History YMMV / Charmed1998

*** She actualy expressed relief of being rid of its influence but, on the other hand, in the subsequent seasons she was literally obsessing over newborn Wyatt (initially) and fulfilling her motherhood premonitions. Perhaps it was a combination of internalised angst and bad writing.

** Cole and Phoebe's drama in Season 5. It doesn't help that the show can't seem to decide if Cole is trying to win Phoebe back or seek overall redemption. Likewise DependingOnTheWriter it's either Phoebe being justified for being suspicious or being a bitch for not understanding. This is partly due to the original idea being for Cole and Paige to fall in love instead (the episode "Sympathy For The Demon" certainly hints at it) but both actors protesting against it - and Julian [=McMahon=] opting to leave to do ''Series/NipTuck'', meaning Cole had to be quickly written out.

** There was no mention of this before by either sides but in Season Eight, there seemed to be the Ultimate Power that is more powerful than the Charmed Ones and they are a pair of sisters.

** Magic School is a particularly bad offender that not only clashes with the show's (initial) focus on traditional witchcraft passed down by family line or through covens, but makes no sense with the very premise of the series: the sisters awoke as witches in their twenties because their powers had to be bound to protect them from a warlock. Now, [[DidntThinkThisThrough if only there had been a completely evil-proof, death-defying place to safely raise magical children in]]. With Patty dead, Victor out of the picture, and the girls' lives on the line, there's no way Grams wouldn't unbind their powers and send them over there, especially since she never showed concern about them leading a normal, magic-free life. Season 7 hand waves it by having the Elders point this out to Paige, and she argues that the school is mainly for children who don't have families that can teach them.

** Billie was originally just TheScrappy for many fans when the last season aired, but has been seen in a better light by a portion of the base as years have gone on. To a lot of fans, she's a CousinOliver who represents everything wrong with the final seasons (and Kaley Cuoco's acting is divisive). To others, she was a fresh addition who represented a different perspective, and had an interesting story arc.

** The jury is out on Christy as well. One camp finds her an irredeemable HateSink, while another finds her a sympathetic AntiVillain. And then there's those who feel she's presented as one but comes across as the latter. Even her death at the end of the series is contentious - some feel she had suffered such a TraumaCongaLine and was an even bigger victim than Billie, and deserved a redemption. Others feel she'd crossed the MoralEventHorizon and deserved to die (since her last action is trying to kill her own sister when she realised she could no longer use her). Some of this has changed as the years go on and with greater awareness of emotional abuse, which is what Christy's behaviour amounts to.

** Was Billie the CreatorsPet or the CreatorsPest? Sure she was shoehorned in by ExecutiveMeddling wanting a YoungerAndHipper character, as well as a new MsFanservice (as the three leads were getting fed up of the skimpy outfits) - and her arc about finding her sister took over the main season's plot. But then again, the writers resented having to get rid of Leo because of budget cuts (and even took pay cuts to allow for him to appear in the series finale) - and it's possible she was written to be particularly obnoxious in the middle of the season for these reasons.[[note]]She actually gets several episodes that are {{Take That}}s - notably where her reckless demon hunting puts her in danger, and she has to suffer BreakTheHaughty with regards to her misandry.[[/note]] By the end of the season, she's essentially lost everything and given a depressing ending - with the only glimmer of hope for her character is Phoebe forgiving her in the DistantFinale.

* DieForOurShip: Dan is widely disliked because he existed as an obstacle preventing Piper from getting together with Leo.

** Since Prue and Paige never interact on screen, one of the most popular plots for fan fiction is to have the two meet; usually as a ghost or through some form of time travel. There's also the popular AU story in which Prue survives, and the four sisters exist together.

* LGBTFanbase: Given that the series is about three (eventually four) beautiful women in increasingly fashionable clothes, has a CastFullOfPrettyBoys as their love interests, plenty of equal opportunity {{Fanservice}} and generous doses of {{Camp}}, the show has a significant queer fan base.

* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: The opening theme "How Soon Is Now?" covered by Love Spit Love. Also "Blame It On The Weatherman" by B*witched from the end of the fifth season premiere.

** Magic School is a particularly bad offender that not only clashes with the show's (initial) focus on traditional witchcraft passed down by family line or through covens, but makes no sense with the very premise of the series: the sisters awoke as witches in their twenties because their powers had to be bound to protect them from a warlock. Now, [[DidntThinkThisThrough if only there had been a completely evil-proof, death-defying place to safely raise magical children in]]. With Patty dead, Victor out of the picture, and the girls' lives on the line, there's no way Gams wouldn't unbind their powers and send them over there, especially since she never showed concern about them leading a normal, magic-free life.

** The infamous feud between Creator/ShannenDoherty and Creator/AlyssaMilano still causes heated debates among ''Charmed'' fans to this day, despite the fact that the two actresses seem to be at peace with one another now.

** Phoebe herself in the same situation, where she's sometimes touted as a victim of abuse who never did anything wrong and was ProperlyParanoid, thereby justifying her treatment of Cole. This is ignoring that Cole only became the Source because he was tricked, and became so literally jumping in front of a fireball to save Phoebe's life and those of her sisters, and Phoebe herself is the one who torpedoed his attempts to get rid of the Source's powers and refused to help Cole in the wasteland when he was facing CessationOfExistence. And after Cole returns, she decides to blame him for any and every demon that comes after them, even physically assaulting him when he'd done nothing wrong. While his actions towards the end of his arc make her [[DamnedByFaintPraise look better by comparison]], she is far from sympathetic in the situation.

** Season 7 is much like Season 6 in terms of reception, with many lamenting the ongoing {{Flanderization}} of the sisters, one too many {{Aborted Arc}}s and unnecessary {{Romantic Plot Tumor}}s, over-reliance on big name guest stars, [[ArcFatigue even more emphasis on the Piper/Leo drama]], and continued sidelining of Paige and Phoebe. It is however praised for MagnificentBastard BigBad Zankou, one of the best received villains on the show, numerous {{Continuity Nod}}s that almost feel like an apology for the goofs in the previous season, a return to the darker procedural format resembling Season 1, and a season finale so epic that many fans would have been content with it being the ''series'' finale instead. Closer inspection also has shown that the {{Flanderization}} actually peters off for characters like Phoebe, with her becoming more consistent with the first four seasons than the previous two.

