Angel

CONVICTION #5ADH01

Written and Directed by : Joss Whedon Original Air Date : 1 October 2003

THE PLAYERS REGULARS

David Boreanaz...as Angel James Marsters...as Spike Alexis Denisof...as Wesley Wyndam Pryce J August Richards...as Charles Gunn Amy Acker...as Fred Andy Hallet...as Lorne

GUEST STARS Sarah Thompson...as Eve Mercedes McNab...as Harmony Jonathan M. Woodward...as Knox Rod Rowland...as Corbin Fries Dane Northcutt...as Hauser Jacqueline Hahn...as Judge Marc Vann...as Doctor Michael Shamus Wiles...as Spanky CO-STARS Pete Breitmayer...as Desmond Keel T.J. Thyne...as Lawyer Kelv’i ...as Sam Jordan Garrett ...as Matthew Marissa Tait...as Woman Danielle Kuhn...as Notary Chris Eckles...as Special Ops Guy Susan Slom...as Cindy Rabinowitz

---

THE PLOT

TEASER As vampire accosts a young woman outside a building, a patrolling Angel hears her scream. Leaping from rooftop to rooftop he gallantly comes to her aid. Angel briefly battles with the vamp before staking him just feet in front of the woman. Backing away she tells Angel she doesn’t understand. Comforting her, he says she’ll be all right and suggests she get home, avoiding dark alleys. As Angel walks away, she asks, "But, who are you ?" Angel replies that it doesn’t matter. Seconds later he’s instantly surrounded by a swat team from Wolfram and Hart. Behind them several cars screech to a halt as others call out his name. The swat commander explains they got a report of his movement and came as a backup. He introduces himself as Agent Hauser, head of the agency operations team.

A lawyer rushes forward calling Angel’s name. He tells Angel they really would prefer if he didn’t leave a rescue scenario until they arrived on the scene. Angel asks how they found him and the man reveals he has a monitor in his lapel. Angel pulls the bug off as a lawyer tells the young woman Angel rescued that they need her signature on some paperwork.

Angel is informed that the man he terminated was one of the firm’s clients as he’s ushered over to have his picture made with the rescued woman. She asks Angel if he runs a law firm and he admits, only just lately. She asks if he did it for publicity, and he lamely mumbles no as the lawyer offers to have his car brought around. Angel stares at him, his mouth open. The lawyer continues, saying he’d bring him anything, a mocha, latte, decaf.

ACT I At an elementary school, two young boys rush to class. As they enter the classroom the teacher calls out to one boy, Matthew, handing him a test paper saying she’ll talk with him after class.

At Wolfram and Hart, a demon is delivering the mail and right on top of the pile is a large envelope addressed to Angel.

Fred is on the elevator, trying to decide which way leads to her office. Wesley spies her and calls out. She rushes out of the elevator, explaining that she gets turned around. She asks if he’s seen her lab and explains that she doesn’t understand half of what she’s doing. Wes admits he’s still stuck back at, "Why are we here ?"

Fred runs through a recap of how they wound up at Wolfram and Hart with an enormous run-on sentence. Wes notes that her run-on sentences have gotten a lot less pointless. Knox greets Fred, and she introduces him to Wes. Wes asks Knox how long he’s been evil and Knox replies that he just mixes the potions and things he’ll be saving the world on a weekly basis now that he works for Fred. Fred and Knox head for the lab as Gunn tosses Wes a basketball, yelling, "Think fast." Wes catches the ball as Gunn, sporting at least an eighth of an inch of newly grown hair on his head, and wearing jeans and tennis shoes, joins him. Gunn asks after Fred and Wes quips that he’s sure Knoxy will take care of her.

Gunn drags Wes over to a set of offices and declares that he wants the one on the left, explaining that it gives him a view of the mountains, meaning the skyline of LA. He tells Wes that if he doesn’t like his office, he’ll switch with him. Gunn asks if Wes is having second thoughts as he sarcastically quips, "Do I look like I belong here ?" Gunn explains that even if they can turn things around and do some good, it’s going to be a long time before any of them are comfortable there.

Lorne is walking down a hallway, talking on the phone to a client while his assistant shows him carpet samples. As they pass the elevator the doors open and Angel, also trying to decide which way leads to his office, steps out and is greeted by Gunn who quips, "Lost, Boss ?" Angel tells him, "On many levels." Angel complains to Gunn and Wes about the night before. He grouses that he was out helping the helpless, as he likes to do, when the entire firm showed up in the alley. As Angel dramatically opens the double doors into his office he announces, "Everything must go, starting with THAT !"

