Buffy the Vampire Slayer + Angel Watchthrough

Okay, so I'm having some real trouble starting this up again. I'm going to decide whether I should continue based entirely on how good this next episode of Angel is. If it's good, I'll keep watching. If it's bad, I'll give it another week.

Angel - The Prodigal - Season One, Episode Fifteen

Notes:
- Welp, we're back in Ireland 200 years ago and David Breviloquence's Irish accent is still rather slipshod.
- Angel's father didn't like him. To be fair, Angel was a drunkard and a layabout.
- In the present, Angel battles a demon who took a subway train hostage. The demon mysteriously dies of a heart attack.
- I've missed the opening theme tune. Love it.
- Kate is uncomfortable with Angel and the supernatural in general. She keeps him at arm's length as she tries to process the existence of demons and whatnot.
- One of passengers who was taking hostage is clearly hiding something. The demon attacked him specifically.
- In the past, Angel's debauchery attracts the attention of Darla. So that's what this episode is about. Didn't we already see him get turned?
- Wesley identifies the demon: apparently, they're supposed to peaceful and gentle. Angel speculates what could have set it off and remembers the suspicious passenger.
- Angel visits Kate and asks for her help to find the passenger. Kate is still awkward and refuses.
- 90s cellphones lol.
- Angel tracks down the passenger - a delivery guy - and shadows him. The delivery guy pays a visit to Kate's father and receives a mysterious package.
- Angel confronts Kate's father (gonna call him Mr. Lockley) and asks if he removed something from the crime scene. Mr. Lockley denies everything.
- "You got any kids, Angel?" "No." - Wrong.
- In the past, Angel runs away from home. I bet Mr. Whedon thought he was clever when he came up with the title for this episode. Shortly thereafter, he meets Darla and becomes a vampire.
- Mr Lockley arranges an impromptu get together with Kate. Mr Lockley slyly (not really) inquires about Angel. Mr Lockley is disheartened when learns Angel's a PI.
- Wesley performs some tests on the demon's corpse and discovers it's adrenal gland was massively inflated. Wesley extracts a mysterious substance he believes to be the blame. He speculates that it's Demon PCP and that delivery guy was carrying some, which was what caused the demon to attack him. Angel worries what would happen if the Demon PCP was given to a stronger demon.
- Cordelia tails the delivery guy and learns that the package is going to a mechanic shop that is connect to Wolfram and Hart. Mr Lockley believes he is helping them move 'untariffed auto parts' and is unaware of the real product.
- The tweaked out demon who is running the drug tracking ring demands that Wolfram and Hart kill Angel and Mr Lockley.
- In the past, Angel's family burying him, believing him to be dead. That night, Angelus rises, kills a grave keeper and then prepares to go feast on his family with Darla.
- Angel prepares to scope out the mechanic shop, but Kate shows up and lets Angel know that her father was asking about him. Angel decides to warn Mr Lockley that he is involved with demons.
- A gang of PCP demon attack Angel Investigations. Wesley and Cordelia manage to fend them off and Angel interrogates one of them and learns of the hit out on him and Mr Lockley.
- Two Wolfram and Hart associates pay Mr Lockley a visit while Angel phones Kate and tells her her father is in danger.
- In the past, Angelus returns to his family and tricks his sister into inviting him in. He kills them all.
- Mr Lockley realizes why the two associates are there and prepares to ambush them with some guns he has hidden in his liquor cabinet when suddenly there is a knock on the door. Angel begs Mr Lockley to invite him in while the two associates (who are vampires) loom behind Mr Lockley. From the doorway, Angel can only look on as Mr Lockley is killed. With the soul of the occupant gone, Angel enters the apartment and slays one of the associates while the other flees. Kate arrives and breaks down when she sees her father's corpse. She tells Angel to leave.
- Angel goes to the mechanic shop, intent on revenge. Kate beats him there and kills the vampire associate. She is confronted by the tweaked out demon boss and his entourage of vampire henchmen but Angel arrives and comes to her aid. Together, Angel and Kate kill them all.
- Damn, I wish Angel used his "hidden stakes" more often.
- Kate leaves, telling Angel he can't understand what she is going through. Angel watches her go.

Episode Rating:

Eh, it was alright.

7/10

Buffy - Superstar - Season Four, Episode Seventeen

Notes:
- Do you know who I miss? Xander. And Giles. And Taraless Willow. I hope this episodes about one of them.
- On patrol, the Scoobies discover a nest of vampires. Unable to take them down alone, they seek the help of some other person.
- The person is Jonathan, the kid who was going to shoot himself in the bell tower at Sunnydale High. I'm suspecting a "The Wish" type thing going on here.
- Haha, Jonathan's been inserted into the credits. To Mr. Whedon's credit, he's certainly creative and he exploits the medium of television very well.
- Jonathan is charismatic, intelligent and strong. He's basically Mary-Sueing it up this episode.
- Jonathan and the Scoobies (well, mostly Jonathan) eliminate the nest.
- The ongoing story is still relevant: Adam is still loose, Faith recently left, Buffy and Riley are still working through their relationship issues etc. but Jonathan's inserted into the mix.
- Colonel George Haviland - the Initiative's new military commander - asks for Jonathan's help in recapturing Adam. Jonathan reveals he's been researching Adam's design schematics and has learned that Adam is essentially nuclear-powered. The only way to kill him would be to annihilate him completely.
- Jonathan helps Buffy and Riley work through their relationship troubles. Oh, Jonathan.
- Jonathan is a published writer, accomplished musician, and model too. Anya moans his name while having sex with Xander, haha.
- A monster attacks a girl named Karen but she manages to get away. Jonathan calms her down and asks for the monster's description. Karen describes a strange mark she saw on the creature and Jonathan reassures her that he'll take care of it. He discourages Buffy and Riley from looking for the monster themselves. Briefly, Buffy gets a strange look on her face - maybe the illusion is breaking?
- Adam is unaffected by whatever spell is causing Jonathan to be so famous and godly. Adam speculates that spell will inevitably decay and that chaos will ensue.
- That night, as Jonathan disrobes, it is revealed he has the strange mark on this back.
- Tara is ambushed by the same monster that attacked Karen. She uses magic to escape but is severely traumatized. Willow and Buffy wonder why Jonathan didn't take care of it like he said he would.
- Buffy begins digging deeper into Jonathan and his perfection. She asks Anya about wishes and learns of the possibility of alternate realities.
- Under scrutiny, Jonathan's life story (graduated med school at 18, invented the internet...) begins to fall apart for Buffy. Buffy believes Jonathan manipulated their lives. Although skeptical, the Scoobies support her. After a little digging, they find a swimsuit calender of Jonathan with the symbol on his back.
- I fucking love Anya and her obsession with shrimp.
- Jonathan walks in on their little pow wow. Jonathan brushes off the demon mark by saying the demon has a special power over him and he got a tattoo to make sure he wouldn't forget it. Buffy doesn't fall for it though and insists she and Jonathan hunt the monster down. Jonathan is hesitant but agrees anyway.
- They run into Spike and Jonathan interrogates him about the monster's whereabouts. Spike resists but Buffy manages to get it out of him. Jonathan isn't happy about being upstaged.
- The Scoobies do some research and learn the mark causes the user to become a paragon - perfect in every way - but the draw back is it also creates an opposite source of evil to counterbalance the new good. If the monster dies, the spell is broken.
- Buffy and Jonathan find the monster in a cave with a bottomless pit in the centre of it. I wonder what is going to happen.
- As Buffy battles the demon, Jonathan becomes more and more useless.
- In a clutch moment, Jonathan tackles the monster into the pit. Buffy manages to catch Jonathan's foot as he falls.
- Throughout Sunnydale, evidence of Jonathan's influence vanishes. The Scoobies reflect on the return to normalcy while Buffy spies Jonathan, awkward and alone.
- They talk. Jonathan apologizes and leaves, reflecting on some advice he originally told Buffy in his fantasy world. Buffy and Riley's relationship is healthy again.

