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Post by partcynic on Nov 10, 2012 7:57:24 GMT -5
Hey everyone, I have finally gotten around to rewatching and reviewing "Angel" after an old computer crash had me give up on the last round. I now come armed with over a season's worth of reviews (also backed up  ), and will get to posting them here. A few things to note: - These reviews won't be as detailed or 'grand' as my "Buffy" ones. It's not a comment on the quality of the show, but I no longer have time to spend hours writing about decade-old television. I've tried to cover all the bases, but am less concerned with nitpicking. That said, if an ep is especially good or especially bad, I might take the opportunity to pen more.  - No ratings on the first go-round. However, I will go back and add them when I come to do my season-wide assessments. - The reviews of the first seven S1 episodes will share commonalities with my old write-ups. They're fresh takes, but my opinions haven't changed much, so expect a degree of overlap. - Comments are welcome. I'm thinking of posting a review every three days, but will hasten or slow that depending on responses. |
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Post by partcynic on Nov 10, 2012 8:00:42 GMT -5
1x01 City Of
This is about as good an opening as "Angel" could have gotten, managing to commence the show in a manner affable to both long-time "Buffy" fans and brand new viewers. Re-introducing two known characters (and an excellent new one) in context of an interesting and occasionally surprising story, this is easily "Angel"'s strongest first episode, and could challenge several "Buffy" intros for the title of 'best opener'.
Likes
- The teaser is great. Angel pretending to be drunk at the bar is humorous, and I like the tonal change when the vamps leave with the girls. The ensuing fight is very cool (wrist-mounted stakes!), and the idea of a post-Buffy-drinking Angel being tempted by human blood is a believable one.
- Doyle is a fantastic new creation, and I'm glad we got him instead of the planned reappearance for Whistler. He's funny and engaging, gives us a hint of a troubled past, and is wonderfully portrayed by Glenn Quinn (RIP).
- A very effective plot. Tina was a likeable and sympathetic victim, and her death came as a genuine shock. The story manages to be well-paced and unpredictable, and it's very satisfying to see Russell come to a nasty end (neat intro for Lindsey, too).
- Skilfully written dialogue and humour throughout. Drama is best when peppered with comedy, and this episode knows just how to combine them. Angel heroically jumping into the wrong car was very funny, as were his meetings with Oliver and Cordy at the party, Cordy realising Russell's a vampire, and Doyle crashing into the "good gate"- heck, almost every one of Doyle's lines was awesome. Now that's good Buffyverse writing!
- Good character development for both Angel and Cordy. Both are living the kind of lives I'd expect them to have six months post-Sunnydale, and Cordy's material gives her a chance to show a little emotion/vulnerability. It also helps their (or rather, Cordy's!) subsequent decision for them to work together make sense.
Dislikes
- The recap of Angel's past ran a little long (and was clearly bolted on for new viewers, as Angel had no reason to hear it). Angel acknowledging this helped alleviate the problem, but we still could have done without it.
- The vampire makeup is completely overdone, The staff found a good look in seasons two and three of "Buffy", so I don't know why the felt the need to play around here.
- How did Angel know where Tina lives? Neither she nor Doyle told him, yet he's able to get there in time to find and glower over her body.
- Russell's reflection is present in the skyscraper windows as he plummets. A simple mistake that should have been caught.
Summary
An incredibly robust, well-written and well-executed introduction to "Angel", that preserves some of "Buffy"'s best elements while establishing it as its own programme. I couldn't have asked for better!
