Primrose Empath

From Charmed

Prue suffering.

Primrose Empath is the 50th episode of Charmed.

[edit] Episode Information

Season 3

Episode No. 06

Written By Daniel Cerone

Directed By Mel Damski

Production No. 4390051

Original Airdate November 9, 2000

[edit] Guest Stars

Morgan Weisser as Vinceres
Harry Groener as Father Thomas

[edit] Special Musical Guest

Idol

[edit] Summary

Cole uses magic to lead Prue to what appears to be a man suffering because he is capable of feeling the emotions of others around him and cannot control his empathic power. Prue casts a spell to remove this power, but unknowingly helps this cursed demon, Vinceres, to gain his ability to harm innocents again, while gaining the empathic ability herself. As Prue struggles to control her newly gained power, Vinceres seeks to kill the one that cursed him. Piper expresses concern that her relationship with Leo isn't normal enough, while Phoebe and Cole can't help falling in love with each other.

[edit] Plot

Prue--or so it appears--tries to telekinetically move a fork on the table, without any success. When Phoebe comes downstairs, she fears Prue has lost her powers. It turns out, however, that Prue was in astral mode. Prue tells Phoebe that they wouldn't last long against Belthazor, and is trying to train her astral self how to fight. Phoebe has a lunch date with Cole, and is nervous.

Prue drives to a dental appointment and finds herself being directed down a particular path. She does not know that Cole is doing the directing. She finally finds herself in front of a condemned apartment building and hears of a man still inside. She goes upstairs and finds the man cowering inside and begging her to go away. He complains of feeling everyone's pain all across the city, and even Prue's toothache.

Piper had met an old acquaintance and introduced Leo as a "friend", to his resentment. Piper did not want to answer the usual questions that would have followed introducing him as her fiance. Prue and Cole enter, followed by Phoebe, and Prue tells them of the shut-in. Cole slips into the kitchen, claiming to need to use the phone, and tells his shadow not to report to the Triad just yet. Leo believes that the shut-in is a budding empath and that Prue ought to help him. Cole offers the help of the Housing Authority in relocating the shut-in. Leo asks if he and Piper can come along with Cole and Phoebe on their lunch date, and Phoebe agrees.

At Crest Hills Psychiatric Hospital, Father Thomas sees a newspaper article on the shut-in and tries to escape, but is restrained.

Prue returns to the condemned building, having taken aspirin for her tooth. She has been told that the shut-in is called Vince, and is due to be arrested if he doesn't leave. Prue begs Vince to come with her, but he refuses to leave the room. However, he knows he'll die in jail. Prue tells him that she knows how she feels to have a power she didn't ask for. Vince tells her that he knows she feels something is coming after her. The deputy pounds on the door, and when they enter, Prue uses her power to hold the door shut and casts a spell to relieve his pain--not knowing that Vince is taking her by the hand. Vince is now ready to leave. Prue leaves, and Vince takes the deputy by the throat and burns him from the inside, killing him.

Cole, Phoebe, Leo and Piper are in a restaurant facing an awkward silence. Phoebe mentions the 49ers, and Cole, oddly, doesn't know who they are. Phoebe says "he isn't human" and Cole nearly chokes and asks for the check. Piper and Phoebe excuse themselves to talk, and Phoebe mentions that she's afraid Cole is pulling away from her. Cole offers to split the bill with Leo, and Piper covers for him.

Cole's pager sounds and he excuses himself and meets with Vince, who greets Cole as Belthazor. Vince is really the demonic assassin Vinceres, and Cole arranged for Prue to cross paths with him so he could pass his empathy to her. Vinceres says that Prue has about a day before the emotions she feels destroy her. He is after Father Thomas, but Cole talks him out of going after him; he doesn't want to chance the witches finding out what has happened and reversing the spell.

Prue tries to reschedule her dental appointment and begins to feel the emotions of people around her. In particular, she laughs uncontrollably in empathy with a patient being given laughing gas.

Cole seems to want to break it off with Phoebe. As Cole leaves the manor, Prue passes him and tells Phoebe that Cole is falling in love. Phoebe feels that Prue is wrong, but Prue says that Phoebe is in love, too. The two tell Piper and Leo that Prue has become an empath. Leo is worried that Prue can't handle being an empath because she wasn't meant to have that power. Prue thinks this was the power boost she was looking for in order to fight Belthazor. She feels the growing concern of Piper, Phoebe and Leo, and it causes her to telekinetically blow out the kitchen television. Phoebe offers to consult the Book of Shadows in order to help Prue control her new power, but Prue suggests that she go see Cole instead.

Piper and Leo offer to help, but Prue says she'll look herself--she can feel tension between them, and it's giving her a headache. Leo says he was embarrassed when he wasn't able to pay for lunch. He knows that Piper wants him to be part of the real world, but he really isn't a part of it. Piper tells him that she couldn't be more proud to be with him, and wants to share him with the world. They start to kiss, but Prue tells them she still has a headache.