Episode Rating:

9/10.

Best episode in a while, definitely.

Angel - The Ring - Season One, Episode Sixteen

Notes:
- Didn't we already have a story about a ring?
- Cordelia and Wesley are sniping at each other when a battered man named Darin walks into the office looking for Angel. Darin's brother (named Jack) was kidnapped by demons the previous night and the man received a finger in the mail the next morning. Jack had gambling issues; Angel pays a visit to the bookie and bribes him for Jack's location.
- Using an online demon database (the wonders of technology circa the new millennium), Wesley and Cordelia identify the demons who abducted Jack as Howler demons.
- Entering an old sewer passage on the coast, Angel finds two albino-skinned Howlers. He roughs them up and learns that they sold Jack into slavery... the kind of slavery where one is forced to fight demons to the death in an underground battle pit. Suddenly the title becomes clear.
- On his way to the ring, Angel briefly meets a woman with a betting slip. I'm that's the last we'll see of her.
- Angel arrives in time to see one demon perform a "killing blow" on another at the crowd's enthusiastic request.
- Spotting Jack in the crowd, Angel follows him into a dark room where he is promptly ambushed and knocked unconscious. Turns out the entire thing was a ruse to capture Angel; Jack is a pit boss who organizes fights.
- Angel awakens in a cage with a taciturn demon cellmate and a mysterious bracelet strapped to his wrist. Jack arrives and tells Angel that he will be unable to escape so long as that bracelet is on his arm - and that the only way to have that bracelet removed is to perform twenty one kills in the ring. Angel refuses to fight but Jack just smirks and tells him that he'll die in the pit then.
- Alarmed at Angel's absence, Wesley plans to track him down by retracing his steps: starting with the bookie.
- Wesley's impeccable aim (seriously, what's up with that) shows itself again as he disarms the bookie and his cronies and interrogates them at crossbow and pistol point.
- Angel's first opponent is a demon named Baker. Angel continues to insist that he isn't going to kill anyone.
- Wesley and Cordelia manage to con their way into the fight. They arrive in time to watch Angel, who refuses to fight back, try and defend himself against Baker's relentless assault. When the crowd begins to grow restless at Angel's pacifism, Darin supplies Baker with a knife by sliding it into the pit. Angel has no choice but to kill Baker.
- Wesley and Cordelia wrack their brains on how to free Angel without alerting anyone. Cordelia manages to smuggle out one of the bracelets - Wesley plans to forge a key.
- Angel tries to escape and manages to take Jack hostage. However, Darin is unmoved and executes Jack, ridding Angel of his bargaining chip and wounding him in the process. Angel is once again tazered by Darin's henchmen.
- Angel wakes up in the office of the woman met before. Her name is Lilah Morgan and she is an associate at Wolfram and Hart, as well as a fight fan. She tells Angel that Wolfram and Hart purchased his fight contract from Darin. Lilah tells Angel he is free, as long he walks away from the ordeal and allows the fights to continue. Angel obviously refuses and is escorted back to the ring.
- Do those quickfire 'gunshot' transitions become the norm? If so, fuck that. They're annoying as hell.
- That night, Angel is scheduled to fight Trepkos, a fighter who is one away from his 21st kill.
- Cordelia stumbles upon the right combination to unlock the bracelets.
- Trepkos pummels Angel, who can do nothing but block and dodge as best he can. Both fighter are supplied with javelins of wood (...giant stakes...) and the fight continues.
- Wesley manages to sneak into the holding cells and offers a belligerent demon named Cribb freedom in exchange for helping Angel. Cribb simply steals the key from Wesley and frees himself.
- Miraculously, Angel gets the upper hand against Trepkos but refuses to kill him. Trepkos attacks Angel while his back is turned and batters him mercilessly. However, when it comes to striking the killing blow, Trepkos cannot bring himself to do it. Since both fighters refuses to kill, Darin orders his guards to kill them. Welsey sidles up to Darin and threatens him with a gun, telling him to call off the guards. Darin refuses but suddenly Cribb and the rest of the demons - all free of their bracelets - storm the ring and overwhelm the guards. The crowd flees in terror and Lilah slips away as well. Wesley and Darin struggle over the gun in the confusion; Cordelia intervenes and knocks Darin into the pit. Trepkos finishes him off.
- Cordelia and Wesley carry Angel home, reflecting on the fact they just let a group of violent demons loose on the city.

Episode Rating:

10/10.

Great episode. Huge step up for both series these past two episodes.

Might as well do two Angel episodes in a row so I can even up the progress of both series.