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Post by cyclica on Nov 12, 2012 19:21:52 GMT -5
^ It's cool that you're back on the board again and posting more often. I'm glad you're getting back into angel, though I personally am not really in the mood to watch right now. I've seen every episode of buffy and angel at least 5 times each (well except buffy s7), and I've become a bit burnt out on the shows. I still love them, but for now there's so many shows that I've heard good things about, and I want to give a chance to. I'll look forward to reading your posts and I'll be sure to comment. Even if I haven't seen an episode in a few years, pretty much all of them are burned into my brain so it's no trouble following what you're saying. Maybe once you get to 'she', which is where I left off, I can resume reviewing. this is easily "Angel"'s strongest first episode, and could challenge several "Buffy" intros for the title of 'best opener'. I was about to comment that I found the openings for s2, s3 and s5 more enjoyable to watch... then I discovered I had already said the same thing in our previous discussion. - Doyle is a fantastic new creation, and I'm glad we got him instead of the planned reappearance for Whistler. Agreed. I think having whistler in the show could just about have worked, and having him there might provide the opportunity to fill in some of the plot holes surrounding him from his buffy appearances... though on personality alone I much prefer doyle. - Russell's reflection is present in the skyscraper windows as he plummets. A simple mistake that should have been caught. Those were magic windows, flown in specially from W&H's pylean branch. |
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Post by partcynic on Nov 13, 2012 14:50:25 GMT -5
Hey, cyclica! No problems if you're not in the mood for a rewatch - this thread is mainly me being selfish. I hadn't/haven't watched "Angel" for a few years, so I'm able to watch with relatively fresh eyes. If you feel like resuming later on, I'll be happy to hear your thoughts! |
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Post by partcynic on Nov 13, 2012 14:53:54 GMT -5
1x02 "Lonely Heart"
A respectable second episode, which is fairly uncommon for "Buffy" and "Angel" ("Are You Now Or Have You Ever Been" is the massive exception). "Lonely Heart" lacks the spark of "City Of..." and bears the mark of having been hastily written (following the rejection of original second ep "Corrupt"), but it has a decent story and enjoyably dark tone.
Likes
- The Burrower plot is fine. The 'who's the demon?' mystery is reasonably engaging, and there's some nice misdirection in parts (the shy girl having killed the pushy guy).
- The plot works well with the theme. The 'lonely people want to make connections' conceit got overstated (hello, Marti!), but it meshes nicely with both Angel's character arc and the broader statement of S1.
- This episode doesn't have a large amount of humour, but I like what's there. The confusion over the business cards; Cordy pointing out how vague and useless the visions are; "You look troubled - or is that just your lazy eye?"; the hooker/pimp confusion and Angel/Kate's "Go to Hell / Been there, done that" exchange were all effective.
- Great character interactions with the main trio - they're fun to watch even when they're not doing particularly interesting things. I know that the downfalls of both "Buffy" and "Angel" came from multiple factors, but the shift from deep examination of three or four characters to shallow looks at six or seven might be an underacknowledged component.
- I'm not quite sure how to assess Kate, but she was generally more of a positive than a negative. She showed some vulnerability in her first scene at the bar (I like that there's still mystery as to how much of her talk was spiel to catch a potential killer, and how much was honest), and the reveal that she's a police officer was cool.
Dislikes
- By the looks of it, the demon was swapping bodies every night, so there should have been quite a few more corpses lying around.
- How does Kate know where Angel lives/works, and why did she perform that illegal search? Given Angel's presence at the earlier murder site, assaulting a police officer and fleeing the scene, what judge wouldn't have given her a warrant? And she goes in on her own, with no support or backup?
- Characters shouldn't be able to shrug off major head injuries. I can accept it from Angel, but Kate shouldn't be walking around unfazed shortly after a blow that knocked her unconscious.
- The fate of the demon is telegraphed the instant you see the vagrants by the flaming barrel.
Summary
A good, standard monster-of-the-week episode. Material like this could never be a show highlight, but it's important as character-enhancing, bread-and-butter stuff.
