January 21, 2008
Loss
The day he moved out was terrible -
That evening she went through hell.
His absence wasn’t a problem
But the corkscrew had gone as well.
- Wendy Cope
I’m falling in love with Wendy Cope’s sonnets. She writes some of the more interesting sonnets I have read. She is one of the contemporary British writers who pokes fun at relationship.
I particularly like the last sentence because there seems to be a double layered sarcasm. The first layer of sarcasm is that, it hinted that she seemed more concerned about the corkscrew rather than the man mentioned. The words “as well” hinted that the man took the corkscrew with him when he left, but rather than thinking about the man, she seemed to miss the corkscrew more, hence the sarcasm.
But why would she even be thinking about the corkscrew? Well, corkscrews are noticeably instruments for pulling out corks from bottles, and in this case, she was probably opening a wine bottle. I would think that she was probably celebrating the departure of her husband, since “His absence wasn’t a problem”.
The other layer of sarcasm was that, like I said earlier on, the words “as well” hinted that the husband probably took the corkscrew with him when he left. In a way, to me, it seems that the husband was out to antagonise his wife and at the same time, to either celebrate or drown himself in sorrow.
After all, he could have taken lots of other things, but why was corkscrew specifically mentioned? Probably because he knew his wife was going to celebrate but refused her that satisfaction by taking the corkscrew away so she was unable to open a champagne or some other wine bottle to celebrate.
At that same time, he could have used the same corkscrew to open a wine bottle to either drown himself in sorrow or to celebrate their split. If it was to celebrate, he could have just taken or even bought a new corkscrew. The fact that he took the corkscrew that she used was probably to spite her. It was this idea that led me to think that he was probably feeling angry.
This is the reason why I love Wendy Cope’s sonnets a lot. Just a simple four sentence but there is a gigantic food for thought.
February 1, 2007
English Version:
Andy Heslop, age 39, has been playing piano for five years. Here he describes some of the highs, and the lows, of learning to play as an adult.
You’ve heard the joke about the man who, when asked for directions replied, “I wouldn’t start from here”. That’s what I say to adults who tell me they would like to learn to play the piano. I know, I am doing it. For the last five years I have wrestled with the monster in the sitting room, daring to expose my hands to its gleaming white teeth, and my sanity to its sonorities. Never before in the history o human endeavour has something that is so difficult appeared to be so easy. Pianos should display a mandatory government health warning.
Five years ago my daughter expressed a desire to play the piano. An instrument was rented, a teacher found, and, being a supportive father, I began lessons with her. She lasted six months but I’m still going. It began well and I had thought that after about two or three years I would have mastered it, well, at least become a competent pianist. Like all other adult beginners I had the dream: knocking out old jazz numbers, lightly skipping across pieces by Mozart, thundering through a bit of Beethoven, impressing the kids with a rendition of Robbie Williams’ Fantasy.
Of course, much progress was made in three years: tutor books were completed and grade exams passed. But in three years the scale of the task has been slowly revealed. In business speak, what begins as blissful unconscious incompetence becomes extremely conscious incompetence, and this is very uncomfortable place to be.
Were I slightly less balanced, I would find it easy to hate my piano teacher. He sits at the piano and acoustic poetry begins. I can live with that but why does he make it look so easy? Obviously he does it on purpose. His hands dance across the keys and his eyes skip across the hieroglyphics on the printed page. It is quite clear that there must be some trick. What he is doing is not feasible. Fingers, eyes and brain cannot possibly be co-ordinated so well, so quickly. What he plays at sight, I learn in three months. How dispiriting is that? It’s like sitting in a drawing class feeling moderately please at the stick figures on your canvas, whereupon you glance at the man at the adjacent easel only to find that he is John Constable and he has just knock up The Hay Wain, before the coffee break. The realization that there isn’t mountain to climb but a galaxy to cross can be, shall we say, moderately dispiriting.
Sadly, my piano teacher has many co-conspirators, who shall be known by their collective name of “composers”. You work on a piece for weeks, slowly mastering each short phrase, and only then, eight bars from the end do you find it. “It” has many guises. A tenth stretch. A hemidemisemiquaver run (molto presto1) or a sequence of chords laced with accidentals that seem to follow some mysterious progression that only a contortionist could produce. In short, something that your hands cannot do (and your brain is in full agreement with your hands). Your fingers refused to consider this four-part thing that Bach has written. And what does your teacher say? You want him to say, “just skip that bit and we’ll fix it later”, but he doesn’t. No, what he says is, “it’s no good practicing what you can do, you have to practice what you can’t do”. This has to be the most outrageous and annoying truism ever stated. You can counter this argument quite convincingly by stating that it is no use practicing running, with the objective of hitting sixty miles per hour, or practicing holding your breath for twenty-hour hours, because it is not going to happen. It isn’t humanly possible. But you don’t say this. And the reason you don is that he can play it. Without difficulty. At sight.
Another co-conspirator is the Associated Board examiner. There are only two types that I have encountered. Those who appear to be understanding and kind, and those who don’t. Oddly, both do turn out to be extremely kind and sympathetic as a fortnight after your ordeal they have been mad enough to award a pass, and have produced a few kind words of encouragement. Had I been an examiner, I would have advised, “as a pianist, you would make a good lumberjack”, but they suggest that the good work should be kept up at all costs. They do this despite the fact that during the exam my brain had a ten-minute shutdown, and severed all links with my hands. My eyes refused to recognize the black markings on the page, and the term dolce e lento2 manifested itself as molto vivace con spirito3 through my fingers. The kind examiner says “Would you like to start that again?” (Answer: “No I’d like to go home and weep.”) And the less kind says “Thank you, shall we proceed to the next piece?” (Answer: “No I’d like to go home and weep.”)
When you get home, of course, you don’t weep. You sit at the piano and play the pieces. Flawlessly. Then, you put an advert on eBay: “Schimmel Piano. Free to good home.”
So, you have concluded that I have terminated this ridiculous venture? Not atl all. I was up at 5.30 this morning practicing a piece by Maxwell Davies, and later this year I shall sit nervously at a piano stool and hear the examiner ask: “Would you like to play your scales or pieces first?” (Answer: “No I’d like to go home etc.”) Why keep going? Other than serious cognitive deficiency two reasons occur to me. Firstly, because the piano opens up a whole world of beautiful music, spanning cultures and centuries. It can mimic any instrument, or a whole orchestra. It can be delicate, bluesy, brash or refined. It has the ability to influence emotions like no other manufactured object on earth. And it’s all there, hidden in the 88 keys. All it takes is (ten?) years of focused effort, and practicing is a pleasure, even through occasional periods when progress appears illusory. The writer Laurie Lee said that it is a hundred times better to play an instrument yourself, however badly, than to be a passive listener. Laurie Lee knew a thing or two about music, being a good amateur violinist, but he knew much more about people, and emotion and beauty.
