Why did so many people love Charmed? It was the most lasting piece of the ’90s witch obsession in American media. So many loved it for its layered characters, its special effects, and its proto-Harry Potter magical world-building.
Those were all major aspects of the show’s appeal, but an underrated aspect of Charmed was the many romantic relationships on the show which were sometimes great, sometimes regrettable but always interesting. And with that in mind we present to you a list of Charmed’s best and worst love interests… ranked, of course.
1. Best: Piper & Leo Wyatt
Here’s a relationship that lead to a million fan fiction stories. Piper and Leo’s relationship was the single longest lasting romantic relationship in the history of the show, so they needed to be one of the best and they were.
The relationship had chemistry, drama and just the right amount of star crossed-ness in the Romeo and Juliet vein as Wyatt was initially a whitelighter and could not be with Piper. Even when Piper tried to move on from Leo, it was absolutely clear that the two were meant to be together, making the triumphs of their love all the more satisfying.
2. Worst: Phoebe & Leslie St. Claire
Leo and Wyatt had personalities that fit together phenomenally well. Meanwhile, Phoebe and Leslie St. Claire seem to be attracted to each other… because they’re both attractive. They don’t have much in the way of chemistry, and it certainly didn’t help that Nick Lachey isn’t the most talented actor.
Phoebe also kept numerous secrets from Leslie, making their relationship a touch difficult to root for. If there was a major saving grace to this unmemorable couple, it s the fact that they only lasted for a season, leaving Leslie without much time to mess with the show’s (pun intended) charm.
3. Best: Phoebe & Coop
Coop Halliwell proves that characters don’t need a tremendous amount of screen time to make an impact. After a long history of failed relationships, Phoebe finally found a guy who could make her happy. A cupid or “Coop” for short.
Yes, the idea of making a Cupid (yes, there’s many of them) a character on the show was a corny idea and giving him a silly nickname didn’t help, but Coop was played by the very charismatic Victor Webster who makes his role worthwhile even in the moments when the show’s writing succumbed to romantic comedy clichés. Coop and Phoebes relationship may not have been quite worthy of the mythological Cupid (no relationship is) but it came close.
4. Worst: Prue & T.J.
Of the Halliwell sisters, Prue got the short end of the stick in several ways, the most significant being the fact that she only appeared in three of the Charmed’s eight seasons thanks to Shannen Doherty’s mysterious and sudden departure from the show.
One of the other ways in which Prue got the short end of the stick in that she was often saddled with dull love interests – the dullest being T.J., a character played by Dana Ashbrook, the same actor who portrayed Bobby Briggs in Twin Peaks, who had a short stint on the show and never brought out Ashbrook’s natural talents the way that David Lynch did.
5. Best: Phoebe & Cole Turner
Phoebe had many, many love interests – she had enough dates to make most female soap opera leads jealous. Of them all, Cole Turner was undoubtedly the best. Their storyline existed in the grand Beauty and the Beast tradition, as Cole Turner, who was originally named Belthazor, a powerful demon who renounced evil all for his love of Phoebe.
Of course, the show wasn’t willing to give any of its witches a nice “happily ever after” at that point so Cole Turner became The Source of All Evil (what a catchy title) and his relationship with Phoebe fell to pieces immediately. It was fun while it lasted.
6. Worst: Phoebe & Drake dé Mon
“dé Mon” would be a cheesey last name for a former demon in a children’s program, but Charmed is supposed to be for adults. Maybe Drake dé Mon is close friends with the similarly named Cruella de Vil. While Drake dé Mon was played by the deliciously hammy Billy Zane, he was never as memorable as the villain he played in James Cameron’s Titanic.
Drake essentially caught Phoebe on the rebound a mere two weeks before he passed. At least he got to go on some amazing adventures with Phoebe and wear some dapper suits before he kicked the bucket.
7. Best: Paige & Henry Mitchell
When Shannen Doherty and her character abruptly left the show, fans wondered if her replacement, Rose McGowan, and her character Paige Matthews would be as beloved as her predecessor. While fans argued which character is better, Paige is still universally loved by the show’s fans so it’s great that the show was given such a great love interest in Henry Mitchell, a loveable guy who was surprisingly accepting of the fact that his girlfriend was a witch.
The two started off as enemies before igniting a romantic spark and getting married. They were certainly a better witch/normal guy couple than Samantha and Darren from Bewitched.
8. Worst: Piper & Greg
Here’s another sub-par love interest from Charmed who essentially served as a rebound love interest for one of the Halliwells. Greg was sweet in the three episodes in which he appeared but he left almost no emotional impact as fans barely got to know him and what they saw was unmemorable.
He exited the show so quickly that one wonders if the show’s writers decided to get rid of him very suddenly. After all, why introduce a character like he’s going to matter before abruptly removing him from the show? Was Greg designed as a horribly unfunny April Fool’s joke on the fans?
9. Best: Prue & Andy Trudeau
Speaking of characters who weren’t around very long, Prue never got as much screen time as she probably deserved. That doesn’t mean that she didn’t get to be present on some of the series’ good episodes, and she had one truly great love interest – Andy Trudeau. No matter what obstacles they faced, Andy and Prue always found their way back to each other.
In the end, their love even managed to transcend life itself, truly making them a ’90s answer to Beatrice and Dante Alighieri, or Annabel Lee and her husband – the only difference being that no one ever had to study Prue and Andy in English class.
10. Worst: Phoebe & Jason Dean
Here’s one for all of the Grey’s Anatomy fans out there. Before he played Mark Sloan (aka McSteamy) in Shonda Rhimes’ long running medical drama, he had an odd run on Charmed, where he played Jason Dean.
He was a love interest that Phoebe came across online, in a plotline that seemed very modern at the time: online dating. What ’s next? Movie review websites? Ridiculous!
