what would've happen in S4 if Shannen had come back. Do you think Phoebe would've been trapped in the Underworld and that's how the Dark Phoebe storyline would've begun?

A friend thought doing something like that would be interesting and came up with the start of an episode guide for an alternate Season Four. It doesn't include the Dark Phoebe storyline, but you can see how that could've been part of it:

4x01 and 4x02: Charmed Again

A combination of "Charmed Again" and "Still Alive and Kicking". All three sisters die, and Victor is the host at the Manor during the reception after the funeral. Meanwhile, Cole and Leo are trying to figure a way to bring the Charmed Ones back. Darryl wants to help them because he wants to and not because he’s being forced to. He suggests using one of Leo’s charges to summon Penny and Patty, since the guys are trying to deal with witch magic and none of them are witches. Leo decides to use his newest charge, a young witch named Mikelle. They find out that in order for the Charmed Ones to come back, someone has to die. Mikelle volunteers. She almost immediately comes back as a whitelighter, with Leo her mentor, teaching her how to use her new powers.

4x03: Hell Hath No Fury

Prue, angry that they all died and Mikelle, an innocent, had to die in order for them to live because Phoebe put Cole in front of her sisters, becomes a fury.

4x04: Enter the Demon

Through the use of a potion, Prue and Phoebe switch places. When Cole kisses “Phoebe”, Prue is surprised by how much his kiss affects her.

4x05: Size Matters.

Use as much canon as possible, with Mikelle taking Paige’s place. When she senses evil, she tries to investigate, not really being comfortable with her role as a whitelighter yet, and she’s a bit of a rebel. Eventually she goes to Leo, who suggests mentioning it to the sisters.

4x06: A Knight to Remember.

Piper’s complaining about not having a normal life gets to be a bit too much for Prue and she decides to cast a spell to give Piper what she wants - a “knight in shining armor”. To Piper’s surprise, by the end of the episode, she finds that she already has one…named Leo.

4x07: Brain Drain

After almost losing Piper in the previous episode and very tired of losing people to it, want to be through with magic. When a friend of hers has a baby shower, she also finds herself wanting a baby, but refusing to have one as long as their lives are in danger from magic. The Source uses that to put her into a dream world where she has Andy as her husband and their twins, a boy and a girl, while Piper is happy with a mortal named Leo and her daughter named Melinda while Phoebe is happy with a mortal named Cole and her son named Ben. She also sees both her mother and her grandmother alive and happy. Prue almost says the spell to release their powers, thinking it means they can finally go back to the real world, after all, magic doesn’t really exist, right?

I always wished that she had finished this...maybe someday she will or maybe one of you has ideas...  Deano? Sounds like something right down your alley...

[Deleted]

Oct 23, 2015 20:28:18 GMT -5 Esmeralda said:

Oct 23, 2015 19:58:08 GMT -5 @deano said:

I do believe Shannen was blindsighted by her firing as apparently things had calmed down by the end of filming S3 and she was expecting to be back for S4. However, I definitely think the writers/Kern put in the cliffhanger and Piper's sudden exploding power as contingencies in case they did need to fire Shannen, it was too convenient.

I do agree that the Paige/Cole rivalry was clearly meant for Prue, luckily it worked well for Paige though as she was 'the outsider' who would be able to see Cole for who he is better than the rest of the family. 

It would be interesting to know what people what would've happen in S4 if Shannen had come back. Do you think Phoebe would've been trapped in the Underworld and that's how the Dark Phoebe storyline would've begun?

A friend thought doing something like that would be interesting and came up with the start of an episode guide for an alternate Season Four. It doesn't include the Dark Phoebe storyline, but you can see how that could've been part of it:

4x01 and 4x02: Charmed Again

A combination of "Charmed Again" and "Still Alive and Kicking". All three sisters die, and Victor is the host at the Manor during the reception after the funeral. Meanwhile, Cole and Leo are trying to figure a way to bring the Charmed Ones back. Darryl wants to help them because he wants to and not because he’s being forced to. He suggests using one of Leo’s charges to summon Penny and Patty, since the guys are trying to deal with witch magic and none of them are witches. Leo decides to use his newest charge, a young witch named Mikelle. They find out that in order for the Charmed Ones to come back, someone has to die. Mikelle volunteers. She almost immediately comes back as a whitelighter, with Leo her mentor, teaching her how to use her new powers.

4x03: Hell Hath No Fury

Prue, angry that they all died and Mikelle, an innocent, had to die in order for them to live because Phoebe put Cole in front of her sisters, becomes a fury.

4x04: Enter the Demon

Through the use of a potion, Prue and Phoebe switch places. When Cole kisses “Phoebe”, Prue is surprised by how much his kiss affects her.

4x05: Size Matters.

Use as much canon as possible, with Mikelle taking Paige’s place. When she senses evil, she tries to investigate, not really being comfortable with her role as a whitelighter yet, and she’s a bit of a rebel. Eventually she goes to Leo, who suggests mentioning it to the sisters.

4x06: A Knight to Remember.

Piper’s complaining about not having a normal life gets to be a bit too much for Prue and she decides to cast a spell to give Piper what she wants - a “knight in shining armor”. To Piper’s surprise, by the end of the episode, she finds that she already has one…named Leo.

4x07: Brain Drain

After almost losing Piper in the previous episode and very tired of losing people to it, want to be through with magic. When a friend of hers has a baby shower, she also finds herself wanting a baby, but refusing to have one as long as their lives are in danger from magic. The Source uses that to put her into a dream world where she has Andy as her husband and their twins, a boy and a girl, while Piper is happy with a mortal named Leo and her daughter named Melinda while Phoebe is happy with a mortal named Cole and her son named Ben. She also sees both her mother and her grandmother alive and happy. Prue almost says the spell to release their powers, thinking it means they can finally go back to the real world, after all, magic doesn’t really exist, right?

I always wished that she had finished this...maybe someday she will or maybe one of you has ideas...  Deano? Sounds like something right down your alley...

Pretty decent ideas, although I'm not too sure about Mikelle volunteering to kill herself, but that's just me. The thing is I was quite happy with S4, whereas you weren't, so our opinions tend to diverge from there. Although, I'd maybe introduce Paige into the Mikelle role and have her Christy/UP storyline come to fruition in S5, then that would be it, no need for moody Chris coming back to play God. Although, if I did include Chris, he would be Prue's son, not Piper's. 

I am also intrigued by Cole and Prue as an item, mostly because I think Julian and Shannen had better chemistry than Julian and Alyssa did.