Buffy and Angel Rewatch part 39

Angel Season 2
This was quite a season for Angel. One of the key themes that ran throughout it, was the establishment of the show's identity that was separate from Buffy's. This was a hard task for the show considering most of Angel's character originate from BtVS and season 1 had a lot of crossover episodes.

However the show did a pretty good job in standing on its own two feet though slightly disappointingly they chose to end the season of the Buffy death cliffhanger, but I guess there was no other way to end it. One of the main storylines was Angel going dark, but not losing his soul. This is very different from the Buffy dichotomy of good vs evil; the show here started to exploring the grey area a lot more. The overall story arc worked well I thought, Wolfram and Hart stepped up as the big bad and they were never as strong more more enjoyable as when led by Holland Manners, Lilah and of course Lindsey. Bringing back Julie Benz as Darla was a truly excellent idea as she made an excellent villain/victim and she had sizzling chemistry with David Boreanez.

Many people don't like that the main arc ended before finale, but I thought this was a neat idea, as it allowed Angel to atone for mistakes with his team and also the inspired Pylea arc at the end of the season.
Though I didn't give the best episode ratings for the four Pylea episodes, as an overall storyline, it worked incredibly well and was very enjoyable. It was perhaps an episode too long and could've done with a little more action in places but I loved visiting another dimension as they are important parts of the Buffyverse mythology and its cool that we get to spend some time in one.

Episode wise, the season wasn't hugely consistent as there were quite a few dull episodes as well as some awesome ones.
It's also a little disappointing not to get more character development of the Angel Investigations team. We got a little in places and especially during the Pylea arc, but often it felt forced and didn't always fit into the storyline or episode.

In terms of new characters, we had Gunn becoming part of the team, which at first felt a little awkward but after the team got fired and he bonded with Wes and Cordy, it felt a lot more organic and natural. There was of course the introduction of Lorne. He's such a quirky and delightful character and the songs at Caritas definitely helped to inject a little bit of humour and lightheartedness in the episodes. His integration into the team in the final arc definitely felt more natural than Gunn's was. We also got to meet Fred, seen in the Pylea episodes as a bit crazy, but with a heart of gold.

Overall this was a very enjoyable season and I really liked it. There was a lot of drama, but also a lot of humour. Not all of the episodes were great but enough were great to make this an excellent second season. (8.5/10)

Buffy Season 5
This is largely regarded as the best Buffy season and its easy to see why. The episodes are very consistent in quality with very few/no bad episodes. The season is a little slow to kick off, but once it is revealed that Dawn is the Key, it gets a lot better.

The overall arc is a pretty incredible one, Dawn's introduction definitely ups the stakes for Buffy. She is not just fighting to save her friends or the generic world, she is fighting to save her flesh and blood.

I'm not a huge fan of this season's Big Bad however. She's better than Adam or the Trio from next season, but she's definitely not a favourite of mine. Though I do admire her consistency, Glory does get a little repetitive with her quest to find the key and over the 18 or so episodes from when she is introduced to the finale. Her alter ego Ben is also quite annoying and quite whiny a lot of the time. The reveal that they are one and the same is a good one and a neat device to use as it helps to elongate Glory's search. Both characters as well as Glory's minions lack the charm or mystique that previous and future Big Bads have.

As for new characters, Dawn is the only main character introduced. She isn't the most likable character and she can be very annoying at times (her screaming fits come to mind) but at times she can be a decent character.
The memory device they use to implant Dawn are a little trippy when you think about it (the last 4 seasons of Buffy as we know it, didn't happen in their minds) but if you don't think about it too closely, it generally works, especially when all the characters know the truth.
As I said in my review for The Gift, I don't really buy the fact that Buffy's death could close the gate, as she's not the key. There is some logic since they have the same blood, but since the Key is energy and that's in Dawn, its not something that makes sense to me. It did let the sacrifice element of the episode down a little.

There were major character departures this season in the form of Joyce and Riley. It was sad to see the latter go, but he isn't really missed in the show and you don't really notice he's gone after a couple of episodes. This is kinda the same for Joyce who was missing from much of season 4; however as a character, she is missed a lot more and its incredibly sad to see her go especially as her death is so tragic. I'm glad she had a decent leaving storyline though and it added to the emotion and more human drama of the season.

Overall this is an excellent season; its obviously well planned and there is very little in the season that feels filler or unnecessary. It did take a few episodes to get into gear, but after the truth about Dawn is revealed, the season continues to get better and produces consistently enjoyable episodes. (9/10)

Buffy and Angel

Episodes:
Both shows had incredibly strong seasons and its probably the only time that can truly be said (maybe, I'll be able to judge once I've seen the rest of the seasons!). This is a very enjoyable thing as a viewer as it means you can get to a point in the seasons and there aren't any bad episodes left.

Crossovers:
There were far fewer crossovers in these seasons than in 4 and 1, which worked better for each show individually.
This season does contain the best crossover episodes in the form of Fool For Love and Darla. Both fit into the season wonderfully though Darla felt a little more natural. Up until this season the Fang Gang's halcyon days were largely unexplored, mostly due to Darla's dead status. However with her alive now, this gave the writers a perfect opportunity to explore the past. Its so interesting to see both Darla and Spike's points of views, as up until this point we mainly get to see Angel's. The fact that the flashbacks were so well written and slotted together is the cherry on top.

We get a couple of other crossovers but not much, Angel visiting Buffy in Forever was sweet and necessary, Harmony's visit and Willow's appearance was pretty funny, but because Harmony was Cordy's friend originally, it almost doesn't feel like a crossover. Willow coming at the end of Angel's finale was also a necessary visit and it does help to setup season 3.

Episode Order:
Ultimately though, the two seasons felt very separate and after the first half of each season, I ended up watching lots of Buffy episodes back to back and then loads of Angel episodes back to back which meant that it felt more like watching two completely different and unrelated shows, which was a touch confusing at times.

Overall:
Two brilliant seasons from the shows and very enjoyable to watch. I think Buffy was probably better for this season as it felt better planned and executed than Angel, especially as Angel had a fair amount of standalone episodes.