* FanonDiscontinuity: A small but vocal subsection of the fan base (the Prue-leaning side) choose to pretend that the show ends before her death. But given that the Season 3 finale "All Hell Breaks Loose" is a cliffhanger with all three sisters facing certain death, some will tacitly acknowledge Season 4 and pretend that it ends with "Witch Way Now?" - which has a hopeful enough ending of the sisters deciding to keep their magic, and Piper discovering she's pregnant. Some Cole fans will choose to end at "Charmed & Dangerous", ignoring the final twist of him being possessed by the Source so that he and Phoebe can have their happily ever after.

** Cole on the flipside of the DracoInLeatherPants treatment he often receives for his Season 5 behaviour is sometimes painted as even worse for actions he did while possessed by the Source. These tend to vilify him for not doing enough to fight off the possession and claim he really knew what would happen when he absorbed the Hollow - when in the show itself, the Seer lies to him that he'll return to normal when the Source of vanquished, and he only does it knowing that it'll save Phoebe. This camp conflates Cole and the Source's actions as one in the same, when in actuality there are moments where Cole briefly fights off the influence, such as letting Paige be healed from the demonic power brokers, and nearly giving up the powers to the wizard.

** The series really dropped the ball when it came to the fallout from Cole becoming the Source. While Cole returning after the Source was vanquished at least meant he didn't have to die because of being manipulated by others, the result is Phoebe and the others blaming him entirely for his actions as the Source - even when the Seer outright told Phoebe that Cole's love for her helped him fight the Source's possession for longer than she expected. They do seem to be setting up ''Phoebe'' being the one who has to learn not to blame Cole for her own actions - "A Witch's Tail" is only resolved when she admits she still loves him, "Happily Ever After" has her grudgingly apologising, "Siren Song" frames her as bringing out the worst in him - "I Am Sam" does an about face to have Cole being framed as a complete villain and Phoebe as a complete victim, forcing Cole into the DesignatedVillain to make Paige and Phoebe look justified in their pursuit of him. Cole is essentially a victim of everyone from the Seer to the Source to eventually his wife and in-laws, with everyone else shunning him for actions that were not his fault. His return in Season 7 doesn't real make things better either, since he's given a VillainsDyingGrace which still treats him as a willing villain rather than a victim of emotional abuse.

** Paige in the second half of Season 4, where she decides she doesn't trust Cole and tries to repeatedly convince the sisters that he's made a FaceHeelTurn. She knows first-hand that possession is a thing, because the Source did the same to her boyfriend to manipulate her. Cole had proven repeatedly across the season that he wanted to be good, and repeatedly laid his life down for the sisters, including Paige. Not once does she entertain the idea that he could be possessed or suggest that to the others (which would likely not have put Phoebe on the defensive against her). It seems to be more her own prejudices in assuming Cole freely became evil, which requires her to forget significant things he'd done that should have told her otherwise.

** "The Eyes Have It" has a surprisingly positive depiction of Romani, in contrast to ''Series/The10thKingdom'' (which villified them) and ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' (which had a sympathetic but still very dark portrayal). While they are MagicalRomani and the unflattering slur 'gypsy' is used, they're shown to be sister species to witches, the HotGypsyWoman trope is averted with powerful matriarchs like Teresa and Lydia (and while Ava is certainly attractive, she's not exoticised).

!YMMV tropes for the ''Series/{{Charmed|1998}}'' series

* [[AlternateCharacterInterpretation/{{Charmed|1998}} Alternate Character Interpretation]]

* [[EnsembleDarkhorse/{{Charmed|1998}} Ensemble Darkhorse]]
* [[HarsherInHindsight/{{Charmed|1998}} Harsher In Hindsight]]
* [[HilariousInHindsight/{{Charmed|1998}} Hilarious In Hindsight]]
* [[NeverLiveItDown/{{Charmed|1998}} Never Live It Down]]
* [[RetroactiveRecognition/{{Charmed|1998}} Retroactive Recognition]]

* WTHCastingAgency:
** Tony Denison was recast with James Read as Victor for this reason; namely that he looked far too young to be their father, and the network thought he came across as a simply older love interest.
** Kaley Cuoco as Billie. Why would you give the comedic hip young actress the inconsistently-written melodramatic role from hell?

** Despite the fact that no LaResistance is ever even mentioned, fans often have Chris be the creator and leader of a resistance again Wyatt in the unchanged future.

* EvilIsSexy: Well, Evil tends to have more revealing outfits, anyway. And apparently there exists a ''Demonic Strip Club''. An EvilCostumeSwitch usually involves HotterAndSexier clothing.

* CharacterRerailment: After Phoebe spent Seasons 5-7 becoming much more selfish, unlikable and obsessed with finding 'the one', Season 8 restored her to a much kinder presence while also deconstructing her SerialRomeo behaviour (showing that she was badly affected by so many failed relationships) - and having her do more selfless things. Basically she was her same self from the first four seasons, just with more CharacterDevelopment.

** Phoebe is frequently accused of this in Seasons 5-7. Some other seasons also give her priority in the storylines. One of the things fans find positive about Season 8 is that this levels off. There are several reasons to call this favoritism into question, though: for one, Phoebe is the only sister ever shown to suffer serious and long-lasting consequences for abusing her magic, something all the sisters tended to do more and more as the seasons went by. Also, in the last three seasons, not only is she increasingly OutOfFocus, relegated to her own side-plots with little bearing to the general storyline, she's also the only one with no full resolution to any of her character arcs: finding love and starting a family get at least a rushed mention in the flash-forward scene, but balancing personal and magic life, as well as gaining all her active powers back are both left completely hanging. So much for favouritism!

** Season 7 is much like Season 6 in terms of reception, with many lamenting the ongoing {{Flanderization}} of the sisters, one too many {{Aborted Arc}}s and unnecessary {{Romantic Plot Tumor}}s, over-reliance on big name guest stars, [[ArcFatigue even more emphasis on the Piper/Leo drama]], and continued sidelining of Paige and Phoebe. It is however praised for MagnificentBastard BigBad Zankou, one of the best received villains on the show, numerous {{Continuity Nod}}s that almost feel like an apology for the goofs in the previous season, a return to the darker procedural format resembling Season 1, and a season finale so epic that many fans would have been content with it being the ''series'' finale instead.

