History WMG / Bewitched

[[WMG:Magic is symbolic of [[ADateWithRosiePalms masturbation]].]]

As Wiki/TheOtherWiki indicates, Capgras delusion is a mental illness that makes people believe that their friends and loved ones are being replaced by lookalikes. Samantha Stephens, a woman with an already fragile mental state, ends up suffering a severe break from reality when she marries a man that her parents don't approve of (Darrin). As a result, she starts claiming she is a witch, as is everyone in her family. She's put into a gated community of non-dangerous psychotics, which is run by a man named Doctor Bombay, for her own safety; Gladys, her next door neighbor, has acute paranoia. The crazy incidents of the show are actually various doctors trying different modes of therapy and role-play to try to heal Samantha's broken mind; that's why Darrin constantly pushes Sam not to use her "witchcraft." As time passes, her Capgras delusion begins to manifest in small ways--her husband's boss's wife is the first person to be "replaced," followed by her father-in-law. Things start looking up when she has a baby...but then the child shows signs of suffering from mental illness. This wreaks havoc on Samantha's mental state, which manifests as Gladys being replaced in her mind as well. When Samantha becomes pregnant again, her fear of this baby turning out "wrong" drives her totally over the edge, and her own husband becomes a total stranger to her. This is why so many of the later episodes seem similar to early ones--the psychiatrists urged Darrin to try to recreate scenarios in which Samantha was more stable. The one person in Samantha's life who constantly supports her is Endora--she visits almost every day and encourages her to do whatever is necessary (including engaging in her witchcraft delusions) to avoid pain--which is why she maintains her identity through the whole run of the show.

This would explain how Clara (a blood relative) could end up with up Endora's powers and also explains Endora's claim that she was "an only child until Arthur came along". Most likely, their father left his first wife (Clara's mother) and had a second family with his new one (Endora and Arthur's mother). It also underscores the seriousness of Endora teaming up with her half-sisters to hold Clara and her fail powers to account: it's a family emergency that requires all hands on deck. It may also explain why there are so many "cousins".

This would explain how Clara (a blood relative) could end up with up Endora's powers and also explains Endora's claim that she was "an only child until Arthur came along. Most likely, their father left his first wife (Clara's mother) and had a second family with his new one (Endora and Arthur's mother). It also underscores the seriousness of Endora teaming up with her half-sisters to hold Clara and her fail powers to account: it's a family emergency that requires all hands on deck. It may also explain why there are so many "cousins".

[[WMG: Darren is a JustForFun/TimeLord]]

In late 1925, Uncle Arthur, as one of his many pranks, decided to create a fetal, powerless doppelganger of himself and place it into the womb of a mortal woman.
Superficially, this doppelganger, named Harold, was a perfect physical copy of Arthur, but their personalities were deeply contrasted. Unlike the playful, adventurous Arthur, Harold was timid and would likely have a heart attack if exposed to Arthur's pranks.
However, both could be described as flighty, although Harold's flightiness was much less deliberate and frequently resulted in worse consequences than Arthur's.
In 1964, while briefly working as an instructor at his brother-in-law's driving school, Harold was chosen to teach Arthur's niece and as a result of his interactions with her and her mother, grew to become more confident and somewhat less flighty.
With this, Arthur grew bored of Harold, and he destroyed him before taking a more active role in the lives of his niece and her husband.

[[WMG:Samantha is actually a [[Series/SabrinaTheTeenageWitch Spellman:]]]]

Her father, Maurice, is the brother of Aunt Irma and the father of Sabrina's grandfather (who we never meet), making him actually Maurice Spellman which in turn, makes Sam the first cousins of Hilda, Zelda, Edward, Vesta, and Sophia.