My second reason for continuing the struggle has been best expressed by a scientist. Richard Feynman was a Nobel Prize-winning physicist who solved infinities in quantum mechanics and the mystery of liquid helium. He once beat the NASA computer in solving a complex problem, calculating the answer in his head (he also played the bongo drums, but I’d better leave that out). His opening remark to freshmen students each year was “what one fool can do, so can another”. Thank you, Professor Feynman. I’ll let you know if you turn out to be right. Give me a further five years.
This article first appeared in the August-September 2006 issue of Pianist magazine.
www.pianistmagazine.com
1. molto presto: very fast
2. dolce e lento: sweet, soft and slow
3. molto vivace con spirito: very lively, quick and spirited
中文版：
Andy Heslop，今年三十九岁，弹钢琴已有五年了。在这里，他会描述以成年人弹钢琴的起浮。
你应该是有听过这个笑话，就是当别人向他问方向时，他会这么回答：“我不会在这个地方开始我的旅程”。同样的，当其他成年人告诉我说他们想学钢琴时，我也会这么说。我知道是因为我现在在学。我和那恶魔搏斗以有五年的时间了，大胆把我的手指放在它那有白有刃的牙，任由我的精神让它的响声糟蹋。在人类的试图历史上，从来没有那么既困难又简单的事。钢琴应该强制性放个政府健康警告。
五年前，我的女儿表达了她想学钢琴的愿望。乐器租了，老师找到了，而我这个当父亲为了要支持她， 就和她一起开始我们的学习。她只撑了六个月但我仍然继续。起初时还好，我也认为两三年后就算不能学地融会贯通，但只少也可以独当一面。象其他成年初期者，我有个梦想；单单一些JAZZ音乐，轻轻松松的完成MOZART和BEETHOVEN的曲子，再孩子前炫耀一下ROBBIE WILLIAMS 的FANTASY。
当然，三年是有很大的进步：作业簿和等级考试都通过了。但这三年内，这钢琴的艰巨工作也渐渐的露了出来。在商业家的交谈，这也俗称潜藏着的无能以变成明显的无能，而且这是一个让人很不舒服的境界。
如果我心理不平衡的话，我早就开始讨厌我的老师。他坐在钢琴前时，音乐诗歌就开始了。他能这么做我也无话可说，但他有必要把正件事情弄的这么简单吗？他不是故意的，而是有意的。他那双手很轻松的横跨在钢琴上的键盘，而且他的眼睛很轻松的阅读正个琴谱。很明显的，他能这么做，一定是在变把戏。因为他所做的一切是不可思议的。手指、眼睛和头脑是无法在那么短的时间之内协调的那么好的。他当场所演奏的，我得花上三个月的时间。那简直是让人心灰意冷。那就好比在你的画像里画油条人时，你隔壁原来是JOHN CONSTABLE，外加他在休息时间之前以把THE HAY WAIN 给画好了。顿时间，你突然发现到，你不止是要上刀山，你还得下火海。这简直是人间惨事。
更遭的是，我的钢琴老师有许多同谋者, 而以集体名子来说，可以简称为“作曲家的”。你可以花几星期慢慢地掌握它的曲子，但从曲子的尾端，你会发现到“那个”。“那个”有很多俏装。如象奔跑的旋律(molto presto1) 或是象只有柔术导演才能表演的一行充满了音律指示的旋律。简单的来说，那是一件你的手办不到的事 (而你的头脑也十分展成的事) 。你的手指坚决的抗拒BACH 所写的四合曲子。但是你的老师怎么说呢? 你很想他这么说，“先搁在一旁，等一会儿我们在来处理。”, 但他却说，“练你会的是没有用的，你得练你不会的才行。” 这必定是最愤怒，也是最讨厌的公理。你可以很自信的跟你的老师抬杠说，练习跑步，让速度抵达每小时六十英里，或是练到能憋气憋上二十四小时，是没用的，因为它是不会发生的。这简直是脱离现实的事情。但你不会向他这么说。因为他就在你面前做。毫无困难的。而且还是现学现卖。
令一个谋者是Associated Board 的考官。到目前为止，我碰上了两种类型的考官。一种看来很了解和慈悲为怀的，令一种而不是。但奇怪地是, 俩位结果都是充满极端的慈悲心与同情心，因为在你的不幸遭遇的一两星期后，他们居然够疯狂的让你及格, 并且附加一些鼓励的话。如果换成我是考官的话, 我会劝告，“与其当个钢琴家, 你会做一位好很好的木匠”。但考官建议无论如何都得继续努力。尽管我的脑子有十分钟停工, 并且跟我的手切除了所有关联。我的眼睛拒绝认出页上的任何曲调，而且dolce e lento2这个词，从大脑传到我的手是，也演变成molto vivace con spirito3。善良的考管会问：“你要不要再从新开始？” (答复: “不，我只希望回家哭裳。”) 比较不体贴的考官会说道：“谢谢, 我们能不能进行下一首片曲？” (答复: “不，我只希望回家哭裳。”)
当你回到家里时，你当然不会啜泣。你会坐在钢琴前完美的演奏你的歌。然后，你会在eBay登广告：“Schimmel 钢琴。免费送到一户好家。”
到目前为止，你应该是认为，我以终止了这整个可笑的事情吧？才没呢。我今晨五点三十分已经在练Maxwell Davies的歌，而且下半年紧紧张张的坐在钢琴凳子听见考官问道：“你要先演奏您的音阶还是片曲?” (答复: “不，我只希望回家等等。”) 为什么要继续？除了严重的让自己缺乏认识力之外，我发现了令外两个原因。首先，因为钢琴可以开创一个丰富的音乐世界，跨过文化和世纪。它可能模仿任一台乐器，甚至是整体乐队。它可以是很精美, bluesy, 急性或经典。它具有影响情感情的能力。而且那全都在那八十八个琴键上。只需要花上（十？）几年的努力练习，外加练习是种乐趣，就算有时后进步好像是幻觉。作家LAURIE LEE说，能自己弹乐器，无论多糟糕，也比被动听者好上几百倍。LAURIE LEE对音乐越知一二，因为他自己也是一个不赖的小提琴手，但他对于人，感情和美术跟有认识。
我的第二个奋斗的原因可以被一个科学家完全的表达。RICHARD FEYNMAN是解决无限在量子力学和液体氦气的奥秘的诺贝尔得奖的物理学家。他曾经在解决一个复杂问题时，打败了美国航空航天局计算机，而且正个计算过程都在他脑里 (他也演奏了小鼓鼓, 但我不应该提起那吧) 。他每年对新生学的开场白是：“一个傻瓜能做到的，令一个也可以做到”。谢谢，FEYNMAN教授。我会让你知道是否你是正确的。在给我另外五年的时间。
这片文章首先是刊登在二零零六年，八月至九月份的PIANIST杂志。
www.pianistmagazine.com
1. molto presto: 非常快
2. dolce e lento: 甜美，轻声与较慢
3. molto vivace con spirito: 非常活跃，精神与快奏
October 23, 2005
As the original author of this article, it is my duty to inform you that what you are about to read can be found here and it is written exclusively for SmallvillePH. Images and video clips found on the webpage, however, does not belong to me.
