Angel - Season 1 impressions (episode 8)

[thalia_seawood]

I Will Remember You

A summary can be found here.


- I like Cordelia fretting over Angel's emtional well-being and Buffy's perfectly timed entrance.

Cordy: "You don't want to 'stir', but if my ex came to town and was all stalking me in the shadows and then left and then didn't even say 'hello' I'd be.."
Buffy from the open door: "A little upset. (Angel looks at her, his mouth dropping open) Wouldn’t you?"

- Cordy has one of her truly sensitive moments:
Cordy takes his arm and pulls him out of the office: "And this is us leaving you two alone."

- Big question: Does Buffy know Angel destroyed the Ring of Amarra? I mean how would she learn about it? Only Angel and Doyle are present when Angel destroys the ring and I can't see either reporting back to Buffy about it. Or can you see Doyle calling Buffy saying: 'Hey, Buffy, Angel just destroyed the present you had for him.' Oz might report back about it to Buffy, but does he know what Angel did?
The thing is: If Buffy doesn't know about it, Angel's appearance in the bright sunlight wouldn't be all that astonishing for her.

- Are The Power That Be a nod to fandom? Because fandom has used this term to describe the incomprehensible decisions made by the big TV companies. :-)

- Funny moment:
Cordy: "Oh, please! They've got the forbidden love of all time. They have been apart for months. Now he's suddenly human? I'm sure they are down there just having tea and crackers."

Cut to Angel and Buffy sitting at opposite sides of his kitchen table.
Angel pours some tea: "Would you like some more?"
Buffy: "No, thank you."

- We get a new pairing: Buffy/Angel/Food. I was so relieved when they finally stopped with the mature talk...

- Love the moment where Buffy declares that for the first time she feels like a normal girl with a normal boyfriend.

- Buffy makes a very good point in this episode:

Angel: "We're not. I'm not playing anything. I wrestled with this decision.."
Buffy: "Which you made without me."
Angel: "I tried to do what I thought was right. It's complicated how this all happened, Buffy, you know? It's kind of a long story."
Buffy: "You're new sidekick had a vision, I was in it, you came to Sunnydale?"
Angel: "Okay, maybe not that long."
Buffy: "You didn't feel that I was important enough to even tell me that you were there."
Angel looks at her: "I'm trying to explain. It's because I felt that you're important that I didn't tell you."
Buffy: "I'm a big girl now, Angel. I'm not in High School anymore. A lot has happened in my life since you left."

She has grown up. And Angel making the decisions for her is unfair to her.
Unfortunately, things don't change over the course of the episode. Angel *still* makes the decisions without her. Yes, he "tries to do what's right", yes, he does it so he's able to protect Buffy all the better, but still I don't approve.

He should have talked to Buffy before going to see the Powers That Be and told her about what he's planning. Maybe she wouldn't have agreed with his decision, maybe she would have. The big issue for me is that this decision concerns them *both* and therefore should have been made by them both.

The whole episode made me realise that they are very much in love with one another, but aren't all that good for one another. Angel will always see Buffy as the fighter version of Mary, Mother of God. And he wants to keep all trouble away from her and by doing so will not hesitate to make important decisions without her. However, for me a partnership is about making important decisions *together*.

Something else that plays into it: Angel has regarded himself as strong all of his life. When he became a vampire with a soul he redefined himself as a protector. With his immortality gone, though, he also loses his supernatural powers and therefore is bound to fail in his protector role. I think that he makes the decision to become immortal again in part for Buffy's safety, but subconsciously also because he can't bear to be Buffy's helpless sidekick, to watch from afar while she's fighting evil and puts herself in danger.

In the end of the episode I felt sorry for Angel - he has lost so much - but I cried for Buffy when she's pleading with him that they don't have enough time left. She has no part in the decision and must feel so very lost when he reveals to her what agreement he has made with the Powers That Be.

Comments

[selenak.livejournal.com]

TPTB: yes, that was originally a shout-out.*g* (The Whedon scribes get creative with this, too. In season 4, one angry character describes them as "The Powers That Screw You".)

Does Buffy know about the ring? No idea.

