Clearly taking advantage of one of the more successful formulas, ‘Forget Me...Not’ is an episode that pleasantly switches up a tried and tested idea by putting a new, if a little odd, spin on things. Serial plots aside, this episode managed to reach some seriously wonderful story-telling highs, and played on the natural chemistry each of these girls have, which is always welcome.
In ‘Forget Me...Not’ the sisters are forced to use a spell to “fill in the blanks” when they find themselves with missing chunks of time. After discovering that magical beings known as the Cleaner’s erased Wyatt’s existence, they must find a way to stop them before they lose him forever.
After the success of the show’s previous use of time loops (see ‘Déjà Vu All Over Again’ and ‘The Good, the Bad and the Cursed’), another attempt to utilise said success formed a mostly solid episode, and one of the rare examples of clever writing where Charmed: the Later Years is concerned. Similar to the already noted season 1 finale, it’s the girls’ natural instincts and natural connection that gets things pumping.
Since Wyatt’s birth, the show’s dynamic had been shaken up significantly, and again, as a result of Leo’s “promotion”. This episode took advantage of a story that though flawed, provided the series with a number of interesting scenarios. Since his presence is what’s driving this season’s serial plot, removing Wyatt, especially at an early stage like this, was a smart way to test the waters, and hint at a more serious role he might play later.
After Wyatt’s birth the shows dynamic was definitely going to change. The three sisters were put into the background a little. One thing I noticed about the episode is that it actually has quite a few moments of the sisters together, though that was probably unintentional. Still, the use of the girls’ natural intuition, and inner power was a tactic I liked to see being used, even if it is in such a vague and odd way.
As the wear on, Paige’s “jobs of the week” continue to get more and more useless, but the early ones are surprisingly nice. Though I liked where this one headed, and it was masterfully used as a clever hint at magic gone awry for Paige, it did end up becoming a little redundant. And Paige’s “assistance” should really have put Flo in a worse position than before. Assaulting the boss, Paige? Smooth. The same can be said for Phoebe’s side action, but I got a major kick out of the riot, however unrealistic. It’s fun to see her struggling to contain other emotions because of her empathy that don’t involve horniness.
The major issue here is with the Cleaners, whose introduction served up a platter full of plot holes and inconsistencies. Though it’s hardly surprising for Charmed, I still feel a little defensive about anything exposure related, especially when it has such a strong tie to Prue’s death. Where were they when Pure and Piper got caught on national television? It’s frustrating, but I enjoyed this episode enough for it to not bother me too much.
8/10
Great review, I thought this episode was all right. I liked what you wrote about the sister's natural instincts, as I also like episodes where the show exploited their intuition rather than with a run of coincidences or whatever.
ReplyDeleteAww! Just read your note about the review hiatus. I'm guessing it's school/college-related?
ReplyDeleteAlso just wanted to add that your writing is really great. I hope this doesn't read badly, but there's this really marked difference in the reviews you posted when you first started your blog and what they're like today. Everything's a lot tighter and more exploratory, you know? That same thing happened with me, too -- those first couple months' worth of reviews read terribly to my eyes compared to the ones I post now (seriously, don't read them -- heh). And I think reading the work of others and being part of a critical environment naturally feeds into our own writing. It just fosters so many ideas... it's pretty awesome.
Hopefully that didn't come off really badly. I hate trying to articulate intent or tone online. Ugh. But, yeah, rambling. Short version: good job, Panda!
Yeah, I just felt that with final year college exams coming up, and with work, I just don't have enough time for this as I used to. Though they've already been written, I kind of need a decent chunk of time for formatting and all the rest, so I'm giving it a break for a month or so, but keeping up with on-air shows (Ringer, Secret Circle and Once). I'll be all over them again once summer hits though!
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks! Don't worry, I get exactly what you mean, and I feel the same way. When I first started I think it just been such a LONG time since I had written anything like this, and after some practice and joining Billie's blog, I kind of feel like I've learned a lot, not just from practice but from reading everyone else's stuff, yours in particular. I can't stand my early ones either, they're just so rushed, and short. Maybe I'll re-do them at some point!
Just for the record, I think your early stuff is great, too! I think as you write more, your style changes constantly, so when you look back you kind of feel a little annoyed at the things you could have done differently.
Thanks for the lovely comment, Adam! Charmed will be up and running again, soon.