FEATURE: Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Out Of My Mind

Previously on Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Buffy's somehow acquired a sister. She's also decided to train harder, study better and generally become a more successful Slayer. Spike's chip is still in his head and he still plans on defeating Buffy somehow.

Holy foreshadowing, Batman!

Seriously, there is so much of it in this episode and I'm finding it quite baffling that I barely remember it as a result of this fact. Sure, I remember the major developments like Spike realising he's in love with Buffy and Joyce starting to get sick (oh dear god), but the Riley stuff? Not a jot. Let's talk about the good stuff first though. Do you remember where you were when you first saw that kiss?

I do. It was, as ever, a Thursday night on BBC 2. I'm fairly sure we'd had something like spaghetti bolognese for dinner. I'd converted my family on to the Buffy wagon by this point, so we were all watching it together. No more sneaking around and messing with the VCR for me. Someone, I can't remember who, shouted "NO!" in shock. We stared aghast. Spike kissed Buffy. Buffy kissed Spike. Spike was dreaming! He's in love with Buffy! Ah, it's never going to go anywhere... Or is it?! Well, we all know the answer to that question now, but then? What a shock that was. 

Elsewhere, we have the first arrival of the ongoing season arc outside of Dawn as Ben shows up to treat Joyce for the first time. He's still all Gentle Ben for now, but another jigsaw puzzle is in place. There's another in Tara starting to get a little concerned that Willow is overreaching a little with magic. The other key bit is that Joyce is on the decline, though again, we don't know it yet. Cleverly, the show distracts us with Riley's ongoing plight, yet it's all pretty ominous and, like her death will be, shockingly normal. There's nothing mystical in these bits of the episode, just cold, hard human reality. I'm not ready, you guys.

There was also the joy of seeing Spike and Harmony back together again. Exasperated and useless Spike really is the best Spike and it's amazing how successful the show managed to make him work that change as a character. Credit must go to James Marsters, of course, and to the writers, who'll keep crafting a truly fascinating ongoing and begrudging addition the gang. Plus, we get Mercedes McNab in full bimbo mode. Her scene with the surgeon is classic Harmony, full of little gems, but my favourite has to be her hastily extinguishing her cigarette upon seeing the No Smoking sign. Such a badass.

I supposed I have to return to the Riley stuff now. It's clear that they were running out of ideas for the character of Riley by this point. We've already done the Riley gets sick because of the Initiative's meddling bit, but now we get it with added masculine insecurity. As I've said before, I like that Buffy tackles the idea of men not being able to deal with Buffy's strength and doing it through Riley makes a tonne of sense. I love that Buffy immediately calls him out on it when he points out his differences to Angel. What I don't love about the episode is mostly that it, and the rest of the show, has forgotten to make us care. It also made Graham kinda sucky. The post-Angel relationship was always going to be tough to win people over, but Riley's just so beige. He really is everything that he fears he is, just not to Buffy.

Out Of My Mind is one of those episodes that's more important in the long run than it is in the moment. Buffy getting her life together and doing well is the biggest sign of doom we could possibly have, but there are plenty of other hints towards it in the episode. Oh boy.

Quote of the Week:

Spike: I will know your blood, Slayer. I will make your neck my chalice and drink deep. [Stalks off and immediately falls into an open grave.] OW!

Let's Get Trivial: Spike's watching an episode of Dawson's Creek in his crypt, which Mercedes McNab had previously guest-starred on.

- Becky

You can catch Becky's look at previous episode, The Replacement, here.

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FEATURE: Angel - First Impressions

Previously on Angel: Angel has discovered the useful sanctuary of The Host, where people go to sing in order for him to "read" them. He's also made an ally with Charles Gunn, who had to stake his recently turned sister, and the office has moved into the Hyperion hotel. Elsewhere, Wolfram & Hart have resurrected Darla in order to get to Angel.

Gunn arrives at the hotel for an appointment with Angel to go after a snitch for information on a demon named Deevak, but Angel has been asleep all day, dreaming of a date with Darla. Eventually, they make it to the meet, but are attacked by vampires; they take them out, but Angel struggles in the fight. Later, Cordelia has a vision of Gunn in danger. Unable to reach Angel who is asleep and dreaming again, Cordelia heads out to help Gunn and the pair have to team up, but Deevak is lying in wait for them.

Whereas last week, the focus was very much on Angel himself, First Impressions is a chance for us all to get to know Gunn a little better as well as spending time getting to know the new, improved and more selfless Cordelia. As odd couple pairings go, he of the poverty-stricken minority and she of the white privilege, it's one that's not perhaps mined for as much as its potential would suggest, but it functions enough for the character explorations needed. Gunn's still smarting from losing his sister and his continuing spiral into self-destruction just isn't acceptable now he's part of the team. Cordelia's little pep talk to him at the end of the episode is one of her best moments, a big sign of her willingness to change and put herself out there for other people.

The other great moment of the episode, though not especially important to the plot, is the ongoing development of the friendship between Angel and Wes (which we all know is going to real rocky soon). I don't have much else to say about it, but it's a scene so good that I'm going to print it here:

Wesley: Come on. What are you waiting for?
Angel: [holds up a pink motorcycle helmet] I-I-I really don't think it's gonna fit.
Wesley: Oh, of course it will. Put it on.
Angel: You know, I-I don't need a helmet for protection.
Wesley: Angel. It's the law in California. Do you want us to get pulled over?
Angel: No.
Wesley: Then what's the problem?
Angel: Well, it-it's just, you know... the whole... visibility issue, not to mention the whole hat-head thing and, you know, when you really think about it, how come I have to wear the ladies helmet?

Wesley: Stop being such a wanker and put it on!

[Angel puts the pink helmet on]

Wesley: Looks good. Hop on board gorgeous.

Angel: You'll pay for this.

The other element of the episode and one that plays more into the season's ongoing storyline is the Darla dreams that Angel has been having. Dreams are a funny thing in the Buffyverse, often prophetic, but nearly always dangerous in some way. The episode has some sly fun with Angel's dreams, allowing The Host to crop back up and reference Angel's eclectic music taste as well as showing Angel and Darla moon-bathing, completely with sunglasses and beach loungers. 

I like that Darla's tactic is to tempt Angel away from his path, shortly after his resolve to continue down it and help people for little or no reward. It's especially key after we see his more apathetic state towards humanity in Are You Now or Have You Ever Been, demonstrating that Angel is perhaps a little more corruptible than he likes to think if his resentment is high enough. Having Julie Benz back in full devious Darla mode is always a joy because she's one of the few characters to have made a massive impression with just a little runtime. Exploring her relationship with Angel further, as well as allowing Benz to be all sly, offers a good undercurrent for the rest of the episode.

