- Baxter: "Must have cut off too much blood to her brain."
- Bowen: "Must have."
- — Baxter and Bowen talking about P. Russell.[src]
P. Bowen was a witch descended from the Warren line of witches. Born on January 1895, she was a good magical witch with the power of cryokinesis, and lived with her cousins, P. Russell and P. Baxter, at 1329 Prescott Street. She worked as a professional photographer during Baxter's speakeasies.
Bowen neither married nor had any children, and passed away at some point before 1970, after which she was reborn as Baxter's eldest great-granddaughter, Prudence Halliwell.
History
Early Life
Bowen had two first cousins through her father's family; P. Baxter and P. Russell. Bowen lived with Baxter and her husband, Gordon Johnson, in a Victorian manor in San Francisco along with Russell.
Working at the Speakeasy
- "We were all related. Cousins. And we lived here in the manor back in the '20s."
- —Phoebe Halliwell speaking about the cousins.[src]
Bowen taking a portrait.
As a professional photographer, Bowen was exceptionally skillful in her work, given the numerous people who queued up for her to take their portraits during the speakeasies that Baxter hosted there. Magic was, apparently, used openly at the speakeasies, as Russell made potions and cast spells for customers, and divined the future at a booth in the conservatory.
In 1924, Bowen and Baxter learned that Russell's lover, Anton, was an immortal warlock, and that she had been swayed to evil by him. For a small while, at least, the two cousins bided their time, perhaps hoping Russell would turn back.
Fighting Russell
- "How does it feel to be powerless against me?"
- —Russell taunting Bowen during their confrontation.[src]
Bowen with Russell.
However, the two cousins eventually realised that Russell had been swayed beyond reason, and they grew to believe that she and the immortal Anton were soulmates. Hence, in February 1924, Bowen told Baxter to find a spell to curse Russell and all of her future incarnations, as they planned to fight back when their evil cousin and her lover attacked, and ensure that she could not reunite with Anton in any lifetime.
At the speakeasy, Bowen tried to get Russell to talk to her, but she told her that they were done talking. Baxter then approached her and passed her the curse, which she then slipped into her garter.
- Bowen: "Why is she running from us? Why isn't she just using her power?"
- Baxter: "She's probably trying to lure us into another trap."
- — Bowen and Baxter before following Russell upstairs.[src]
Bowen and Russell fighting.
Later on, Russell asked Bowen to talk upstairs. Just before she could respond, Baxter was heard screaming from the hallway. Russell then shot a stream of fire out of her hand at Bowen, which she extinguished with her icy cold breath. She then tried to use her power directly on Russell, but Russell's Protection Amulet absorbed it. After a taunting remark from Russell, Bowen used her camera to blind her for a second and knocked her down. Baxter then arrived from the other room and began to choke Russell while Bowen got the spell out. However, before they could cast it, Russell's body was possessed by her next life, Phoebe Halliwell, who managed to escape the cousins' grip and ran upstairs. Bowen shot her icy breath at her on the stairs, which missed, before following her upstairs with Baxter.
Cursing Russell
Bowen before casting the curse.
- Phoebe Halliwell (in Russell's body): "Uh, I'm not who you think I am. I'm a different me. A me from another lifetime where we've evolved into sisters. Good sisters. H-happy sisters."
- Baxter: "Must have cut off too much blood to her brain."
- Bowen: "Must have."
- — Bowen and Baxter dismissing Phoebe's claims.[src]
Bowen and Baxter followed Phoebe upstairs, but realized that she had slipped passed them and gone back down. They got down just in time to pin her down, tie a noose around her neck, and get the curse back out. The two of them cast it, though watching confusedly as Phoebe muttered a spell of her own, trying to return to her own body. The cousins killed Russell with the curse being successful while Phoebe escaped. It is unknown what the cousins did with her body.
Later Life
Bowen never married nor had any children, unlike Baxter who had a daughter, Penelope. Bowen died at some point before 1970, at which point she was reincarnated as Baxter's first great-granddaughter and the eldest Charmed One, Prudence Halliwell.
Bowen's camera was kept in the attic of the house, currently known as the Halliwell Manor. Phoebe came across it while searching for the family tree. Finding the camera and knowing that her past life was a photographer, inspired Prue to quit her job at Buckland Auction House and pursue a job in photography, which she always had a passion for.