Angel - Eternity - Season One, Episode Seventeen

Notes:
- Angel rescues a famous actress named Rebecca from an attempted hit.
- Haha, I love Wesley's hopeful glance around when he thinks ET means Emma Thompson.
- The next day, Rebecca visits the office and asks him for his help with a stalker fan. Cordelia begs him to take the case so she can network with big names in Hollywood, but Angel is hesitant because he is attracted to Rebecca.
- I'm betting the stalker fan is her own agent.
- I guess Angel has a type. And that type is Asians. Rebecca definitely has some Asian heritage somewhere down the line.
- That night, a... ninja attacks Rebecca in her home but Angel arrives (through a window) and drives him away. Before Angel can leave, Rebecca spots his (lack of a) reflection in a mirror. She deduces he is a vampire.
- Angel accompanies Rebecca to a premiere as her escort. Angel foils another assassination attempt.
- Rebecca learns from her agent that the stalker fan situation was simply a ploy to get her in the limelight again. The agent tells Rebecca that no one stays young forever; Rebecca seems to think otherwise...
- Rebecca reaches out to Cordelia and takes her shopping. She subtly (not really) asks about Angel and his vampirism.
- Angel figures out that the assassination attempts have all been fake but doesn't know how to tell Rebecca. Rebecca visits Angel, ostensibly to celebrate the stalker's incarceration with some champagne. Angel tries to tell her that it was all fake, but she tells him she already knows.
- Rebecca clearly plans on making Angel turn her into a vampire. She slips him a drug.
- Cordelia realizes that Rebecca was oddly forward about her questions and tells Wesley she thinks Rebecca is going to make herself a vampire.
- Rebecca tries to convince a somewhat intoxicated Angel to bite but he resists. As the drug begin to kick in, Angel suddenly gets aggressive and bites her.
- Welp, Angelus is back. Drugs kill your soul, you heard it hear first.
- Rebecca tries to run but Angelus is too quick. She brains him with a candlestick and manages to get to the elevator. Wesley and Cordelia are there to meet her. They angrily ask what she did to him and Rebecca tells them she slipped Angel some "doximal". Apparently, that drug can synthesize the effects of perfect happiness, which triggers Angelus' return. My, how convoluted.
- Angelus cuts the power in the building and taunts the three of them from the shadows.
- Man, I forgot how much I love Angelus. He's such a great villain. He dishes out some real ice burns on Wesley and Cordelia.
- "There wasn't a dry eye in the house, everyone was just laughing so hard." God damn.
- Cordelia manages to distract Angelus long enough for Wesley to knock him unconscious by pushing him down an elevator shaft.
- Angel wakes up, chained to the bed. The drugs have worn off but obviously tensions are flared and Rebecca's long gone. Angel, Cordelia and Wesley agree to put it behind them.

Episode Rating:

9.5/10

The ending was fantastic.

The next Buffy episode is one of the worst, but the next Angel two-part is god tier.

Buffy - Where the Wild Things Are - Season Four, Episode Eighteen

Notes:
- Have I mentioned how much I dislike SMGs hair when it's curled? She's not Gillian Jacobs, she can't pull it off.
- So this episode was written by the same woman who wrote Beer Bad. My confidence is not very high.
- Okay, I'm not being funny but Riley has been slowly walking through this dark hallway for about two minutes.
- I hate how Xander has completely ceased to be noteworthy and is now defined by his kooky relationship with Anya. I like both of them but they're just periphery characters now and it's such a waste. In fact, other than Buffy, all the old characters (Willow, Xander, and Giles) are just sort of there now. Willow is now just a girl finding out about the wonders of lesbianism with her ugly girlfriend and Giles is just the guy who is anxious about the supernatural. Compared to Angel, where Wesley and Cordelia play a huge part every episode, it's frustrating.
- Giles is worried when Buffy warns him that a demon and a vampire have been working together. The Scoobies suspect that Adam is behind it.
- Riley organizes a party for the Initiative soldiers, who have been pretty ragged from all that's been happening recently.
- Buffy and Riley can't stop fucking each other. Coincidentally, when they cum some guy gets set on fire. There's a joke here somewhere.
- Anya and Spike bond over their shared loss of power.
- There's something up with the frat house; if you touch the wall you spontaneously ejaculate. I am dangerously close to just turning this episode off right here.
- Xander and Anya break up. Welp, maybe they can both get more significant screen time now.
- Basically something in the house is making people horny, or crazy, or both.
- Willow spots a ghost of some kid who drowned in the bathtub. She, Tara and Xander try to to get Buffy, but she's too busy fucking Riley in some black abyss.
- The only reason I'm still watching this is because Xander is getting his first major screen time in forever. Shame it had to happen in such a shitty episode.
- Haha, Giles now plays acoustic guitar in a coffee house in his free time because the Scoobies are too busy for him these days. Of course it's Behind Blue Eyes.
- Willow had a crush on Giles when she was younger. Huh.
- Giles and the others investigate the house's past. Turns out it used to be a foster home for wayward children run by a crazy religious woman. She abused them and blah blah blah I'm not writing anything more about this stupid episode.

Episode Rating:

3/10.

If it wasn't for the focus on the Scoobies, I would have turned it off.

I had a gander at the synopsizes of the next couple of episodes and I think it would make more sense to watch the next Buffy right away.

Buffy - New Moon Rising - Season Four, Episode Nineteen

Notes:
- Oz is back. That can't be good for Willow and Tara's ugly relationship.
- I wish Oz could stay, but it's obviously not gonna happen since I know Willow commits to the gay thing.
- That night, Oz pays Willow a visit in her dorm room and asks her to follow him outside. It's a full moon. Oz shows that he's learned to control his transformation and tells Willow he's ready for a relationship again.
- A team of Initiative soldiers are attacked by savaged werewolves. Of course, we can't have an Oz story without a fucking case of mistaken identity. I wonder if Riley will try and hunt Oz down, thinking he's to blame? I'm sure that won't happen.
- Tara is uncomfortable with Willow and starts avoiding her.
- Riley learns of the attack on the Initiative soldiers.
- Willow tells Buffy about Oz's cure and Buffy assumes they'll get back together. Willow finally lets Buffy know she has feelings for Tara. Dun dun dunnnn.
- Adam visits Spike and offers him a chance to get the chip removed from his head in exchange for his help in dealing with Buffy.
- Willow meets with Tara and cries because she doesn't know what to do. Tara comforts her.
- Oz catches Willow's scent on Tara and figures out that there's something between her and Willow. The stress of the revelation causes Oz to lose his cool and he begins to transform.
- Werewolf Oz chases Tara through a suspiciously empty campus (seriously, it's midday where are all the fucking students). Riley appears and manages to tranquilize Oz. Well, here's out mistaken identity plot. Who would have guessed it? Me. I did. Because it's always the same fucking thing.
- Tara tells Willow that he's been captured. The Scoobies plan to break into the Initiative again. Spike appears and tells them he'll help them get in.
- Oz comes to his senses and transforms back while in Initiative custody. The Initiative scientists conduct experiments on Oz to induce his transformation.
- Riley attempts to break Oz out of the Initiative once he sees what they're doing to him, but they are caught. Riley is placed in a cell and warned that he will be court-martialed if he does not stop fraternizing with Buffy and her friends.
- With Adam's help, Spike helps the Scoobies sneak into the Initiative. They manage to free both Riley and Oz.
- Buffy and Riley go into hiding for safety reasons. Buffy decides to tell Riley everything about her past.
- Oz prepares to leave town, since it's clear that Willow is in love with Tara. He is satisfied as long as she is happy. Willow and Oz share a tearful goodbye hug and Oz drives away.
- Goodbye Seth Green. I'm glad you got rid of that goatee.
- The episode ends with Willow visiting Tara and telling that she love her.
- I guess Willow and Tara are the kind of lesbians who never actually kiss.

