Podcast for 2.05 “Supersymmetry”
Derek’s Review - 4.05 “Superstmmetry”
The Good:
While not as good as “Fredless” this is still a decent Fred-centric episode. Fred’s darkness and aggression is a very new development but Amy Acker pulls it off. The acting is so strong that is makes you believe this has always been an element of Fred just lurking on the surface, even if the writing doesn’t support. We don’t really know what Fred had to do to survive in Pylea but there was never any real suggestion that she had to kill people or was even OK with “justifiable” murder. It is a big leap for her to just go full steam on murdering her old professor but Angel pulls it off.
The dynamic of Fred, Gunn and Angel continues to move along swimmingly. It still feels like something or someone is missing but they are an entertaining trio. There are also some pretty funny lines, “They talk about me in the chatty rooms?” is an obvious favorite of mine.
The Bad:
The Cordelia and Connor stuff has just gotten worse. Besides the ickiness and stupid incest angle to it all, there is a deeper problem. This story about Cordelia having amnesia isn’t about her becoming a warrior again or getting the visions back. No it degrades Cordelia’s arc to this point as a love story. Cordelia has to “choose” between Angel or his son.
Cordelia was never that character. Cordelia’s love for Angel was a part of her character development but only a very small silver of it. She grew to love helping because it fulfilled her. It wasn’t just to please or assist Angel. Cordelia became her strong champion and then fell for Angel. Not the other way around and everything about Cordelia in season four suggests the exact opposite. There is no other word for what Angel is doing Cordelia’s character but shameful.
The Unknown:
Once again Angel is trying something new with Gunn. Gunn killing Seidel at the end of the episode basically exists as a shocking cliffhanger. It doesn’t make perfect sense that Gunn would do it. This is fine if Angel gives some context for Gunn’s actions in a later episode. The same goes for Gunn being insecure about being less educated than Fred. These plot points are both starts of interesting stories with Gunn but they need to be capitalized on. History tells us that they probably won’t because Gunn’s “arc” on Angel has been a series of false starts.
Angel suddenly having a photographic memory is a bizarre thing to throw into this episode. This has never come up at least once in any previous episode. At least not in the same very visual way it manifests itself here. If Angel can memorize any room he has ever been with all the people, shouldn’t this have come in handy at least once before now?
Favorite Moment:
Lilah walking in on Wesley watching Fred’s speech is surprisingly heartbreaking. I love what season four is doing with Lilah thus far. I still don’t think Angel is treating Wesley’s affection for Fred as the obsession it is but it is effective that he can’t let it go. Wesley does seem to genuinely like Lilah but he can’t bring himself to commit to her. The doomed nature of their relationship is just really fascinating to me.
Bottom Line:
A passable monster-of-the-week episode with some good Fred moments. If Angel is interested they can also use this episode as a new jumping point for Gunn’s story. This, however, sadly assumes a lot about Angel’s interest in Gunn as a character. As it its own though “Supersymmetry” is an entertaining if not particularly memorable hour.
Podcast for 4.04 “Slouching Towards Bethlehem”
Derek’s Review - 4.04 “Slouching Towards Bethlehem”
The Good:
Amnesiac Cordelia is not my favorite thing. I do like that Cordelia at least sounds like herself. She may not have Cordelia’s memories, but she certainly has Cordelia’s voice and personality. It makes up for a lot of the more groan-worthy portions of Cordelia’s story in this episode that we are able to hear Cordelia’s opinions about things which is something we haven’t heard in awhile. As the name suggests, “Slouching Towards Bethlehem does a good job of building that bigger threat.
There is a sense that something bad is going to happen and it’s going to be catastrophic. It’s deceptively hard thing to do where you have to make the threat seem real but can’t go too over the top with it. Angel hits the balance just right.
Lilah and Wesley really save this episode though. Lilah comes off as completely genuine and happy when Wesley calls their sexcapades a relationship. She definitely cares for him and not in a twisted Lilah way. Lilah likes Wesley as a person. Yet she is completely willing to use their relationship for her own gains. What I particularly love about Lilah playing Wesley is that it doesn’t threaten their relationship. Lilah has never hidden who she is and what she willing to do. “If I'd thought you'd ever trust me, I would've never played you like that,” just sums up their relationship so perfectly.