** Piper's reacion when the Angel of Destiny takes Leo away again in ''Forever Charmed'' is only mild resignation, and doubles as a subtle [[LampshadeHanging lampshade]] on how much trite and repetitive their constant cycle of separations and reunions had become by that point: not even the characters themselves are surprised anymore.

** Kyra the seer is a delightfully funny and conniving WildCard demon who is played by Creator/CharismaCarpenter. Her goal to become human and experience the things she sees in her visions firsthand is surpassingly cute and moving. She only appears in three episodes and a few comics, but many fans think she had great main character potential.

* CreatorsPet:

* FanPreferredCouple: Despite Phoebe ending up with Coop, Phoebe/Cole is far more popular, due to the LoveRedeems nature of it — and Creator/JulianMcMahon really making Cole into quite TheWoobie.

** An especially obvious example in its eighth and last season with Billie Jenkins, the main reason why the large majority of fans dislike the last season of the show. While the character had potential, her obnoxious qualities and PlotTumor of a storyline didn't endear her to many.

* VindicatedByHistory: The show had a hatedom while it was airing for seeming like a ''Buffy'' rip-off, the major cast changes and people who were annoyed at the [[SexSells marketing focusing on Fanservice]]. These days the show is fondly looked at as setting a benchmark for witch themed TV - and many other short-lived witch shows have been compared to ''Charmed''. In 2012 it was reported that ''Charmed'' was the most binge-watched show on VOD.

* CompleteMonster: See [[Monster/Charmed1998 here]].

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation:
** Cole’s whole plot in Season 5 leaves plenty of room for this. Was Cole a good guy unfairly blamed for being possessed by the Source against his will, who [[SanitySlippage went crazy]] as a result of magic screwing with his mind? Was he a former villain trying his best to redeem himself in the face of [[HeelFaceDoorSlam mistrust and rejection]], and only [[ThenLetMeBeEvil embraced evil again out of desperation]]? Or was he on his best behaviour as a ploy to [[MoralityPet get Phoebe back]], and showed his true colours once it became clear that was not going to happen? Was Phoebe a BitchInSheepsClothing for blaming Cole for things beyond his control and repeatedly trying to kill him well before he did anything villainous, or was she standing her ground in front of a man who--redeemed or not--felt [[EntitledToHaveYou entitled to have her]] and wouldn’t respect her boundaries?
*** Fans are also divided on ''what'' exactly caused Cole's SanitySlippage, with the blame being pointed depending on which side of the Cole/Phoebe feud they stand on. Cole's fans blame it on a spell Paige cast to make him feel Phoebe's emotions[[note]]though when later used on Piper, it had no such side effects[[/note]]. Phoebe's fans blame it on Cole's own obsession for Phoebe regardless of magic, which only exacerbated it by [[CannotSelfTerminate making Cole suicide-proof]]. [[TakeAThirdOption Another camp]] points out that Cole was a human soul when he absorbed the demonic powers in the Wasteland, and mortals have [[ContinuityNod consistently been shown]] to lose it when infused with magic. All agree that Barbas screwing with his mind did not help.
** Did the Charmed Ones become selfish in giving up their lives as protectors, let down all good magical creatures, and only become interested in their own pleasure? Or did they simply retire from a thankless life after putting in years of work, losing a sister, and having to look over their shoulders every second of the day without a moment's peace?
** Was Penny Halliwell a loving grandmother who invented the [[BroughtDownToNormal power-stripping potion]] to give her granddaughters a chance at a normal life, or a {{Manipulative B|astard}}itch who was bumped off by the Elders for attempting to ScrewDestiny? It seems far too {{co|ntrivedCoincidence}}incidental that she died ''just'' before she could use it... Considering she cursed her wedding ring yet allowed it to remain a family heirloom, has a [[DoesNotLikeMen clear disdain]] for men and was romantically involved with demons herself... there's a serious argument to be made for her being an EvilMatriarch. Particularly since she later reveals that she regularly mind-wiped them and used magic to [[BrainwashedAndCrazy stop them]] from [[TheGloriousWarOfSisterlyRivalry fighting]], instead of simply ''disciplining'' them.
** Phoebe: misunderstood but adventurous younger sister with [[ParentalAbandonment understandable]] [[MissingMom abandonment]] [[DisappearedDad issues]], whose family wouldn’t take seriously and allow to be free resulting in insecurities about herself and her relationships? Or reckless, self-absorbed brat who’d always cause trouble and demand that others take responsibilities and make sacrifices [[{{Hypocrite}} she herself wouldn’t]]? And in there later seasons, did she [[TookALevelInJerkass take a level in jerkass]] out of the blue and abandoned her destiny, or was she a BrokenBird suffering from the toll magic had taken on her life?
** Piper: the greatest witch in history and the heart and soul of the family who, despite longing for a normal life, steps up to be the competent matriarch after Prue's untimely demise and finally [[EarnYourHappyEnding earns her happy ending]] with Leo after [[IronWoobie much tribulations]]? Or a whiny, self-obsessed shrew who never really embraced her magical heritage, never experimented with magic unless she was cornered, obsessed over her marriage and children to the point of endangering innocents, and was [[ItsAllAboutMe so entitled]] to call into question the Great Design and bargains with past foes and Destiny itself just to have her way?
** What did the Sisters' PersonalityPowers really tell about them? Was Piper's [[TimeStandsStill freezing power]] a reflection of her being a ShrinkingViolet who needed time to process things, and gained an [[HavingABlast explosive power]] when she found confidence in her inner strength? Or was it her being so self-centered she'd stop everything at her whim, only to become more prone to go off at the drop of a hat whenever things did't go her way? Were Phoebe's [[{{Seers}} Premonition]] and [[TheEmpath Empathy]] (as well as her work as an advice columnist) a reflection of a genuine desire to help people, or just a manifestation of her persistent need to insert herself into the lives of other people at every opportunity? Was her levitation because she's a free spirit, or because she considers herself above everyone else?
** Leo: a lone [[OnlySaneMan voice of reason]] amongst the group, who reluctantly goes along with morally questionable plans out of his devotion to Piper? Or merely a [[HenpeckedHusband spineless lapdog]], long since brought to heel by his controlling wife and sisters-in-law? Even Creator/BrianKrause himself occasionally mocks Leo as being a "pussy" when participating in ''Charmed'' convention panels.
** Did [[WellIntentionedExtremist Kyle Brody]] really love Paige, or was he just using her to help with his vendetta against the Avatars and she just happened to [[TookALevelInDumbass take the level in dumbass]] necessary to be duped?
** Wyatt. The kid's future alignment seems to switch back and forth so often, it makes more sense that his chaotic upbringing has left him ''already'' evil and the Good Future is simply the result of a HeelFaceTurn. Him turning evil because of Gideon's betrayal was perhaps understandable, but because of an (demonic) imaginary friend and a cursed ''teddy bear'' is just bizarre? Rather, Evil Wyatt makes more sense as simply the culmination of the increasingly petty and selfish attitudes of the sisters in later seasons, coupled with Leo's increasing spinelessness, leaving him as a SpoiledBrat with too much power and no decent role models.
** The Elders. The BigGood of the show who believe TheNeedsOfTheMany and are sometimes forced to do morally questionable actions to keep the forces of evil in check, or simply a collection of JerkassGods who desire to keep their monopoly on power at all costs? Especially considering they wanted to wipe out the Avatars despite knowing ''nothing'' about them or their motives, just because they were threatening their status as the most powerful faction in the series. Tellingly, the comics reveal that all of the Elders seen in the series [[spoiler:were essentially fired and replaced for their misbehavior]].
** The Seer's actions in "Charmed & Dangerous" - a case of EvenEvilHasStandards or her using reverse psychology to get the Source to doom himself, thus starting her BatmanGambit.

