Should Season 4 have been dedicated more to Paige?

[Deleted]

Mar 30, 2016 11:12:38 GMT -5 @rexandhannah1 said:

As Betty said, that whole Frankie/Lulu rubbish didn't fit with the tone of the episode.  A slap stick comedy just didn't feel right, being in an episode that dealt with a tragedy that shaped Paige's life.

Unfortunately, that would end up foreboding how much of the rest of the series went, with comedy getting forced into storylines that were meant to be dramatic and emotional. I can name countless good episodes from the later seasons that were nearly ruined by the appearance of the Magical Community ("Spin City" and "Something Wicca This Way Goes" come to mind here). That was the kind of stuff that did nothing but cause people to dismiss Charmed as mindless fluff.

[Deleted]

I can name countless good episodes from the later seasons that were nearly ruined by the appearance of the Magical Community ("Spin City" and "Something Wicca This Way Goes" come to mind here). That was the kind of stuff that did nothing but cause people to dismiss Charmed as mindless fluff.

The Magical Community really hurt Charmed's reputation, didn't it.  Whenever they trotted out those Disney rejects, people pointed and laughed.  And poor Paige was usually the one stuck with said Disney rejects, which sure didn't do her character any favours.

The Magical Community is another reason Charmed would do better to just reboot and start over from scratch, IMO.

[Deleted]

Mar 30, 2016 16:21:57 GMT -5 @rexandhannah1 said:

The Magical Community really hurt Charmed's reputation, didn't it.  Whenever they trotted out those Disney rejects, people pointed and laughed.  And poor Paige was usually the one stuck with said Disney rejects, which sure didn't do her character any favours.

With that kind of material, no wonder Rose grew bored of the show. She's always preferred doing either dark comedies or dramas, so it must've been utterly painful for her to keep getting these fluffy kiddie storylines about fairies and leprechauns on Charmed.

Paige might've been the ultimate example of how Charmed became less relatable and enjoyable the more and more it revolved around magic. After Season 4, Paige no longer had any non-magical jobs or non-magical friends, and we saw her constantly using spells for things like conjuring slampieces. She also had powers out the wazoo, and it started to become rare that we actually saw her drive anywhere. All of those bits we got about Paige's backstory in Season 4 that made her more relatable and interesting, such as her adoptive parents' death or her alcoholism, were never acknowledged again.

Season 8 attempted to make her more grounded and connected to the real world again with the introduction of Henry, but since it was the last season, it was too little, too late. I wish they had brought in Henry earlier, like in Season 5 or 6, as well as had Paige keep her job at South Bay Social Services.

[Chrisaholic]

I'd have loved to see more of Paige's background in S4. A longer introduction is always good. I hate when the authors rush things and bring people in and then they are just gone, mainly for good. So not fun!

[ljones]

Season Four was more focused on Paige. She dominated the first half of Season Four. And she also played a major role in the season's second half arc about Phoebe and Cole . . . more so than Piper or Leo did.

[Deleted]

Mar 31, 2016 22:25:23 GMT -5 ljones said:

Season Four was more focused on Paige. She dominated the first half of Season Four.

I'm not so sure about that. Even the episode that had her own name in it, "A Paige From the Past," was completely dominated by unrelated Phoebe/Cole hijinks.

Mar 31, 2016 22:25:23 GMT -5 ljones said:

And she also played a major role in the season's second half arc about Phoebe and Cole . . . more so than Piper or Leo did.

Only because they blindly plopped her into a role that had originally been written for Prue. You're not going to get good characterization when you take old scripts, cross out one character's name, and pencil in another's without hardly changing any dialog.

[SimplyAretha]

I don't think season 4 should have been dedicated to Paige because it wasn't all about Paige. Even as fans, the loss of Prue was something we were all getting use to and shoving Paige down our throats wasn't going to make us accept her. Paige needed to grow on us naturally and like Piper and Phoebe we had to slowly accept her as a sister.

[erikamarie]

I agree, because of the Source and the necessity of Power of Three, Paige is pushed in the heart of the action and of the relationship with her barely known sisters
It's true that Paige occupies roles evidently written for Prue's character, but a season cannot be rewritten in few time and little by little the episodes carry on, Paige finds her own identity, different from the decision maker Prue, more ironic and sweet

[Deleted]

Actually slightly surprised at the number of "No" responses here.  The fandom seems more divided on this topic than I had thought.

To those who answered "No" (or "I Don't Care"): Were you satisfied with the way Paige was handled over the course of the series?  Did you feel like she had received good enough character development?  Or, alternately, would you have preferred that Paige not exist and the series finish with Prue and the Original P3?

I like Paige, but at the same time, I've always wondered how things might have been different had we kept the Prue/Piper/Phoebe trio for the show's entire run.  I think that keeping the Original P3 would've solved many of my issues with Season 4, since the show wouldn't have had to awkwardly balance the introduction of a new main character with the unrelated storyline they had already planned for the season.  Things wouldn't have been nearly as rushed as they were.

[val1993]

Apr 3, 2016 13:46:39 GMT -5 @bettynewbie said:

Actually slightly surprised at the number of "No" responses here.  The fandom seems more divided on this topic than I had thought.

To those who answered "No" (or "I Don't Care"): Were you satisfied with the way Paige was handled over the course of the series?  Did you feel like she had received good enough character development?  Or, alternately, would you have preferred that Paige not exist and the series finish with Prue and the Original P3?

