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Post by partcynic on Apr 14, 2013 12:23:15 GMT -5
Heh - I guess both can apply in this case. As an academic, I'd expect the opposite. The people with the largest amount of knowledge are more likely to be aware of moral gradients, with their 'henchmen' having the black-and-white view. It makes sense for the higher-ups to pass info to the lower-downs very selectively, in order to make them easily controllable. Angel isn't great in his "Buffy" appearances from S4 onward, but he's always given a degree of intelligence and dignity, even when he messes up. On the other hand, Buffy is always horrible on "Angel". I guess Joss' scheme stumbled there.  |
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Post by partcynic on Apr 14, 2013 12:30:53 GMT -5
1x20 "War Zone"
A fun change of pace that provides us with an important reminder that people outside of the Angel crew (and their clients) deal with monsters too. "War Zone" isn't a great episode, but is a solid showcase for J. August Richards that possesses a bit of emotion.
Likes
- Good misdirection in the teaser. Besides the Angel/Gunn fakeout, I liked that Gunn's team incurred significant losses from only a few vamps - it's much more believable, and makes their situation feel dangerous.
- Vampires actually being threats. A welcome reminder of "Buffy"'s initial premise.
- The Trio really soured me on the nerd humour, but David Nabbit was an okay character (and it looks like Cordelia's prediction that they'd eventually get a wealthy client came true!) The demon brothel idea was believable (did I spy one of the Vigory women working there? I wonder what Jheira would think?), as was the idea that a man like Nabbit would go there.
- Gunn will never be a great character, but he was good in this episode. His headstrong nature coupled with his desire to protect his 'family' (parallels with Angel there, obviously) makes him compelling, and his emotional journey made sense. There were a few Lockley-esque elements to the Gunn/Alonna relationship (ie., we're expected to have a major emotional reaction to it despite it being a single-ep creation between two cliched characters), but I could still understand what Gunn was feeling when Alonna was kidnapped, and then when he was forced to stake her vampire form.
- Cordelia and Wesley weren't as fun as they have been, but they still provided a few moments of humour. I liked the line about David "Feeling good in your mouth" (and Wes' response); the convertible scene when they were trying to locate Gunn; and the cellphone convo with Angel outside the meat locker. I wouldn't have minded a couple more scenes with them, and a little less of Gunn's crew.
- Nice ending with Gunn and Angel watching over the city. Smart that Angel respected Gunn's status as a leader, but was still able to reach out to him.
Dislikes
- I mentioned it briefly when discussing Gunn and Alonna in the positives section, but the characters are a bit trite. I feel like I've seen those exact same personalities with that exact same relationship in hundreds of shows. Did anyone not guess that the sweet, kindhearted sister who acted to ground her rebellious brother would come to a nasty end to teach him a meaningful life lesson?
- Too much time spent with Gunn's gang. Nothing against them, but they're not as interesting as the main characters. By the end of the episode, I was really wanting to go back to Angel-centric "Angel".
- Some of the dialogue is preachy. It felt like the writer was trying too hard to make the street kids' predicament seem awful, when we could already see it was awful. All the 'gosh and golly, isn't that horrible' stuff quickly became condescending.
Summary
A likeable introductory episode for Gunn carried more by J. August Richards' acting than the writing. I'd never watch it outside of marathons, but it's certainly a nice offering.
