The Way Home Vs Good Witch
EXCLUSIVE: The Way Home is strangely
familiar to a Hallmark classic Good Witch
February 4 th, 2023
The Hallmark Channel’s new original series The Way Home premiered with mixed reviews from viewers. After seeing how much effort the network put forth to promote this series all over social media and on the network itself, it did generate a hint of curiosity for this viewer who by the way was skeptical at best given the undertones of the supernatural/witch theme. We’ve seen this kind of theme before with The Good Witch Franchise and it was unceremoniously canceled without ANY WARNING. To this day, fans of Good Witch have lobbied against this decision and have launched a nearly two year campaign to at least give Goodies as they are known, a chance for a movie deal that would allow for more feel good viewing in the town of Middleton.
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It seems many loyal “Hallmarkies” decided they would not watch The Way Home after Hallmark disappointed viewers many times having a notable reputation of canceling series fans loved. The latest shows getting a “Pink Slip” under this new Hallmark regimes watch was the popular series Good Witch and Chesapeake Shores, not to mention the ever popular Kitten Bowl and many of the beloved Hallmark Mysteries that made Hallmark the beloved network they were. It should be noted that these series were huge successes under the old management of Bill Abbott and Michelle Vicary.
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The “New Hallmark” has pushed the idea of “inclusion” at the network which in my opinion has lost it’s lackluster and faith in viewers since loosing the true reputation it once had. True Hallmark fans know what they love to watch, know what has worked at the network and aren’t afraid to let Hallmark know their opinions. No one disputes inclusion and trying new concepts for growth within the network, but taking away what worked like Good Witch, well….it has really spoiled the improvements they have tried to implement and left a bad taste in this viewers mouth.
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The truth about Hallmark Channel
It is the opinion of this super fan having helped spearhead the #SAVEGOODWITCH Campaign that Hallmark is very good at making viewers think they value their thoughts, opinions and loyalty when the truth is, they will do anything to string fans along. They will say “Stand By, when in truth, have no intentions of doing anything for the fans or consider the request of their fans. It’s clear Hallmark has their own agenda, have moved on with this new executive team and aren’t looking back. They do NOT value fan input and will NOT listen to the comments posted on social media. If they did, we would see Good Witch, Sign Sealed and Delivered, Chesapeake Shores and a handful of Mystery favorites still on or BACK ON THE AIR in some capacity to satisfy everyone!
The worst part of this new regime is knowing that not only will the Hallmark executives not listen to their fans, they are just as tone deaf when it comes to their on air talented actors who express the desire to work with them to get the shows fans love back into production. Actors and producers have pushed ideas, scripts and do everything to support fans that have bombarded the network with requests for more and they are met with a stone cold wall of inaction.
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The Way Home it´s a bad copy of Good Witch
Having said all this, on to my review of The Way Home. It was exactly what I had thought it might be. The show is a cheap imitation of the number one hit series Good Witch. While the casting of this show was something of a hit with viewers, it does leave me thinking that it’s a shame their talents are underutilized in a show that is not a true “Hallmark Original” in theory, concept and execution.
Promotional photos:
17 February, 2023
One might think this is a harsh, very cruel statement but if you have ever watched the show that Hallmark is trying to tweak and recharge into something they already had (Good Witch) that is still so beloved and wanted back, I think you would agree my assessment was valid.
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After I enlisted a few of my “Hallmark Super Fan” friends on social media to give me their take on The Way Home, they immediately had the same feelings of “Deja Vu” for lack of a better term. Not entirely did The Way Home line up 100% to the Good Witch Series, it did resonate very familiar enough to make the following comparisons from the very first moment heading right into episode 2.
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From the characters, to the names of the characters, th set and places we can see in the show and finally some scenes where you can clearly see the similarities of The Way Home (episode 1) vs Good Witch scenes.
Characters:
Sets:
Scenes Comparison:
CONCLUSION:
After watching a few episodes of The Way Home I feel extremely saddened that Hallmark Channel has insulted the Goodies fan base into thinking that we wouldn’t see the similarities that are so blatantly obvious. This is what the new Hallmark Executive team prides itself on…deceit. Not only have they deceived fans into thinking they care what we think but they have passed this new show off as their original. Try as they might they missed on all facets of this new endeavor. The Way Home in my humble opinion belongs on the Sci-Fi Channel, Netflix or ABC. It’s dark, very soap opera like and not what a typical Hallmark series is. It may be Lisa Hamilton Daly’s past work experience that inspired this show because it almost has the feel of Once Upon A Time, a series that was was originally on ABC then Netflix.
If Hallmark would cancel a feel good series that embodied goodness, kindness and inspiration that made every single episode and season full of happiness for the fans that watched, then there is no reason to watch this channel anymore. They have taken the feel good out of this network and there is no going back. There is one series left from the string of series from the Bill Abbott era and I want to be around ready to see when WCTH fans blow a gasket and turn on Hallmark with every ounce of fury I know they are capable of when their day of reckoning finally comes. It’s just too bad Goodies and Chessies weren’t as lucky to be given the opportunity to thrive because the fans still want them.
I’m not sure how long Lisa Hamilton-Daly’s pet project will be around. I hope the fans they do have won’t get to comfortable or “hooked” to badly because when they do take it away, it will be gone in a black hole. You know Hallmark holds their shows hostage. When they don’t want them anymore, no one else can have them. There’s no jumping to another network or saved by a channel that just might want the show to continue because they know a show still has more stories to tell. It doesn’t matter now many global fans want a show back and spend 24/7 for years trying to get them revived. There is no going back even if the Execs say we aren’t done with our most popular shows. If they won’t even bother to listen to producers or give any scripts the time of day, sorry folks, it’s over. Too bad Good Witch hasn’t had the luck like Manifest or Magnum PI or the countless shows that are back once discarded by their previous network because we know they will thrive elsewhere. What Goodies are left with now is only a memory of a great time gone by and what could have still been if only Hallmark cared.
Enjoy the rest of The Way Home Hallmarkies knowing it’s not an original but based on the concept of another hit that will be the one and only, not a cheap imitation!
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