Generally…
The idea of this article is to analyze the powers of Clark Kent, our favorite super boy, and to figure out how his powers work and what is the extent of his powers. In other words, this is a more in-depth article on Clark Kent’s powers.
In general, Clark’s powers are powered up by Sun in our Solar System, turning his own body into a large solar battery. Apparently, not only can the Sun powers him up, it can also cause Clark to go haywire as well, as seen in “Perry” (Season 3, Episode 5). Since his body is one large battery, the solar energy which he stores up, as we speculate, has to be channeled out in some ways, namely his powers.
But the Sun is not the only that is capable of interfering his powers. The radiation from Kryptonite, the meteor rocks that fall with the spaceship from the sky is also capable of rendering him powerless. Its effects vary with the amount of time Clark spends near it. The milder side effect of the radiation renders him weak and makes him unable to focus his energy to use his powers. The worst case scenario when Clark is exposed to the meteor rocks for too long is death.
In the first season premier, when Jonathan and Martha Kent found little Clark in the fields the day the Kryptonite meteor rocks hit Smallville, Clark did not possess all the powers that made him legendary. Rather, he only received a fraction of it, as his powers only starts to grow during his adolescence years. This leads us to what, exactly, are his powers and the extent of his powers.
Invulnerability:
This is marginally more interesting power and is perhaps, the base for all of his other powers. Unlike what most people believe, this power actually comprises of two components. The actual invulnerability, where his skin is even thicker than a hide, protects him from physical harm, thus allowing him to do just about anything he wants. The other component is actually the natural bio-electric aura he possesses, which also has limited force field properties protecting skin-tight clothes. This includes his costume he wears in the future.
Apparently, this power grows and develops with him through his adolescence years. In “Tempest” (Season 1, Episode 21), a clueless Clark was involved in an explosion of his truck rigged by a rogue reporter to test him. Following the accident, he related to the Kents how he “barely felt the heat this time, and the debris left no bruises”. In other words, we can draw the assumption that when he was younger, he could still feel a substantial amount of pain and that he bruise, although it is probably not obvious to many.
But what is more interesting to us is, to what extent does this power affects him? If he does not feel the pain that was caused due to collision etc, then theoretically, he should not be able to feel anything when someone touches or pats him, like what Pete always do. So our views on this matter are that, the invulnerability he possesses probably has a limit to the amount of force directed at it. A parallel example would be a rubber band that has elasticity. Once beyond that limit, the rubber band would snap. In Clark’s case, when beyond a certain limit, his invulnerability automatically comes into play to protect him from harm.
But apparently, this invulnerability does not confine to physical. It also includes mental capabilities. In “Stray” (Season 1, Episode 16), when Ryan attempts to read Clark’s mind after asking him what he wants for breakfast, he got a blank from Clark. Our response to this is that, Clark’s invulnerability does not confine itself to physical protection, but also mental protection as well.
This raises two interesting issues though. Should there, one day, be an X-Men and Smallville crossover, what would happen if Wolverine AKA Logan’s indestructible adamatium claws or the world’s strongest telepath Professor Charles Xavier’s telepathy are used against Clark? Would the adamatium claws and telepathy still work against him? Or would Clark’s invulnerability still hold?
Super Strength:
Another power that seems to be the base for his other powers, Clark’s super strength is one thing that helped him a lot from time to time, other than his invulnerability. It was believed that there is a connection between his invulnerability and super strength, although the link between these two powers is very weak. Indeed, these two powers has been so assimilated that it is often difficult to distinguish between the both of them correctly.
Clark has this power ever since the premier of the series. It was featured as soon as Clark stepped out of the space ship. He used his gifts to help the Kents got out of the over-turned truck, which is described in “Arrival” (a book based on the episode “Pilot” by Michael Teitelbaum) as “tearing the door away in one swift move, as if he were unwrapping a birthday present”.
This casual display of strength lead us to believe that the Sun must have powered Clark up, turning him into an ant that is capable of carrying objects up to thirty times its own weight. Since this ability is untested, it is highly possible that Clark is capable of doing even more. We have seen how he is able to smash metals to bits without injuring himself, protect people from fire blasts and fast moving vehicles without a scratch, got hit by Lex’s car and survived. Therefore, we are not surprised if his super strength shot into un-chartered area.
Super Speed:
While many of you think that super speed is actually a power of its own, we beg to differ. We would like to argue that the super speed is actually a result of the fusion of his super strength and the two components of his invulnerability.
Generally, on Earth, the only source that can move at such a high speed is light. But the reason why light is able to move at such a high speed is because of its negligible mass. In fact, light is a wave, which has no mass at all. This means, in order to travel fast, you should have as little mass as possible, so the gravitational force of Earth acting on you would also be negligible.
Similarly, for Clark’s case, the factor that contributes to his ability to defy gravitational force acting on him is his bio-electric aura. Apparently, if this aura can, to some extent, allow him to ignore the gravitational force acting on him, then he would be considered weightless. That would account why he is able to ignore the gravity. So when he runs, the only force is his legs that are propelling him forward.
That leads us to his super strength. As a person run, the how fast he ran depends on the amount of power or energy he has in his leg. Meaning to say, the stronger a person’s leg, the faster he can speed off. In Clark’s case, the reason why he is super speed is because of the super strength he possesses in his body, including his legs. In other words, his super strength allows him to run at a faster pace, and since his strength is untested and possibly unparalleled, there is a possibility that his speed is unlimited too.
But there is one problem. If an object of significant mass travels at high speed, there is a high probability that it will disintegrate altogether due to air resistance. The air resistance is NOT cancelled out because of his bio-electric aura, but because of the physical property of his invulnerability. Since the force of the air resistance acting on him is high, it is highly possibly that his invulnerability limit (For more information, please refer to the “Invulnerability” section) is triggered off and the physical property of his invulnerability protects him from the air resistance, hence effectively protects him from disintegrating.