An attractive young woman is perched on his desk. Angel notes that this is his office and the girl smiles and tells him it’ll never happen again. She and Angel exchange a few barbs before she introduces herself as Eve, their liaison to the firm. She tosses Angel an apple, saying they need to get the whole irony thing out of the way. She says she answers to the Senior Partners. Wes notes that it’s a pretty powerful position for a young woman. She asks Wes how he can be sure she’s either of those things ?

She tells the guys Wolfram and Hart is a business with a bottom line. She offers that they could hack away at their client list but most of them are demons and all of them evil. She explains that they could shut the place down, but then their connections would dry up and all the evil would go next door. She says, that’s the catch, in order to keep the business running they must keep most of their clients happy. Gunn grumbles they’ll have to let them get away with stuff. Eve reminds them they were getting away with stuff while the A-team was sitting around in the hotel waiting for the phone to ring. She offers that maybe now, with the resources they can find solutions to old problems. She tries to rally the guys noting that the most powerful evil around has given its sworn enemies a pivotal position. She asks Angel if that scares him. Angel casually takes a big bite of his apple.

Late that evening, the gang has gathered in Angel’s office, going through the firm’s client files. Angel surveys the momentous job before them and Fred moans that she’s actually lost her appetite, a first for her. Lorne says there’s nobody that the firm doesn’t have a piece of and Angel asks how they’re supposed to start to set things right. Gunn reads from a file saying a man named Corbin Fries is now on trial from various crimes including smuggling Asian woman for cheap labor and prostitution. He says the trial isn’t going well. Angel quips that’s the first good news of the day. Gunn puts down the file and complains that he’s forgotten which pile is which. Angel tells him he’ll get his secretary to go through it all in the morning then asks if he even has a secretary. Wes says he imagines he can find someone who could stomach working on the side of the righteous. Fred tells the guys they are going to have to check all of the staff to make sure they aren’t evildoers plotting against them. Angel asks if they’re doing the right thing. Lorne says they’re going to do it tomorrow because his horns are falling asleep. Angel sends them on, saying he’s going to work for a while.

Gunn walks into his office to get his jacket and finds Eve waiting for him. She says things were simply when he was just fighting vamps on the street with his pickup and loyal gang. She wonders if he’s ready for the next step, and hands him a card, telling him to have fun. She walks out as Gunn follows her to the open door. She calls back over her shoulder, saying Gunn will feel like a new man. Wes is leaning against the jamb of his office and asks Gunn what she meant. Gunn lies to Wes, saying the card is for a tailor.

Then next morning, Angel is at his desk and picks up the envelope addressed to him, he tosses it aside. He punches a button on his phone and asks if he can get a cup of coffee. Unfortunately he’s pressed the wrong key and a cheerful voice says he’s reached "Ritual Sacrifice, for goat’s press one." Angel quickly tries another line. The woman on the end of the line announces that she’s Angel’s assistant. He asks for a cup of coffee or blood. Pressing another button to close the line, he again gets the "Ritual Sacrifice" recording. The phone rings just as someone places a cup of blood on his desk. Wes is on the line and says something has come up and asks if he can come to Angel’s office. Angel tells him sure as he takes a gulp from his cup, looking up at his new secretary. It’s Harmony.

Angel asks if she’s his secretary and she corrects him, saying "Hello, Assistant." He asks her to explain why he shouldn’t kill her and she quickly back peddles, saying secretary is fine. Angel says it’s not fine and asks why she’s been working there. Harmony explains she has to work somewhere to support herself, and besides people there are evil and they don’t judge. Harmony runs through her assets, saying she’s strong, quick and types like a superhero, and they keep the same hours. Realizing she’s not making a good case for herself she picks up the cup of blood, asking how he likes it. She tells him it’s pig’s blood and she is totally off of human blood. Angel admits it taste good and she reveals that the extra ingredient is otter.

Wesley walks in telling Angel one of their cases has become problematic. Wes casually greets Harmony. Angel is surprised and Harmony explains that Wes picked up out of the steno pool. Shocked, Angel looks at Wes who reveals that he thought a familiar face would be just the thing in a place like this. Angel moans that Wes had turned evil a lot quicker than he thought he would. Harmony says they’ll all get along great, all of them, even Cordy. Angel and Wes get a hangdog look on their faces as Harmony rattles on about how she knows Cordy is mad at her. Wes says he thought Harmony knew and Angel quickly explains the situation. Harmony says Cordy was her best friend her whole life, feeling just as sad as the guys. Suddenly, in the next breath says she doesn’t think Angel should fire her. Wes asks her to show the men into the office. Once she is gone Wes tells Angel if there’s a way to help Cordy, they’ll find it.

