Angel Index

Author Key

S. One
S. Two
S. Three pt I
S. Three pt II
S. Four pt I
S. Four pt II
S. Four pt III
S. Five pt I
S. Five pt II

Season One

Go To Episode

• "It started with a girl" Angel gives up his craving for blood and goes for Hot Chocolate
• Buffy’s hair was good. So was her face, breasts, ass and legs. 
• Who would have thought that Angel would be a happy drunk? I know he's faking it, but all the same...
• Angel struts out of the bar! That bit where he walks off the stool - Fwaaaah! 
• Batman Ahoy!!
• Angel's concealed stakes in his wrists-proof that even vampires watch 'Taxi Driver' (and know a cliché when they see one)  and have no clue about safety. Lucky Angel isn't prone to gesticulating wildly or there could have been accidents.
• The vampire makeup looks awful. 
• Why the upstairs office at this point? Just asking 
• If you listen to the sound of Angel's lift doors as they open it sounds like that choral singers/satanic horde music you get in 'The Omen' and the like- or have I been alone in the dark for too long?
• I'd forgotten how much I liked Doyle. I miss him 
• Hooray for Doyle's potted plot. I was watching this with my Dad, "What's this crap?" he asked, foolishly I tried to explain "It's a spin off from Buffy the Vampire Slayer" I said. "Buffy the Vampire Slayer?" he said, then "Buffy the Vampire Slayer?" And I decided that life was too short. I should have waited for Doyle. Am I the only one who feels that this bit was just about to become a Revolting Rhyme?
• Angel's "little cell" is about 4 or 5 times the size of my little cell. And much, much better furnished
• 'Get a job you lazy sow!' I say again, God bless Doyle 
• Angel's cosmic secretary, but why is he drinking beer out of a bottle in a brown paper bag?
• When Doyle asks “Are you game?” it reminds me of when one of my mates mistook my other mate’s dad’s question of “are you game” for “are you gay?” - the reply? “No!!” 
• Somehow, even if I'd managed that coffee cup trick, I would have caught it upside down
• Over the last 90 years Angel's been depressed everywhere
• Tina is hot! 
• Why is it at all these parties there is always someone in a loud shirt and a dodgy hat in the corner, no matter how glamorous the occasion
• "Dammit." What are the chances! Also he's just left huge muddy footprints all over someone else's boot
• Chicken! 
• That bit where Angel grabs the gun and thumps him - that's when I knew this program was going to be amazing. We all make mistakes On that gun thing - it was amazing - crisp, efficient, flash - They should never have allowed Jeff Pruit to go. It was a huge mistake. Huge! 
• If Cordelia just has the one dress hanging on her clothes rail, then where do all of her other outfits (never the same one twice)  miraculously appear from? The first of many 'Cordelia clothing issues' with me - does someone like Cordy (with her obsession with make up ['are we skipping foundation altogether now?'] and high fashion ['good to know you've seen the softer side of Sears']) really strike you as someone who would wear half of the indie/grunge/hippy clothes Cordelia is seen wearing on Angel? Considering what she wore in Buffy (esp. s2) I really don't think she would be seen dead in her new outfits. Cordy is more the kind of girl who'd rather have 3 very good outfits than 20 crappy ones. And anyway, did the IRS take all her clothes bar one dress? That seems unnecessarily harsh, even for the US government! And speaking of which, can't she even afford a haircut? Or a pair of scissors? Or a brush?!
• Love these flash between scenes things. Note the 'showing the day passing by the moving sun' shot, that has been lifted straight from 'Forever Knight', along with a huge amount of the photography style (thankfully they went for that dark-but-coloured look, where you use the colours to pick things out rather than the light, instead of the kind of uniformly grey ' X-Files' look)
• Speaking of sun...Angel here bursts into flames at the slightest touch of indirect sunlight, let's see how long that lasts in the face of a need for plots to unfold during the day...
• Russell’s a vampire! Shoot him Tina! 
• Russell's vamp face was mouldy, like cheese he forgot to leave in the fridge
• Stacey? They're really big on the girly names on this series. maybe it's just so as to not give Angel a(nother) complex
• That’s a nice mansion.
• Looking back, doesn't Lindsey look about twelve in this episode? 
• Lindsey also deserves some serious fringedweller recognition due to the fact that he strongly resembles the man who looks nothing like Nicholas Lea. Really, really looks like him in fact
• The first of many shite performances from Charisma Carpenter
• So, can you name the 14 wars Angel was present for? And nice that they acknowledge the American tactic of not admitting that anything they lost was a war in the first place (the fringedweller becomes politically controversial!) As an aside, you can tell the fringedwellers are largely historians, because when we were trying to make a list , we were happy to argue over Jacobite rebellions, Opium Wars and William of Orange's bloodless invasion, but none of us thought to mention The Falklands, or The Gulf
• Doyle's hat is the scariest thing in this episode
• Russell's denial is possibly the worst and least convincing I've ever heard, and I've pioneered in this area. Love the “You’re a vampire!/No I’m not!” exchange. 
• Angel performs an Enseguri kick.
• The first also of the gratuitous semi-naked Angel shots, no episode should be without one
• “Can you fly?” is a blatant 'Robocop' rip-off. 
• It's a very worrying sign that one shove can break the window of a very high floor, in a very expensive office block, you'd have thought they would use strengthened glass or something, otherwise you know, someone leans back against the window while drinking their coffee and...you'd lose so many employees that way, a firm could get a bad reputation
• So Angel burning up in the sunlight lasted a grand total of 15 minutes and 55 seconds (not counting advert breaks)
• I like that Angel just jumps to when told to by Cordy
• “A stiffener” - comedy. 
• Nice set of fades to finish off with
• All the above were written after I came back from the Bay, pissed. Just thought you’d all like to know.