Episode Rating:

7.5/10.

Angel - Five By Five - Season One, Episode Eighteen

Notes:
- A bus arrives in LA and our mutual friend Faith gets off. She promptly steals some guy's wallet and keys and jacket after beating him. Looks like she hasn't changed much at all.
- In 1898, Angelus feasts on a young gypsy girl while Darla enjoys the show. So that's why the whole curse thing that happened then.
- Angel actively interferes with Wolfram and Hart by protecting a key witness in a case against one of their benefactors. Wolfram and Hart decide it is time to deal with Angel once and for all. As luck would have it, there is a rogue Slayer running loose in the city with a bone to pick with their enemy.
- Lilah - the Wolfram and Hart associate from The Ring - gets in contact with Faith.
- In 1898, Darla returns home and finds a recently ensolated Angel curled up in a corner babbling incoherently about the lives he's taken. Darla is horrified when she learns he has a soul and she screams at him to leave. Angel stumbles out into the night.
- At the Wolfram and Hart firm, Lilah and another associate named Lindsey McDonald (yes, I've noticed that all the initials of the W&H associates are L.M.) offer to have Faith's criminal record wiped in exchange for Angel's life. She accepts instantly.
- The next day, Faith almost manages to shoot Angel in the back with a crossbow bolt but he somehow manages to catch it. Angel and the others are stunned that Faith has returned, since the last they heard she was in a coma.
- Woah woah woah. Angel phones Giles, who tells him that Faith left Sunnydale a week ago. So either the four episodes between Who Are You and this one (five if you count New Moon Rising) happen in a one action-packed week or the episodes are out of order. Or maybe Where the Wild Things Are is non-canon. I like that option actually.
- Wesley is angry that Giles failed to warn them of Faith's revival. Angel tells Wesley and Cordelia to make themselves scarce so that he can prepare for the inevitable confrontation with Faith.
- It comes much sooner than expected. Faith breaks into the office and taunts Angel a little bit, revealing it was Wolfram and Hart who set her up to it. And then she jumps out of a window. She's not right in the head.
- Angel infiltrates W&H and snoops around Lindsey's office. He catches Angel in his office and they have a chat.
- Faith ambushes Cordelia and Wesley in Cordelia's apartment. They try to talk to her but Faith elbows Cordelia in face and then kidnaps Wesley because she feels Angel 'isn't in the game.'
- Faith tortures Wesley for no other reason that she's a crazy, crazy bitch. Angel and Cordelia work to track him down.
- Angel finds the apartment where Faith is keeping Wesley and breaks down the door (I don't know how he got in since he wasn't invited by whatevs). He and Faith fight while Wesley struggles to get free from his bonds. Faith has the definite upper hand until Angel manages to tackle her out of a window. The battle continues on the street but Angel stops fighting back, telling Faith he isn't gonna make it easy for her. Faith's gets angrier and starts screaming that she's bad, trying to convince Angel to kill her. Faith breaks down, crying hysterically.

Episode Rating:

10/10.

I think that's the first ten I've ever given an episode with Faith in it.

I totally never noticed the L.M. thing.

oh yeah i was doing this

Angel - Sanctuary - Season One, Episode Nineteen

Notes
- oh Faith's in this?
- Faith is despondent following her confrontation with Angel and Wesley. Angel lets her rest in his apartment but Faith still has fantasies about killing him.
- I missed the opening credits, I'll admit.
- Oh Buffy's in this? I saw SMG's name in the credits.
- Cordelia and Wesley are not happy about Faith's presence. Wesley wants her dead, Angel insists she can be rehabilitated.
- Kate investigates the trashed apartment where Faith and Angel fought. It's made clear that she has a growing fascination in the supernatural.
- Faith has flashbacks of the time she killed the Mayor's aide and packs her bags, intending on running away again. Angel talks her out of it. Faith resolves to try to be good.
- Wesley is confronted by members of the Watcher's Council. They let him in know that the Council has reconsidered everything and they are willing to reinstate Wesley as a Watcher and bring him back to England. The catch is they want him to help them capture Faith and escort her back to England. Wesley's agrees on the condition that Angel is not to be harmed.
- Faith whines about how guilty she feels. Angel tells her to fucking deal with it. Faith feels particularly bad about how she treated Buffy and tells Angel she screwed Riley. Angel is hurt that Buffy's got a new boyfriend.
- A demon hired by the LM associates at Wolfram and Hart ambushes Faith and Angel in Angel's apartment. Faith kills it easily enough but reacts badly to the blood on her hands. Angel comforts her. Buffy walks in. Oh gee.
- I gotta say, I was hoping that Buffy would stay away from LA for longer because I know SMG only shows up in Angel a few times. I don't want her to only appear right at the start and then never be seen again.
- So Buffy walks right in. Does Angel not have locks in his apartment? Is that how the demon got in too? Poor form Angel.
- Buffy assumes the worst and let's Angel know she came to LA because Giles warned her of Faith's reappearance. Buffy is pretty fucking ticked about Faith's bullshit and tells Faith straight up that she's there to take her to jail. Buffy chastises Angel for trying to give Faith a second chance.
- Sensing the rising tension, Angel tells Faith to get out so he and Buffy can talk. Buffy refuses to let Faith leave her sight and when she tries to stop Faith, Angel punches her. Right in the goddamn face.
- Angel apologizes profusely. Shit I think it's a little late for that.
- Buffy derides Angel for being the nice guy but Angel just shoots back that Buffy doesn't know what Faith is going through. Buffy sneers and tries to take the moral highground and says she's never killed anybody. Which is false. She cut a dude's throat with an ice skate. I remember.
- Wesley returns and nonchalantly greets Buffy before revealing that the Council men is on their way. Wesley refuses to be their pawn anymore.
- One of LM associates goes to Kate reveals that Angel is sheltering Faith.
- Faith flees to the roof and Buffy goes to stop her from doing something stupid while Angel and Wesley check to see if their sewer escape route is free. Buffy and Faith have a little shouting match before the Council arrives with submachine guns and a fucking Helicopter. Yet, between them they still don't manage to hit either of Slayers as they run around on a roof with absolutely no cover.
- Wesley manages to take out one Council goon by throwing a hypodermic needle with pin point accuracy at the dude's jugular. You know, at first I thought Wesley's implausible aim was just a coincidence but the show runners are clearly building up to something with this.
- Angel pounces up through a skylight and forces the helicopter to land while Buffy watches on. The helicopter lands amid a fleet of police cruisers. Kate demands Angel reveal Faith's location but Angel stays quiet; Kate arrests him.
- By the time they get to the department though, they find Faith has already turned herself in.
- The episode ends with Angel telling Buffy that he was just trying to help someone - just like he does everyday. Buffy pulls the Riley card. Angel tells her to get out of his city.
- Oh yeah and Faith's in jail now. Boo hoo. I hope she rots there.