He should have talked to Buffy before going to see the Powers That Be and told her about what he's planning. Maybe she wouldn't have agreed with his decision, maybe she would have. The big issue for me is that this decision concerns them *both* and therefore should have been made by them both.

I absolutely agree.

The whole episode made me realise that they are very much in love with one another, but aren't all that good for one another. Angel will always see Buffy as the fighter version of Mary, Mother of God.

Again, agreed on both counts.

I cried for Buffy when she's pleading with him that they don't have enough time left

If you've read Joss' letter in the package, that was one of the moments he named as his favourites of the show. I'm not a B/A 'shipper, but it's heartrendering, while at the same time showing both the tragedy of their romance and why they ultimately don't work together.

[thalia-seawood.livejournal.com]

If you've read Joss' letter in the package, that was one of the moments he named as his favourites of the show. I'm not a B/A 'shipper, but it's heartrendering, while at the same time showing both the tragedy of their romance and why they ultimately don't work together.

I skimmed over his favorite scenes because I was trying to stay away from spoilers. I will read it properly once I've seen all 110 episodes and have written 110 Angel entries in my LJ. :-)

I'm not a Buffy/Angel shipper either, though I find them touching together. ' - 'Their love is tragic.' - I can see myself routing for Angel/Spike at a later point even though there hasn't been all that much interaction between them so far. I just get the feeling that Spike's so strong-willed and excentric that Angel could never boss him around. He would provide a nice counter-balance to Angel. - This is just a vague theory at this point.

[selenak.livejournal.com]

Joss also called Spike Angel's ideal love interest in his audio commentaries when they finally do have a lot on screen interaction.*g* (BTW, those audio commentaries are spoilery as hell, so listen to them at a later point, once you've seen more of the show.) Anyway, they're fun together.

If I have a 'shipping preference for Angel, it's Angel/Darla, but not in an OTP-I-don't-want-them-with-anyone-else manner.

[thalia-seawood.livejournal.com]

Joss also called Spike Angel's ideal love interest in his audio commentaries when they finally do have a lot on screen interaction.*g*

Nice to see great minds think alike. ;-)

Angel/Darla works fine for me, too, but from what you've showed me their love is very doomed.
I think Angel is definitely the best match for Darla. Strangely enough he brings out human emotions in her, e.g. I believe she would have killed any other vampire with a soul, but she's unable to kill him.
Darla is the only woman Angel could not totally patronise, as she's just as strong-minded as him and as his sire is superior to him technically speaking.

Spike as Angel's ideal love interest:
They complement one another in many ways.

E.g. if Spike was in Angel's situation (blessed/cursed with a soul), he would be seriously depressed for some weeks, but then he would move on. He doesn't strike me as "eternal broody boy".

Spike also wouldn't allow Angel to brood for extended periods of time. I could see both Darla and Angel going on major guilt trips over their past.

Another bonus: Spike would never allow Angel to patronise him. He'd probably smash Angel's favorite antique clock and tell him to piss off. :-)


(BTW, those audio commentaries are spoilery as hell, so listen to them at a later point, once you've seen more of the show.)

Thanks for the warning. I will rewatch the shows with audio commentary when I've completed my first viewing of the series. :-)

[spikendru.livejournal.com]

I never really liked the B/A pairing from the beginning. There is just too much of an age difference (not even counting his years as a vampire, there is a world of difference in life experience, ways of looking at things and world-view between 16 and 26) and Angel has always been used to making his own decisions - because it's a part of his personality/make-up. He rationalizes that he's the emotionaly strong one and is doing it for her own good, but that makes their relationship inherently unequal. And the "supposedly romantic" idea of a 246-year-old former Scourge of Europe, who was obsessed with his prey, skulking in shadows watching a 15-year-old girl sucking a lollypop and "falling in love with her heart" is just too stalkery/creepy for me.

That's why I could never see them as a viable couple, although I enjoy both charaters independently. I think they bring out the worst in each other. I definitely agree with you that making decisions together is what makes an equal partnership, and I don't see them as ever being able to have an equal partnership. Although I believe they do love one another, it's not enough. Angel will always see her a the bright, shining teenager whom he needs to protect and keep on that pedestal, and it's doubtful that he could ever treat her as a real woman with an equal say.