Super Vision:
In contrast to what many people believe, heat vision and X-ray vision are actually related. It is just that they are of different spectrum. The electro-magnetic spectrum is actually of many different light waves, and our eyes are only capable to capturing the visible light, a very small range which allows us to see colors. However, Clark’s eye is different, as it seems that he is capable of not just capturing the visible region, but also the regions where our normal eye is unable to capture. These include X-ray and Gamma-Ray region.
The X-ray vision enables him to see through all substances except for lead. He first got that power when he trying to help Lex to solve a crime in “X-ray” (Season 1, Episode 4). So somehow, during that phase, his X-ray vision is triggered, although it is not discussed at a deeper level. Our conclusion is that, perhaps, in his eyes, there are many different “lenses”, and X-ray is one of them. When Clark fall through the glass, that X-ray “lens” fall in place and thus, enabling Clark to see through things.
If this line of thought is continued, it can also be used to explain the other visions that are available to him in time to come. Some of these visions include telescopic, microscopic and infra-red visions.
Another related vision is Clark’s heat vision. We speculated that this power is actually related to the properties of Gamma-rays. Gamma-rays are often released in molecular fusion and fission as a type of energy. So this vision enables him to concentrate the Gamma-rays in his body at one point and thus, the energy burst forth and starts a fire.
This begs the question, where does it come from? We believe that the Gamma-rays come from the Sun. His body is a large solar battery, capable of storing energy (For more information, please refer to the “Generally” section), so we concluded that his body releases the energy he stored from the Sun.
It was mentioned in “Heat” (Season 2, Episode 2) that his hormones played a part. Apparently, it is his hormones that helped him to release the energy stored in his body. Therefore, we concluded that it is his hormones that are actually storing the solar energy, rather his whole body.
Super Hearing:
Super hearing, or we would rather call it sensitive hearing, is not a latent effect from Clark’s blindness. Martha Kent mentioned in “Whisper” (Season 3, Episode 10) that how Clark’s ear “must be trying to compensate for his blindness”. Many fans literally took it that it is the latent effect due to Clark’s blindness. But we believe that his hearing is firmly a solitude power, not relating to any of his other powers at all.
Clark already got this power quite some time before “Whisper”, although it is not explicitly stated. In “Calling” (Season 2, Episode 22), when Clark was at Lex’s wedding, he heard a high pitched sound made by the “key”. This high pitched sound was later described how it send all the dogs into frenzy and Chloe supplement that unless, Clark has the ears of a dog, he shouldn’t hear it at all.
That leads us to believe that Clark’s ears is very sensitive and he is able to hear a wide range of frequencies. A normal human being is only able to hear frequencies ranging from 20 Hz to 20 000 Hz, a bat is able to hear higher frequency than human beings, while elephants use very low frequency sounds to communicate. Thus, we believe that Clark’s ability to receive frequency exceeds these entire three receivers.
If this is used to explain Clark’s sensitive hearing, it should make sense that he is able to pick up only one type of frequency among many other frequencies. Clark learnt, with the help of his parents, how to fine tune this power in “Whisper” (Season 3, Episode 10). In a way, he is like a radio, able to pick up just one frequency among many other frequencies out there.
Flight:
The power that made Clark Kent, or rather, Superman famous, flight allows him to fly from one end of the planet to another. We believe that it is actually latent effect of the bio-electric aura (For more information, please refer to the “Invulnerability” section) surrounding him. We concluded that not only does the bio-electric aura protects him from harm, it also allow him to defy gravity.
This power was first demonstrated briefly in “Metamorphosis” (Season 1, Episode 2), where Clark was floating on top of his bed and later in “Rosetta” (Season 2, Episode 17), where Clark actually floated, rather than fly, from his bedroom to a highway. Clark has mentioned that he told Lex, who found him and drove him, that he sleepwalked, although he “has no idea how much walking is involved”. If this is true, then it should not come as a surprise that Kal-El is able to fly in “Crusade” (Season 4, Episode 1).
For the sake of clarity, from here on, we will refer Kal-El as the emotionless and robotic part of Clark, while Clark as the normal self. The reason why Kal-El is able to fly is probably because he has a higher aptitude in controlling the bio-electric aura, which he used it to cancel out the gravitational force acting on him. It was probably due to this manipulation of bio-electric aura that allows him to “push” against the air around him, allowing him to maneuver in the air, hence, giving the impression that he is able to fly around.
Clark, on the other hand, remains earth-bound is probably because of his inexperience at controlling his bio-electric aura. Also, it was mentioned in the show that he has a fear for flying. This could possibly contribute to his inability to fly, because he is subconsciously or unconsciously suppressing his ability to manipulate the bio-electric aura and fly.
Author’s Note:
Episode guidelines and referrers are taken from Television Without Pity while basic information about Clark Kent AKA Superman is taken with compliments to Superman Super Site.
As the original author of this article, it is my duty to inform you that what you are about to read can be found here and it is written exclusively for Charmed-Net. Images found on the webpage, however, does not belong to me.
Where did their powers came from?
Phoebe explained that their ancestor, Melinda Warren, the founder of the Halliwells, had been a practicing witch and she mastered three powers during her lifetime, which she passed on to her future generations of witches. Legend has it that the powers will come to a culminating peak at the arrival of three sisters, who, in time, were to become the most powerful witches the world has ever known. The Charmed Ones, destined to battle the forces of darkness in order to protect the innocents, will each have a unique ability that grows with them as they continue their journey.
It has been stated a few times that the source of their powers was directly related to their bond as sisters. Therefore, they could call unto the most powerful kind of magic, The Power of Three, the force of their powers and essence combined, that would become their greatest defense against demons, warlocks, and other servants of evil.
The source of their power is both mystical and biological. The proof is that several times, the sisters have been stripped of their powers, have their powers changed or affected in different ways:
1) By special powers – (season 1, episode 09) Mathew is able to steal their powers once they use them on him, probably by cloning of copying the power itself. Once he has it, he instantly masters it, rendering him immune to its effect (say himself that The Charmed Ones’ powers are useless once they used it on him).
2) By spells - (season 1 episode 10) Rex and Hannah coaxed the sisters to give up on their powers, by chanting a spell that erased the pages of The Book of Shadows, as well as the powers themselves.
3) By Time traveling – (season 1 episode 17) The sisters can’t use their powers in the past, the reason is that technically they don’t really exist yet.
4) By trade – (season 1 episode 21) A spell causes a switch of powers and each sister ends up with someone else’s powers.
