Something Wicca this way came in 1998 when the original Charmed hit The WB airwaves. Right out of the gate, the fantasy drama raked in 7.7 million viewers to be the fledgling network’s highest-rated debut at the time. Spelling Television had created something special yet again.

I mean, you know you’ve done something right when you’re mentioned in other fictional worlds. From The O.C. to True Blood and American Horror Story: Coven, Charmed was a cult classic whether you were real or lived onscreen. Unsurprising for a show that ranked on lists like the “60 Greatest Sci-Fi Shows of All Time” (TV Guide, 2013), but still cool — and kudos to those other shows; way to create a bond with viewers through a pop culture reference like that.

For the uninitiated, Charmed was about three sisters who inherited their family’s magical legacy to become the most powerful good witches of all time; The Charmed Ones. Using their Power of Three; Prue, Piper and Phoebe (and later, their long-lost half-sister Paige after Prue dies) protected the innocent and fought evil (all while juggling regular lives — work, relationships, even parenthood — in San Francisco).

How did a niche show become so popular?

The power of three

On a rewatch, the late ‘90s synth track and cheesy on-the-nose dialogue becomes dangerously distracting as nostalgia for the decade. Plus, not everyone is into witchcraft — but the turbulence of family bonds, career aspirations, and relationship woes? Pretty much everyone can connect with that. Because the heart of Charmed was the power of emotional, grounded storytelling that revolved around the sisters, no matter how out-of-this-word the characters and scenarios became. You felt with them, and you grew with them.

“The dynamic between the sisters and the wish-fulfillment due to the fantastic element made me realize it was special when I first read the pilot,” said powerhouse story consultant and NBC Writers on the Verge instructor Jen Grisanti, who was head of current programming at Spelling Television Inc. when Charmed aired.

“I loved the freedom that you have with the story when you can go outside the box due to the concept.”

The sisters’ bond both as siblings and as witches was synonymous with the show’s progression, allowing for more fantastical adventures. When you have such a strong hook, your story engine becomes endless.

The power of theme

Another important driving force of any successful show is its theme. If it resonates with your audience, you’re on the right track. Again, it comes down to the sisters. At the series outset, they’re just finding their way back to each other after their grams passed and there’s no other family in the picture. As that bond strengthened, so did their powers.

“I believe that the themes were a large part of what made Charmed resonate,” Grisanti said.

“The sisterly relationships mixed with the coming of age, the imagination, and the sense of feeling grounded within a concept that could go beyond normal boundaries.”

So basically while the sisters strive for normalcy and deal with such “normal” struggles as being the eldest sister, wanting a life of their own, or being “the screw-up” — ring any bells for anyone? — their general struggle to find balance in their lives is an overarching theme audiences can appreciate.

The show also explored the ideas of personal gain (as in, the sisters couldn’t use their powers for it or bad things would happen), death (a lot), the setting itself, their home Halliwell Manor, is the beating heart of the show and the epicenter of their lives of both the normal and witchy variety. Not always a safe haven, but nevertheless steadfast; letting us know that home will always be there.

The power of a good producer

The other thing you want to always be there for your show is a good producer. For Charmed, it was the late Aaron Spelling.

“Aaron had a significant influence on all of his shows. He was heavily involved in the concept; all aspects of the story, editing, and production. He also went over the wardrobe and was involved with the production design and how it all looked,” Grisanti said.

While having your dream producer attached isn’t always a luxury screenwriters have, it’s good to start keeping track of the shows in your genre and who’s on them behind the scenes. Creating an aesthetic isn’t the writer’s job alone, though they are the ones to initially set the tone. Having a crew on board that understands that vision and cares about it (which doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll always agree) can make a show next-level. And at the very least, memorable.

In retrospect

Constance M. Burge (Ally McBeal, Royal Pains) created Charmed, and while she left after the first few seasons, showrunner Brad Kern stayed on as executive producer and writer until it wrapped after 178 episodes. That’s eight seasons, if you’re counting. Enough to get you through until season three of the CW’s reboot airs!

Charmed forayed into a not oft-explored inspiration for 1998; the world of Wicca, tackling it with wit, style, and most importantly, a fresh angle. Good witches, who knew? The show also matured in its structure, from monster-of-the week à la its predecessor Buffy to season arcs and finishing off with a blend of the two. It prepped us for the realities of adulthood (you can be a witch, but you still need a job to pay the mortgage on your manor) and taught us that you can always rely on your sisters — whether they’re your friend, family, or by blood — because together, we can do anything.