• It is clearly an angel, if I can tell they ought to be able to. Besides, what else would it be for Christ's sake?
• That vision did look very painful
• He hates places like this, yet he still goes there. 
• Please, if she falls for that line she deserves everything she gets 
• As we've seen previously Angel's attempt at chatting, never mind chatting up are woeful
• I like that - “Seriously, I wasn’t hitting on you!” 
• Kate is hot. 
• "A man that loves animals is a man you can trust" I just want you to think about that sentence for a while and realise why it isn't always true...
• Angel knows the rule of sitting at a Discreet Distance - ask me or Tobin if you’re unsure about this. 
• "Been there, done that" please tell me he got a t-shirt ('My girlfriend stabbed me through the heart and sent me to hell and all I got was this stupid t-shirt')
• Nice 'Saved By The Bell' reference by the bartender. 
• If the police are after a male serial killer targeting women, then what's happened to all the male corpses that the burrower infected?
• 'Due South' moment when Angel jumps out of the window. When exiting a building from a window above ground level in TV or film almost everyone lands on a car
• Subtle mention of the "as long as you're alive, they can't come in" excuse, after everyone was incensed about Angel walking uninvited into Sharon's apartment (or whichever one they went back to)
• Something that seems to happen quite a bit in 'Angel' (and even more so in Season 4 of 'Buffy'), that long montage-to-trendy-music sequence, where we would rather have 2 more minutes of dialogue (it's just a personal thing, but I don't think these montages are any use at all, except possibly after character death/emotional shock so you have time to calm down)
• They used this music on 'The Beach' trailer. 
• I feel sorry for the bartender's mum - she now thinks he killed all those people
• He’s not Batman, that’s for sure.
• The whole thing with Angel sitting in the dark is wonderful

• Is there such a word as "defanged"? And "nancy boy hair gel" is a bit harsh coming from the guy with the platinum blond dye job and the nail varnish. Spike's opening commentary should be made into a sampler and framed, although does anyone else get the impression of a major inferiority complex? Spike’s commentary is comedy gold! 
• Cordy’s gotten better on the computer since the last episode.
• Oz looks paler than Angel in this episode, is he well?
• Normally Angel's hands are covered in rings, but not today. Maybe this is why Angel's knuckles drag on the floor, not because he's Pete the bog burial but just because he's over-accessorising 
• Comedy tai-chi! For various reasons, mostly just cause it looks ridiculous (and partly for reasons that anyone who has seen Adrian Paul in 'The Owl' will understand), there is very little quite as comical as a really big guy like Angel trying to do tai-chi on camera. At least Mac had the decency to do it bare-chested 
• The reason Spike can't leave Angel alone is that he is constantly trying to measure up, Angel was worse than he was for longer, then he gave it all up and Spike still can't beat him
• Breathing follies again as Angel is choked unconscious
• 'My town'? What did he do? Pee round it? 
• Doesn't evil torture vampire remind you of Anthony Edwards? Deeply frightening concept
• Check out Angel breathing in the torture scene, yes I understand that Dave Borenaz has to breathe, but I thought I'd point it out as it's quite pleasant
• Nice to see that in 200 years Spike is still essentially a six year old having a temper tantrum
• Spike calls Angel his "sire" again here
• I just adore that "Slutty the Vampire Slayer" line
• 'Most things that live and breathe love the light and it loves them... we hate the light of day and it hates us..." That's probably because you don't live and breathe you idiot 
• "Tall brooding guy, caveman brow" yes, yes, finally somebody else notices (I like my men with a few more years of evolution behind them, what do you guys see in him, really?)
• What a wicked set-piece, vampires fighting under a pier in full daylight. I’m going to steal it for my story!
• That ring is ridiculously easy to take off, isn't it?
• "He's very pale" no he isn't not really, and you can see where he's caught the sun filming on that beach
• Big yay to the scriptwriters for having the balls to actually smash the ring, instead of just hiding it in case of a plot emergency (although as we've already seen Angel does have a certain natural tolerance to direct light if the script really calls for it)
• I am not going to even ask why Angel mentions Doyle's mum

• There's that big Forever Knight shot again
• Oh and very clever title, but ew
• The stress of a new job has obviously driven Angel to caffeine, considering he never used to drink the stuff. 
• On the subject of drink, would an Irishman in distress really be calling out for Scottish whiskey? (and from personal experience, Jameson's is a much more effective pain-killer then most Scotch)
• The dark and mysterious strut in full effect there. 
• How could she wash down all those pills with the millidrop of water she took? 
• How did he know how much cash she wanted? 
• I used to do that. Fixate on an incredibly attractive guy and then refuse to talk to him on the grounds that anything he said would ruin it. I didn't stalk them or create serial killer photo walls mind 
• God, doesn't Angel look strange in cream? I will leave judgment as to whether it's an improvement or not to someone more qualified to make those decisions. I'd forgotten that in these early episodes Angel used to wear some lovely jumpers. He should go back to those and leave the ill-fitting shiny shirts behind 
• That floating eyeball is really disturbing. How does the eye float? 
• I love the "And three of them are very much alive." Comforting 
• Nice mention of Luge by Angel. "4th after luge" Angel says this like he knows...either he knows far to many pointless facts on a general basis, or he read it in 'Luge Monthly' or equivalent publication (he probably subscribes)
• I can see how you could mentally stop bleeding at the end of limbs (well, kind of) but how has he managed to grow the skin back over the stump?
• "At least it was just his hands down there" yet another line I feel the need to leave entirely on its own
• This episode sent us into pun overdrive. "Wandering hands" "His right hand doesn't know what his left hand's doing" and as he was bring especially broody, I said he ought to be slapped and the only thing that would make the necessary slapping sound would be a fish- a large, flat fish. If you had more than one fish then you could hit from both sides and Angel would be reeling from plaice to plaice (it's also a metaphor for Angel's conscience, he is being beaten up by his own soul/sole.) You will be pleased to know that usually when I pun at this magnitude I get large, heavy things thrown at me
• "That's your heart slowing down...eventually it'll stop altogether" spot the deliberate mistake, (and don't try and tell me he's faking it, what would be the point?) Usually I'm fairly tolerant of continuity glitches, we're all human after all (I hope) but that really is unforgivable
• "Vacuous L.A. pretty boy." I like it
• Creepy 'Addams Family' moment there. 
• This guy is mad! Just throwing his teeth and hands at people! Oh. My. God. We just sank to teeth flying across the room. Not many shows can sink this low. For obvious reasons
• If this episode was better is would be terrifying, disturbing and all associated nouns, but somehow it isn't

