Most Overrated Season?

[West]

Like my other poll. This time which season do you consider the most overrated in the charmed fanbase?

Again you get two choices for those who cant pick one.

[Deleted]

Season 1, although it's good some episodes on reflection are pretty ropey, and Season 6, everyone knows I dislike it even though it's fairly well-liked.

[Deleted]

Jun 22, 2016 12:46:48 GMT -5 @deano said:

Season 6, everyone knows I dislike it even though it's fairly well-liked.

Maybe in 2005 (back when the Charmed Sons campaign was at its peak), but nowadays, most people seem to hate Season 6 and Chris.  Outside of Tim, Jana, and myself, most of the TCS supporters have long since left the fandom.

Anyways, I picked Seasons 3 and 4.  A lot of fans herald these seasons as the peak of the show, but looking back, I can see the seeds being sown for what was to come later on, especially in Piper and Phoebe's characters.  Plus, Phoebe/Cole marked the point when the show started to become less about the sisters and more about their relationships, IMO.

[Deleted]

Seasons 3 and 4.

While these seasons were good, these seasons saw the beginning of the shift when Kern seized power.  A shift that would lead to Charmed's downfall.

[Sadrick]

Season 4 definitely. It's largely praised because of the "dark" factor that so many people enjoy, myself included admittedly, even though Charmed has about as much angst and edginess as a barbie doll dressed in leather while holding a butter knife.

[Deleted]

Jun 22, 2016 13:30:38 GMT -5 @bettynewbie said:

Jun 22, 2016 12:46:48 GMT -5 @deano said:

Season 6, everyone knows I dislike it even though it's fairly well-liked.

Maybe in 2005 (back when the Charmed Sons campaign was at its peak), but nowadays, most people seem to hate Season 6 and Chris.  Outside of Tim, Jana, and myself, most of the TCS supporters have long since left the fandom.

Anyways, I picked Seasons 3 and 4.  A lot of fans herald these seasons as the peak of the show, but looking back, I can see the seeds being sown for what was to come later on, especially in Piper and Phoebe's characters.  Plus, Phoebe/Cole marked the point when the show started to become less about the sisters and more about their relationships, IMO.

I always feel bad for ranting about Season 6 because I know so many fans like it. I think that if Chris's character was better planned right from the awful Season 5 finale then I would have enjoyed it a lot more. I thought that Season 6 was going to be an extended arc of flashforwards. We had moved past Prue, welcomed Paige and now we were looking to the future of the Halliwell Family. Heck I didn't even mind the fact that Chris was Piper's (conveniently) 2nd son from the future.

However, the sisters and how they work/relate to one another and also in their romantic lives is at the series low. It just got too complicated. The sisters defeat so much evil, The Source, The Titans (did Paige really die in the future or was this another lie), for a future where they leave the next generation as orphans and their future generation is evil. It could have been one of the best Seasons of Charmed. It could have been better than Season 5. Add all of the above to Phoebe's chest being exposed more than it ever has, both her and Paige being unrecognisable when compared to the beginning of Season 4 and the ridiculous storyline with Leo, still involved in TCO's life even though he's supposed to be an elder 'up there'.

Season 6 went against everything we knew about time travel. You simply can not change the past. Wyatt is inevitably going to be evil so suck it up and learn from the wiccan principles of witchcraft. This is what should have been the lesson. The future generation should have been Wyatt vs. Chris and Melinda with the ultimate sacrifice being to kill your brother because it's your wiccan duty to kill an evil witch/darklighter.


But I get why people like Season 6 and the fandom of the Charmed Sons - the next generation which was a cool concept and could still work.


I have empathy because I am a Season 4 lover who also thinks it is over rated and many fans also dislike this season especially the ending story arc.


Long story short - Season 4 and Season 6.

[Deleted]

Jun 22, 2016 23:37:47 GMT -5 @mrmilano said:

I always feel bad for ranting about Season 6 because I know so many fans like it. I think that if Chris's character was better planned right from the awful Season 5 finale then I would have enjoyed it a lot more. I thought that Season 6 was going to be an extended arc of flashforwards. We had moved past Prue, welcomed Paige and now we were looking to the future of the Halliwell Family. Heck I didn't even mind the fact that Chris was Piper's (conveniently) 2nd son from the future.