Phoebe goes to Cole's apartment and kisses him as soon as she's in the door. Within minutes, they're in bed. Phoebe stays the night.

Vinceres enters Father Thomas's former church and demands to know where Father Thomas is. A woman directs him to Crest Hills; he had a nervous breakdown after losing his ability to care for people. Vinceres kills her.

Prue cowers in the manor basement. She's picking up the emotions of the whole neighborhood and is trying to hide. Leo and Piper convince her to come out and help them find Vinceres--but not before Prue causes a beam to fall from the ceiling. They meet Phoebe outside the church and go to the room where Vinceres had been hiding. Phoebe gets a premonition and sees Vinceres' past victims. She didn't even touch anything; Leo thinks the room is full of psychic residue. Phoebe sees Crest Hills, and they go there and meet Father Thomas.

Father Thomas had been an empath before Vinceres had tried to kill him. He passed his empathy to Vinceres, rendering him unable to kill again. Father Thomas is fearful on learning that Vinceres is free; Prue feels his panic and shakes the entire room.

The sisters, Leo and Father Thomas return to the manor; Prue hides in the basement again. Father Thomas fears that Vinceres can't be stopped. Vinceres is reportedly immune to witchcraft; the only reason Prue's spell worked was because Vinceres wanted it to work. Phoebe thinks that Prue could learn to channel the emotions she's feeling, and so become powerful enough to fight Vinceres. Father Thomas thinks Prue is too far gone, but Piper refuses to accept it, and convinces Father Thomas to talk to Prue.

As Father Thomas is trying to snap Prue back to herself, Vinceres bursts in. Piper tries to freeze him, but it only slows him down. Piper cracks Vinceres over the head with a flowerpot, but it doesn't even scratch him. Vinceres flings Piper into a wall. Phoebe tries to attack Vinceres, but her kicks and punches have no effect, and he flings her into the wall as well. Piper tries to freeze Vinceres again, with no luck.

Father Thomas tells Prue to channel her empathy into her telekinesis. Prue doesn't think she can, but Father Thomas tells her that she can feel all it means to be human.

Vinceres has Phoebe by the throat and demands to know where Father Thomas is. Just then, Prue comes up from the basement with Father Thomas and Leo. She meets him blow for blow. Finally, she astral-projects and astral Prue leaps into Vinceres, who warps and explodes. Prue is no longer an empath.

Idol plays P3. Prue says she was able to kill Vinceres by forcing him to feel all of the pain she was feeling as an empath, and he couldn't handle it. Leo joins the sisters and says that Father Thomas has returned to his church. The four speculate that the signs that Prue received must be from Belthazor or the Triad. Prue thinks she just got a preview of what her powers will be like once they grow to their full potential.

Phoebe goes to Cole's apartment; he's staying a little longer because an "associate" (who we know is Vinceres) didn't do as he was told.

[edit] Power Usage

Person Using Power	Power Being Used	Object/Person Affected	Location
Astral Prue	Telekinesis (failed)	Fork	Manor Kitchen
Astral Prue	Telekinesis (failed)	Fork	Manor Kitchen
Astral Prue	Telekinesis (failed)	Fork	Manor Kitchen
Astral Prue	Telekinesis (failed)	Fork	Manor Kitchen
Astral Prue	Telekinesis (failed)	Fork	Manor Kitchen
Prue	Astral Projection	Herself	Manor Kitchen
Cole	Shimmer	Himself	Loma Drive
Cole	Changes Lights	Lights	Loma Drive
Cole	Shimmers	Himself	Loma Drive
Prue	Telekinesis*	Chain Lock	Outside Vince's Loft
Vinceres	Empathy	Prue	Vincere's Loft
Cole	"Shadow Talk"	Shadow	Manor Kitchen
Prue	Telekinesis (not seen)	Chain Lock	Outside Vince's Loft
Prue	Telekinesis	Door	Vince's Loft
Vince	Touch of Death	Deputy	Vince's Loft
Cole	Shimmers	Himself	Vince's Loft
Cole	Shimmers	Himself	Vince's Loft
Prue	Empathy	Female	Doctor's Office
Prue	Empathy	Old Lady	Doctor's Office
Prue	Empathy	Cole	Manor
Prue	Empathy	Phoebe	Manor
Prue	Empathy	Piper	Manor Kitchen
Prue	Empathy	Phoebe	Manor Kitchen
Prue	Empathy	Leo	Manor Kitchen
Prue	Constant Empathy	Piper, Phoebe, Leo	Manor Kitchen
Prue	Advanced Telekinesis	TV	Manor Kitchen
Prue	Empathy Advanced	Piper & Leo	Manor Attic
Vince	Touch of Death	Church Lady	Church
Prue	Empathy Advanced	People of the City	Manor Basement
Prue	Advanced Telekinesis	Basement Ceiling	Manor Basement
Phoebe	Premonition*	???	Vince's Loft
Vince	Touch of Death	Deputy	Premontion
Vince	Touch of Death	Church Lady	Premonition
Vince	Touch of Death	Father Thomas	Premonition
Prue	Empathy	Everyone in the City	Car
Piper	Molecular Immobilization	Receptionist #2	Crest Hills
Prue	Advanced TK	Items in the Room	Crest Hills
Prue	TK	Easel	Crest Hills
Prue	TK	Wheelchair	Crest Hills
Prue	TK	Television Set	Crest Hills
Piper	Molecular Immobilization	Vinceres	Manor
Vinceres	Adjusts	Freezing Power	Manor
Vinceres	Super Strength	Piper	Manor
Vinceres	Super Strength	Phoebe	Manor
Piper	Molecular Immobilization	Vinceres	Manor
Vinceres	Adjusts	Freezing Power	Manor
Prue	TK	Vinceres	Manor
Prue	Astral Projects	Herself	Manor
Prue	Astral Project Possession	Vinceres	Manor
Prue	Astral Projects	Herself	Manor

