|
|
Post by cyclica on Dec 28, 2012 11:07:58 GMT -5
It's funny to think that Jeremy Renner is now a successful Hollywood star, while so many of the main "Buffy" and "Angel" casts have stiffed elsewhere. Buffy and angel seem to be full of 'before they were famous' stars, moreso than most tv shows, even long-runners. - Vampires having connections with those they've sired is a fascinating concept, but we really should have heard about it before (from "Buffy" S1, with the Master, Darla and Angel all in close proximity). It otherwise feels like something made up to facilitate the plot (which it is!) I never really liked the idea of vampires having a connection with someone they sired. It would mean that every vamp is 'bonded' to both the vamp above them and all of the vampires they sired. Angel should logically have a 'special connection' to dozens, maybe hundreds of vamps throughout the world. ... Which isn't contradicted by the show I suppose, but I just don't like the idea. Also, Kate is able to make all the connections with Angelus remarkably quickly. Remember when even Giles had to dig deep to learn about him? Who's writing these detailed biographies for the general populace? I hadn't thought of that. Given how famous angel supposedly is though, I'd say the fault lies with giles for having so much trouble researching such a well-known vamp. |
|
|
|
Post by partcynic on Dec 28, 2012 17:04:04 GMT -5
^ I have no additional comments to make, so I'm just going to jump to the next review.  *** 1x12 "Expecting"With three strong acts and one weak one, "Expecting" is an emotional and funny episode whose main strength lies in the superb interactions between the Angel crew. Watching their close bonds and caring makes for powerful television, but also makes me wonder Mutant Enemy chose to destroy it in favour of having the characters endlessly bicker about nonsense like Connor. Likes- Great comedy at the start with Angel and Wesley. Wes is bumbling and occasionally silly, but still has some charm to him (compare and contrast with the idiocy in the next ep). And Angel's metrosexuality (is that still a term?) makes the jokes about his orientation work well. - Charisma Carpenter can't hit the emotional heights of SMG, but she's improved as an actress over the years. Cordy is funny, charming (and sexy!) in her early material, sympathetic and emotionally believable once she's been impregnated, and touching in her closing chat with Angel and Wes. She's come a long way since "Buffy". - As I already mentioned, the interactions between Angel, Cordy and Wes are excellent. They feel like a real, loving family, and that makes me care about what happens to them. As soon as Angel and Wesley find out what's happened, you just know that the perpetrators are going to be in big trouble. - Phantom Dennis! Loved his jealousy during Cordy's date, and then his concern the morning after. - There's a good fight in the gun club, and some nice dialogue ("I'm gonna kick your ass. Featured word: ass"). Dislikes- The impregnation plot is a bit nasty, and reeks of being punishment for sex. And after subjecting Cordy to this once, it would have been good to avoid doing it again ("Epiphany" and S4, though I know Charisma was actually pregnant in the latter). - Cordy's all over the place in act three. The plot's explanation that she's being 'possessed' by the children is fine, but wouldn't it make more sense for her to be controlled right away, rather than gradually? It eventually became hard to tell which of her bits were supposed to be dramatic, and which comedic - so they ended up being neither. - The makeup/costuming on the Haxall demon was pretty bad. SummaryAn entertaining and surprisingly emotional ep that's gone up in my estimations. It's not a classic, but has everything I want in a standalone. |
|
|
|
Post by cyclica on Jan 5, 2013 17:36:47 GMT -5
Again I find myself agreeing with pretty much everything you said. - Phantom Dennis! Loved his jealousy during Cordy's date, and then his concern the morning after. I love 'seeing' phantom dennis. I like how they used him just the right amount on the show. If they had him appear all the time, the joke would get old, and if he appeared too infrequently, it would have been jarring whenever he did suddenly appear. But fortunately they found the right balance. - There's a good fight in the gun club Agreed. I always find it more satisfying for angel to beat up villanous humans than vamps, who can't help their nature and can be reduced to dust at any moment. - The makeup/costuming on the Haxall demon was pretty bad. I thought it was an ok costume for the most part, but the 'lip synching' ruined it for me. |
|
|
|