Taking the case file from Wes, Angel changes the subject. Wes explains that Corbin Fries is about to get 20 years for kidnapping and pimping, but he’s threatening that they should help him. Harmony brings two men into the office, one of them a lawyer from the firm and the other is their client, Corbin Fries. Corbin is brusque and vulgar, explaining that the DA is going to convict him and he’s unhappy with his lawyer. Angel reminds him that he’s guilty. Corbin says of course he’s guilty, however, the point is when Holland Manners was running the firm the case would have never gone to trial. Corbin demands that Angel get him off. Corbin says he doesn’t care who running the show they are his lawyers. He warns that if they don’t stop him from going to jail they’ll regret it. The lawyer explains that the jury can’t be tampered with ; he suspects there’s a mystical shield around them. Wes notes that the case has to be won on its merits alone. Corbin gets angry and Angel says he should calm down. Corbin gets in Angel’s face and warns that he’ll drop the bomb. If he’s convicted, bye-bye California. He warns that the only people left standing are going to be the ones already dead. Harmony sighs and says, "That’s a relief."

ACT II In a large conference room, Lorne is ’reading’ the Wolfram and Hart employee’s, rating them on a scale of, OK, On the Bubble, Evil, To Be Fired and Yikes !

In the lab, Knox questions Fred about Lorne’s special ability. Fred explains as she hangs a Dixie Chick poster on the wall. Knox offers to sing for Lorne to put Fred at ease, wanting her to feel secure in running the lab. Fred admits she’s not the running things type ; she’s more of the running away type.

Angel gathers the gang together to explain the present crisis with Fries. Wes explains that they need to find out about the bomb and how to disable it should the jury find Fries guilty. Wes surmises it’s not an explosive. Fred suggests it’s a virus. Angel reminds them it could actually have come from within Wolfram and Hart. Wes tells Fred to check and see if Wolfram and Hart deals with viruses, and tells Lorne to get to the courthouse and monitor how the trial is going. Harmony walks in and says she’s tried repeatedly to page Gunn but gets no response. She also hands Angel a note saying she got Spanky’s address. Angel explains to Lorne that Spanky is a mystic that showed up in Fries files. He pulls on his coat as he heads out the door.

Angel goes down to the basement where he finds a long row of vintage sport cars. He strolls down past the cars until he can no longer contain his excitement. He exclaims, "Oh God, they’re so beautiful." He picks a car and is about to open the door when Agent Hauser approaches him explaining that traditionally, his unit does the fieldwork. Angel tells him he’s going to take care of this one. As Angel approaches the car again, Hauser and his men walk away.

Angel knocks on Spanky’s door. Spanky answers and Angel explains that he’s from Wolfram and Hart. Inviting him in, Spank steps back, apologizing for being sweaty, he’s been working out. He offers Angel a daiquiri. Angel refuses, opting to admire Spanky’s wall of paddles. He asks why people call him Spanky. Spanky sarcastically says, he’s a big fan of "Our Gang."

Spanky tells Angel he has no problem with people doing their thing, but he doesn’t spank men. He says he thought Angel was sent about a mystical job. Angel admits that’s why he’s there, about a job he did for Fries. Spanky reveals that he doesn’t discuss his client’s jobs. Angel calmly tells Spanky he’s going to tell him now, or very soon from now. Spanky explains that he built a mystical container that would hold anything, a bomb, a curse or a Golden Retriever, until it’s dissolved by a magic word. Angel asks about the magic word but Spanky grabs Angel from behind in a chokehold. He tells Angel that he’s putting pressure on his windpipe and soon he’ll pass out and he’ll let Mr. Fries decide if he’ll let him wake up again. Angel explains that he’s not using his windpipe as he breaks the hold and twist Spanky around and he has the upper hand. Spanky realizes Angel is a vampire. Angel grabs one of the paddles off the wall and whacks Spanky across the room saying, "I have no problem with spanking men."

Gunn is sitting in a doctor’s office listening to Musak and reading an entertainment magazine that’s over 20 years old. The doctor comes in and calls Gunn’s down. Gunn tells the doctor to hang on, he’s reading an article about Demi and Emillo breaking up. The doctor admits the magazines are out of date. He leads Gunn into a room where all kinds of equipment is hooked into something that looks like a dentists chair. The doc tells Gunn he heard he’d been in the white room, had spoken to the conduit himself. Gunn snarks that, "That’s between me and the big cat." He asks the doc if they’re going to do this thing and the doc tells him to remove his shirt.

Fred and Knox are on the floor going through files, looking for information linking Fries with a virus. Knox reveals they did do some work with Fries involving a man named Lopez who was set on fire. He finds a website talking about the black tomorrow and pictures of people injured by releasing viruses. Fred tells Knox they have to find out what he had access to when the phone rings. Fred answers, and it’s Angel. She tells him it looks like Fries was playing with a virus. Spanky is lying on the floor as Angel talks to Fred, barely able to control his anger. Fred tells Angel the virus might be the airborne type and asks if he knows where Fries put the bomb. Angel, his voice trembling with rage, tells Fred he knows where he put it as we once again see the young boy in class, surrounded by his classmates.

