Charmed (TV Series) Sword and the City (2003) User Reviews

The One With Excalibur...

[taylorkingston · 10/10 · 28 March 2015]

Yes, that's right. Charmed finally took a story from King Arthur and the Round Table and they put Excalibur into an episode. I think it's the tiniest bit cheesy, but I do love the episode, so it evens out.

In this episode, the Sisters get a message from The Lady Of The Lake and they suddenly find themselves taking care of the Sword in the Stone, Excalibur. Obviously, every creature comes to see if they are the new masters of the sword, to see if they can pull it out. But no one can, except for Piper. She pulls out the sword, when no one else could. A man visits her and trains her. But then he turns Piper evil, for a while at least. The man somehow gets the sword and Piper finds out that Wyatt is the true king of Excalibur. Whilst bleeding out, after her new enemy stabs her, Piper is worried about Wyatt. The man tries to kill Wyatt, but the Halliwell's were one step ahead of him. Wyatt then used the sword to kill the man, and Piper hides the sword in a closet until he's old enough to use it.

Overall, I give this episode a 10 out of 10.

Baby gets a new toy

[owlaurence · 5/10 · 12 September 2008]

The opportunity was probably too good to pass. Personally, I don't mind seeing the story of Excalibur rewritten, and the fact that the thing is basically orbed around for 45 minutes only adds to the fun. Besides, the crowd of magical pretenders will come back now and again for the next episodes (sometimes even the next seasons), which is just brilliant. I also appreciate that the manor sorely lacks a handyman now that Leo isn't around anymore. Ha!

But on the downside, WHY is it always Piper who gets turned into a murderous leather-clad warrior? At least, Holly Marie Comb seems to be having a lot of fun waving that sword around, but it is a bit hard to believe that in barely 10mn Piper would go from "This is just a big scam!" to "Let's recreate the Round Table with Harpies and Grimlocks!" I understand that it is meant to illustrate the old say that power corrupts, but the result is that the plot focuses on action and completely sacrifices character development.

Finally, it is very logical that Excalibur should prove to be Wyatt's heirloom, as the boy seems to be a sort of magical beacon. The only trouble is that the fabled sword won't do much in the future (I think it reappears once), so this is a lot of setup for nothing; and the fact that Chris isn't even here doesn't help connect it to the plot or the characters' evolution. Put the episode anywhere else in season 5, 6 or 7 and you won't see much difference.

Lady in water

[Realrockerhalloween · 2 October 2016]

The manor is falling apart as Piper sets out to do some handy work when Piper is contacted by the lady in the water to come rescue her. Arriving during a demonic attack she takes ownership of Excaliber setting the black knight on her trail. This episode was lacking in many areas as only the chosen one can pull it from the stone and corrupts anyone who wields it. Is this the reason Wyatt becomes evil in the future and if so why would the Avalonians create such a weapon since they're suppose to be on the side of good. Also why wouldn't the lady turn to the goddesses who have more power or they not send help instead of trusting a witch.

Besides those minor issues I like the black knight finding him to fit the themes occurring here with his minions and trying to start a new round table. My only problem is Mordred the demon who shows up at the exact moment she pulls it out the one from legend or spying on them is left in the air. I feel if they had spent more time on the plot it could've been a solid entry in the series.