While I liked "The Girl in Question", there's one small part that always bugged me. When Spike's coat gets destroyed and replaced with an identical one. That coat had such sentimental history for the character. It was a relic of his days as a monster. Almost like a constant reminder of his past, as if he carried his mistakes with him. But they throw it away for a cheap joke. I know it sounds small, but it really annoyed me.
Oh man. I like Tomorrow, Life of the Party, The Girl in Question, The House Always Wins and I consider City Of one of the best opening episodes of a tv show that I've seen. Good reasoning and all, but jimmies be rustled.
I actually like, "I Fall to Pieces." And to me, it is scary. Here's why: the subject of stalking. The very idea of being stalked by someone is terrifying. And this particular episode takes it to a new, supernatural level.
It's a subject that's definitely one worth mining. I just feel the specific gimmick they gave the villain was just too cheesy, and for me it undermined the whole thing.
I watched this one last night, along with "Lonely Hearts" and "In the Dark." While it's certainly the weakest of the first four, it was nowhere near as bad as I remember it. Yes, the premise is a bit worked over but the acting was fine and the real problem (as I'm sure we all noticed) was that the special effects back in 1999 just weren't up to the task. I don't think I'd go lower than a 2/5. I can think of at least two episodes from S1 far worse than this one and "She" has already been covered on this list.
Funny thing is they tried getting Sarah Michelle Gellar in Angel season 5 twice. First time was for the 100th episode which would've focused on Angel & Spike's rivalry and their feelings towards Buffy and again for Power Play but both times Sarah Michelle Gellar was unavailable (because of both Scooby Doo 2 and The Grudge).
There are some great episodes of the show that happen to feature connor like Orpheus in season 4, I love that one cause Faith beats the crap out of him haha
I've always thought of Provider as a good episode, but I realize now that I'm just remembering Jeffery Dean Morgan's plotline and ignoring everything else that happens. I like the Girl in Question a lot, but I do think the placement in the season is a problem. There are two more episodes for the entire series, and Angel and Spike go off on a side trip to Rome.
On the subject of Double or Nothing, I think the part where Angel tries to win back Gunn's soul and how they get rid of the mob boss demon was very funny. One of the funniest season 3 moments
I'd like to say that no matter your opinion of Andrew, 'The Girl In Question' does something to the character that pisses me off. Prior to this episoide it had been hevily implied he was gay (why they could never plainly state it I don't Know). In this episoide they throw that all away to insead show him as this foux James Bond like Ladies Man. No you don't get to do that!
IZathrus That was actually something of an accident. In the original script it was not Andrew but Dawn who was fulfilling that part in the story. At the end she was supposed to leave with a bunch of friends and from what I understand the scene played like a kind of melancholy “Dawnie’s all grown up” to parallel the “Buffy’s moved on” melancholy of the episode. When it got switched to Andrew the “leaves with a bunch of girls” bit of the script got overlooked and the rest of the team did what they could with it. Joss was running both Buffy and Firefly at this time so he couldn’t be everywhere all at once. It’s sort of the same thing as in Buffy S4 after Spike gets chipped there’s a scene where he beats the crap out of a bunch of initiative soldiers that Joss didn’t catch in time to fix it so had to do what he could in editing.
If it's any consolation, it's later confirmed in the comics that he's gay and they explain how this happened and that it wasn't at all as it seemed in the show. Obviously post-show comics canon doesn't fix the huge mistake from the show, but still.
i hate what Joss whedon did to Angel he made Angel into a joke and the amount of times they assassinate his character especially in the comic's is fucking ridiculous
I used to watch Buffy but much preferred Angel . I felt at the heart of it Buffy was too much of a goody two shoes , apposed to Angel who was always wrestling with his good and dark side and even changed back into Angelous at times ( the evil vampire ) . A much more complicated and interesting character , also the themes could get darker sometimes even ambiguous whether something was good or bad . Like when Angel locked a bunch of evil lawyers in a cellar with some vampires . Also Holtz the guy who Angel as Angelous had murdered the family of but now Angel and good Holtz wants his revenge . I wanted so much just t hate Holtz but couldn't because he had a right to be angry with Angel . Don't get me wrong I liked Buffy but just preferred Angel ( a lot ) .
Once again we have a lot of similar opinions in rankings, apparently. Tho I did like I Fall To Pieces, it wasn’t as much as others, and I think just because I related to the stalking, etc subject matter due to personal experience more than finding the bad guy scary in any way. I also agree that Lorne works best as a supporting character-plus he’s a really great supporting character, too.
Andrew in “The Girl in Question” was originally supposed to be Dawn but Michelle was busy doing a film shoot so Andrew had to be subbed in. I think it would have felt less cheap if she’d been there. I know the idea behind the episode was that Buffy was just out of reach for both Spike and Angel but you are right, the use of the body double made it feel cheap. If it had been possible they should have gotten Sarah to cameo in the episode just to make it clear that them never coming face to face was intentional. As it stood it read more like “we wanted to do a Buffy episode but couldn’t so this is the best we could come up with”.
I'm shocked that I Fall to Pieces isn't higher! 😀 The Girl In Question is also infuriating because it shifts back and forth in tone so much. You got the silliness of the main Angel/Spike plot, but then you've got this serious cat and mouse game going on between Wesley and Illyria as a side plot, which is so much more interesting than the main storyline.
I tried to think about if I agree with you on these or not but it’s been so long since I watched any of them (probably approaching a decade) that I just couldn’t remember enough about the episodes to know if I agree or not. :-/
I've always found Life of the Party really funny, so can't say I agree there. The Girl in Question pissed me off the first time I saw it since I think Season 5 really needed a Buffy episode. Plus hearing how she was supposed to be in the season just makes it worse that we never got that episode. Regardless, I've learned to really like the episode over time, though the placing of it has always been the biggest strike against it. However, I can't fully blame the writers here since they had planned for there to be another season, but we all know what happened there. Dawn was supposed to be in the episode, but her actress was doing a movie apparently. I actually like Andrew, but I would definitely have preferred Dawn. I think the rest of your choices make sense, though the premiere, while certainly lacking, I've always mostly been neutral toward(outside of the awesome "Can you fly" scene at the very end). I think the follow-up episode right after, Lonely Heart, is actually a good deal worse.