Post by partcynic on Jan 6, 2013 8:29:04 GMT -5
Excellent! Yes! I actually missed him once Cordy's apartment was ditched and the show became Hyperion/Wolfram and Hart-centric. You're absolutely right. The poor match between the dialogue and the lip movements is what kills its believability. |
|
|
|
Post by partcynic on Jan 6, 2013 8:31:58 GMT -5
1x13 "She"I don't dislike this episode as much as some people do (  ), but there's also no denying that it's one of the poorer offerings from S1. It also initiates a brief quality slump that the show won't correct until "The Ring". Likes- The theme - about the relationship between pleasure, passion and personal power - is excellent and worked extremely well with the plot. The references to female genital mutilation (removing the 'Ko') were overdone, but as with "Hero", I feel that a bit of overdoing it is okay when the topic is an important one - and not much discussion of FGM was occuring in mainstream media when this was aired. - The Vigories were a passable demon species, and their introduction fits "Angel"'s concept of some demons being akin to additional races, and not just mindless monsters. - Everything about the party (and the discussion the following morning) was great. Wesley dancing, Angel dancing, the chat with Phantom Dennis, Cordy calling Angel a black hole of despair... It was like the first five minutes got assigned 90% of the jokes. - Some of the later comedy is decent (the chat about the cellphone; Angel pretending to be a tour guide). This ep is actually funnier than I remember it being. Dislikes- Jheira needed to be completely recast. Bai Ling was hired for her looks and nothing else - her deliveries were consistently stilted and flat, and I felt none of the sexual tension that was supposed to exist between Jheira and Angel. - The plot feels unfinished. At some point, Jheira needed to realise that the injustice done to Oden Tal's women did not entitle them to kill/endanger Earth's men. Instead, her position as the designated victim allowed her to get away with very poor behaviour. I guess this is a mixed factor - the story was clearly left incomplete to permit her return, but I would have hated being subjected to Bai's acting again. - Wesley's slapstick needs to be toned down. As I said, I loved the party, but his stuff after that sucked. It was like they were really overcompensating for the super-serious plot, and decided that denying him any dignity would be the best way to go about it. - The dimensional portal stuff is cheesy, but it fits with what we'll get with Lorne/Pylea later on. SummaryAn odd ep with half good and half terrible parts. As I said, I don't hate it, but we have to go to S3 to start finding shows noticeably worse than this.
|
|
|
|
Post by partcynic on Jan 19, 2013 14:45:28 GMT -5
1x14 "I've Got You Under My Skin"
An okay episode that continues the S1 microslump. Like "I Fall to Pieces", it feels like a passable offering penned by someone who hadn't really perfected Buffyverse writing. The core elements are there, but they don't gel well enough to truly impress.
Likes
- The misdirection at the start is excellent. On first viewing, it was fun to try and figure out who the demon was, and the reveal that it's the son is a good one.
- The family members were nicely characterised, and felt real. It's also fun to have Angel out of his element (especially when he interacts with the kids).
- Cordelia is in fine form. She's the only character written with a bit of wit, and added much-needed laughs (or in my case, smiles).
- The twist ending is by far the best part. The reveal that Ryan's evil deeds had nothing to with the demon saved the whole episode from dismissable mediocrity.
Dislikes
- With the exception of the ending, the plot is a generic possession story executed in a very predictable way. I just wasn't interested in the majority of it.
- The pacing is off. The teaser and first act move quickly, but everything afterwards drags.
- The ep hints at character development (Angel's grief/regret about Doyle; the first mention of Wesley's strained relationship with his father), but doesn't go anywhere. The demon makes a couple of nasty comments to each man, but that's it. There didn't seem to be any real conflict or insight, and though it's good that Wesley is showing layers, I wish it wasn't via the show's omnipresent 'parental issues'.
- Wesley gets a cross impaled deep in his neck, but just shrugs it off?
- The mother got a bit annoying. I understand that she's worried, but saying her demon-child just needed a hug and his toys was silly.
Summary
Reasonable filler with a fantastic ending. It needed more humour and development to be great, though.