Quote of the Week:

Cordelia: Maybe *we* can help.

Gunn: You two? I find Deevak, I'm gonna need more than C-3PO and Stick-Figure Barbie backing me up, no offense.
Wesley: Very little taken.

Let's Get Trivial: It's a truth universally acknowledged that a Jane Austen reference is a fine thing to get into a fantasy series about vampires. The episode title is a nod to Pride and Prejudice's original title and the plot carries the familiar hallmarks of two very different people coming together after initially not getting along very well. Not much romance between Cordy and Gunn though.

- Becky

You can read Becky's look at previous episode, Are You Now Or Have You Ever Been, here.

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FEATURE: Buffy the Vampire Slayer - The Replacement

Previously on Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Buffy now has a little sister that everyone thinks has been around forever. Xander's dissatisfied with his lot in life as a result of still living in his parents' basement.

A big, veiny luminescent demon comes gunning for Buffy, but instead whacks Xander with his very own glowstick of destiny at the city dump. Initially, it seems as if our boy's ok and is taken away by the gang, but then, what we believe to be the actual Xander wakes up still in the dump. He's not particularly good at, well, everything, whilst a considerably suaver lookalike inserts himself into Xander's life. Schlubby Xander turns to his oldest friend Willow as Suave Xander gets the Slayer onside. Eventually they figure out that Suave Xander isn't a demonic replacement, but Xander's other half. 

It's a Buffy classic storytelling device in this one; whenever any character needs to go through some kind of affirmation from the rest of the Scoobs, they have to go through some kind of transformation first. Think Giles turning into a demon in A New Man, Buffy when she turns invisible or Willow transforming everyone else. It's Xander's turn in this one as the two halves of himself battle it out for surpremacy without knowing they're two sides of the same coin rather than two distinct people. It's not quite Kirk in The Enemy Within but it does make for some good, concentrated Xander hijinks (also, they reference Star Trek together, which is just lovely).

It follows on from his desire to no longer be everyone's butt monkey, a rant seen in Buffy vs. Dracula. Xander's often the Buffy damsel-in-distress and frequently feels he is completely useless to the gang's efforts. It's Schlubby Xander's chief fear in this episode, that everyone's much more taken with Suave Xander and that he's of more use to the general scheme of things. Like The Zeppo, The Replacement is quick to demonstrate that, actually, that's really not the same. The promotion given to Suave Xander is earned by regular old Xander before the events of the episode, same with the credit check that lands him the apartment. As Giles says, everything in both Xanders already exists before the split. He is both Schlubby and Suave.

Also, the fact that the Scoobies keep saving Xander has got to count for something. As Primeval illustrated, he functions as the heart of the group and they'd quickly fall apart without him. His final scene with Riley, in which soldier boy admits he knows Buffy doesn't love him, is a clear indication of that; he's the one that people trust and he's the one that "sees" everything. It's something that will be more explored as the series continues, particularly in the seventh season where his sort-of outsider status helps with keeping Dawn on track. The Replacement is nowhere near as good as The Zeppo nor does it really say anything we don't already know, but it works as a solid reminder of Xander's strengths as well as building his confidence back up.

Quote of the Week:

Schlubby Xander: [Anya] entirely wants us to have sex together! Which would be wrong and very confusing...
Giles: We just, um, need to arrange the candles. Also, we should continue to pretend we heard none of the disturbing sex talk now.
Willow: Check. Candles and pretense.

Demonology 101: Jane Espenson revealed that Toth was so named, just so she could include the 'toth' is British slang gag.

Sunnydale Who's Who: Kelly Donovan, Nicholas Brendon's twin, plays the body double for Xander and gets to speak in the scenes where both Xanders have lines. Identical twins sure come in handy.

- Becky

You can check out Becky's look at the previous episode, Real Me, here.

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FEATURE: Angel - Are You Now Or Have You Ever Been

Previously on Angel: In the ongoing battle against Wolfram & Hart, Angel's offices were the first casualty, blowing up rather spectacularly. They're in need of a new place. 

After he briefly visited an old hotel in the previous episode, Angel becomes intrigued by the building’s past and gets Wesley and Cordelia to start investigating as he heads down to the hotel itself. The Hyperion dates back to the 1920s, but Angel has a history that he doesn’t disclose at first, having been a resident there in 1952. Strange events date back throughout the hotel’s past, including during Angel’s residency when a man in the room next door kills himself and sparks off an amateur investigation with disastrous results. Meanwhile, in the present, Angel seeks to destroy the Thesulac demon for good.

I adore the Hyperion set in all its 1920s glory. The production design and the way that it is shot in the 1950s flashbacks gives it a Gothic feel; long, dark corridors seem to stretch on forever, people lurk in shadows and it never feels entirely visible. Some of the colours used, muted greens and reds, also ensure that the episode has a pulp fiction look to it (of the Dashiell Hammett variety, not Tarantino). 1950s Judy is a classic mysterious dame with a stolen stack of cash and a secret; she's passing as a white woman at a time when being Other was not at all recommended. Like Angel, she's an outcast. He gets to be her brooding hero, begrudgingly deciding to help her.

That style builds into the world of the other guests of the hotel, glimpsed only through brief scenes in which they speculate about the guy who killed himself in 215. There's a blacklisted writer (McCarthyism is in full flow, seen briefly on a TV clip containing the episode's title) who sees it is as one of his plots, a blonde in a green dress with the kind of husky voice you expect in a noir and an actor who may as well have walked straight off the set of Dragnet. Just the facts, ma'am. Of course, they don’t actually have a clue what’s happened because it’s a Thesulac demon sucking the life out of the guests.

Everything, naturally, spirals out of control. Judy saves her own skin by pointing the finger at Angel and suggesting he’s a murderer. The angry mob hangs Angel and the Thesulac demon feeds on their rage. Setting it in the 1950s, a time of great paranoia and prejudice, is a masterstroke and really builds into the general uneasy atmosphere that the flashbacks carry. The moment is a crucial turning point in Angel’s post-soul life, trying to help out humans and receiving their ire and violence as a result. It’s hardly surprising that he allows the Thesulac to feed on the residents of the hotel after the lynching. It’s a really dark move and one which blurs the line between Angel and Angelus somewhat,

There’s a heavy foreshadowing of Angel’s indifference to Dru and Darla feeding on Wolfram & Hart lawyers later in the season, but there’s not just darkness there. There’s hope too. The final scene with Old Judy, in which he forgives and comforts her after her years of torment since his apparent death, shows Angel’s life is one of peaks and troughs. He may lose his way occasionally, but with the right people around him, he’ll find his way back.