5) By ritual – (season 2 episode 01) Abraxas reads the Book of Shadows backwards, somehow undo the spells the Charmed Ones had cast in the past and eventually erasing their powers when the demon read the spell that gave them their powers backwards.
6) By potion – (season 2 episode 17) A potion will release a witch from her powers, the right chanting will call those powers and make them available whoever the spellcaster command.
7) By science - (season 2 episode 20) A doctor is able to imbue himself with the powers of the sisters when he accidentally injected himself with a sample of their blood while looking for what he thought was a cure for an illness.
8) By misuse – (season 3 episode 7) When in the middle of a fight the sisters use their powers against each other, thus breaking the bond as sisters between them. And by doing so, they are rendered powerless until they work out their issues.
Therefore, since one of the ways said powers could be inherited and passed on is as natural genetic heritage from generation to generation, even if one of the parents lacks magical powers, the child will still continue to have powers. Since it is a well known fact that The Charmed Ones’ powers are suppose to “grow” as they learn to control, harness and use it, there is little wonder why Prue was able to astral project herself, Piper was able to combust things and Phoebe is able to levitate. But this leads us to another question:
Just how can the powers mutate?
PRUE, the strongest and oldest, received the power of Telekinesis, which meant she was able to move objects by willing it with her thoughts. At first, she is able to do so by looking at them and channel her powers through her eyes. But eventually (season 1 episode 19), she is able to channel her powers through her hands when she is trying to save a boy from Grimlocks, a demon who needs to feed on children’ eyesight in order to see. Although it has been stated a few times that her powers grew stronger together with her emotions, she was able to exercise the desired telekinetic effect she wanted to accomplish as she gained more control and strength over her powers.
As an “extension” of her telekinetic powers, she was able to “move” her astral self out of her body at will, thus giving her the ability to be at two places at once. But we had yet to see her being able to exercise full control over both her astral self and her body, as while she is in astral mode, her physical body appeared to be nothing but a shell. Furthermore, while she astral projected, she was unable to use her telekinetic power, which may reaffirms that their powers are rooted in their anatomy - their blood. As her astral self only has an ethereal copy of her body, she did not have any magical powers of her blood in her, and thus unable to use it while “out of her body”. It could be that if Prue had not died at the end of season 3, she would be able to eventually control both her astral and corporeal body, and thus being able to use both telekinesis and astral projection at once.
PIPER received the miraculous power of Time Stasis or Molecular Inhibition, which to the untrained eye seemed she could stop time at will. But if one were to look more closely, it has nothing to do with time but instead, with the molecular structure of objects and persons. Since her power at first would extend only to the confines of the room she was in (season 1), then it is not likely she stopped time because time outside would continue to run. It is more likely that she stopped the movement of the things within her “freezing range”, so it is more politically correct to say that she was actually able to only slow down the molecules of things and bodies. She was able to slow down the effect of time in those bodies but we have seen plenty of times how certain powerful warlocks can escape (to certain degree) the effect of her powers, and thus being able to move -if slower than usual- but not completely “frozen”. If we were to speculate that her powers affect different materials or tissues in different ways, this would explain why demons (not to confuse with warlocks – that are mainly human evil witches) are sometimes completely immune to her powers. It would make sense if we take in account that demons are different beings altogether, therefore, their anatomy could have a different form, made by something different, not molecules, so it would explain why Piper was unable to “freeze” them at will. As she gain more control over her powers, it allows her to be able to “freeze” only certain targets, such as innocents in a crowd, or a certain object that is about to fall, or part of someone’s body.
The course of evolution of Piper’s powers have come to the point where it does not evolve into a new power but instead, changes and grows into itself. So now, Piper is not only capable of slowing down molecules, she is also able to accelerate molecules within a body, causing a body to appear as exploding from the inside out. Well into season 4, one could see that Piper is able to freeze and combust things at her command, thus making their demon hunting much more easier and giving them an edge over the forces of evil. But if one were to observe carefully, it seemed that her combustion powers were either able to affect the demon, or useless against a demon. It is notable that her powers were unable to affect upper level demons, which is probably attributed to the fact that her powers has different effects on different tissues, her powers were able to combust demons, but the exception is that the demons do not stay “combusted”. If one were to notice, Piper used her powers against The Source, but yet The Source is able to “piece” itself back into one whole body again. Another loophole is probably she could not combust whatever that inhibits within a body, for example, in “Charmed and Dangerous”, she combust the Guardian of The Hollow, but yet The Hollow is immune to her powers after it lost its host.
PHOEBE received the power of Clairvoyance, the ability to see images of things yet to happen, and thus, given the chance to change the future. Her power evolved in mid-season 1 and she became able to see into the past as well. Along with her ability to see those images it seems she is able to retain vivid images of her premonitions since she is able to recall exact details and even draw out things that formed during her premonition. Gaining further control on her powers has allowed her to be able to trigger premonitions at will sometimes, by touching objects connected to the things she wants to see. It is unclear who sends her these premonitions. It could very well be the elders, Leo’s bosses, or a higher source that goes beyond them. But what we do know is that sometimes, the outcome is impossible to change, so the premonition could be either as a warning or sent to her to help the situation. Sometimes the goal of her premonitions is that she is to prevent it from happening, or if it has already happened, to stop it from happening again. Her ability to se beyond time allowed her to remember events that happened during a time loop Tempus set in the first season’s finale.
Along with her premonitions, Phoebe seems to have been blessed with an empathic gift, as she can sense the feelings of the people involved in her premonitions, whether they are scared, or in pain. Certain beings (not always benevolent) have also been able to link themselves to her (the succubus from season 2 episode 5) or a ghost trapped in a time loop (season 3 episode 14). She is also able to sense things her sisters do not, such as muses (season 4 episode 9) or Prue’s spirit (season 2 episode 21). She is also the first person that the spirit of their grandmother appears to, which means she is more open to such things.
But if powers evolve, how is levitation connected with premonitions?
From Season 1:
-Prue (on phoebe’s new power of materialization given by the boogyman): Wait a second, time out. Our powers are supposed to progress, not grow at random. And if it did grow, I would think it would be premonitioneric. I smell the Book of Shadows. Did you do something? - Phoebe’s power of Levitation tends to confuse, since all along we have seen how their powers evolve and the new one is somehow connected to the original power. But if Phoebe got another power, we should think about the qualities that come with her other powers, to be able to sense other’s feelings or to be able to see beyond time. Those powers require a certain amount of concentration and we have seen Phoebe meditate quite a few times, so her levitating skills may be actually something she developed on her own, and not a natural evolvement of her powers. It seems like her powers made it easy for her to discover this brand new power, which combined with her martial arts skills, becomes a formidable defense against forces of evil.