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Post by cyclica on Nov 15, 2012 15:00:55 GMT -5
- Great character interactions with the main trio - they're fun to watch even when they're not doing particularly interesting things. That to me is the sign of a good tv show right there. I know that the downfalls of both "Buffy" and "Angel" came from multiple factors, but the shift from deep examination of three or four characters to shallow looks at six or seven might be an underacknowledged component. ... and adding another dozen or so paper-thin characters at the last minute doesn't help much either. With angel, I never thought the interactions between the mains became especially thin. Sure, there's better interaction in s1 than s5, but the writing for the characters was still above tv average. I wouldn't have thought the writing of the mains in later years would have significantly contributed to the show's cancellation. ...Actually, I'm really not sure why angel was cancelled. Did we ever discuss it? |
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Post by partcynic on Nov 16, 2012 8:09:49 GMT -5
I thought the interaction was excellent in the first two seasons and the first bit of S3, but then rapidly tailed off. In "Angel"'s case, it wasn't so much that the main characters weren't having scenes with each other, but rather that those scenes were purely plot-driven (Connor, Angel/Cordy romance, Fred/Gunn/Wes triangle and 'will they, won't they', etc). But we'll save those discussions for when the S3+ time comes. I don't think we did. I believe the cancellation was a case of the ratings just being okay. They weren't bad, but I don't think the network saw much point in plowing more money into a cult show that had peaked several years before and was unlikely to attract new viewers. Joss was apparently very upset about it. |
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Post by partcynic on Nov 16, 2012 8:17:05 GMT -5
1x03 "In the Dark"
If "Lonely Heart" was consistent all the way through, "In the Dark" is peaks and valleys. Parts of it are excellent, but they're dragged down by ropey plotting and a weak, cop-out ending.
Likes
- Spike overdubbing Angel and Rachel's conversation in the teaser is one of the season's best moments. It's incredibly funny, and sets up his character brilliantly for "Angel"-only viewers.
- Good old, evil Spike: cutting, malicious and violent. He was such a compelling and watchable figure in his first incarnation.
- Neat stuff with Oz. The monosyllabic conversation with Angel is a perfect bit of characterisation for both men, and I would have liked to have seen the Doyle/Oz "My little Bam-Bam" bit play out on screen.
- Solid scenes for Cordelia and Doyle. We get to see how the team's sense of itself as a family is slowly coalescing, and I loved their concern for Angel and willingness to endanger themselves to help him.
- The ending fight is pretty dramatic (as always, props to the stunt team), and I felt for Angel when he took the ring and stepped into the light.
Dislikes
- Spike/Marcus capture Angel by choking him... but Angel doesn't need to breathe.
- Marcus torturing Angel was tremendously dull. After Spike's yapping about Marcus' brilliance, I was hoping for something more original/scary than a few hot pokers. Compare it to the Faith/Wesley scene in "Five By Five", which was just as restricted by TV censorship, but far more intense.
- Spike isn't bothered by Cordy wielding a crossbow at close range, but is intimidated by Oz holding one in an awkward position fifteen feet away?
- Marcus is a child abuser, but would he immediately go after kids upon becoming invincible? It's also stupid that Angel correctly guesses that he'll have gone to the beach - are there no children anywhere else in LA?
- What was with Cordy fretting about getting Angel to a hospital? She knows it won't help him, and could even endanger him (this man has no heartbeat, yet he's alive!)
- The 'vampires and sunlight' rules are being toyed with a little too much. I'm half expecting Angel to go for a midday stroll under the excuse that the shade from the trees is enough.
- The ending. The writers had a way of making Angel unharmable, and had to get rid of it to keep the series interesting. However, they couldn't make it believable. The 'I might forget about those lost in the dark, and daytime people already have help' stuff was ridiculous - keeping the ring wouldn't obligate Angel to ignore anyone, nor necessitate that he wear it at all times. For his (and everyone else's) sake, I hope that no future LA apocalypses occur during the day!
Summary
High points and low points combine to create an average (or maybe slightly above-average) episode. Still, it's kept afloat by Cordelia and Doyle, as well as the examples of Spike at his vindictive best.
