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Angel: Expecting

Cordelia: "I learned something, too. I learned, um, men are evil? Oh, wait, I knew that. I learned that LA is full of self-serving phonies. No, had that one down, too. Uh... sex is bad?"
Angel: "We all knew that."

Rosemary's Baby plots usually bore me, but this one was done pretty well. We could see where it was going, but I was still surprised that Cordelia and Wilson had safe sex, that Wilson wasn't a demon, and that Serena was another victim. And Charisma Carpenter was convincing. Most of the time when women are faking pregnancy, it doesn't look real to me; Cordelia's did. The prosthetic belly looked real, too. (Although the "doctor" blew it; you don't just put the device on the belly, you move it around.)

Wesley made me laugh out loud at least three times and I liked him a lot in this episode, better than I ever have. Maybe the cast is re-gelling or something. Maybe it was the Bavarian fighting adz or the Hugh Grant line. Maybe it was that David B.'s Angel was getting noticeably comfortable with Wesley, or that Wesley was actually helpful and less fussbudget-y. Maybe it was the fact that he was so supportive and sweet with Cordelia when she needed him. Whatever – Wesley is winning me over. And I didn't think that would happen. So maybe this show can recover from losing a major character. I'm encouraged.

Bits and pieces:

— The demon reminded me of the creature Luke Skywalker fought in Return of the Jedi, complete with drool.

— The list of things Angel doesn't do is growing; we know he doesn't eat. And now he doesn't lounge, and he doesn't hum.

— Phantom Dennis was back. I like Phantom Dennis.

— I liked the scene where Angel was in the phone booth talking on the phone while pulling bullets out of his body. Maybe it's an attention-to-detail thing; the bullets have to go somewhere. Or maybe I'm just strange.


— Convenient that all of the women were wearing loose dresses and standing in a pool of cruddy water when they... whatever.

— The scene where Cordelia was drinking Angel's take-out blood from the fridge was fun. And really, really gross.

Quotes:

Wesley: "I was just in the neighborhood, patrolling with my new Bavarian fighting adz, when I suddenly thought perhaps Cordelia has had a vision, perhaps you need my help in the battle against evil."
Angel: "We seem to be evil-free at the moment."
Wesley: "I also packed along a Word Puzzle 3-D if either of you has the nerve to take me on."
Cordelia: "Gee, Wesley, I'd love to. But unlike you, I'm not in my eighties quite yet."

Wesley: "You don't think sticking the adz in the wall put them off?"
Angel: "That was charming."
Wesley: "What about the fact that they thought we were gay?"
Angel: "Adds mystery."

Wilson: "You shouldn't sneak up on people like that in here. That's how accidents happen."
Angel: "Speaking of accidents, I'm a friend of Cordelia Chase."
Wilson: "This is a private club. Featured word, 'private'."
Angel: "You don't talk to me, I'll kick your ass. Featured word, 'ass'."

Let's say two for plot and three for character development. Two and a half out of four stakes,

Billie
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Billie Doux reviewed all of Buffy and Angel, so she knows the plural of apocalypse.

8 comments:

  1. As a Veronica Mars fan, I just have to say; Kendall Casablancas and Vincent Van Lowe!! :O

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  2. Just watched this. During the doctor visit, a boom mic drops down between Cordy and the doc. I loled.

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  3. I liked the ep. It had some funny lines, and the Angel method of questioning a suspect is always fun to watch. When in doubt, beat them up.

    I thought Wesley in Buffy a very one-note character, but on Angel I liked him more each episode. He worked so much better as a character you could take seriously.

    But with Cordelia it is the other way around. I loved her on Buffy, but on Angel I came to hate her. She became so artificial in everything.

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  4. I liked seeing the Angel/Cordelia/Wesley trio starting to gel here. There was a very sweet vibe from all three at various points that helped me overlook the cheese the climactic scene of all of the "mothers" gather in their white nightgowns at the birthing tub. (It felt like a scene from one of the overwrought gothic movies I used to watch on Saturday afternoons many years ago.)

    I'm really enjoying Angel's bemused big brother reaction to the quirks of Cordelia and Wesley. It makes him more interesting to me than all of the angst of his Buffy years.

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  5. I agree it was an interesting episode for character development and I also love Phantom Dennis and Cordy's threat to play 'Evita',the Madonna version as the ultimate threat. Poor Cordelia, she finally seems to meet a guy in LA and he turns out to be not just a jerk but a demon worshipping jerk I'm sure there are nice people in LA. I know some actually. Thanks for the review Billie.

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  6. I don't love the plot of this one, but I do love watching the new trio begin to gel. The conversations between Wesley and Angel always make me smile.

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  7. Wesley: "I also packed along a Word Puzzle 3-D if either of you has the nerve to take me on."

    Wesley, I'll play Word Puzzle 3-D with you any day.

    Ken Marino's outfit: cashmere v-neck sweater tucked in to pleated pants. My, how men's fashions have changed.

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