Just a couple weeks ago...
Nov. 23rd, 2004 08:29 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
gwynMy long overdue Angel season 4 disc review, which at this point is kinda moot, but I feel I must write anyway because I must.
Watching the entire season in a short time frame, multiple episodes back to back, brought home something I had never actually realized when watching it unfold as it was aired on the WB: the entire season takes place over the span of what is probably a handful of weeks. Once Cordelia returns, the events begin unfolding bam-bam-bam; sometimes even one night is encompassed within the span of a couple of episodes, bleeding over into the next day. Other more observant people than I might have noticed this while the series was airing, but it was something of a revelation to me, especially given the often months-long lag time between new episodes on the WB that year.
What makes this fascinating is that parts that were once frustrating or confusing in their development when seen over a long period of time -- Cordy's growing pregnancy in real life, Connor's heightened estrangement, Wes's affair with Lilah and subsequent return to the group -- make much more sense when you see them in a whole, and the buildup to at least three discrete climaxes to the storyline become much more electric. I found S4 to be a very exciting and interesting one that renewed my love of the series when it was airing; watching it on disc in a couple of lengthy sittings, it was riveting. Each time we think that we're building toward a significant ending, we get a new story: first the beast, then Angelus, then Jasmine. And then, just when we think we've been climaxed enough, we get hit with an ending and a beginning in Home.
(Selfishly, I like knowing that all this happened over a short period of time because it makes it easier to weave different parts of the story into my Sunnydale-centered fanfic WIP; there's tons more wiggle room when you can stretch out a timeline and fill in events to bring it in line with other timelines.)
Some of the expectations get deflated a little, too, when the season is viewed in a lump. With less time to focus on the Beast, and certainly less time to wonder and discuss what the Beast will be, his actual presence seems more powerful than on broadcast. The hermetically sealed quality of the AI team when Angelus is back gets more play, though at times that cluster of episodes seems stretched a bit thin, and there's too much talking. But it does feel more intense without long breaks between new episodes, especially in Faith's reappearance. I had never been a fan of that character until her appearance here, but I definitely changed my mind in her thrilling scenes with Wesley. Wes's understanding of what Faith was missing, and what she would need in order to battle Angelus, could never have come about without his betrayal and expulsion from the group in S3, and especially without his affair with Lilah. He's come to a full-circle understanding of just how far a person can go, what kind of darkness lies inside all of us, and it makes his ability to work with Faith a completely different thing than before. It's probably my favorite stuff in the entire season, maybe even in the entire series.
While the season as a whole plays with continuity and consistency in some often poorly controlled ways, the eventual buildup to the prophecy of "the father will kill the son" bringing us full circle, again, works beautifully if you have the chance to view the seasons in close succession. Considering the changes Joss and Co. were forced to make because of Charisma Carpenter's pregnancy, they created a really nice spin on Angel's previous events and picked up the threads of other stories that had been dropped or moved on from. Even when it faltered the show was more interesting than in other seasons because of its small touches, especially when you realize just how close and claustrophic everything has become for the characters. While there's a lot to be said for standalone episodes rather than arcs, most people look to character-driven stories (rather than the ubiquitous police procedurals) for longer stories stretched across multiple episodes, and they made good use of a series of arcs here, all weaving into and out of each other until we get hit with the right-hook at the end.
On the production side, I have to commend them for finally using the actors on the commentary tracks; however, in most cases, the commentaries weren't especially great or enlightening. I'd expected more, in particular, from The House Always Wins, but that commentary was duller than dishwater. Much as I love Alexis Denisof, I can't say his commentary was any more exciting. And the commentaries seemed to be clustered among a handful of episodes, which I also thought a bit strange, but probably scheduling was a factor. The extras aren't all that thrilling, but I always enjoy the season overviews. And I can never review these shows without griping about the packaging; I still hate the long foldout boxes fiercely, but this time I had the added annoyance of a hole punched through the inside panel (with Cordy pictured) all the way to the disc tray. I've had to return one Buffy season and two Angel seasons because of poorly made discs or discs that had been damaged during packaging, and while whatever punched the hole in the box just missed the disc itself, for a Miss Priss like me who prefers her packaging to stay nice and tidy, it's pretty irritating to see such shoddy workmanship over and over. I honestly wonder what kind of cretins they employ at the Fox disc factory.
They seem to have upped the visual quality quite a lot -- when you compare S3 and 4 to 1 and 2, there's a dramatic difference in everything from visual artifacting to digital dragging, and the color saturation here in S4 is remarkably better than in the past. Perhaps someone finally realized that these discs might be bought by people with them newfangled HDTVs. There's very little of the dragging effect, and while the series is notably dark and occasionally difficult to view, they've done a pretty good job of balancing levels this time.
Overall, my favorite Angel season by far for a number of reasons: Wes and Lilah's doomed, wrong-person-at-the-right-time affair; the return of Angelus (though sans leather trousers and eyeliner); the multiple arc climaxes that led into new stories; the return of Faith; and a kick-ass finale that used the reset button in a clever, original way to jump-start the show for its next season. For me it couldn't get any better than that.
