AWAKENED

PLOT

At P3, Piper is chatting to Phoebe, who has just enrolled at college.  Piper is coughing and overworked and Phoebe tells her sister that she should take care of herself.  Piper collapses and Phoebe shouts for someone to call 911.

At Bucklands, Prue and Jack Sheridan are authenticating a painting.  Caldwell is keen for them to finish since he wants to sell it.

Prue watches Piper come round at the hopsital.  Piper asks what's happening since everything's still a little fuzzy.  Prue tells her that they're still waiting for the test results, although Piper thinks it's probably just something trendy like Epstein-Barr.

Phoebe learns that Piper has been transferred to Dr. Williamson before being told to wait in the waiting room where she meets a young patient, Nathan.  Nathan has a ninja doll he's found which, in an attempt to cheer him up, Phoebe tells him is really a magical wizard fighting what's wrong with him.

Dr. Williamson, who is accompanied by a group of interns, asks Piper a few questions, specifically whether she's been out of the country recently because she has Oroya Fever, which is only spread by sandflies.  Phoebe realises that Piper contracted it from some imported fruit she's using at P3.  Williamson plans to put her on a course of antibodies although Phoebe wants to call on Leo's help but Piper forbids this.

At Bucklands, Prue admits to Jack that she's really scared and he tells her to go back to the hospital.

At the Manor, Dan tells Phoebe that he's confident that Piper is a fighter.  Prue rings her sister to tell her that the hospital just called - they need to get down there immediately.  Williamson tells them that Piper's condition has worsened.  Her immune system is not as strong as they'd hoped and there's nothing more they can do - either she pulls out of the coma on her own or she won't survive.

Prue wants to use the Book of Shadows, but Phoebe is concerned about the personal gain consequences.  Prue argues that they'll be ensuring that the Power of Three remains intact, but Phoebe still wants to call in Leo.  Prue says that they don't know how to contact him but after they call for him, he orbs in and admits that he's been watching.  He tells the pair that he's been forbidden from interfering and that his powers probably wouldn't work anyway as Piper hasn't been injured by a demon.  "Screw the consequences," declares Phoebe once he's orbed out.

At the hospital, Prue uses her powers to get hold of Piper's blood sample, while Phoebe gets the ninja doll from Nathan to use as a poppet.  Once they've sent Dan to get some sodas, the pair receit the Awakening Spell, although Prue has to use her powers to keep Dr Williamson out of the room until they've finished.

At first it doesn't appear to have worked but Piper awakes with a start just as Williamson enters.  Phoebe junks the ninja doll, but its eyes open.

Piper's fever has gone down and the infection has vanished, although Williamson takes another blood sample.  Unseen, the ninja doll cuts its way out of the bag, pricking a nurse, but she doesn't see what caused it.

At a deserted P3, the girls are all hyperactive, but Dan is exhausted and Piper sends him home.  She then asks Prue and Phoebe to tell her what they did, and they confess, but are confident that they would have seen any consequences by now.

Piper tells them that she's glad they didn't call in Leo and Prue rushes off to finish authenticate the Monet at Bucklands.  Piper then whizzes around the club clearing up and Phoebe thinks she's discovered the consequence of using a spell for personal gain.

Williamson calls in Dr Seigler from the Center for Disease Control.  Oroya Fever isn't contagious but he's now got three patients who are infected.

The following morning, Jack finds Prue examining the painting.  She tells him that "this thing isn't real" and he thinks she's referring to the painting when she's actually referring to their relationship instead.  "So what?" he tells her, there's no harm is letting it be, life is full of necessary consequences.  Prue thinks he means the painting but he's talking about them instead.

P3 is quarantined and Piper and Phoebe taken into custody.  Dan sees Seigler and Williamson giving a press conference and rushes out after hearing the club mentioned.

At the hospital, the sister are in an isolation room.  Meanwhile, the ninja doll enters Nathan's room.

Williamson tells the girls that Oroya Fever is not airborne and that Piper's recovery makes no sense since her body has no antibodies.  He plans to run tests on them to discover what's going on.

After he's gone, Prue guesses that the Awakening spell awoke everything in the room, including the virus.  Piper suggests reversing the spell and calling Leo and Prue is forced to admit that they've already asked him and he can't help.  Piper still want to reverse the spell and has Prue astral project back to the Manor to find the spell in the Book of Shadows.

Piper insists that they use the spell and they recite it, after which she collapses and is rushed back to bed.  Williamson starts CPR but Piper isn't responding.

Piper's spirit rises up out of her body to a void where she sees Leo.  He tells her that she's not dead yet and proceeds to start healing her.

Prue, Phoebe and Dan look on as Williamson is unable to revive Piper and she is pronounced dead.  Her spirit returns to her body and the ECG responds.  Piper coughs and says Leo's name.  Williamson says that he has no idea why she's recovered but that he's going to find out.

Jack finds Prue packing up her stuff at Bucklands and asks if she's out of her mind.  She tells him that she's handed her notice in because the auction house is obsessed with money since Caldwell took over.

At P3, Piper disposes of the remaining fruit and tells Phoebe that although the club seems to be doing okay, this is only because of no cover charge and free drinks.  Phoebe tells her that Dan heard her call Leo's name when she came round.  This was only because he healed her but Piper doesn't know how to explain it.

Leo shows up and tells Piper that he couldn't let her die but he's had his wings clipped because of it, although it's only a suspension.  He tells her that now that he's mortal, he's going to fight for her.

CAST

Matthew Glave played Skeeter is two fourth season episodes of Picket Fences, which Holly Marie Combs was a regular in.

Andrew Ducote played Ryan in Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Killed by Death.

Director Anson Williams played Potsie in Happy Days.

CONTINUITY

Prue resigns from Bucklands.

Phoebe is taking two general courses and seven electives.

THE BOOK OF SHADOWS

The Awakening spell is: "Troubled blood with sleep's unease/Remove the cause of this disease/Sleep eternal never more/And shift this source of illness born/To this poppet who none shall mourn."

The reversal spell is: "What was awakened from its sleep/Must once again slumber deep."

THE POWER OF THREE

Prue steals Piper's blood sample and keeps Williamson out of the hospital room while she and Phoebe recite the Awakening spell.  She also astral projects to the attic to get the reversal spell.

NOTES

Isn't it rather convenient that the sisters find hospital gowns that fit perfectly?

Why doesn't the nurse who is pricked by the ninja doll seem at all worried about picking up an infection?

What is Phoebe wearing on her head when she shows up at the hospital when Piper is first admitted?

COMMENTS

The downward slide since P3 H2O continues with another average episode.

We know that Piper isn't in any real danger and as a result there's rather too much talk and setting things up for future episodes (Prue and Jack, Prue quitting Bucklands and the Prue/Leo/Dan love triangle) and not enough action.  It's just a relief that they pretty much avoided the obvious killer doll storyline, but the downside of this is that the producers will probably resort to the old SF cliché at a later date.

But at least Piper looked nice in her hospital gown...

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EPISODE RATING
5/10