Apocolypse Nowish

Apocolypse Nowish
Written by Stephen DeKnight
Directed by

Original Airdate: November 17, 2002

Plot: With her earthly memory restored, Cordelia struggles to figure out why she was returned and to piece together bits of visions about the impending doom she senses coming. Signs in L.A. point toward an upcoming apocalypse--but not the one initiated by Wolfram and Hart so many years ago. Meanwhile, Gunn and Fred's relationship continues to struggle.

Review

Warning: Take a step back and consider the big picture here. If you've not yet seen the latest episode of Angel, "Apocalypse Nowish" you may want to turn back now. There are major, huge SPOILERS just ahead for the last episode of Angel for 2002. Trust me--you want to see the final act unaware of how it all comes out...

In short: Some brilliant stuff in here, coupled with some stuff that makes you want to throw small blunt objects at the television set.

There's just something about Angel and mid-season cliffhangers. Last year, we had the brilliant cliffhanger and then six weeks of no new episodes (and no Angel either). This year, we've got "Apocalypse Nowish" which built up to a spectacular point and has left us hanging.

Now, if only they'd left off the last two minutes, this episode would be absolutely perfect.

Alas, it was not.

Let me start with what I hated and get that out of the way.

How many ways can I say that I hate the Conner/Cordelia romantic subplot that has been building all season long and culminated last night with the final two minutes? Of all the plotlines this year, this has been the one that has strained credibility time and again. Yes, I know that last year the producers had a hard sell to convince a lot of us that Cordelia and Angel could work as a romantic couple. And I'll admit that a lot of fans out there weren't sold on this idea. However, I was one who thought that they sold it well enough to make it believable and was intrigued to see where they'd go with this one.

Well, I can honestly say that I never expected it to come down to the final two minutes like it did here with "Apocalypse Nowish." After we'd spent an hour with a slow, steady build-up to a virtually unstoppable evil and come to a point where I was anxious and eager for more Angel, right now, we took a complete left turn and instead of leaving me thrilled and exhilarated, I was left feeling a bit sick to my stomach.

The whole idea of Conner and Cordy involved in any type of romantic relationship is just so wrong on so many levels, I can't even begin to get into it. It's almost incestuous since Cordy was almost like a mother to Conner in his early days as an infant last year. But the idea that she would sleep with him was some kind of high school fantasy come to life. "Oh, the world is ending, so we might as well have sex," sounds like a plotline from a bad adult movie rather than the intelligent type of fare that I've usually come to expect from Angel. This after Cordelia's cleavage was on full display for the entire episode. Honestly, if Cordy is trying to avoid Conner's leering looks, it doesn't seem to make much sense to wear a loose cut, low riding blouse that shows off her assets as spectacularly as the one in "Apocalypse Nowish" did.

Can I say how much I hated that plot twist?

And this was after we'd had a solid episode that did just about everything else right.

And to make matters worse, I was ready to praise the Cordelia/Conner plotline up until that point for actually being interesting and, indeed, pivotal to the entire sequence of events that played out as the story unfolded.

Irony, irony, irony.

OK, I think I've vented enough on this one. Let's turn to what was good--because there was a lot to this episode that was good.

The one thing I really liked about "Apocalypse Nowish" was the overall sense of foreboding and doom that was across the entire episode. It felt as if everything was building toward something huge--and we got some payoff. Indeed, throughout the episode, I kept finding myself reminded of Star Trek: The Next Generation's "The Best of Both Worlds, Part 1" with a slow, gradual building of suspense and terror, only to see it pay off with a spectacular finale that left me hanging, desperately wanting more and wanting it right then.

We've had hints for weeks that the apocalypse is coming--and now it's here.

But the interesting thing was--it wasn't the one initiated by Wolfram and Hart. This is a different one and it's possibly a far more evil and dangerous one than Wolfram and Hart could ever have put into place. I loved seeing the scenes between Angel and Lillah as they debated the coming events. Seeing Lillah actually scared of what was coming was nicely done--indeed, her shudder in the final moments as fire rained down on L.A. was particularly effective.