ACT III Gunn is in the ’chair,’ exhausted and sweaty, hooked up with wires to various machines. A nurse hands him a drink and he eagerly takes it as the doctor warns him to go slow. Gunn asks if they are finished and the doctor admits, not quite. Gunn instructs him to shut up and do it.

Coming out of his office, Wes asks Fred if she’s found anything yet. She tells him they’ve isolated a few strains of the virus. Wes asks about an antidote and she says they’ve not found anything yet. She tells him she’s trying but he admits he’s not doing much better. He says he can’t disable the trigger without learning the magic word. Wes tells her they’d better get back to their respective grindstones. She glances over to Angel’s office and asks Wes if he thinks he’ll be all right. Wes notes that Angel does seem to be taking this case personally.

Angel is looking out the window when Eve walks in and asks if he’s had a rough day at work. Angry, Angel tells her that Fries took a lethal virus and stuck it in his own son. Eve notes that it’s hit Angel where he lives, admitting she knows he gave up his own son. Angel tells her he did it to save him. Eve reminds him that his son is happy and well adjusted now that he has no memory of his father. She leans close and says even his best friends never even heard of Connor. Angel glares at Eve saying he never want to hear that word pass through her lips. She asks what he’d like to see pass through her lips and he snaps back that she isn’t cute when he’s angry. Eve says she’s just curious how he’s going to play this. Angel tells her, he’ll isolate the boy to keep the virus from spreading. Eve warns Angel that if every case hits him this hard, he won’t last a week. Angel tells her not to come into his office again unless he asks and he doesn’t want to hear another word from her unless she decides to start helping out. She walks out saying, "How do you know I’m not ?"

Fred has her team working hard on discovering more information on the virus. Knox tells her he thinks it’s a retrovirus spread by touch, but he needs to do a couple of more tests. Fred asks if he’s running them. He tells her, he’ll get someone on it and it sets her off. She asks him if he does anything besides pretending he’s not running an evil Radio Shack. She lectures her staff that in a few hours a virus will begin to spread and it will kill everyone. She says that when blood begins to flow from their orifices, she’ll have the satisfaction of know that she’s dying with the only people that actually deserve to die. She yells at them to work the damn problem before storming off.

The next day, Lorne, dressed in a trench coat and hat, steps out of the courtroom to call Angel. He recommends that they go ahead and put that boy in isolation because the trial is going well, the jury is looking at Fries as if he was O.J. Angel asks Lorne if he thinks Fries will say the word and Lorne says if probably will even before the verdict. As the two talk, Agent Hauser and his team are listening in on their phone call. Angel tells Lorne to stay in the courtroom and he’ll head for the school. Agent Hauser tells his team they are going to show the new boss how things are done as they prepare to take out the kid, and all his classmates. The swat van pulls out and heads for the school.

ACT IV Wes tells Angel that Fred had the lab on track for finding an antidote but it could take days and it’s the same story with removing the mystical container. Wes suggest they might get them to hold the trial, but Angel grabs his coat and tells Wes that’s not going to happen and that he’s heading for the school. Harmony calls out to Angel who tells her it can wait. She tells him maybe not as he tells Wes to go to the courthouse until he lets him know how things are going. Harmony tells Angel the "special ops team" already left for the school and left word for the cleaners to meet them there. Harmony says that some of the ’girls’ told her that means a big job to clean up. Angel asks how long ago, she tells him ten minutes. Wes warns that Angel can’t catch them on the street. Angel says he’s got to try when Harmony interrupts again. Frustrated both Angel and Wes turn to face her yelling, "What ?"

Wes sits next to Lorne in the back of the courtroom. Lorne asks, "What’s the plan ?" Wes pulls open his jacket to reveal a gun. Lorne signs with relief say, "And here, I thought we were desperate."

The special ops team pulls up in front of the school and rushes inside, quickly moving through the halls toward the boy’s classroom. The team is wearing gas masks when they kick open the classroom door and throw in gas bombs as they take up positions in the room. The class is deserted, except for Angel who, sitting at one of the desks quips that, "As it turns out with this new deal and all, I own a helicopter."