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Post by cyclica on Apr 24, 2013 15:15:11 GMT -5
- The Trio really soured me on the nerd humour, but David Nabbit was an okay character (and it looks like Cordelia's prediction that they'd eventually get a wealthy client came true!) The demon brothel idea was believable (did I spy one of the Vigory women working there? I wonder what Jheira would think?), as was the idea that a man like Nabbit would go there. David nabbit always felt a bit ‘off’ to me, like he didn’t really fit on the show. He was ok I guess. Good catch on spotting one of the ‘she’ demons in the brothel, I hadn’t noticed before. I can only assume it’s a case of reusing the makeup/prosthetics, and not an indication that this is the fate of the women. - Gunn will never be a great character, but he was good in this episode. I’m curious what you could have against gunn. Personally I’ve never had a problem with him. Well, until season 5 anyway. - Nice ending with Gunn and Angel watching over the city. Smart that Angel respected Gunn's status as a leader, but was still able to reach out to him. That was the highlight of the episode for me, and one of my favourite season 1 moments. The only thing that (very slightly) lessens the moment for me, is the later knowledge that gunn will be appearing in every episode form this point on. This ending seems to set up for a *later* payoff, not an immediate one. - I mentioned it briefly when discussing Gunn and Alonna in the positives section, but the characters are a bit trite. I feel like I've seen those exact same personalities with that exact same relationship in hundreds of shows. Did anyone not guess that the sweet, kindhearted sister who acted to ground her rebellious brother would come to a nasty end to teach him a meaningful life lesson? I admit the story is a bit ‘been there, done that’, but angel’s involvement in the story is enough to shake it up for me. I'd never watch it outside of marathons, but it's certainly a nice offering. For me, it’s an above average season 1 episode. It’s not great (though I love the ending), but there’s nothing in this episode I especially dislike either. It did a good job of expanding the btvs universe by showing a side of life that hadn't yet been explored, and presented vampires as a threat again, instead of just a means to fit a patrolling / action scene into an episode. |
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Post by partcynic on Apr 29, 2013 6:42:24 GMT -5
Apologies for not replying sooner - the last week was pretty busy work-wise. I'll avoid going into it here, as I've made the points when reviewing later Gunn-centric episodes. But since "First Impressions" isn't that far away, we'll be able to discuss it in more detail pretty soon.  Agreed. One of the points I'll go on to make about Gunn is that he's the kind of character who'd be excellent if used as a recurring special guest, but gets weakened and watered-down as a regular. That said, I really enjoy his parts in "Blind Date" and "To Shanshu in LA". Fair enough, though I'd personally prefer more Angel and less Gunn - or perhaps the same amount of Gunn, but with a less predictable backstory. Very close to my thoughts. If I were rating the eps, this would be an archetypal '5' (remember, a '5' from me is pretty good) - there's nothing really wrong with "War Zone", it's just that many other eps have more positives. |
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Post by partcynic on Apr 29, 2013 6:47:15 GMT -5
1x21 "Blind Date"
A successful combination of drama and suspense that works very well in developing Wolfram and Hart. For much of the season, the firm has been a gnat-like irritant to Angel, but this episode reveals that it's actually something to be feared, laying much groundwork for the events of S2.
Likes
- Vanessa Brewer succeeds as a villain. We don't know enough or spend enough time with her for her to be great, but she's nicely ruthless, and a bit creepy (those eyes...) Loved Cordy's comment about the self-inflicted eye-gouging meaning she'd reached enlightenment. It's a funny line on its own, and works even better knowing what almost happened in "Parting Gifts".
- Lindsey. He's an interesting and relatively complicated figure portrayed by a good actor. I really liked that his ultimate motivation wasn't some silly attempt at becoming a do-gooder, but rather that he'd come to a point where he wasn't sure where to draw the line or who had the real power. His sob story with Angel was fine in giving us a brief window into his past, and it was smart (and funny) that Angel cut it short before it could get too sappy.
- Holland. Calm, intelligent, charismatic and quietly menacing. Exactly the kind of person I'd envisage being in the upper echelons of W&H.
- Wolfram and Hart's office culture. Intense security, mind-readings, paranoid and backstabbing staff - all excellent, and so enjoyable to watch.
- Killing Lee. If you're going to make unlikeable characters, best to have them die horribly. And brilliant to show W&H's no-nonsense approach to dealing with traitors. The death threats and posturing from the lawyers often seem empty, but Lee's removal was cold, swift and brutal, just as it should have been.
- The heist sequence is great. There's lots of suspense, a nice bit of set-up for the season finale (the scroll), and some of Gunn's best material ever.
- Willow and Cordelia simultaneously decrypting. Cute, subtle crossover.