• The Soviet Secret police DON'T care about shoes!? No wonder my plans failed...
• I'm sorry to do this again but - the acting! Nobody can help with the acting. Not even classes! I tried, I really did but CC is awful! She just can't act. It's all OTT and it just looks like someone reciting lines. I'm willing, but the suspension of disbelief is just not happening 
• Yet another gratuitous naked Angel shot, not just the torso this time, but the legs as well (I'm just pointing these out for your benefit, not for me at all, the one I'm interested in never even takes his shirt off, sigh). That is a very small towel. 
• Love the crack about hair products
• I love Doyle’s double-take there. 
• "My part of England?" I'm surprised some of our Welsh contributors haven't picked up on that one
• A sudden Doyle-like vision of Angel as Queen of the Winter Ball...
• Angel reminded me of Worf in this ep. All solitary and territorial about his own space. And, of course, all bony forehead 
• Doyle is so in love and so sweet, ahh
• 'Exorcist' stuff going on here.
• How did the ghost get their business number?
• On a very personal note here, if Angel can get away with making jokes about bile, damnit so can I
• Angel must actually have a last name, he's not that old
• I wonder what the Latin stuff means that Angel’s chanting here. 
• What crew member did DB piss off? That book was aimed right at his head! I don’t think that book was meant to hit Angel’s head! 
• That’s a strong lamp! It takes down walls! I know the wall was put up by an old lady with little building experience, but that really is some shoddy masonry there, although admittedly some very professional plastering (which is not that easy to do)
• I must have rewound the scene where Dennis is released from his prison 4 times (an irritating habit I picked up from the a demonic housemate) much to the confusion of my fellow fringedwellers. that is until I bounced up and down excitedly shouting "it didn't move! it didn't move! Cordelia’s hair almost rose vertically from that blast of wind but Angel's (set in concrete as it is) didn't budge an inch!!!
• I like Phantom Dennis, he's a nice boy

• Proof positive that women have either much bigger bladders, or far superior control than men, who, as any female fan of spectator sports will know, can never wait until half time
• Doyle cannot currently say clueless as he's being strangled by a tentacle
• Angel, dear, the hat was fine, the shirt, now THAT really was too much, where the hell did he get it from? Does he keep a bag full of various disguises in the boot of his car? And if so, what has he got in there? Clothes for EVERY occasion...
• Lee is such a slug. I'm glad he gets shot 
• Nice 'Flash Gordon' reference by the gangster guy.
• I want a talking stick. But not an enchanted one.
• "Your inappropriate sarcasm masks anger" firstly, sarcasm is never inappropriate, especially if it's funny, and mine is usually more through boredom than anger (and is usually a sign of it rather than a mask)
• "You know what anger is Kate?" the answer- the path to the dark side...
• Angel once again in broad daylight
• Speaking in public is far, far more terrifying than the prospect of having assassins after you
• So much hammy acting. God, it was like an episode of 'Sunset Beach' 
• 'Painbow'? Good grief 
• Angel is far more disturbing as Mr. Sensitivity than he ever was as Angelus. Sensitive Angel is hysterical!
• Aaah, those horrible awkward morning after 'Did I do anything stupid' conversations
• Although the last scene with Kate and her Dad is heart rending
• Kate’s dad is a bastard.

• Excuse me Doyle, but books can be fun, thank you very much and as an ex-teacher he should be encouraging reading, not discouraging it.
• The main problem with the sports bar option is that for 'one moment of perfect happiness' reasons we can't let Angel get into sport. My God what happens when his team wins the cup final? Amongst other things he would have to avoid on a daily basis, we'll have to put a list on the mouse page 
• Nice to know that Angel hasn’t become completely asexual – did you see him scanning Cordelia’s body when she came into the office to gloat?
• Pretentious Use of French Alert – would “The Little Fox” get more customers that “Le Petit Reynard”?
• Angel plays protective father
• Doyle's charms are ample? How come we never got to see Doyle's ample charms?
• Angel is using Buffy as a bookmark
• "How does she feel about men with an Irish accent?" she doesn't know, she hasn't had a chance to meet one yet...(that was an actually quite veiled dig at Angel's terrifyingly poor Celtic accent)
• That’s what we need, some good vampire violence!
• Nice to see Cordelia fighting fire with fire and biting the vampire back. How come we never saw Buffy chomp a few vamps?
• Although Doyle is suffering from a “spaz attack”, as Cordelia delicately puts it, be honest; hands up all of you that have done a secret replay of a momentous event. I know that my witty put downs always sound better an hour and half after they actually come out of my mouth…
• Wouldn’t it be cool to have an ostrich farm? Although it would take a while to get them to plough, I suppose.  
• I'm glad to see that while Doyle refuses whiskey of his own, he's quite happy to drink Angel's
• Angel’s walking casually high above the street on the rooftops is reminiscent of Batman. However, if he is Batman, does that make Doyle Robin? And will he wear the tights? Unfortunately, no (at least not in public)
• Why do American men think that “pumpkin” is a cute nickname for their beloved? If someone told me that I reminded them of a fat, round, orange vegetable it would really annoy me. And possibly incite violence.
• Ritual eating of the first husband's brains seems more of an ex-wife thing  
• Charades? My god, that one wild and lascivious bachelor party! 
• He got his teaching credentials before he was 20?!
• Did I just see the set wobble as they threw Dave Borenaz against it?  
• You’ve got to love the bib. How messy can eating brains be? 
• Why does Angel  need to kick all doors open even when they don't appear to be locked? He can't use a door handle, no opposable thumbs  
• Picking up on the plot hole you can drive a double-decker bus through; Cordelia is convinced that Angel doesn’t have a heartbeat and he doesn’t say anything to the contrary