Are You Now Or Have You Ever Been is a classy affair, one of Angel's finest, that both looks great and does a lot of solid character work for Tall, Dark and Forehead too. I like that there aren’t any really big set pieces here, no heavily choreographed scraps. Instead, it feels like Angel at its most human, exploring the kind of negative side of mankind whilst also demonstrating the need for forgiveness in order to move on. Plus, Angel looks pretty natty in 1950s threads.

Quote of the Week: 

Angel: Watch his tentacles!

Cordelia: Excuse me?!
Wes: Tentacles.

Cordelia: Ooh...

Let's Get Trivial: The odious bellhop's name is Frank Gilnitz, a reference back to writer Tim Minear's time as a writer and story editor on The X Files. "Gilnitz" was a name often used by The X Files writers' room for incidental or unseen characters, usually with the first name John. An amalgam of John Shiban, Vince Gilligan and Frank Spotnitz, the name became a running joke in the sci-fi series.

Demonology 101: Angel catches a Bible that is thrown at him by the bookshop owner and it burns his hands. This is the first time in the Buffyverse that it is confirmed that Bibles are harmful to vamps.

LA Who's Who: The concierge, Ronald Meeks, is played by John Kapelos. You Breakfast Clubbers might recognise him as Carl, Shermer High School's janitor.

- Becky

You can read Becky's look at previous episode, Judgment, here.

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FEATURE: Angel - Judgment

Previously on Angel: The gang are working LA to fight demonic crime and help the helpless. In the process, they find themselves on the wrong side of a bunch of lawyers determined to bring Angel down, resurrecting Darla as part of their plan. Angel has formed an unlikely alliance with a vampire hunter named Gunn.

Since the explosion that destroyed their offices last season, Angel Investigations has been working out of Cordelia's apartment, complete with assistance from Phantom Dennis who has been very keen to help. When Cordy has a vision of a horrific monster, Angel goes on the hunt to track it down, but discovers that, when he kills it, it's not an evil demon. It's protecting a young pregnant woman whose fate is to be decided by a mystical tribunal and Angel just killed her champion. Wracked with guilt, Angel sets about trying to help, taking on the role of protector himself in order to save the young woman and right the wrong he committed.

If ever there was an episode that functions as a microcosm of Angel's ongoing mission, then Judgment is it, boiling down to Angel kills someone and then has to atone for it. One thing Whedon shows (and films) have always excelled at is the reintroduction of the show's MO and key themes, as well as sometimes expanding the world beyond what we're used to. After the Shanshu Prophecy revealed that he will become human again once he achieves his redemption, Angel's been going after the demons in LA hard and fast, but quickly learns over the course of the episode that this isn't about keeping score, but doing the right thing. We're introduced to The Host and his sanctuary nightclub, swiftly confirming the idea that not all demons are evil and that safe places exist within the downtown area.

Within just a few scenes, Angel has reasserted everything we know, reiterated Angel's ongoing quest for redemption and widened the world out to explore something more in how the demon world works. Lorne's introduction and narration is a key part of that, reminding us all of the kind of city LA is in this world (and singing Gloria Gaynor is a cracking joke). Likewise, Angel, Wes and Cordy interrupting the sacrifice in the gym swiftly asserts their respective roles. It's an astonishing bit of exposition that never feels like it, but instead feels like we're cosying back down with a few friends we haven't seen for a while. 

Judgment also contains two of the most memorable images of the series' run. The first is David Boreanaz absolutely slaughtering 'Mandy' in order to get information out of Lorne and admitting he's a fan of Barry Manilow's hit because he thinks it's pretty. Then, there's the big joust itself. I've only seen this episode once prior to this rewatch viewing, but the sight of Angel, on a horse and kitted out like a Knight of the Round Table on an LA street is one so incongruous that it sticks like glue in the memory. Not many shows could pull of that kind of image.

The last scene with Faith is a lovely moment to end on. She and Angel share their respective roads to redemption and support each other accordingly, a nice continuation of the relationship that was touched upon back in the third season of Buffy and cemented in Angel's first season. It offers up a different, more vulnerable dynamic to Angel's character that isn't often seen in his more leadership role with the Angel Investigations crew. It fits nicely into the undercurrent of the episode, around second chances and the ability to change your nature and go against it. 

A strong return then for Angel in the second season. I didn't even touch on Wolfram & Hart, but their Darla plan is already rumbling along nicely in the background. Now, if you don't mind, I need to go and listen to something catchy to get that damn 'Mandy' out of my head.

Quote of the Week:

Angel: There are three things I don't do; tan, date, or sing in public.

Let's Get Trivial: The closing credits feature outtakes from Angel's hilarious performance of 'Mandy'; stay to the very end post "Grrr, Argh" to hear David Boreanaz's Elvis impersonation: "Thank you, thank you very much."

LA Who's Who: The late Andy Hallett joins Angel's revolving cast of regulars as The Host, later known as Lorne. J. August Richards is bumped up to series regular and Eliza Dushku makes a quick appearance as Faith, her name hidden in the closing credits rather than the opening ones to keep the surprise.

- Becky

You can check out Becky's look at previous episode, To Shanshu in LA, here.

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FEATURE: Angel - To Shanshu in LA

Previously on Angel: During a daring raid on Wolfram & Hart with the help of Lindsey McDonald, Angel grabs a scroll for no discernible reason. Meanwhile, Lindsey had the opportunity to leave his employers alive, but instead opted for a considerable raise.

Wesley continues to work on the prophecy that Angel brought back with him from Wolfram & Hart and reveals that it is possibly fated for Angel to die. Rather than worry about it, Angel simply carries on with his usual occupation of saving people. However, the lawyers have a plan on the horizon, something called 'The Raising' and summon a big bad wormy dude to take care of Angel. When he promises to strip Angel of his connection to the Powers That Be, he really goes to town and Wesley and Cordelia's lives hang in the balance.

As finales go, To Shanshu in LA is not your typical, but then, the first season hasn't been particularly typical at any point. There's no real Big Bad to rally against, nor is there a discernible apocalypse to stop. Instead, the focus is on how Angel has now become reliant on his team, having moved from the loner that Doyle clung to in the beginning to the man concerned for his friends and willing to save them at any cost. It's also a pretty big hint towards his growing feelings for Cordelia, something that will bubble under the surface for a while yet.

