I'm not certain why this scene hits me
in the gut like it does, 'cuz my dad happens to think the world of me, but when
Wes is on the phone with ol' Rodge, and Rodge is clearly making all sorts of
passively-aggressive digs at him – past failures, insecurities, etc. – I just
really feel like he must've when that bullet slammed through him. That kind of
stuff is cruel, and I wish Wesley could unload on him with both barrels.
Our first little glimpse of Fred. Ah.
And of course the main theme is Lorne confronting his roots, his family, his
"shame," that kind of ugliness. His invitation to the back row of an
Elton John concert was a little telling, but hey, the boy knows his acoustics
(and "denial" is just a river in Egypt).
His willingness to take on the reading room at the library was very cool. Lorne
should do something community-minded with his days (y'know, apart from
"saving the world" -- meh, he helped with "Happy
Anniversary")
I loved "Superstitious," by the way. Excellent rendition.
The tracking and fighting of the Drokken was just killing time. The beast went
back and forth from being ferocious, take-on-all-comers and in-your-face to
stealthy and mysterious. It seemed weird. It was cool when it ate Wesley's
flare, though. The damsel in distress was openly pointless, but on the plus
side, nice dress, am I right people?
Cordy, of course, doesn't take crap from anyone, but she knows the biz, and she
knows lots of girls are perfectly willing to bust through that top if she
refuses. Angel's willingness to defend her was touching, but removed from
relevance by about a century. His enjoying the fake sunny day was very sweet.
That commercial was doomed to suck anyway. The guy getting the rubdown looked
like he was enjoying it about as much as a digital prostate exam. Unless, of
course, he'd just prefer a digital prostate exam.
The dinner scene was cool, but Angel's outburst was uncharacteristic. Normally,
he'd have tracked the "witch" to the alley outside and then
confronted her. I guess it made Cordy's subsequent contribution to the chaos
somewhat less awkward.
I like Gunn, I like his past and his backstory, but whenever it shows up on
screen, I'm just bored by it. Sorry.
Anyway, they were taking Angel's car. He could've just given the guys the keys
to the truck.
I liked Wesley sort of gracefully easing out of the driver's seat. Angel's plan
was a good one, although if the cousin dude can track the Drokken, um, so can
Lorne.
I liked the cousin guy.
My sister and I had a disagreement about nuance. She prefers things to be right
and wrong, good and bad, heroes and villians, etc., the way they are in the
world Lorne describes, whereas I'm fairly happy with the grays. I think Angel
would prefer things to be cut-and-dried, but of course his very existence makes
good and evil sort of muddly.
That discussion mirrored Buffy's graveside conversation with Giles in “Lie To
Me”:
Giles: The good guys are always stalwart and true, the
bad guys are easily distinguished by their pointy horns or black hats, and, uh,
we always defeat them and save the day. No one ever dies, and everybody lives
happily ever after.
Buffy: Liar.
Lots of good in this eppy, but I'm
really looking forward to our romp through Pylea.
If we thought that bikini top was happy ... rowr.