- Vanessa can't see Angel when he holds still because she detects motion, and his vampirism means he has no internal bodily movement (breathing; heartbeat). Very clever! And huge thumbs up for Angel killing an evil human, with no angsting or whining about it.
- Fantastic ending. From W&H's perspective, everything Holland says makes sense, and Lindsey's decision to accept the new job is completely in line with who he is as a character.
Dislikes
- Angel running into Vanessa at the start is too coincidental. It would have been better if Cordy had had a vision of one of her victims, and he'd encountered her that way.
- The old 'not the children!' cliche. Much like "Buffy"'s "Gingerbread", this ep makes the mistake of assuming that because the case at hand involves dead/endangered kids, the audience will automatically find it far more horrible than anything else. Problem: I don't, because the show gives us no other reason to care.
- As said, I love the heist, but W&H's security level here introduces many contradictions for other episodes, when characters waltz in and out with minimal concern or effort.
Summary
Jeannine Renshaw's best episode, which shows her finally getting in the "Angel" groove after a few average offerings (so - of course - it's her last). Good action, suspense and comedy combined with top-notch universe development.
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Post by cyclica on May 8, 2013 16:30:51 GMT -5
I mostly agree with what you have said. Though I'd like to throw in a negative of my own- I am tired of seeing stories about a blind person who isn't really blind, they can see 'in some way'. They are always predictable, every time I see a tv show with a one-off blind character I always know they will turn out to either secretly not be blind, or at least have some kind of vision ability, like detecting movement. And if there's a murder, you can always bet the blind person did it. Beyond that, this was an ok episode for me. The W&H parts worked well for me, but beyond that, it was a pretty forgettable episode. The seer children were especially forgettable, and if they were supposed to be so powerful, why are they never seen or mentioned again? - Lindsey. ...His sob story with Angel was fine in giving us a brief window into his past, and it was smart (and funny) that Angel cut it short before it could get too sappy. That may have been one of the high points of the episode for me. I love when the show cuts through the cliches like that. - Holland. Calm, intelligent, charismatic and quietly menacing. All the things linwood isn't. - The heist sequence is great. There's lots of suspense, a nice bit of set-up for the season finale (the scroll), and some of Gunn's best material ever. I didn't like how angel took it because it 'felt right' to take it. They should have come up with a better reason. Like if he noticed his own name on it, and took the scroll to read what it had to say about him. And huge thumbs up for Angel killing an evil human, with no angsting or whining about it. I feel differently, I'd rather angel weren't killing humans, at least not without some reflection on it. - Fantastic ending. From W&H's perspective, everything Holland says makes sense, and Lindsey's decision to accept the new job is completely in line with who he is as a character. The first time I watched, I honestly expected lindsey to become a good guy at that point. Not because I thought the character would, but because it seemed like the kind of thing a tv show would do. I'm glad the ep surprised me. ...Though I do find it a bit odd that lindsey and lilah are always presented as being equals, both before and after his promotion. |
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Post by partcynic on May 11, 2013 10:10:43 GMT -5
My memory here's a bit rusty, but isn't the W&H stuff most of the episode? If you liked that, I'd have thought that would automatically make this a good ep. I'm not too bothered about the seer children - it was said that their power would be fully manifested when they were adults. I see them as being akin to the unborn baby in "Judgement" - a secondary plot device to support a more interesting A-story.
Absolutely! I disliked Linwood even more on this rewatch. His only good moment was getting decapitated.
Agreed. As you'll see, I made a similar point when reviewing "To Shanshu In LA".
Fair enough - We know we have different takes on this stuff. The 'human killing' angst the shows insist on almost always bores me, and it only got worse as time went on.
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Post by partcynic on May 11, 2013 10:14:33 GMT -5
1x22 "To Shanshu in LA"
"Angel"'s best finale, and a wonderful encapsulation of everything the first season had been trying to say. There's lots of emotion, drama and character development, and the touches of dark humour add the required comedic spice.
