Angel (Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode)

Last updated
"Angel"
Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode
Episode no.Season 1
Episode 7
Directed by Scott Brazil
Written by David Greenwalt
Production code4V07
Original air dateApril 14, 1997 (1997-04-14)
Guest appearances
Episode chronology
← Previous
"The Pack"		Next →
"I, Robot... You, Jane"
Buffy the Vampire Slayer season 1
List of episodes

"Angel" is the seventh episode of season 1 of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer . The episode aired on The WB on April 14, 1997. It was written by co-executive producer David Greenwalt and directed by Scott Brazil.

Contents

While Buffy grows more and more annoyed with Angel's mysterious disappearing act, she can't deny her growing obsession with him. Meanwhile, it's killing Xander that Buffy doesn't have a clue how he feels about her and, as he vents his frustrations to Willow, she knows all too well how he feels. And in the underworld, The Master is incensed that Buffy has taken the lives of so many members of his family, and he summons warrior vampires to annihilate her. [1]

Plot

The Master sends a trio of armored warrior vampires after Buffy. They ambush her, but Angel arrives to help her. Angel is injured during the fight and Buffy invites him back to her house. With the vampire trio on the other side of the door, Angel explains that a vampire cannot enter someone's home unless invited in. Buffy recalls hearing that but tells Angel she has never had to put it to the test before. When Buffy's mother, Joyce, suddenly returns home from work, Buffy covers for Angel, claiming that he is a college student tutoring her in history. When Angel takes his shirt off, Buffy notices a tattoo and asks him if he was stalking her, because she felt his presence at the Bronze. He shrugs it off. Buffy asks Angel why he fights vampires and he reveals that his family was killed by vampires.

The next morning, Giles informs the group that the vampire trio were known as The Three, warrior vampires controlled by the Master. The Master allows Darla to kill The Three, as a lesson in the use of power for Collin, the Anointed One.

The next day, Buffy returns to Angel. She notices her diary askew and tries to explain away entries that reveal fantasies about "A". Angel assures her that he did not read the diary. He then confesses his attraction towards her, but says he cannot be around her as he is older than her. They kiss. Suddenly, Angel pulls back with a snarl of distress, showing his vampire face. Buffy screams in shock and he dives out the window.

Giles researches Angel's history and notices the peculiarity that, although he was previously infamous as the sadistic killer known as Angelus, Angel has shunned the company of other vampires since coming to America and apparently has completely stopped preying on humans.

Darla cons Joyce into inviting her in and bites her. Angel hears Joyce's cry and rushes in. Darla shoves the now-unconscious Joyce into Angel's arms and escapes out the back door. Angel resists the impulse to drink, but Buffy sees him and is horrified. At the hospital, Joyce's last memory is of inviting Buffy's "study friend" inside. Buffy misunderstands, thinking Joyce means Angel rather than Darla, and storms out to kill him.

Giles talks further with Joyce and learns that it was Darla, not Angel, who bit Joyce. With Xander and Willow in tow, he rushes to find Buffy to warn her of the trap. Buffy tracks Angel to the deserted Bronze and demands an explanation; Angel tells how he was cursed by Gypsies who restored his human soul so that he would be eternally tormented with the guilt of his past sins. He denies biting Joyce, yet confesses wanting to, as well as wanting to kill Buffy. The Slayer lays aside her crossbow and slowly offers her throat to him. Suddenly, Darla emerges from the shadows with a pair of pistols. Hearing gunfire, Giles, Willow and Xander rush in and distract Darla. Looming up from behind, Angel stakes Darla through the heart.

In their Hellmouth lair, Collin consoles the Master for his loss of Darla at Angel's hands. Spying Angel across the crowded room at the Bronze, Buffy goes to thank him and they agree not to get involved as it could be dangerous for the both of them. As they deeply kiss one last time, Buffy does not notice that the cross she is wearing — the one Angel gave her weeks ago at their first meeting  — is scorching his chest.