• Could he not level his desk with a folded beer mat like everybody else?
• Angel needs the title sequence to scrape his jaw off the floor
• Nice bail by Cordy there. 
• Again with the daylight and the enormous windows
• He couldn't have made the decision with her, "I'm trying to decide whether to see you or not. Do you think we could meet up and talk about it?"
• Buffy says that feeling Angel inside her puts her off what she is doing. Without meaning to be crude, I would imagine that it would upset your concentration, but surely the situation isn’t as bad as she makes it out to be? Wink, wink...
• Buffy’s dress sense can be eclectic at times – the Slutty Slayer look was fashionable during Season One – but changing into white to crawl through a sewer? There must be a fantastic launderette in Sunnydale. Perhaps it’s a subsidiary of Methos’ Glazier and Pool Cleaning Service. I've got no idea why she changes at all, she isn't changing into something more practical, and why would she put clean clothes on to dive down a sewer and kill something? If they need the white to see her in the dark she could have been wearing it from the start. Also, whose clothes are they? She didn't come with a bag or anything
• I wonder what was down tunnel number two? 
• Surely a big umbrella, the huge golfing umbrellas that block narrow pavements and get wedged between buildings, could ensure that vampires could move around during the day. Although it would make it easy to identify them. Giles et al could use it in Slayer Preparatory School; “Now class, look at the picture of page thirty two and spot the vampire”. The book would be called "Where's Vlad"
• Angel discovers the wonder that is chocolate. Angel turns human, but he also turns into a woman – loving chocolate and cookie dough fudge mint chip ice cream, but not the lower fat and less exciting yoghurt. Exactly, proof that men are simply not human, but some kind of defective demon.
• 'I have a whole new life' and no papers, National Insurance No… 
• 'Come before us lower being' What I always say when I open the front door 
• Oh God, they used the historical ‘F’ word, fealty. Technically, fealty does not apply in Angel’s situation with the Powers That Be. That is an overwhelming simplification but the full answer would bore you to tears. Fealty is a hot issue in the cut and thrust world of medieval historical debate, and bar fights have started over it. I’m telling the truth. Yes, I know, and you’re right (again!), it doesn’t really apply
• Am I the only person wondering about poor Riley? Whom she has only just started dating and is cheating on already (note justifiable use of the word 'whom')
• Whenever anyone tells you actors have it tough, just think at the end of your long, 8 hour office bound day, that there is a woman out there who got PAID to lick ice-cream off David Borenaz. Kinda blows the whole sympathy thing out of the water doesn't it?
• Naked Angel! Naked Angel! Not nearly enough naked Angel, but a satisfying amount for those of us that like to see Angel in the flesh.
• He really has turned into a human bloke, he wanders off to fight evil and doesn't even leave the girl in his bed a note
• Thank God for this episode, it shows the world just how self-involved Buffy really is
• WWF time again! The Mohra demon hits Buffy with a back-breaker! 
• For the record, while human Angel is allowed to breathe, have a pulse and be in direct sunlight. All plot holes are temporarily filled
• Mental note: Do not apply fresh mascara just as the scene that always makes you cry comes on. Pass the damn tissues 
• Oh, bet the Mora demon was dead embarrassed at getting killed so quick. Not exactly going to sing songs about that one are they? 
• Did the Oracles keep the watch?

• The Dark Avenger! Pure comedy! I, for one, would love to see Angel in full Dark Avenger costume. With the tights. And Doyle (or Wesley) We've mentioned this before you know...
• Anyone kept count of the apocalypses that the Scooby Gang and now the Angel team have averted? They must be getting blasé about it now
• Nazi demons. I can think of only a few ideas that are a bit more disturbing.
• Nice taunt from Angel - “football head”. 
• Reef (or whatever Doubting Thomas kid is called) is exactly like a young Martin Sheen. Even the voice! Especially the voice 
• Where did the scourge find the extra uniform for Angel?
• Angel’s Nazi hair deserves a mention. Obviously to be evil you need a side parting. Of course. You couldn’t be a bad guy and not have evil hair, it’s only surprising that he doesn’t suddenly take up smoking as well. And yet he did practically the instant he turned evil in 'Innocence'.
• Has anyone told The Scourge Anya's all demons are tainted with human blood theory?
• Doyle! NO! Sob! Although that was a deeply sexy kiss he gave Cordy. It's so sad Doyle had to die in such a shite episode. Doyle ruled. 
• Oh my god, CC must have some sort of paralysis of the face because she barely lifts an eyebrow to register surprise and grief over Doyle's death
• The one thing I will always remember about Doyle is his low rats

• Not quite The Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon, but how do you get from the Mother Superior in 'The Sound of Music' to the Female Oracle in Angel? Answer: trite advice. I believe the aged nun that inflicted Julie Andrews on what used to be well behaved children advised her that whenever God closed a door, he opened a window, (which sounds like the behaviour of an obsessive/compulsive personality, but there you go) advice that the Female Oracle very nearly duplicated with “For every door that closes, another opens”.
• Ooh, now we get the “whoosh” sound effect of Angel’s coat in the credits. 
• I don't know what was less convincing - the audition or the grief 
• Did you catch the look on Angel’s face as he realises that Cordelia is his link to the PTB? Somewhere between sheer terror and the urge to break down and bawl like a baby.
• Wesley as the Terminator. Disturbing. Surely the Terminator should be disturbing? Isn't that the point?
• In the scene where Wes and Angel first meet, Angel is clearly checking out Wesley's ass in the leather
• Yay!  Wesley!… Ooooh! Leather! How ridiculous does Wesley look? Wesley just can’t pull off the Village People Wannabe act. Sorry, the leather and motorbike “I’m having a midlife crisis” schtick just doesn’t suit a man that can produce a linen suit out of nowhere and wear it without a crease. Where’s the challenge? Sorry, have to disagree, I think the leather should have become a much more permanent fixture in Wesley’s wardrobe, particularly when he bends over to pick his bag up off the stairs. God that guy has nice legs.
• Listen for the thoroughly appreciative (and possibly totally involuntary) "Mmmmm" from Cordelia when Wesley kisses her back. Sometime in the past few months, he's learnt exactly where to put his hands when he kisses
• Doesn't want to say the word 'balls' but is quite happy to grope them 
• Stab someone with a knife and it'll drain the life force out of someone as effectively as a demon horn 
• That's a gentleman?!  
• That 'And then I'm going to take that inch!' was worthy of a rewind 
• Ok. Fair point. A knife doesn't do that
• 'A reminder that something of Doyle's is here in our office' Then gets blown up
• I’m sorry, but those eggs looked disgusting and I would have rather have eaten the toast. Scrambled eggs are difficult to cook for other people, fact of life, like making other people tea.