I like Paige, but at the same time, I've always wondered how things might have been different had we kept the Prue/Piper/Phoebe trio for the show's entire run.  I think that keeping the Original P3 would've solved many of my issues with Season 4, since the show wouldn't have had to awkwardly balance the introduction of a new main character with the unrelated storyline they had already planned for the season.  Things wouldn't have been nearly as rushed as they were.

Exactly my feelings about Paige. Love her but I would trade 5 seasons with Piper/Phoebe/Paige for just one with Prue/Piper/Phoebe.

[Deleted]

Apr 3, 2016 15:42:24 GMT -5 val1993 said:

Exactly my feelings about Paige. Love her but I would trade 5 seasons with Piper/Phoebe/Paige for just one with Prue/Piper/Phoebe.

Yeah, quality over quantity. The show might not have gone past Season 4 or Season 5, at the very latest, but it probably would've had a far more satisfactory ending.

[Deleted]

Losing the later seasons in exchange for keeping Prue?  Not a bad deal, IMO.

[Deleted]

Apr 3, 2016 16:44:19 GMT -5 @rexandhannah1 said:

Losing the later seasons in exchange for keeping Prue?  Not a bad deal, IMO.

Yeah, I like Paige, but I also like the Original P3 and detest much of what the later seasons introduced.  And, it's not like the show ever did much with Paige, anyways.

[Deleted]

Apr 2, 2016 23:48:11 GMT -5 SimplyAretha said:

I don't think season 4 should have been dedicated to Paige because it wasn't all about Paige. Even as fans, the loss of Prue was something we were all getting use to and shoving Paige down our throats wasn't going to make us accept her. Paige needed to grow on us naturally and like Piper and Phoebe we had to slowly accept her as a sister.

Well said!

I felt like I had already engaged with Phoebe and Cole/ Piper and Leo from Season 3 and kept watching for their sake...to see how they would move on following Prue's death...not to learn more about the new girl in town.

I honestly think they chose the wrong actress to play Paige. I really think that Rose just wasn't a good fit considering how amazing of a fit Shannen-Holly and Alyssa were.

Curious though. I wonder if p3H2o never happened and if Patty never had an affair with Sam... what would have been the storyline to reconstitute the Charmed Ones?

[sol]

They'ld have to write a new Patty's love story but it'ld be hard to explain why Patty gave a daughter up for adoption

Only a forbidden love'ld justify such a choice, maybe a runaway passion for a darklighter as Daisy and Alec?

[Sadrick]

I may have postponed the Source storyline until the end of the season where the original Source is vanquished. The final scene would be a close up of Cole and the usual blackening of his eyes to indicate that the Source has taken control of his body. Phoebe would become the queen midway through Season 5 and Cole would be brought down at the end. However, instead of just writing off Cole's character there, the sisters would have been redefined to actually give a d*mn about how he turned out that way and to try to help steer him back to good, not just for Phoebe's sake, but for what Cole means to them personally as a friend/ally and because they're genuinely good people who try to see the best in everyone.

For Paige specifically, while I do believe that more could have been given to flesh out her character and help her get settled into the role, she came onto the show during a very awkward time. It was going to be difficult, period, to accommodate for a completely new addition to the cast as the story and tension was beginning to heighten ever more. As it's been mentioned, if I had to choose between four seasons with Paige and one more with Prue, I'll quickly choose the latter, then proceed to suggest a fifth season with some directorial concessions offered to keep Shannen on for one more before ending the show on a high note.

[Deleted]

For Paige specifically, while I do believe that more could have been given to flesh out her character and help her get settled into the role

What's frustrating is that Paige started out so strong.  She was a college educated and intelligent young woman.

One year as a Charmed One and what happens: Her IQ drops about fifty percent, she no longer has any connection to her pre-Charmed life, and she's usually relegated to subplots involving the Magical Community. 

As said, it would not be until Henry appeared in S8, that the old Paige would re-emerge.

[Deleted]

Apr 5, 2016 5:00:13 GMT -5 @mrmilano said:

I felt like I had already engaged with Phoebe and Cole/ Piper and Leo from Season 3 and kept watching for their sake...to see how they would move on following Prue's death...not to learn more about the new girl in town.

You have a good point, but at the same time, they had no choice but to introduce a new sister. The show was about the Power of Three, so they couldn't go on with just Piper and Phoebe, and you just can't toss a new main character into a show without developing them and fleshing them out. For better or worse, Paige meant that the writers had to hit the reset button on whatever stories that had previously planned for Season 4.

Sadrick summed up this dilemma best: "For Paige specifically, while I do believe that more could have been given to flesh out her character and help her get settled into the role, she came onto the show during a very awkward time. It was going to be difficult, period, to accommodate for a completely new addition to the cast as the story and tension was beginning to heighten ever more." I think Paige might've had an easier time fitting into the show had Shannen left after Season 4 instead of Season 3. The show could've wrapped up the Cole/Source/etc. storylines without worrying about having to introduce and develop a new main character, and Paige could've come into the show with a truly fresh start. Even better, Shannen could've left the show on far better terms since Season 4 was the end of her contract.

[Deleted]

Should Paige even have come in at 4x01 or should her intro have been delayed?
?

[sol]

I like the trio Piper- Phoebe and Cole, Cole was very funny as supporter of the two witches and I like the synergy between these three and Leo, I told in some threads, I'ld like some episodes without Paige or with Paige in the background

I like also erikamarie's idea in Rewind & rewrite the seasons of Charmed to introcuce Paige before, as social worker, during the Tyler story