|
|
|
|
Post by cyclica on Jan 22, 2013 16:40:44 GMT -5
Given that I haven't made reviews for the episodes from this point on, I would like to make my thoughts on the episode more thorough in the comments that I have been doing up to this point. It's been a while though since I watched 'she', so please bear that in mind if I've misremembered something. I don't dislike this episode as much as some people do ( ) Hah! and not much discussion of FGM was occuring in mainstream media when this was aired. Is there much discussion in tv shows now? I don't watch many newer tv shows. - Everything about the party (and the discussion the following morning) was great. Wesley dancing, Angel dancing, the chat with Phantom Dennis, Cordy calling Angel a black hole of despair... It was like the first five minutes got assigned 90% of the jokes. - Some of the later comedy is decent (the chat about the cellphone; Angel pretending to be a tour guide). This ep is actually funnier than I remember it being. Ok I'll give 'she' that much, there were some funny moments. But that's pretty standard for the show, and I not awarding any extra points for it. - The Vigories were a passable demon species, and their introduction fits "Angel" 's concept of some demons being akin to additional races, and not just mindless monsters. ... And that is one of my big problems with this episode. Demons being treated as human races *doesn't* fit. Maybe it fits on a show like star trek voyager (and maybe whoever wrote the script should have reworked it and sent it to those guys), but not for angel. I'm sure I've mentioned this before, but I hate the idea of demons representing human races. I understand the story potential of using non-human people to represent humans in order to tell a story. But this isn't star trek. And these aren't aliens, or robots, or elves, or whatever. They're demons. They represent *evil*. After watching 3 or so years of buffy, we had a show where demons are treated as just that - evil. Buffy kills them without a second thought, and it's ok because they *don't* represent humans in any way. To suddenly say that some demons 'are people too', would mean you would have to call into question the morality of every episode of btvs where she kills a demon on sight, since she could be killing 'innocent' demons. I'm not saying all demons should be mindless monsters. I have no problem with them having nuances or differences between them. But it becomes a problem for me when the demons are portrayed as sympathetic. It's an awkward shock to suddenly be asked to sympathise with demons after having them be nothing more than villains for so long. ... I will admit though, over time and after watching the show head more in this direction, 'demons-as-humans' has become less of an issue for me. I suppose whenever I think of this ep, I get the same gut reaction of dislike that I had when I first watched it, when I was 'thrown in the deep end' of having to suddenly see demons as sympathetic. It didn't help though that they are the focus of the story (as opposed to, say, the good demon from judgement who appeared briefly). Perhaps I've been unfair to the episode. But then again... At some point, Jheira needed to realise that the injustice done to Oden Tal's women did not entitle them to kill/endanger Earth's men. Instead, her position as the designated victim allowed her to get away with very poor behaviour. Agreed. We are asked to sympathise with a demons.. who is shown to be a killer, who has no problem killing humans! I'd like to see jheira as being a nobel person, trying to do something right, but that doesn't work for me when she's also killing people at the same time. And it doesn't help that the other women are kept in the background, with no lines or personallity. Are they all victims, who deserve the same rights and treament as humans do, or are they murderous demons who think nothing of killing humans (like jheira, and all other demons in the buffyverse up til this point, who are usually killed on sight)? I wish the episode would have clarified that. To me, this episode is like if angel was trying to save an unrepentant murderer, from a group of other murderers, in order to save some people who might themselves be unrepentant murderers. Factor in the lightswitch that demons can be sympathetic now (even killers!), and it's too much for me. ... well anyway, I thought hard about how to articulate my thoughts on this episode, though I still not sure if I've made myself completely clear. If you wanna discuss the episode further, I'd be happy to. |
|
|
|
Post by partcynic on Jan 23, 2013 16:29:40 GMT -5
Great! I look forward to engaging in some more detailed discussions about these eps with you. It's still underacknowledged and infrequently discussed, but it seems to be a topic more often now than it was in the late Nineties. To me, that idea fits brilliantly with the overarching themes of both shows. "Buffy" in particular is about growing up, and part of that is understanding that dogma you unquestioningly adhered to in your childhood/adolescence may not actually be correct or reflect reality. Buffy (and the audience) got the idea that all demons were evil from Giles, who in turn got it from the Watcher's Council - but we know that the Council is an amoral and corrupt organisation that acts in its own interests. Far before this ep, we were getting hints that this intrepretation was not necessarily correct, and the news that the Slayer's power is demonic would have Buffy seriously questioning herself. Revealing that not all demons are irrevocably evil provides the programme with more depth, and wouldn't necessarily harm any prior eps, as the demons Buffy has killed have almost always been malevolent - having Spike become a 'good soulless vampire' did far more to damage the show's morality (as she kills vamps on sight far more often). I can't say the 'sympathetic demon' thing has ever been an issue for me - and wouldn't it be "Hero" that bothered you, seeing as it's the