APRIL 2005: Hello all, yes, I am still alive! See Personal Homepage for more! :)
APRIL 2005: Hello all, yes, I am still alive! See Personal Homepage for more! :)
Member since:18.08.2001
Reviews:61
Members who trust:27
And Cordelia, of course. I just didn't have enough room.
Now I know it’s been a while since my first Angel op on Season One Box Set One. I had intended to do my follow-up op on Box Set Two a little sooner afterwards. Hopefully the delay will not bother anyone, and if you haven’t read the previous op on Box Set One, you might want to do so before you read any more of this op on Box Set Two. Clear?!
So we move on to Box Set Two, and the conclusion of Angel Season One. Angel has just been released on DVD and unfortunately I have yet to get my grubby mitts on it. After all, I have spent over £100 (not at once, mind) on getting the Angel videos so I think I will wait a while before I swap them for DVDs! Won’t stop me from renting them Chez Blockbuster so I can look at the special features though…
Box Set Two is, once more, three videos in a case. The colour scheme (!) of the case is blue and black and looks very smart. The outer case is in a matt finish, with shiny areas over the title. It has a big picture of Angel on each side and the ‘spine’ of the case lists the episodes contained within. Each video also displays graphics of Angel, Cordelia and Wesley.
For those of you who might need a background on the story of Angel, and how he evolved from Buffy the Vampire Slayer to having his own series, may I direct you (without demanding reads but,
oh wait, I’m not getting paid for this op anyway!) to my previous Angel op. That’ll get you up to speed, plus it also means you may not suffer from any potential spoilers - not huge ones, just storylines that are better read in the proper order.
The three videos in Angel Season One Box Set Two contain the following episodes:
- TAPE ONE (TAPE FOUR IN THE ENTIRE SERIES):
EXPECTING: Cordelia indulges in a one-night stand, only to wake up and find herself in the family way – full term. As she, Wesley and Angel struggle to understand how this happened, the real nature of her pregnancy and her baby begins to unfold.
SHE: Angel helps a sexually powered demon from another dimension to free some refugees before they can be tortured by another demon clan (check out Wesley and Angel dancing at the beginning of this episode!).
I’VE GOT YOU UNDER MY SKIN: A troubled family attract Angel’s helping nature when their young son exhibits signs of demonic possession.
- TAPE TWO (TAPE FIVE IN THE ENTIRE SERIES):
THE PRODIGAL: Angel discovers LAPD Detective Kate Lockley’s father to be involved in underhand dealings, with dire consequences.
THE RING: Angel is commissioned to find the missing brother of a well-off businessman. The trail leads Angel to become enslaved by an underground fighting ring and to consequently understand the real reason for his employ.
ETERNITY: When Angel rescues an actress from a hit-and-run she enlists him to help protect her from a stalker, but soon Angel realises she wants more from him than just protection.
FIVE BY FIVE: Faith, a rogue vampire slayer from Sunnydale, comes to town and is offered a contract by evil LA lawyers Wolfram and Hart to kill Angel.
- TAPE THREE (TAPE SIX IN THE ENTIRE SERIES):
SANCTUARY: Angel helps Faith look inside herself, and is left as the only person to protect her when everyone – including Buffy – wants her dead.
WAR ZONE: Angel gets caught in the middle of a gang war between some vampires and some slayer street kids and meets a new ally.
BLIND DATE: An unlikely assassin is employed by Wolfram and Hart to murder some immigrant children, leaving Angel with the sole option of infiltrating the evil law firm in order to save the targets.
TO SHANSHU IN L.A.: Wolfram and Hart indulge in a little resurrection in order to acquire the one thing that can weaken Angel most, whilst attacking those close to him to let him know they mean business.
This Box Set – the second half of Season One – sees a lot more expansion in the world of Angel. Following the loss of Doyle, the ‘rogue demon hunter’ Wesley takes firm position in Angel Investigations. There is considerable focus on his burgeoning relationships with Angel and Cordelia, along with some more in-depth looks at Wesley’s past as a failed Watcher and his own personal story.
There is also more development in the character of Kate Lockley. She is not always present in every episode, but being Angel’s only link into official files, we see her in this second half of Season One as more of a person, not a colleague.
A new character is introduced in the form of Charles Gunn (mostly called just ‘Gunn’). He only makes his entrance near to the end of Season One so we don’t manage to learn a lot about him, but it becomes clear he is to become a semi-permanent fixture in Angel Investigations.
We also see a lot more of the evil law firm Wolfram and Hart, who featured in a few episodes in Season One Box Set One. This works well not only to set us up for more malevolent law firm action in Season Two, but also as a backdrop of escalating evil to the increasing maturity and purity of those at Angel Investigations.
As with most end-of-season episodes, the last episode of Season One – To Shanshu in LA – is a big one. It’s not so much a cliff-hanger, but more a huge stepping stone to a second season that will give us a lot more personal insight into the world of Angel, Cordelia, Wesley, Kate and Gunn.
When looked at as a whole, Season One has worked its way hard into the psyche of each of the main characters. Following their initial introduction, we have seen into the pasts of Angel, Wesley, Doyle, Cordelia, Kate and to an extent, Gunn. We have seen each of them examine the demons of their past – whether physical or psychological – and their own principles and beliefs of the present. Season One is a strengthening process for the employees at Angel Investigations and their colleagues, and indeed, a strong basis for an extremely popular and very well made television series.
Angel Season One Box Set Two retails for around £29.99, though offers at various outlets may mean a slight change in price. As I mentioned earlier, Angel is now available on DVD, so the video box sets may well come down in price in the New Year.
CAST:
Angel – David Boreanaz Cordelia Chase – Charisma Carpenter Wesley Wyndham Price – Alexis Denisof Kate Lockley – Elisabeth Rohm Charles Gunn – J. August Richards Faith – Eliza Dushku Buffy Summers – Sarah Michelle Gellar
Tape One (Four): Rated 15 Tape Two (Five): Rated 18 Tape Three (Six): Rated 15
www.cityofangel.com
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Production Year: 2007 - Science Fiction - Director: Francis Lawrence - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Alice Braga, Charlie Tahan, Dash Mihok, Will Smith, Salli Richardson, Willow Smith
I don't watch horror films so I'll have to trust you on
this one..LL
KirstyJane 24.01.2002 14:28
Angel mmmhh! Hello Jess, I'm Kirsty, Superpricee's other half! A bit bored at work just now so reading everyones ops! Very good I must say and could not agree more!
Calypte 17.12.2001 17:34
I'm looking forward to the new series - soon!! I love the humour in this series! :o)
Taking the Spin-off genre to the extreme,Angelattempts to replicate the success ofBuffyby ... more
taking the heartthrob as the lead. Spin-off shows rarely match the success of their parent programmes, especially in the superhero/fantasy genre (cf.The Girl From...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Taking the Spin-off genre to the extreme,Angelattempts to replicate the success ofBuffyby ... more
taking the heartthrob as the lead. Spin-off shows rarely match the success of their parent programmes, especially in the superhero/fantasy genre (cf.The Girl From...
Postage & Packaging: free Super Saver Delivery Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
![Angel: Complete Season 1 [DVD] [2000]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/78533776.jpg "Angel: Complete Season 1 [DVD] [2000]")
Dec 15th, 2001
(Dec 16th, 2001)
very helpful by (98%):
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