| “ | My gut brings me to Middleton. That and a job. | ” |
— Joy
| ||
Joy Harper is a recurring character in the Good Witch television series.
Joy arrives in Middleton hoping to be hired by Middleton's Mayor Martha Tinsdale to renovate her new mansion. She stays at Grey House Bed & Breakfast where her motives are questioned as she begins investigating the mysterious ways of the Merriwick family. Joy has an interesting history and connection to Middleton and the people of the town. She soon confirms that she is a long-lost descendant of the Merriwick line.
Biography[]
Joy has an interesting past. Her mother, Julia Harper, was a cousin of Cassie Nightingale. Julia and Cassie drifted apart over the years and they lost contact. When Joy was a child, her family took her to the beach where she made a Tree of Life symbol out of rocks. This was the first time she had "Merriwick intuition" as she felt a strong desire to make the symbol. The next day, her father left Julia and Joy, which devastated the young girl; her father never came back as, at the age of twenty seven, he forgot everything that happened before that day, having apparently drunk a tea prepared by his wife to guarantee he forgot.
At the age of ten, she found a baby squirrel in her front yard, abandoned by its family. She and her mother took the squirrel in and named it Bowtie as it had a grey patch on its chest. Julia even bottle fed the creature. When it came time to release Bowtie, Joy hoped it would stay around in the yard but it didn't. At seventeen, Julia died in a car accident leaving Joy an orphan. The following year, Joy still had a hard time coping with the death of her mother. She sat on her front step when Bowtie arrived on the steps in front of her, and in that moment, Joy knew she would be okay.
Series[]
Season 6[]
Joy Harper arrives in Middleton shrouded in mystery. She stays at Grey House Bed & Breakfast where she seemingly investigates the mysterious ways of the Merriwick family. She also vies for a coveted job position with Middleton Mayor Martha Tinsdale, to remodel her newly purchased Mayoral mansion. She runs into a few hiccups along the way, but ultimately, scores the job. She also encounters the Merriwick-Davenport curse while working in the mayoral mansion, which was the house of the man who wrote the curse. She refuses to let this stop her as she attempts to get everything Martha wants. Meanwhile, she struggles to adapt to small-town life and navigate the townspeople.
Joy remains a loner and her competitive nature often gets her into trouble, especially when she begins using her Merriwick gifts to sway things her way. Upon learning that she is related to Cassie, Abigail, and the rest of the Merriwick's Joy allows her guard to lower a little. She admits to having suspected her familial origin but wanted to know if she could trust the Merriwick's before revealing her identity. Much to her surprise, Cassie and Abigail already knew of her lineage and were just waiting for Joy to tell them herself. Abigail admits that she was beginning to tire of being patient, which is why the women disagreed so much previously.
With her familial lineage confirmed, and her job secure, Joy begins to settle into Middleton. She starts honing her Merriwick gifts, which presents itself in the form of dreams that may come to pass. She struggles with the meaning of her dreams, especially when they may involve Abigail and her complicated relationship with Donovan. She learns how to better interpret her dreams, as the dream she had about Abigial and Donovan really meant that they had to break up to make up. She is then part of the curse as an ally for Abigail. The cousins have grown close throughout Joy's time in Middleton. She also grows closer to Cassie, with each of the women learning how much they have in common. From their magical gifts to the way they hold their coffee mugs, they are able to build a bond that remains unbreakable.
In her personal life, Joy grows closer to Carter, a carpenter that she initially isn't fond of. She had previously beat him in a dart competition using her Merriwick abilities, however, the dart fell out of the board making her lose in the end. Despite their deal for her truck, Carter let her keep it as a sign of good faith. He is later hired onto the Mayoral mansion project, much to her surprise. They keep a bickering and light-hearted relationship that seems to be rooted in friendship. They are both competitive and decide to have a competition to see if they can set each other up with the "perfect" dates. It is through this, that Joy finally realizes that she may have feelings for Carter. However, it is too late as he hit it off with the woman Joy set him up with, Hailey. This set back brings her closer to Cassie, just as an old friend of Joy's arrives in Middleton.
Her friend offers Joy a job opportunity in Vermont, which leaves Joy feeling conflicted over whether or not she should accept. Her job with Martha has come to an end with the mayoral mansion now completely renovated, however, she is still learning about her cousins and family. Before she can make a decision, she receives a mysterious purple bag that brings her to Grey House where she encounters Cassie and Abigail. All three women were given identical purple bags.