* EnsembleDarkHorse:
** Leo, enough to make him an AscendedExtra.
** Cole whose first two seasons are regarded as when the show started GrowingTheBeard. Despite SeasonalRot setting in around Season 5, he and Phoebe are still a FanPreferredCouple.
** Henry was one of the more popular characters introduced in Season 8.
** Chris. His appearance on the show sparked massive fan love in Fanfiction.net. His character can be found under TWO character filters, Chris H. and for some reason, Phoebe's boss Elise R. (this probably because his character became popular before FF.net gave him his own place in the list). Apart from that, the Chris H. character filter generates more pages than anyone else on the series. Though this can be explained by the lack of filter in the earlier days of ''Series/{{Charmed|1998}}'', it's pretty impressive for a character who was only a regular for one season. Nowadays, Chris fics make up most of the updates and new stories in the fandom.
** Kyra the Seer. Only appears in three episodes but is fondly remembered - thanks to being witty, entertaining and surprisingly deep. Also she's played by Creator/CharismaCarpenter - making this the most high profile of the Buffyverse actor crossovers.
** Also Melinda Warren. You'd be surprised that the character only actually appears in one episode - in the first season at that. Due to being the start of the Charmed line and possessing all three powers, as well as her interesting backstory, she's a frequent choice for fanfiction. Ditto for Eva, who also was only in one episode - yet enjoys great fan press as TheMentor to Melinda.
** It was recorded which cast member received the most fan mail and it wasn't any of the leads - it was Creator/FinolaHughes. Which would make Patty an EnsembleDarkHorse too.
** The half-manticore from the season six episode "Little Monsters" is ridiculously popular, considering that he was a oneshot character, a baby, and didn't even have a name. He often is depicted as the next generation of Halliwell's best friend.
** Despite dying in her debut episode, Bianca from "Chris-Crossed" is very popular, due to being a badass, her relationship with fellow fan favorite Chris, and the interesting possibilities that she represented. Some were disappointed that we never found out about her life in the changed future or if she and Chris got together again.
** The amount of mentions, love and fanfictions Mark Chao gets is astonishing, considering he was a one-shot character who appeared in one of the earliest episodes of Season 1 and was dead upon introduction. When Creator/JohnCho appeared on the ''House of Halliwell'' podcast he mentioned that he still gets people asking him about playing Mark.
** Drake de Mon remains as one of Phoebe's most popular love interests, despite his short tenure on the show, due to his charming personality, fun episodes, role in helping Phoebe regain her faith in love, and interesting backstory. Many fans wished that the sisters could have saved him, even if he didn't end up as Phoebe's endgame love interest.
** While acknowledging that their relationship was rushed for the finale and Coop is often a victim in DieForOurShip to Phoebe/Cole fans, his approach to love and personality has made him a favorite among some fans, especially because his relationship with Phoebe being rushed aside, he does appear to be a good match for her.