Production

During the production of this episode, it took the makeup department 60 to 90 minutes to apply the vampire prosthetic on David Boreanaz. [2]

Angel's Hugo Boss duster he wears is worth over $1,000. [2]

Broadcast and reception

"Angel" was first broadcast on The WB on April 14, 1997. It earned a Nielsen rating of 2.3 on its original airing. [3]

Vox ranked it at #39 on their "Every Episode Ranked From Worst to Best" list of all 144 episodes (to mark the 20th anniversary of the show), saying, "No one would ever accuse young David Boreanaz of being a great actor... but he and Sarah Michelle Gellar have chemistry compelling enough to keep the audience feeling every bit of their pain." [4]

Noel Murray of The A.V. Club gave "Angel" a grade of A, calling it the best episode thus far. He praised how Buffy inviting Angel into her home was used as a metaphor, how that "ambiguity" was used to tease the audience, and the "multitude of character touches, funny bits of dialogue, and milieu-enriching moments". [5] DVD Talk's Phillip Duncan called the episode "excellent", highlighting the "well-crafted" dialogue-heavy part and the "poignant ending". [6] A review from the BBC praised the way the episode was constructed and noted the importance of it character-wise, but called it "rather mundane." [7]

Rolling Stone ranked "Angel" at #52 on their "Every Episode Ranked From Worst to Best" list, writing that after Buffy finds out Angel is a vampire, "we basically get the wider arc of Season Two writ miniature in this excellent episode. There’s the love and romance, the emergence of the dark side, their confrontation and opposition, and finally, reconciliation. Season Two would expand it to much greater effect, but this little amuse-bouche of an episode whets the appetite for what is to come." [8]

"Angel" was ranked at #41 on Paste Magazine's "Every Episode Ranked" list [9] and #50 on BuzzFeed's "Ranking Every Episode" list. [10]

Related Research Articles

"The Wish" is the ninth episode of season three of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It was written by Marti Noxon, directed by David Greenwalt, and first broadcast on The WB on December 8, 1998.

"Innocence" is episode 14 of season two of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It was written and directed by Joss Whedon and first broadcast on The WB on January 20, 1998. It is part two of a two-part story. Part 1, "Surprise," was broadcast the day before.

"Some Assembly Required" is episode two of season two of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode aired on The WB on September 22, 1997. It was written by staff writer Ty King and directed by Bruce Seth Green. The narrative follows the Scooby Gang as they find body parts all over Sunnydale High School. They follow the trail of the clues to find something more gruesome. Meanwhile, Buffy confronts Angel about their relationship, Willow admits that she loves Xander to Buffy and Ms. Calendar and Giles' romance begins to blossom, as she asks him on a date. There's only one problem: their date is interrupted by schoolmate Eric and his sinister plans.

"Becoming" is the season finale of the second season of the drama television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, consisting of the twenty-first and twenty-second episodes. The episode aired on The WB was split into two parts which were broadcast separately; "Part 1" first aired on May 12, 1998 and "Part 2" first aired on May 19, 1998. Both episodes were written and directed by series creator Joss Whedon.

"Buffy vs. Dracula" is the season 5 premiere of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode aired on September 26, 2000 on The WB.

"Band Candy" is the sixth episode of season three of the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It was written by Jane Espenson, directed by Michael Lange, and first broadcast on The WB on November 10, 1998.

"Revelations" is the seventh episode of season three of the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It was written by Doug Petrie, directed by James A. Contner, and first broadcast on The WB on November 17, 1998.

"Amends" is episode ten of season three of the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It was written and directed by series creator Joss Whedon. Advertised as a Christmas episode, it was first broadcast on The WB on December 15, 1998.

"Life Serial" is the fifth episode in the 6th season of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode aired on October 23, 2001 on UPN. The episode was praised for its innovation and surreal humour.

Unaired <i>Buffy the Vampire Slayer</i> pilot Episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer

The non-broadcast pilot episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer was produced by 20th Century Fox Television in 1996 to pitch a series to networks. The twenty-five-and-a-half-minute production was written and directed by Buffy creator Joss Whedon, and was expanded upon and re-shot for the first episode of the series. It is notable for featuring different actors in the roles of Willow and Principal Flutie. Sunnydale High is known as Berryman High.

