Angel. Jumped the shark?

[LightPhoenix]

Mini Hijack: LightPhoenix, who was introduced on Invisible Man that screwed up the chemistry? I loved that show, but missed the last bunch of episodes (which I didn't know were going to be the last episodes).

That would be Alex Monroe, played by Brandy Ledford. SFC forced her inclusion upon the cast, forced the writers and producers to include her, and subsequently disrupted a lot of the group chemistry. Statements after the fact by both writers and actors from the show confirm this, and generally everyone resented her being forced upon them. Unfortunately, the writers just couldn't make it work.

To make this post relevant, my wife thinks Angel has jumped, but I don't. I, like so many others, am waiting for the other shoe to drop, vis a vis Gunn.

Yep. Notice how Gunn, Lorne, and Harmony side with Eve almost instantly, whereas Wesley, Fred, Angel, and to an extent Spike are against it. They're fracturing the group hardcore.

The one complaint I have is Eve. I just don't think she has any spark. Also, as an alumnus of UC Santa Cruz, I don't believe a graduate would work for W&H, but I do believe in the sex under mystical influence could have happened.

I wasn't fond of Eve either - she just didn't have the chemistry that Lilah did. She just doesn't have the presence to be how (I'm perceiving) they're writing her - sexy, alluring, evil, and untrustworthy. Which is pretty much what Lilah was. The actress that played Lilah just did it better.

 

[Umbran]

The addition of Spike and the zero-ing of the personal dynamics are just the symptoms.

In most other shows, these would be symptoms, but not in Angel. Joss is always pulling such stuff. New characters come along regularly, and character dynamics get reset on his shows after major events. This is only a highly memorable example of a general practice in Joss' shows.

 

[Staffan]

I still cannot shake the fact that one day Cordy is changing Conner's diapers, and the next day she done the booty call with him),

1. It wasn't "the next day". It was almost a year between Connor returning from the hell dimension and them bumping uglies.

2. It wasn't really Cordy. Cordy is presumably still a "higher being", her body just got used by Jasmine to do her thing.

 

[Henry]

2. It wasn't really Cordy. Cordy is presumably still a "higher being", her body just got used by Jasmine to do her thing.

Actually, it was Cordy - but Jasmine was in control, and Cordy had no say so. That's the reason why they are taking such good care of Cordelia, even in the coma, because it's HER in there.

 

[Tauric]

LightPhoenix: Ah, now I remember. I think I stopped watching because of her. Thanks for jogging my memory.

I was just thinking, not many people reacted well when Buffy suddenly had a younger sister, but by the end of the season, Joss and the crew made it work. And since Spike is sooo less annoying than Dawn, I have faith that it'll be alright in the end.

Speaking (kind of), about Faith, is anyone going to watch "Tru Calling" tonight? I won't be able to, since Thursday is my wife's night to choose our viewing schedule, but I would like to know how it is. I was hoping that Faith, of all the Scoobies, would be the one to return to Angel. It would have been interesting to see how W&H could legal-eagle her status from fugitive to reformed member of society.

 

[Ranger REG]

Invest in a VCR or a DVR, and watch it later (when your wife goes to sleep).

Apparently, Eliza have moved on to her current TV project. But that doesn't mean she won't reprise her Faith role if Joss needed her. Considering that Faith is a prison escapee and fugitive, maybe Angel can foot her lawyer bill.

Now there is something that Gunn can shine with his newfound ability, that is if the fan would like an LA Law/The Practice type story.

 

[Mercule]

Speaking (kind of), about Faith, is anyone going to watch "Tru Calling" tonight? I won't be able to, since Thursday is my wife's night to choose our viewing schedule, but I would like to know how it is. I was hoping that Faith, of all the Scoobies, would be the one to return to Angel. It would have been interesting to see how W&H could legal-eagle her status from fugitive to reformed member of society.

Yeah. I watched it. Not bad. Not great, but not bad, either. As the friend I was watching it with said, "Probably not going to suck me in, though." My policy is that I won't watch a show unless I can stick with it. It won't arrange my schedule to watch a show -- ever. My VCR has four slots, currently all filled (fwiw, Charmed/Tarzan, Smallville/Angel, Joan of Arcadia, and Jackie Chan Adventures - which I watch with my daughter, but it is cool). For me to add

Tru Calling to my line-up, I'd have to drop one of the others. Neither Charmed nor Tarzan are interesting enough to hold my attention on their own. Tru Calling is at about the same level, though, so maybe it's time to switch a slot from 2 hrs to 1 hr. Probably depends on what my wife's reaction is when she sees it.

Oh, and for Faith on Angel: Heck yeah! Eliza would be a great addition. I say drop Gunn and Fred and add Faith in. You get the "heavy" and the "pretty girl" all in one package. Angel, Faith, and Wesley -- sounds like the perfect core to me (since Cordy's probably never going to be a core member again).

 

[Ranger REG]

"Four slots" on your VCR??? Most VCRs are usually able to program 8 shows. Coupled with several 8-hour tapes (in fact I have 10 that I re-use), you can pretty much record one weeks' worth of shows (averaging 3 hours of primetime).

But if you're not interested, oh well.

As for Faith on Angel, it is only going to be a guest spot, unless her Tru Calling show is cancelled, and even then, Eliza would probably want to go back to her movie career. And I would be opposed to dumping Gunn and Fred. Not too many minority actors on genre shows, and Fred, something about Fred just turns me on, her waifish body, her display of intellect, and the fact that I can see her in a short schoolgirl uniform (the same thing happened with Nicole DeBoer of DS9) in my dreams. Besides, Faith does not work well in an ensemble.

 

[fusangite]

In most other shows, these would be symptoms, but not in Angel. Joss is always pulling such stuff. New characters come along regularly, and character dynamics get reset on his shows after major events. This is only a highly memorable example of a general practice in Joss' shows.

The final season of Buffy has so shaken my faith that I just no longer trust that he will just pull it all together. Essentially, here, the same thing has happened: the big arc is over. What was incredible was Season 6 of Buffy; aside from a few rought shows in the middle, they pulled it off, even though the main arc was done. To expect a feat like that again is simply setting our expectations too high.

 

[Mercule]

The final season of Buffy has so shaken my faith that I just no longer trust that he will just pull it all together. Essentially, here, the same thing has happened: the big arc is over. What was incredible was Season 6 of Buffy; aside from a few rought shows in the middle, they pulled it off, even though the main arc was done. To expect a feat like that again is simply setting our expectations too high.

That's funny. Season 6 of Buffy is what broke my in Joss. It was some of the worst drek I've ever seen -- right up there with the last couple of seasons of the X-Files. About the only reason I can think of that I didn't dump the show then is that I'm a stupid, blind fan and it had just enough good scenes/lines that I kept hoping. Season 7 may not have been the best, but it was easily a step above 6.