The sisters are caught in a dilemma as to who to trust – the apparent spirit of their dead mother, or their Whitelighter, each of whom is telling them not to trust the other. Before they make any decisions though, they need to find a way to agree with one another.

Picking up exactly where we left off last time out, this episode once again makes sure that we all know exactly where the show stands on a lot of issues as it progresses. This time out, the major political joke refers to UK rather than American politics, ensuring that it’ll alienate a whole swathe of people on this side of the pond as well.

So the sister’s mother is reaching out from the beyond via the Ouija board to tell them that Harry isn’t to be trusted. Meanwhile, Harry himself warns the girls that ‘spirit boards’ are not to be trusted, too susceptible to tricks from demons. Given the setup of the show and the fact that this is the second episode, I think we can all agree that it’s fairly obvious where the plot is going with this one.

But it’s the journey that’s important and the writers seem to recognise that. The girls are still coming to grips with what and who they are, and Macy is still – relatively speaking – an outsider, not simply because of her only recently joining the gang but also by virtue of being the scientist and registered sceptic of the trinity. She is the first to voice concern as to the provenance of whatever is speaking to them from the other side; partly that’s scientific scepticism and partly it’s hurt because her mother abandoned her. Mel, who is always angry, desperately wants to believe that it’s real, and Maggie predictably ends up in the middle, swaying one way and then the other as the episode plays out.

There’s use of a truth serum to try to get to the truth which has a predictably humorous result that quickly takes a slightly darker turn for the people involved, and ultimately there’s a confrontation where everything gets worked out as the show reiterates its theme of the ‘power of three’. All of it works not because it’s especially original in broad conception, but because it’s made to service the development of the characters in believable and organic ways.

There’s plenty of side-plotting that helps with that too, from the visit to ‘coma girl’ by Maggie’s sorority which leaves her not only discovering that gloves don’t stop her power but also that the inside of Angela Wu’s head is a lot less peaceful than appearances might suggest. It also sees her discovering that even fun stuff becomes less fun when you can hear every thought of the other person, in ways that lead her to do some actual growth of her own. In fact, by the end of the episode it becomes very clear that Maggie is going to be a surprising contender for the glue that binds the trinity together, both in terms of empathy and wisdom.

There’s also another demon attack but thanks to everything else that sort of fades into the background of the episode’s attention, though it’s waiting to pop back up again, contributing to another cliffhanger ending which it would seem is the writers’ narrative preference for the season if these first two episodes are anything to go by.

Verdict: It’s not reinventing the world in terms of overall plotting, but it’s telling its story in a way that allows the characters to breathe and organically develop, all with a healthy dose of politics. My sense continues to be that you’ll either love it or hate it, and for now I’m firmly in the former camp. 8/10

Greg D. Smith