GodOfWar187 I definitely agree that Lonely Hearts is worse. It very much feels like a run of the mill episode of Charmed. It's just a stereotypical WB episode.
Gunn selling his soul for his truck (which is rarely, if ever, seen again).... Even Dean Winchester hasn't sold his soul for the Impala, which is canonically the most important object in the universe (and it's the Impala--come on!). If even Dean Winchester hasn't gone that far for Baby.... (And yes, I get that "Supernatural" happened after "Angel". I was attempting to tell a joke to make a point.) What Dean Winchester *has* sold his soul for is Sam, to bring his little brother back to life. Selling your soul to save your brother in a boneheaded yet sympathetic move (Sam's death in S2 is still one of the top saddest things from the show for me) vs selling your soul for your truck, which will never be important beyond this episode.... I didn't like Life of the Party or The Girl in Question (an episode that I like in pieces, but together, just doesn't work for me) but, while City Of isn't in my top ten favorites, I do really like it--it isn't perfect, but it sets the tone well, introduces (or re-introduces) the characters, the setting's okay--it's a solid enough episode for me, and it's the one that started it all.
Funny thing about "She", is that after I watched the show the first time I completely FORGOT that it even existed. Now, I'm actually quite attuned to remembering details like the episodes of a series I watched, in order no less; generally after even one viewing I can recall if not the name, then enough details about the episode - where in the season it's placed (including relative to other, unrelated episodes, some rough idea of its number, what I thought of it, etc. And I remembered every episode of the show I'd watched up until that point (I hadn't finished it when I rewatched since I was catching up with my sister), yet I completely forgot about it without question. I happened to go through an episode list partway through my second viewing of the season, then I saw the episode and was like "wait, huh?" Then I looked at the wiki and jogged my memory... I both wondered how I even forgot it (because I generally don't), yet I also thought "makes sense, it was so dull and pointless and this character who looks recurring-material never comes back - thank God!" As someone who sort of remembered, say "Beer Bad" and "Doublemeat Palace" from BTVS (easily among its worse content) if only for their respective absurdities, I could not for the life of me recall "She". It made me feel... nothing on its first viewing. And that is arguably worse than all the fury in the world, especially considering that many OTHER shows with forgettable episodes, I still recall those shows in some capacity; that this one left so little impact on me I couldn't recall it (and still generally don't if on my own I try to run through the show season after season, episode by episode) makes it, in my mind a complete failure. I don't say that lightly, even with crap material, but that episode was (and still is) as close to a non-entity (not even a black hole, just... nothing) as any show of any episode (hell, any chapter of any book!) that I can think of.
To be fair, most Pilots for shows are garbage. I’m surprised any show becomes anything after the first. Also you should do a video on the Drama behind the Show. I’d love to know more!!
I just rewatched "City Of..." for the fist time in years last week and I was surprised how many times I laughed at it. Yeah, it's generic and the villain of the week is rather meh but it brings in a new character (Doyle) and reintroduces an old fan fav (Cordelia) as well as quietly setting up the "big bad" for the entire series. Plus, Charisma Carpenter is a riot in this: "Oh my god...you're a Vampire!"
Shadowman4710 My dad bought me Angel season one for Christmas one year. He watched the pilot with me and found Cordelia hilarious and got hooked on Angel. Then he went back and watched Buffy.
@@Shadowman4710 The scene where angel kills those two vampires with his hidden stakes is great, also the one where he shoves the guy out the window and they burn to death before they hit the ground.
@@Shadowman4710 "Plus, Charisma Carpenter is a riot in this: "Oh my god...you're a Vampire!"" I'd also like to throw in: "Oh boy, you're about to get your ass kicked!"
Incredible. Before you even said what your no. 1 worst episode was, I already thought of it, and it's the very first episode! 😂 I actually agree with everything on this list though I'm sure there are still a few Angel episodes that I think should be added but I can't think of any of them right now. But so far the ones you have were the episodes I least liked. Because of that, I think I might even go back and watch it again to see if my views of it had changed.
So, I hate The Girl in Question with a passion! While I do like Andrew, don't tease Buffy if we're not going to see her! Why would she even have been in Europe dating The Immortal? She was still not yet a cookie. I also dislike much of the first season, especially Officer Kate. Though I do like the first episode because of Cordelia. I have to disagree in that I like Lorne centered episodes because he is one of my favorite characters. His episodes are light and funny. Don't forget Spin the Bottle features him heavily too (though it's not completely him centered.)
I literally just started the video.. but when you said "I did the tops, now I gotta do the bottoms," my brain was just.... full of gay jokes. (I am a gay joke it's fine)
Oh that's more like it, after the last few videos where I've been mostly agreeing with you, we're back to having different points of view, order is restored. ;p I really like most of the episodes you just listed here, not enough that they'd make my top ten or anything but I do like them. I think many of my list would have come from series 3 and 4, I found them the weakest myself, special mention going to Billy as an episode with an interesting premise that just didn't work for me. Still well reasoned logic for your choices, an enjoyable watch even if I do have a differing point of view.
