The One and Only Angel Season 5 Thread

[AnonymousBroccoli 0]

I just saw Kristine Sutherland in an Advil commercial.

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

I saw that a few weeks ago.

 

I was like, NOOOO! The Tumor is BACK! ADVIL WON'T HELP YOU!

 

 

YES! That's who the demon in SOR looked like!

[Anya 0]

So, S7 should have been about stupid monster of the week episodes? NO, S7 should have been about the First, but they should have done it better than the way they did.

 

I can't STAND the monster of the week episodes. That is why season 2 isn't in my top 3; too many monster of the week episodes. Don't you always say that the early seasons suck? But you like an episode that is the same formula as the early seasons?

 

 

I have only seen it once, but does it do anything to advance the storyarc? Anything?

S7 should have been about FE, but they didn't have to make it nonstop FE so early into the season. A season can have a main theme or villain and still have plenty of room for monsters of the week.

 

 

I don't like seasons 1-3 as much as the others because of the scoobies. They all changed for the better and certain characters joined the cast. It has nothing to do with the format of the eps. I love MOTW eps.

 

 

The main arc of S7 hadn't really begun by Him. It started in the next ep, in CWDP. There's early build though in the opening scenes. Him is where Spike finally gets out of the basement and moves in with Xander so he's not crazy anymore. It also continues where Selfless left off, with Buffy inviting Anya to live at her house and rejoin the scoobs, although it's a really short scene and Anya's arc is basically dropped afterwards.

[AnonymousBroccoli 0]

Apparently there's a screening for 2 episodes each of Buffy and Angel this afternoon at the central library here in town. Nikki Stafford, who used to live here, is going to be there.

 

I won't be going, since I've been up all night, and I'm not really into "gatherings" of "people". And if they were to play, say, Becoming or The Wish, I wouldn't be especially proud of openly weeping in public.

[Mole 0]

What episodes are they showing?

[AnonymousBroccoli 0]

I don't know. But I managed to find an article about last year's event.

 

http://www.canoe.com/NewsStand/LondonFreeP.../29/122455.html

[Ravenbomb 0]

Indeed.

yeah, that's been around for a while. I checked it out on VOD a while ago. It's an odd movie...

[Hank Kingsley 0]

Holy shit, check out the awesome cover art for season 5!

 

 

(I know it's small, the only place that had the cover art was the dvdaficionado website; everywhere else just had "no image available")

[Guest Brian]

I’m going to do a mid-way report tomorrow, on the big storylines, and I’ll try and grade the episodes so far.

 

Redefinition is seven shades of awesome. This is the episode that kicks it all up, that brings everything together. Angel has just let loose the team, and he’s going all out for once. He’s destroying his pictures of Darla, trying to remove himself emotionally from her so he can kill her. We later learn that he can’t do it, truly, take her life from close-up, which is the ultimate act. We get psycho Angel, training hard and with the running commentary.

 

I love Lindsay ‘s reaction when he finds out that Lilah was alive. Just utter disappointment that Darla spared someone else’s life. He’s still totally enamored with her.

 

I love Virginia and Wesley trying to reason things out. You can slightly tell they’re not connecting, that they are really from two different worlds.

 

God, there’s so much great imagery of Angel in this episode, so many heroic looking shots. They did a nice job shooting this episode. Nice fight sequence, ending with the bloody sword.

 

I love paranoid Lilah and how she plays off Lindsay. I love Lilah trying to bug Lindsay, trying to catch him in the act and Lindsay having non of that. Really great dynamic.

 

Darla and Druscilla are great, once again, as Darla has a deliberate and direct way of going about things and Dru’s character is so crazy that it goes around far enough that it comes back as genius. I love the talk about power Darla gives. Especially among the demon gang, just ripping the ears off and all like “Who’s your daddy” and Dru just starts ranting on a totally different tangent. You can tell there’s still something human poking away at Darla, remembering when she was warm. It’s all about that basic principle of the demon fighting against the human form. And approaching the warehouse, Dru all off on her own. I love Darla and Dru going at it coming out of the demon bar. There’s a really feminist quality about it. And the talk of heartbeats again, and fire.

 

I love the Angel and Merle dynamic. Angel is just awesome, torturing for info. Balls out.

 

The gang. I love how in the bar, Wes and Gunn are still leagues apart and after the fight they’re closer, comrades. And singing “We Are the Champions”. I love Wesley taking charge when both Cordy and Gunn are reminiscing of Angel.