• This episode is awesome. 
• Now, that is a thimble. If I ever have to sew, I want a thimble like that.
• There's a lot of plant life in Angel's office suddenly
• "It's nothing, I'm fine" is shorthand for "something may be horribly wrong, but I don't want to talk about it"
• Wesley's little run past Angel's office door smacks of a boy who used to sneak out of his dorm after lights out in prep school
• The psych file is genuinely chilling
• That wasn't a poll, Cordelia
• Uncomfortable for Wes, not for Buffy
• New divisions of history: “Powdered Wig Days”. I like that. I suppose other major periods of history could be “Tall Pointy Hat That Looks Like An Inverted Ice-Cream Cone Days” and “Fur Pelts Removed From Yesterday’s Lunch Days”. Not to forget “Frightning Facial Hair Days”, possibly the worst of them all.
• Hmm, if my job involved making coffee and chaining Angel to a bed I’d be a very happy Fringedweller! But you don’t even like coffee...
• Cordelia gets some good lines. It's heartbreaking that they're delivered so badly. "Better safe than cocktails"...
• Flashback Alert. This never bodes well for wigs or accents. Have people learnt nothing from Highlander? Actually, as far as I can see they learnt EVERYTHING from Highlander
• Angel really does have a thing for these little slender blonds doesn't he?
• 'Matrix' music! 
• A serial killer wall. How very trite
• How would Wesley know that? It's not a show that's traveled
• Lady Hamilton’s virtue? Like Cordy I express my ignorance here… I’m still confused about Wesley’s Lady Hamilton comment. Her virtue wasn’t locked up – that’s the point, right? In fact her virtue was pretty much available to 80% of the British Navy, well, what was left of it (the virtue that is, not the navy)
• How does Angel manage to simply walk into Kate’s office area all the time? 
• Love Wesley's indignation over the radio
• Medicinal beer? Although, I'd buy the kid some alcohol, give him a break
• See, you never get vampires like this on Buffy. This is how they should be, jumping up into buildings and moving like a blur and things! 
• Hundred's of years apart and they develop identically awful haircuts
• Oh, Angel, if you’re going to brawl in the dirt and the dust, take off the jacket first. I like that jacket.
• Always nice when your practice pays off
• As much as I love bitchy insults, the “You are so prosaic” lacks a certain punch. Except amongst pretentious arts graduates. I always thought 'You're so derivative' is much worse 
• "Shockingly original" and the best he can come up with is a bus full of school children? Hasn't he seen 'Dirty Harry'?
• I swear one of those engravings Kate’s looking at shows an old woman putting a puppy into a cauldron. What did Kate look up? I thought only the watcher's diaries had records of Angel. (And W&H)
• I hate it when American writers make British characters say Americanisms. Wesley would not say “icebox”. He would say “freezer” or “refrigerator”, but not "icebox" Surely just fridge like most normal people?
• Shouldn't Kate have identified herself as a police officer?
• Cheap-waiting till he's dumped Penn on the floor before saying "You're grounded."  
• I'd have gone with pathetic here All this is just petulance cause Angel won't sleep with her 
• I love Penn' moves in the Station. They should have kept that
• How strong is Kate Lockley? She had to push that plank through Angel, who is pretty solid, and Penn, without hitting Angel’s heart. I don’t like her, but I’ve got to admire the strength. And aim. Especially the aim. Reckon vamps are pretty crumbly, what with the age and all. lets face it, otherwise it would have to be a pretty sharp pencil, and a pretty strong mind, which allows Willow to dust that vamp in 'Choices'.

• Wesley is WAY better looking than Hugh Grant, and at least he has the grace to apologise after kicking someone's front door in. When was the last time Angel did that?
• Smooth, Wesley, smooth. 
• I really hope Angel cleans that sword properly when he gets home
• Wes subtly sounds Angel out about the gay thing
• Wilson Christopher looks like a Baldwin (And - not to get too petty here - his initials are WC [snigger]) 
• Now this guy is smooth. 
• It just goes to prove that you should never threaten anyone with Madonna, anyone can be pushed too far
• Okay, yeah, sex bad, we get it...
• Did he dress her before he left? Isn't that like shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted? 
• Phantom Dennis is very sweet, I want a ghost like that
• Does the bartender take Angel's money or not?
• Wesley's surprisingly convincing as the long-suffering hen-pecked husband
• Did the doctor call Cordy Mrs. Penguin? 
• Where do the maternity dungarees spring from?
• Ewwww… Cordy, no! Only vampires are supposed to drink blood! 
• "Someone's mommy didn't teach him how to play nice" No, but at least she taught him how to share
• I'm surprised that Wesley could regain consciousness after Cordy hit him with that tome, he must have a Weeble gene
• I do like the guy with low standards "Mostly I do it for the sex"
• Very few people do like it when people shoot them
• That’s the most ridiculous looking demon I’ve ever seen. 
• Wesley tries to confuse the demon to death by confounding it with long words
• Can Angel not shoot straight?
• Anyone else give a thought to the monster stretch marks?

• Look at Wesley go! 
• Wesley at Cordy's party just goes to show that even in your idea of hell there is always something to enjoy
• 'Hi, my name's Angel, but for tonight, call me Mr. Darcy' 
• I feel the dancing should be mentioned but I can't find anything to say other than: Oh. My. God. 
• Angel dancing - that’s the funniest moment of the season so far! 
• On Angel's two modes of dealing with people "bite and avoid" there is a comment there waiting but I can't quite find it
• Saying that Wesley was cooler at the party is deeply crushing
• I think it's a bit mean that a creature who would ordinarily live by his fangs doesn't give his employees dental
• I suspect a joke with the "Jericho Ice" name, but I'm not sure what it is
• Angel's very worried by the sudden enthusiasm and efficiency of his staff
• Where does Angel get these wonderful toys? 
• She's quick
• It’s the freaky woman from The Crow! Yeesh! 
• Apparently in the States, they made a big fuss because Bai Ling was on. I don't get why. She's so wooden she makes CC (and the entire cast of 'Thunderbirds') look expressive 
• Dark Avenger Ahoy!
• I like Angel's plan, it's unsophisticated but chances are it will work
• Those pratfalls would seem terribly fake if not for the fact I know at least two people who are more than likely to do that
• Poor spa worker guy, but at least no-one messed up his zen rock garden
• Shouldn't those boxes have air holes?
• "I'm very rarely taken hostage" All evidence to the contrary
• Where have all of these people come from? 
• Actually, the dancing montage at the end is the funniest moment yet 