Likes
- The mystery of Shanshu. I'm not convinced by Angel's being ~drawn~ to the scroll, but I can tolerate the explanation. Nice consistency with prophecies not always meaning what they're presumed to, and a lovely ending with Angel learning that his reward will be having his humanity restored.
- Everyone's responses to the early mistranslation, and discovering that Angel will die. Angel's unfazed reaction is spot-on, and Cordelia is absolutely perfect. The breakfast scene where she criticises Wesley/prophecies for being harbingers of doom and refusing to improve things is great, as are her caring and attempts at remedying things for Angel. The characters' friendship is incredibly powerful.
- Vocah is nicely cruel. Killing the oracles, cursing Cordelia and blowing up Angel Investigations were all great.
- Cordelia's vision-induced pain feels so real (we've seen what one can do to her, let alone hundreds). Her character development is also superb - her first thought upon being released from the curse is not about herself, but about helping the people she saw. The ending then confirms her new maturity, but also shows us that she's still our Cordy.
- The theme. Life is about connection, and those connections come through the people you love. I love how the episode ultimately proves Cordelia's assumption that Angel has nothing to value wrong - she and Wesley are his connection/loved ones, and we see how powerful those connections are when the two of them are endangered.
- Angel finally learning his lesson - you don't do good things out of guilt/desire for redemption, but because you care about people and want them to be happy.
- Angel and Kate. I still don't like Kate, but I'm happy for her to become the show's designated loser/laughing stock. The contrast between their two chats was excellent - at the start, Angel is timid and allows her to belittle him, but come the second, he is focused on what he truly values (Cordy/Wes), and we get one of the year's most satisfying moments when he finally tells her where to go.
- Post-"Blind Date" Wolfram and Hart rocks. They feel like a tangible institution now, and not just an airy, formless blob. Holland, Lindsey and Lilah all have excellent dialogue, and I'm happy we'll be getting much more of them next season.
- The fight choreographers create another fine battle (with scythes!) The interplay between fight and ritual makes for a tense scene, and Vocah's face reveal/death are suitably gory. The Angel/Lindsey standoff over the scroll is also a treat ("Oops!")
- Darla's back. Cool!
Dislikes
- David Nabbit is like a Trio prototype. What is Mutant Enemy's fascination with this character style? The early scene with his awkward geek humour was painful and completely unnecessary.
- If the explosion was that intense, wouldn't Wesley have been killed outright? And why was Angel's first thought of Wesley when for all he knew, Wes might be at home?
Summary
A kickass edition, and one of the best from a strong season. Almost everything in "To Shanshu In LA" is good-to-great, and the problems are mostly trivialities or discardable in the face of so much quality. Roll on S2!
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Post by cyclica on May 27, 2013 15:34:59 GMT -5
To live and die in LASorry to make you wait so long when I have so little to say, but as I agree with much of what you said, I just cannot think of much to add here. I like this episode, though it's not one of my favourites. My only (minor) dislike would be vocah. While I did like how came across as a real threat (and I'm glad he killed the oracles, they always annoyed me), he felt too much like 'just another demon' to me. We've seen plenty of demons with powers before, and he was just another one of them, and didn't feel like he was worthy of being the end-of-season baddie. I'd say I enjoyed 'home' and 'not fade away' more, but I can see why you would prefer this ep. - Post-"Blind Date" Wolfram and Hart rocks. They feel like a tangible institution now, and not just an airy, formless blob. Thats a great way to put it. Now that I think about it... I still consider the initiative on btvs an airy, formless blob. - If the explosion was that intense, wouldn't Wesley have been killed outright? And why was Angel's first thought of Wesley when for all he knew, Wes might be at home? That bothered me too. Angel had no reason to assume wesley would be there.