 

That image of Angel checking his weapons and heading out as the phone ringing is so indicative of what’s happening, him avoiding his duty.

 

I love the Darla/Dru/Angel stuff. God, Angel is might badass. And I love how Darla tells Dru it wasn’t Angel, but also not Angellus. And he’s still distant; he can’t kill her up close. He knew they were going to survive.

 

And I love the way it ends: "Let them fight the good fight - someone has to fight the war."

 

Foreshadowing:

 

Wesley’s assuming the leadership role.

[Jericholic82 0]

that screening story reminded me of somethin. in my college journalism class, my teach had us watch an episode of Buffy (the one with the little kids end up dead and the town goes on a witch hunt) and then write a news report on the finding of the dead kids. I have to go and find my report and post it here (this was like in 01 before I became a fullfledged fan of the show)

 

 

and I too saw the advil commercial (i almost yelled out "oh no its the first come to kill us all")

[Ravenbomb 0]

I LOVE the "Someone has to fight the war" line. Fucking great line.

[Guest Brian]

That and "Welcome to the home office" are the two lines of the season.

 

It's really remarkable how closely related this and "Are You Now or Have You Ever Been" are. In terms of Angel shutting himself off and trying to do the right things and trusting people. Mid-term report should be good.

[Anya 0]

LMPTM is so weaksauce. What was the point of adding the stuff about his mom to Spike's backstory? Am I missing some deep meaning there? It seems like they just added it at the last minute and doesn't really fit in with the rest of the mythos. Spike is in S7 way too much. The other scoobs have like 3 lines in that ep and do nothing. It's like The Spike Show.

 

When did Giles stop being Buffy's Watcher? Maybe when he left in S6? He says he "technically is no longer her watcher". Why wouldn't he be?

 

 

Maybe I can find a store selling S7 early today. I need it NOW.

[Youth N Asia 0]

You should all have it by now, but in case you don't.

 

Buffy season 6 is at Target this week for $29.99. That's $15 off the regular price.

[Guest Brian]

Rest of Season 2 Scehdule:

 

11/16 - Blood Money

11/18 - Happy Anniversary

11/20 - Thin Dead Line

11/22 - Reprise

11/24 - Epiphany

11/26 - Disharmony

11/28 - Dead End

11/30 - Belonging

12/02 - Over the Rainbow

12/04 - Through the Looking Glass

12/06 - There's No Place Like Plrtz Glrb

 

In a lot of ways, Angel Season Two should be considered a benchmark for every other season. In fact, it is the launching pad where most of the storylines and character development starts and the cast is solidified by the end. Instead, halfway through the season and we’re still looking at much the same landscape as the first season. In fact, Angel’s still dealing with human contact (Doyle, City Of), he’s still battling his inner self (Angellus), and Angel’s still at a point where he can’t move past the love(s) of his life. That doesn’t mean this season has been lacking; it’s been great. But it still hasn’t got to the meat and potatoes, which means we’ve got another half of a season.

 

Big Angles:

 

Angel, Angel, Angel – I realized in writing this just how much of the first half of this season is based around him. Every single angle has a focus around him, and it’s not until they flesh out the break-up and explore Pylea. Wes is starting to flesh out the more masculine characteristics, Gunn is showing some acting muscles, but not much yet. Here Angel is butting heads with Darla, trying to save her so he can save herself, thinking that he still loves her. Here’s his growing obsession, choosing to oust his group. He’s turning away from humans, the exact opposite of what Doyle recommended against.

 

Grades:

 

The Judgment: C+

Are You Now Or Have You Ever Been: B

First Impressions: C

Untouched: B-

Dear Boy: B+

Guise Will Be Guise: B

Darla: A-

Shroud of Rahmon: C

The Trial: B+

Reunion: A-

Redefinition: B

[Guest Brian]

I’d love if I told you Blood Money wasn’t among my favorite episodes. It’s not extremely great, and I don’t feel the Wolfram and Hart stuff works extremely well with Angel’s arc, but it also tends to work well. You can see the bonding among the three, especially Wes and Gunn.

 

The group is moving on. I like it. Slaying big demons on their own.

 

Got to love Boone. Probably one of my non-recurring characters ever to appear on Angel. There’s a certain relationship there between him and Angel, like they’re much alike. The way they push around Merle, force their way into Wolfram and Hart, the honor. Very much alike.