Tomorrow: I'm glad you mentioned this episode i feel like it gets away with being a really weak episode because it's a season finale and has some pretty eventful moments for the show. That doesn't exempt it from being an absolutely dreadful episode even if the final moments are so cool. I never cared for the Angel/Cordy relationship it was mishandled and they should've remained platonic friends with a slight romantic chemistry without ever having the whole "OMG YOU GUYS LOVE EACH OTHER?!?! WE SHIP IT" element which felt so forced. I mean what a terrible romantic pairing. I liked how close they got but I prefered it as a platonic friendship that was really strong rather than a lovey dovey kissy kissy relationship. I Fall to Pieces is so atmospheric and moody, and yeah it may be a simple episode and very slow but it's themes and plot points are executed really well and in fact I'd say it's a fairly strong standalone episode. Life of the Party is way too much fun to be criticized. It advances the main storyline in many subtle ways, has some epic setpieces and is funny as fuck. I can respect your choice of putting City Of on the list and actually having your own opinion, in fact I respect you a lot for making a list that is a bit more subversive and genuine rather than a generic list like all the others but How can you put City Of in the top 10 worst episodes and yet there's no mention of 'Sense and Sensitivity' which is arguably the worst episode of the series and is in the first season. The Girl In Question is one of the best episodes of the entire series. It's so fucking funny, so many iconic scenes and the whole thing works really well as a standalone episode. Yeah I agree with you that some episodes become weaker due to their placement in the season but that isn't enough to make an episode "one of the 10 worst" come on now. everything else i can agree with completely though.
I do sometimes wonder whether Buffy actually benefitted from having a short first season as that gave the show the chance to discover itself without having to plough on through 22 episodes. It could then take stock before delivering a fantastic second season. Perhaps Angel could have done with that too; I don’t know I’m just wondering.
I think you have a point. Much of season one seemed like a bunch of pointless filler until the last few episodes, when they kicked off the plots for season two.
Maayyyybee... but Buffy's first season had some of the show's worst episodes too - Teacher's Pet, I Robot You Jane, The Pack. It's just punctuated by the season premiere and finale andaverages out better. Angel's first season had a lot of filler, but the Faith stuff, the Doyle exit... *mwah*. It may have seemed like a tighter season but it would also have inevitably cut out some great eps, rare as they were.
I liked the Girl in question. It was a goofy attempt to give us some resolution to the question. The head of Wolfram and Hart in Italy was fun. Reminded me of Madam Yes from the Flintstones. Didn't Mind Numero Cinco. I do wish they had fought the Robotica Gigantico. Generally I didn't have as much trouble with the bad episodes of Angel. I didn't like She was terrible. Hated I will remember you eternity was terrible.
I think you miss the main point of I Fall to Peices. The idea that he can detach his body parts is not particularly frightening. The idea that he uses this ability to stalk someone is quite scary. If I had a stalker who could do that, I'd never feel safe, ever. Plenty of people who have experiences with mundane stalkers then have difficulty feeling safe again after their ordeal is over. Adding a supernatural element just ups the paranoia factor.
I get what they were going for, but for me the visualization of how the stalking element was played out sucked the air out of it because... it just looked silly. At least it did to me. Your mileage may vary.
couldn't think of 10 bad episodes but I made a list of what I think are the five worst episodes: 5. Unleashed 4. She 3. Carpe Noctum 2. Waiting in the Wings 1. Smile Time
Yeah, I hated Andrew (Half of Buffy S7 turned into "The Andrew Show") and "The Girl in Question" was just another cynical Mutant Enemy attempt to pit the various "shipper factions" against one another.
Apparently, Joss did originally think to have Buffy cameo in Season 5 - either in that episode or what became "You're Welcome" - but Sarah Michelle Gellar's schedule didn't allow it; ironically she WOULD have been available for the penultimate episode of the series, but Joss felt (rightly so) that would have been a mistake given it needed to focus on setting up the team's big strike on the Circle of the Black Thorn. Especially since they got cancelled... The second (first? I can't confirm if Buffy was ever considered for this episode) idea for this episode was to have Dawn appear in Andrew's place - Joss described having her leave with a couple of guys like an "she's all grown up" moment; then of course Michelle Trachtenberg was ALSO not available (it also, IMO, would have fallen flat on Angel's side since the two actors NEVER shared screentime before...) Really though, the episode as a whole was a messy, misguided attempt at levity between the preceding darker episodes and the two final ones (and like Nathaniel said of a couple other Season 5 episodes, it doesn't work). The only solid part is the B-plot with Illyria/the Burkles/everyone else, which is not only much more dramatic but subjectively, it leaves a horrid, ROTTEN taste in my mouth that Fred's last wishes are disregarded in favour of sparing her parents' feelings for MAYBE a short while... Yeah, this episode was infuriating to me.
Feels like Season 4 was the darkest season... for way too many reasons. I'd definitely rate Apocalypse Now-ish as one of the worst. >shudder...< Season 5 started out like it wanted to make up for the complaints that season 4 got, which explains the lighter tone, then it turned into something far more epic.
You keep saying on your channel that Season 5 is the darkest season of Angel, I am curious as to why you think that. I personally found it to be one of the funnier seasons of the show. The addition of Spike and Harmony to the cast gave the show new life, after what I believe is the darkest season: season 4. There were a lot more funny romp episodes like Lorne's party, Harmony's spotlight episode, Smile Time, and Spike and Angel's trip to Rome to name a few. I get the impression that you did not care for Angel's funny episodes, and you are more here for the dramatic beats, and that's valid. But even if you didn't like the more lighthearted episodes, you can't deny that there were quite a few of those type of episodes sprinkled throughout season 5. I am not denying that there were not dark episodes: Fred's fate and Wesley's fate, we certainly sad, but those types of moments/episodes didn't dominate the season.. Whereas season 4 had melancholy that permeated through most of the episodes. I know these lists are just your opinions, but I wondering why you believe season 5 is so dark overall.
