Well, I've covered Buffy the Vampire Slayer here on Jane After Dark, and my nephew, who loaned me his Buffy DVDs, also got me into Angel. Nearly everyone I talked to about Angel said they just couldn't get into it. After Buffy, maybe everything else pales in comparison. I have to say, I really only started watching Angel out of respect for Buffy and Joss Whedon, and because I really loved the character of Angel (and David Boreanaz is not hard to look at). I was alternately watching Buffy and Angel at the same time (one disc of Buffy, one of Angel, and so on); it was a good way to do it, because there were a few crossover episodes that made a lot more sense watching them that way.
Now, down to brass tacks. Angel ran for five seasons, and it took me three seasons to really get into it. The first three were just sort of meh for me, but I got through them by forcing myself to alternate with the Buffy discs (look, Jane, you can't watch another disc of Buffy until you watch a disc of Angel!). It was a good strategy. Part-way into season three of Angel, I was finally looking forward to seeing what happens next.
I will say, though, that by season four, Angel really turned into a very different show than when it started. You had Cordelia basically lying in a coma for much of the season, after the weirdly hot sex she had with Angel's son, Connor (and Oh.My.God. I just realized that Vincent Kartheiser plays Peter Campbell in Mad Men - I had no idea!). But the "case of the week" format that started the series was completely out the window (along with the female cop - whatever happened to her?), with demons and other-dimensional creatures taking center stage. Andy Hallett's musical demon Lorne is one of my favorite characters, and I was saddened to hear of his recent death.
While I loved the Connor story overall, I couldn't really get into the thing with him and Cordelia being the "parents" of Jasmine. However, I just watched the last episode of season four, "Home," and it's definitely the best of the series so far, reminiscent of the best episodes of Buffy. Angel making a deal with Lilah about taking over Wolfram & Hart in exchange for giving Connor a new life with a normal family -- and everyone's memory wiped clean of Connor except for Angel (I think) -- was just heartbreaking. Especially the end scene with Angel looking in the window of Connor's new life, having a joyful dinner with his family before heading off to college. Skimming the episode list of season five, which I'll start this week, it doesn't appear that Connor makes an appearance (or...does he...?), and for that, I'm really sorry. I love his character, but I guess my vision of he and Angel fighting the good fight together into the future doesn't come to pass.
One thing missing for me from Angel which was always present in Buffy is romance. There are bits of it here and there, but the relationships are totally dysfunctional -- Angel and Darla, Wesley and Lilah, and Cordelia and Connor, to name a few. Fred and Gunn were good together, but not a lot of spark there. I'm still hoping for a Fred/Wesley pairing, as well as an Angel/Cordy pairing. Come on, season five! Deliver the goods!
So what's my assessment on Angel so far? Good series, darker than Buffy, love the characters, and looking forward to season five.
What about you? Did you love Angel as much as Buffy? Moreso?
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
5-10-2009 @ 12:12PM
Haunt said...
Short answer: It's better!
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5-10-2009 @ 12:34PM
Joseph said...
Angel ROCKED.
I tend to think of Buffy as the high school-y, teenage show, while Angel is where the grown-ups play.
Plus SEASON 5 - BEST TELEVISION EVER.
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5-10-2009 @ 12:40PM
stacey said...
I agree with Joseph -- Season five was excellent, some of the best television I have ever seen. I feel the show was finally finding it's footing by the fifth year. They really dropped the ball on Angel by cancelling it. But I guess I'll always have my DVDs...
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5-10-2009 @ 12:46PM
stacey said...
I have to agree with Joseph, season five is some of the best tv ever. They really dropped the ball when they cancelled Angel -- it was ramping up to be even better then Buffy. I miss it so much! But I'll always have my DVDs...
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5-10-2009 @ 12:48PM
Jen said...
Angel is *eventually* as good as Buffy, but it takes three seasons to get there, and the established status quo kept getting upended to the detriment of the characters. A lot of those interpersonal dynamics are really screwy throughout. Did you buy Connor and Cordelia as a couple? Fred and Gunn? Season Five was the best one, where they finally rebooted into a premise that worked, but that was cut short too soon.
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5-11-2009 @ 11:26PM
George said...
Angel started off way better too. I didn't think Buffy got good until midway through season 2.
5-10-2009 @ 1:05PM
Leroy said...
What happened to the female cop is that Elizabeth Rohm got a much better job offer as a series regular on a "real" network in Law & Order Classic and had to give up her recurring role on Angel.
As to the dysfunctional relationships: Whedon's Law states that a happy couple makes boring TV.
I no longer believe there is any point in trying to rank good TV shows. After a certain level of quality is reached, there is nothing left but questions of personal taste.
Initially I found the whole idea of Buffy ridiculous and the first episode I actually watched was the Season 3 finale. I mainly watched it because I found the idea of delaying it because of the Columbine incident to be ridiculous and I wanted to see for myself what the controversy was about. I immediately became a fan. Initially I liked Season 1 of Angel better than I liked Season 4 of Buffy, but over time I came to to regard them with equal awe, particularly after Seasons 1-3 of Buffy went into syndication and I got caught up on the full history.