first ep to really make this point? Personally, I'd say that Lorne alone is worth the change in perspective. In her defence, Jheira is amoral, but she's not a murderer. The other woman are 'adolescents' of her people who are maturing as females, but can't control their powers yet. Jheira was having the girls stored alone in ice to soothe them from the heat generated by their maturation, and to stop other people from disturbing them. Unfortunately, it turned out that human men were sexually drawn to the resting girls, and they got unintentionally zapped when they popped the cases open. I don't think Jheira or any of the girls would have killed deliberately - in this case, it was a horrible accident, but one that Jheira was prepared to 'accept' if it meant being able to save more of her people. I'd say the problem lies with the fact that Jheira didn't apologise or express any remorse over this - and not that the characters are portrayed as killers, because they aren't. |
|
|
|
Post by cyclica on Jan 31, 2013 18:41:50 GMT -5
If it's ok I'd like to address your 'she' comments at some point later (soon! when I can) and skip to the next ep's comments. Though I don't have much to say as I largely agree with what you have said. 1x14 "I've Got You Under My Skin" Basically this was a 'meh' episode for me, a lame version of the exorcist, not too bad or even especially boring, but it's still certainly one I'd only watch in marathons. - The twist ending is by far the best part. The reveal that Ryan's evil deeds had nothing to with the demon saved the whole episode from dismissable mediocrity. - With the exception of the ending, the plot is a generic possession story executed in a very predictable way. I just wasn't interested in the majority of it. The ending twist did shake up the episode a little, but I wasn't really happy with it. It was never explained how the boy could simply *be* evil, or why the demon would be afraid of him. Or even why the demon would not fear death, as angel goes to kill him at the end. And it really looses a lot of it's menace when it appears as a generic demon in a cloak. I suppose it was enough to just have a variation on an otherwise ripped-off story. - The ep hints at character development (Angel's grief/regret about Doyle; the first mention of Wesley's strained relationship with his father), but doesn't go anywhere. The demon makes a couple of nasty comments to each man, but that's it. There didn't seem to be any real conflict or insight, Agreed, they could have taken this further. And that's basically my problem with this ep, they could have done so much more with it, rather than just have a twist ending. What could have saved it for me, would have been to tie it in more with the main characters, to have their flaws exposed and take the opportunity to explore them. Like have some revelation that would strain the gang's friendship, like one of angel's past murders that he'd kept hidden because it was too horrible for him to tell his friends about. The story didn't have to stick to the exorcist too closely either, there's a lot of fresh directions they could have taken it. Like have the demon leave the boy and have it possess angel, and make him commit crimes he will feel responsible for later on. Or have the boy actually kill his family, and angel would realise this could have been averted if he had killed the boy/demon earlier when he had the chance. Or have the demon survive in the end, and posess someone else, and the gang have no way of finding out where it went. ... it was nice to have a kate cameo though. They could easily have put in some random cop if they wanted. |
|
|
|
Post by partcynic on Feb 4, 2013 15:45:09 GMT -5
Sure! Though I'm going to post the next review now, and get focusing on the rest of the season. I've got a stockpile going all the way to "The Price", so I want to start unloading them. Agreed. Do you mean the lack of explanation as to why the child had no soul? Because that was the reason he was evil, and the reason the demon didn't fear death - after possessing the boy and being helplessly trapped in nothingness, dying was far preferable. Consider what it experienced to be a version of locked-in syndrome. It's certainly an issue, but I think what they needed to do was just develop what was already there (Doyle's death; Wesley's insecurities about his place). While interesting, an idea similar to one of your suggestions was covered in "Somnambulist" (both the 'past secret' and the 'guilt' aspects), and the others would require more time spent on them than the one-shot ep this was supposed to be (and indeed, the show's intended structure at this point). Though I do like the idea of the demon fleeing and leaping into an unknown other person! |
|
|
|
Post by partcynic on Feb 4, 2013 15:48:11 GMT -5
1x15 "The Prodigal"
Move over, "She" - this is the real mess of the season, and the only S1 edition I'd legitimately consider deleting. Half crappy cop drama and half do-nothing flashbacks, these 42 uninteresting minutes are testament to Kate's complete failure as a character.
Likes
- It's always fun to see Julie Benz, and I liked her performance as Darla.
- Wesley and Cordy have some decent material. I particularly liked Cordy gleefully hacking up the demon corpse, as well as her trenchcoat-and-glasses get-up.
- Considering my lack of interest in all aspects of the plot, I thought this was quite well-paced. I didn't like it, but I can't say it bored me.
Dislikes
- Kate has never been a good character, but between this and "Sense and Sensitivity", she's become blatantly bad. I couldn't care less about her, her obnoxious father, or their relationship. Honestly, could anyone care about the dynamics between two one-dimensional police show cliches? For this ep to stand any chance of succeeding, you need to - but it's impossible. Consequently, everything involving the Lockleys sucked, and it's made worse knowing that we'll have to deal with Kate's non-stop grieving and bitterness for a whole year.