I don't like Andrew either but that didn't stop me adoring the Girl in question which is one of my favs in season 3. I mean how could you resist the interplay between two sad old Vampires. :D As to 'Buffy's' non appearance and the inclusion of Andrew there's this.... Writer David Fury explains this in an interview with Mike Jozic: “JOZIC: But wasn't there talk of [Sarah Michelle Gellar] being in "The Girl in Question"? FURY: There was very, very little talk about that. No, she was never going to be in that. The missed opportunity to see Buffy was always going to be the joke of that. It's the tease of, they're going to see Buffy, and they can't quite get to her. It's sort of the After Hours kind of craziness where it's like, I can't get to her, I can't see her, and that was always pretty much decided. The person we expected to get and didn't get was Michelle Trachtenberg. We had expected to get her for that episode but she was tied up prepping a movie, I believe, and wasn't able to do it, which is why we brought Andrew back again. But, Sarah? No. We never expected Sarah to be in that episode. We did think she might be in the second last episode, "Power Play", just like Angel appeared in the second last episode of Buffy's finale. We thought we'd do that but wound up not." David Greenwalt refers to this episode as "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern go to Rome. :D
i disagree about The Girl in Question and Life of the Party. Both great episodes. They were both fantastic!! Love ‘em! Oh wait. Is Spike from “life of the party” typing this comment? LOL
Good episode. I agree with most of those choices, I do think the "Cordelia ascends" episode is saved by the culmination of the Holt/Justine/Connor arc. And that grim juxtaposition of Cordy rising into the light and Angel sinking into the depths... The Angel Cordy romance is terrible and just never worked so I can see why you chose it based on that. The inclusion of the season five episodes... It's clear from the life of the party that the show is done. No budget forces a bottle episode and the writers just don't have the passion left to make it work...
Even though i thought the rest was good, the way they ended the series finale pissed me off. Thanks to that one tiny part I hate that episode and off the top of my head its the only one.
Always like seeing videos talking about Angel hope to see more,,,I get season 1 has problems,but it felt raw and edgy, which I liked about it, my least favourite episodes,, awakening-- In any shows/movies I dont like it when the episode turns out to be a dream - seem like a cheat/waste of time to watch,,soulless/angelous in season 4-- he wasn't as scary/interesting as eternity/ Buffy, which was disappointing I found,,smile time " ! ",,Harm's way" got annoying,,
The one where cordy becomes pregnant in season one is very bad, she is the best when she can at least be sassy. And the one where one guy stalks a girl with his hand she. The wrestler episode is very strange. I liked the pilot for a pilot, had some great moments of angel and cordy. She was bad, Seconded the girl in question, very irritading before the dark finale Angel spike banter is still good ,. Life is a party was at least good for the drunk fred and wes and angel sleeping with eve. That old gang of mine was weird.
THANK GOD you put she on this list! i honestly can not stand this episode! the main woman in this episode is highly unlikable and its just forgettable really.
This is timely, seeing as I just finished one of my least favourite Angel episodes "Billy", which basically says that pretty much every man is a violent misogynist only held back by a thin veneer civilisation. It's like Hobbes turned up to 11. The primal instinct for men is to protect women, and you can easily see how modern sexist and even misogynist tendencies derive from this, not murderous "primordial misogyny", otherwise the human race would never have existed in the first place. Both Buffy and Angel took the whole female empowerment thing to a simplistic "women good, men bad" place at (rare) times but this is the most egrigious example to my mind.
I was talking from an evolutionary perspective, there's really no reason to make a gender political thing out of this, unless you're one of those weird blank slatists.
House always wins and Life of the party are 2 of my favorite episodes... lol I expected a chance for both to maybe be on your other list... wow... I just.. wow... still good list otherwise
Nathan Fillion never did Angel (he was in S7 of "Buffy") but Adam Baldwin (Jayne Cobb in "Firefly") was in Season Five of "Angel" and Gina Torres (Zoe) was in S4.
Ahh, no that' David Boreanaz who played Angel in this show and on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." I guess these days he's much more famous for having been on "Bones," like....forever.
+ Hart hat. You have it in reverse order. Boreanaz was on "Bones" after "Angel" got cancelled and Fillion moved to "Castle" after "Firefly" was cancelled. I've never seen "Bojack Horseman" so I don't know but Boreanaz first tv appearance was on "Married With Children" a couple of decades ago.
My current feelings about Joss Whedon as a creator can be found here: ruclips.net/video/TOMHcW7br58/видео.html
While I liked "The Girl in Question", there's one small part that always bugged me. When Spike's coat gets destroyed and replaced with an identical one. That coat had such sentimental history for the character. It was a relic of his days as a monster. Almost like a constant reminder of his past, as if he carried his mistakes with him.
But they throw it away for a cheap joke. I know it sounds small, but it really annoyed me.
Mad Hatter It also works as a good tool for the audience to remember it too. As soon that Jacket is mentioned my mind pictures the scene on the subway
I thought the implication was that Wolfram and Hart was somehow mystically able to source "his" coat to give back to him.
Oh man. I like Tomorrow, Life of the Party, The Girl in Question, The House Always Wins and I consider City Of one of the best opening episodes of a tv show that I've seen. Good reasoning and all, but jimmies be rustled.
I actually like, "I Fall to Pieces." And to me, it is scary. Here's why: the subject of stalking. The very idea of being stalked by someone is terrifying. And this particular episode takes it to a new, supernatural level.
It's a subject that's definitely one worth mining. I just feel the specific gimmick they gave the villain was just too cheesy, and for me it undermined the whole thing.
I watched this one last night, along with "Lonely Hearts" and "In the Dark." While it's certainly the weakest of the first four, it was nowhere near as bad as I remember it. Yes, the premise is a bit worked over but the acting was fine and the real problem (as I'm sure we all noticed) was that the special effects back in 1999 just weren't up to the task. I don't think I'd go lower than a 2/5. I can think of at least two episodes from S1 far worse than this one and "She" has already been covered on this list.
I actually applauded your five words Spike reference.
At least SOMEBODY caught it.
Looked through the comments to make sure I wasn't the first.
Funny thing is they tried getting Sarah Michelle Gellar in Angel season 5 twice. First time was for the 100th episode which would've focused on Angel & Spike's rivalry and their feelings towards Buffy and again for Power Play but both times Sarah Michelle Gellar was unavailable (because of both Scooby Doo 2 and The Grudge).
