October was the highlight of the year for the popular television channel the CW. This is the time each year when all of the station’s main shows are released, including the wide-variety of superhero shows, supernatural shows, and simple teen romance dramas. This past October, three new shows came out on the CW: Legacies, All American, and Charmed.

Charmed, the reboot of the 1998 version of the supernatural show made by Constance M. Burge, has had its own deal of criticism. After all, the show has tried its hardest to keep a plot similar plot to the original version, while serving up new plots that its viewers can enjoy.

The basic set of ideas that this new show uses is identical to the previous one: three sisters discover that they are witches and use “the power of three” to destroy all of the monsters that they run into, while trying to find out who killed their mother. But, the difference between the shows is prominent in the time periods in which they were filmed.

The two shows were released 20 years apart. In fact, they were released in two different centuries. At the time that the old Charmed was being debuted, certain topics like homosexuality were shied away from in the media. Now, these topics are expressed and accepted more often than they were before. One of the main characters in the show is gay, which was not something that was really present in shows 20 years ago. In addition, the new Charmed is much more diverse than the old show. The women who play all three of the main characters are from different backgrounds: one of the women is Canadian, another one is Puerto Rican, and the last woman is British. In the new show, there are even some notable mentions about the struggles of black people growing up in society, and how these types of scenarios affected their lifestyle. For example, one of the main characters talks about how she had to portray herself with a certain personality since she was one of two black girls in her school. These details allow viewers to enjoy the program and see the various ethnicities, sexualities, etc. that just add to the show’s enjoyment.

The individuality that this new show portrays is what draws people in. I can barely predict what will happen in the following scenes, so I am always on the edge of my seat waiting for the next character to be in trouble, or for the next monster that is lurking around the corner. Although this show is like many other supernatural shows out there on a broader scale, there are many details to it that make people feel like they are watching something completely new rather than a bad remake of another show that has already happened. Instead of just vampires, witches, werewolves, and all of the other basic creatures, the show has things like ice monsters and shadow monsters that the producers can give special powers to like being able to walk through ceilings. Because the new Charmed has its own ideas instead of copying others, it is suspenseful and interesting and unlike any other show.

While the Charmed reboot has so many new scenarios that are introduced, there are many scenes that include different actions that happen in most TV shows, like the romantic choices. In most shows, a person can tell who is going to end up dating whom, and what couple is going to get into a fight, but that is what makes this show so great. The romantic choices are between people whom viewers actually like, and just waiting for an individual’s favorite couple to get together is exactly what makes a person want to watch the next episode. This way, whether a person likes the rest of the show or not, he/she just keeps coming back for the romance, just like the show wants.

While the plot of the show is one of the main reasons the Charmed reboot is so good, the cast plays a major part in the show’s popularity, too. When watching the show, it really feels like I am directly in the scenes with the people. The actors are great at what they do, whether it is making crying scenes feel emotional, casual scenes feel real, or action scenes feel scary and suspenseful. The cast even gets along well outside of the show, as they are seen posting loads of pictures with each other on social media for things like fan meets and Halloween posts. The cast that was picked has ended up being incredible, and without them, the show would not be as popular and exceptional as it has become.

Whether a person is into drama, supernatural shows, or just bored and looking for something to watch, Charmed should definitely be at the top of the list. The show allows a person to become invested in characters who have real backgrounds and personalities that do not leave the show to be a straight-forward “scenario and reaction” plot. There are actual aspects to the story that make it unique and allow people to become invested in it. Charmed is a show that knows how to keep its viewers hooked, and it would be a shame to miss out on its impressiveness.