That intimate focus gives the episode a stronger purpose than simply fighting a bad guy. It makes the world feel bigger, the stakes higher and the consequences more severe. David Boreanaz has to do some emotional heavy lifting here and it really works to illustrate Angel's concern for his friends. I love his final brush off to Kate, partly because it's a good measure of his determination and also because Kate has become such an irritating little role, cropping up at weird crime scenes to pseudo-moralise and look a bit peeved. She's the only weak link in this episode, but thankfully, Angel gives her a good talking to.

The character work elsewhere is lovely and neatly done too. Cordelia, so often seeing her role with Angel as a paycheck rather than a lifestyle, is suddenly subjected to the howls of pain in the city as her mind is opened up by Wormy Dude. It gives her a new sense of perspective, a much more selfless one that shifts her to see her work with Angel as both a necessity and a calling. It's a big development for her. She spent much of her time with the Scoobies resenting her role within the gang, often only helping out begrudgingly when it became clear the end of the world is at stake. Here though, she finally rises to the challenge and even starts making sandwiches.

The wider ramifications of the Shanshu prophecy add to the finale's sense of urgency. Wesley's little mistranslation of it to suggest that Angel is careening towards his death is a brief loss of meaning for Angel. He's already dead so it has no consequences for him and in this frame of mind, redemption is for little more than quenching his own guilt. However, discovering that it might lead to him becoming human again gives both the character and the show something to work towards. It's a positive, heroic endpoint. Naturally it becomes a little complicated as Angel's story to develop, but it gives the show a more concrete focus, something which will only benefit it as it moves forward.

Finally, there's that Darla reveal at the end. It's such a cool season cliffhanger that I almost wish I hadn't seen the rest of the show, just to get really excited about the first episode of the second season. Julie Benz has always been one of the Buffyverse's more memorable recurring characters and I'm looking forward to seeing her around again. Plus, it also means Drusilla will show up some point soon and that's always good for a laugh.

So we have reached the end of Angel's first season. Like the companion fourth season of Buffy, there has been quite the variation in quality, largely due to its need to establish itself as something of the same world, but also very different. Naturally, Angel couldn't go for the same kind of experimentation we see in Buffy''s fourth season, but it's something that has worked well to balance the two shows. The second season will be a little dodgy, but the show does begin to grow in confidence now that it has set out its parameters and darker, bloodier atmosphere. Poor Lindsey eh? Someone give him a hand...

Sorry.

Quote of the Week:

Wesley: Uhh... oops. I may have made a tiny mistake. The word 'shanshu' that I said meant you were going to die? Actually I think it means you're going to live.
Cordelia: Ok as tiny mistakes go, that's not one!

Let's Get Trivial: The episode title is a reference to the film To Live and Die in LA as 'shanshu' is revealed to mean 'to live and to die.'

You can read Becky's look at previous episode, Blind Date, here.

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FEATURE: Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Restless

Previously on Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Buffy, Willow, Xander and Giles magically combined to take down Adam and the Initiative, invoking the power of the First Slayer to do so. 

Usually this is the point of the review where I give you all a little plot breakdown to remind you of what goes on in the episode. It might not be all the details, but just enough to jog your memory. For Restless, there's not really a whole lot of plot to sum up; Buffy, Willow, Xander and Giles settle in for a night of movies after they take down the Initiative, still feeling wired. Alas, they upset the First Slayer with their spell and she tries to kill them in their dreams. That's pretty much it, but the meat of Restless does not lie within its plot, but rather in everything else.

It would be absolutely impossible for me to talk about all the things I love or that are of note in Restless because it's so densely packed with thematic content, character exploration and that all important Buffy hallmark of foreshadowing. Dreams in this world have always functioned as a form of prophecy, particularly for Buffy herself, so it's fitting that we have one such narrative entirely constructed around what has been and what is coming takes place within a dreamscape. It's an episode that only gets richer on repeat viewings as a result, something which many instalments can boast, but not to quite the same levels. Later watches tend to be reference spotting, but my first watch was mainly revelling in how surreal and comical everything felt. A prime example is Buffy offering Xander popcorn:

"Butter flavour?"
"New car smell."

It's also an episode that gets a lot funnier when you've seen Death of a Salesman. Many dream sequences in television often feel a little too well crafted to really embody the random twists and turns dreams can take. Restless manages to keep that sense of unpredictability for the most part; it's tautly wound chaos, capable of spinning off in different directions as required. Whilst it's very amusing to hear these exchanges and to witness the kind of bonkers delights Whedon comes up with, there's also a lot of deeper work going on when it comes to exploring the characters and their relationships with the world around them. 

Willow's dream is positively brimming over with her various neuroses, but also foreshadowing for the character. There's even a nod back to her disastrous performance in Madame Butterfly from the first season episode, Nightmares. The big theme across her dream is the idea of her true self and people (including a cameo-ing Oz) make references to others finding out who she really is. The end of her dream indicates she still feels like the high school geek that everyone makes fun of behind her back. However, in hindsight, it's easy to see those comments as nods towards her future as a powerful, and briefly evil, witch and her addiction to magic that she works hard to keep hidden from everyone. Tara also notes that we don't know everything about her yet, something which will crop up again in the episode Family.

The erotic element to Xander's dream speaks a lot to how he's always treated the women around him, mainly that they're sex objects, even, perhaps disturbingly, Buffy's mom. Additionally, it also demonstrates his own feeling of inadequacy in the face of them, how he feels stuck in his basement and that he's of no help to his friends. The military aspect of his dream builds out from the history of the character as well as becoming another system in which he feels trapped. As if to really make the point that his journey is dark and aimless, there's Snyder at the end of it to confirm how pointless he is in the scheme of things. But he's the 'comfortador', a role that will become increasingly important in the show's later seasons.

Giles' dream is perhaps the clearest, simply because his role in the show is relatively straight-forward. He's the father figure for Buffy and their fairground night out in the cemetery reiterates that for everyone. Even his antagonistic relationships have an element of the paternal in them, such as his scene with Spike on the swings (Spike's wearing the suit he'd later wear in Tabula Rasa as well as Giles commenting that he's like a son to him). His big moment of the episode though is the classic Exposition Song (look out for composer Christophe Beck on the piano - also a quick shout-out to his awesome score), possibly Giles' greatest scene not involving a sombrero. He does his usual role of getting the audience up to speed on the episode bad guy and giving out instructions to the others, but via the medium of song (see Quote of the Week for some lyrics, obviously).

