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Reviews
Person of Interest: The Crossing (2013)
Fast paced, excellent acting, and a departure from canon
Fast paced, excellent acting on the part of all those involved. Kevin Chapman, Taraji Henson, Jim Caviezel, all delivered Emmy worthy performances.
My score would have been a 10 except for one big issue: the morgue scene between Caviezel and Henson seemingly threw out 2 years of canon, as in that one scene the dynamic between three major characters (Reese, Carter, and by inference, Finch) suddenly changed from what had been slowly developing in two previous seasons.
Multiple interviews in which the show-runners had to explain exactly what this pivotal scene *really* meant only verifies that it could have been done better! Or that perhaps had they used the scene as originally scripted by the writers, rather than one improvised by the actors involved, it would have presented a clearer message.
Also telling is that according to these interviews, the show-runners were not that interested in seeing the unscripted take as the moment on the page was to be about an enduring "friendship" between the characters, not romance. But they were evidently convinced by others on the staff not to deny viewers rooting for these two characters to find each other.
IMHO, Nolan & Plageman should have gone with their first instincts.
Angel: Damage (2004)
This Angel episode is rooted deeply in Buffyverse...the story of a rogue Slayer.
Having originally rejected viewing the unique and very well written BtVPS series, based solely on its title...a phenom now known as "The Buffy Syndrome"...many pertinent references in Angel episodes, and this one in particular, went right over my head upon the first viewing.
And yet "Damage" is still a great stand-alone episode; it continues to advance the season's overall arc of conflict between Angel & Co. corporate efforts and Spike's lone wolf attitude. The storyline has cohesion, and credibility in the Whedon realm. Scenes of Dana's torturous past I found a bit dark and disturbing to watch, but the flashbacks are well done and the sepia tones used to delineate it from time present was an added interest.
Upon a second viewing of this epi (after having DVD-marathoned through 7 seasons of Buffy), I found it even more interesting, reveling in layers of meanings not noticed before. It was also now apparent to me that the rogue slayer storyline concept was not new: Dana's character mirrors Faith, Sunnydale's bad girl (and alter ego of good girl Buffy); a rogue slayer who ended up in an institution after embracing the dark side.
There were other revelations now that I have some BtVPS back-story: Spike's character took on greater nuances. Andrew was an unknown character during my first viewing; the second time around I understood better his rather emotional reaction upon seeing Spike. The slayer history lesson also made more sense, especially where Dana's violent behavior was concerned.
Other significant references:
Andrew's accounting of Sunnydale characters (Buffy, willow, Kennedy, Xander, Dawn) take on greater meaning for those familiar with the ending of the BtVPS series. And Andrew putting a dirty penny in his mouth to test Spike's statement that the scent of blood was like tasting a coin was so in line with the geek's hero worship developed in BtVPS!
Spikes comment "Sorry, love...I don't speak Chinese" was exactly the one he made to the slayer dying in his arms during the Boxer Rebellion. "I used to date a girl who wasn't all there": a direct reference to Drusilla, his vampire lover for a century. Also, Spike quickly reacted Dana's statement, "I have to get home to my son, my Robin" knowing she spoke of Robin Wood, the son of the NY slayer Spike killed in the 1977, and who in S7 of BtVPS, almost beat Spike to death in revenge.
The scene in which Andrew demands to take custody of Dana is a repeat of a similar scene in BtVPS when the Watcher's demand their rogue slayer, Faith, be turned over to them. "She's a slayer. That means she's ours..." The true significance of the crowd of young girls appearing to back Andrew in his demand for Dana can be lost on those who didn't watch the development of the Potentials in the last episode of BtVPS. Certainly *I* didn't understand why Angel & Co backed down so readily in front of a bunch of young girls! Now I get it...
All in all an episode worthy of viewing a second time! Or maybe a third... :)
Angel: Conviction (2003)
Angel investigations goes corporate....and a beloved character (to many fans) appears.
This opening episode storyline concerns defusing one of the Wolfram & Hart more influential clients: one threatening to bomb L.A. if Angel & Co don't get him acquitted in court of openly admitted evil deeds. (Welcome to the gray world of legal machinations...)
However the main thrust of this episode is all about setting the stage for the season, to shoehorn the characters into their new roles as corporate worker bees. --A Senior Partners' liaison, Eve, is introduced and viewers just know she is not all she seems to be. --Angel learns quickly that being a CEO means never again having to do the dirty work himself. ("They put a tracer on me...all of a sudden, the entire firm shows up in the alley.) --Fred discovers she is heading up the lab and is a bit overwhelmed ("I don't even understand half of what they're doing.") --Gunn is given a brain boost: he is now Super Lawyer, a far cry from the street-savvy kid of yore. --Wesley is his usual stoic self, with Lorne actually seeming to enjoy his new position as head of the Entertainment Dept.
One of the highlights of the episodes for me was the appearance of more beloved Buffy characters: feather-brained Harmony, the classic Dumb Blonde, is now Angel's secretary. And in the last moments of the episode Angel finally opens a mysterious envelope delivered to him. Out falls an Amulet that all Buffy fans will recognize. It spews forth a whirlwind and in a reversal of the Hellmouth scenario, fire turns into dust, which turns into bones, and the skeleton turns into...Spike, doubled over in pain, panting, and glaring ferociously. Blondie Bear is back. Stay tuned.