Charmed is back! Yes, for all of the fans of the original, and for those who are just excited about diversity, CBS Studios is bringing the reboot of Charmed, featuring a blessedly diverse cast, to San Diego Comic Con.
The reboot has proven divisive, with plenty of fans of the original claiming it’s disrespectful to move forward, especially without input from the original stars, who are pretty much responsible for what this show is today, and for its legacy.
Me, personally, though I very much agree with that, and though I grew up on the original and loved it, have to say that, in hindsight, the show was peak white feminism and I’m certainly excited to see what this new version can do. Nothing can take away the message I learned from the original Charmed ones, but there’s space in my heart for new ones.
So, let’s talk about the questions we want answered from this show during it’s appearance at San Diego Comic Con:
Is the new Charmed ones’ latinx heritage going to play a big role in the show?
We love that this show is going diverse; we just hope it’s going diverse in something other than name. Yes, some Spanish words here and there are cute, but diversity is about much more than that, and when it comes to things like magic, there’s a wealth of Latin American folklore and tradition the show could borrow from.
Can this show surprise us?
This happens a lot with reboots – we sort of know what’s coming, so it becomes an exercise in re-living something you love. But for this show to really and truly flourish, it has to find new ways to engage us, and even surprise us. So, what do you have under your sleeve, Charmed?
Is the LGBTQ+ story going to be treated like any other love story?
Increasingly on TV LGBTQ+ stories are being featured more predominantly and treaded with more care and respect. However, there are still obvious differences in how these stories are treaded and how heterosexual stories are, especially when it comes to physical affection. Is this going to be the show that puts both on equal ground?
Will the show focus on family first?
One of our favorite things about the original Charmed was that the show was about family first – the sister’s relationship with each other was always the main driving point. And sure, we’re not against them all finding happiness with their respective partners, but we’d love to see the show still be grounded on the thing that made us fall in love with this show in the first place: family.
Can this show give us an epic romance?
For all the original Charmed focused on family, the love story of Piper and Leo was also one of our favorite parts. We saw them become friends, fall in love, start a family, go through ups and down, and hell, we even saw their adult kids come back from the future! Can this show give us anything even remotely that epic?
Agree? Disagree? Have more questions you want answered? Share with us in the comments below!
Charmed will premiere Sunday October 14th at 9/8c on the CW. Their San Diego Comic Con Panel is schedule for Thursday July 19th from 11:15 AM-12:15 PM in Ballroom 20, and will feature stars Melonie Diaz, Sarah Jeffery, Madeleine Mantock and Rupert Evans along with producers Jennie Snyder Urman, Jessica O’Toole and Amy Rardin, who will appear after a sneak peek of episode one.