"Come on, put your back into it. A Watcher scoffs at gravity!"

Buffy's dream is the most important one when it comes to foreshadowing and as such, definitely didn't make very much sense upon first viewing. Her conversations with Tara, representing herself and the First Slayer, hint to Buffy's path for the fifth season. She's referred to as 'killer' several times by Riley, who goes on to leave her on her own. A lot of the fourth season has been exploring the successes and weaknesses inherent in being a Slayer with friends. Despite the magical joining spell that saw them all make up and take down evil last week, the message here is that Buffy, at the end, will be on her own. Tara cryptically states: "You think you know... What's to come... What you are. You haven't even begun" hinting towards Buffy's exploration of her Slayer heritage in the coming season.

The source of Buffy's power will become increasingly important now as the seasons develop and of course, there's a new character on the horizon: "Be back before Dawn..." Not only that, but we also have another nod to Buffy's impending demise, something which might not be apparent to any first time viewers of the episode. The focus on the incorrect clock in Buffy's room is a deliberate reference to her death. Back in her Graduation Day dream, Faith warns of something "counting down to 7-3-0." Buffy would die approximately 730 days after that initial warning. When Tara states that the clock is wrong, she is indicating that Buffy no longer has 730 days.

Hush was probably the moment when Buffy the Vampire Slayer truly started to embrace the more experimental aspect, but it's Restless that really runs with it, producing a season finale that is both wholly unconventional and entirely fantastic. It's a bold move to put something like this as a finale and it's a complete oddball of an episode, but it's an experiment that pays dividends for fans returning to the show. And so we come to the end of this season, which is the most consistently inconsistent of Buffy's entire run. When the story has focused on the Initiative, the interest waned, but episodes like Hush, Something Blue and Pangs keep the show going and Restless is the surrealist icing on the cake.

So after saying it would be impossible to talk about everything in this episode, I managed to give it a damn good go. It's hard to do it justice really, so layered is it as a piece of work. But what's this? I didn't mention the Cheese Man. He wears the cheese. It does not wear him.

Quote of the Week:

Giles: "I've got to warn Buffy / there's every chance she might be next / And Xander and Willow / Try not to bleed on my couch / I've just had it steam-cleaned..."

Let's Get Trivial: This is the show's only episode to begin straight away with the opening titles and not with a cold open.

Demonology 101: This is only the first appearance of the First Slayer. She will return later when Buffy embarks on her vision quest to learn more about her origins.

Sunnydale Who's Who: Originally this episode was to feature far more cameos than it eventually ended up with (just Oz, Olivia, Harmony and Snyder). Those supposed to appear were Jenny Calendar, Larry, Faith and Amy, with Angel and Cordelia having been written into the episode only to be taken out again once scheduling with Angel became too difficult.

- Becky

You can read Becky's look at previous episode, Primeval, here.

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FEATURE: Angel - Blind Date

Previously on Angel: Angel's been causing problems for some shadier-than-normal lawyers from Wolfram & Hart whose previous efforts to stop him have been thwarted. Angel's also made an unlikely ally in the form of homeless street fighter, Charles Gunn.

Angel's on a routine patrol when he witnesses a blind woman, Vanessa Brewer, assassinate a man in front of him. He finds out that she's on trial and attempts to demonstrate her abilities by throwing her sunglasses back to her, which she catches without seemingly ever knowing they're coming. Of course, she's represented by Wolfram & Hart, Lindsey specifically, and she is acquitted of all charges. It turns out Lindsey's a bit of a rising star in the firm and as a result of this victory, he's offered another case when he's told that Vanessa will be employed to kill three children for undisclosed reasons. It's a step too far for the lawyer and he turns to Angel for help.

One of the main reasons I like this episode so much is that it gives me a chance to talk about Lindsey. Lindsey is one of the more fascinating characters of Angel's world, simply because he never quite operates within the same boundaries as everyone else. He can move freely between being good and evil as his situation dictates, but in the end, he will always be a slave to his ambition. Take this episode for instance; standing by whilst kids are killed is not something his rather dubious morality can tolerate, so he switches sides. However, in doing so, he witnesses the real power over life and death that his bosses wield and when they offer him a second chance, he takes it, returning to the darker side of the fence because it's tactically advantageous to do so.

It makes him unpredictable as the show continues because his boundaries are never quite clear to anyone but himself. He knows what he does is wrong, but he also knows what standing by looks like as this episode illustrates. He's a child of poverty and misfortune, someone who has had to claw their way out of a hole in order to have the kind of freedom denied to him. He's the dark, twisted embodiment of the American Dream, one of the few examples of this that the show offers us. 

Blind Date is a more sombre affair than we've seen recently, but it has a couple of really cool set pieces at its heart. The big one is of course the Wolfram & Hart heist that we see Angel and Lindsey pull off with the help of the returning Gunn. It's an elegant mix of comedy (mainly from Gunn's angry black man routine) and the kind of suave burglary you'd expect from Angel. Rather than beat up the demon guarding the vault, he simply blows a Wesley-concocted powder at it and tips it over. It's a nice comic beat in the heart of an otherwise dark episode, but one which will also prove to be a defining one.

Yes, as he goes to exit the vault, Angel notices an old scroll and picks it up for no other reason than he thinks he should. As Wesley reveals at the end of the episode, it contains writings on a vampire with a soul and possibly more information about Angel's place in the world. It's something that he's been struggling to find, particularly since his return from Hell, and this could point him in the way. Earlier in the episode, he finds himself frustrated by the powerlessness he feels in the face of a human world that Wolfram & Hart have got rigged. His vampirism hampers him from doing the best he can, but it also allows him to operate outside that system.

Somewhat helpfully, it's the first episode in a while where all successful parts of Angel have been firing at the same time (it certainly gives me far more to talk about than War Zone did). Though we don't see much of Cordy and Wes, they're both settled into their respective roles and work their way through the exposition with ease. But it's in the dark morality at the heart of the episode that the show really finds its feet. Angel chooses to fight his fight because he can and because it can offer him the redemption he seeks. Lindsey fights only when he has to. Their different views clash spectacularly here, but the two final scenes, where Lindsey accepts his new job and Angel watches over his city, is a perfect encapsulation of both. 

Quote of the Week:

Lindsey: I get myself killed, that'll convince you I've changed?
Angel: It'll be a start.