- I'll include a Lockley postscript, and ask if Trevor's death was supposed to be dramatic or emotional. I don't get what the writers were thinking - he'd appeared in one prior episode and had shown no redeeming qualities. Why was his much-welcomed kicking the bucket played as a big moment? Go back and watch "Passion", "The Body" or "Hero" to see how character deaths should be handled.
- The flashbacks didn't sit with the Kate story at all. We didn't learn anything new or important (unless they were trying to pull a Spike and claim Angelus only became a mass murderer out of sadness at never getting his father's approval!), and there was no real thematic overlap. Why were those scenes even there?
- David Boreanaz's performance as Liam is unconvincing, and his 'Oirish' accent is painful.
- All the stuff with the alarm was unfunny filler, which was tacked on to give Cordy and Wes something to do, and took a long time to deliver a weak, repetitive joke.
Summary
A competently written episode sunk by major flaws in characterisation, plot and theme. Chances are I'll skip it on any future rewatches.
|
|
|
|
Post by cyclica on Feb 6, 2013 11:03:27 GMT -5
Comment catch-up! SheTo me, that idea fits brilliantly with the overarching themes of both shows. “Buffy” in particular is about growing up, and part of that is understanding that dogma you unquestioningly adhered to in your childhood/adolescence may not actually be correct or reflect reality. Buffy (and the audience) got the idea that all demons were evil from Giles, who in turn got it from the Watcher's Council - but we know that the Council is an amoral and corrupt organisation that acts in its own interests. Far before this ep, we were getting hints that this intrepretation was not necessarily correct, and the news that the Slayer's power is demonic would have Buffy seriously questioning herself. Revealing that not all demons are irrevocably evil provides the programme with more depth, and wouldn't necessarily harm any prior eps, as the demons Buffy has killed have almost always been malevolent Yes, it would have been nice if buffy had questioned her past actions, but as far as I remember, she never did. She never wondered later on if the demons she killed on sight in the early years were good or bad, and there was no revelation that demons could be good. The closest we got was buffy allowing clem to look after dawn at one point, showing she trusted clem. It’s like after angel had been on for a few years and the audience had become accustomed to good demons, btvs introduced clem without having buffy or her friends ever learning demons can be good, by s6 they just sort of already knew it. having Spike become a 'good soulless vampire' did far more to damage the show's morality (as she kills vamps on sight far more often). I saw spike as a special case, I saw no problem in buffy continuing to kill random vamps on sight after spike became good. Vampires need to eat humans to live (as giles once told her regarding angel, just because there’s no record of a vampire killing, it doesn’t mean they have stopped, vampires need to feed). Spike only became good due to exceptional circumstances- he had a chip during the entire time he was soulless, and buffy shouldn’t assume any vamp she meets has a chip or a soul. I can't say the 'sympathetic demon' thing has ever been an issue for me - and wouldn't it be “Hero” that bothered you, seeing as it's the first ep to really make this point? Personally, I'd say that Lorne alone is worth the change in perspective. Hero did bother me a little at first, but I warmed to it more easily because there was so much to like about the episode, like doyle’s sacrifice at the end, and clearer motivations. I’d buy that doyle, would want to help the innocent demons he could relate too, more easily than I could accept that angel would want to help a demon who doesn’t care about human life. In her defence, Jheira is amoral, but she's not a murderer. The other woman are 'adolescents' of her people who are maturing as females, but can't control their powers yet. Jheira was having the girls stored alone in ice to soothe them from the heat generated by their maturation, and to stop other people from disturbing them. Unfortunately, it turned out that human men were sexually drawn to the resting girls, and they got unintentionally zapped when they popped the cases open. I don't think Jheira or any of the girls would have killed deliberately - in this case, it was a horrible accident, but one that Jheira was prepared to 'accept' if it meant being able to save more of her people. I'd say the problem lies with the fact that Jheira didn't apologise or express any remorse over this - and not that the characters are portrayed as killers, because they aren't. I suppose I might be misremembering, or may have got the wrong end of the stick altogether for this ep, but when I watch it, it didn’t come across to me that the girls were zapping people unintentionally. With the show’s history of evil demons up to this point, and jheira not caring about the humans killed, it seemed a safe assumption that the kills were intentional. I've got you (under my skin)Do you mean the lack of explanation as to why the child had no soul? Because that was the reason he was evil, and the reason the demon didn't fear death - after possessing the boy and being helplessly trapped in nothingness, dying