Charmed review: Sisters face their demons in action-packed episode

The Charmed ones are confronted with a moral dilemma when they must choose between killing a demon and saving an innocent girl.

Following last week’s episode where witches Mel, Maggie and Macy succeed in trapping the Harbinger of Hell, this week in “Exorcise Your Demons” they are visited by a witch elder, Charity, who delivers some shocking news: The human, called Angela, that the Harbinger is possessing cannot be saved. Mel does not handle this well, having been personally close with Angela, and feels it her responsibility to try everything in her power to save the innocent human soul before succumbing to the Elders plan of vanquishing it.

After discovering an untouched exorcism spell written by their mother in the Book of Shadows, Mel convinces her sisters and their Whitelighter Harry to attempt to use it to save Angela. Going against the Elders does pay off for the sisters and they successfully exorcize the demon, but at what cost? Trip Bailey, a detective and close friend to Mel’s girlfriend Niko, ambushes the sisters as they are casting the spell on Angela and gets killed by falling debris caused by the explosive magic.

Mel is understandably torn up over Trip’s death, being the protective and stubborn character she is, having the desire to save everyone. Getting Angela’s life back was a win for the girls but it has subsequently caused the death of another innocent, and I think Mel will continue to struggle with that guilt on her conscience for a while.

The episode was full of action as each sister demonstrates their strengths in battle. Mel is obviously a natural leader and single-handedly discovers that Angela is still alive, taking control of the situation and doing what her mother would have wanted. Macy, although having arguably the best power of telekinesis, instead prefers to utilize her scientific knowledge in this episode to discover that the Harbinger of Hell has become so powerful that its touch has become fatal.

During the climax of the episode, Macy helps save the day by using chemical resistant gloves to allow the girls to lay hands on the demon and perform the exorcism spell. Meanwhile, Maggie is important in other ways, using her empathic powers to communicate with Angela inside the demon’s possession to give her hope and strength to fight back. Each sister is valuable in the fight against evil and they embrace their differences as a family.

The personalities of each sister also shine through in this episode as they must face their own morals and principles — should they sacrifice one human life in order to secure the safety of hundreds more?

Macy is one character who stood out in this episode, being much more objective and calculating in her decisions than her sisters. By the end of the episode, she unites with Mel and Maggie in exorcizing the demon, but in the interim, we get more depth into her character. We can understand Macy’s personality a lot more and relate to her as she reveals that she has always struggled with her own emotions because her mother abandoned her when she was a baby, and she chooses instead to banish all feelings and act emotionless. In discovering more about her mother having felt great loss and anguish after giving Macy up, she begins to open up and become more sensitive. Will Macy continue to grow and develop a better connection with her emotions?

The romantic storylines take a bit of a back seat in this episode, as it is so heavily focused on the big moral dilemma and the action surrounding the exorcism, but we do get a look into Maggie’s complicated love life as she interacts with Parker. Parker, a guy who previously flirted with Maggie before it was revealed that he was already in a relationship with the head of Maggie’s sorority, gets closer and Maggie appears to be drawn to him too. Maggie even gives into temptation and kisses Parker — although that was to cause a distraction from the chained Harbinger of Hell behind him. However, Maggie is a smart character and chooses to push Parker away. Depending on how strong her feelings are, it may not stay that way for long, and the awkward situation might impact negatively on the sisters’ witch training.

There is also a sweet scene near the end of the episode where Harry congratulates the girls on their triumph and it’s really nice to see the group connecting a bit more, as the sisters previously felt restricted and irritated by Harry and his rules and regulations. I think we’re all hoping the girls and Harry continue to work with each other rather than against each other.

On top of this, we received more information on the sister’s mother, with her position as a royal Elder and her power of prophecy being revealed. Her power to see the future makes perfect sense because that means she would have foreseen her children’s destiny and raised and guided them appropriately as strong, independent women. Hopefully, we’ll soon discover the reason why she abandoned Macy and how it was crucial to the sisters’ journey.

The jam-packed episode also ended with a bit of a shocker, as the newly exorcized Harbinger of Hell is snatched from Charity’s possession by a strange figure. Who is this new villain and what does this mean for the rise of The Source of All Evil? The battle is definitely not over.

What did you think of “Exorcise Your Demons”? Let us know in the comments.