Episode Rating

7.5/10.

Buffy - The Yoko Factor - Season Four, Episode Twenty

Notes
- Man I have completely forgotten the state of affairs since the last episode. Spike's working with Adam? Okay.
- David Birmingham's in this episode too? Dammit I thought Angel was going to deal with his Buffy angst in LA not immediately go running after her.
- Spike and Adam plot to drive Buffy's friends away from her so that Adam has time to strike.
- Buffy returns to Sunnydale and sulks on her bed instead of reuniting with Riley. Uh oh conflict.
- Riley and Xander (yay Xander) have a chat about Angel. Riley let's slip that Buffy neglected to tell him about the 'one true moment of happiness' clause to Angel's curse. Xander accidentally enlightens him and Riley takes it about as well as you'd expect in the Whedonverse where everything involving relationships is a fucking big deal.
- The first time I see Giles in five months and he's playing Freebird on a guitar. Hell yeah Giles.
- I'm not gonna lie, I paused the episode for like half an hour and just listened to Freebird on youtube over and over.
- Spike goes to Giles ostensibly to cut a deal: Spike will find information about Adam if Buffy agrees to leave Spike alone. Before he leaves, Spike needles Giles about his current uselessness and how Buffy doesn't seem to need him anymore.
- Riley goes to visit Buffy since she didn't check in with him when she got back. It's pretty awkward since Buffy is still cut up about Angel. Riley tries to be supportive but Buffy just shuts him out.
- Xander provides Spike with military gear and a fake gun so he can infiltrate The Initiative. Spike manages to get into Xander's head by implying the other Scoobies think he's useless.
- While out looking for Adam, Buffy runs into Forrest. Calling a shaky truce, they search a cave together and run into the half human, half demon, half robot himself.
- Forrest gets shanked and Buffy barely makes it out of there, leaving Forrest behind. While running from the cave, Buffy trips and knocks herself unconscious like a retard.
- Spike gives Willow, Giles and Tara the disks that he 'stole' from the Initiative (when really Adam simply gave them to him). While Willow tries to hack the encryption on the disks, Spike notices how close she and Tara and realizes they're a couple. He slyly mentions that the others have said that Willow is simply going through a 'phase' with this 'wicca' (hint hint) business. Man, Spike's good at this.
- Meanwhile at The Initiative, things are falling apart. The cells are almost completely full and the teams are stretched thin trying to battle all the demons and monsters that Adam has spurred into action. Riley hears a request for help on a signal he patched into and resolves to help.
- Riley arrives just as the last of the team is knocked out by none other than Angel. Ruh roh, Shaggy.
- Angel recognizes Riley (somehow) and Riley soon clues in when Angel says they have a friend in common. They fight for some reason (Angel seems to go out of his way to goad Riley so Riley thinks Angel has lost his soul be he had sex with Buffy again) it's all very unnecessary.
- The fight stretches on until Initiative reinforcements arrive. Both flee. Seriously, why were they fighting again?
- Angel goes to Buffy and acts like he didn't yell at her to stay out of his life and stop involving him in her problems. This is all so contrived. Angel seems to be there to warn Buffy about something but before he can do anything Riley bursts in with a gun. Angel acts belligerent again so Buffy separates them forcefully.
- Buffy and Angel go out into the hall so they can talk alone. Buffy calls Angel out on his bullshit and I extremely thankful she does. Good work Buffy, you tell him.
- Angel admits he came all this way so he could apologize. Welp, what a waste. Buffy could at least ask Angel to help with Adam before he goes but nope.
- At least the two of them finally part on good terms, that's something at least.
- Having sewed plenty of discontent among the Scoobies, Spike returns to Adam and asks if he is willing to remove his chip yet. Adam tells Spike he still needs one more thing.
- Buffy and Riley have a relationship talk and manage to patch things up. Then Buffy tells Riley that Forrest is dead and Riley takes it about as well as you'd expect.
- The episode ends with the anger among the Scoobies reaching a boiling point: Xander's pissed because he think the girls think he's useless, Buffy's pissed because Xander told Riley about Angel's curse, Willow's pissed because she thinks the others were being homophobic or something and Giles is just straight up drunk.
- I love that Xander didn't realize Willow was gay and you just hear Giles off screen exclaiming "Bloody hell!"
- Things just fall apart and Buffy storms out. Damn, Spike's good at his trade.
- The episode ends with Riley confronting Adam in his cave. To be continued.

Episode Rating

10/10

I really liked that episode.

Buffy - Primeval - Season Four, Episode Twenty One

Notes:
- Riley has a chip inside him that controls his actions. Professor Walsh implanted it directly into his central nervous system and Adam merely activated when the time was right.
- Adam devises a plan to pit Buffy against the demons held captive in the Initiative. Once she has slaughtered them all, Adam will attack her while she's exhausted. Ah, the "Bane" gambit.
- The next morning, the Scoobies are still reeling from the fight the previous night. Buffy decides to be proactive and goes looking for Adam with a battle axe.
- Adam takes Riley to a secret underground base that Initiative built where the reanimated corpses of Maggie Walsh and some other douche bag work. Adam plans to use them create a new race of robo demon-human hybrids. His first test subject is Forrest.
- Spike comes across Buffy while she's hunting Adam and accidentally reveals that he knows about the Scoobies split.
- Buffy calls the Scoobies together and reveals Spike's ploy. From the disks Spike gave them, the Scoobie re alize Adam plan: he will release the demons in Initiative captivity and let the demons and soldiers slaughter each other, giving Adam access to hundreds of human and demon body parts to play with. The Scoobies are perturbed that Adam is so confident that he would let them know his plan ahead of time.
- The Scoobies plot a way to deal with Adam. They devise a paralyzing spell but it requires Willow's magic, Giles' linguistic proficiency and Buffy's strength and agility to work. Xander sarcastically suggests that all they need is to join their best qualities together into one person. Giles says he's on to something. I don't like where this is going.
- The Scoobies plan to use an 'enjoining' spell. I can only think of it as fusion.
- The Scoobies infiltrate the Initiative and as they do so they make their peace with one another. Unfortunately, they are ambushed by Initiative goons and taken prisoner.
- Adam sees that the Scoobies are still with Buffy and refuses to honor his part of the bargain to remove the chip in Spike's head. Spike is forced to flee.
- Buffy tries to talk sense into the Initiative colonel but he refuses to listen. Suddenly Adams put his plan into effect: the exits are sealed and the demons are released. The colonel mobilizes his troops while Buffy and the others track down Adam's secret base.
- Buffy goes on ahead while the Scoobies prep the ritual. Oh boy this is going to be something special all right.
- Buffy finds Riley, who is unable to move or respond. Adam arrives and distracts her while Forrest jumps her from behind. Through sheer force of will, Riley manages to resist the effects of the control chip long enough to carve it out of himself using a piece of glass. Goddamn that's hardcore.
- Riley fights Forrest while Buffy goes off to confront Adam. Meanwhile, the ritual begins to ramp up.
- Like always, Buffy is helpless against Adam who keeps her pinned down in cover using his minigun arm (?). Fortunately just as things look their worst, the enjoining spell activates.
- Buffy emerges from a dust cloud with glowing yellow eyes and speaks with all four Scoobies' voices. Adam fires at her but the bullets are deflected by an invisible barrier. Buffy attacks.
- Riley manages to destroy Forrest in an explosion by igniting a gas canister.
- Adam gets his ass handed to him by super Buffy. She pins him against a wall and tears out his power source with her hand. Adam dies.
- The enjoining spell ends just as a demon prepares to attack the weakened Scoobies. Fortunately, Spike arrives and snaps its neck.
- Meanwhile at the Pentagon (or whatever), the suits decide to end the Initiative project and any further attempts to control the supernatural. The end.