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Post by partcynic on May 29, 2013 15:10:41 GMT -5
No problem. I'm not exactly punctual when it comes to these things. If anything, it's great that we're still giving the board traffic! I see where you're coming from. Vocah's minor-evil didn't bother me much - he was a one-off threat in a season built on standalone episodes, and did his job well. I'm just glad you didn't list "Tomorrow". But in all seriousness, those are both good eps. Cheers. And yes, that's what's always been a problem for the "Buffy" S4 arc, making it much weaker than those before it. Though I think that the Initiative's facelessness was part of the point (a more mature take on good vs bad, with great evil coming from a faceless corporation rather than a cackling overlord - Adam's a major villain, but the Initiative itself is the true Big Bad of S4). |
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Post by partcynic on May 29, 2013 15:14:41 GMT -5
2x01 "Judgement"
This is no "City Of...", but succeeds as an entertaining and meaningful introduction to S2's broader ideas. Dialogue, characterisation and theme are excellent, and compensate for the generic story.
Likes
- Team Angel. A wonderful balance of personalities working toward a common goal. The early reintroduction depicts each of the trio showing their strengths when alone, then has them come together for the cool gym fight. Both inter-character and inter-actor chemistry are spot on - reminds me of the great Scooby dynamic in the first two seasons of "Buffy".
- Lorne is funny and charismatic, and I'm pleased we'll be seeing more of him and Caritas. Very enjoyable performance from Andy Hallett (RIP), and some fine vocals too.
- Glimpse of Wolfram and Hart. Lindsey and Lilah are as fun to watch as ever, and Darla is sexy and slightly creepy.
- Theme. Nice to have continued reminders that not all demons are evil, and that souls are not an instant conveyor of goodness.
- Excellent post-"To Shanshu In LA" character development. It makes sense that the prospect of a reward might change how the gang/Angel approach cases, and it was good that they realised the error of this after their 'line 'em up, knock 'em down' approach led to a grave mistake. Showing Angel be so singularly wrapped up in 'doing good' that he makes things worse is a nice foreshadow of things to come, and creates some synergy between he and Gunn.
- Humour. Angel considering joining the gym; sneeze-vision; Caritas, Lorne and everyone's responses to them; Angel singing "Mandy" because it's 'pretty' (really enjoy the closing outtakes where David does his best Vegas crooner impression), and everyone's response to that.
- Good closing scene with Faith. Nice to know she and Angel are in contact.
Dislikes
- I had little interest in the pregnant woman. She wasn't an interesting character, and the actress delivered every line in the same, mildly-irritated tone.
- Wouldn't have minded more info on the Tribunal. Why is this the only case they see fit to pass judgement on? Shouldn't we have seen them quite a few times?
- Why does Angel tell Gunn he works with 'people at this address'? As Gunn later says (and Angel knows), he's already encountered Cordelia and Wesley.
- Why would the demon assume that stabbing Angel meant he was defeated? Yes, he looks human, but he's battling at a demonic tribunal. The monster should have ensured he was dead before claiming victory.
Summary
A fine season opener. Nothing in it blows me away, but all of the qualities I expect are present, and in good quantities.
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Post by cyclica on Jun 9, 2013 14:47:32 GMT -5
True. - Lorne is funny and charismatic, and I'm pleased we'll be seeing more of him and Caritas. Very enjoyable performance from Andy Hallett (RIP), and some fine vocals too. I may have said this before but, I didn't much care for lorne in season 2. He came across as a smarmy know-it-all to me. I'd also like to know why his first appearance is in a dream, before he is introduced. It makes sense that the prospect of a reward might change how the gang/Angel approach cases, and it was good that they realised the error of this after their 'line 'em up, knock 'em down' approach led to a grave mistake. Showing Angel be so singularly wrapped up in 'doing good' that he makes things worse is a nice foreshadow of things to come That was the highlight of the episode for me. I generally don't like stories where there's just one good guy in the world defeating all baddies single handedly, it's good that they expanded the angel universe by showing that there was another 'exceptional' force for good (as in, not just humans who fight back). And for that innocent being to be accidentally killed by angel is just fascinating, as he is essentially killing himself in a way. He pre-judged the demon just as others can initially see him as just a vampire. - Good closing scene with Faith. Nice to know she and Angel are in contact. Whenever I watch this episode, I always forget faith is in it. It's a nice surprise every time. - Wouldn't have minded more info on the Tribunal. Why is this the only case they see fit to pass judgement on? Shouldn't we have seen them quite a few times? Agreed. They are so 'big' and powerful, you'd think they would appear more often.