However, the sisters and how they work/relate to one another and also in their romantic lives is at the series low. It just got too complicated. The sisters defeat so much evil, The Source, The Titans (did Paige really die in the future or was this another lie), for a future where they leave the next generation as orphans and their future generation is evil. It could have been one of the best Seasons of Charmed. It could have been better than Season 5. Add all of the above to Phoebe's chest being exposed more than it ever has, both her and Paige being unrecognisable when compared to the beginning of Season 4 and the ridiculous storyline with Leo, still involved in TCO's life even though he's supposed to be an elder 'up there'.

Season 6 went against everything we knew about time travel. You simply can not change the past. Wyatt is inevitably going to be evil so suck it up and learn from the wiccan principles of witchcraft. This is what should have been the lesson. The future generation should have been Wyatt vs. Chris and Melinda with the ultimate sacrifice being to kill your brother because it's your wiccan duty to kill an evil witch/darklighter.


But I get why people like Season 6 and the fandom of the Charmed Sons - the next generation which was a cool concept and could still work.


I have empathy because I am a Season 4 lover who also thinks it is over rated and many fans also dislike this season especially the ending story arc.


Long story short - Season 4 and Season 6.

You pretty much nailed it about Season 6.

As I said, Season 6 was one of the most popular seasons about 10 or so years ago. Chris and his story renewed a lot of fans' interest in the show after the loss of Prue and the Phoebe/Cole debacle, and many of them even came into the show because of Chris (like Jana/Chrisaholic, for example). Season 6 actually brought in higher ratings than Seasons 4 and 5, with "Chris-Crossed" being the highest-rated non-premiere episode since "Primrose Empath."

On the flipside, Season 7 was widely hated because of how Chris' story was dropped without closure, and Season 8 was similarly hated because of how it essentially gave Chris' story to a brand new, non-Halliwell character (Billie) and tried to set up a spinoff about her instead of the one most of the fans wanted (The Charmed Sons).

However, as I also said, the overwhelming majority of these fans have long since left the fandom. The writers and producers never really caught on to the TCS campaign, and even worse, Kern wrote the finale in a way that effectively slammed the door shut on any kind of spinoff. The CW also didn't want anything to do with Charmed or its universe. (Dawn Ostroff reportedly hated the show.) Once it became obvious that a spinoff wasn't going to happen, most TCS supporters simply lost interest and moved on. By the time the TCS board closed for good in 2014, Jana was literally the very last person posting there.

Looking back, though, I feel that the spinoff's fate was already sealed as soon as "Chris-Crossed" was followed with the turd known as "Witchstock." The popularity of Chris' character clearly took Kern by surprise, and I don't think he ever had a solid plan for the character or his story. That's why the writing for Chris was so inconsistent, as well as why his character was constantly getting shoved into the background for filler crap, despite supposedly being the season's main story arc. With such a lack of interest from the people on top, the spinoff idea was probably doomed from the get-go.

[Chrisaholic]

For me: S1 and S3. Nothing against Prue and all but the basics, which were established there, were all forgotten in the later seasons. And the fandom concentrates mostly on them, yet the later seasons also had their highlights. Like Chris! If his character had been plotted out better, many other fans would have warmed up to him more.

Just what Betty said. Thanks for helping me here!!

[Nimue]

Jun 24, 2016 7:40:33 GMT -5 Chrisaholic said:

For me: S1 and S3. Nothing against Prue and all but the basics, which were established there, were all forgotten in the later seasons. And the fandom concentrates mostly on them, yet the later seasons also had their highlights. Like Chris! If his character had been plotted out better, many other fans would have warmed up to him more.

Just what Betty said. Thanks for helping me here!!

I could have warmed up to Chris a lot more had it not been for Drew Fuller. I'm sorry to say this and I don't mean any offense to any of his fans or himself, but he's the sole reason I just cannot stand Chris. I just don't think he's that good an actor, and I think they should have gone for someone who looks more mature, older, capable. Maybe that would have defeated the character's purpose, but I would have liked him a lot more. I keep thinking that if someone like Richard Armitage (a much younger Armitage obviously), had played him I would be a fan. Because when I think of what that guy did on Robin Hood with Guy of Gisborne, how he brought depth and charisma to a character that in the first season really didn't have much going on in terms of storyline, then I think Chris' character deserved better. And yes, I firmly believe that a good actor can make more out of a role, no matter how badly written and inconsistant that role is (Holly Marie Combs is an another example, I hate what Piper became in the later seasons, but Holly was still perfect in the role, there's real growth and development to Piper's character throughout the seasons even though it's bad, and she was very convincing in Season 1 as the shy, kind-hearted, neurotic sister).  