[thalia-seawood.livejournal.com]

Very good points.

I liked seeing Buffy and Angel being happy together for a while and, of course, I love what they did with the show when Angel's happiness goes too far.

To me Buffy & Angel represent innocent love, i.e. love where you are so in love you don't really see the other. They simply overlook everything that's problematic and put one another on little pedestals.

Which is why I like adding Spike to the mix. *g*
He knows both Buffy and Angel for what they are. He knows them at their worst, but at least with Buffy also knows her at her best.

[spikendru.livejournal.com]

It was almost worth the ickiness of the pairing to get S2 Angelus with his Leather Pants of Evilness^TM! Hee! I guess that's why I always liked Riley - although I enjoyed the drama of the B/A relationship, I was never invested in it (like I later became invested in Buffy/Spike - those two are more perfect for each other than anyone else they'll ever come across *g*)like many of the Buffy+Angel 4 eva! shippers were, so I had no problems seeing Riley's good points. And he really was a decent, good guy, caught up in something he never thought to question. *sigh* Poor Riley. I really liked him up until - oops! Not saying anything now. I'll comment later.

[thalia-seawood.livejournal.com]

Angel and Buffy represented romantic love to me - it's sweetly passionate, it's unrealistic, it makes you see the world in pink. (And yeah, pink is my least favorite colour. *g*) They both avoid any real issues, e.g. Angel's past or that Buffy is emotionally still very young and immature at this point.

I love it that we get this uber romantic pairing - and then reality shatters it with a vengeance. Angel and Buffy are confronted with his past and what it means to be a Slayer (making sacrifices). What happens causes Buffy to grow up - in an extremely painful way.

Riley/Buffy is a grounded love: If Riley's insecurities didn't kick in eventually, it could work very well. It's definitely the most healthy relationship Buffy has with a man.

[spikendru.livejournal.com]

Buffy/Riley was probably the most healthy relationship of any on the show - until, as you say, his insecurities kicked in. But in his defense, I honestly believe that he didn't feel she was invested in the relationship as much as he was. Two incidents come to mind: when her mother went into the hospital and she didn't even call him - he had to find out about it from Spike. It's been a bit since I've seen this ep, but I remember he asked her why she didn't tell him and her response was "Sorry if I wasn't able to take care of you because I was so busy taking care of my mother!" Riley was dumbfounded. He said "I wasn't expecting you to take care of me; I wanted to be able to help take care of you!" To me, that shows that she never even considered Riley as a support for her and Dawn - that he could have been there for her and helped take some of the pressures from her, as one would normally turn to a boyfriend in that situation, especially since her father was absent. She kept him completely out of the loop.

He also mentioned later that he never saw her cry, and she told him that she cried buckets, but only when she was alone. So, I don't blame him when she later said she gave him everything she had but it wasn'tenough for him, and he said he just didn't feel it. she purposely kept him at a distance, so at that moment, I knew this relationship was doomed.

BTW, I wrote a relationship fic called Triangle that deals with Buffy's relationships with Angel and Spike, but it's spoilery up until TGiQ during AtS S5, so you'd better wait to check it out.

[thalia-seawood.livejournal.com]

Yes, I get why Riley felt the way he did. I also get why Buffy acted the way she did.
From my own experience I can say that going through a crisis doesn't automatically make you open up. Acknowledging your feelings makes them more real and more complicated and you feel you can't carry on. So Buffy doesn't cry in front of anyone - that Spike's catches her doing it is only a coincidence. She holds herself together and doesn't rely on any outside help. That way she can pretend that's she's strong and will manage everything. I believe she afraid of fracturing completely if she opened up to anyone. - And yes, that's not really logical, but it feels very realistic to me.

I think the writers did a brilliant job of getting Buffy's and Riley's sides across.

Thanks for the link! I bookmarked it for later reading.

[spikendru.livejournal.com]

Oh, I definitely agree. They did a brilliant job. That's one of the things I adore most about this show - that it's not just told from one perspective, but the writers are able to capture both sides of most issues, which makes it a much deeper viewing experience. They don't villianize characters (well, except maybe for Parker) but they are all fully drawn with their own strengths and weaknesses.