"I think that this situation absolutely requires... a really stupid and futile gesture be done on someone's part."
"We're just the guys to do it."
- Otter and Bluto, National Lampoon's Animal House
"What if I told you it doesn't help? What would you do if you found out that none of it matters? That it's all controlled by forces more powerful and uncaring than we can conceive, and they will never let it get better down here?"
- Gunn, "Not Fade Away"
For the answer to that question, you could appeal to all manner of religions, philosophies, "isms," and cliches. You could also watch "Epiphany," the keystone episode of Angel, where David Boreanaz delivers the only real message this show's ever tried to say. "If nothing that we do matters, then all that matters is what we do." Virtue with the hope of reward? That can be decent. Virtue without any hope of reward? That's the crucible of heroism. In real life, and in a life where vampires and demons co-mingle in a Los Angeles law firm. In the fifth season of Angel, this one vital idea gets an interesting twist. What happens when the struggle is gone? What happens when virtue doesn't demand sacrifice, and doing the right thing is as easy as making a phone call? Or writing a check?
What happens when the heart is gone?
Season Five of Angel makes life easy for the gang. Angel now runs the company he used to hate. Wesley (Alexis Denisof) heads up the research department. Fred (Amy Acker) supervises the science division. Gunn (J. August Richards) gets a magical brain-boost and becomes the firm's top lawyer. Even Lorne (Andy Hallett) gets to be in charge, running the company's entertainment division. The heroes still fight for truth and justice and some kind of way, but Angel misses the old days, and he wonders if it's truly possible to change the company into a force for good. Given that the unseen and deeply felt "Senior Partners" still run the show, this is unlikely.
The arc of Season Five is hazy at first, interested more in the day-to-day of the main characters adapting to a life of bureaucracy. Although this might sound boring, the plot shift proves to rejuvenate the series after its wandering and weird fourth season. Boreanaz in particular plays against the new surroundings well; he looks like someone constantly bristling against a poorly-fitted suit. His attitude does not improve when Spike (James Marsters of Buffy) apparates and almost immediately starts berating Angel. While his character met a satisfying end at the close of Buffy, it's still a pleasure to see Spike alive and in humorous spirits. His flippant, guarded romantic has always been a welcome sight in the "Buffyverse."
Season Five accelerates with the unexpected death of a main character in the grueling "A Hole in the World," and after that, the show sprints to its finish, as the loss catalyzes both the heroes' guilt and the growing fears that they're being sucked into the machinery of an engine they cannot control. As is always the case on "Buffyverse" shows, there's still some time to goof around, too. "Smile Time," which turns Angel into a felt puppet, is an uproarious series highlight (the puppeteers exaggerate his mannerisms with frightening accuracy), and "The Cautionary Tale of Numero Cinco" drops a bit of poignancy into its ridiculous clash of demons and luchadores.
Despite the lack of a strong arc here (there's nothing to rival Season Three's focus on Daniel Holtz), Angel has never felt more confident. There's a go-for-broke energy here, especially in the back half of the season, and that quality leaps in the last two episodes, written with the knowledge the show wouldn't be returning, and it's a hugely satisfying twofer, almost a heist film, with Angel and his surviving friends enacting a plan to defeat the demonic inner circle of Wolfram and Hart. Success is relative, as their victory wouldn't touch the ephemeral "Senior Partners," but it's not about winning. It's about the fight. And their final fight is brilliantly paced, moving, haunting, and exciting.
Angel's always been about the fight. The individual victories. The constant struggle. There's no final touchdown for him, no ticker-tape parade. That's life for him, and for most of us. Maybe all of us. Most manage small victories, and those should be treasured. Every now and then, we can reach a big chance, an opportunity to stand tall and shake the pillars of Heaven and declare, "I was here, and I fought." I've watched over 250 episodes of the accumulated adventures of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, some of them putrid, most of them worthwhile, a few of them transcendent and unforgettable, and I can't think of a better sentiment. Or a better ending.
RATING: A
All Buffyverse Reviews:
Angel, Season Five: A
Angel, Season Four: C+
Buffy, Season Six: B / Angel, Season Three: B+
Buffy, Season Five: A / Angel, Season Two: B-
Buffy, Season Four: B / Angel, Season One: B-
Angel, Season Five: A
Angel, Season Four: C+
Buffy, Season Six: B / Angel, Season Three: B+
Buffy, Season Five: A / Angel, Season Two: B-
Buffy, Season Four: B / Angel, Season One: B-
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