I'm surpised you chose some of these stand alone episodes. I probably would have picked every episode with connor that was too much.
There are some great episodes of the show that happen to feature connor like Orpheus in season 4, I love that one cause Faith beats the crap out of him haha
I actually liked Connor on the show
'sold soul for a truck..bitch' is one of the best jokes of all of your videos.
The fact that it's *more* than five words makes it even more hilarious! XD XD XD
I've always thought of Provider as a good episode, but I realize now that I'm just remembering Jeffery Dean Morgan's plotline and ignoring everything else that happens.
I like the Girl in Question a lot, but I do think the placement in the season is a problem. There are two more episodes for the entire series, and Angel and Spike go off on a side trip to Rome.
On the subject of Double or Nothing, I think the part where Angel tries to win back Gunn's soul and how they get rid of the mob boss demon was very funny. One of the funniest season 3 moments
I'd like to say that no matter your opinion of Andrew, 'The Girl In Question' does something to the character that pisses me off. Prior to this episoide it had been hevily implied he was gay (why they could never plainly state it I don't Know). In this episoide they throw that all away to insead show him as this foux James Bond like Ladies Man. No you don't get to do that!
IZathrus That was actually something of an accident. In the original script it was not Andrew but Dawn who was fulfilling that part in the story. At the end she was supposed to leave with a bunch of friends and from what I understand the scene played like a kind of melancholy “Dawnie’s all grown up” to parallel the “Buffy’s moved on” melancholy of the episode. When it got switched to Andrew the “leaves with a bunch of girls” bit of the script got overlooked and the rest of the team did what they could with it. Joss was running both Buffy and Firefly at this time so he couldn’t be everywhere all at once.
It’s sort of the same thing as in Buffy S4 after Spike gets chipped there’s a scene where he beats the crap out of a bunch of initiative soldiers that Joss didn’t catch in time to fix it so had to do what he could in editing.
If it's any consolation, it's later confirmed in the comics that he's gay and they explain how this happened and that it wasn't at all as it seemed in the show. Obviously post-show comics canon doesn't fix the huge mistake from the show, but still.
i hate what Joss whedon did to Angel he made Angel into a joke and the amount of times they assassinate his character especially in the comic's is fucking ridiculous
Mind linked! I was thinking about this just last night hoping that you would put it out soon!
Look at that handsome _stud_ of a man in the thumbnail...
and there's David Boreanaz too.
Worst 10 episodes? Can I just put all of season 4 apart from the episodes with Faith in it?
I used to watch Buffy but much preferred Angel . I felt at the heart of it Buffy was too much of a goody two shoes , apposed to Angel who was always wrestling with his good and dark side and even changed back into Angelous at times ( the evil vampire ) . A much more complicated and interesting character , also the themes could get darker sometimes even ambiguous whether something was good or bad . Like when Angel locked a bunch of evil lawyers in a cellar with some vampires . Also Holtz the guy who Angel as Angelous had murdered the family of but now Angel and good Holtz wants his revenge . I wanted so much just t hate Holtz but couldn't because he had a right to be angry with Angel .
Don't get me wrong I liked Buffy but just preferred Angel ( a lot ) .
"I've done the tops, I better do the bottoms." Ooooo Matron.
Once again we have a lot of similar opinions in rankings, apparently. Tho I did like I Fall To Pieces, it wasn’t as much as others, and I think just because I related to the stalking, etc subject matter due to personal experience more than finding the bad guy scary in any way. I also agree that Lorne works best as a supporting character-plus he’s a really great supporting character, too.
Andrew in “The Girl in Question” was originally supposed to be Dawn but Michelle was busy doing a film shoot so Andrew had to be subbed in. I think it would have felt less cheap if she’d been there.
I know the idea behind the episode was that Buffy was just out of reach for both Spike and Angel but you are right, the use of the body double made it feel cheap. If it had been possible they should have gotten Sarah to cameo in the episode just to make it clear that them never coming face to face was intentional. As it stood it read more like “we wanted to do a Buffy episode but couldn’t so this is the best we could come up with”.
I'm shocked that I Fall to Pieces isn't higher! 😀
The Girl In Question is also infuriating because it shifts back and forth in tone so much. You got the silliness of the main Angel/Spike plot, but then you've got this serious cat and mouse game going on between Wesley and Illyria as a side plot, which is so much more interesting than the main storyline.
I remember the first time I listened to his BTVS and Angel videos I was doing a 1000 piece Doctor Who puzzle.
I love your Whedon videos. Would love to see more.
Working on it.
I tried to think about if I agree with you on these or not but it’s been so long since I watched any of them (probably approaching a decade) that I just couldn’t remember enough about the episodes to know if I agree or not. :-/
You consider season 5 the darkest? To me, it's the second least dark. (behind only the first season).
It pretty much had to be, after the complaints that season 4 got.
I've always found Life of the Party really funny, so can't say I agree there. The Girl in Question pissed me off the first time I saw it since I think Season 5 really needed a Buffy episode. Plus hearing how she was supposed to be in the season just makes it worse that we never got that episode. Regardless, I've learned to really like the episode over time, though the placing of it has always been the biggest strike against it. However, I can't fully blame the writers here since they had planned for there to be another season, but we all know what happened there. Dawn was supposed to be in the episode, but her actress was doing a movie apparently. I actually like Andrew, but I would definitely have preferred Dawn.
I think the rest of your choices make sense, though the premiere, while certainly lacking, I've always mostly been neutral toward(outside of the awesome "Can you fly" scene at the very end). I think the follow-up episode right after, Lonely Heart, is actually a good deal worse.
GodOfWar187 I definitely agree that Lonely Hearts is worse. It very much feels like a run of the mill episode of Charmed. It's just a stereotypical WB episode.