 

The return of Anne! Got to love it when they bring back in recurring characters. Great interaction with Angel when talking about being a vampire.

 

And here comes the problem. I like how he can get in Lilah’s car and totally play around with her. And I like how he disregards Anne and her feelings, totally willing to play her to get what he wants, not carin who he hurts. But I dislike the fact that the move is rather weak. We know Angel has the ability to ruin Wolfram and Hart’s plans, and he’s done that much farther in the past. This is weaksauce really, a far cry from the badass we’ve seen in the last two episodes who operates with far greater risks and over much larger prizes. This looks a lot more like Angel Investigations, not renegade badass.

 

Not to say I don’t like the scene. It’s just a little out of the character their working on. If he’s playing with the big guns under these circumstances, his moves should have far more weight. Nonetheless, Boone is awesome in that scene, and I like the just general trickery. It’s just that I don’t like what it accomplishes in terms of the long-term storyline. I still enjoyed it.

 

I love the theme, of blood money. Anne not caring where the money came from. Angel talking about if she was willing to wash off the blood, and how she just washes off the real blood at the end. Really indicative of Angel’s state, not caring about how he gets things done. And a little shade of humanity is nice at the end. Such an awesome analogy.

 

Lilah is fucking foxy in the dress.

 

You’ve got to love how that lady asks the actress if making her character gay was about ratings. In fact, I love how actors poke fun at the show, make-up, stunts, and Cordy’s acting.

 

I love the prelude to the big Angel/Boone confrontation. It’s so awesome. It’s has a wild west feel.

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

You are way too far ahead here Brian. I'll try to get in an episode tonight and one tomorrow... one after that...

[Ravenbomb 0]

Blood Money was okay. I like Boone, and I really like the revelation that Angel had been stalking Anne

[Guest Brian]

I'm thinking C+, maybe B-. I'll have to wait until the end of the season to adjust all my ratings. I like Boone a lot, and like the episode, but it definately has some flaws.

 

Rudo, get going. I'm staying up to schedule, since I have three free days week without class.

[Guest Brian]

Host: "Oh, this whole sour pussy mode of yours, it's starting to grate. You know what your problem is? - Are you listening?"

Angel: "Do I have a choice?"

Host: "Your heart isn't in it anymore."

Angel: "I don't have a pulse so technically I don't have a heart."

Host: "Technically, someone puts a stake through it you don't have anything anymore. So, Bubba, your heart counts."

Angel: "I have no idea what you're babbling about."

Host: "Yes, you do. If the world were to end tonight, would it really, in your heart of hearts, be such a terrible thing? (Angel doesn't answer) Now- now, sweetie, is that a fun place to be?"

Angel: "I think you should shut up now."

Host: " I'm the host. Have you met me? I never shut up. You pushed your friends away. You went from helping the helpless to hunting down the guilty. Blood vengeance is a luxury of the lesser beings. You're a champion, Angel. I mean - you were, at least."

Angel: "What do you want me to tell you?"

Host: "Everything. What's in your heart, why you stopped caring. You know, the whole ball of wax, so I can help you get back on your path. No need to rush, we got time. You know - not a *lot*."

Angel: "You want to know what my problem is? I'm screwed. That's my problem. I can't win. I'm trying to atone for a hundred years of unthinkable evil. News flash! I never can! Never going to be enough. Now I got Wolfram and Hart dogging me, it's too much! Two hundred highly intelligent law-school graduates working fulltime driving me crazy. Why the hell is everyone so surprised that it's working? But no, it's 'Angel, why you're so cranky?' 'Angel, you should lighten up. You should smile. You should wear a nice plaid.'"

Host: "Oh. Not this season, honey."

Angel: "Redemption. Darla had a shot at redemption. They took it from her. Now I have to hunt her down and kill her. I'm gonna do it. I'm gonna kill her, and then I'm gonna burn that law firm to the ground. My crew - they couldn't handle that. That's good. It means that they're still human. It means their better off fired."

Host: "You kind of left them in the cold."

Angel: "It's a lot colder in here."

Host: "It's not always gonna be this way. The song changes. Unless, of course, we don't get there on time, in which case - you'll be frozen in this *crappy* mood forever. I shudder to think."

 

This episode is a good development episode, pushing along everything nicely, but the main story is kinda weak. Lorne’s awesome but the whole scientist thing kinda sucks. It’s a different shade of obsession and we get that.