PAIGE, a daughter of a natural witch and a white lighter, has powers slightly more different than that of an average witch, even though her powers are just manifesting. But she seems to have one main power, orbing. She has been, so far, able to orb herself (in the spot and for only a few seconds), and other things, which makes it a sort of telekinesis. She is able to call out for objects (just by calling the name) within her reach and the object orbs out of its place to settle itself where Paige finds fit. She is also able to call on fast moving objects such as a throwing knife or a fast travelling energy ball. She have it in the palm of her hand, not fully materialized yet, and throw it back at the opponent, materializing it on its way she can knock them out using their own weapons. So far her orbing power seems to be a reflex more than a controlled outcome, although we saw that Paige was finally able to orb herself from place to place, or even carry “passengers”.
Very much like Leo, who can sense good, Paige can also sense evil (season 4 episode 5). She also seems to have certain degree of a healing power that works slightly different from Leo’s healing powers, since she is able to heal someone Leo is not allowed to, with his help. Being part white lighter, we can only expect she will discover new powers in the future, new combinations to use her current orbing power or to actually have a charge.
As the original author of this article, it is my duty to inform you that what you are about to read can be found here and it is written exclusively for Charmed-Net. Images and information for the rest of the characters found on the webpage, however, does not belong to me.
Cast:
Prudence (Prue) Halliwell – Shannen Doherty (Season 1 - 3)
Piper Halliwell – Holly Marie Combs (Season 1 - 6)
Phoebe Halliwell – Alyssa Milano (Season 1 - 6)
Paige Matthews – Rose McGowan (Season 4 - 6)
Leo Wyatt – Brian Krause (Season 1 - 6)
Cole Turner – Julian McMahon (Season 3 - 5)
Darryl Morris – Dorian Gregory (Season 1 - 6)
Dan Gorgon – Greg Vaughan (Season 2)
Jenny Gordon – Karis Paige Bryant (Season 2)
Jack Sheridan – Lochlyn Munro (Season 2)
Andy Trudeau – T.W. King (Season 1)
Prudence (Prue) Halliwell (Season One, Two and Three)
Practical, levelheaded, independent and possibly hot-tempered, Prue sacrificed her childhood to help raise her young sisters, namely Piper and Phoebe. Although rebellious in her teenage years, Prue could be counted as an expert when it comes to antiques and collectibles. In the beginning of story, she returns to her childhood home (the famous indestructible-despite-repeated-attacks-from-demons Halliwell Manor) when their Grams, who willed the mystical manor to the sisters, died from a heart attack. Ever suspicious of everyone, she always had her defenses up when someone, especially Cole, intrude their lives.
Always deeming her youngest sister’s (Phoebe) actions, especially when Phoebe claimed that they are the strongest witches of all time, as ridiculous, even the sensible Prue is swept away by passion when her high school sweetheart, police inspector Andy Trudeau gets back in her life. But such passion does not last long, as Andy died in a demonic attack after learning their true identities. After that, Prue was subjected to the test of love, with Jack and Bane. In season 1, Prue has the power to move objects with her mind and her powers grew to a point that in season 2, she was actually able to channel her powers through her hands. At the same time, she was also blessed with the power to astral project. In season 2, the other most notable event was that she quit her job in Buckland and went on to be a photographer for 415 Magazine.
But sadly, Prue met with mishap in season 3, when The Source personally sent an assassin to go after them. In an attempt to save her sisters, Phoebe promised a deal with The Source: that she is to allow Cole to inform her sisters about the attack of Shax. But The Source went back on his words and with no help from Phoebe’s spell and the late arrival of Leo, Prue suffered the same fate as Andy Trudeau when she crashed through the wall. Thus, The Source succeeded in its evil plot of breaking The Power Of Three and granting The Source a temporary upper hand over her remaining sisters.
Piper Halliwell (Season One, Two, Three, Four, Five and Six)
Sweet, down to earth, funny even in times of danger, empathetic and always suffering in the hands of Love, Piper was constantly mediating between Prue and Phoebe, who seemed to have a never-ending feud, sometimes even at the cost of her own needs. Prue might be the natural born leader in the Halliwell line but Piper was the champion when it comes to home making. This makes her seemed to be an ideal wife, but sadly, most demons and warlocks do not think it this way. A romantic optimist despite some evil ex-boyfriends, Piper remains hopeful that Mr. Right will appear on her doorstep. When he does, her power to freeze time could make that moment really last. But however, when that moment came, Piper was torn between their neighbor, Dan, a caring young man who falls in love with Piper at the first sight, and their whitelighter, Leo, the impossibly sweet and “healing” man.
A born nurturer, she is a talented chef who ends up managing the restaurant Quake when she scored a perfect and “magical” dish with Chef Moore. Piper is a really good cook that everyone likes her food. But in season 2, she decided to open up her own restaurant but has to settle with a club, which led to the birth of the famous P3. Piper and Leo wants to get married in season 3 but they could not due to the objection from Leo’s bosses (namely The Elders). However, their love came through when The Elders eventually relented after they discovered that Leo and Piper were really true for each other. They then married in the traditional “hand-fasting”, with Prue, Phoebe, Victor, Penny and Patty as witnesses. In season 1, Piper has the power to freeze things, which comes in handy from time to time. As time goes by, she has more control over her powers, where she was able to freeze selected people in a room, to freeze people in the open place and eventually, being able to freeze certain body parts of a being, although that was rarely done. Her powers also evolved together with her feelings, when she discovered her power to combust things. Although it made demon vanquishing a lot easier, she was unable to cope with the “explosive” power until well into season four, when she finally learn how to alternate between her freezing and combusting powers.
However, Piper’s sweet and mild personality was transformed when the sudden death of her beloved sister, Prue, forced her to take on the role of the eldest sister. Thus, Piper was much more protective, commanding and easily irritated in season 4, where she seemed to be very short-tempered when Paige was around. But towards the end of season 4, they eventually learnt to live with one another. In season 5, Piper discovered that she is pregnant, which make her even more protective. The baby, Wyatt Matthews Halliwell (yes, a baby boy) is possibly the center of Piper’s attention after he was born, since a lot of demons seemed to be interested in this innocent and lovable baby.
Phoebe Halliwell (Season One, Two, Three, Four, Five and Six)
Free-spirited, imaginative, and probably even rebellious, it is the youngest sister, Phoebe, whose curiosity and impulsiveness – or what Prue would say, recklessness - that claims the Power of Three for the Halliwell sisters. As she rushed in without a lot of contemplation, she is the most excited about the possibilities of being a witch, and also as well as the most disappointed that she does not have a more dynamic power. The randomness of a vision from the past, present or future hitting her fits well with her carefree personality.