As the smoke begins to clear, Hauser asks, "Where’s the boy ?" Angel explains that they just missed everybody. Hauser says that Angel probably has the boy isolated nearby. Angel sarcastically says he knows now why he’s the leader and asks if he even has to start with how fired Hauser is. Hauser laughs and pulls off his gas mask. He tells Angel that’s not how it works and Angel remembers his tradition tirade. He asks Hauser to show him how it’s done. Hauser thanks Angel and orders his team to take him out. The team riddles the room with bullets, which Angel easily avoids. Angel lies on the floor until a team member approaches with a bayonet in hand. Angel takes him out and moves on to the others, taking a few bullets in the chest as he goes. One team member tries to pour Holy Water on him and actually puts up a good fight, but Angel still takes him down.

Back in court, the Judge is calling for final summations as a new lawyer enters the courtroom. Gunn, decked out in new threads calls out to the Judge that the defense request a moment to confer. Gunn stops to talk with Fries attorney who quickly tells the Judge he’s conceding the floor to Gunn. Gunn tells the Judge the defense moves for a mistrial, shocking the jury as well as Lorne and Wes. The judge asks on what grounds and Gunn tells her, "You are." He asks that she excuse herself from the trial. Gunn quotes the law saying, "No judge shall be appointed to try any cause concerning a business colleague or employee." He asks to approach the bench and hands the Judge a file. Surprised she demands to know what he’s doing with her tax records. Gunn explains that she owns stocks from businesses owned by a consortium, which includes, his client, Corbin Fries. Gunn continues until the Judge calls the counsel to her chambers. Gunn looks back over his shoulder at a stunned Wesley and Lorne.

Angel has moved the fight out into the school hallway where he continues to take on the team members, one by one until he faces Hauser who’s holding a shotgun on him. Angel tells him that he suspects that he’s not part of the solution. Hauser belittles Angel, saying he’s nothing but a pathetic little fairy. Angel takes offense, saying, "I’m not little." Hauser continues, saying he’s something Angel will never be, he’s pure, he believes in evil. He says Angel and his friends are conflicted and confused, where he isn’t and that’s why they’re going to lose. He tells Angel, they posses the most powerful thing in the world, conviction. Angel says there’s something more powerful, mercy.

Angel kicks out and pushes Hauser’s shotgun up under his chin and drags his foot down causing the weapon to discharge. Hauser falls to the floor as blood sprays across the wall. One of the crippled team member watched the exchange from his position on the floor asked Angel what happen to mercy. As Angel walks away he tells him, "You just saw the last of it."

TAG Back in Angel’s office, the gang, including Eve, has gathered. Eve explains that Gunn allowed them to enhance his brain with the law. They complain that he didn’t tell them what he planned. Gunn says he knew they’d freak and explains that he’s still who he was, but now he’s got a mess of law stuck in his head, along with a lot of Gilbert and Sullivan. Angel asks how he knows they didn’t put other stuff in there and Gunn tells him because he saw the man in the white room and although he does a lot of scary things, lying isn’t one of them. Eve explains that Gunn has the most unused potential and although his degrees are all forged he’s the real deal. Gunn asks if they’d like him to sing for Lorne because he knows all of the Pirates of Penzance. Eve points out that Gunn just saved the day without using violence, and then asks Angel how he did. She tells them she thinks they are going to make things work and walks out.

Lorne bemoans that they helped a scumbag, who was ready to sacrifice his own son, get off on a technicality, and then returned his son to him. Wes tells them that he and Fred have time now to disable the charm, he won’t be in danger. Gunn notes that Fries will have to behave until his trial comes to court again, which he can put off for months. Fred asks if this is going to be their life now, fighting their own employees and clients. She asks if they are really going to do any good. Angel says yes they are, they’re going to change things. They came to Wolfram and Hart because it’s a powerful weapon and they’ll figure out how to wield it. Wes adds, "Or kill ourselves with it." Angel says sooner or later they’ll tip their hand and they’ll find out why they really brought them here.

Angel picks up the envelope on his desk as he says they’ll do the work their way, one thing at a time. Opening the envelope, the amulet that he took to Buffy drops onto the floor and begins to glow. They all back away and a swirl of light and dust spins around in front of them. Slowly a figure begins to form until Spike appears before them, screaming, his hand held out to Buffy as it was when the Hellmouth was collapsing around him. Spike gasps in pain as Wes questioningly says, "Spike ?" Angel grits his teeth and hisses, "Spike !" Behind them, Harmony peeks around the door, smiling, and says, "Blonde-bear ?"

Want to see more pictures from this episode ? Go to Episode Avenue at The Gallery

---

SPEAK THE SPEECH

THE GOOD

Girl : You run a law firm ? Angel : No. Well, I mean.. Sort of.. Just lately.

Wesley : Your run-on sentences have got a lot less pointless. Fred : That’s so sweet ! And, a tad condescending.

Wesley : Still. Pretty powerful position for a young woman. Eve : How exactly can you be sure I’m either of those things ?