Inventive Kill: Angel suspends a vampire by the neck with a chain and then uses the pulley system to stake the vampire on a slat sticking out of a pile of pallets. Mad skillz.

LA Who's Who: Jennifer Badger, who plays Vanessa Brewer, was a stunt double for both Charisma Carpenter and Eliza Dushku across both series.

The Sunnydale Connection: When Cordelia comes up against encrypted files, she naturally calls in the wiz, Willow. The half-heard conversation is lovely; "Willow says hey!"

- Becky

You can check out Becky's look at previous episode, War Zone, here.

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FEATURE: Angel - War Zone

Previously on Angel: The big guy's had a bit of a bust-up with Buffy over the Faith issue, but his reputation is starting to spread across LA. It's attracting new clients and his fair share of enemies.

Cordelia organises a meeting with a big software billionaire, David, who is having a little issue with the fact he got a bit too into Dungeons and Dragons and went to a demon brothel. Angel takes the case to retrieve any evidence of David's dalliances before his stakeholders can find out. His investigation leads him to a gang of homeless youths in South Central who have been waging a territorial war with LA's vampire population. Trouble is, they think he's a new Big Bad that needs defeating. Hijinks ensue, people are lost in the fight and Angel finds himself with a new begrudging ally in one amateur vampire hunter Charles Gunn.

War Zone suffers from its position in the season, right after the extraordinarily good Faith episodes and prior to the last two episodes, which are decidedly more meaty. It's a bit like Go Fish in the second season of Buffy though thankfully produces something a bit more successful than walking fish men. 

In fact, the whole episode is quite the heavy-handed social exploration, covering the gamut of class from the wealth of David to the grinding poverty that Gunn and his gang endure. There's references to race in there too, though, perhaps wisely, they let the casting of Gunn's people do it for them. It's not the show's best attempt at finding a real-world commonality with demon-fighting, but it's admirable of them to try, even if they don't really find any depth within it nor pursue it to any kind of meaningful outcome.

In truth, the biggest occurrence in this episode is the arrival of Gunn, full of rage and violence, markedly different from Angel's brooding, Wesley's repressed desperation and Cordy's openness. J. August Richards hits the ground running in a role that goes on to have one of the most interesting arcs across the series (though it takes until the fifth season to properly go for it). It's a sad introduction and a sobering one, having to stake his recently turned sister to prevent her from killing him. Although I grow increasingly tired of women being sacrificed in popular culture in order for men to learn lessons, I can't deny it tugs at the heartstrings. 

I do love the final scene between Gunn and Angel, a twist on the usual 'mentor' type relationship in that Gunn doesn't want any advice and Angel doesn't really need to give it. It's a begrudging alliance, for sure, but it'll prove to be a solid one. It also helps that it isn't a scene in which Angel offers to help Gunn, instead switching the power dynamic to leave Angel as the one who might come seeking Gunn's help in future. 

Quote of the Week:

Cordelia: They locked you in, huh?
Angel: No! I just love old meat lockers...
Wesley: You should have tried to call us on your cell phone. You probably forget you had it.
Angel: Those things hardly ever work. Besides, it was a lot easier and quicker to just- Look, I'm the boss here. I say when we use the cell phones and people are gonna die and I have to go.
Cordelia: You're welcome!

Inventive Kill: A badass stake gun on the back of Gunn's truck stakes a vamp from afar.

Let's Get Trivial: Charles Gunn was added to the cast thanks to Joss Whedon deciding that she show needed a character to work with Angel who was very different from either Cordelia or Wesley. It also helped to finally up the Buffyverse's diversity quota, albeit marginally.

- Becky

You can read Becky's look at previous episode, Sanctuary, here.

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FEATURE: Angel - Sanctuary

Previously on Angel: Faith arrived in LA after putting Buffy through hell in Sunnydale, looking to throw down with Angel and is employed by Wolfram & Hart to kill him. She beat Cordelia and tortured Wesley to get to him, but Angel quickly realised what she needed was help.

Sanctuary picks up from where Five by Five left off as Angel brings Faith back to the office in order to keep her safe. Naturally, Cordelia and Wesley are far from impressed; she uses the company expenses to take a vacation whilst he goes drinking. He's soon approached by the Watcher's Council hit squad, fresh from being beaten by Buffy-as-Faith in Who Are You, looking to finish their business with Faith. Angel's plan to rehabilitate her hits a stumbling block when an exceedingly angry Buffy arrives, demanding to know why her ex is cuddling her nemesis on the sofa. Meanwhile, Wolfram & Hart are attempting to cut their losses by hiring a demon to assassinate the rogue slayer and Kate at the LAPD is also trying to track her down.

I spoke in last week's post about how the show deals with Faith as a person who causes so much chaos but who refuses to deal with the consequences of such and it's a pattern reflected across the two episodes. In Five by Five (and Who Are You), we see the damage done whilst in Sanctuary, Faith takes a backseat as everyone else decides what to do with her. Her conversations with Angel are all theoretical, pondering how she could possibly begin to make up for the damage caused, whether 'sorry' will ever be enough (I love that Buffy won't let her apologise yet - forgiveness is about timing here). As such, it makes her first practical effort, to hand herself into the police, land better as a dramatic finish. It's the first choice she makes entirely on her own and it's her first step on a path to the redemption she, like Angel, will always be fighting for.

There's something about having Faith around that seems to make everyone involved up their game, whether it's on Buffy or Angel. The writing gets tighter, the acting gets better, the drama cuts keener. This episode is no different as the show continues to ponder the question of whether Faith is worth saving or not. Everyone splits into two camps depending on how much Faith has tortured/maimed/switched bodies with you. On the one side is Angel, seeing so much of Faith in himself that he is confident he needs to at least try and save her. On the other side is everyone else, each feeling the effects of the destruction Faith is capable of wreaking, led by Buffy.

Given the last time Angel and Buffy saw each other, it was the end of I Will Remember You (sob) so naturally feelings are still running a little raw, exacerbated by Angel's decision to help Faith who Buffy is, quite rightly, still furious with. This episode though, perhaps more than any other, marks the break between Angel and Buffy quite violently; it's the first time he hits her in his ensouled form and the shock of it, for both Buffy and us, is palpable. Likewise, his speech at the end to her about how she no longer gets to bark orders at him is on point, but so is her belief that Faith cannot be saved and doesn't deserve to be. There's no real wrong answer, but their positions are too different to be reconciled and that final exchange of verbal barbs will have long-lasting effects, particularly spilling over into Buffy.

