Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 1 Episode 7: Angel
Review
So...the big reveal. Angel is....a vampire! I can't remember if I was surprised by that secret when I first saw this show as a kid. I think I had already heard he was from some news source or a friend. Watching it now, I think I would have seen it coming. Why else would he be strong? There aren't rogue male slayers. Unless he was some other kind of monster. But him being a vampire makes more sense, having the main character's main romantic interest be the very thing she is born and sworn to kill. It's just good drama. This episode sets up a lot of the coming story lines dealing with angel, so it is an important one. The plot is nothing \special...but the emotion in it is very heartfelt. You also gain a new level of respect for Angel when you find out what he lives with every day, and he still tries to help people when he can. There no denying that he's basically a vampire version of Wolverine: a very old, troubled, dangerous, remorseful, loyal, protective heartthrob. You empathize with Buffy a little more when she doesn't kill Angel. Darla is very annoying and I was glad when she died. but as i said earlier in another review..I like what they do with her on the Angel series later. The fight scene with her and the guns......terrible. Poorly choreographed and illogical..and Darla holds the guns like a 10 year old playing an arcade game..maybe it was her first time using them in 400 years. Its possible. The acting is all good as usual..but not standout performances. I think they should have waited til mid-late season for this reveal..but the creators at this point had no idea how long the show would last..so I imagine they wanted to get it in while they could...and revealing it early also lets you use that plot in the rest of the season. I like this episode, though other than the character growth, its nothing that special.
Importance: 10 Acting: 7 Plot: 6 Dialog: 7 Action: 5 Horror: 4 Suspense: 6 Romance: 7 Comedy: 6 Overall: 7
Info
Director: Scott Brazil
Writer: David Greenwalt, Joss Whedon
