S6-17 HYDE SCHOOL REUNION

[Scott]

Out of the blue, ljones in the Charmed Cafe brings up the question of Rick again.

I'm confused. Are you saying that Paige and Phoebe had every right to set Rick up to be murdered by those demons? Or are you saying that Phoebe and Paige should have arranged for the police to get their hands on Rick and put him back in jail?

Vandergraafk replies anew:

Whoa, where did this come from? Many pages ago, I thought we had presented the point of view that ideally Rick should have been turned over to Darryl at the very least. That, of course, would have presented some difficulties since how are they going to explain how Rick got out of jail in the first place. The Cleaners aren't likely to help. Does Leo even have that much memory dust? Worse: glamored people aren't likely to turn up in any police mugshot collections. It is unlikely that Phoebe is going to volunteer that she helped Rick escape - whether coerced into it or not. At some point, Phoebe should be held accountable to the Elders, the Tribunal or some other entity.

Now, of course, we know that Darryl was not called upon to deal with Rick. The writers escaped the need to explain what I've outlined above, but perhaps created another problem that some of you have taken what I believe to an incorrect position, namely, to view Paige and Phoebe as murderers or at least willing executioners. As I have argued earlier, I don't think the final scene stands up to scrutiny in terms of drama, plot development or logical resolution. Paige can't know that the Scaber demons will show up, though she must know know that if they do Rick will surely die. But, Rick had the upper hand. He knew where the hostage was kept. Phoebe acceded to his demands perhaps to gain some valuable time to find the hostage. (I know the Charmed Ones probably could scry for her, but that may have taken a while.) Rick was pleased with the image makeover, but not what that led to.

[vandergraafk]

Here we go again:

Ljones raised the question of the gun again....

, Rick had the upper hand. He knew where the hostage was kept. Phoebe acceded to his demands perhaps to gain some valuable time to find the hostage. (I know the Charmed Ones probably could scry for her, but that may have taken a while.) Rick was pleased with the image makeover, but not what that led to.

Paige had the upper hand. She had the ability to orb the d**n gun out of Rick's hand. And she didn't.


vandergraafk replied anew:

No, Paige had the ability to disarm Rick and change the terms of the discussion perhaps. After all, Rick had not seen the other sisters' powers. He only knew what Phoebe could do. Now, did Paige hesitate to act because a) she had a history in similar situations of hesitating or b) she did not wish to expose magic any more than it had already been exposed or c) she had no intention of defusing the situation but had already decided to let the Scaber demons take out Rick? Your response assumes something that is not explained in the scene. My description reflects what we know in the scene. Rick has the upper hand to the extent that he knows where the hostage is kept. Phoebe and Paige don't.

Rick's upper hand, however, is illusory. To that extent, I would agree that he really does not hold the upper hand. He doesn't know what Paige and Piper can do. He is unaware of the Scabbard demons and what they can do. He doesn't know who Chris is, though he does like the way Chris looks after Rick is glamored into Chris. His belief that he holds the upper hand comes solely from his knowledge of where the hostage is kept. It does not come from the shotgun he is holding.

One final note: before it is mentioned yet again, the fact that Paige shouts "incoming" proves absolutely nothing. Rather, it raises far more questions that the episode can possibly answer. For example, if Paige can now predict when the Scabers will arrive then she acquired that knowledge relatively quickly. In the attic, neither she nor Chris could anticipate the Scaber attack that led to destruction of the scrying crystal and location, covered as they were in Scaber slime. Second, since Chris had more experience with the Scabers and worked with them undercover, wouldn't it be expected that he - and not Paige - would be the first to develop the ability to predict a Scaber attack. Third, why protect Chris in a crystal barrier in the attic, if Paige can sense an attack and warn Chris to orb to safety, i.e., to a pre-arranged crystal cage.

[vandergraafk]

Maracev added this thought:

Fourth...how in the heck does giving Rick Chris' face change what the scabbar demons can sense? It's still Rick. Do they sense his facial features and not Chris himself?

Vandergraafk replied:

Maracev, do we really know enough about the Scabers to conclude that they might have sniff detectors and ferret out imposters? True, they were able to identify Chris after a fashion. His mud-stained trenchcoat was no longer disguise enough. Or, do Scabers slime first, ask questions later, as demons are wont to do? I don't know the answers to these questions, but you've raised an interesting objection.