The Bad:
I really hate the direction the Cordelia and Connor stuff is heading or appears to be heading. I don’t have problem with Cordelia trusting Connor. It’s a nice way to bring Connor back into the fold. The weird incest storyline is just so bizarre and distasteful. There is no reason for it other than shock factor. Why does there need to be a sexual element to Connor and Cordelia’s relationship? Cordelia having no memories is enough of a reason for her and Angel to be kept apart, so his son really have to be groping her too?
Angel goes out of its way to tell us that technically Cordelia isn’t Connor’s mother. That’s BS, quite simply. Biologically no, Cordelia is not Connor’s mom but she raised him as much as Angel. The whole thing is icky, gross and needlessly risqué.
The Unknown:
Though honestly you could ask, “Why is this happening?” for a lot of “Slouching Towards Bethlehem”. We know almost nothing about where the story is heading so it’s hard to have precise judgement on anything. We don’t know how long Cordelia won’t have her memory and if it will lead to something amazing. We don’t know what the big bad thing is that is coming. We don’t even know why Cordelia is no longer a Higher Power. This is a really hard episode to review on rewatch and a spoiler-free rewatch because there is so much I can’t say. All of this relies on the pay-off and it better be damn good and satisfying. This episode is neither of those things.
Favorite Moment:
I liked Cordelia reading her yearbook. It was typical Cordelia dialogue and that was fun to watch. That’s all I have to say.
Bottom Line:
I was mildly entertaining while watching “Slouching Towards Bethlehem”. Nothing made me particularly angry, except the Connor and Cordelia stuff but that is in such an embryonic stage that Angel could ignore and write it off quite this soon. So I can’t get too mad about it. On the other hand nothing really grabbed me. “Slouching Towards Bethlehem” is the perfect example of ambivalent TV viewing.
William’s Review - 4.04 “Slouching Towards Bethlehem”
The Good
Lots of the comedy moments worked here. I think mainly just by having Cordelia back on the show there is just an energy in the performances and writing. It’s sad that we don’t have full Cordelia, but having her snark through the episode was great. I loved the moments with Cordelia freaking out about the gang. Angel and Fred being creepy in the office and waving had me laughing. Other moments like Cordelia looking through old hair styles thinking she’s a spy or her confronting the group, also made me smile. I also liked when the Wolfram and Hart thugs attacked and we saw how synergistic her and Angel’s fighting was.
The Wesley and Lilah relationship continues to be fascinating to watch. I love the scene where Wesley slips and calls it a relationship. It seems like such a real moment for the characters. I love how humanizing it is for Lilah and how genuine it feels. There was another moment, but I’ll save that for later (see favorite moment).
Small, but I liked the fact that Gunn pointed out that no matter how they addressed Cordelia it wasn’t going to work out. Even when they break the truth with Cordelia after she’s feed up, she still ends up freaking out.
Lorne hinting at something bad coming and likewise Cordelia hinting to Connor about something coming was a nice bit of intrigue as far as the overarching story is concerned.
The Bad
So I was disturbed by parts of the Connor and Cordelia storyline. The attitude the show apparently wants us to have is that Cordelia was never that mother figure to Connor, despite all the evidence to the contrary. It’s also weird that there seems to be a competition for Cordelia’s affection between Connor and Angel. Fred has a line about how Angel is the “true champion” when Cordelia chooses Connor over him. It’s small, but seems to be what the writers want us to feel.
The Unknown
So this episode was VERY hard to watch on Rewatch. Knowing where it is going makes you read into every little thing. I’m trying really hard to be as blank slate as possible, but it is still very difficult. That being said the majority of this episode was setting up the season long arc. There are a lot of questions being asked. Why is Cordelia back? What did Lorne read from her? What’s this big bad that’s coming?
Cordelia’s amnesia storyline really hinges on where they go with it. I’ll admit I’m not a fan of these kinds of storylines, but it did add a level of intrigue. It also let us try and reconnect with Connor. Again it really depends on where it goes and can easily go poorly.
I was bothered by Angel being creepy. I know part of this was intentional, but Angel bringing up the ballet without context and describing it as a “great time” was kind of off.
Favorite Moment
Lilah dropping truth bombs on Wesley at the end of the episode was a great moment. They’ve continued to be an insanely interesting relationship to watch. Now that Wes considers it a relationship or at least acknowledges some real feelings there the betrayal hits a bit harder. At the same time Lilah points out that he’s really upset with himself. Maybe Wes isn’t as dark as he thought. I like Wes still being unsure of who he is and what he is doing.