"Welcome to the Hellmouth" is the series premiere of the American supernatural drama television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It originally aired on The WB on March 10, 1997 in a two-hour premiere along with the following episode, "The Harvest". The episode was written by the series creator and executive producer Joss Whedon and directed by Charles Martin Smith. "Welcome to the Hellmouth" received a Nielsen rating of 3.4 upon its original airing and received largely positive reviews from critics.

"The Pack" is the sixth episode of season 1 of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode aired on The WB on April 7, 1997. The episode was written by story editors Matt Kiene and Joe Reinkemeyer, and directed by Bruce Seth Green.

"Teacher's Pet" is the fourth episode of the first season of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode originally aired on The WB on March 24, 1997, attracting 2.0 million viewers. The episode was written by co-executive producer David Greenwalt and directed by Bruce Seth Green

"The Harvest" is the second episode of the first season of the American supernatural drama television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It was written by series creator executive producer Joss Whedon and directed by John T. Kretchmer. The episode originally aired on The WB on March 10, 1997, forming a two-hour premiere with the previous episode, "Welcome to the Hellmouth", and attracted 3.4 million viewers.

"When She Was Bad" is the season premiere of the second season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the thirteenth episode in the series. The episode aired on The WB on September 15, 1997. The episode was written and directed by series creator and executive producer Joss Whedon.

"Prophecy Girl" is the season finale of the first season of the drama television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and the 12th episode of the series. It first aired on The WB on June 2, 1997. Series creator Joss Whedon wrote and directed the episode.

"Nightmares" is the tenth episode of the first season of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode's teleplay was written by David Greenwalt, with a story by Joss Whedon, and directed by Bruce Seth Green.

<i>Buffy the Vampire Slayer</i> season 2 Season of television series

The second season of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer premiered on September 15, 1997, on The WB and concluded its 22-episode season on May 19, 1998. The first 13 episodes aired on Mondays at 9:00 pm ET, beginning with episode 14 the series moved to Tuesdays at 8:00 pm ET, a timeslot the series would occupy for the rest of its run.

<i>Buffy the Vampire Slayer</i> season 5 2000–2001 season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer

The fifth season of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer premiered on September 26, 2000, on The WB and concluded its 22-episode season on May 22, 2001. It maintained its previous timeslot, airing Tuesdays at 8:00 pm ET. This was the final season to air on The WB before it moved to UPN; The WB billed the season five finale as "The WB series finale".

"Lovers Walk" is episode eight of season three of the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It was written by Dan Vebber, directed by David Semel, and first broadcast on The WB on November 24, 1998.

References

  1. ↑ ""The Mortuary." Buffy.com". Archived from the original on June 9, 2001. Retrieved August 23, 2024.
  2. 1 2 Golden, Christopher; Holder, Nancy (October 1, 1998). The Watcher's Guide, Volume 1. Pocket Books. ISBN   978-0671024338.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  3. ↑ "Nielsen Ratings for Buffy's First Season". Archived from the original on 23 August 2006. Retrieved 3 June 2013.
  4. ↑ Grady, Constance (March 10, 2017). "In honor of Buffy's 20th anniversary, we ranked it from worst to best episode". Vox. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
  5. ↑ Murray, Noel (19 June 2008). ""Angel", etc". The A.V. Club . Retrieved 3 June 2013.
  6. ↑ Duncan, Phillip (21 January 2002). "Buffy the Vampire Slayer — Season 1". DVD Talk . Retrieved 3 June 2013.
  7. ↑ "Angel: Review". BBC . Retrieved 3 June 2013.
  8. ↑ Francis, Jack (May 20, 2023). "'Buffy the Vampire Slayer': Every Episode Ranked From Worst to Best". Rolling Stone . Retrieved September 8, 2024.
  9. ↑ Rabinowitz, Mark (May 19, 2023). "The Best Buffy the Vampire Slayer Episodes: Every Episode Ranked". Paste Magazine . Retrieved September 8, 2024.
  10. ↑ Peitzman, Louis (November 14, 2013). "Ranking Every Episode Of "Buffy The Vampire Slayer". BuzzFeed . Retrieved September 8, 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.