[Deleted]

Jun 24, 2016 9:30:42 GMT -5 Nimue said:

I could have warmed up to Chris a lot more had it not been for Drew Fuller. I'm sorry to say this and I don't mean any offense to any of his fans or himself, but he's the sole reason I just cannot stand Chris. I just don't think he's that good an actor, and I think they should have gone for someone who looks more mature, older, capable. Maybe that would have defeated the character's purpose, but I would have liked him a lot more. I keep thinking that if someone like Richard Armitage (a much younger Armitage obviously), had played him I would be a fan. Because when I think of what that guy did on Robin Hood with Guy of Gisborne, how he brought depth and charisma to a character that in the first season really didn't have much going on in terms of storyline, then I think Chris' character deserved better. And yes, I firmly believe that a good actor can make more out of a role, no matter how badly written and inconsistant that role is (Holly Marie Combs is an another example, I hate what Piper became in the later seasons, but Holly was still perfect in the role, there's real growth and development to Piper's character throughout the seasons even though it's bad, and she was very convincing in Season 1 as the shy, kind-hearted, neurotic sister).  

I think like Rose McGowan, Drew Fuller was mostly hired because he was available. Black Sash had just been cancelled, and like its modern day counterpart the CW, the WB loved to reuse its actors on other shows. Plus, with Julian gone and Brian (at the time) not renewing his contract for Season 6, they had to bring in a new male costar on the quick.

If it means anything, Shannen, Holly, and Julian were the only ones who consistently gave good performances, IMO. So, Drew wasn't alone in the weak acting department.

[Ruth Marie]

Season 6.

[craig]

Season 4 and 6.

[Ruth Marie]

Jun 24, 2016 9:30:42 GMT -5 Nimue said:

Jun 24, 2016 7:40:33 GMT -5 Chrisaholic said:

For me: S1 and S3. Nothing against Prue and all but the basics, which were established there, were all forgotten in the later seasons. And the fandom concentrates mostly on them, yet the later seasons also had their highlights. Like Chris! If his character had been plotted out better, many other fans would have warmed up to him more.

Just what Betty said. Thanks for helping me here!!

I could have warmed up to Chris a lot more had it not been for Drew Fuller. I'm sorry to say this and I don't mean any offense to any of his fans or himself, but he's the sole reason I just cannot stand Chris. I just don't think he's that good an actor, and I think they should have gone for someone who looks more mature, older, capable. Maybe that would have defeated the character's purpose, but I would have liked him a lot more. I keep thinking that if someone like Richard Armitage (a much younger Armitage obviously), had played him I would be a fan. Because when I think of what that guy did on Robin Hood with Guy of Gisborne, how he brought depth and charisma to a character that in the first season really didn't have much going on in terms of storyline, then I think Chris' character deserved better. And yes, I firmly believe that a good actor can make more out of a role, no matter how badly written and inconsistant that role is (Holly Marie Combs is an another example, I hate what Piper became in the later seasons, but Holly was still perfect in the role, there's real growth and development to Piper's character throughout the seasons even though it's bad, and she was very convincing in Season 1 as the shy, kind-hearted, neurotic sister).  

I think they needed a more stronger actor. Nothing against Drew Fuller, but he wasn't right for a major storyline as a regular in season 6. As a recurring character or one-off, he's fine. But I don't put all the blame on him, the writing was horrible. Maybe he could make better use of a good script and more clear direction for the season. 