Bottom Line
I liked this more than last week’s episode. Again it was more set up and we didn’t really get Cordelia back, but I am happy to get her interacting with the group.
Score: 59 out of 100
Podcast for 4.03 “The House Always Wins”
Derek’s Review - 4.03 “The House Always Wins”
The Good:
I found this to be an entertaining albeit un-revolutionary hour of Angel. I suppose “The House Always Wins” could be better, much, but I still enjoyed it. It could just be the ensemble doing something mostly cheery or the on-location aspect of it but this was a passable hour of TV. There’s not much bad to say about it. Lorne hasn’t really been missed too much this season so far. It hasn’t been that long that he hasn’t appeared and he was always an infrequent presence. Still it’s nice to have him back at the Hyperion, in LA as a quasi-member of Angel Investigations. The reason I enjoy “The House Always Wins” might solely because of Lorne. This isn’t an important episode in Lorne’s development but I think it’s a good showcase for his character. There is the singing and charisma of The Host on display. There was the vulnerability of Krevlornswath and there was the passion and heart of Lorne.
The Bad:
Gunn has wanted to go to Vegas since the beginning of Season 2. So pretty much ever since Gunn was introduced on the show. So shouldn’t he have done a little bit more in this episode? Like anything? He does become the muscle and sort of leader when Angel is cursed but it’s not enough. It also just further underlines that Angel has no idea what they want to do with Gunn. I guess he’s back-up Angel but it so rare the show needs back-up Angel. Gunn needs his own identity and not one connected to other characters. This is not a problem just with “The House Always Wins” but just a series-long problem with the character. “The House Always Wins” just reminded me that Gunn’s place on the show is in a constant state of limbo. The Wesley and Lilah phone sex scene is interesting. I’m not sure what purpose it serves. We know that that their relationship is twisted, dark and just filled with sex. A really grimy and demanding Wesley saying dirty things to Lilah wasn’t necessary. Speaking of which, it didn’t help that Lilah’s voice wasn’t heard. It just made Wesley seem really unsavory and creepy. He can be both of those things at times but I am not sure that was the intention of the scene.
The Unknown:
I really don’t the concept of Cordelia coming back without her memories. I also recognize it is unfair to judge something, especially on this show, on concept alone. It also is merely introduced in the very final moments. So I’m not qualifying this as bad as much as I don’t like it. The fact is that as rushed as Cordelia getting assumed into Heaven was in the Season 3 finale, where does the character go after that? I feel like that might not have been the end of Cordelia’s story but it certainly could’ve been a closing of chapter. Now that she is back, not glowy and without memories, the whole thing feels pointless. So whatever.
Favorite Moment:
I struggled with this one because there is nothing I really loved (or hated). I really do like the sequence of Lorne, Fred and Gunn try to leave Las Vegas. I think there is a lot untapped potential in that trio and I enjoyed that “The House Always Wins” explored it.
Bottom Line:
I can’t really passionately defend “The House Always Wins” but I enjoyed myself throughout. It was a fine episode. It was another in a line of procedural episodes in Season 4 and I hope that changes soon. Or at least the procedural / cases of the week stuff becomes less boring and generic.
64 out of 100
William’s Review - 4.03 “The House Always Wins”
The Good
There were a lot of little moments to like here. I like a lot of the smaller jokes or sight gags. Fred winning at black jack over Gunn, the Blue Man group joke, Fred trying to distract the guards where examples of moments that at least made the episode watchable.
I was happy getting Lorne back. I liked his musical numbers and having his energy back in the group. It was especially good seeing him interact with Fred and Gunn. We don’t always get to see the chorus of the group interact without the big three (Angel, Wes, Cordelia). And I think they had the best scenes in the A storyline.
The Bad
I was not a fan of Angel bragging about his previous time in Vegas. For some reason this felt pretty out of character. I couldn’t tell if he was just humble bragging or what the writers were trying to get across. Mostly it felt pretty forced and tacked on. I’m a fan of referencing Angel’s past whenever they can, but this felt strange and un-Angel like. It would be different if it was coming from a character like Spike which we’ve known to have the sort of ego boosting bragging.