Episode Rating

9/10.

Angel - War Zone - Season One, Episode Twenty

Notes:
- A black girl gets chased by some vampires and they corner her in an alleyway. Fortunately Black Angel shows up with a rag tag team of ghetto hunters. I'm sure Black Angel has a name but I don't care enough to learn it.
- White Angel, White Cordelia and White Wesley attend a party hosted by Mr. Nabbit, a dotcom millionaire who is being blackmailed. In the past, Nabbit visited a demon brothel in high school because he loved Dungeons and Dragons so much and now a man named Lenny Edwards threatens to expose him.
- The fight goes badly for Black Angel and his buddies and the vampires escape. Black Angel has been obsessively routing out vampires in the city and his sister (the black girl) worries that he's going to get himself killed.
- The 'hood' dialogue in this episode is atrocious. Ya feel me?
- White Angel tracks down Lenny Edwards after visiting the demon brothel. Unfortunately, Black Angel sees White Angel threatening Lenny with his vamp face on and takes it the wrong way.
- Nabbit pays Cordelia and Wesley generously for their help because he's lonely and they were nice to him. He promises more when the job is done.
- White Angel manages to get the incriminating photos back but is ambushed by Black Angel and his posse. White Angel is surrounded and asks what the ghetto hunters think they're doing trying to fight the supernatural by themselves. Black Angel is at first reticent but changes his mind when White Angel protects his sister from a stray crossbow bolt.
- White Angel tries to explain who and what he is but Black Angel doesn't believe him. He tells White Angel to get out and never show his face again.
- The next day, White Angel tells Wesley to find the ghetto hunters while Angel goes looking for the vampires' nest.
- Meanwhile, the leader of the vampires tells his minions that he is sick of the ghetto hunters intervening and plans to strike back.
- Angel learns of the vampires' plans, but is too late to stop them. The vampires attack the ghetto hunters' hideout and kidnap Black Angel's sister.
- The ghetto hunters prepare for war but Angel infiltrates their hideout (by forcing a guard to invite him in) and offers to help. Black Angel refuses (and there's some very unsubtle commentary about class conflict) and manages to lock Angel in a cell by driving him back with sunlight.
- The ghetto hunters move to confront the vampires. Surprise suprise, Black Angel's sister got vamped.
- Cordelia and Wesley free White Angel and then chastise him for forgetting he has a cell phone. This show is not without it's charm even when it's such a mediocre episode.
- Black Angel's sister taunts him and then offers to vamp him but Black Angel tearfully apologizes and stakes her. Angel arrives shortly before the rest of the vampires do. Angel stakes the leader of the vampires and gives the rest one chance to leave peacefully, promising to let them live so long as they leave LA forever. Angel says he's only offering the truce because he doesn't want any more the ghetto hunters to die. The vampire minions wisely choose to leave and never return.
- The episode ends with both Angels brooding on a rooftop. Black Angel (whose name is Gunn... subtle, Mr. Whedon) is guilty and expects Angel to try and talk him out of his dangerous lifestyle but Angel just tells him that he might need his help in the future.

Episode Rating

6/10

What is there to say? A bit too much unsubtle social commentary and not enough captivating television.