Possibly the most creative among her sisters, Phoebe was credited most for her ability to create spells and to actually cast successful spells. However, in season 3, Phoebe was unable to cast away her love for Cole, a tortured half - demon, half - man who was sent by The Triad to get rid of the sisters. However, their love for each other was tested over and over again, first by Prue, then Piper, Paige, Leo and eventually, The Source, each time growing stronger and stronger. Phoebe was never discourage, though and kept trying to fight for her love. However, no matter what visions she had, she could have never predict that Cole would unwittingly become The Source one day. In season 1, Phoebe was granted the power of clairvoyance. Slowly, through meditation and her determination, she finally mastered how to call up a vision whenever she wants, although sometimes, a vision would still randomly hit her. Phoebe’s powers began to grow beyond the point having to touch an item and grew to such a point that she was able to have a vision about a particular person, as long as that person was in the room. In season 3, Phoebe gets a new power: Levitation, which is a kick ass power when she incorporates it into her martial arts training.
But unlike her psychic powers, her relationship with Cole was a complete standoff. Her marriage with Cole, as time progresses, began to sway as her trust in Cole to remain good falters. To top it off, she has to cope and mediate with the constant bickering between Piper and Paige. It was her love for Cole that kept her sane and she finally realize how Piper felt in a situation where she has to make peace between two sisters. Although she has a part to play in vanquishing Cole, The New Source, she was also constantly held back due to her love for Cole.
Paige Matthews (Season Four, Five and Six)
A hybrid between a witch and a whitelighter, Paige is the little, long lost half-sister of the Charmed Ones and the daughter from Patty and her lover whitelighter, Sam. After Prue’s sudden death, Paige experienced the “missing” part of her life with her half-sisters and her powers. When she was first introduced to the idea of having two witch half sisters, the idea of witchcraft and them being the most powerful witch of all times, she was skeptical, exactly how Prue had behaved when Phoebe told them they had powers. Being the “late developer”, she has to do a lot of catching up and was constantly annoyed at the fact that Piper expect her to be like Prue, a super witch who knows everything, when she would rather spent her time drawing. Piper and Paige’s relationship suffered deeply and they never really hit off well, until they were forced to work together to save their sister, Phoebe, from becoming another doll collection of The Collector.
Paige was living happily with her boyfriend, in her messy apartment and working as a counselor at the South Bay Social Services, until she was called upon to fight evil. She had some rebellious years when she was a teenager, another similarity she had with Prue, but eventually grow up to be an upright yet rash counselor after the death of her beloved foster parents. Life was never easy for her, for she had to slowly pick herself up when her parents died and fight for her future. However, her love life was no any better from her sisters, although she was spared from the different love trials her sisters, Prue, Piper and Phoebe, faced.
In season 4, Paige always had the ability to telekinetic orb things, an “heritage” ability of Prue and to orb herself, which is the ability of a whitelighter. It was this ability that saved her from the horrible car crash, which killed her parents. In season 4, Paige experienced a lot of upper level demonic attacks, which probably explains why her powers grew faster than her sisters did. By the middle of season 4, she was able to orb herself from place to place at will, to heal and to sense for someone.
Leo Wyatt (Season One, Two, Three, Four, Five and Six)
Living in the Victorian manor like the Halliwells, it’s good to have a handy man around the house. Especially when Leo Wyatt turns out to be a guardian angel for witches called whitelighter. He was constantly time-challenged as the Halliwells kept calling for him to heal one of their dying sisters. One just have to wonder how he managed to remain sane all this time, especially the pressure that is mounting on him as the time for The Charmed Ones and The Source to confront draws nearer. But when Leo falls in love with Piper, however, he has more than just household repairs and the confrontation to worry about, as whitelighters are prohibited from romancing with the witches they protect, and breaking the rules could mean drastic consequences.
In season 2, Leo had to clip his wings because he wanted a normal relationship with Piper. In the end, in order to save Piper, he regained his wings but they had to stop their budding romance. But in season 3, their love for each other finally came through and they were allowed marry, under the watchful eyes of Prue, Phoebe, Penny, Patty and Victor. Throughout the five seasons of “Charmed”, Leo takes up the role of guiding the sisters towards their goal, seemly unconcerned of their matters but yet at the same time, teaching them all they need to know about the magical worlds that was beyond their comprehension. He is also the messenger between The Charmed Ones and The Elders or The Powers That Be, informing the girls of what their latest “mission” are all about and also information that is necessary in their vanquishing. His main powers include orbing, healing and sensing his charge, although it is highly possible that he has other powers.
But towards the end of season 5, Leo eventually became one of the elders and had to “ascend”. This places a strain on his and Piper’s relationship, which eventually led to Piper’s determination to fight for Leo’s return from the higher planes after she realize she is unable to free herself from the cling strands of love.
Cole Turner / Balthezar (Season Three, Four and Five)
Cole/Balthezar is a half demon half mortal that falls in love with Phoebe while he is disguised as a DA. He has made many attempts to kill the sisters but then when he finally has the chance to kill Phoebe, he realized that he was unable to. Then he kills The Triad to save the sisters, thus successfully made the underworld to label him as “traitor”. A bounty hunter, Krell, The Zotar, was then sent to go after him. In “Sleuthing With The Enemy”, Phoebe and Cole come to an understanding and Phoebe fakes his death after they vanquished the bounty hunter. Piper and Prue think he is dead but Phoebe knows he is alive and wants to see him again.
However, as the plot in season 4 thickens, Phoebe and her sisters realized that Cole was, in fact, The New Source. Under such circumstances, Phoebe had no choice but to vanquish him. Although the love between them was strong, it was clear that The Source is controlling Phoebe’s love for Cole to make her pregnant, which might eventually become the most powerful magical being anyone has ever known, but sadly, planted with the seed of evil. Although the remaining sisters were quick to persecute Cole, Phoebe knows that deep down, Cole has never gave up trying to be good. But her duty as a Charmed One and his identity as The Source made it difficult for both of them to continue their love. Cole’s main powers are fireballs and shimmer (?), although there are manifestation of other powers, like making things to appear and disappear at his command and the ability to summon demons.
