Continuing my viewing and reviewing of Angel season 3 and Buffy the Vampire Slayer season 6...
*** SPOILERS ***
A3-3: That Old Gang of Mine (written by Tim Minear, airdate 10/8/01)
First, I am sorry to see the character of Merle go. I liked his being around every now and again. Still, he went for a good cause - to show Gunn just how far his gang has gone without him there to lead them. New guy Gio shows up from Miami and has them going from protectors to poachers. As soon as they said they were hitting a "nest", I immediately knew they were planning to hit Karitas. Jerks! Still, the tense situation showed a lot of character in the main crew. We also learn, thanks to Cordy's side mission with the Furies, about how the sanctuary spell is in place in the karoake bar. And those Furies - lots of fun. "uuuuuuummmmmm" I hope we see more of them again soon. I'd love to know more about Angel's past with them.
B6-3: After Life (written by Jane Espenson, airdate 10/9/01)
So, the return home of Buffy and the reuniting with the gang isn't all the sunshine and lollipops one would expect. That makes for a more interesting story. First, we get the hitchhiker demon - the consequences of the magic spell - to deal with. That was creepy enough. But then we learn in the end the truth as to why Buffy is still a bit sullen/depressed even after being brought back to Sunnydale: Willow's spell tore her away from heaven. Youch. That can't be a good thing for one's morale. I like how Buffy has to turn to Spike to confide the truth. It sets up something only they two can share. I forsee lots of angsty drama this season.
A quick pre-review note here (I'm almost caught up again, but still finishing up Angel 2 and Buffy 5...right at the end of both) - I have been waiting and waiting for you to get up to Buffy season 6. And now that you're underway, you are very close to hitting arguably THE best hour of Buffy yet. "What?!" you say? Surely something like that would have been in seasons 2 or 3! I say thee nay. No spoilers here at all, just letting you know that you've got some goodness a-comin'.
ReplyDeleteAngel trivia: did you know there are lyrics to the instrumental Angel theme? Well, kind of. I happened to be listening to a commentary track on one of the episodes a few years back, and when the opening credits came up, Joss and Alexis and someone else started singing. Imagine the opening violin part, then hear this with it:
ReplyDelete"An-gel's a VAM-pire who fights crime with alllll hiiiiiis buuuuu-dies..."
I think that's how it went. I can never listen to the opening credits now without thinking about that.
FUN THING TO DO: There are some special features on the final disc of season 5. Once again, I don't recommend the featurettes because they future-spoil too much (the season 5 recap gives away season 6 stuff).
ReplyDeleteHowever, there is a fun bit of DVD-ROMness for you, if you didn't see it already. Pop that disc in, take a look (via Windows Explorer) at the files there. There's a folder marked "Willow's Demon Database". Copy the whole folder to somewhere in your PC. Then open the "PC" folder within that folder, click on the .exe file, and open it up. Fun guide to all the demons in the first five seasons. Very little info on each, but still, a pretty comprehensive list. With pictures and everything!
Best hour coming, eh? Hmmm..."Hush" was pretty tough to beat. We'll see.
ReplyDeleteI did not know about the Angel theme lyrics. Haven't listened to any commentary tracks yet. Maybe someday after I finish the first pass run.
I see seasons 6 and 7 also contain these DVD-ROM extras. I might wait until I get to the last season and then install the demon guide then. I would assume that one is the most complete with all 7 seasons.
I'm calling it...
ReplyDelete"Hush"-beater!
Your own opinion, of course, may vary. We'll see.