[rebooted]

Jun 26, 2017 0:42:32 GMT -5 Ruth Marie said:

Jun 24, 2016 9:30:42 GMT -5 Nimue said:

I could have warmed up to Chris a lot more had it not been for Drew Fuller. I'm sorry to say this and I don't mean any offense to any of his fans or himself, but he's the sole reason I just cannot stand Chris. I just don't think he's that good an actor, and I think they should have gone for someone who looks more mature, older, capable. Maybe that would have defeated the character's purpose, but I would have liked him a lot more. I keep thinking that if someone like Richard Armitage (a much younger Armitage obviously), had played him I would be a fan. Because when I think of what that guy did on Robin Hood with Guy of Gisborne, how he brought depth and charisma to a character that in the first season really didn't have much going on in terms of storyline, then I think Chris' character deserved better. And yes, I firmly believe that a good actor can make more out of a role, no matter how badly written and inconsistant that role is (Holly Marie Combs is an another example, I hate what Piper became in the later seasons, but Holly was still perfect in the role, there's real growth and development to Piper's character throughout the seasons even though it's bad, and she was very convincing in Season 1 as the shy, kind-hearted, neurotic sister).  

I think they needed a more stronger actor. Nothing against Drew Fuller, but he wasn't right for a major storyline as a regular in season 6. As a recurring character or one-off, he's fine. But I don't put all the blame on him, the writing was horrible. Maybe he could make better use of a good script and more clear direction for the season. 

I think to go from such strong actors like T.W King and Julian McMahon to Drew Fuller was a mistake. 

Someone in their teen years but really up and coming would have been great. 

But I guess he just didn't have the right mentorship as well and he could have benefited from a handover between Julians departure and his arrival?

But I also agree with you that Season 6 had overall, the worst writing. Season 6 could have been a series of coordinated flash forward to the future through Phoebe's visions or time travel. 

On top of this, the sisters don't look or act like sisters anymore, but rather the like the girls in Sex and the City.

...and to my point, that is where Sword and the City gets its name from. Rest mah point!

[Esmeralda]

I will always think that the biggest problem with Season 6 outside of the writing and Fuller's cardboard acting is that he was originally only supposed to be part of eight episodes, counting 'Oh, My Goddess!'. Looking at those episodes and the ones after it, you see a completely totally different Chris (including one from a future where he either lied and never apologized for those lies or Paige died early and there was no such thing as family) with no real explanations for the change. From what I've read, the seventh episode filmed (not aired) was 'Sword and the City' which is when Holly Marie Combs found out she was pregnant and suddenly Chris becomes a good guy who is there to save Wyatt because Wyatt is his older brother.

I'll always believe that if Holly hadn't found out, Chris--no matter if he was Piper's son or not--would've been the Big Bad of the first part with 'ChrisCrossed' (the reason for his name) as his eighth and last episode with him criss-crossing the sisters, revealing him as the Big Bad. This would've left out Gideon and the problems between Leo and Chris and all of the other things that made S6 icky. Fuller in just eight episodes would've made it a much better season/series.

[Ruth Marie]

Jun 26, 2017 2:30:20 GMT -5 rebooted said:

Jun 26, 2017 0:42:32 GMT -5 Ruth Marie said:

I think they needed a more stronger actor. Nothing against Drew Fuller, but he wasn't right for a major storyline as a regular in season 6. As a recurring character or one-off, he's fine. But I don't put all the blame on him, the writing was horrible. Maybe he could make better use of a good script and more clear direction for the season. 

I think to go from such strong actors like T.W King and Julian McMahon to Drew Fuller was a mistake. 

Someone in their teen years but really up and coming would have been great. 

But I guess he just didn't have the right mentorship as well and he could have benefited from a handover between Julians departure and his arrival?

But I also agree with you that Season 6 had overall, the worst writing. Season 6 could have been a series of coordinated flash forward to the future through Phoebe's visions or time travel. 

On top of this, the sisters don't look or act like sisters anymore, but rather the like the girls in Sex and the City.

...and to my point, that is where Sword and the City gets its name from. Rest mah point!

Yep your right about all of this. Why I don't like season 6 at all. Even if season 8 is hated, at least they had a clear idea what they were doing. Season 6 just lacked so much direction and story.

Season 6 lacked more backstory and seeing more of the future Chris came from. But, I don't think that would of saved the season still.

Jun 26, 2017 6:38:03 GMT -5 Esmeralda said:

I will always think that the biggest problem with Season 6 outside of the writing and Fuller's cardboard acting is that he was originally only supposed to be part of eight episodes, counting 'Oh, My Goddess!'. Looking at those episodes and the ones after it, you see a completely totally different Chris (including one from a future where he either lied and never apologized for those lies or Paige died early and there was no such thing as family) with no real explanations for the change. From what I've read, the seventh episode filmed (not aired) was 'Sword and the City' which is when Holly Marie Combs found out she was pregnant and suddenly Chris becomes a good guy who is there to save Wyatt because Wyatt is his older brother.