I wasn’t invested in the main storyline here. Mostly the trappings of being in Vegas were just a nice idea more than having any effect on me. Also having Angel be unlike himself at the beginning and then zombie-fied through half of it definitely had me less invested.
The Unknown
Cordelia is back, but her memory is gone. It’s frustrating going backwards with a character. At the same time I’m happy to get the gang back together. I certainly like the idea of getting her back over her being stuck as a floating head.
Favorite Moment
I ended up enjoying Angel watching Connor more than I probably should have. It was nice getting a better sense of Angel’s concern for Connor. Nothing new for Angel’s personality, but I like Dad keeping an eye on his son. I also like the promise or hope that they have an idea of where to go with Connor. Him telling that Vampire that he doesn’t know what he is yet gave me the sense that the character is getting some perspective on himself or is at least in a place of trying to discover himself.
Bottom Line
This felt very much like a filler episode. I had hopes that the road trip nature of the episode would make it more enjoyable, but at it is I felt myself feeling pretty apathetic through out.
56 out of 100
Podcast for 4.02 “Ground State”
Derek’s Review - 4.02 “Ground State”
The Good:
Gwen is easily the most successful new (side) character since Lorne. She’s certainly given the biggest introduction in a while. Angel is usually the only character who gets flashbacks and “Ground State” opens on Gwen’s past. More on that in a bit but Gwen makes a strong first impression. “Ground State” as an episode is pretty paint by numbers but the attraction here is Gwen. If she wasn’t a big a character as she is this episode could fall very flat and be very boring. She sparks (pun intended) a lot of life into this episode.
Otherwise Lilah and Wesley’s relationship remains wonderfully twisted and dark. There is a lot of exposition in the first fifteen minutes of “Ground State” but I completely excuse Lilah and Wesley’s exposition filled sex scene. Simply because there is so much going on than a simple exchange of information. There is a constant power struggle between the two. Who is on top (literally and figuratively) is constantly changing and evolving and it is fascinating to watch.
The Bad:
I think Amy Acker does a great job of playing frazzled Fred in “Ground State”. There is something clearly up with Fred from the first scene. My problem with that is the fact that Angel and Gunn seem oblivious to Fred. I’m willing to excuse Angel because while has grown, he is still Angel. Plus, he has tunnel vision finding out where Cordelia is and how to find her. It is utterly bizarre to me that Gunn has no idea that Fred is losing it. I’m fine with the honeymoon phase of their relationship being over but I just don’t buy that Gunn would be this inattentive to Fred’s needs and moods. It just doesn’t seem to fit with the history of their relationship thus far.
Gwen starting Angel’s heart and the two making out is such bizarre choice to me. I get the logic, Angel gets excited and passionate because of his heart beating again. He gets swept up in the moment. I understand how it happens, I just don’t understand why. Gwen is obviously sexy character; she has a very clear sex-pot image. I don’t think you need hammer that point home by having Angel stick his tongue down her throat. It’s just weird. I suppose it sets up Gwen talking about her own romantic history in the elevator which is a nice moment but it is far from necessary.
The Unknown:
Everything else falls into a meh category. I have no strong feelings negatively or positively about “Ground State”. The Angel Investigations debriefing scene with Fred getting jealous of Angel’s artistic abilities is cute but yet another in a long sequence of exposition. Wesley starting his own demon hunting gang and refusing to rejoin Angel Investigations is intriguing but needs more time before I’m really invested. The same goes for Connor being homeless and sleeping on concrete.
The thing I have the biggest questions about is Lilah (again). I did think it was clever how Angel revealed that he knew Lilah and Wesley were sleeping together. I thought Lilah’s reaction to that news was similarly great. However, I do have a problem with that being the thing that causes Lilah to help Angel. Again, I don’t want to see Wesley become Lilah’s Achilles heel. This is twice in two episodes where she has been disturbed and concerned when someone has brought up Wesley. Now we know from “Deep Down” that Lilah plays the long game. I wouldn’t be surprised if Lilah helping Angel in this episode comes back to haunt Angel in another. I don’t want to be anytime the plot needs Lilah to help out, Wesley is brought up and she immediately sways to demands.