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Post by cyclica on Nov 18, 2012 18:18:37 GMT -5
- Marcus torturing Angel was tremendously dull. After Spike's yapping about Marcus' brilliance, I was hoping for something more original/scary than a few hot pokers. I agree it was a little unimaginative, but just knowing there was a lot of time spent torturing off-screen was enough for me. I don't think it would have been appropriate to have taken the torture scene any further than they did. - The 'vampires and sunlight' rules are being toyed with a little too much. I'm half expecting Angel to go for a midday stroll under the excuse that the shade from the trees is enough. Yeah this ep had probably the worst example of that in the buffyverse. Especially since they wanted over-dramatasize the fact that angel can 'finally' go onto a sunny beach, even though he was just there! - The ending. The writers had a way of making Angel unharmable, and had to get rid of it to keep the series interesting. However, they couldn't make it believable. The 'I might forget about those lost in the dark, and daytime people already have help' stuff was ridiculous - keeping the ring wouldn't obligate Angel to ignore anyone, nor necessitate that he wear it at all times. For his (and everyone else's) sake, I hope that no future LA apocalypses occur during the day! I basically agree. Though I do wonder if angel having the ring would have made him a bigger target than if he didn't have it. Every demon in town would be clamoring to try to take out the do-good vampire now that he's a big threat, and it wouldn't be too hard to pin him down and rip the ring off. Maybe angel destroyed it so that wouldn't happen. |
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Post by partcynic on Nov 19, 2012 16:01:40 GMT -5
I don't even know if I'd say there was any torture! Okay, maybe for Angel's shirt.
That would be the only legitimate reason for him destroying it. Shame it wasn't the one the writers gave, though.
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Post by partcynic on Nov 19, 2012 16:04:34 GMT -5
1x04 "I Fall to Pieces"
The first "Angel" ep to make little-to-no impression on me. The main idea is novel and the guest stars do a good job, but the script lacks the wit and polish that elevate "Buffy" and "Angel" above most other television.
Likes
- Angel, Doyle and Cordelia continue to work incredibly well together. Great character (and cast) chemistry, lots of humour - this is clearly the heart of the show.
- The material about money and Angel's reluctance to charge clients was good. It throws up some ethical issues while acknowledging that the crew's noble deeds don't make them immune to bills.
- Melissa was a likeable 'victim' character with a bit of depth, and it was good to see her stand up and take her power back at the end.
- Nice to see Andy Umberger sans D'Hoffryn make-up. Ronald was an agreeably twisted bad guy, and the bit where his disembodied hands snuck under Melissa's blankets was genuinely unsettling.
- Kate's scenes are brief and plot-relevant. She works as an occasional informant, and should have been kept that way.
Dislikes
- The ep wanted to be scary, but it wasn't. Besides one or two creepy moments, it was just there.
- The plot's too hard to believe. Like "Ted", the script largely ignored explaining its implausible plot, only to suddenly spew some psychobabble in the hope of forcing it to make sense.
- Ronald's hands seem to be able to see on their own. Shouldn't he have to detach an eye for that?
- The one book Angel is drawn to in Ronald's office is exactly the one needed to crack the case?
- Angel shouldn't have been affected by the sedative drug, as he's got no heartbeat or breathing to stop. We should have been shown him faking a fit, and getting up cleanly once Ronald had gone.
- The empowerment speeches are too generic. If you've ever watched a drama that prides itself on dealing with 'real issues', you'll have heard those exact same lines delivered in the exact same way.
Summary
An okay standalone. I wouldn't watch it outside of a marathon, but I don't have any real problems with it.
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Post by partcynic on Nov 24, 2012 9:22:13 GMT -5
1x05 "Rm w/a Vu"
The show's second great episode, and as smart and succinct a summation of Cordelia as could have been made. Showing what you can do with 42 intelligently-employed minutes, "Rm w/a Vu" tells us a lot about who Cordelia is and how she sees herself; develops her by means of its ghost plot; and presents us with a changed - but still totally recognisable - character. Let's just say that Jane Espenson wrote this - and it shows.