I'll always believe that if Holly hadn't found out, Chris--no matter if he was Piper's son or not--would've been the Big Bad of the first part with 'ChrisCrossed' (the reason for his name) as his eighth and last episode with him criss-crossing the sisters, revealing him as the Big Bad. This would've left out Gideon and the problems between Leo and Chris and all of the other things that made S6 icky. Fuller in just eight episodes would've made it a much better season/series.

Could they have done some major rewrites to Sword and the City? That was one of the two episodes in season 6 to not feature Chris in at all, the second was Used Karma. But it would explain why Soul Survivor was created as a back-up episode, with that pointless filler story with Chris and Leo lost in time. While they worked on changing scripts going forward. 

Too bad they didn't turn his eighth and last episode into his last. The same way Cole's eighth and last show could of been Sleuthing with the Enemy ending with Phoebe going through with vanquishing him, and the end of his time on the show. 

[afroeuvre]

Season 2 and Season 4. The former is a incoherent hodge-podge of cockamamie episodes that range from OK to abysmal (I consider "Morality Bites" its own indepedent entity, and even that's not enough to save this season from its preponderant mediocrity) and there's a lot of bad writing combined with hackneyed power application. I like to think of it as a precursor to Season 5--where the writers or the network are comfortable with the idea of an episodic series filled with mindless drivel, trite craftsmanship where the writing is concerned and a void of consistency/direction. For me, the only thing that saves this from being as awful as Season 5 is the fact that Prue's still around and that there are more OK episodes than there are abysmal, but it's still a poor season and it's surprising that the show was picked up for a third season after this. It wouldn't have been that bad if the season focused on the sisterhood of TCOs, but it focused more on inconsequential characters that we'd never see again and other failed attempts at mythology expansion. Phoebe truly is the saving grace of this season.

I watched Season 4 the other day, and originally it hadn't occured to me that Paige's introductory arc is squandered so that Phoebe and Cole's now boring relationship melodrama takes precedence over her induction into the craft. Now things are clearer, and I am shocked. Paige is basically given the shaft on her first season! One or two episodes with Piper's pathetic efforts at "teaching", and then nothing. Definitely the most annoying aspect of this season for me, because Paige gets, like, a couple of focus episodes but the entirety of the season revolves around a Phoebe that is insufferable and a Cole that is boring up until The Dark Phoebe storyline. And I can't even stand Cole at this point. I'm not sure what it was about Prue's presence on the show, but her presence justified Cole and Phoebe's relationship to me and with her gone it just seemed dull and I'm not sure why the writers decided to focus more on them than anything else in this season. And the season isn't even that dark until the last couple of episodes. It was boring and a chore to get through.

[Esmeralda]

I'll agree with Season 4, but not Season 2, because how can it be over-rated when most fans don't like it? But Season 4 is usually counted as a fan favorite and everything you said is why I'd count it as over-rated.

For me, it's that and Season 6.

[afroeuvre]

Jun 26, 2017 18:01:30 GMT -5 Esmeralda said:

I'll agree with Season 4, but not Season 2, because how can it be over-rated when most fans don't like it? But Season 4 is usually counted as a fan favorite and everything you said is why I'd count it as over-rated.

For me, it's that and Season 6.

I understand. I think it's because I usually see Season 2 getting lodged in with the S1-4 period that many fans associate with being the glory days of Charmed and I disagree with that notion. I think that S1 and S3 definitely deserve the praise that they get, but not S2 or S4. I think I may be wrong though, and I can concede.

I can definitely agree with S6. It has a couple of good episodes but it has no idea where it's going or what it's doing, ha ha.

[Esmeralda]

Season Two will always be a favorite because it's the only time I love all three sisters, so I'm a bit prejudiced towards it. But I know that's an unpopular opinion. For me, the first two seasons are Charmed. The rest are the alternate-universe spin-off that happened to run at the same time. But it's when all the rules in the real Charmed are broken, so I can't count it as Charmed.

But that's just me.