As rushed as it was I did think Cordelia being assumed into Heaven at the end of the season 3 was a nice end to her story. Obviously it’s not the end though so I’m not sure what to make of this storyline. I can’t say I’m enjoying it so far but I also can’t say anything has happened. Cordelia’s appearances thus far have been perfunctory and virtually the same. She’s a glowy cloud and she’s not happy. This story needs to go somewhere and soon.
Favorite Moment:
Gwen’s opening flashback looks so different from anything that has been on Angel thus far. It’s so creepy and weird. It is a really jarring opening but it gives you such a good picture of what Gwen’s life is like or must have been like at one point. There is just a constant feeling of uneasiness throughout. I particularly love how it looks like it comes from a different era. I’m not sure how Angel achieved it but Gwen’s flashback does not like it was filmed in the 2002. It looks it comes from the time it takes place the mid-80s. That’s just a really cool touch.
Bottom Line:
“Ground State” is a fine episode. Despite the introduction of Gwen though, I’m not going to remember this episode at all. It’s passable and that’s not a bad thing. It’s just not a great thing either.
64 out of 100
William’s Review - 4.02 “Ground State”
The Good
I liked getting introduced to Gwen. The opening was something very different for Angel and gave me an X-files intro vibe. The opening was great at establishing a sense of a history for why Gwen would end up becoming who she was. I think it was pretty evident that the writers put more effort in the creation of this character. The dialogue for the character was quick and snarky which I thought tied into her character pretty well. Mostly I think Gwen definitely left an impression which I appreciated. It felt like a different kind of Angel episode. It was also the most superhero feeling the show has ever gotten. Gwen had an interesting power set. I liked her explaining it a bit during the heist. I’m also a fan of characters that have powers that are also a curse. Rogue and Cyclops from the X-men come to mind. It makes for setting up an interesting character psyche. While her ending monologue about being a freak was a little on the nose I still liked it a lot. Having Angel there to relate was also pretty nice. I appreciated his “boo hoo” comment.
Not saying much, but I think this is the best heist the show has done. Angel references two, but I swear there have been more. Does the charity heist with Lindsay count? Meh I digress. It was interestingly shot. I like comparing Gwen to our gang and just how inept our group is compared to a pro. It established Gwen’s skill pretty well and I liked all the moving parts going on. The sight of Gunn collapsing on the floor was very striking and creepy. It was kind of ruined by Angel saying “he’s dead” just before the commercial break.
Angel’s speech about seeing Cordelia was sweet. The way he described her basically being in heaven and the way the group rallied around each other worked really well. I really like the shot of Fred on that love seat type furniture. They’ll end up using that in the opening credits in the future.
The Bad
Not a fan of the Gwen and Angel kiss. One I think Angel getting his heart restarted by an electric shock makes little sense. Yeah, yeah, it’s a show about a vampire with a soul, but still this really bugged me. It was mainly an excuse to get Gwen to make out with Angel. Which we get it, Gwen is sexy. Why do you need her to make out with Angel? I couldn’t really tell what they were trying to establish with that scene? Is Gwen supposed to be the Catwoman to Angel’s Batman? Mostly I just think they had the scene just to be titillating.
The Unknown
So it goes without saying there is a definite male gaze going on in this episode. Gwen is definitely sexualized in the episode. I guess the more reason I didn’t mind this is that it tied into her background. I think without the flashback episode and the ending monologue I probably would have had a much bigger problem with it. As it was the story of telling a character that has been without human contact and been told how to act and dress her whole life suddenly owning herself I can kind of get around. Of course that can just be the justification of having her dress up in red leather with mid drift showing. So clearly you can take it either way.
This is the second episode in a row to end with floating head Cordelia. It felt pretty lazy to repeat this, but I guess the fact that she wants to get out of there is an interesting wrinkle. If this continues though I think I’ll start having a problem with it.
Can I find out more about Gwen’s butler? Very strange inclusion.
Favorite Moment
Fred’s breakdown I thought was the emotional scene in the episode. I like them exploring Fred a bit more and having there be consequences for the group being fractured between seasons was nice. Also, just a great bit of acting from Amy Acker. I also enjoy making the Gunn and Fred relationship feel real by not always being nauseatingly perfect. Show them have real concerns or fights.
Bottom Line
I thought this was one of the better standalone episodes we’ve got in a while. I thought the inclusion of Gwen was nice. She definitely made for a more interesting side character than we usually get. Also I’m a sucker for basically any superhero storylines.
Score: 69 out of 100