Likes
- Humour! No Espenson ep would be complete without it, and this one is consistently funny. Most of the gags involving Cordelia (taking personal calls on the office phone; dumping her cockroach-y suitcases on a just-showered Angel; peanut butter in the bed; linoleum glue) were amusing, and many served as commentary on her character. The bits with the apartment search were also entertaining ("My urination just hasn't been public enough lately"), and I liked her "you're not scaring me, I'm from Sunnydale" response to the ghost.
- Lots of character development. This episode takes an unflinching look at Cordelia, making her highly sympathetic and relatable. More importantly, it does these things without making excuses or justifications for her previous bad actions. Instead, it was honest that she is/was a spoiled, superficial snob who treated people badly simply because she could, had her actively acknowledge it, and had her display the necessary regret and humility.
- A fine plot with the ghosts. Nothing amazing, but I liked the special effect with the wall-face, and there was a bit of mystery regarding who did what.
- The power of being a bitch is a great theme. The plot makes Cordelia 'pay' for her past crimes, but her interaction with Maude serves both as a reminder that you shouldn't be a doormat; and a statement that sometimes, it's okay (or even necessary) to be mean.
- Good stuff with Doyle's background. Not as interesting as Cordy's parts, but a decent subplot, and it offers some promise for future revelations.
Dislikes
- Cordy should have told Angel and Doyle about the ghost right from the start. She knows from personal experience that kind of thing isn't to be dismissed.
- Angel and Doyle arriving at the exact moment to save Cordy from being hanged is convenient.
- Another overly coincidental arrival with the demon debt collectors. How did they know Doyle was at Cordy's? I hope they'd been tracking him.
Summary
An excellent, highly replayable character development piece that sets a benchmark for all future eps of its type.
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Post by cyclica on Nov 25, 2012 12:53:19 GMT -5
1x04 "I Fall to Pieces"- The material about money and Angel's reluctance to charge clients was good. It throws up some ethical issues while acknowledging that the crew's noble deeds don't make them immune to bills. I like it when tv shows draw attention to things like that. All too often they exist in a world where everyone has the money/means to do anything they want. Ronald was an agreeably twisted bad guy, and the bit where his disembodied hands snuck under Melissa's blankets was genuinely unsettling. - Ronald's hands seem to be able to see on their own. Shouldn't he have to detach an eye for that? Here's a creepy thought- his hands knew where to go, because it wasn't the first time he'd done this. It was just the first time she'd noticed. - The plot's too hard to believe. Like "Ted", the script largely ignored explaining its implausible plot, only to suddenly spew some psychobabble in the hope of forcing it to make sense. It's pretty crazy to suggest that deattaching body parts is something you can learn. This is one time it would make more sense if they said 'a wizard did it'. I love how they try to make it sound more plausable by saying his parts shouldn't be detached for too long. That's like saying you can survive in the vacuum of space, just don't stay there too long, or it'll be bad for you. - Angel shouldn't have been affected by the sedative drug, as he's got no heartbeat or breathing to stop. We should have been shown him faking a fit, and getting up cleanly once Ronald had gone. I found that pretty annoying too. Was angel really affected by the drug, and if so, why? Maybe there should have been a line explaining that the 'ingredients' of the drug happen to be the same as the ingredients for a sedative spell that works on vampires... or something. 1x05 "Rm w/a Vu"I agree with everything you said about cordy. She's definately the star of this episode, and I love how she's shown to be sympathetic and relatable, even with all of her negative attributes. Too many tv shows have main characters who are all 'perfect', with all conflict coming from a misunderstanding, someone doing something wrong by accident, or just bad writing. I also love how cordy can be 'snarky', without it ever coming across as annoying or unrealistic. She is one of my favourite characters in this or any tv show, and this is one of the best episodes to explore her character. I found this especially intersting. Cordelia started out on btvs as almost an antagonist, and her journey to becoming a hero could easily have been her 'learning the error of her ways'. ...well I suppose that's what happened from about mid-season 3, but they could have made her like that much sooner if they wanted. But instead they have cordy retain her personallity, even having her go so far as to embrace being a 'bitch', all without ever making her unlikable.