• It's a nice little knife actually
• I know that people saying the wrong name is annoying, but not cause for this type of distress. Although Liz only thinks that because she's used to me calling all my friends either Kate or Ruth regardless of their actual name, cause then I've got at least a 50% chance of being right. Or Ray. For some reason 98% of people will turn around if you call them Ray when they won't have heard you say their own name for 20 mins 
• For Angel, that was a flap
• Small children = instant spookiness. 
• That doll crying would have made me jump too
• Wes sensibly blanket agrees with Cordelia
• Wesley's comment about his father speaks volumes but it is a cheap way to give the character depth unless they are going to follow through 
• Angel hides his humour well. He also relates terribly well to small children
• He really has just worked that "brownie" thing out hasn't he? Bit like Lizard and the pole-ax last night ("What is a pole-ax?" "Well it's a bloody great pole with an ax on the end..." although it could also be called a pole ax as it's an ax used by Poles, bit of disagreement here)
• Never try and put one past a nun
• "This is just too cruel!" What? Leaving him in an adjacent room in full sight of his parents? Oh the callousness!
• At least the Thighmasters (and the Buns Of Steel) are working...
• Oh, you stupid woman! Angel said don’t break the circle, and what do you go and do? Break the circle! 
• "In case of emergency use stairway"?
• His Latin's not bad
• Blinding insight from the demon, of course Angel's stupider than Wesley, I've met ducks brighter than Angel
• Why did Angel tear the cloth before he wraps it round the cross? Empty dramatic gesture?
• Nice finish - “Now get the hell out!” 
• Because Angel's just quoting "primordial volcanic basalt" from the book, he needs Wesley to tell him what it means
• Firestarter! 
• Angel couldn't deal with the problem so they're letting social services have a crack?
• Can I just say that this episode rules. It's genuinely creepy, and the twist is fantastic. Really, really good

• I love how that haunting violin music signals the coming of dodgy accents and appalling wigs. 
• Nice touch at the beginning with Master Liam in the shadows. Although spoiled by that woman's horrendous (Irish?) accent
• Why Liam? It's a horrible name 
• Ooh, cool cinematography fans. (I love the way the light comes through them, there are a couple in Joe's bar and they look fantastic, particularly in 'Cross Of St Antoine' and 'Shadows')
• Is Wesley doing his dissection in washing-up gloves? No, they are proper ones, it just probably means he's allergic to the latex and can't wear the clingy white ones. Always hated those. It's the smell of talcum powder that they're packed in that you can't get off your hands for hours, along with the associated smell of dead horse. Did he dissect that demon on the kitchen table?! 
• Traces? That is a lot of trace, and where did he get the equipment to remove and purify it? And also the equipment to test it and find out what the hell it is
• There's a chemical test for eye of newt?
• Love the exasperation as the demon gives orders to his lackeys
• Angelus and Darla shouldn’t be breathing, should they? Angel comes out of his grave gasping for breath
• Wesley powerslams that demon! 
• "Grave robbers" to be fair, that's actually the one thing they're not
• Angel and his mum have the same hairstyle 
• I think Angel just let a smile slip in there
• This whole episode would be so much less comical if his accent wasn't quite so crap
• She just found her father dead, this is not the time for explanations 
• There is some lovely editing going on during that "Plan B" conversation. Loads of cool shots that all fit with the rhythm of the speech
• Why is Darla trying to give Angel a complex?

• That is a fine bitching session between Cordelia and Wesley
• A Howler demon, not the most inspired name- When Good Monkeys Go Bad
• I don't get Angel's problem. This is the mission statement. In a couple of months he'll be free and 21 demons will be dead. He really isn't very bright.
• There was a Voyager episode very similar to this one, where Seven of Nine got kidnapped by an alien fighting ring and she had to take on The Rock, complete with alien crest on his forehead! Seven didn’t stand a chance, she went down to the Rock Bottom! 
• Wesley's display of dazzling competence is both shocking and brilliant. When Wes does suave he really is suave 
• Angel's pretty much going to stay cold, it's not like he has to get his blood pumping
• From the first glance it's clear - Lilah fancies him 
• Shock from Charisma! She was vaguely convincing as the cop
• No they couldn't have done 'West Side Story' because that would have been terrifying, and Angel would have had to sing
• Why throw in a knife? That’s not gonna kill a vampire. 
• How does compere guy get in and out of the ring? Is there a little red-lined corridor for him to walk down or do they have to winch him out?
• Why doesn't Angel stick the hand without the extermination bracelet on it over the line?
• It's an extermination service. What's his problem? 
• Why did Angel not jump out of the window when he is with Wolfram & Hart. Possibly because it was daylight? Although that's never stopped him before, so yeah, fair point
• It's nice they returned his coat 
• Electrical follies
• Okay, trust me on this, Cordelia NEVER had a horse, not even a posh trophy horse that was wheeled out at weekends. She didn't have the kind of friends who would have been impressed by a pony. Even if she had one (and believe me it was kept far away at some nice stable where she never had to deal to with any of the muck involved) she wouldn't keep its hair in a locket. I love all of my ponies dearly and even I've never done that
• Have to approve of Wesley's black and gold suit, which looks stunning
• Why does Trepkos keep punching him? With that forehead all he has to do is head butt him and he's history, I don't care how big his own forehead is
• When Angel is fighting with the staffs the sequence has clearly been so thoroughly practiced that Dave Borenaz is moving to block a blow that isn't coming yet. This is all done in the interests of safety but another practice session or two would have solved it. I do speak from experience
• Very cool way to dispose of the bad guy at the end
• Notice how Angel just has his arm draped over Cordy, but he's clinging to Wesley

• Love Angel's expression at the beginning, almost as impressive as the fact that he has an expression at all
• Angel looks particularly short in this episode
• Oooh! Emmy dig! 
• I’d love to do a stunt where I’d get hit by a car and then roll up the windscreen and over the roof! 
• Wesley showing depth and insight is nice to see
• Cheap night/day fade
• She's right, Angelus never would have worn those "pants". Angelus would also stand up straight and not stoop like a hunchback
• Ooh evil hair. Semi-evil hair, it's not as evil as his Nazi hair
• It would be interesting to know how many industry digs we're missing just because we aren't in the industry
• Wesley hasn't ironed his shirt
• So Angel can drink other liquids as opposed to other solids?
• Rebecca has a Stifler moment with the champagne (“Weird!”) 
• As opposed to Lindsey, who just disappears behind the door before he gets his shirt off, Angel just gets his shirt off before he disappears behind the door
• Wow. Angel’s new shirt looks exactly like his old one. 
• "I'll just torture you for a few unbelievably long hours" Somehow, I was kind of hoping he would. She's annoying 
• I know she weighs like a pound and a half, but Wes does sweep her effortlessly out of that elevator
• "Somebody forgot..." that would have been you, it's your responsibility you twat
• Angelus! The King of Taunts! Angelus yay! Fantastic, cutting, brilliant
• Oh, that's gotta hurt, particularly the way he ricochets off the bottom edge of the lift
• Wes hasn't shaved either, which is a surprisingly good look for him
• To which the answer is going to be "yes, of course I'm still evil"
• I wonder how long they left him chained to the bed? More to the point how long did the cast and crew leave David Borenaz chained to the bed for whilst they went off for their lunch break?

