199? |
22 50 minute episodes |
SF elements |
vampire redemption |
Review |
Angel, the vampire with a soul, has left Buffy and Sunnydale, and gone to LA to fight evil there, although with the odd cross-over episode. The question in everyone's mind, can this spin off from the excellent Buffy the Vampire Slayer be as good? It has a slightly shaky start, not sure if it is just a lot of brooding and fighting the demon of the week. [This wasn't helped by the disgraceful way C4 treated it, putting it on in an early evening slot and consequently hacking it to shreds. I ended up buying the videos, and watching it Uncut.] The early episodes are fine, if somewhat unfocussed. But it has certainly found its feet by the end of the season, with the introduction of The Powers That Be, the prophesies, the story arcs, and the establishment of the secondary characters. Darker that BtVS -- it's not about teenage angst so much as the eternal problem of choosing to good rather than evil -- it definitely has the potential to grow into just as great a series. Roll on season 2... |
Rating: 3 |
[ unmissable | great stuff | worth watching | mind candy | waste of time | unfinishable ] |
reviewed 20 June 2001