by Elizabeth A. Marion

Created on: June 06, 2010

Charlie's Angels is a 1970s television classic created by Aaron Spelling. The show features three lovely female private detectives who used to be police officers. They work for the Townsend Detective Agency and are employed by a man named Charles Townsend, whom they have never met and never see. While the audience gets occasional glimpses of him, usually with a female companion, they never see his face. They have another associate named John Bosley who usually does more administrative work, but also helps the angels by gathering information for them and occasionally going undercover.

Every season has three angels, though the characters and the actors who played them varied throughout the five seasons. Jaclyn Smith, who played Kelly Garrett, was the only angel who stayed for all five seasons. The other angels were Jill Munroe (Farrah Fawcett), Sabrina Duncan (Kate Jackson), Kris Munroe (Cheryl Ladd), Tiffany Welles (Shelley Hack), and Julie Rogers (Tonya Roberts). Although Farrah Fawcett breached her contract and only stayed for the first season she ironically became the breakout star of the show, soon becoming an icon and very well known for her large feathered hairstyle showcased on Charlie's Angels.

Each episode features a different case that the angels have to solve. While cases can be interesting and sometimes do keep the audience guessing, the sex image of the angels tends to be the main focus of the show. The angels are often able to somehow manage a date with anyone they think is a suspect or has any useful information. Seduction is their most useful interrogation tool. They also manage to get some glamorous undercover roles as models, actresses, cheerleaders, and beauty contestants, and are regularly shown in bathing suits, revealing dresses, and towels. Even though this focus on their beauty and sex appeal is a large part of the show, there is still a plot and a story to each episode. The angels also have excellent skills in self defense and are able to play various undercover roles very well. This is what gives the show appeal to both genders. The obvious appeal to men is the sex image of the angels, but woman can enjoy the show as well as it portrays what so many women want to be-beautiful, smart, and able to attract any man that they want.

While Charlie's Angels can sometimes be a little corny, leaving the audience wondering if the bad guys could really be so stupid as to fall for the angels tricks, it is still a very engaging story with interesting story lines. I rate this show four out of five stars. It's a very interesting show that's fun to watch, but it loses a star for overusing some of the same old tricks and setups.

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