Fred : ...blow everybody up ? Angel : He said "drop the bomb." We don’t know what that means. Wesley : We very nearly found out. Angel : What ? I’m not allowed to hit people ? Wesley : Not people capable of genocide. Angel : Those are exactly the types of people I should be allowed to hit !

Hauser : Traditionally, my unit handles all of the wet work. Angel : I know you meant "field" work. Hauser : Of course.

Fred : Y’all are tired, I know. I just want you to understand that in a few hours a virus is gonna start spreading through this city that’ll kill every person in it. And when blood starts streaming out of our noses, eye sockets, and fingernails, I’ll have the intense satisfaction of knowing that I’m dying with the only people in the world that actually deserve it !

Hauser I’m pure. I believe in evil. You and your friends, you’re conflicted. You’re confused. We’re not. That is why you are gonna lose, because we possess the most powerful thing in the world... conviction. Angel There is one thing more powerful than conviction. Just one. Mercy. Soldier : What happened to mercy ? Angel You just saw the last of it.

THE BAD Eve : Things are always more complicated than they seem, champ.

Eve : You’re not scared, are you ?

Spanky : Okay, I don’t discuss my old jobs. Mystic-client privilege. Angely : You’re going to tell me what you did for Mr. Fries. Now, or very soon from now.

Spanky : You know what I’m doing now ? I’m applying pressure to your windpipe. You’ll pass out, and then I’ll let Mr. Fries decide if he wants you to wake up again. Angel : You know what I’m doing now ? Not using my windpipe.

Gunn : The defense admits it has learned how to swim.

Angel : You know that won’t kill me. Hauser : It’ll hurt. That part’s fun.

THE SAUCY Fries : You think I give a ferret’s anus about your new regime ?

Angel : So, tell me. Why do they call you "Spanky" ? Spanky : I’m a big "Our Gang" fan. Angel : That’s what I figured.

Spanky : Look, buddy, I’m going to be up front with you. I got nothing against people doing their thing. It’s a wide and wonderful world. BUT ! I don’t spank men. It’s not a judgement. Men have fine, firm asses. If you’ve been to the website, you know how much I work on mine.

Spanky : Vampire. Angel : Capital "V". And there’s something else you should know about me. I have no problem spanking men.

Hauser : .You really think you can solve the problem ? Come into Wolfram and Hart and make everything right ? Turn night into glorious day ? You pathetic litle fairy. Angel : I’m not little.

Eve : And what would you like passing through my lips ? Angel : News flash. You’re not cute when I’m angry.

THE FUNNY Wes : Don’t you think it’s a bit unseemly adding "Y"s to the end of people’s names ? Gunn : Does that mean I have to call you "Wessle" ?

Wes : Feng Shui. Gunn : What’s that mean again ? Wes : That people will believe anything.

Angel : Uh, could I get a cup of coffee or something ? Phone : You have reached Ritual Sacrifice ! For goats, press "1" or say "goats". Angel : Hello-o ? Harmony : This is Angel’s office, how can I help you ? Angel : This is Angel... Harmony : Nooo, this is his new assistant. Angel : No, this is Angel. Harmony : Are you sure ? Angel : Less and less. Can I get a cup of coffee ? Or if there’s blood... Harmony : Oh ! Right away. Phone : To sacrifice a loved one or pet, press the "pound" key.

Angel : Harmony. Harmony : Hey. Boss ! Angel : You’re my secretary. Harmony : Hello-oh. Assistant ? Angel : Explain why I shouldn’t kill you. Harmony : "Secretary"’s fine. Harmony : Hey, Wes. Angel : You knew that she was... Harmony : Oh, Wesley’s the one who picked me out of the steno pool. Angel : But why-hi-hi ? You... Wes : I thought a familiar face would be just the thing in a place like this. Angel : You turned evil a lot faster than I thought you would. Wes : Nonsense.

Fries : I say the magic word, the only people left standin’ are gonna be the ones that are already dead. Harmony : That’s a relief. I mean, hey !

Knox : Oh, okay, he was fired. Oh, no, I’m sorry, he was set on fire.

Wes : Spike... Angel : Spike. Harmony : Blondie-bear ? !

---

ROGUE’S GALLERY

Agent Hauser Leader of Wolfram & Hart’s Special Operations Team, which traditionally handles all of the firm’s "field work" that involves the judicious use of armed force. Firmly committed to evil and rabidly devoted to Wolfram & Hart, he uses tracking devices and phone taps to monitor and anticipate the needs of the head of the firm, which he interprets so broadly as to include the murder of every man, woman, and child within fifty yards of a boy who needs to be "isolated". Disgusted by the new CEO (who he regards as conflicted and weak) and the loss of his position, Hauser makes the fatal mistake of ordering his team to kill Angel ; the commando leader is terminated when Angel repositions the muzzle of the shotgun Hauser is about to fire at the vampire to a spot underneath Hauser’s own chin.

