Episode Report Card Demian: A | 7 USERS: A+ YOU GRADE IT All Hell Breaks Loose
By Demian | Season 3 | Episode 22 | Aired on 2001.05.17
Cavern. The Dolt orbs in with the bad news. Interestingly, he says not a word when he enters. Phoebe, however, takes one look at his face and breathes, “Piper.” Is this supposed to indicate that the sisters are so close to their Whitelighter, any one of them would be able to guess what he’s thinking? Or does it indicate that Phoebe knows for a fact that the Dolt wouldn’t care if Prue had been the one with the gaping exit wound? You decide. Phoebe comforts him briefly, then turns to ask the Colethazor, “Will resetting time affect us down here?” Cole allows that it won’t. Phoebe notes that, in that case, she has a condition of her own. She will remain in the Cavern if Cole warns Prue and Piper of Fruma-Shax immediately upon the regression of time. “Otherwise, they’re dead anyway.” Cut to Source Earl Jones, booming, “Agreed!” from deep within his red velour robe. Cole rises from his knees and leaves. Leather-clad Lunkhead approaches and genuflects before Source Earl Jones to receive the following instructions from the master of them all: “Once I have reset time, detain him, and then kill his witch. That way I don’t have to worry about Belthazor any more. Or the Charmed Ones.” Get it? The Source himself can turn back time. (Surprisingly, this makes sense. He himself would have the combined powers of all of his underlings, wouldn’t he?) The Source orchestrated the entire thing, knowing that the unusual and foolhardy daytime Fruma-Shax attacks would lead Prue to expose the Halliwells, knowing that The Powers That Be would resort to temporal regression to solve the problem, and knowing that TPTB would involve the Colethazor in all of it. And everyone fell for it. Clever Source. Or, rather, clever Kern. I don’t think I’ve encountered an episode so tightly scripted on this show before. Bravo.