Sarah Michelle Gellar is a force of nature in this episode, operating on a level of rage that we don't usually get to see from Buffy. "I've lost battles before, but no one has ever made me a victim" is such a great line and it reinforces the trauma that Faith inflicted; Buffy's weakest moments are when she loses her agency, the empowerment that naturally comes from being a Slayer. I love how unyielding she is too, having learnt nothing from her experience as Faith, but also from her experience with Angel. It's only a few months ago that she was arguing with Giles that Angel could still be redeemed, after all. Tim Minear brought in Joss Whedon to write the Buffy scenes and it pays off enormously, allowing the character to operate on the darker level that Angel allows whilst embodying Faith's capacity for destruction.

When speaking of this episode, Whedon states that it's the moment "the training wheels came off" and that he understood "what Angel is and it's not Buffy." That scene feels like a clean break for the audience too, a swift delineation for the new show that's finally standing on its own. The evil in Buffy, for the most part, tends to be easily categorised. People do bad things and Buffy dispatches them accordingly as the good guy, not resorting to anything particularly underhand to do so. The waters will muddy in the later seasons of the show, but it operates on that basic level. In Angel, nothing is defined in simple terms and Faith's involvement here illustrates that perfectly. He's in the business of saving now and will resort to whatever methods he can to do so (I'll definitely touch more on this in the fifth season).

Fittingly, it's the last time we see Buffy on the show, though Angel will return to Sunnydale a few more times. Although it would become an issue of scheduling difficulties rather than intent, it works to Angel's benefit. Sanctuary might not have a happy ending, but it's the right one. And I didn't even get to talk about the rooftop fight scene, which is so damn good (notice how Buffy immediately moves to protect Faith; she ain't all bad kids).

Quote of the Week:

Faith: I've got to be the first Slayer in history to be sponsored by a vampire.

The Sunnydale Connection: This episode follows on from the events of Who Are You and features the most crossover characters (five) in one go: Buffy, Faith, Collins, Smith and Weatherby, with eight if you count Angel, Wesley and Cordelia, considering they originated on that show.

- Becky

You can read Becky's look at the previous episode, Five by Five, here.

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FEATURE: Angel - Five by Five

Previously on Angel: And Buffy technically. Faith is out of her coma and has already terrorised Buffy. Angel once tried to save her, but Wesley's intervention with the Watcher's Council destroyed her trust in any of them completely.

Faith arrives in LA and promptly beats a guy up, putting her on Wolfram & Hart's radar. After Angel convinces a witness to testify against a client of the demonic lawyers and loses them the case, they set Faith on his tail, paying her to kill him. She immediately starts messing with them and kidnaps Wesley, torturing him to tempt Angel into coming after her. Meanwhile, we get more flashbacks, this time of the curse as Angel's soul is returned to him and he struggles to cope with the initial guilt of all the people he's killed. 

Oh, this episode is a bit good, isn't it? 

Bringing in a lot of the things that have been developing over the course of the last few episodes such as Angel's redemption, Wesley's own desire to prove himself and the machinations of Wolfram & Hart all colliding as a result of the Faith catalyst. The episode's flashbacks serve a great purpose here too; it's not so much about Angel's own development, but allowing the audience to understand how well-positioned he is to work with Faith. He knows exactly what she's going through right now because he's been there himself, dejected, suicidal and alone. It provides a strong core through the episode that builds into the impressive climactic fight.

There's also a brutality here that is rarely seen in either Buffy or Angel except when Angelus is on the prowl, which solidifies further the comparisons between Angel and the rogue slayer. That final fight is an intense one, two incredibly strong beings fighting it out to the death, one reluctant to kill the other who is desperate to die. It's powerfully done too; the storm at the end that rains down on them and Angel's reluctance to fight back until the crucial moment builds that intensity to almost unbearable levels. When Faith finally breaks down, it's a relief for the audience too. Sure, she's a bad guy at this point, but she's too damn fascinating to want dead.

I love Wesley's trajectory over the course of the narrative too, occurring more in the background, for obvious reasons, than Angel and Faith. Angel makes it clear early that the former watcher is at fault for how Faith is now, something Wesley realises and clearly feels terrible about, to the point where he keeps trying to save her, only to be tortured for his efforts. He grows a little more backbone each time he's faced with adversity and this is no different, standing up to Faith admirably. It even pushes him to the point of being prepared to kill her in order to save Angel, but like the rest of us, doesn't want to see the act happen once he realises just how broken she is.

Eliza Dushku really owns the role here, channeling all of Faith's external arrogance and internal self-loathing into one huge, violent and unpredictable cocktail. It's easy to forget how few episodes Dushku actually appears in because she makes such a big impression when she does. Though her initial function was to be placed as an opposite to Buffy, she works hard to dig deep into the implications of that as well as transcend what could've been a simplistic alt-Slayer role.

The scene in the club is a perfect encapsulation of the character's act. She's fully prepared to start the fight and cause chaos, but utterly not fussed about the consequences happening around her. The beauty of Five by Five's narrative is that it breaks down that barrier, proving that not only is she paying attention to the consequences of her actions, but that they're affecting her deeply. Wanting to die is the only way out she can see for herself at this point. It's up to Angel to try and bring her back from that.

As we've seen in the first season, Angel's at its best when it dispenses with the procedural style affairs and instead uses the stories to focus on the characters we already care about. Sending Faith into Angel's world is a genius move; the two characters have so much in common (placed continually in parallel even beyond the TV series and into the comics). I didn't even get into the Wolfram & Hart stuff, but hey there Lindsey and Lilah, I love your sparring.

Quote of the Week: 

Lindsey [as Faith kicks the crap out of his colleague]: Jesse, I think you'd better make it three for dinner instead of four... 

Let's Get Trivial: The violence proved a little too much for our British censors and it lead to this being the only Angel episode to receive an 18 certificate in the UK.

Demonology 101: I love that Phantom Dennis tries to protect Cordelia from Faith. He's such a babe.

The Sunnydale Connection: The experience that Giles describes to Angel as "rough" is of course the events of This Year's Girl and Who Are You in which Faith swapped bodies with Buffy via a magical doohickey.

- Becky

You can see Becky's look at previous episode, Eternity, here.

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FEATURE: Angel - Eternity

Previously on Angel: The gang found out first hand what it was like when Angelus got free after Angel experienced a moment of true happiness back in their Sunnydale days. He's not the kind of guy you want to party with.