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Post by partcynic on Nov 26, 2012 17:37:22 GMT -5
Indeed! I really liked how money was a continuing concern throughout the first and second seasons. It added realism and made the characters more relatable.  I'll paraphrase Cordelia here: "Okay, flesh. Any time you want to stop crawling is fine by me". Yep. I give the writers points for being astute enough to realise that at least some explanation was needed, but they then lose much of my goodwill by making the reason so silly. 'A wizard did it' really would have been better. I guess they were hoping we'd approach it the some way as we do nicotine and alcohol - they shouldn't have any effect on vampires, either. Still, even if that sedative couldn't kill Angel, it should have had him woozy for longer than ten seconds - maybe its lingering effect could have made Angel sloppier when fighting, creating more tension for the final confrontation? *** "Rm w/a Vu" is close to being the perfect Cordelia ep. You're right about the problems with characterisation in other TV shows, though I'd add 'fighting over things obviously forced in to create tension' to that list of problems (hello, "Angel" S3, and "Buffy" S5-7!) But yeah, Cordy is one of the true highlights of "Angel", at least in the first two seasons (I absolutely hated what they did with her after, though). She was smart, funny and caring, yet never afraid to put people in their place, and both the character and Charisma Carpenter deserved far better material than they eventually got. |
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Post by partcynic on Nov 26, 2012 17:40:02 GMT -5
1x06 "Sense and Sensitivity"
This is the first Kate-centric ep, and it's also the point at which the character began to suck. When she was first introduced, she seemed like a standard policewoman archetype, but the terrible decision to introduce her irritating father and their stock dysfunctional relationship renders her a near-unwatchable cliche.
Likes
- Silly as it is, I like it when Angel pulls the tourist trick. David Boreanaz seems to enjoy getting to be more playful and jokey - it must be a welcome change from constant scowling!
- I'll give a minor positive for the introduction of Lee. Not a great character, but I always enjoyed hating him. The sensitivity trainer was also believably smug and new-agey.
- Nice Angel/Cordelia interaction regarding his lack of sensitivity (though he seemed perfectly caring last episode...). Cordy has some amusing dialogue, and is the only consistently good thing in the first thirty minutes.
- Angel (and the others, but mostly Angel) under the spell. Not all of the jokes succeeded, but most were funny, and it was enough to prevent the ep from being a total washout.
Dislikes
- The tone is off. Half of this episode felt like a poor police show, not "Angel". I want to be spending time with well-developed, three-dimensional characters, not interchangeable cops and pantomime gangsters.
- Everything with Kate and (especially) her father. She's tolerable at the beginning, but is painful to watch during the godawful retirement speech. It's the single most embarrassing moment of the season, and I've no clue why it's there. The audience has no reason to care about Kate, her father, or their relationship - what were the folks at Mutant Enemy thinking?
- The sensitivity scheme is too unpredictable and finicky to be a believable Wolfram and Hart plan. They could easily come up with something simpler and more effective.
- There are multiple firearms being waved about by multiple criminals at the end, yet almost no-one gets shot?
Summary
The final-act comedy prevents it from being a genuinely bad episode, but "Sense and Sensitivity" is one of the weakest offerings of "Angel"'s first year. The slipshod combination of crime drama and slapstick grates; there's no real character insight or development; and the Lockleys are S1's only real misfire (and the biggest one in the show prior to Connor).
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), and will get to posting them here.
I'll paraphrase Cordelia here: "Okay, flesh. Any time you want to stop crawling is fine by me".