Angel - Blind Date - Season One, Episode Twenty One

Episode Notes:
- While dealing with some vampires, Angel accidentally stumbles upon an blind female assassin who has recently killed her target. She's basically Daredevil and she kicks his ass. After she flees, Angel sets out to find more information about her.
- With the help of Cordelia, Angel learns the assassin's name is Vanessa and that she is currently on trial for a double homicide. She is represented in court by Lindsey MacDonald, one of the associates at Wolfram and Hart. He gets her acquitted.
- oh hey it's bernard
- Bernard is one of the senior partners at the firm. He talks about Lindsey's successes (and failures) and suggests that Lindsey could be promoted soon. However, Linsdey is having reservations about his line of work and the constant immorality of it all. Bernard reassures him and then asks Lindsey to begin preparations for Vanessa's next assassination. Her next targets will be children. This does not soothe Lindsey's doubts.
- Angel is remarkably angry about Vanessa's acquittal. Seriously, he knew about her for like two days and he's acting as if she killed Buffy or something. He's mostly just pissed that Wolfram and Hart keep standing in his way - especially since he can't do anything to fight them effectively because he's confined to the shadows. He can't exactly give testimony in court for instance.
- Lindsey goes to Angel because he has finally had enough of Wolfram and Hart and wants out. Angel gives no fucks about Lindsey and his sob story and tells him as much until Lindsey drops the infanticide bombshell. Angel demands Lindsey tell him everything but Lindsey knows next to nothing about the hit. Angel tells Lindsey to go back to the firm and learn more but Lindsey refuses because he knows Wolfram and Hart will kill him if they discover his intentions - and he is certain they will find out because they have mind readers in their employ. Angel begins to question if Lindsey really wants to make amends and Lindsey relents and draws up plans to help Angel sneak in with him.
- The various security measures in place make it practically impossible for Angel to make it into the firm undetected. They have shamans in place to maintain the threshold who will be alerted the second a vampire enters the building. To get around this, Angel asks Gunn for help.
- Lindsey arrives at the firm and begins making preparation for Angel's infiltration. He leaves his security pass taped to the bottom of a fire extinguisher for Angel to find.
- Angel sneaks into the sewer beneath the building and cuts a hole through the floor above using a blowtorch. Meanwhile, Gunn bursts into the lobby and starts making as much of a ruckus as he can. At a specified time, Gunn has his ghetto brethren drag a captured vampire through the doors while Angel enters from the sewer. As Gunn and his friends escape, the shaman begins going crazy and security quickly kill the vampire. Angel makes it into the building unnoticed and collects Lindsey's security pass.
- Angel enters the vault where the files with information about the assassination are kept. He recovers the files but before he leaves, Angel notices a mysterious wooden object on display in the vault. When he picks it up, alarms begin to go off. Oh Angel, you numpty.
- Angel calls Lindsey and tells him to get out immediately. Before Lindsey can leave though, security begin rounding up associates in order to do a sweep... using mind readers.
- The mind readers scan all the associates and then confer with Bernard. Lindsey fears he's been caught but instead another associate is outed for making private deals with his clients and summarily executed by security while the rest of associates are dismissed. Lindsey believes himself to be off the hook until Bernard asks to speak privately with him.
- Angel returns to his office and is dismayed to find Lindsey not there. Nonetheless, he asks Cordelia to begin looking through the files he found. Unfortunately, they are encrypted. Wesley finds the wooden object that Angel took with him and opens it, revealing a scroll hidden inside. Wesley asks why Angel brought it with him but Angel admits he doesn't know why but he was compelled to take it anyway. Wesley says he'll begin studying it at once.
- Bernard tells Lindsey that he knows what Lindsey did but isn't going to kill him. Why? Because Bernard thinks Lindsey was simply going through a crisis of faith and just needs a few days to think things through. With that incredibly cryptic remark, Lindsey is allowed to leave.
- Cordelia phones Willow and asks for help in hacking the files. According to Cordelia, Willow and the gang are hacking some files too and are busy saving the world. With Willow's help, Cordelia breaks the encryption and the files become readable.
- The targets are revealed to be three blind children seers who could become a threat to Wolfram and hart should their powers develop as they grow older.
- Vanessa attacks the children but Angel and Lindsey intervene. They prove no match for her though until Angel realizes she can't see them unless they move. By moving in short bursts and then staying still, Angel kills the defenseless blind girl. There's some sort of commentary here.
- With the children safe, Angel returns to his office. Wesley tells him that the scroll Angel stole foretold the children's arrival and that of Angel himself.
- Lindsey returns to Bernard and gives him back the files that were stolen. Bernard is amused at the sentiment and congratulates Lindsey for being one of the few people who have fought Wolfram and Hart and won. Bernard believes people like that are worth holding on to. Bernard offers Lindsey his own job because Bernard himself received a promotion. Lindsey asks Bernard (whose real name is Holland) if he knows what he'll do but Holland says it is his choice and then leaves. Alone, Lindsey sits at the desk, accepting the job and proving that he hasn't changed.

Episode Rating

10/10.

Buffy - Restless - Season Four, Episode Twenty Two

Notes:
- Hm, no cold open for this episode.
- I see both Seth Green and Principal Snyder in the opening credits. What a random assortment of guests.
- Riley has to be debriefed following the Initiative's dismantlement. He says his goodbyes and leaves the rest of the Scoobies to have a relaxing evening together. They end up passing out from exhaustion almost immediately.
- Willow has a strange Twin Peaks dream. I'd rather not do a play by play of it but the underlying theme is Willow finds herself questioning her true identity. Eventually, Willow is caught by a monster and attacked.
- Next we follow Xander through his trippy nightmare. Xander's dream once again underscores how he is afraid of being left behind by the others as they move on in life.
- "A Watcher scoffs at gravity!"
- In Xander's surreal fantasy, Willow and Tyra kiss. But we don't actually see the kiss. I wonder if it's because two girls kissing was too outrageous for TV at the time or because the actresses didn't want to actually kiss.
- I gotta say, this episode is pretty scary in a Mulholland Drive kind of way. In fact, the entire episode reminds me of that film, especially the monster and the strange dreamlike quality to everything.
- Xander gets caught too and we jump to Giles. Giles struggles between his devotion to Buffy and his role as her guardian and his desire to live his own independent life.
- Giles speculates that enjoining spell they cast to defeat Adam also unleashed some kind of primal evil that is now hunting them all down while they sleep. He has a sudden epiphany when he finally confronts the monster and says it underestimates him because "it never had a Watcher." Oh golly. It's a former Slayer. The Slayer monster gets him too.
- We jump to Buffy. After going through her own surreal dream (in which she deals with her isolation and loneliness as the chosen one), Buffy encounters the Slayer monster. Buffy learns that it is (or was) the First Slayer ever. The First Slayer conveys to Buffy that the Slayers should be alone and exist only to kill. Buffy rejects the First Slayer and fights her. Ultimately Buffy overcomes whatever hold the First Slayer possessed over them all and breaks free. The Scoobies wake up.
- The episode ends with Buffy and the others reflecting on what they saw in their dreams.

Episode Rating

I don't know. It was interesting and I'm sure Buffy fans love dissecting this episode and using it as an example of how amazing Whedon and his writing is. I can't imagine the response to this episode when it first aired back in 2000. I bet the internet shit itself.

9/10.

Simply because it was clearly experimental and meant to make you think about the characters and their role in each others lives. It's definitely a strange episode to end the season on though.