* HarsherInHindsight:
** In the pilot episode Prue remarks, "This house is perfectly safe." Piper responds, "Don't say that! In horror movies, the one who says that ends up dying." Poor Prue. May also double as HilariousInHindsight, as the exchange seems to be a reference to ''Film/{{Scream 1996}}'' which co-starred Rose [=McGowan=].
** Near the end of 5 season Penny refused to bless Wyatt saying that [[DoesNotLikeMen men should not be trusted with magic powers because they can't use them responsibly]]. At the end of the episode she learned that not all men are bad after all and gave her blessing. The very next season revolved around Wyatt becoming evil in the future. Only the successful prevention of said outcome [[spoiler:thanks to the intervention of his time-traveling brother]] keeps this from becoming a BrokenAesop as well.
** Everyone's shock that Future!Phoebe is imprisoned for using her powers for evil and to kill a man in "Morality Bites". Given her [[TookALevelInJerkass increasingly]] [[ItsAllAboutMe selfish]] behaviour in later seasons, she ends up doing a ''lot'' worse and actually has a much higher bodycount, having either directly or indirectly let people or innocents die out of spite or sheer neglect. This gets addressed in a meta sense in the season 9 comics, through "Morality Bites Back" revisiting the Cal Greene plotline and revealing that the close friend Greene murdered was [[spoiler:her boss Elise Rothman. This time the crisis is averted, and thankfully the comics don't seem to be marred by many of the problems the show had—including the tendency to forget that the good guys are supposed to be ''good'']].
** In "A Knight To Remember" the Evil Enchantress nearly kills Paige by blasting her onto the windshield of her car. Creator/RoseMcGowan would later be involved in a nearly fatal car accident and suffer damage to her eye.
** "Spin City" has Leo finding out that Chris hates him in the future. When demon Chris is attacking him, Leo mockingly says "Did I miss a school play? Take away your favorite toy? Play favorites with Wyatt?" when it's already known that he wasn't around much in Chris's future. However later on, it's revealed that [[spoiler: Piper died when Chris was fourteen]]. This turns Chris's angst from WhenYouComingHomeDad to a huge TearJerker. It's kind of understandable why Chris keeps punching him even after he's been turned back.
** A Season 6 episode has a subplot where Paige needs to help a co-worker expose a sexually harassing boss. Years later, Rose [=McGowan=] came out to say she had been sexually abused on ''Film/TheDoomGeneration'' and raped at one point. And then Alyssa Milano would end up popularizing the 'Me Too' movement.
** Any scene where Phoebe and Paige are getting along may be somewhat difficult to watch now that Rose [=McGowan=] has turned against Alyssa Milano in the aftermath of the Harvey Weinstein sexual misconduct scandal.[[note]]This refers to the fact that Milano continues to associate with Creative Artists Agency (CAA), whom [=McGowan=] accuses of covering up Harvey Weinstein's sexual misconduct and his rape of her in particular.[[/note]] They also got into an extremely nasty Twitter row in 2020 that ended with Alyssa blocking Rose.
** It's a minor gag in Season 1 that Phoebe got the SlutShaming nickname "Freebie" in high school - which is then expanded in Season 6 when she goes to her high school reunion. This rather eerily parallels the SlutShaming attitude she and Alyssa Milano would get from particularly zealous fans.
** There's an episode in Season 5 where Paige tries to impersonate someone else and get married pretending to be her. Creator/RoseMcGowan described an odd feeling in her autobiography, where she had her first wedding in ''Charmed'' but also got married three times in her roles before it happened for real.
--> "I don't necessarily agree that your wedding day should be the single greatest event in your life, but having it happen on-screen for the first time robbed something from me. All told I was fake married three times on film before my "real" marriage. By then, I was repeating an emotional scene I'd already played. Your entertainment comes at a cost to us performers."
** The Season 8 plot of journalists constantly invading the Halliwells' lives, and Paige's attempts to fend them off ended up paralleling Rose's own negative experience with the paparazzi. She detailed some extremely disturbing encounters in her autobiography after finishing on the show - including getting chased through the Vatican by a mob of people with phones.
--> "Everybody was reporting on anyone well known and you didn't know where the enemy was because it was no longer just the paparazzi or the gossip columnist. It was everybody. I was forced to live a life where I didn't say anything, I didn't do anything, lest I be branded a bad girl. Most were so freaked out by people reporting false items, they just stayed hidden. At least that's what I did."
** The entire plotline for the second half of Season 4, where Paige [[CassandraTruth tries in vain]] to warn her sisters that Cole has turned evil again, but everybody dismisses her, calls her delusional and abandons her. This finds a near carbon copy parallel in what Rose went through after publicly accusing Weinstein and receiving the backlash. The episode ''The Fifth Halliwheel'' is especially harsh: Paige witnesses first-hand Cole using magic again, so he has her infected with paranoia-inducing magic and proceeds to alternate between terrorising her with his powers and gaslighting her into believing it's all a hallucination, only for her sisters to believe her initial statement was caused by the infective magic too. The parallels with the smear campaign by Weinstein's media team is heartwrecking.
** The plot of the first season has Prue and Phoebe being estranged and rebuilding their friendship, ultimately becoming close sisters again. It was the opposite way in real life, where the actresses initially got on very well - Shannen Doherty and Holly Marie Combs were bridesmaids at Alyssa Milano's 1999 wedding - but they ended up at complete odds by the third season. The two actresses did end up putting the past behind them in TheNewTens however.
** The twist in "We're Off to See the Wizard" is that said wizard is actually evil. Quite uncomfortable to watch since Armin Shimmerman voiced how much he hated his time on the show, and called the three lead actresses the most difficult performers he'd ever worked with.
** In ''Marry-Go-Round'' Paige says "Is this a wedding or a coronation?" as a joke. About six episodes later, Phoebe does have a coronation as she becomes Queen of the Underworld.
** Also Piper jokingly telling [[spoiler: Prue 'you've lived a full life']] in "Animal Pragmatism".