Prue channels her TK throught the whole fight scene between her and Vinceres.
This is the first time that Phoebe has a premonition without touching something.
Prue wasn't able to see the Chain when she closed the door.

[edit] Innocents

Father Thomas, an immortal Empath and an active Priest.

[edit] Innocents Lost

Deputy, murdered by Vince with the Touch of Death
Church Lady, murdered by Vince with the Touch of Death

[edit] Evil Beings

[edit] Vanquished

Vinceres, a demonic assassin vanquished by Prue.

[edit] Spells

Prue casts the Empath Release spell on Vince in his Loft. Because Vince made physical contact with Prue the result gives Prue the powers of an Empath.

[edit] Empath Release Spell

Free the empath, release his gift,

Let his pain be cast adrift.

[edit] Book of Shadows

[edit] Vinceres

For centuries this immortal hitman has terrorized supernatural

beings and innocents alike. His innate defenses, combined with

his ability to burn his victims to death, have allowed him to

successfully eliminate numerous forces of good and evil.

His line of attack is the wisest course of action.

[edit] Trivia

An empath is a mortal who can actually feel what other people feel. It's a rare gift. When they die they often return to earth as empaths. Where they blend into society as counselors, elders, teachers. They use their sensitivity to guide mortals, ease their pain, even heal them.
Vince's Loft is 3A

[edit] Notes

This is the 50th episode of Charmed.
Darryl does not appear in this episode.
Phoebe doesn’t use her Levitation power.
Harry Groener (Father Thomas) was in Star Trek: The Next Generation's episode as Tin Man in which he played an empath/telepath, who was overburdened by the thoughts and emotions of the humans around him.
Prue gains superpowers to fight the demon Vinceres. The fight scene between Prue and Vinceres in the Manor is essentially a copy of the scene in The Matrix (1999) when Neo fights Agent Smith in the subway station and after Neo was shot.
In the Season 6 Premiere Valhalley Of The Dolls Part 1, Phoebe receives the power of empathy, to later get it taken away from her because she misused it later in the Season 6 episode Crimes And Witch-Demeanors.
Phoebe sleeps with Cole for the first time in this episode.
In this episode, Prue was trying to use telekinesis in astral mode, but fails.
At the beginning of this episode, Prue is reading a book "Telekinesis" by "Chele Knapp Robinette." Robinette is the production assistant to producer Les Sheldon.
Prue's telekinesis power doesn't work in astral form because she is already using it to make her astral form solid, a feat which Rex Buckland failed at. She can, however, use other powers such as empathy in astral mode.
When Cole writes his pager number on his card he writes: 415-555-0166 but the number typed right above is 415-555-0167

[edit] Quotes

(Phoebe hugs Prue and leaves. Prue, Piper and Leo walk out of the kitchen.)

Leo: We'll help you out.

Prue: No, no, no, I'll hit the book alone. Your guys' couple issues are really starting to hurt my head.

Piper: Wait, we have couple issues?

Prue: (to Leo) Resentment, (to Piper) denial. Be nice.

(Prue goes upstairs.)

Leo: Piper, you want me in the real world but I'm not of this world.

Piper: I know, and I'm, I see your point. I'm sorry I didn't understand. (They sit on the couch.) I know this must be very difficult for you.

Leo: It is.

Piper: Leo, you have to understand I am very proud to be with you. And so proud that I need to share you with the rest of the world, my world. And you know, the other stuff we'll figure out. (They kiss.)

Prue: (from upstairs) Not now, I have a headache.

[edit] External links

Charmed DVD Information about the Charmed DVD sets.

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