Good episode, lots of fun dialog and some real development. I guess Angel has admitted to himself that he’s in love with Cordy and probably will get back together with Wesley. Still don’t know where Cordy went, but the “I’m so bored” line is perfectly in character. Wes has official elminated his “rouge demon hunter” persona, he’s a legit bad ass. As is Lyla, nice touch with the Palm Pilot. And Fred with the bologna sandwich, don’t get her pissed off at you.
Angel hasn’t had a really strong season opener since the first season . . . until now. Although it looks like the opening eps will be used to wrap up loose ends from last season (and wasn’t it interesting that Sahjahn made no appearance in the "previously on . . . " segment?), this episode is setting things in play nicely.
I really can’t say enough about Alexis Denisof’s acting and development of the character of Wesley. Look at Wesley now and compare him to the annoying git of Buffy Season 3, and it’s a sea change, but watch the episodes in order, and the subtle increments show up. Of all of the characters, he’s been the most interesting to watch.
And how cool was Angel’s little speech to Connor at the end. Pretty much sums up what the show is about. Buffy could stand to hear that speech, too.
Wesley is turning into one tough dude. “I’ll take away your bucket.” Now THAT’s a badass. I’m a bit bummed that Lorne seems to be ignoring them, Mr. Bigshot…
I was very surprised at the W&H developments. I thought Lyla was on the way out, desperately trying to keep hold of her job. Good stuff!
Best line? “I love you, Connor. Now get out of my house.” Apologies if I’ve misquoted, but you get the drift. That Connor can pout like nobody’s business.
Wesley is shaping up to be an interesting part of this season, particularly now that Lila’s got some clout at Wolfram and Hart. And jeevmon, I completely agree with you about the character development and Denisof’s portrayal of Wesley. He’s become his own man, assertive and a little bit brutal.
Would it be too much to ask to see a little Skip next time? Particularly if Cordy’s so bored up there as a higher being.
Lila was great, asking Gavin to clean the head up off the table. I also wouldn’t mind seeing a Charmed/Angel crossover.
Damn the WB for programming Angel across from Alias. I’m always out Sunday nights and have to choose one or the other and Angel wins. Hey, no problem I thought, I’ll just catch Alias on ABC Family. Except that there it’s across from Firefly and/or John Doe. Damn, damn, damn.
Excellent ep. I still think the whole “Cordelia’s a higher being” thing is a trap.
I’m sort of watching Angel again (you know, after having only seen half a dozen or so eps since I gave up on it in season one after they killed Doyle) and I’ve got to say, I really liked the beginning when he was halucinating dinner. I was a bit suprised by the Fred/Gun kissing though, I’ve seen enough episodes to know who they are, but not that they were involved…or is that new? I knew she sort of had a thing for Angel, since I caught the end of the season before last and a few of the early season 3 eps, but that’s about it. I’ve got to watch seasons 2 and 3 at some point.
Vampires need blood or they become more and more corpse-like. Spike said that after getting the chip and it would be consistent with damage to higher brain functions Wesley was worried about.
His constant hallucination interspersed with the various twists in the episodes made for cool watching.
Things have both been wrapped up from last season to some extent and shaken up for the start of a new one. Wesley is one hell of a bad man now, I think even Lila would pause for a second if she learnt how he had a woman in his closet. His methodology is certainly in line with Angel’s more extreme moments.
All in all I’m excited to see this season. The show gives me a kind of World of Darkness feel and I like it.
Two really big surprises for me, Wes opening the closet door to reveal his captive, and Lila’s trick chair. I sure didn’t see either one of those coming, and it’s the sort of twist I really like in this show.
I’ll pick a nit and comment that in Angel’s first hallucination, Gunn had his goatee, although IIRC he did not the last time Angel saw him. Guess Angel’s mildly psychic.
I thought Fred was a little harsh on Wes. He brings Angel back from the dead and Fred gives him crap about not telling them about Conner. I guess if I found out that I was living with a patricidal child I’d be mildly ticked off too, but I think they need to try to bring Wes back into the fold. I think Angel’s hallucination showed that he wants that too, even if it make take a while for him to admit it.
I’m really liking the turn it seems that W+H may take towards Angel now. The whole “he’s our archenemy and keeps screwing up our plans, invading our office, and kidnapping our workers, so let’s keep an eye on him” plan seemed pretty stupid, considering how ruthless they are usually. One thing I do hope is that if Lila turns up the heat on Angel, he turns it up on her as well. There have been too many times where she hurts him or his “family”, and he just gives her threats with no action to back them up.
I hope we have seen the last of Conner and Justine for at least a few episodes. Conner is surpassing Dawn in the world’s whiniest teen category, and Justine wore out her welcome with me a long time ago.
All in all, a really good episode. Both this show and Buffy are looking promising so far this year.
Good start, definitely. Cordy’s “I’m bored” was great, since “Cordy as goddess” kinda makes everything pointless (you can ask “Why didn’t she rescue Angel?” for instance. The answer in this case was “she didn’t know,” but if you bring her into the narrative gives you a deus ex machina walking around.)