* HilariousInHindsight:
** The first season episode title "The Fourth Sister" considering [[spoiler: they had a fourth sister all along]].
** The aforementioned horror movie line. In the episode "Chick Flick" which is an AffectionateParody of slasher movies, Prue is the first one to get attacked by the psycho killer.
** The season 4 premiere has Paige nearly orbing a man's heart out of his body. Creator/RoseMcGowan would later play a young Cora in ''Series/OnceUponATime'' and her preferred method of dealing with people was ripping their hearts out of their bodies. Additionally in "A Knight To Remember" Rose also plays an Evil Enchantress who tries to make a prince forget his potential bride and marry her, hoping to gain control of his kingdom - something Cora does in the second episode where Rose plays her. And a third one - in "Happily Ever After" Paige falls victim to Snow White's poisoned apple. In ''Once Upon A Time'' Cora is Snow White's step-grandmother. It's also hilarious that Paige is skeptical about the fairy tales being real - when in OUAT she is a fairy tale character.
** Another ''Once Upon A Time'' related one; In "Spin City" Paige has to get rid of the WickedWitch of the 'Enchanted Forest'. Fast forward to OUAT and Paige's actress ''is'' the Wicked Witch of the Enchanted Forest.
** A series of strange coincidences involving ''Charmed'' and ProfessionalWrestling have been creeping up after the show ended:
*** The ProWrestlingEpisode "Wrestling With Demons". Think about this: Prue and Phoebe defeated Wrestling/BookerT and Wrestling/ScottSteiner, the two guys that would later win tag team championships together as part of [[Wrestling/ImpactWrestling TNA's]] Main Event Mafia.
*** The Nexus, the central point of powerful energy the Manor was built upon, becomes the object of Zankou's demonic ambitions in season 7 (and those of Paul Haas in early season 8). Furthermore, when demons get killed, they go to a desolate place aptly called the Wasteland, where they inevitably end up as food for a hungry serpent beast. Fast forward to 2010 where a PowerStable of young upstarts known as Wrestling/TheNexus start running amok in Wrestling/{{WWE}}, led by and centered around the ambitions of [[Wrestling/WadeBarrett a man]] whose FinishingMove at the time is called the Wasteland.
*** Paige's appearance in the fourth season is that of RavenHairIvorySkin and as noted on the main page, her BloodKnight tendencies have earned her the FanNickname "Raige" on the ''Website/TelevisionWithoutPity'' recaps. Fast forward to 2012 where we have a WWE Diva named Wrestling/{{Paige}} with black hair and pale skin, known for being violent and aggressive. Slight bonus to that one: in Chris's first appearance he makes the comment of "Stone Cold Paige", in reference to her being frozen by the Titans. WWE's Paige was a guest on the podcast of wrestling legend Wrestling/StoneColdSteveAustin where she openly admitted to being inspired by Austin. And the film ''Film/FightingWithMyFamily'' (which is about Paige the wrestler) depicts her getting the name from the character in the TV show.
*** Piper's son Wyatt essentially became the plot of Season 6, in which it's revealed that he's destined to become the {{Above Good and|Evil}} EvilOverlord of a BadFuture unless someone's attempts to kill/convert him are thwarted. Fast forward to 2012 where we have a WWE Superstar named Wrestling/BrayWyatt[[note]]portrayed by a former member of the aforementioned Nexus group for good measure[[/note]] who leads a creepy {{cult}} "family" and is implied to be [[DemonicPossession a man possessed by an ancient demon]], possibly {{Satan}} himself. Furthermore, Wyatt Halliwell was born inside the Manor, making him extra susceptible to a FaceHeelTurn thanks to the Manor's Nexus. The man implied to be Bray Wyatt's vessel is the previous character his wrestler portrayed as a former member of the Nexus stable.
** When Phoebe says of Penny's six marriages,[[note]]This is a goof; Penny was engaged six times but only married four[[/note]] Cole says "I would have stopped at three". Phoebe would eventually be married three times across the series. [[spoiler: And she would [[HappilyMarried stop at the third one]]]].
** In "Enter the Demon" Piper is annoyed that Paige isn't taking her Charmed duties seriously, specifically her potions. Fast forward to "Siren Song" where Paige has been on a kick of hunting demons and experimenting with potions - which Piper complains about. BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor.
** A meta case. Just before the fifth season started filming, Rose [=McGowan=] did an interview where she said it was odd that they didn't show Paige dating anyone at all in her first year. She ended the interview saying "I hope I get some action". This becomes hilarious if one watches an extra on the DVD - where Rose talks about how she'd have these one-shot raunchy scenes with interchangeable male actors. She then went to the producers and said "Paige isn't a ho!" - BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor indeed.
** Creator/MishaCollins plays a character who calls Phoebe an angel and she replies that she isn't but she could introduce him to one. The actor later joined ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'' as an angel.
** The groom-to-be in "The Wedding from Hell" was named [[Series/{{Leverage}} Elliot Spencer.]] For additional hilarity, an episode of ''Leverage'' focused on the main cast's efforts to crash a wedding, just as this one did.
** The Latin American Spanish dub of the series shares many voice actors with the Latin American Spanish dub of ''Anime/DragonBallZ'', of all things. This led to such instances as Andy and Prue sharing the same voice actors as Adult!Goku and Kid!Goku/Kid!Gohan/Kid!Goten, respectively (Creator/MarioCastaneda and Creator/LauraTorres), leading to some AccidentalInnuendo of the [[ScrewYourself really]] [[ParentalIncest quite]] {{squick}}y kind to anyone paying attention, and Cole being voiced by Frieza's voice actor (Creator/GerardoReyero) when, while Frieza is infamous for being an unrepentant villain through the entire franchise, Cole is known for having a ''really'' protracted HeelFaceRevolvingDoor through his tenure on the show.
** [[Series/JustAddMagic This won't be the last time there's a trio of girls who protect the power of magic and fights evil.]] Bonus points for both girl trios discovering the magic book in an attic.
** This show was inspired by the film ''Film/TheCraft'', and one of the stars of that film, Rachel True, who is African-American, mocked Aaron Spelling for making the characters sisters, calling it an excuse to not cast any actresses of color. [[Series/Charmed2018 The 2018 reboot]] would give the sisters a RaceLift to become Latina/bi-racial. And that series would then be attacked for colorism - as only Melonie Diaz identifies as Latina.
** Creator/RachelTrue criticising the show is especially amusing if one knows that she starred with three of the cast members before it was on the air - with Alyssa Milano in ''Film/EmbraceOfTheVampire'' and both Shannen Doherty and Rose [=McGowan=] in ''{{Film/Nowhere}}''.
** Brian Krause playing basically an angel here, and the series finale ends with [[spoiler: Phoebe marrying a cupid]]. One of his post-''Charmed'' roles was the MadeForTVMovie ''You're So Cupid'' - where it's revealed he's Cupid and likewise has two children with powers as a result (although these are girls).
** Two regarding "Battle of the Hexes" in which Billie wears Franchise/WonderWoman-inspired outfit and is taken over by [[Myth/ClassicalMythology the Belt of Gaea]] which was once worn by the Amazon queen Hippolyta.
*** Kaley Cuoco, who played Billie, would go on to star in ''Series/TheBigBangTheory'' which had an episode where the main characters cosplay as the ComicBook/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica. And Cuoco's character was dressed as Wonder Woman who is the daughter of Hippolyta.
*** Cuoco would also go on to star as the eponymous character in ''WesternAnimation/HarleyQuinn2019'', meaning that she now plays a DC character for real.
** Phoebe's future self is distinguished from her present self in both Seasons 2 and 7 by having near waist-length hair. Alyssa Milano did end up growing her hair to that length after the show ended, and it was even like that for the special features created for the Deluxe Edition boxset.