Watching the entire season in a short time frame, multiple episodes back to back, brought home something I had never actually realized when watching it unfold as it was aired on the WB: the entire season takes place over the span of what is probably a handful of weeks. Once Cordelia returns, the events begin unfolding bam-bam-bam; sometimes even one night is encompassed within the span of a couple of episodes, bleeding over into the next day. Other more observant people than I might have noticed this while the series was airing, but it was something of a revelation to me, especially given the often months-long lag time between new episodes on the WB that year.
What makes this fascinating is that parts that were once frustrating or confusing in their development when seen over a long period of time -- Cordy's growing pregnancy in real life, Connor's heightened estrangement, Wes's affair with Lilah and subsequent return to the group -- make much more sense when you see them in a whole, and the buildup to at least three discrete climaxes to the storyline become much more electric. I found S4 to be a very exciting and interesting one that renewed my love of the series when it was airing; watching it on disc in a couple of lengthy sittings, it was riveting. Each time we think that we're building toward a significant ending, we get a new story: first the beast, then Angelus, then Jasmine. And then, just when we think we've been climaxed enough, we get hit with an ending and a beginning in Home.
(Selfishly, I like knowing that all this happened over a short period of time because it makes it easier to weave different parts of the story into my Sunnydale-centered fanfic WIP; there's tons more wiggle room when you can stretch out a timeline and fill in events to bring it in line with other timelines.)
Some of the expectations get deflated a little, too, when the season is viewed in a lump. With less time to focus on the Beast, and certainly less time to wonder and discuss what the Beast will be, his actual presence seems more powerful than on broadcast. The hermetically sealed quality of the AI team when Angelus is back gets more play, though at times that cluster of episodes seems stretched a bit thin, and there's too much talking. But it does feel more intense without long breaks between new episodes, especially in Faith's reappearance. I had never been a fan of that character until her appearance here, but I definitely changed my mind in her thrilling scenes with Wesley. Wes's understanding of what Faith was missing, and what she would need in order to battle Angelus, could never have come about without his betrayal and expulsion from the group in S3, and especially without his affair with Lilah. He's come to a full-circle understanding of just how far a person can go, what kind of darkness lies inside all of us, and it makes his ability to work with Faith a completely different thing than before. It's probably my favorite stuff in the entire season, maybe even in the entire series.
While the season as a whole plays with continuity and consistency in some often poorly controlled ways, the eventual buildup to the prophecy of "the father will kill the son" bringing us full circle, again, works beautifully if you have the chance to view the seasons in close succession. Considering the changes Joss and Co. were forced to make because of Charisma Carpenter's pregnancy, they created a really nice spin on Angel's previous events and picked up the threads of other stories that had been dropped or moved on from. Even when it faltered the show was more interesting than in other seasons because of its small touches, especially when you realize just how close and claustrophic everything has become for the characters. While there's a lot to be said for standalone episodes rather than arcs, most people look to character-driven stories (rather than the ubiquitous police procedurals) for longer stories stretched across multiple episodes, and they made good use of a series of arcs here, all weaving into and out of each other until we get hit with the right-hook at the end.
On the production side, I have to commend them for finally using the actors on the commentary tracks; however, in most cases, the commentaries weren't especially great or enlightening. I'd expected more, in particular, from The House Always Wins, but that commentary was duller than dishwater. Much as I love Alexis Denisof, I can't say his commentary was any more exciting. And the commentaries seemed to be clustered among a handful of episodes, which I also thought a bit strange, but probably scheduling was a factor. The extras aren't all that thrilling, but I always enjoy the season overviews. And I can never review these shows without griping about the packaging; I still hate the long foldout boxes fiercely, but this time I had the added annoyance of a hole punched through the inside panel (with Cordy pictured) all the way to the disc tray. I've had to return one Buffy season and two Angel seasons because of poorly made discs or discs that had been damaged during packaging, and while whatever punched the hole in the box just missed the disc itself, for a Miss Priss like me who prefers her packaging to stay nice and tidy, it's pretty irritating to see such shoddy workmanship over and over. I honestly wonder what kind of cretins they employ at the Fox disc factory.
They seem to have upped the visual quality quite a lot -- when you compare S3 and 4 to 1 and 2, there's a dramatic difference in everything from visual artifacting to digital dragging, and the color saturation here in S4 is remarkably better than in the past. Perhaps someone finally realized that these discs might be bought by people with them newfangled HDTVs. There's very little of the dragging effect, and while the series is notably dark and occasionally difficult to view, they've done a pretty good job of balancing levels this time.
Overall, my favorite Angel season by far for a number of reasons: Wes and Lilah's doomed, wrong-person-at-the-right-time affair; the return of Angelus (though sans leather trousers and eyeliner); the multiple arc climaxes that led into new stories; the return of Faith; and a kick-ass finale that used the reset button in a clever, original way to jump-start the show for its next season. For me it couldn't get any better than that.
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no subject
Date: 2004-11-23 10:10 am (UTC)Those just a skoosh too stupid to cut it as an executive. ;)
no subject
Date: 2004-11-23 01:25 pm (UTC)Did you ever see my comparison between the Angelus arc and Othello? I worked like hell on it and did some art as well. If you find the art on my website, there's a link to the essay in my file notes section.