Villainous botanist Daphne Randall
Daphne Randall (Carolyne Maraghi) is the main villainess from "A Budding Romance" and "Without Magic for a Spell," the first two episodes of Good Witch's third season (airdates April 30 and May 7, 2017).
Introduction[]
Daphne Randall debuted in the season opener, "A Budding Romance"; introducing herself to Grey House proprietress Cassie Nightingale. She revealed her reasons for visiting Middleton; she was sent to the town by the university to study the Middleton Merriwick--a rare flower that was set to bloom, with the name Merriwick taken from Cassie's ancestors. Daphne sees the flower for the first time when Middleton mayor Martha Tinsdale showed it to her at the park, with Cassie also present.
Heel Turn[]
Daphne cutting a stalk from the Middleton Merriwick
Daphne was immensely awestruck by the flower, adding that it could be the only Merriwick in existence as she continued to study it during the episode's progression. However, late one evening, Daphne turned heel by returning to the park and cutting a stalk from the flower, as along with her curiosity regarding the flower, she was also an ambitious villainess planning to create hybrids of the Merriwick for her own personal gain.
As a result of Daphne's heel turn, not only was the Merriwick in danger of dying, but Cassie (who stated that she felt a connection to the flower) lost her special abilities--with the same thing happening to Cassie's daughter, Grace Russell, and Cassie's cousin, Abigail Pershing. Derek Sanders, the chief of police in Middleton, inspected the flower and realized that the stalk was cut and not broken as originally thought; all the while, the evil Daphne continued to mask her heel persona and role as the saboteur in the following episode, "Without Magic for a Spell," doing so while confirming the Merriwick's current state.
Reveal[]
Daphne's reveal in "Without Magic for a Spell"
The episode's climax saw the Merriwick successfully bloom, as well as Daphne at the scene taking notes on the flower. Cassie, having regained her abilities and sensed the blooming, arrived at the park with Grace and Abigail, who spoke suspiciously regarding Daphne's knowledge of botany and making hybrids of the flower, while Grace had photos of footprints from the scene of the sabotage. After Cassie pointed out Daphne's shears matching the cut on the stalk, Daphne denied cutting the flower and claimed that the shears were broken long before the events, only for Derek to arrive and show Daphne a spring from her shears, not only cementing Daphne's reveal as a villainess, but also revealing that she returned to the park to find the broken spring after cutting the stalk.
Now caught, Daphne confessed, adding that she wanted to see if she could create hybrids of the Merriwick, with Abigail stating that hybrids could be worth a fortune. The villainess responded by stating that money wasn't her goal, only prestige and attention, after which Cassie stated that Daphne can one day be known publicly for the good person she knows she is. Afterwards, Derek took Daphne into custody.
Trivia[]
- Carolyne Maraghi later appeared as the evil Stephanie Dodger in 2019's The Cheerleader Escort.