was far preferable. Consider what it experienced to be a version of locked-in syndrome. Well yes, but I would have preferred an explanation. We never found out why the boy has no soul (is he just born that way, and if so why him? Why *just* him?), and I don’t see how the boy having no soul would make him unpossessable. Surely a demon would possess a person’s body, not their soul (angelus was a ‘vampire demon’ possessing liam’s body, and when he gained a soul it was in addition to the ‘vampire demon’ that made him a vampire overall – the soul and the possessing demon lived side-by-side). Having no soul shouldn’t be any kind of hindrance to possessing a person’s body, at least not in the buffyverse mythology. If anything, having no soul should make him easier to possess. And why would the demon want to die even after it was freed? Or at least put up no fight when angel kills him. It's certainly an issue, but I think what they needed to do was just develop what was already there (Doyle's death; Wesley's insecurities about his place). Agreed, that’s probably the best idea. They should have taken the opportunity to flesh out the characters some more. |
|
|
|
Post by partcynic on Feb 8, 2013 14:56:28 GMT -5
Indeed! Though as you know, I would quite happily jettison most of "Buffy"'s major arcs from S5 onwards. I'd have loved it if something like the above actually, properly happened - shame it didn't. It's definitely unintentional, as the girls can't control their powers - I'm pretty sure there's dialogue specifying that, but am too tired to go trawling through transcripts at the moment. *** I think all your points on "I've Got You Under My Skin" are good. Since I'm not particularly fond of it myself, I don't have much interest in defending the story - as we agreed, it's basically "The Exorcist" with a twist... and that's about it. As I've said in the intros to the last few reviews, the run from "She"-"The Prodigal" is easily my least favourite part of the season, even though I don't really hate any of the eps. |
|
|
|
Post by cyclica on Feb 17, 2013 18:29:14 GMT -5
Eep, I forgot you'd already put up the next review.  ... My thoughts on 'the prodigal' are pretty much the same as yours. The cop story never interested me, but I never thought it was bad per se, more it was just 'not for me'. Especially when I'm in the mood for a vampire show, not a cop show. I didn't like it, but I can't say it bored me. I can. - Kate has never been a good character, but between this and "Sense and Sensitivity", she's become blatantly bad. I couldn't care less about her, her obnoxious father, or their relationship. Honestly, could anyone care about the dynamics between two one-dimensional police show cliches? It's strange that so much of the first two seasons is spent setting up kate, only for the actress to leave the show, and have the setup provide so little payoff. I can only wonder if the original plan was for her to become a much more relevant part of the show, thereby justifying these early episodes spent on her. But I can't imagine how her character would really need these episdoes involving her cop father, what payoff would be worth this setup over a year in advance (assuming the show went 'according to plan' up until the last ep she appeared in, in s2), and given how uninteresting these eps are on their own, I can only consider this ep and S&S a waste of time. - The flashbacks didn't sit with the Kate story at all. We didn't learn anything new or important (unless they were trying to pull a Spike and claim Angelus only became a mass murderer out of sadness at never getting his father's approval!), and there was no real thematic overlap. Why were those scenes even there? These flashbacks were at least entertaining on their own, and they are the reason I'd watch the episode again. Aside form anything else, I am at least a little interested in seeing angel's family and life before becoming a vampire. Watching season 1 in a marathon, it almost feels like the angel flashbacks are a seperate subplot going on by themselves that exist soley to set up darla for s2, and these individual flashbacks needn't have anything to do with the episodes they are attached to. It's like a writer said, 'these flashbacks involve angel talking to his father, and we have this ep all about kate and her father... lets stick them together! It totally works!' |
|
|
|
Post by partcynic on Feb 18, 2013 6:22:50 GMT -5
No worries! I was considering posting the next review as a potential 'reminder'. Very good points. It seems as though Kate was created to satisfy the obligatory detective story need for a police insider, but the writers never thought beyond that. The rest of her character arc (if it can actually be called that!) is a mess - she's by far the weakest part of the first two seasons. I find it pretty telling that the one time I honestly like her is in "Rm w/a Vu", where her appearance is short, justified by the plot and serves to push the story forward. More of that would have been fine, and spared us the cliches and general annoyance. Lol at the last part - I wouldn't be surprised if that was the rationale. The most telling case is in "Five By Five", where they don't even have tangential relevance! |
|
), but there's also no denying that it's one of the poorer offerings from S1. It also initiates a brief quality slump that the show won't correct until "The Ring".