Angel - To Shanshu in LA - Season One, Episode Twenty Two

Notes:
- Wesley is still fretting over the scroll, trying to find out all he can about Angel's destiny. Angel and the others learn of Lindsey's promotion in Wolfram and Hart and dismayed that he hadn't changed like they thought he had.
- Mr. Nabbit pays Angel and the others a visit, looking for companionship because he's desperate and lonely. He asks if they've seen any cool demons lately.
- Meanwhile, Wolfram and Hart summon a cool demon.
- Welsey makes a breakthrough in his translation and surmises that Angel is going to die. Angel seems unperturbed by the news.
- Cordelia gets a vision of a homeless woman being attacked by a slime demon. Angel goes off to save her.
- The demon that Wolfram and Hart summoned is angry that the scroll was stolen and vows to take it back.
- After rescuing the homeless woman, Angel is confronted by Kate who is still pretty pissed off about her dad dying. She tells him she won't rest until she rids the city of "his kind".
- Wesley is worried that Angel doesn't seem to care that he is going to die. He confides in Cordelia and they agree to try and get Angel a hobby. Wesley suggests Angel visit the Oracles again in the meantime to try and learn something.
- The demon tracks down the Oracles first however and he executes them. Damn, this dude is the real deal.
- In broad daylight, the demon makes contact with Cordelia. He only touches her for a brief moment but shortly afterwards she begins to experiences horrifying and agonizing visions without respite. Cordelia collapses onto the ground screaming.
- Angel receives a call telling him that Cordelia has been hospitalized and quickly leaves. The demon sneaks into Angel's apartment and steals the scroll. Before departing, the demon leaves something else behind.
- Wesley returns to the apartment and notices that the scroll is missing. He notices something is amiss and when he realizes what, he turns to flee.
- Angel is returning to his apartment, dejected over Cordelia's condition when suddenly it explodes.
- Holy shit this demon is pretty much the best villain we've had (other than Angelus himself) in either shows.
- Angel braves the burning apartment and finds Wesley unconscious and severely injured. Angel drags him to safety and leaves him the care of paramedics. As Angel tries to leave, Kate stops him and tells him to stay where he is but Angel finally snaps at her and tell her to stop blaming him for her father's death. Angel tells her that if she wants to be his enemy, fine, but she isn't going to stand in his way anymore.
- With Wesley hospitalized and Cordelia rendered catatonic from her terrible visions, Angel resolves to track down the one responsible. Following a lead from a demonic sigil he finds on Cordelia's hand, Angel visits the Oracles but only finds their mutilated corpses. Things looks bad until the weakened spirit of one of the deceased Oracles appears and tells him the demon responsible is called Vocah. The Oracle tells him the scroll can rid Cordelia of her visions and that Vocah wants the scroll because it is required for something called The Raising. Her spirit departs but not before telling Angel that Vocah hides behind "man's law". Before he goes after Vocah, Angel asks Gunn to protect Wesley and Cordelia while he is away.
- Vocah begins The Raising ritual, which involves a cage and five vampires. Angel follows Lindsey, Lilah and Holland to the place where Vocah is conducting the ritual.
- Angel interrupts the ritual and battles Vocah. While Angel is busy, Lindsey grabs the scroll and continues where Vocah left off. The five vampires are sacrificed and a light glows from within the cage while Lindsey is blasted off his feet and knocked unconscious. Holland orders the cage removed and leaves Angel and Vocah to duel to the death.
- After a long battle, Angel finally overcomes Vocah and kills him. Lindsey stirs and finds himself alone with Angel. Angel demands Lindsey hand over the scroll but he refuses. Lindsey tells Angel that the key to defeating the "vampire without a soul" is to cut of his connections to The Powers That Be. Cordelia's been dealt with and so have the Oracles, so Lindsey tries to burn the scroll and seal Angel's fate. Before he can though, Angel cuts off Lindsey's hand and grabs the scroll before it is damaged. Angel leaves Lindsey bleeding and screaming on the ground.
- With the scroll in hand, Wesley rids Cordelia of her curse.
- Since the office was destroyed, Angel and the others set up shop in Cordelia's house. Wesley is at a loss to explain what exactly was raised inside the cage but he has a startling realization all the same: the scroll did not foretell Angel's death, it foretold his rebirth as a human... once he fulfills his destiny. Angel is quietly elated.
- The episode ends with the associates of Wolfram and Hart gazing upon whatever lies inside the cage. Inside, Darla looks around in terror.

Episode Rating

10/10.

Angel is so much better than Buffy.

Buffy - Season Four Episode Rankings:

1. Hush (10/10)
2. The Yoko Factor (10/10)
3. The Initiative (10/10)
4. The Harsh Light of Day (9/10)
5. Superstar (9/10)
6. Restless (9/10)
7. Pangs (9/10)
8. Primeval (9/10)
9. Wild At Heart (8.5/10)
10. Something Blue (8/10)
11. Who Are You (8/10)
12. Goodbye Iowa (7.5/10)
13. New Moon Rising (7.5/10)
14. Doomed (7/10)
15. This Year's Girl (7/10)
16. A New Man (7/10)
17. The Freshman (7/10)
18. The I In Team (6/10)
19. Fear Itself (6/10)
20. Living Conditions (6/10)
21. Where the Wild Things Are (3/10)
22. Beer Bad (0/10)

Season Four Rating:

7.4/10

Hm, that seems too high. I think I'm going to artificially lower it to 7 since Season 4 literally killed any interest I had in continuing the series. Looking at the list, you wouldn't think it was so bad and my too-generous scores undercut just how mediocre most of the season was. Even with it's first season growing pains, Season 1 Angel stomps all over Season 4 Buffy. The Scoobies (other than Buffy) were just kind of... there for the greater part of the season. Now, I understand that that was intentional and it was to show how Buffy changed and college is totally different from high school guys and IDENTITY and blah blah blah, but that doesn't mean they should be relegated to bit players. Xander was my favorite character at one point (as was Giles) but it's impossible to say that when he spends half the season fucking Anya.

Season 2 remains my favorite.

Angel - Season One Episode Rankings:

1. I Will Remember You (10/10)
2. The Ring (10/10)
3. Hero (10/10)
4. Blind Date (10/10)
5. To Shanshu in LA (10/10)
6. Five By Five (10/10)
7. City Of (10/10)
8. Eternity (9.5/10)
9. Parting Gifts (8.5/10)
10. Lonely Hearts (8.5/10)
11. In The Dark (8/10)
12. Somnambulist (8/10)
13. Sanctuary (7.5/10)
14. Sense and Sensitivity (7/10)
15. I've Got You Under My Skin (7/10)
16. The Prodigal (7/10)
17. Bachelor Party (6.5/10)
18. War Zone (6/10)
19. Rm w/a Vu (6/10)
20. I Fall To Pieces (5/10)
21. Expecting (4/10)
22. She (0/10)

Season One Rating:

7.7/10

Okay, well I'm going to artificially raise it to 8/10. I admit that I am biased towards Angel, but can you blame me when every episode felt like a breath of fresh air after the stagnant marsh that is Season 4 Buffy? The main trio exudes the charm that Buffy, Xander and Willow once did and each character grew and developed throughout the season. Wolfram and Hart were much more interesting than Adam and The Initiative, though in both series' cases the stand alone episodes (like Hush and I Will Remember You) were the best.

I want to keep watching Angel but that means I have to keep watching Buffy. What a cruel fate this is.

My Favorite Characters

1. Angel(us)
2. Wesley
3. Spike
4. Giles
5. no one else deserves to be on this list

My Favorite Moments (throughout the series)

1. "... because it has to be." - From The Wish.
Giles smashes Anya's pendant, resolute in his belief that the alternative future is better than the one he knows.

2. "Is that it? Am I done?" - From Hero.
Angel and Cordelia try to deal with the aftermath of Doyle's death.

3. "Second best." - From Enemies.
Angel and Buffy reveal their long con to Faith.

4. "..." - From Graduation Day Part 2
Angel and Buffy share a glance from across a crowded street before Angel leaves Sunnydale forever.

5. "You can't do it. You can't kill me."/"Give me time." - From Innocence.
Buffy bests Angelus in combat. He taunts her but she shuts him up.

The quotes are indicative of the scenes in which they occur, rather than just the quotes themselves.

Buffy season 5 is best season

I can't believe this is a thing:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buffy_studies

I would own those courses.