Gunn selling his soul for his truck (which is rarely, if ever, seen again).... Even Dean Winchester hasn't sold his soul for the Impala, which is canonically the most important object in the universe (and it's the Impala--come on!). If even Dean Winchester hasn't gone that far for Baby.... (And yes, I get that "Supernatural" happened after "Angel". I was attempting to tell a joke to make a point.) What Dean Winchester *has* sold his soul for is Sam, to bring his little brother back to life. Selling your soul to save your brother in a boneheaded yet sympathetic move (Sam's death in S2 is still one of the top saddest things from the show for me) vs selling your soul for your truck, which will never be important beyond this episode....
I didn't like Life of the Party or The Girl in Question (an episode that I like in pieces, but together, just doesn't work for me) but, while City Of isn't in my top ten favorites, I do really like it--it isn't perfect, but it sets the tone well, introduces (or re-introduces) the characters, the setting's okay--it's a solid enough episode for me, and it's the one that started it all.
Funny thing about "She", is that after I watched the show the first time I completely FORGOT that it even existed. Now, I'm actually quite attuned to remembering details like the episodes of a series I watched, in order no less; generally after even one viewing I can recall if not the name, then enough details about the episode - where in the season it's placed (including relative to other, unrelated episodes, some rough idea of its number, what I thought of it, etc. And I remembered every episode of the show I'd watched up until that point (I hadn't finished it when I rewatched since I was catching up with my sister), yet I completely forgot about it without question. I happened to go through an episode list partway through my second viewing of the season, then I saw the episode and was like "wait, huh?" Then I looked at the wiki and jogged my memory... I both wondered how I even forgot it (because I generally don't), yet I also thought "makes sense, it was so dull and pointless and this character who looks recurring-material never comes back - thank God!"
As someone who sort of remembered, say "Beer Bad" and "Doublemeat Palace" from BTVS (easily among its worse content) if only for their respective absurdities, I could not for the life of me recall "She". It made me feel... nothing on its first viewing. And that is arguably worse than all the fury in the world, especially considering that many OTHER shows with forgettable episodes, I still recall those shows in some capacity; that this one left so little impact on me I couldn't recall it (and still generally don't if on my own I try to run through the show season after season, episode by episode) makes it, in my mind a complete failure. I don't say that lightly, even with crap material, but that episode was (and still is) as close to a non-entity (not even a black hole, just... nothing) as any show of any episode (hell, any chapter of any book!) that I can think of.
To be fair, most Pilots for shows are garbage. I’m surprised any show becomes anything after the first. Also you should do a video on the Drama behind the Show. I’d love to know more!!
I just rewatched "City Of..." for the fist time in years last week and I was surprised how many times I laughed at it. Yeah, it's generic and the villain of the week is rather meh but it brings in a new character (Doyle) and reintroduces an old fan fav (Cordelia) as well as quietly setting up the "big bad" for the entire series. Plus, Charisma Carpenter is a riot in this: "Oh my god...you're a Vampire!"
Shadowman4710 My dad bought me Angel season one for Christmas one year. He watched the pilot with me and found Cordelia hilarious and got hooked on Angel. Then he went back and watched Buffy.
faureamour You can't deny. That car joke was hilaurious
@@Shadowman4710
The scene where angel kills those two vampires with his hidden stakes is great, also the one where he shoves the guy out the window and they burn to death before they hit the ground.
@@Shadowman4710 "Plus, Charisma Carpenter is a riot in this: "Oh my god...you're a Vampire!""
I'd also like to throw in: "Oh boy, you're about to get your ass kicked!"
hahaha your vamp teeth made me jump when i saw them cause i wasn't expecting it hehehe
I fall to pieces terrified me
I got soul but I'm not a soldier.
Or
I got ham but I'm not a hamster.
Incredible. Before you even said what your no. 1 worst episode was, I already thought of it, and it's the very first episode! 😂 I actually agree with everything on this list though I'm sure there are still a few Angel episodes that I think should be added but I can't think of any of them right now. But so far the ones you have were the episodes I least liked. Because of that, I think I might even go back and watch it again to see if my views of it had changed.
Hating “The Girl in Question” because of the false Buffy tease is kinda unfair. There are other things in the episode
So, I hate The Girl in Question with a passion! While I do like Andrew, don't tease Buffy if we're not going to see her! Why would she even have been in Europe dating The Immortal? She was still not yet a cookie. I also dislike much of the first season, especially Officer Kate. Though I do like the first episode because of Cordelia. I have to disagree in that I like Lorne centered episodes because he is one of my favorite characters. His episodes are light and funny. Don't forget Spin the Bottle features him heavily too (though it's not completely him centered.)
I literally just started the video.. but when you said "I did the tops, now I gotta do the bottoms," my brain was just.... full of gay jokes.
(I am a gay joke it's fine)
Well I just set myself up for that one, didn't I? Man, sometimes doing these videos is such a bear.
Council of Geeks omg. That's great.
Wow, even though my favourite episodes are very different from yours, these least favourites are exactly the same. I agree with every one of them.
Oh that's more like it, after the last few videos where I've been mostly agreeing with you, we're back to having different points of view, order is restored. ;p I really like most of the episodes you just listed here, not enough that they'd make my top ten or anything but I do like them. I think many of my list would have come from series 3 and 4, I found them the weakest myself, special mention going to Billy as an episode with an interesting premise that just didn't work for me. Still well reasoned logic for your choices, an enjoyable watch even if I do have a differing point of view.
Mine: She. The Girl in Question. Whatever the episode where Cordy and Connor...ew...just ew.
wow... huhhh
Life of the party is one of my favorites...
I'm going to blind guess "All the ones with Connor in".
Tomorrow: I'm glad you mentioned this episode i feel like it gets away with being a really weak episode because it's a season finale and has some pretty eventful moments for the show. That doesn't exempt it from being an absolutely dreadful episode even if the final moments are so cool. I never cared for the Angel/Cordy relationship it was mishandled and they should've remained platonic friends with a slight romantic chemistry without ever having the whole "OMG YOU GUYS LOVE EACH OTHER?!?! WE SHIP IT" element which felt so forced. I mean what a terrible romantic pairing. I liked how close they got but I prefered it as a platonic friendship that was really strong rather than a lovey dovey kissy kissy relationship.
