Developed in response to the WB's request for a new character, Christy was originally planned to expand the show in a new direction for a possible ninth season or spin-off.

The exact nature of Christy's morality and her status as the season's antagonist have been the subject of debate among television critics and the series' fans.

The WB reached this decision after the show's three lead actors Alyssa Milano, Holly Marie Combs, and Rose McGowan choose to not renew their contracts for future seasons.

"[2] Even though Kern intended for the character's morality to be left ambiguous and to the viewer's interpretation, a majority of television commentators characterized Christy as an antagonist.

Brittany Spanos of Vulture.com determined that Christy was an evil witch due to her betrayal of Billie and the Charmed Ones,[7] and SpoilerTV's Gavin Hetherington identified her as the season's big bad.

[9] Ruditis followed this up in a later interview by calling Christy a pawn under the control of the Triad rather than a proper villain; he found that the series lacked a strong, female antagonist.

[11] As a witch, Christy possesses the basic ability to cast spells, perform rituals, brew potions,[12] scry for lost people or objects through the use of a crystal pendant,[13] and communicate with the dead.

[15][16] Carl and Helen Jenkins (David Starzyk and Barbara Niven) said Christy heard voices prior to her kidnapping, implying that this power was already active.

[18] As a child, Christy was kidnapped by a demon called Reinhardt (Brian Oerly) as part of a plan by the demonic council known as the Triad (Steven J. Oliver, Søren Oliver, and Leland Crooke) to destroy the Charmed Ones: Piper Halliwell (Holly Marie Combs), Phoebe Halliwell (Alyssa Milano), and Paige Matthews (Rose McGowan).

[11] During the fifteen years of her kidnapping, Christy is taught to believe that it is her destiny to unite with her sister Billie Jenkins (Kaley Cuoco) and stop the Charmed Ones since they have become corrupted by their selfish desires.

[15][22] The Triad arranges for Christy's parents to be killed by a pair of Noxon demons (John Rosenfeld and David S. Lee), believing prolonged contact with them could sway her morality to the side of good.

[17] Billie becomes angry by the Halliwell sisters when they decide to interrogate the demons to gather more information about the Ultimate Power rather than killing them to avenge her parents' deaths.

Billie agrees with Christy's plans to kill the Halliwells after exploring the sisters' dreams and believing their "inner-truths" were driven by selfish desires.

Christy and Dumain steal the cupid Coop's (Victor Webster) ring to travel back in time to warn the Triad about the outcome of the ultimate battle.

She explains that her bond to the Charmed Ones prophecy, extending even after her death, restricted her sisters from reaching their true powers and made them vulnerability to the Triad's plot with Billie and Christy.

[8] The story arc was criticized by Digital Spy's Hugh Armitage, who felt it was weakened by Patterson's "habit of pulling 'evil' faces when no one could see her like a pantomime villain".