Physical Description
When Phoebe's soul entered Russell's body, she recognized her sister Prue's soul within Bowen, and so she looked identical to Prue. However, Bowen had reddish-brown hair in a short bob, and it is unknown if her eye color (green like Prue's) was her actual eye color.
Personality and Traits
Bowen and Baxter look for Russell.
As a photographer, Bowen was amiable towards her customers, addressing them with a courteous smile and even helping them to look their very best before she took their photos.
However, in her persona as a witch, Bowen appeared to be stern, intimidating, powerful, and resourceful. For instance, during her fight with Russell, she used her camera to temporarily blind Russell to knock her down. She was also capable of making difficult decisions to which she had no apparent regrets about, as seen when she—unlike Baxter—had no qualms with cursing Russell.
Powers and Abilities
Bowen projects a stream of ice to Russell.
- Basic Powers
- Spell Casting: The ability to cast spells and perform rituals.
- Potion Brewing: The ability to brew potions.
- Scrying: The ability to locate a person or object by the use of a scrying crystal, a map, and sometimes other tools.
- Mediumship: The ability to see and commune with spirits of the dead.
- Active Powers
- Cryokinesis: The ability to generate and manipulate cold and ice, generally to project streams or blasts of intense cold intended to freeze targets. Bowen activated this power by blowing on her hand, and it was shown to be strong enough to not only extinguish fire, but also disintegrate objects.
Notes and Trivia
- It is highly likely that Bowen's first name was Phoebe, as, in "That '70s Episode", Patty Halliwell mentioned an Aunt Phoebe. As she had no aunts on her mother's side, this could mean that she was referring to Bowen, who was the only other Warren relation she could have been talking about. However, it is just as possible that Phoebe was a relation of Allen and Janice Halliwell, or simply a surrogate aunt.
- Another possibility is the name "Pearl", as Phoebe once mentioned an Aunt Pearl. However, this could have been a sister of Victor Bennett or some other relation, as it seems unusual that she would call a relative she had never met "Aunt".
- According to the Halliwell family tree, Bowen died in May 1971. However, as her future-life, Prue Halliwell, was born the year previously, this date must be inaccurate, as is much of the tree.
- Also according to the family tree, her parents are Gregory Bowen and Lola Mack.
- Bowen was featured in the short story, Family History, as one of the Warren witches who helped to vanquish the demon Astarte. Unlike the others, Bowen had the hardest time pronouncing her name, to the point where no one corrected her after the first couple of times.
- It was likely that Bowen was renowned as a formidable warrior in the fight against evil, for Anton found it necessary to triple Russell's powers in case her cousins were "ready for them". Indeed, even after Russell's pyrokinesis was enhanced into fire-throwing, Bowen's cryokinesis was still powerful enough to extinguish her stream of fire, and it was only Russell's amulet that prevented her from being affected by Bowen's powers, which actually somewhat testifies to Bowen being a stronger witch than Russell.
- Bowen and Prue both died in the month of May. This could be just a coincidence or a writer's Easter egg; or even perhaps a way for one to prepare for a possible death date. Phoebe Halliwell almost died in the same month as her past life however this was averted.
Appearances
P. Bowen appeared in a total of 1 episode over the course of the series.
| Charmed, Season 2 | |||||
| #01 | "Witch Trial" | #09 | "Ms. Hellfire" | #17 | "How to Make a Quilt Out of Americans" |
| #02 | "Morality Bites" | #10 | "Heartbreak City" | #18 | "Chick Flick" |
| #03 | "The Painted World" | #11 | "Reckless Abandon" | #19 | "Ex Libris" |
| #04 | "The Devil's Music" | #12 | "Awakened" | #20 | "Astral Monkey" |
| #05 | "She's a Man, Baby, a Man!" | #13 | "Animal Pragmatism" | #21 | "Apocalypse, Not" |
| #06 | "That Old Black Magic" | #14 | "Pardon My Past" | #22 | "Be Careful What You Witch For" |
| #07 | "They're Everywhere" | #15 | "Give Me a Sign" | ||
| #08 | "P3 H2O" | #16 | "Murphy's Luck" | ||
References
- ↑ As Prue Halliwell