I Fall to Pieces is so atmospheric and moody, and yeah it may be a simple episode and very slow but it's themes and plot points are executed really well and in fact I'd say it's a fairly strong standalone episode.
Life of the Party is way too much fun to be criticized. It advances the main storyline in many subtle ways, has some epic setpieces and is funny as fuck.
I can respect your choice of putting City Of on the list and actually having your own opinion, in fact I respect you a lot for making a list that is a bit more subversive and genuine rather than a generic list like all the others but How can you put City Of in the top 10 worst episodes and yet there's no mention of 'Sense and Sensitivity' which is arguably the worst episode of the series and is in the first season.
The Girl In Question is one of the best episodes of the entire series. It's so fucking funny, so many iconic scenes and the whole thing works really well as a standalone episode. Yeah I agree with you that some episodes become weaker due to their placement in the season but that isn't enough to make an episode "one of the 10 worst" come on now.
everything else i can agree with completely though.
I do sometimes wonder whether Buffy actually benefitted from having a short first season as that gave the show the chance to discover itself without having to plough on through 22 episodes. It could then take stock before delivering a fantastic second season. Perhaps Angel could have done with that too; I don’t know I’m just wondering.
I think you have a point. Much of season one seemed like a bunch of pointless filler until the last few episodes, when they kicked off the plots for season two.
Maayyyybee... but Buffy's first season had some of the show's worst episodes too - Teacher's Pet, I Robot You Jane, The Pack. It's just punctuated by the season premiere and finale andaverages out better. Angel's first season had a lot of filler, but the Faith stuff, the Doyle exit... *mwah*. It may have seemed like a tighter season but it would also have inevitably cut out some great eps, rare as they were.
If there is anything outside season 4 I'm rioting
Okay so I'm rioting.
Also If you can't afford a kid you can't deal with any emotional issues from having a new kid
I liked the Girl in question. It was a goofy attempt to give us some resolution to the question.
The head of Wolfram and Hart in Italy was fun. Reminded me of Madam Yes from the Flintstones.
Didn't Mind Numero Cinco. I do wish they had fought the Robotica Gigantico.
Generally I didn't have as much trouble with the bad episodes of Angel.
I didn't like
She was terrible.
Hated I will remember you
eternity was terrible.
I think you miss the main point of I Fall to Peices. The idea that he can detach his body parts is not particularly frightening. The idea that he uses this ability to stalk someone is quite scary. If I had a stalker who could do that, I'd never feel safe, ever. Plenty of people who have experiences with mundane stalkers then have difficulty feeling safe again after their ordeal is over. Adding a supernatural element just ups the paranoia factor.
I get what they were going for, but for me the visualization of how the stalking element was played out sucked the air out of it because... it just looked silly. At least it did to me. Your mileage may vary.
couldn't think of 10 bad episodes but I made a list of what I think are the five worst episodes:
5. Unleashed
4. She
3. Carpe Noctum
2. Waiting in the Wings
1. Smile Time
Please do a list of history episodes of angel
Yeah, I hated Andrew (Half of Buffy S7 turned into "The Andrew Show") and "The Girl in Question" was just another cynical Mutant Enemy attempt to pit the various "shipper factions" against one another.
Apparently, Joss did originally think to have Buffy cameo in Season 5 - either in that episode or what became "You're Welcome" - but Sarah Michelle Gellar's schedule didn't allow it; ironically she WOULD have been available for the penultimate episode of the series, but Joss felt (rightly so) that would have been a mistake given it needed to focus on setting up the team's big strike on the Circle of the Black Thorn. Especially since they got cancelled... The second (first? I can't confirm if Buffy was ever considered for this episode) idea for this episode was to have Dawn appear in Andrew's place - Joss described having her leave with a couple of guys like an "she's all grown up" moment; then of course Michelle Trachtenberg was ALSO not available (it also, IMO, would have fallen flat on Angel's side since the two actors NEVER shared screentime before...)
Really though, the episode as a whole was a messy, misguided attempt at levity between the preceding darker episodes and the two final ones (and like Nathaniel said of a couple other Season 5 episodes, it doesn't work). The only solid part is the B-plot with Illyria/the Burkles/everyone else, which is not only much more dramatic but subjectively, it leaves a horrid, ROTTEN taste in my mouth that Fred's last wishes are disregarded in favour of sparing her parents' feelings for MAYBE a short while... Yeah, this episode was infuriating to me.
"It feels weird in a bad way..." It feels weird in a Joss-Whedon-being-shitty-on-purpose way :-(
Feels like Season 4 was the darkest season... for way too many reasons. I'd definitely rate Apocalypse Now-ish as one of the worst. >shudder...<
Season 5 started out like it wanted to make up for the complaints that season 4 got, which explains the lighter tone, then it turned into something far more epic.
My worst episodes of Angel list = Season 4.
It's the Jasmine stuff that was bad. The Angelus episodes were some of the best episodes.
@@pauliewalnuts100 - Jasmine may have been an improvement over the Cordelia+Connor stuff.
ME; DEAD; 1:26; WHYYY?! It's in my top 10 best!? Not dark?! The story is dark as all hell, it fits, IT FITS. I DEMAND A REDO!
You keep saying on your channel that Season 5 is the darkest season of Angel, I am curious as to why you think that. I personally found it to be one of the funnier seasons of the show. The addition of Spike and Harmony to the cast gave the show new life, after what I believe is the darkest season: season 4. There were a lot more funny romp episodes like Lorne's party, Harmony's spotlight episode, Smile Time, and Spike and Angel's trip to Rome to name a few. I get the impression that you did not care for Angel's funny episodes, and you are more here for the dramatic beats, and that's valid. But even if you didn't like the more lighthearted episodes, you can't deny that there were quite a few of those type of episodes sprinkled throughout season 5. I am not denying that there were not dark episodes: Fred's fate and Wesley's fate, we certainly sad, but those types of moments/episodes didn't dominate the season.. Whereas season 4 had melancholy that permeated through most of the episodes. I know these lists are just your opinions, but I wondering why you believe season 5 is so dark overall.
