The Secret Circle 1x02: Bound

Original Air Date: 22 September 2011

Storyline: In an effort to distance herself from the Circle and establish a normal teenage life in Chance Harbor, Cassie befriends Sally Matthews, the class president. Concerned their powers are getting out of control, Diana pushes everyone to bind the Circle, but Faye is thrilled with the increase in her powers and refuses to participate, while Melissa flirts with Nick despite Faye's warnings. Meanwhile, Adam fights his growing feelings for Cassie, but circumstances continue to throw them together, forcing Cassie to make a decision.Best Quote:

Cassie: It's like I'm living in a Harry Potter movie.
Adam: He has a wand.

Review: I took a chance with this show and, for the moment, it seems to have payed off. The second episode was definitely better than the last week's pilot. The character and the plot seem to have solidified and it's good that we are given small hints of what's to come but not the whole story. I hope they keep us guessing regarding Dawn and Charles Meade's real intentions. 

From what I gathered after this episode, binding the circle - though it limits the individual powers - might awaken something really dangerous. After the accident that killed some of the members of the six families, the remaining ones were stripped of their powers and the only way they can do magic is by using some crystals, that have an expiration date. Binding the circle might bring those powers back to the remaining members of the last circle. And if we thought Charles Meade was actually the one calling the shots - well, surprise! As any respectable man, he's got a woman making the decisions for him and playing him like a puppet, and that woman is Dawn Chamberlain.
The episode is more about Cassie coming to terms with being a witch and trying to distance herself from the circle, but eventually having to accept that binding it would prevent other people from being hurt by the individual powers they each possess. Everyone seems to come to this decision after Faye nearly killed their class president when she was angry with Cassie.
So far, I like Cassie's character. Britt Robertson makes her believable and she's also sweet and grounded. There is real chemistry between Cassie and Adam and it's not just about blowing out light bulbs. It will be fun to watch the will-they-won't-they, especially with Diana being now the Circle's alpha and having Faye whispering in her ear that she will lose Adam. And since Diana is really quite different from her father, it's hard to root for Cassie and Adam to end up together.
There's something weird about Diana though. It's hard to believe that she just discovered her family's spell book without any help from her father. Maybe Charles Meade and Dawn conspired to let her find the book, knowing that she will accept her legacy of being the leader of the Circle and gather up the others and convince them into binding their powers. Or maybe she's in with her father and Dawn - that would make things really interesting later on.
We still haven't seen much of Nick and Melissa, except from her sneaking out of his bedroom after they hooked up. She's a tool in his and Faye's hands, but she doesn't seem to have much of a personality herself. As for Nick, he comes off as a hound dog but, much like Melissa, is so far a uni-dimensional character.
I still haven't warmed up to Natasha Henstridge as an actress, but I can't wait to see what kind of a villain she will make. So far, things are looking up and we might just have an interesting negative character. I just wish we'd see more of Gale Harold though.
So far, so good. This show has the making of being my other guilty pleasure, alongside it's CW predecessor, The Vampire Diaries, but it still has a long way to go to become at least half as entertaining as TVD is.
The Secret Circle 1x01: PilotBack to Season 1