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8-18-2009 @ 3:59AM
Russell said...
If you watch the episode epiphany they give a closure to the charactor of Katie Lockely. That is in angel's second season btw
5-10-2009 @ 1:10PM
Mace Moneta said...
Angel may have become better than Buffy if the series continued, but it wasn't. Just as Firefly had a great first season - and may have become better than Buffy if it continued. Buffy, having completed its story arcs stands as the best, partially for that reason.
Buffy is also about growth. In the Angel series, the only character that I felt actually grew was Wesley. Emotionally, I was unable to connect to any other character. Even so, it wasn't until the last episode of Angel that I actually shed a tear - for Wesley. Watching Buffy on the other hand requires a box of tissues. The emotional connection to all the characters is established by the second season, and it only gets stronger from there.
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5-10-2009 @ 1:14PM
Mark said...
I always will see Angel as the anti-Buffy. Made by the same person, same genre but it didn't have the heart that Buffy had. I just didn't connect with the characters like i did in Buffy, although I cried when Wesley died, the whole scene with him and Fred/Illyria :'(.
xoxo
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5-10-2009 @ 1:14PM
edgore said...
I have to agree that Angel eventually grew into the best show on television. I was so sad when it went off the air.
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5-10-2009 @ 1:32PM
Age-K said...
I actually like the early seasons of Angel. Maybe not all of the episodes, but that happens with any series. I definitely agree that watching them alternately with Buffy is the best way--the season openers where Buffy gets the call from "no one" and we see Angel make the call & say nothing, the flashback episodes where Spike's telling the story and we see Darla's story, the Faith cross-overs, and the whole Angel crew coming back from Pylea to find Willow sitting in the office.
I was surprised to hear you liked Connor because usually, I just hear people complain about him. I didn't dislike the character--there were a few episodes where I really didn't like him--where it seemed like he really should've finally gotten it through that thick skull that his father didn't deserve this horrible revenge--but most of the time he seemed more like a victim of circumstance who would eventually come around.
*Season 1 SPOILERS*: One character I really missed and hoped would come back as a guest star--in flashbacks or visions or what have you--was Doyle. Of course with the passing of Glenn Quinn (another shame) we knew that wouldn't happen. His was a good character that wasn't around long enough. What really sucked with Doyle's death was someone told me he was going to die beforehand. I was in college and talking about the show with some friends and one of the others said, "I heard they were going to kill him off." I like to avoid spoilers like that! If she hadn't said that, it would have been one of two TV deaths ever that was an actual surprise, because god forbid they advertise an episode of TV without telling you someone's about to kick the bucket.
*Later SPOILERS*
Joyce was the other one...Her death & Wash's in Serenity were probably the on-screen deaths that have had the most effect on me (in the sense of unexpected immediate reaction).
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5-11-2009 @ 12:23AM
Josh said...
In short, I thought Angel was WAY better than Buffy. I thought the relationships were more realistic, it was morally challenging, and it really delved into the gray that people live in, rather than the white and black.
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5-10-2009 @ 1:42PM
Josh said...
Oh, one more thing... I have to disagree that Angel didn't become good until midway Season 3. I found the show growing interesting midway Season 2. Aside from the main group, Lilah, Lindsey, and Kate (whom I actually loved, but was ended badly because it never explained if she left or not) was actually quite awesome. Then you had Darla and Drusilla. Season two was pretty damn good. (The episodes in Pylea...not my favorite.)
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5-10-2009 @ 1:55PM
Margflower said...
I dont think Angel can be compared to Buffy because they are so different. Angel's character is much darker than Buffy's which makes it for some not as fun. But i still really liked Angel. My favorite character of the whole show was Doyle. I really wish he didn't go so soon.
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5-10-2009 @ 2:46PM
tim said...
I started out watching Angel but gave up before the 3rd year. Reading this, it appears I gave up too soon! lol Buffy was better for me. But then we all have opinions. After reading this, I'm thinking 'angel' this summer. Thanks Jane! Loved this and your Buffy blog.
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5-10-2009 @ 2:30PM
Heather said...
I agree that Buffy was overall better, I enjoyed Angel, but the best season really doesn't come until season 5!! They canceled it at the height of its best stuff. You'll really enjoy season 5, it has a great mix of humor and interesting stories!!
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5-10-2009 @ 2:50PM
Spikedylacid said...
Angel was MUCH MUCH MUCH better.
You will see by the time you finish season 5, it's just amazing. 2nd fav show of all time, as of course Lost is number 1!
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5-10-2009 @ 2:55PM
Arclight said...
I Netflixed Buffy first, then Angel. I like Buffy But Prefer Angel.
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5-10-2009 @ 3:19PM
Chris Wright said...
I much preferred Angel. Don't get my wrong I loved Buffy but I just liked Angel that bit more. Angel to me was a more adult show while Buffy was a teenage show.
I acutally love the first 3 seasons of Angel, season 4 I thought was where things went down hill. I hated Connor and all of the drama around him. I really didn't like the whole Cordelia comma Jasmine story either. But yeah season 5 was amazing and I really miss Angel to this day.
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