Corben Fries One of Wolfram & Hart’s primary clients, a piece of human scum involved in smuggling illegal Asian immigrants for cheap labor and prostitution, kidnapping, gun-running, pimping, and drugs. To ensure the best efforts of the firm’s new leadership, he has placed a lethal retrovirus, contained in a mystical vessel that will release the virus when Fries says the "magic word", in his son Matt. Fries’ trial was declared a mistrial when Gunn showed that the judge had financial ties to one of Fries’ business fronts, so he remains free and awaiting retrial while the A-Team works to neutralize the viral bomb.

Spanky A freelance mystic contracted by Corben Fries to construct a mystical vessel to contain a lethal virus within Fries’ own son. Spanky asserts that his nickname refers to his status as "a big Our Gang fan". Personable, open-minded, fit, and brutal in a reserved and efficient fashion, Spanky refuses to discuss jobs for past clients and to spank men.

---

POP GOES THE CULTURE !

the Punisher The Punisher is a fictional character of Marvel comic books. The character is unique in that he has no super powers and actually uses lethal force. He is sometimes considered an anti-hero rather than a real hero.The first appearance of the Punisher was in the Amazing Spiderman issue 129, which was released in 1974. Origin : Frank Castle was a U.S. Marine who served in Vietnam in a special forces unit. After his tour of duty was over he came back to the states and started a family. His family was killed in a gangland cross-fire and ever since that time Frank Castle has devoted his life to destroying organized crime, and using whatever resources and means necessary to do so. The Punisher has at his disposal all manner of conventional and state of the art weaponry. He has connections to many technology experts and weapons designers who support his activities. Frank Castle is a master of many forms of unarmed combat, armed combat, and is a ridiculously good marksman. He is about as well trained in warfare as a person can be. Though he possesses no superhuman abilities, Frank Castle is able to psychology tune-out physical pain and his arsenal and resourcefulness have made him infamous to organized crime. The Punisher is typically armed with an assault rifle and various handguns and knives. Note : The Punisher has a criminal record due to his activities and law enforcement is aware of his existance. Source X Men One of Marvel Comics’ most famous superhero teams, the X-Men are a group of mutants who are fighting to protect a world that hates and persecutes them. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in the pages of X-Men #1 (1963), the team was organized by Professor X and includes various youths who were born as mutants with superpowers. The original lineup of the X-Men included Cyclops (Scott Summers, originally named Slim), the Angel (Warren Worthington III), the Beast (Hank McCoy), and Iceman (Bobby Drake), with Marvel Girl (Jean Grey) joining in the first issue. Other popular additions to the roster at various points in time have included Wolverine (James Logan Howlett), Rogue (whose real name is unknown), Storm (Ororo Munroe), Gambit (Remy LeBleau), Nightcrawler (Kurt Wagner), Colossus (Piotr Rasputin), Shadowcat (Katherine "Kitty" Pryde) and even their arch-nemesis Magneto (Eric Magnus Lehnsherr). Though it took a few years, this comic has spawned cartoons and two highly successful even live action films. Source cricket Cricket is a ball-and-bat game played chiefly in Great Britain and the Commonwealth countries. origin is obscure. Evidence suggests it was played in England in the 12th-13th cent., and it was popular there by the end of the 17th cent. By the mid-18th cent. the aristocracy had adopted the game. In 1744 the London Cricket Club produced what are recognizably the rules of modern cricket. The Marylebone Cricket Club, one of the oldest (1787) cricket organizations, is the game’s international governing body. Go here to read the rules of play. Feng Shui The Chinese art or practice of positioning objects, especially graves, buildings, and furniture, based on a belief in patterns of yin and yang and the flow of chi that have positive and negative effectsSource Joanie Loves Chachi This spin-off of "Happy Days"(1974) follows young Chachi Arcola as he moves out and tries to make it on his own. In between holding down a job and keeping his girlfriend, Joanie Cunningham, happy, he must also deal with the often unwanted, but sometimes needed, advice and interference from his friends, relatives and neighbors. This series ran from 1982 to 1983. Source The Sorrow and the Pity According to the IMDB From 1940 to 1944, France’s Vichy government collaborated with Nazi Germany. Marcel Ophüls mixes archival footage with 1969 interviews of a German officer and of collaborators and resistance fighters from Clement-Ferrant. They comment on the nature, details and reasons for the collaboration, from anti-Semitism, xenophobia, and fear of Bolsheviks, to simple caution. Part one, "The Collapse," includes an extended interview with Pierre Mendès-France, jailed for anti-Vichy action and later France’s Prime Minister. At the heart of part two, "The Choice," is an interview with René de Chambrun, one of 7,000 French youth to fight on the eastern front wearing German uniforms. horse’s heads Lorne is on the phone