Season 7[]
Personality[]
Joy is a very curious, intelligent, independent, and mysterious woman. Her competitive nature often gets her in trouble, as her desires often overpower her true feelings or motivations. Joy is a hard-worker and always sees a project through. She does carry some grief with her from the death of her mother and a lack of familial bond. When Joy finds this in Cassie and Abigail, she allows herself to trust the women and settle into the mystical town of Middleton.
Physical Appearance[]
Joy is a tall and attractive woman. She has straight, shoulder-length dirty blonde hair and brown eyes. She has a classy yet casual sense of style. She has a confident and sassy stance.
Gifts[]
Joy, like many Merriwick women, has magical gifts. Part of her gifts is a strong intuition that she uses to navigate the world easier. She once sensed that Martha Tinsdale wrote the word "décor" wrong. Similarly to Cassie, Joy gives people seemingly vague advice that makes sense later when things unfold the way she predicts. Unlike any of the other Merriwick women, Joy receives dreams of the future and events that may come to pass.
Romantic Relationships[]
Carter[]
Joy's relationship with Carter began tumultuously as he purchased the clock face that she needed for her renovation of Martha's new home. She offered to buy it or trade it, but he refused. She used her powers to ensure he couldn't leave in his truck. He arrived at a restaurant that she was in and she offered to play him for the face. If she wins she gets the face, and if she loses he gets her truck. The game is evenly matched until Joy begins to use her gifts to help her win. Cassie picks up on this and uses her magic to counteract Joy's, teaching her a lesson in doing the right thing. Carter makes her believe he took her truck, but when she goes to the parking lot, it's still there with a note asking if she really thought he would take it. She sees him again at Martha's, as he's been hired as the new carpenter. Their work methods are vastly different which causes them to butt heads often. As they become friends, Joy realizes she might have feelings for Carter, especially when his relationship doesn't work out. However, nothing ever came of their romantic attraction as their competition to set one another up with the "perfect date" resulted in Carter liking his date and even getting a job offer to work in LA on her house. Joy assures him that she can find another carpenter and encourages him to take it despite her burgeoning feelings for him.
Zoey Taylor[]
- Main article: Joy and Zoey
Joy's relationship with Zoey began as friends, as Zoey saved Joy when her arm was stuck in a wall. Her bracelet was snagged on a pipe and Joy refused to break it as it was a gift from her departed mother. Zoey successfully removed her from the wall and they exchanged brief conversation, though Zoey kept things professional. They ran into each other again and their meetings became more recurring, until they formed a friendship. They eventually went on their first date and things went wonderfully, as neither one wanted the date to end. They walked the town together, held hands, got ice cream, and ended the night with a concert. Zoey was reluctant to let herself date again, as her previous girlfriend died while on-duty as a firefighter, leaving her heartbroken. Joy understood as she dealt with loss throughout her life and developed trust issues as a result. She assured Zoey that they didn't have to rush into anything. As their relationship grew, Joy began to worry for Zoey's safety as a firefighter as she began to realize the full extent of Zoey's job and the dangers that came with it. As she gradually accepted the things she couldn't control, she began to show her magical side to Zoey. Their relationship often wasn't easy as they dealt with their pasts while looking to the future, but they ultimately ended up happy together.
Appearances[]
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Season 6 (10/10) |
Season 7 (10/10) |
Notes and Trivia[]
- Joy Harper is the first LGBTQ+ character in the Good Witch franchise. She is also the first LGBTQ+ television character to be featured on Hallmark Channel. Her relationship with Zoey Taylor is the first same-sex relationship on the series.
- Joy doesn't like raspberries, especially in chocolates. Her favorite kind of chocolates are hazelnut cream. Interestingly enough, hazelnut cream is also Abigial's favorite chocolates.
- In The Delivery, her birthday is revealed as as 10-13-90.
- She shares a birth month with Cassie Nightingale and Grace Russell, whose birthdays are October 24th and 15th respectively.
- In The Exchange, Joy reveals she was an accomplished junior gymnast.
- Her favorite film, like Cassie and Abigail, is "The Maltese Falcon". She used to watch it with her mom the day after Thanksgiving.
- She is the second long-lost Merriwick family member to arrive in Middleton, following Abigail Pershing in the television film, "The Good Witch's Family". However, Joy is the first long-lost Merriwick family member in the television series.
- As of the events of The Shell, Joy's father is still alive.
- When her powers go haywire at the end of Season 7, her gift of pre-cognition is enhanced to the point of seeing visions.