* NeverLiveItDown:
** Phoebe couldn't live down her behaviour in Seasons 5 and 6 - her horrible treatment of Cole, misuse of powers and shameless {{Fanservice}}. This is in spite of her actually getting punished towards the end of Season 6 for this (the other sisters got away consequence-free with the same amount of personal gain as her) and her wardrobe eventually getting toned down. Not to mention she TookALevelInKindness by Season 8.
** Fans seem to never fail to bring up that Phoebe once strongly opposed Piper's idea of moving out of the Manor after her marriage to Leo, but then proceeded to move out herself one season later after her own marriage to Cole, as if that's the apex of Phoebe's {{hypocri|te}}sy. Never mind that the circumstances were completely different: by the point Phoebe moved out, there were ''two'' married couples plus one sister living in the Manor, they now had two people capable of [[FlashyTeleportation orbing]] and, most importantly, they believed they had vanquished [[FinalBoss The Source of All Evil]] and absolved their Charmed destiny.
** That time Piper almost caused a little girl to get hurt by deliberately ignoring her witch duties because she was on a "strike" to get Leo back from the Elders. It’s particularly notable because it happened early in Season 3, when the Charmed Ones were still all about saving innocents, and because none of the other sisters ever flat-out refused to help an innocent in need unless they were [[GrandTheftMe somehow]] [[BrainwashedAndCrazy cursed]] (and that includes even Phoebe at her lowest, as the literal Queen of the Underworld!). Piper did eventually come around and [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone was clearly distraught by the consequences of her selfishness]], and convinced the little girl not to run away from her problems like she did. This, combined with her realizing that there were valid reasons for why Witch/Whitelighter romances were forbidden helped convince the Elders to release Leo and give them a chance to prove they could make it work. However, in later seasons, Piper acts far more like a brat who just can't get over how the Elders are ruining their lives, all lessons from this episode forgotten.
** There's also the infamous sequence in "Hyde School Reunion", where Phoebe and Paige allow a human to be killed by demons. It's often forgotten that the man was a wanted criminal who escaped thanks to Phoebe being under the influence of a spell, and he endangered many other people's lives, with it only being sheer luck that stopped him from killing anyone. He was also threatening their lives at this point too. So while it was a human death that could have been avoided, he wasn't exactly an innocent.
** The sisters themselves becoming more selfish. What's often ignored is that this very thing is examined in the final two seasons - where they jump head-first into creating a Utopia with the Avatars and then realise the consequences that come with such a thing. There's also a Season 8 episode where Leo advises Piper to simply avoid hunting demons while they're in disguise, but she outright says she can't ignore it when it's happening in front of her. What's more is that this is the main reason for [[spoiler: Billie's FaceHeelTurn towards the end]] and it's presented as VillainHasAPoint. And the finale [[spoiler: ensures that the sisters kept fighting demons for the rest of their lives, finding a balance with personal lives and training their children to be able to take over]].
** [[SpotlightStealingSquad Wyatt taking over the show]] in Season 6. Even though his presence was massively toned down already in Season 7, and Season 8 only gave him a couple of focus episodes and few scenes in-between, he was so overexposed in Season 6, with all the major storylines revolving around him while most of the other characters were written poorly and had rather silly side-plots, that many fans remember the last few seasons as completely dominated by him, some sarkily foregoing the traditional "Prue Seasons" and "Paige Seasons" division for the "Sisters Seasons" and "Wyatt Seasons" instead.
** Paige can't seem to live down her arc in Season 6 involving going to various temp jobs. The detractors paint her as an idiot for 'forgetting' about her past a social worker; when the reason she left that job in the first place was because she couldn't balance it with witch obligations, and the temp jobs were an attempt to reconnect with the non-magical world in a new way. And she keeps going to the different jobs because she finds a new problem that requires her help.
** Kyle Brody darting Paige with tranquilliser and holding Phoebe at gunpoint to get to the Avatars is one of the most shocking scenes in the show's whole run, especially as he then proceedes to try and kill Leo. Despite time rewinding so none of that ever truly happened and main timeline's Kyle being more reasonable, many fans saw that as the moment [[MoralEventHorizon when he showed his true colours]] and could never warm up to him again. The show goes to great lengths to give him a FreudianExcuse that the Avatars had killed his parents (or so he thought), present him as ProperlyParanoid and his mistrust of [[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans Utopia]] as a CassandraTruth, even going as far as having the Elders turn him into a Whitelighter to put the emphasis on the [[WellIntentionedExtremist well intentioned part of extremist]], but a big part of the fandom has remained adamant that FreudianExcuseIsNoExcuse and still hates him with a passion to this day.
** Whenever one of the sisters is hostile to and mistrustful of another's new love interest, but then proceeds to / has just recovered from falling head over heels for her own next beau, fingers get pointed in all directions by the fans recalling events from ten seasons ago when X ruined Y and Z's ship but then purused her own with K. Granted, the circumstances are different each time, but the show does a very poor job at keeping the Aesop consistent on whether it's right to trust the currently besotted sister's guts and give the guy the benefit of the doubt, or the other two sistrs are right and the third should listen to her family who knows better. It also doesn't help that all four sisters' judgement gets [[IdiotBall severely impaired]] whenever they're falling for someone, so they get AesopAmnesia whichever version we're choosing to subscribe to this week and they all come across as hypocritical rather than talking from a place of experience due to their own latest disappointment.
** The [[FantasyKitchenSink Magical Community]] was a controversial addition to begin with, and they lost any goodwill from the fans when they turned on the Charmed Ones and sided with [[BitchInSheepsClothing Billie]] and [[ObviouslyEvil Christy]] after all the times the Sister [[DamselScrappy had saved their asses]]. What made them come off as especially entitled and bratty was their falling for a transparent manipulation and not believing that the Charmed Ones couldn’t help them ''that one time'' because they got hexed, despite all the magical creatures being, well, magical and familiar with that kind of things. Hardly anyone in the fandom ever forgave them.
** The show itself is often remembered for the {{Fanservice}} because the network emphasised it (to the showrunners' annoyance). For example "The Bare Witch Project" was hyped around Phoebe dressing up as Lady Godiva - when in the episode she only does it in a brief sequence at the end. The {{Fanservice}} was only that heavy in Season 5 and 6, and even so the show was far more straight laced than people remember.
** The amount of times the sisters have cheated death is sometimes mocked, even though the circumstances are usually more nuanced; most of the instances involved time travel or else the sisters only being legally dead but getting revived just in time.
** The continuity mistakes in Season 6 are especially glaring (although there were a couple in the other seasons too); to the point that ''Charmed'' was touted as legendary for its bad continuity. There are in fact several {{Continuity Nod}}s throughout the series, and Seasons 7 and 8 have lots of {{Call Back}}s and references to events and characters from as far back as the first season. Even so, the episode "Witchstock" is not the ContinuitySnarl it's made out to be.[[note]]It's set in 1967 and features a drastically younger Penny, played by a different actress only eight years before "That 70s Episodes". In fact, the official family tree lists Penny's birth year as 1930, meaning that she is 37 in "Witchstock", and the actress playing her was close to that age. Patty is said to be sleeping over with Alan's sister, meaning a lot of fans assumed she was intended to be a child and therefore wreaking more havoc with continuity. Patty's birth year is 1950, meaning she's either 16 or 17 in the flashback and it's perfectly plausible for a teenager to sleep over with a relative.[[/note]]
** Brad Kern couldn't live down not having a picture of Prue in the series finale. He regrets it to this day, claiming it was over budget concerns; the $8000 cost a picture of Shannen Doherty would have required would have meant not being able to bring back one of the other returning cast members.

