Angel

When I decided to watch Buffy from the beginning, there was never a doubt in my mind that I would watch Angel, too. If you're going to commit to something, you've got to do it all the way - even if that commitment meant watching 254 episodes of television, by far my greatest undertaking ever. I think my assumption about Angel was that it would just be an extension of Buffy. I knew I would enjoy it because I love the character of Angel pretty much more than life itself. But, at the same time, a Buffy show without Giles and Willow and Xander (and Buffy, too - she's kind of important) is not Buffy at all. I realized that this is the wrong attitude to take because Angel is a very different show. It's similar in that it has Joss Whedon's Midas touch, and sometimes the stories would crossover, but Angel was wonderful in its own right. It dealt more with redemption, what it means to be a hero, and choice - how our choices define us, and how they always have consequences.
My Top 10 Favorite Episodes:
1) "The Magic Bullet" (written by Jeffrey Bell), episode 4.19- Fred is the only one who has seen Jasmine's true form, so she works to break the spell that her friends are under before free will disappears from the world.
2) "A Hole in the World" (written by Joss Whedon), episode 5.15- Angel and Spike travel to England to try to save Fred from a virus that is working through her body to make way for the ancient demon, Illyria.
3) "I Will Remember You" (written by David Greenwalt & Jeannine Renshaw), episode 1.08- Buffy comes to L.A., and a demon attacks that turns Angel human. They spend one happy day together before Angel sacrifices his humanity to continue the good fight.
4) "Not Fade Away" (written by Joss Whedon & Jeffrey Bell), episode 5.22- Angel and the gang prepare for war against Wolfram & Hart's "Senior Partners." Understanding that some of them will probably die, everyone lives their perfect last day.
5) "Through the Looking Glass" (written by Tim Minear), episode 2.21- Cordelia serves as princess of Pylea while Wesley, Gunn, and Lorne try to find a portal back to L.A. "Numfar, do the dance of joy!"
6) "Orpheus" (written by Mere Smith), episode 4.15- With Faith and Angelus in comas after their great battle, Willow comes to help Wesley, Fred, Lorne, and Gunn restore Angel's soul while possessed Cordelia seeks to undermine their efforts.
7) "Lullaby" (written by Tim Minear), episode 3.09- Angel tries to protect Darla and his unborn son from their old enemy, Holtz, as well as various other evil forces.
8) "You're Welcome" (written by David Fury), episode 5.12- Cordelia awakens from her coma to help Angel one last time against Lindsey who is trying to summon a demon that will destroy Angel.
9) "Disharmony" (written by David Fury), episode 2.17- Cordelia gets a visit from her high school friend, Harmony, as the Angel Investigations team looks into a vampire cult.
10) "Sense and Sensitivity" (written by Tim Minear), episode 1.06- The normally brooding Angel gets infected by a sensitivity stick courtesy of Wolfram & Hart that forces him to share all his feelings.


Spike fights Puppet Angel