Robert "Bob" Cowan[1] is the head of the South Bay Social Services in San Francisco. He was the boss of Paige Matthews when she was employed there.
History[]
As Paige's Boss[]
On the day of Prue Halliwell's funeral, Mr. Cowan asked Paige Matthews to find a study. However, she was distracted when she saw the announcement in the paper and ran out.[2] The following day, Mr. Cowan had an appointment with Jake Grisanti, who was suspected of abusing his son. Paige was convinced that he was guilty, though Cowan told her it was not her business as an assistant. Considering there was no proof, Cowan had no choice but to let him go. Under manipulation of the Source of All Evil, Paige later attempted to kill Jake. She was stopped by her sisters and Jake then told his wife that he was done covering for her.[3]
Mr. Cowan meeting Piper.
Distracted by her newly revealed magic, Paige fell behind at work and later started using spells at work. When Piper visited, Mr. Cowan commented Paige's pile of work still looked the same size, though Piper took the blame for distracting her. When Cowan asked who she was, Piper introduced herself as Paige's sister.[4]
Paige was supposed to go on a date with Mr. Cowan's son, Mason, though she and Phoebe accidentally switched bodies and Phoebe went on the date instead.[5]
When a prince suddenly appeared at the Social Services building, Paige lied to Cowan and told him they were selling tickets to a renaissance fair. Cowan later ran into the Evil Enchantress and mistook her for Paige, thinking she was also in the fair.[6]
Mr. Cowan with Tyler.
Mr. Cowan questioned Tyler Michaels after he was found sleeping in an alley. When Cowan asked why he ran away, Tyler became angry and set a trash can on fire. In the chaos, Tyler fled and was taken home by Paige. His foster parents later showed up and Cowan informed them that Tyler had ran away during the fire.[7]
After the Carolyn Seldon case, Mr. Cowan offered Paige a promotion to social worker. However, as Paige had used magic in the case, she felt it was personal gain and ended up turning down the promotion.[8]
Paige's Promotion[]
- Paige: "That's what assistants do, they run errands. I'll tell you a little secret. They don't like it."
- Mr. Cowan: "Well, your behaviour's got to change."
- Paige: "Maybe it'll change if you promote me to social worker."
- Mr. Cowan: "I already did. You start tomorrow."
- — Mr. Cowan and Paige discussing her promotion.[src]
In 2002, Mr. Cowan promoted Paige to social worker.[9] Paige came in the following day to save an adaption from falling through. When Mr. Cowan brought her the needed documents, Cole Turner showed up and offered his help, at which point Cowan remarked that he thought they had fired him. Cole informed him he was now working for a powerful law firm and Cowan told Paige that a good social worker knows when to use outside sources.
Paige later decided to quit to focus on the magical aspect of her life. As she was clearing out her desk, Mr. Cowan asked her not to quit, as she had a gift in helping people. She replied that she would continue to do so even without her job and gave him a heartfelt hug before leaving.[10]
Henry Jr.'s Adoption[]
Bob Cowan in the comics
Paige and Henry asked Mr. Cowan for help concerning the adoption of their son Henry Jr., whose mother was killed by the Darklighter Rennek. Mr. Cowan discovered that little Henry was in fact the son of Christopher Mercer, a member of a powerful criminal family. He then regrettably informed them that they were required to inform him of his son's existence.[1]
Notes and Trivia[]
- Bob Cowan was featured in the novels Charmed Again, Mirror Image and Mist and Stone.
Appearances[]
Bob Cowan appeared in a total of 8 episodes and 1 comic issue throughout the course of the series.
| Charmed, Season 4 | |||||
| #01 | "Charmed Again, Part 1" | #09 | "Muse to My Ears" | #17 | "Saving Private Leo" |
| #02 | "Charmed Again, Part 2" | #10 | "A Paige from the Past" | #18 | "Bite Me" |
| #03 | "Hell Hath No Fury" | #11 | "Trial by Magic" | #19 | "We're Off to See the Wizard" |
| #04 | "Enter the Demon" | #12 | "Lost and Bound" | #20 | "Long Live the Queen" |
| #05 | "Size Matters" | #13 | "Charmed and Dangerous" | #21 | "Womb Raider" |
| #06 | "A Knight to Remember" | #14 | "The Three Faces of Phoebe" | #22 | "Witch Way Now?" |
| #07 | "Brain Drain" | #15 | "Marry-Go-Round" | ||
| #08 | "Black as Cole" | #16 | "The Fifth Halliwheel" | ||
| Charmed, Season 5 | |||||
| #01 | "A Witch's Tail, Part 1" | #09 | "Sam, I Am" | #17 | "Lucky Charmed" |
| #02 | "A Witch's Tail, Part 2" | #10 | "Y Tu Mummy Tambien" | #18 | "Cat House" |
| #03 | "Happily Ever After" | #11 | "The Importance of Being Phoebe" | #19 | "Nymphs Just Wanna Have Fun" |
| #04 | "Siren Song" | #12 | "Centennial Charmed" | #20 | "Sense and Sense Ability" |
| #05 | "Witches in Tights" | #13 | "House Call" | #21 | "Necromancing the Stone" |
| #06 | "The Eyes Have It" | #14 | "Sand Francisco Dreamin'" | #22 | "Oh My Goddess! Part 1" |
| #07 | "Sympathy for the Demon" | #15 | "The Day the Magic Died" | #23 | "Oh My Goddess! Part 2" |
| #08 | "A Witch in Time" | #16 | "Baby's First Demon" | ||
| Charmed, Season 9 | |||||
| #01 | "Charmed Lives" | #09 | "The All or Nothing" | #17 | "Family Shatters" |
| #02 | "No Rest for the Wicca" | #10 | "Three Little Wiccans" | #18 | "Four's Company" |
| #03 | "Innocents Lost" | #11 | "Last Witch Effort" | #19 | "Crossed, Triple-Crossed" |
| #04 | "Mortal Enemies" | #12 | "The Charmed Offensive" | #20 | "The Old Witcheroo" |
| #05 | "Unnatural Resources" | #13 | "Piper's Place" | #21 | "Reversal of Misfortune" |
| #06 | "Morality Bites Back" | #14 | "Cupid's Harrow" | #22 | "Prue Ya Gonna Call?" |
| #07 | "The Heir Up There" | #15 | "Where There's Smoke There's a Firestarter" | #23 | "The Darklight Zone" |
| #08 | "Oh, Henry" | #16 | "The Heavens Can Wait" | #24 | "The Power of 300" |
| #00 | "To the Warren Born" | ||||