 

Though Lorne and Angel are pretty awesome. There is so much going on here, so much of great dialogue. I’m a sucker for the psychoanalysis. This is the first time we get a real feeling that Angel knows he can’t be redeemed, that the Shanshu might be nothing. The whole a car ride dialogue was awesome. There’s a lot of great speeches in this season.

 

Wes going all “Perry Mason” was awesome. Fuck, the gang stuff is so much better than it’s been. Everything else they’ve done has been really slow-paced, this just hit the perfect stride. They’re taking cases, the characters are fitting into the grooves, and by the end they’ve truly moved on it seems.

 

Love Lorne’s little speech about music and notes at the end. And the little bit of bonding the three have. Angel’s starting to get it, which is a start.

[Jericholic82 0]

fx is showing s1 again

 

I kinda like the one with the praying mantis woman

 

 

cordys talk with the counselor is pretty funny

 

"I coudnt even eat, which is good, but not because he died thats bad"

 

 

Xander: Good news I was just in the office and theers no dr gregory today so those of us who blew off last nights homework are ok

 

Buffy: He isnt here is he sick

 

Xander: no more like missing

 

Buffy: hes missing?

 

Xander: well... the cheerleaders were modeling their new uniforms....but...yea missing

 

 

xan: whos that?

willow: I bet thats angel

Xander: really the weird guy who told her about the vampire?

Willow: Ill betcha

Xander:hes buff. shes didnt say he was buff

Willow: You think hes Buff?

Xander: Well he is an attractive man

[Anya 0]

I like how Buffy hits play on that tape player and it's Giles rambling about something.

[Jericholic82 0]

yea that was funny anyanaka

 

 

 

ooh wrong side

[Guest Brian]

The Thin Dead Line is one of those episodes that requires mulitple viewings for me. I didn't get it right the first time, totally thought it and Happy Anniversary were weak links among Blood Money, but now I'm seeing things the other way around. Both episodes serve far more purpose in the general story of the season and for all the characters. Kate, the Gang, and Angel all got pushed along rather nicely. Angel trying to get contact with his group, but being pushed away was stellar. Kate was just perfect in her role, looking at the crime reports and weighing the benefits and consequences, as well as rather nicely dealing with her father's death.

[Jericholic82 0]

aha Im back and Im going to post the news report I did for my journalism class that I mentioned here the other day

 

 

 

"Children Found Murdered in Sunnydale Park

 

 

 

Late Tuesday evening, two children aged 7 or 8, were found dead in Sunnydale City Park by resident Joyce Summers. Ms. Summers had entered the park to find her daughter Buffy, a junior at Sunnydale High School, who has been connected with crime and strange events in the city recently. At 10 pm, Summers saw an adult male at the park. She recognized him as a local banker. She says he later dissapeared and then the bodies were found. Police are on the lookout for the man, as he is the only curent suspect.

 

The bodies were found with weird symbols on the hands, but police are keeping quiet for now. Many believe that the killings are part of a cult ritual and are asking for immediate action.

 

The identitites of the children are unkown, so police have asked for anyone who may have information to contact the Sunnydale Police Department.

 

Over the past year in this small town, there have been ten unsolved homicides, twelve missing persons cases, and over 60 assaults perpetrated by so called "monsters". Many live in fear for that very reason.

 

Summers has organized a vigil for tonight, where the Mayor of Sunnydale will speak. She urges all residents to attend so they may finally stop all this madness.

 

Anyone with information may contact the Sunnydale Police Department at 312-6524"

 

 

 

 

so what do you think?

 

my teacher made a few notes to add more or take something else (and thought the line about Buffy being a possible criminal wasbeing very libelous)but I got a decent grade for it. and obviously I made up the police phone number lol I called Buffy a junior if only cuz I wasnt a fan at this point and had no clue what season this was from. and obviously

[Mole 0]

I watched "The Wish" last night and it is such an amazing episode.

 

That is all I gotta say.

[Anya 0]

I think it's sort of overrated. I like it, but wouldn't say it's amazing. It is the first appearance of the best character ever though, so it deserves some praise.

[Mole 0]

BAH, OVERRATED?

[Ravenbomb 0]

It is the first appearance of the best character ever though, so it deserves some praise.

yeah, Vampire Willow was pretty awsm

[Mole 0]

And the Master.

 

And gansta Buffy.

 

And scruffy Giles.

 

And the last scene.

 

And the whole idea behind a different world.

 

And, yes, even Anya.