 

Five By Five

 

• Is this the gypsy girl? Or just a random one?
• That's a good threat, facing your own demons is one thing, but you shouldn't have to deal with other people's
• Did I mention that I like Faith? 
• We don't get to see Lindsey being an actual lawyer (as opposed to a general agent of destruction) very often, and he is bloody good in a courtroom. I'm always surprised that they didn't just use legal means to get to Angel, like pointing out that he has a fake P.I.'s license, or no papers whatsoever, or has killed things and could therefore be arrested for murder
• "A push in the right direction" More of a choke hold really 
• Did Faith pick Lilah up?
• Darla is such a woman. Of all the awful possibilities the first one that occurs to her is that he met someone else. I know this does kind of agree with 'Darla' (or at least doesn't contradict it) but somehow it feels forced when you put the two flashbacks together
• "Behoove"? honestly...
• I agree with Faith, Angel catching the crossbow bolt is very cool
• Wesley is right when he says Faith is a "sick, sick girl", she is also lonely, frightened and has no one to talk to. Yes but not all lonely and frightened people turn into homicidal maniacs. I'm with Willow. A solid arse kicking is what is required 
• Why didn’t Faith just leave via the door? 
• Angel looks pretty good in his suit, it must be because of the dark shirt
• Lindsey also has excellent hair in this episode, not quite as good as the jaw-length curtains and the aviator shades, but very good nonetheless
• As Faith is torturing Wesley it is achingly apparent that she is reaching the end of her tether. As opposed to Wesley who's nowhere near the end of his (yeah right)
• Quality taunt by Wesley! 
• Me and Lizard depart dramatically on this episode, where she (and a lot of other people) had an attack of perspective and suddenly gained a whole load of sympathy for Faith, strangely enough most of my sympathy was for the guy tied in the chair getting carved to pieces with broken glass
• The five torture groups, blunt, sharp, hot, cold and loud, this is presumably loud as in sound rather than loud as in Angel's Hawaiian shirt. Well, it is fairly torturous to watch
• If she didn't think about fate and destiny, then she wouldn't just have yammered on about it for the last five minutes
• The Angel/Faith fight is brilliant, one of the best seen in the season so far, 

• Don't you find it slightly upsetting that Faith gets taken home, fed and cared for whilst the actual torture victim doesn't even get cab fare?
• Even when she’s beaten up, Eliza Dushku is still gorgeous. 
• I do love Cordy's attempt to make Wesley feel better
• "How are you feeling" well, pretty much like he was tortured for several hours last night. I don't think sympathy and codeine is going to be helping much
• This is quite touching, you have to admit it. 
• "Can't just arbitrarily decide..." see 'Blind Date', he's pretty arbitrary then
• How does Angel sign the cheques? 'Angel, Dark Avenger'? 
• “You’ve gone all Scully” - nice. 
• Lindsey is reluctantly impressed by Angel's style
• We should remember never to play darts with Wesley unless he's on our team
• Darts! On the subject of darts, the scores on the dartboard start at 0 and go up, but when you play darts you start with a number of points (say 201) then score downwards, and just once I'd like to see someone prove what a good shot they are by hitting treble 20 instead of a bullseye
• There's no cut in that scene, evil watcher guy actually throws the dart at Alexis Denisof and not a stunt double, which is terribly careless use of a leading actor, what if he hadn't ducked quickly enough?
• Yes well, I'm sure Wesley wasn't that pleased about the pain either
• When did Buffy go out of her way to be Faith's friend? I don't remember that part
• Stunningly tactless from Faith, "not you, the new one"
• Either Watcher guy is lying to Wes, or they've changed their mind since 'Who Are You?'
• It’s only in American programmes that you hear British characters use words like ‘ponce’. 
• That knife's gonna leave a huge hole in his lino
• Giles heard from who?
• Either the sound is going on my video, or this scene has been really badly dubbed
• When the world isn't actually revolving around Buffy, it's patently obvious quite how much she assumes it does. My God, Buffy was being such a hypocritical uber-bitch! I was shouting out “Punch her Angel!” and then WHAM! Yes! 
• Love Buffy's shocked and violated look, if you hit someone in the face, they've got ever damn right to hit you back
• Interesting how the main protagonists all resort to violence when under stress of any kind
• Angel isn't much less self-involved, he's only sticking with Faith this far because he sees himself in her. Bear in mind that whilst he goes to any length to save Faith, who has murdered and tortured innocent people and nearly helped destroy an entire town, even to the extent of picking her over Buffy; he makes no effort at all to help Lindsey when he comes to him in 'Blind Date'. Buffy of course doesn't give a damn about saving anyone, she's just pissed cause Faith played with her toys
• "I've never murdered anybody" Not for lack of trying, though. Ask Ted. Or Faith herself come to that 
• Finally Kate gets a good line, "And when I say represent, I do mean your clients"
• Technically Buffy didn’t through her off the roof the first time, Faith kinda fell backwards off it. 
• In the tradition of all Action Movies, the bad guys are hopeless shots. 
• Riding on the helicopter like that looks so much fun
• What a jump! The Dark Avenger returns! 
• “Not in my city!” - class. You fucking tell her Angel! This is why I am also deep down a B/A shipper, they bloody well deserve each other