I’m still confused why Justine was so helpful. She didn’t seem to be tied up in most of it. “I’ll take away your bucket” was a neat line, but if Wesley is lying on the deck with his brains leaking out, I don’t think that’s much of a threat.
I think she was terrified of Wesley. He must be an awful badass fighter by now – the way he knew what she was going to do, the look on her face when he talked about her bucket – and she didn’t want to cross him.
Why did she cooperate so much?
She hates her bucket. Wesley promised her her freedom when they found Angel.
On another note, when Angel came into the room as Connor attacked Fred and Gunn, was anyone else having Princess Bride flashbacks? I half expected him to challenge Connor to a duel, “to the pain.”
Wesley can take Justine anywhere and anytime that he wants. He established that pretty clearly last season by disarming her at will, sensing when she was following him, etc. The only way Justine was able to get close enough to Wesley to hurt him was when she pretended to be hurt and Wesley was already distracted by carrying baby Connor. Since he now doesn’t trust her at all, that’s not going to happen again. When I saw her uncuffed and the wrench on the desk, I knew she was going to go for it, and I wondered if Wesley screwed up. In fact, he didn’t. He knows that he can take her anytime, and she is scared of him, though she doesn’t want to admit it.
It’s interesting to see that the qualities that led to Wesley’s being ostracized from the group are still in evidence, namely, the absolute cold certainty in the righteousness of the actions he takes and withholding vital information on the grounds that the people potentially affected by it are better off not knowing. These are qualities that were in evidence in Wesley’s character from the character’s introduction (witness calling in the Goon Squad to abduct faith, and the way he was willing to sacrifice Willow to keep the Mayor from getting the Box of Gavrok). It’s a testament to the writers and to Alexis Denisof’s skill as an actor that these same qualities are still very much in evidence even though he has gone through significant transformations in other areas.
A great episode, overall-- I loved the final line from Cordy, I was shocked by Fred’s sudden attack on Connor, and Fred’s attempted slang and Gunn’s reactions to it were hilarious.
I think the character development has been quite impressive for Lila, the enemy I love to hate. She’s stayed a surprising and vicious nemesis for Team Angel, and her flashes of weakness only make her ruthlessness more effective. While I don’t want her to succeed against Angel, watching her work the ranks at Wolfram & Hart has been been a scary pleasure.
As some may know, I hate Angel. I am very vocal about my dislike for that vampire. So I never watched the show—until last night. And that’s only because I heard there would be thematic crossovers with BTVS (and there was, so, YAY!) Having said that, I actually liked it, and will watch next week. (Of course, Angel didn’t have a huge role last night, being stuck in the bottom of the ocean most of the hour, maybe that had somehting to do with it…)
Re-Justine
I agree that she is absolutely terrified of Wesley. IMHO the gag was to prevent involuntary noises while Lyla was there. Justine could have attempted to rattle the bars, bang the bucket etc if she had wanted to alert Lyla that she was in the closet. Justine could have hotwired the boat and attempted escape while Wesley was diving. She didn’t try to get away because she was certain that Wes would track her down and punish her. When Wes says “I’ll take away your bucket.”, she doesn’t even attempt to fight him.
Re- Lorne
Fluffy, hmmm? I say that Lorne left a pet behind. The note saying what it was and where in the hotel it was were lost (something like Ms Calendar’s disk). I expect hints and then an episode where Fluffy, due to lack of proper care, has turned into a hige monster with claws, fangs, etc.
RE-Gunn
He makes a comment that the smell of the vampire’s lair is another reason to want to stay “rosy and pink.” WTF? Gunn may be rosy, but he sure as heck isn’t pink. I’m amazed the line slipped by the writers and actors.
Re-Cordy
I assumed from Skip’s speech that she had become powerful enough to move up to the next class of warriors-not that she was some kind of goddess. Gunn, Fred, Wes etc are warriors with no special powers at all. Buffy, Willow, Angel etc are warriors with abilities beyond those of normal humans. Cordelia has become powerful enough to fight a higher level of opponent. Her role isn’t to sit around doing nothing (I’m curious as to how long she’s been bored. IMHO not very long). Her role is to fight the big baddies who could wipe the floor with Angel and Buffy.
Re-Lyla
I agree. However, I can see why W+H is scared to deal with Angel. The Senior Partners want Angel as a member of the forces of evil. Should anyone at W+H accidentally kill him, they would be punished very severely. I figure that Gavin and the rest aren’t scared of Angel, they’re scared of the Senior Partners. Line from Prophecy 3-“I can arrange it so that you spend a millenia in agony, chained to a wall, wondering exactly what it is that has been burrowing its way up your bowels for the last few centuries.”
I’m pretty sure it was Justine diving to get Angel, not Wes. Lila (or is it Lyla) is ruthless, that was never in question. She always seemed a little unsure of herself before, I guess Wes rubbed off on her.
Um, that’s not exactly the way I wanted to express that last thought, but it’s probably true.
I noticed the “rosy and pink” line and it made me doubletake as well.
I thought Fred’s attack on Conner was totally in character. She has shown the ability to plot, act, and be quite vicious.
Clearly Wes is still trying to keep distance between him and the Angelettes, but he wants to be asked. But I think it has to come from Angel, who is the only one who can forgive him and/or thank him.