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Post by partcynic on Jun 15, 2013 12:37:10 GMT -5
And once again, I'm late responding. I do read replies as soon as they're posted - it's finding the time to write back that's the problem! I really like Lorne this season, and think steadily less of him in each subsequent year. The character started sucking once they destroyed Caritas, which took away his main character function and left him as little more than a cowardly quip-spewer. Even the S2 smarminess works for me - he's got no need to suck up to Angel, and can tell it like it is. The show really needed that, and it hurt when both Lorne and Cordelia lost their abilities to do so. Yep - it's a great theme with good parallels. I really like it when the show delves into this kind of thing. Me too! |
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Post by partcynic on Jun 15, 2013 12:38:43 GMT -5
2x02 "Are You Now or Have You Ever Been"
With this episode, Tim Minear goes from being one of the show's weak links (penning S1's "Sense and Sensitivity" and "The Prodigal") to being one of its strongest. Requiring multiple viewings to fully reveal itself, "Are You Now Or Have You Ever Been" is one of most enveloping and emotionally intense editions of the show, and is also an instance of "Angel" drawing close to - or matching - the peaks of "Buffy".
Likes
- Show-appropriateness. This is one of the only "Angel" eps whose plot could only be done on "Angel" - it's almost a twist on a ghost story, but one that demands that its protagonist be immortal and have the background to justify oscillation between good, evil and amorality. I always love it when either series does something this unique.
- Fantastic pacing. The mystery unravels slowly but steadily, always maintaining interest.
- The cinematography is gorgeous. Visual distinctions between the present day and past exist without making the transitions feel jumpy, and the scenes are beautifully lit, dressed (both set and costuming) and filmed.
- Learning more about Angel's history. I know you could take it to contradict the gutter-dwelling rat-eating we saw in "Becoming", but it's plausible that Angel could have lived among humans, just not with them (identical to how he was in "City Of...")
- The minor characters. Occasional lines here and there established the basic personalities and fears of each, and their demon-assisted merge into a violent mob feels natural; slowly bubbling as the episode progresses.
- This episode features some intelligent commentary on human nature. The vast majority of the pain and suffering we saw had nothing to do with the Thesulac - all the demon did was bring people's pre-existing dark qualities to the fore.
- Judy was a well-written, sympathetic and believable character. Melissa Marsala had me fully believe her fear, anxiety, resentment and regret, and the ending reveal that she's still at the Hyperion, having essentially had her entire life taken from her by her guilt over Angel's 'death', is a heartbreaker. It's also important to note that as bad as her decision to implicate him was, it was a split-second choice made as she had genuine fear for her life - and it haunted her every waking moment for fifty years. It's painfully real and tragic - the only ray of light is that she was able to receive forgiveness before she died.
- Angel's character development. Excellent to see him bond with Judy over their shared status as 'walk in both worlds, belong to neither' outsiders. I felt his anger and betrayal when Judy turned the mob onto him, and could completely understand why he chose to leave the humans to the Thesulac (having the one hint of real connection he'd found since regaining his soul blow up in his face, reaffirming exactly why he'd withdrawn in the first place). It's excellent foreshadowing of events later in the season, too. And who can ignore the stunning penultimate scene? The moment where Judy tells him he looks the same - and he assures her he isn't - says so much about who Angel is now.
- Emotion in general - this is probably one of the deepest eps of either show, and it manages to be intense without featuring any particularly overt drama (hanging aside, of course).
- Cordy, Wesley and Gunn. Their scenes are brief, but they're used well to provide comedic (yet plot-relevant) breaks.
Dislikes
- The beginning is too abrupt. If anyone hadn't been paying close attention to that brief hotel scene in "Judgement", they'd have probably been confused about what was going on.
