Episode Report Card Demian: B | 0 USERS: N/A YOU GRADE IT Charmed Again, Part The Second
By Demian | Season 4 | Episode 2 | Aired on 2001.10.04
Cross-fade to a hospital room. The camera pans across various monitoring equipment before settling on Shane, asleep in the bed. Number one, I thought they were going to release him right away, and number two, I'd mock his bedhead, but I think this boy considers bedhead to be a legitimate personal grooming choice. Shane's thrashing about a bit, as if he's having a nightmare. As he shudders into a slack-jawed state of alertness, a power surge plays havoc with the electronic equipment in the room. He staggers from the bed to his feet just as The Source blazes into the room. Again with the "What the hell?" Again with the "Yes, dear. Exactly." "Who are you?" Shane demands. "For now," growls The Source, "I am you." The Source merges into Shane, in a process that seems somewhat painful for Rose's furry boy toy. Did that sound filthy? I think that sounded filthy. Anyhoo, The Shource pulls himself erect (snerk), wearing an expression of menace he stole from Jack Nicholson. At that moment, Rose's pale, egg-shaped head pops into the window on the room's door. She enters all verklempt, telling The Shource, "Something awful just happened. I -- I can't explain." The Shource looks all innocent and supportive as he coos, "It's all right, honey. I'm here now." Well, duh you're there now. You've been there all night. She's been stomping around town in stiletto heels, blowing up dark demonic forces sent from the flaming maw of Hell, while you've been lying in bed fantasizing about the night nurse. So, yeah, I'll say it: Shut up, Shource. He pulls her into an embrace, gently stroking her hair as he soothes, "It's okay." On this line, The Shource's eyes roll back into his head, shifting quickly from white to blood red to black. Sometimes, the smallest touches are the coolest. His eyes look like shiny black beetles in his skull.
Manor, the following morning. In the kitchen, Piper applies an ice pack to the Dolt's sore neck, a souvenir from his run-in with Fruma-Shax the previous evening. Piper's having trouble wrapping her mind around the idea that the Dolt can heal innocents, but is useless when the injured party is himself. I'm certain he's useless in so many other ways as well, but let's keep this recap moving, shall we? Phoebe, entering from the hall, wonders how someone who is "technically dead" can "even get knocked out" in the first place. The Dolt: "Three years together, and now you're asking these questions?" I was wondering about that myself. Piper believes that "the more important question is, how does a Whitelighter get somebody knocked up?" Well, Piper, it's like this. No. No, I am so not going there. Ew. I'll just note that, in "Morality Bites," you saw a version of the future in which the Dolt himself had knocked you up, so why is this even an issue? Oh, yeah. Alyssa had Shannen fired, and now a team of crack-addled writers is desperately scrambling for ways to preserve the central conceit of the series. Sorry, I forgot that for a moment. Not. The three carry on in this vein for a bit, providing expository material from the episode we've just SEEN so that when this one hits syndication, the backstory for the events to follow will be in place. Eventually, they're interrupted by the doorbell. Piper snarks something about "[hoping] it's not another long-lost relative" before stomping out to answer the door.