• Gunn! Gunn looks way cooler than Angel
• That dark suit of Wesley's is back again
• I think not referring to them as 'girls' would be a start
• Yeah, this is what we want! (Well, what I want!) Vampire carnage! 
• Dusting the vampire as it flies through the air is very cool
• And I’m sorry, but the truck with stakes on the front? The writer of this episode’s been watching The Lost Boys! 
• Leena is strangely arousing. 
• I love the way Lena's tail keeps moving
• First black character and he's a walking cliché
• Innuendo from Cordy there. 
• Nice inverted suplex from that demon to Angel. 
• I love Wesley’s reaction when Angel tells him the picture is upside down. 
• Isn't it freaky when they suddenly have scene in broad daylight?
• We all have moments when the obvious solution eludes us, but would the cell phone have worked in that meat locker underground?
• How Angel just casually dodges that falling vamp is brilliant. 
• I love this episode, particularly the end sequence between Gunn and his sister. Really well made. 
• Lovely tracking shot in on Gunn and Angel and back out again

• That was nice of the guy to move his toys out of the way. 
• What special powers would a demon with double vision have?
• I somehow suspect that the real LAPD online isn’t like this one. 
• Isn't Lee from Wolfram & Hart an oily bastard?
• To make my personal bias clear, this is the episode where I first fell for Lindsey McDonald. In which case I got there first, I was pretty much with Lindsey from the pilot, although he does have the kiss curl here, which is a winner
• If you're not guilty by reasons of being totally insane then do they let you go free? Why would W&H care if she's locked up as a lunatic or locked up as a murderer?
• Angel is such a bastard, just because Lindsey doesn't fall in tears at his feet, Angel doesn't lift a finger to help him. He doesn't give a shit about saving any soul but his own, even Faith he just sees as saving himself by proxy. What happened to 'anyone with a soul can be saved', 'they have a soul they are entitled to our help'?  Does Lin not qualify in some way I don't understand? They don't even give him a chance. Also Lindsey doesn't have breasts, which seem to be a requirement if you're trying to get Angel to help you. 
• Ooh, it’s all a bit Mission:Impossible! 
• I love that the way to persuade Gunn to help is extreme danger
• How funny is Gunn when he goes into Wolfram & Hart!? "Help! Help! I'm being repressed!"
• "Vampire on premises" yeah, no kidding, I think the guys in the foyer noticed that one
• That pink dust is excellent, wish I had the equivalent to use on people
• Harrison door
• The mind-readers are freaky. 
• How come nothing gets splattered on Holland?
• Lin didn't really think he'd gotten away with it did he?
• Could they not have lifted and carried the dead guy so that he didn't leave trails all down the corridor
• I was going to crack the “getting blood out of the carpet” joke. 
• Phil's cool
• From a lot of personal experience, it is nearly impossible to tell someone how to run a computer programme over the phone ("No, you press acquire then scan" or "How do I resize it?" "Well click on 'resize'" "But I can't see 'resize'" "Okay so try clicking on 'enhance' at the side. Now does it say 'resize'?"...)
• Rebecca’s nann-jinn vision is very Predator-alike. 
• Poor Lindsey, he gets beaten up, threatened, blood all over him, thrown against walls and has to comfort small children all during a crisis of conscience
• I really thought that Lindsey would walk out. I was gutted when he shut the doors and sat down in the dark. I was thrilled, I think he made absolutely the right decision. It was take the job and the paycheck and the lack of morals, or go be a good guy and have to put up with Angel's patronising crap for the rest of his life. I too would have taken the office. Oh that's when I started to like him Besides, that's a really nice office
• This really does sum up the difference between the two shows, on 'Buffy', Lindsey would have walked out of that office, because in 'Buffy' people can actually make a difference

• When Wesley throws that pen it nearly hits the camera. 
• That's a very big article in the papers for an insignificant promotion 
• They never gave him a chance to change, they just gave him sarcasm and a death mission 
• Guys in robes chanting - now that can’t be good. 
• The monks that raised the demon remind me bizarrely of the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch monks from 'Monty Python And The Holy Grail'. I don't know why
• 'I hope you had a pleasant journey' Well, there was no waiting at Baggage Claim so in anyone's book that's a big plus!
• Wes should have been a little quicker here, how is Angel dying a threat? He's already dead surely. Although his lack of intellectual energy is balanced by the dark shirt and the stubble
• Cordy vs. The Powers That Be - interesting. 
• At least Lin has the grace to look a little guilty about the missing scroll
• 'I don't forget anything' except the part where Angel saved her life countless times and solved most of her cases for her 
• They're having some awful continuity problems with that doughnut
• Her eyes never leave that doughnut 
• Funky scythe thing! 
• I always want to go up and tickle those statue people 
• 'Art Attack!'? Like the TV show? Any second now she'll whip out the pot of PVC glue (it was to 'Art Attack' what sticky back plastic was to 'Blue Peter') 
• You have to admire the demon guy’s no-nonsense approach to things. I with my long black cloak and scary red mask shall walk unnoticed through the crowds on this bright sunny day! 
• I get like that when I have a migraine 
• Cordy's vision montage is impressive
• BOOM! Noooooooooooooooooooo! Not the set! Poor Wesley, he wasn't even eating cheese! And all those rare books he got were blown up as well
• A major witness at a major crime scene? What's he going to say? 'It blew up'? 
• How come Wesley looks so cute in hospital?
• If he'd picked up that scythe, witnesses and policemen would have walked in and before you know it, on trial and being defended by Perry Mason 
• Again, this doesn’t look good... six vamps chained to a box, more chanting...
• Okay and how is Angel showing up Lindsey's fault? He was specifically told not to get involved
• I know this is a joke for a very small audience, but how funny does that Latin sound in the southern accent...
• Eeww, maggots! Eeeeugh! He needs to start exfoliating (with acid)
• The ritual is cool, but ow, poor Lindsey. What a shot by Angel! Lindsey only needed one hand anyway - and he appropriately sells it. Could he not have just dropped that scroll into the flame? Old parchment would go up like tissue, and Angel wouldn't be able to reach in and fish it out 
• Okay, so our language has leapt seamlessly from Hungary to darkest Africa
• How many bets that it'll take exactly seven seasons, and possibly a movie?
• Go on Angel, grin, you know you want to
• Thought of during 'Choices', but more applicable here. Even if Angel turns human, surely the perfect happiness curse will still apply. He would just turn into a soul-less ravaging human instead of a soul-less vampire
• Lindsey on the other hand (sorry, it's the only phrase that works) is distinctly unimpressed with his sacrifice
• Well, if they can bring Angel back from hell, why not Darla?
• Why the box? She's human now