But also, there was the entire sense that it was all building to something. It was nice to see Wes and the crew able to put aside difference to realize they were fighting something bigger than themselves and their problems. And the battle with the new big bad--wow. The two times we got to see the Big Bad in action were both spectacular. I liked how virtually unstoppable he was and the lengths that everyone went through to try and stop him.

Heck, I was even prepared to give Conner some credit for trying to protect Cordelia from the monster. That thing pretty much tossed everyone around like rag dolls and seemed to have survived everything that our crew threw at him. Seeing him crush Gunn's ax, move the arrows aside in mid-flight and surviving everything that Wes could throw at him gun wise was superbly done. In fact, the final act with the huge fight was spectacularly done--both from the suspense level, but also on a directing level. Seeing the battle unfold the way it did was very nice and seeing that this is one bad-ass demon that isn't going to be easily dispatched or dealt with was nicely done. And I have to admit I can't wait to see how the crew will continue to fight against him--or what steps exactly will be taken to try and stop this monster.

I've got some ideas--a lot of them based off an article I read in a local paper. And if they come true, I think the rest of the season could shape up very, very nicely.

That said, I think there were some good hints here.

For one, we had Conner's questioning if he might not be connected to this demon rising up. I like this and I think this provides the stories with not only a good way to keep Conner in on the main action of the storyline, but it also provides them with a way to get rid of Conner should the storyline need that. We've had some hints over the course of the first third of the season that Conner may be more than he appears and that technically he shouldn't be here at all. So, to see how he figures into the final run of events could prove interesting--provided he doesn't get to sleep with every woman he runs across (though with Faith returning at mid-season, that pairing could be interesting...personally, I think Faith would mop the floor with him, but that's just me.).

We also got a step-back from the Cordelia/Angel relationship--but we did it in a way that I think worked. Cordy's rejecting Angel because of who he was and how much he relished being Angelus hints of things to come. I have a strong feeling that we got some major hints of the future there. And while I felt like that this was just a contrived reason to keep them apart a bit longer, it didn't feel as forced as last year's sudden addition of Gruu did.

But there was a lot going on in some of the more minor subplots.

I liked seeing that Fred and Gunn's relationship has hit a major snag over the death of her professor. Also, Fred's unwillingness to talk to Gunn about what's gone on and how it's affecting her was nice. It makes you think that Gunn has gone so far to prove his love for her, that it's scared her too much to ever trust him again. Yes, we saw her moping for him in the diner where they have breakfast, but I am not sure if they will ever be able to reconcile this. Gunn wanted to protect Fred from guilt and self-doubt...but instead he seems to have given her even more grief and self-doubt than before. It will be interesting to see how they react to each other beyond their initial reunion when the show returns.

Also, if Wes is back on board to help stop the apocalypse, then his being around Fred could also throw a monkey wrench into the works.

We also got a check-in on the Lillah/Wes relationship--and one of the better early scenes in the show. Seeing how far Lillah went to get Wes's blood racing was nicely done, as was Wes's comment that she should leave the Fred like glasses on while they were together. That was very well done and while it was a bit creepy, it was creepy in a good way.

Unlike Conner and Cordelia...

OK, I promised I'd try and let that go.

So, I guess that's about it for now, except a few small things...

--Interesting to see in the moments after the battle with the big bad that Wes is holding up Gunn. Did anyone get echoes of how they used to work together as a team? Maybe this friendship is finally getting back on track.

--Angel's tossing a weapon to Wes was nicely done...and a far better apology than the half-hearted one we saw a few weeks ago.

--Interesting that Gunn, the one that we've seen pointed out as the least intellectual of the gang--is the one who finds out how to decipher the printouts.

--I think Lillah actually enjoyed having Angel scare the stew out of Gavin. Of course, he probably deserved it...

--Is Conner Angel's version of the Anointed One?

So, in the end, what we're left with is one heck of a place to stop and a story that left me ready for it to be 2003. I am ready for new episodes and I can only hope that they pay off on most of the promises that were made here.

I can't wait to see more. It's going to be a long holiday season wait, I expect...

My rating: 9.0 (out of 10.0)

Next up: Repeats and pre-emptions until 2003. Also, this will be my final Angel review from this e-mail address. My new one is mhickers at yahoo.com. Don't worry..I'm not going away. (I know everyone was losing sleep over that one...;-) )