As we enter chapter three of the Cassie and Jake saga, they are still engaged, still exchanging chaste kisses, and still trying to plan their wedding. With Christmas less than a week away, Jake exhibits some uncharacteristic spontaneity, and proposes a Christmas Eve ceremony. Hectic preparations commence.
This entry in the series continues the theme of the appearance in town of a suspicious "stranger", in this case a bank robber whom Jake sent to prison a decade earlier on a fifteen-year sentence. Released for good behavior two days earlier, town folk in general, and Sheriff Jake in particular, wonder why he's returned and what he's up to. Could it be to retrieve the loot from the robbery which was never found? Or does it somehow involve his ex-wife and child, who still live in town?
Mystery, magic, and redemption have been essential elements of the Good Witch series, and this entry continues the theme. Cassandra Nightingale is one of the most intuitive characters ever committed to film, and in this one, her powers are in full force, always reading people perfectly, and always finding subtle ways to steer them in the right direction.
As the standing characters in this series continue to become more fully-developed, one supports the wish for additional entries in the Good Witch series, whether as a weekly TV drama or simply in the form of more full-length movies. This reviewer got his wish for the return of Elizabeth Lennie's Gwen, introduced in the previous movie as a love interest for "Grandpa" George O'Hanrahan (Peter MacNeill). (Old guys need love, too.) Even town busybody Martha Tinsdale (Catherine Disher) is becoming (gasp!) likable.
Co-executive producer and star, Catherine Bell, has said, "This character is closer to me, personally, than any character I've ever played." This, plus the sight of her in one fantastic wedding gown, with striking diamond (?) necklace, makes at least one male viewer wish he were "Jake".
Thus, even if the Good Witch series ends in a trilogy, as many movie series do, The Good Witch's Gift will have it going out on top.