* RetroactiveRecognition:
** Creator/AmyAdams stars in Season 2's "Murphy's Luck".
** Creator/MishaCollins appears in Season 2's "They're Everywhere". He's now best known as Castiel on ''{{Series/Supernatural}}''.
** Creator/JohnCho plays the titular "Dead Man Dating" in Season 1.
** Creator/ZacharyQuinto is the demon of the week in Season 5's "Cat House".
** Creator/AshleyTisdale plays a small role as a girl attacked by a banshee in Season 3's "Look Who's Barking Now".
** Creator/NormanReedus guest stars in two episodes of Season 5 as one of Paige's dates.
** Creator/LeighAllynBaker had the recurring role of Hannah Webster during season 1. Nowadays, she's known as Amy Duncan from ''Series/GoodLuckCharlie''.
** Creator/KaleyCuoco was already known for ''Series/EightSimpleRules'', but she would reach new heights as part of ''Series/TheBigBangTheory'' shortly after.
** Creator/DanneelAckles has a minor cameo as New Paige in the season 7 finale, "Something Wicca This Way Goes..."
** Creator/JonHamm appears in "Ordinary Witches" as Kyle Brody's father.
** Creator/ChrisDiamantopoulos appears as one of the villains in "Charmed Noir" in one of his earliest roles.
** Creator/RainnWilson plays one of the villains of the week in Season 3's "Coyote Piper".

** The Elders. The BigGood of the show who believe TheNeedsOfTheMany and are sometimes forced to do morally questionable actions to keep the forces of evil in check, or simply a collection of JerkassGods who desire to keep their monopoly on power at all costs? Especially considering they wanted to wipe out the Avatars despite knowing ''nothing'' about them or their motives, just because they were threatening their status as the most powerful faction in the series.

** A subset of fanfics are known as "Chris revelation fics", which alter how his true identity is revealed, invariably in ways which increase the drama and/or angst level compared to canon. "Almost obligatory" for a writer in the fandom to have written such a story.

** Despite dying in her debut episode, Bianca from Chris-Crossed is very popular, due to being a badass, her relationship with fellow fan favorite Chris, and the interesting possibilities that she represented. Some were disappointed that we never found out about her life in the changed future or if she and Chris got together again.
** The amount of mentions, love and fanfictions Mark Chao gets is astounishing, considering he was a one-shot character who appeared in one of the earliest episodes of Season 1 and was dead upon introduction. When Creator/JohnCho appeared on the ''House of Halliwell'' podcast he mentioned that he still gets people asking him about playing Mark.

** Surprisingly {{averted|Trope}} with the introduction of [[LongLostRelative Paige]], in no small measure thanks to a fortuitous InnocuouslyImportantEpisode establishing that Patty had an affair with her Whitelighter Sam already in Season 2, way before it could become vital for the continuation of the series.

*** Fans are also divided on ''what'' exactly caused Cole's SanitySlippage, with the blame being pointed according to which side they stand on with the Cole/Phoebe feud. Cole's fans blame it on a spell Paige cast to make him feel Phoebe's emotions[[note]]though when later used on Piper, it had no such side effects[[/note]]. Phoebe's fans blame it on Cole's own obsession for Phoebe regardless of magic, which only exacerbated it by [[CannotSelfTerminate making Cole suicide-proof]]. [[TakeAThirdOption Another camp]] points out that Cole was a human soul when he absorbed the demonic powers in the Wasteland, and mortals have [[ContinuityNod consistently been shown]] to lose it when infused with magic. All agree that Barbas screwing with his mind did not help.

** Cole’s whole plot in Season 5 leaves plenty of room for this. Was Cole a good guy unfairly blamed for being possessed by the Source against his will, who [[SanitySlippage went crazy]] as a result of Paige and Barbas using magic to screw with his mind? Was he a former villain trying his best to redeem himself in the face of [[HeelFaceDoorSlam mistrust and rejection]], and only [[ThenLetMeBeEvil embraced evil again out of desperation]]? Or was he on his best behaviour as a ploy to [[MoralityPet get Phoebe back]], and showed his true colours once it became clear that was not going to happen? Was Phoebe a BitchInSheepsClothing for blaming Cole for things beyond his control and repeatedly trying to kill him well before he did anything villainous, or was she standing her ground in front of a man who--redeemed or not--felt [[EntitledToHaveYou entitled to have her]] and wouldn’t respect her boundaries?

** The amount of mentions, love and fanfictions Mark Chao gets is astounishing, considering he was a one-shot character who appeared in one of the earliest episodes of Season 1 and was dead upon introduction.
** Drake de Mon remains as one of Phoebe's most popular love interests, despite his short tenor on the show, due to his charming personality, fun episodes, role in helping Phoebe regain her faith in love, and interesting backstory. Many fans wished that the sisters could have saved him, even if he didn't end up as Phoebe's endgame love interest.

--->'''Piper:''' "I'm being stalked by psycho killers and I hide in the shower?"