Darryl Morris (Season One, Two, Three, Four, Five and Six)
Possibly the most underused actor of all, Darryl is Andy’s partner and best friend. But more importantly, Morris remains as a true friend and served as a source of police information to the Charmed Ones, calling them down to crime scene whenever suspected of “foul play” and covering the sisters’ witchy asses whenever they got into legal trouble. He, in the beginning, plays as a skeptic to Andy’s willingness to accept a belief in the paranormal. Possessing an easygoing personality complete with his ability to transit between the real and the magical worlds, he realizes that the sisters are possibly earth’s only source of protection against the evil.
In season one, he noticed that the more Andy and Prue separate, the more they are drawn together. But well into season 2, he began to suspect that there is more than meets the eye, when he realized that a woman (Ms Hellfire) was killed but yet, no fingerprints were found on the gun. By season 3, he was already a regular who keeps a constant lookout for the sisters, as well as for paranormal activities, contacting the girls whenever there is a slightest sign of trouble.
Dan Gorgon (Season Two)
Dan is the new neighbor of the three sisters and a new friend of Piper, after he falls in love with her and realized she was single. He was, however, prejudiced against Leo and even went to the extent of searching information on Leo, in order to recruit Piper’s favor, when he realized that Leo’s love for Piper was standing in the way of their new romance. Dan lives together with his niece Jenny, who goes back to her parents living in Saudi Arabia.
In season 2, Dan plays as a construction worker, who was once a baseball player. He came to Piper’s help after a disastrous attack from Ms Hellfire, by volunteering to put up bulletproof windows and to mend the doors. But Dan never get anyway with Piper in their love life, which seemed to be thwart by Leo. At the end of the Season 2, Piper separates again from Dan after he realized that she is a witch. Piper was heart-broken to see him down in dumps, thus prompting her to make a wish that he could just moved on with his life. Dan is shifted vocationally to another city and announced his plans to move, much to Piper’s joy.
Jenny Gorgon (Season Two)
Jenny, Dan’s niece, move in with him at the beginning of Season 2 in the neighbouring house of the Halliwell Sisters, since her parents are in Saudi Arabia, where they are working for the government. She finds good friends in the three sisters, but their thick heading brings her fast in difficulties, as she was “eaten” by the Demon Masselin. But a short time later, she leaves San Francisco again and returns to her parents to Saudi Arabia. Jenny has difficulties with her uncle sometimes, because she cannot talk with him about everything openly, since he is a man. Therefore Phoebe offered to her that she could come at any time, if Jenny needs a woman to woman talk!
Jack Sheridan (Season Two)
Jack appears first time in Episode 2.06 “They are everywhere”. He makes a TV Clip with Prue, but without her agreement, so she hates him. But little did she know that Jack be taken on Buckland and be Prue’s partner from then on. After the beginning trouble, ironically, they get closer and become a couple, although Prue was tentative about loving again and feared that Jack might be a warlock, as she saw his twin brother on the other side of the room, leading her to conclude that he blinked. After Prue signs off on Buckland, their blosoming friendship is, sadly, broken.
Andy Trudeau (Season One)
Andy Trudeau grew up playing with and being unwittingly hexed by the Charmed Halliwell sisters. He later became Prue’s high school sweetheart and that spark rekindled when he returned to San Francisco to accept a job as an inspector. His love for her grew, despite the frustrating feeling that she was keeping a huge and terrible secret from him. Discovering she was a witch was disturbing, but ultimately he sacrificed his life for the woman he loved, dying at the hands of the demon sorcerer Tempus.
As the original author of this article, it is my duty to inform you that what you are about to read can be found here and it is written exclusively for Charmed-Net. Images and Real Audio found on the webpage, however, does not belong to me.
“Hear the words of the witches now,
The secrets that we hid in the night.
The oldest of Gods are invoked here,
The greatest of Magic is being sought.
In this night and at this hour,
I call upon the Ancient Power.
Bring your powers to we sisters three,
We want the power, give us the power!”
The chant that started it all, blessing three seemly normal sisters with gifts beyond their wildest imagination. The Halliwell sisters, Prue, Piper and Phoebe had never knew that one day, they would become the protectors of the innocents and the most powerful witches that fights the forces of darkness. Life had never been easy for the Halliwell sisters, especially when their mother, Patty, drowned and their father, Victor, disappeared from their lives. When they were young, they lived with their grandmother, Penny, in the historic manor, never dreaming one day that they would discover the truth about themselves.
The story begins with Prue and Piper moving back to the manor after their grandmother died of heart attack. Penny, or whom they lovingly called Grams, had willed the magical manor to them but failed to inform them of their destiny. Prue was working at the local museum, having a hard time from her ex- fiancé boss while Piper, who attached to her caring news-reporting boyfriend, Jeremy, was about to audition for a job as a manager at Quake. Phoebe just came back from New York, after a failed attempt to search for their father, was tentative about meeting Prue again, after the incident where Prue thought that Phoebe was seducing her fiancé.
Phoebe went up to the attic after receiving a message from the spirit board while Prue and Piper was in the basement checking the mains to see what causes the manor to black out during a thunderstorm. Phoebe finally opened the attic door, which stubbornly remained locked to the other sisters, and discovered the aged-old Book of Shadows. The remaining sisters found her in the attic, dazed and realized that she is messing around with what Prue called, the “book of witchcraft”. Prue was naturally pissed off while Piper freaked out.
However, the fact that they are the Charmed Ones, the most powerful witches the world has ever known, was undeniable and soon, they had a lot of demons, warlocks and other minions of darkness on them, trying to destroy them or to steal their powers. A few times, they were almost successful but the sisters put aside their differences and managed to save the day. But their fight soon turned desperate after their beloved eldest sister, Prue, died in a demonic attack from Shax, the personal assassin of The Source.
The Power Of Three, the magic the sisters harnessed every time to defeat the servants of evil, was reunited when they discovered that their mother had a baby with her whitelighter, Sam. Suddenly, Piper as entrusted with the responsibility of teaching Paige, their hybrid half sister, all knowledge about magic, forced to take on the role of a protective eldest sister and to be a loving wife to Leo all at the same time. In the mean time, Phoebe has to juggle between the full-bloom romance with Cole, the idea of being an elder sister to Paige and being a wife to Cole. Paige, on the other hand, has to deal with the fact that she has two sisters and most of all, that together, they were the Charmed Ones and had to battle The Source Of All Evil.
Their brittle sisterly relationship began to grow stronger as they started to overcome their differences and co-exist with one another peacefully under the roof of the Halliwell Manor. The Power Of Three was back in action as they took up their post to fight the forces of darkness again, despite each of them were facing their personal problems. Will the sisters ever defeat the never-ending minions of darkness? Or will they lose the battle against The Source?
This is probably their answer: “The Power Of Three Will Set Us Free!”