After Angel and Wesley endure one of Cordelia's stage "performances" (you'll never look at Ibsen the same way again), the vampire with the soul of gold, saves the life of a considerably more famous and more talented actress, Rebecca Lowell. He naturally refuses any sort of payment for his services, but Rebecca returns, tasking Angel to help her out with a stalker issue she's been having. He's reluctant to take the case, much to Cordelia's annoyance, as he's attracted to her, but his natural heroic ways get in the way. However, little does he realise how affected Rebecca is by her flagging career and the lengths to which she'll go to save it, unleashing someone everyone would rather have kept hidden.

Eternity is one of the most memorable episodes in the first season run, a keen examination of isolation and desperation with a 'be careful what you wish for' kicker at the end. Like the other good episodes here, it focuses on the way in which the case affects one of our central characters and it's Angel's turn in the spotlight once again. Every now and again during this show, it likes to reacquiant us of the stakes (pun intended) of his battle against evil and, more importantly, his battle against himself. 

We haven't seen the most recent version of Angelus proper since Becoming and Eternity offers up a timely reminder of just how sadistic and horrible Angel's alter-ego is. The episode does it very cleverly; as Angel succumbs to the drug Rebecca gives him, he gradually gets a little more mean before unleashing completely as Angel loses control. When he forcefeeds blood to Rebecca, it feels like a huge violation, not only of Rebecca, but also the audience, unprepared as we are for the arrival of Angelus.

It helps that, even if you've only started watching Angel rather than following Buffy, the cast completely sell the danger of the situation. Boreanaz's performances as Angelus have always been great, but the physical change here is extraordinary; he suddenly looms over everything rather than maintaining Angel's rather hunched presence. Even the slight change in vocal pitch is freaky. It's left with Carpenter to call back to Buffy as Cordy is the only character in this show that has firsthand experience of what Angelus is capable of. Her facing up to him is a brilliant character moment, as well as demonstrating how prepared she is should the worst happen again.

The rest of the episode deals with more universal matters of ageing and relevance as Rebecca's plan to become a vampire is entirely down to her desire to remain youthful enough for her career. The treatment of women in the entertainment industry is an even hotter topic now than it was back in the day as more and more women speak out about some of the horrific treatment they've received or how it makes them feel. Tamara Gorski puts in a solid performance as the desperate, lonely actress and sparks well with Boreanaz to make her one of the more memorable guest stars. You also forget how slimy Michael Mantell is as the Hollywood agent (last seen in City Of trying to land Angel as a client).

However, even though it is but a brief appearance from the monster with the angelic face, it's a memorable one and a keen reminder of the danger that Angel is placed in every day. Not only that, but the danger for those around him too. 

Quote of the Week:

Angel [chained to the bed]: So, we're ok then?
Cordelia: I'm too big a person to let something so petty get in the way of our friendship.
Angel: I appreciate that. You're going to untie me, are you?
Cordelia: Pfffft. [She leaves]
Angel: Wesley? Cordelia? ...Guys?

Let's Get Trivial: Rebecca's mansion is the same location used for Lady Gaga's Poker Face video.

Demonology 101: Initially, the episode was simply supposed to focus on Rebecca and be a standard client-of-the-week type deal. It was Joss Whedon who decided that it should have the Angelus spin on it, thus providing the more emotional core that was needed. It is the evil vampire's penultimate appearance in the television Buffyverse.

- Becky

You can read Becky's look at previous episode, The Ring, here.

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FEATURE: Angel - The Ring

Previously on Angel: Angel's activities in Los Angeles have attracted the attention of a bunch of evil lawyers, Wolfram & Hart, running up against them a few times since he moved in. 

A beaten man, Darin MacNamara wanders into the office during a standard Wesley-Cordelia bicker and asks Angel for his help solving the disappearance of his brother, Jack, who was captured by a group of demons. During his investigation, Angel discovers an underground demonic gladiator-type deal going down, not realising that Darin and Jack laid a trap for him until it's too late. He becomes one of the fighters, leaving it to Cordelia and Wesley to find out what's happened to their boss.

After last week's dull, paternal affair, The Ring offers us a tale of something considerably more entertaining, continuing with the darker, demonic underbelly of LA with the added bonus of gladitorial combat and an attempt at a Spartacus-style uprising. It's a simple story idea, but a solid one for a filler episode that mixes in the action thrills with the comedic skills of the main cast. It also presents Angel with the central 'kill or be killed' dilemma, something which goes against everything he's been fighting for since getting his soul back.

Taking Angel out of the picture and trapping him within the cages means that the bulk of the episode's investigating is done by Cordy and Wes, which is every bit as hilarious as it sounds. Watching them try and maintain their cover as undercover cops ("something's going down tonight... something with the man!") is brilliant, but it also shows how well they're starting to work as a team. Although it'll be a while before we see full action Wesley, we get a glimpse here that he's not as bumbling as the impression he tends to give, something that he uses to his advantage at various points.

Boreanaz is a lot of fun here too, given a chance to do both the heroism bit and the comedy bit, particularly in his early scenes in the cages with his more laconic counterpart. And to be more laconic than Angel is quite something. It's another step further away from the rather two-dimensional persona that Buffy Angel was characterised by, moving him into scenarios in which he has to do more than simply look concerned. He also gets to do a lot of action scenes, get his ass kicked and brood about in his vest a lot. So that's nice.

We've known for a while how powerful Wolfram & Hart are, but the episode starts to peel back a little more of their veil through the presence of Lilah and her attempt to free Angel from the fights to get him onside. Their tricksy relationship with him, something that continues right through to the end of the series, is starting to build too. Here, they try the softly-softly approach, but it won't be long before they're back trying to kill him again.

The Ring may be a filler episode, but it's a good one and it keeps the show carving out its own identity, even if it still doesn't quite know what it wants to be just yet. The beginning's a bit noiry, the middle goes a bit comedic and the end gets all Gladiator, but it's entertaining throughout.

Quote of the Week:

Cordelia: Someone ought to create an intra-demon dating base. You know like... archfriend.org, where the lonely and the slimy connect [or Tinder, as it's now known]

Let's Get Trivial: When Wesley asks Cordelia if the 'Demons Demons Demons' has the Vigories of Oden Tal, he's referring to the patriarchal bad guys from She.

LA Who's Who: This episode marks the first appearance of Lilah Morgan, who goes on to be increasingly influential throughout the series.

- Becky

You can read Becky's look at previous episode, The Prodigal, here.

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