I don't like Andrew either but that didn't stop me adoring the Girl in question which is one of my favs in season 3. I mean how could you resist the interplay between two sad old Vampires. :D
As to 'Buffy's' non appearance and the inclusion of Andrew there's this....
Writer David Fury explains this in an interview with Mike Jozic:
“JOZIC: But wasn't there talk of [Sarah Michelle Gellar] being in "The Girl in Question"?
FURY: There was very, very little talk about that. No, she was never going to be in that. The missed opportunity to see Buffy was always going to be the joke of that. It's the tease of, they're going to see Buffy, and they can't quite get to her. It's sort of the After Hours kind of craziness where it's like, I can't get to her, I can't see her, and that was always pretty much decided.
The person we expected to get and didn't get was Michelle Trachtenberg. We had expected to get her for that episode but she was tied up prepping a movie, I believe, and wasn't able to do it, which is why we brought Andrew back again.
But, Sarah? No. We never expected Sarah to be in that episode. We did think she might be in the second last episode, "Power Play", just like Angel appeared in the second last episode of Buffy's finale. We thought we'd do that but wound up not."
David Greenwalt refers to this episode as "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern go to Rome. :D
i disagree about The Girl in Question and Life of the Party. Both great episodes. They were both fantastic!! Love ‘em! Oh wait. Is Spike from “life of the party” typing this comment? LOL
Tbh I liked every single episode of angel unlike buffy. Some weren’t as good as others but they were all good.
Interesting. No Season 2 episodes!
one too many "back when I was evil" stories, but it was a quality season.
It's a lot to say about a series when even a top 10 worst episodes lists are still good episodes...imho.
Good episode. I agree with most of those choices, I do think the "Cordelia ascends" episode is saved by the culmination of the Holt/Justine/Connor arc. And that grim juxtaposition of Cordy rising into the light and Angel sinking into the depths... The Angel Cordy romance is terrible and just never worked so I can see why you chose it based on that.
The inclusion of the season five episodes... It's clear from the life of the party that the show is done. No budget forces a bottle episode and the writers just don't have the passion left to make it work...
Even though i thought the rest was good, the way they ended the series finale pissed me off. Thanks to that one tiny part I hate that episode and off the top of my head its the only one.
I can not understand your issue with fun. Why you can’t accept the melding of light and dark that season five does amazingly.
Why can't I accept it? It's my favorite season of the entire show by a long shot. Doesn't mean I love every episode.
Always like seeing videos talking about Angel hope to see more,,,I get season 1 has problems,but it felt raw and edgy, which I liked about it, my least favourite episodes,, awakening-- In any shows/movies I dont like it when the episode turns out to be a dream - seem like a cheat/waste of time to watch,,soulless/angelous in season 4-- he wasn't as scary/interesting as eternity/ Buffy, which was disappointing I found,,smile time " ! ",,Harm's way" got annoying,,
Not seen it yet. ‘She’ better be on this list. It’s the only genuinely bad one i can think of, apart from a few bad S1 ones
The one where cordy becomes pregnant in season one is very bad, she is the best when she can at least be sassy. And the one where one guy stalks a girl with his hand she. The wrestler episode is very strange. I liked the pilot for a pilot, had some great moments of angel and cordy. She was bad, Seconded the girl in question, very irritading before the dark finale Angel spike banter is still good ,. Life is a party was at least good for the drunk fred and wes and angel sleeping with eve. That old gang of mine was weird.
THANK GOD you put she on this list! i honestly can not stand this episode! the main woman in this episode is highly unlikable and its just forgettable really.
And i agree that the girl in question is pretty shit i really didnt enjoy it and i would of enjoyed a Buffy cameo.
I don't like Andrew either lol
This is timely, seeing as I just finished one of my least favourite Angel episodes "Billy", which basically says that pretty much every man is a violent misogynist only held back by a thin veneer civilisation. It's like Hobbes turned up to 11.
The primal instinct for men is to protect women, and you can easily see how modern sexist and even misogynist tendencies derive from this, not murderous "primordial misogyny", otherwise the human race would never have existed in the first place. Both Buffy and Angel took the whole female empowerment thing to a simplistic "women good, men bad" place at (rare) times but this is the most egrigious example to my mind.
I was talking from an evolutionary perspective, there's really no reason to make a gender political thing out of this, unless you're one of those weird blank slatists.
House always wins and Life of the party are 2 of my favorite episodes... lol I expected a chance for both to maybe be on your other list... wow... I just.. wow... still good list otherwise
Expecting is easily the show's worst episode imo.
FANGS OUT YIKES!!
I really liked andrew
Is that Nathan fillion
Nathan Fillion never did Angel (he was in S7 of "Buffy") but Adam Baldwin (Jayne Cobb in "Firefly") was in Season Five of "Angel" and Gina Torres (Zoe) was in S4.
Shadowman4710 oh I thought the guy in the thumbnail was Nathan fillion, I’ve never seen angel
Ahh, no that' David Boreanaz who played Angel in this show and on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." I guess these days he's much more famous for having been on "Bones," like....forever.
Shadowman4710 wait David Boreanaz from that episode of bojack horsemen, I thought he was on castle and Nathan Fillion was on bones
+ Hart hat. You have it in reverse order. Boreanaz was on "Bones" after "Angel" got cancelled and Fillion moved to "Castle" after "Firefly" was cancelled. I've never seen "Bojack Horseman" so I don't know but Boreanaz first tv appearance was on "Married With Children" a couple of decades ago.
Thé Girls on question IS so hilarious, its a great episode