- I would have liked more clarification on Judy's relationship with the demon. It's implied the monster was sustaining her in exchange for the 'fine wine' of her grief/paranoia (helping explain why she died so soon after it did), but a direct statement would be even better. In addition, "he kept them away" is a weak justification for no-one ever finding Judy, even though the hotel remained open for another 27 years after the events with Angel.
- The demon looked cheap, which pulled me out of an otherwise fully-entrancing story.
Summary
One of my favourites from either show. Beautifully written, filmed and acted, "Are You Now Or Have You Ever Been" can also boast tremendous emotional depth, and stands as the first of three big hitters from "Angel"'s second year.
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Post by cyclica on Jul 5, 2013 16:16:11 GMT -5
- Show-appropriateness. This is one of the only "Angel" eps whose plot could only be done on "Angel" - it's almost a twist on a ghost story, but one that demands that its protagonist be immortal and have the background to justify oscillation between good, evil and amorality. I always love it when either series does something this unique. Agreed. Though I would have loved if anya had been given stories with this much thought and attention. - Learning more about Angel's history. I know you could take it to contradict the gutter-dwelling rat-eating we saw in "Becoming", but it's plausible that Angel could have lived among humans, just not with them (identical to how he was in "City Of") It's good that it doesn't contradict 'becoming' too much to be a problem. And we do have 'why we fight' to fill in the gaps later on. - This episode features some intelligent commentary on human nature. The vast majority of the pain and suffering we saw had nothing to do with the Thesulac - all the demon did was bring people's pre-existing dark qualities to the fore. That was a cool part of the episode. He wasn't controlling their minds or putting ideas in their heads, he was just emphasizing what they were already thinking, and making them beleive their suspicions were real. It would have been boring if here were merely forcing people to turn on each other randomly. - Emotion in general - this is probably one of the deepest eps of either show, and it manages to be intense without featuring any particularly overt drama (hanging aside, of course). I love it when a show is emotional all way through, and not just because of one 'dramatic scene' that makes you shocked or cry. Still, for me anyway, I think a lot of the tension came from just waiting for the mystery of why angel's interested in the hotel to be explained. The actual emotional parts don't start until at least halfway through. - The beginning is too abrupt. If anyone hadn't been paying close attention to that brief hotel scene in "Judgement", they'd have probably been confused about what was going on. Yep. Like most people, I first watched this on tv a week after the last episode, and I'm sure I'm not the only one who had forgotten that one scene from Judgement (which was irrelevant to the story) and was left confused why angel is suddenly interested in a hotel. - I would have liked more clarification on Judy's relationship with the demon. It's implied the monster was sustaining her in exchange for the 'fine wine' of her grief/paranoia (helping explain why she died so soon after it did), but a direct statement would be even better. In addition, "he kept them away" is a weak justification for no-one ever finding Judy, even though the hotel remained open for another 27 years after the events with Angel. I was never sure how the demon was sustaining her. Was he bringing her food? And why would he be content to have just her for company for so many years, when he can easily move on to another building and have more and larger 'meals'? - The demon looked cheap, which pulled me out of an otherwise fully-entrancing story. I thought the demon looked ok, but I was pulled out of the story by old judy. Couldn't they hire an actress who looked at least slightly like the one playing her younger self? One of my favourites from either show. Beautifully written, filmed and acted, "Are You Now Or Have You Ever Been" can also boast tremendous emotional depth, and stands as the first of three big hitters from "Angel" 's second year. I've said in the past this episode wasn't among my favourites, and while you make a lot of good points in the ep's favour, I still feel the same now. While I certainly don't hate the ep, I don't consider it all that much better than the average angel episode. The tension and emotion is only ok for me, and while I respect what they were doing with the 50's story, it just doesn't interest me all that much. Once we know what the demon is up to, everything unfolds fairly predictably, and it doesn't help that we know angel will survive any attacks- there's no tension as to his fate here. That plus the fact that most of the main cast barely appear are reasons why this an episode I would rarely watch. |
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