Charmed - The Complete Second Season

That's just the beginning of the Halliwells' otherworldly troubles. The second season finds the sisters also taking on brain-zapping Warlocks, a Demon of Hate, a Darklighter who inspires thoughts of suicide among the living, evil witches, and--get this--the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, who turn out to be quite dapper (albeit nasty) fellows. Meanwhile, Piper struggles to raise $60,000 to open a happening new club (at a site where two other clubs have failed) while also juggling romantic feelings for two guys, one a hunky new neighbor and the other last season's handyman character, Leo (Brian Krause), who turns out to be a Whitelighter (a kind of an angel). Prue's job at the art gallery gets a bit wobbly, and she gives unintentionally mixed signals to a very nice man who likes her a lot. Phoebe, for her part, is still in school and meets a handsome prospect at a dating service--then has to save him from a succubus (a female demon who seduces men and then kills them). Season highlights include the episode "She's a Man, Baby, a Man," in which Prue--due to a botched spell--becomes a man (a clever and funny performance by Doherty). In a reversal of Tootsie's feminist theme, Prue learns how to be a better woman for having a been a man, though a lot more repairs take place at the house while she's a he. "Animal Pragmatism" concerns yet another spell gone awry, this one turning a pig, a rabbit, and a snake into full-grown men with the characteristics of the creatures they were. The final show, "Be Careful What You Witch For," is a lot of fun, co-starring French Stewart as a genie who makes a lot of mischief at the same time the sisters are trying to put a Dragon Warlock in his place. --Tom Keogh