with a client assuring him/her about a part. He says "The part’s yours. Yeah, I’ve got a whole freezer full of horses’ heads downstairs." He then goes on to say the producer is a clientso they all sit down and talk. This is probably a reference to a scene in "The Godfather", in which a a decapitated horse head ends up in the bed of a Hollywood producer who refuses to hire a Mafia don’s godson for a part in his film.. Joe Kennedy The patriarch of the political Kennedy family, Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. was born during Boston’s Irish boom of the late 1800s. Famously ambitious, he attended Harvard and by age 25 was already president of a small bank. Later he moved into investment banking, movie theaters, film production and liquor, becoming wealthy in the process. (It is often alleged that he ran liquor illegally during Prohibition.) He supported Democrat Franklin Roosevelt in the elections of 1932 ; in 1933 the new president made Kennedy chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission. In 1938 FDR appointed him ambassador to Britain, making Kennedy the first Irish Catholic to hold that post. His 1913 marriage to Rose Fitzgerald, the daughter of Boston mayor John "Honey Fitz" Fitzgerald, resulted in nine children. Their son John F. Kennedy was elected to Congress in 1946 and became president in 1961. Two other sons, Robert and Edward, became U.S. senators. Source George Sr. This was probably a reference to George Bush Sr. George Bush Sr. was a former World War II pilot, Texas oil tycoon, Republican congressman, U.N. ambassador and Director of the Central Intelligence Agency before serving as vice president under Ronald Reagan. Promising a "kinder, gentler nation," Bush defeated Michael Dukakis in the 1988 presidential election. In spite of Bush’s near-record popularity after military strikes against Panama and a successful war against Iraq, domestic discontent over economic and social issues took their toll, and he lost his bid for re-election in 1992 when he was defeated by Democrat Bill Clinton. Eight years later Bush’s son George W. Bush followed Clinton as president after defeating Clinton’s vice president, Al Gore, in the elections of 2000. Source "Ebola virus kinda thing" b’l) (KEY) , a member of a family (Filovirus) of viruses that cause hemorrhagic fevers. The virus, named for the region in Congo (Kinshasa) where it was first identified in 1976, emerged from the rain forest, where it survives in an as yet unknown host. Once a person is infected with the virus, the disease has an incubation period of 2-21 days ; however, some infected persons are asymptomatic. Initial symptoms are sudden malaise, headache, and muscle pain, progressing to high fever, vomiting, severe hemorrhaging (internally and out of the eyes and mouth) and in 50-90% of patients, death, usually within days. The likelihood of death is governed by the virulence of the particular Ebola strain involved. Ebola virus is transmitted in body fluids and secretions ; there is no evidence of transmission by casual contact. There is no vaccine and no cure. 1 Outbreaks of Ebola virus in humans occurred in both the Congo (then Zaïre) and Sudan in 1976 and 1979 ; other outbreaks occurred in Gabon, Uganda, and again in the Congo. Outbreaks have been exacerbated by underequipped hospitals that reused syringes and lacked proper protective clothing for personnel. In 1989 a similar virus was found in monkeys imported to the United States. Source Mary Kate and Ashley The Olsen twins (born June 13, 1986) are American actresses named Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen who have appeared in television and films since the age of 3 months. Despite their near-identical looks, the pair are actually fraternal (non-identical) twins. They started their acting careers on the television series Full House. The show was widely popular during the late 80s and early 90s, and both sisters played one character, Michelle, taking turns during the recordings to do so, in order to comply with child labor laws regarding children film workers. Rather than disappearing from the scene after growing up, as have many other child stars, Mary Kate and Ashley took a short period off and then came back with a fury. Taking the world of pre-teens and young kids by storm, their names have become an industry that makes them over 160 million dollars each a year, with their likeness seen in movies, posters, magazines, clothes, and even video games like Mary Kate and Ashley’s Magical Mystery Mall. Source "big Our Gang fan", Spanky "Our Gang", also known as The "Little Rascals", was a long-lived series of film shorts starring a troupe of neighborhood children and their adventures, often centered around putting on a show. The series was notable in that the gang included both African Americans and girls in leading parts at a time when discrimination against both groups was commonplace. More than 100 shorts featuring 41 actors were made by the Hal Roach Studios and produced by MGM from 1922 to 1944. They have frequently been played on television as well, when the name The Little Rascals was used. The characters in this series became well-known cultural icons, and could often be identified solely by their first names. The characters of Alfalfa, Spanky, Darla, and Froggy were especially well-known, though like many child actors they were subsequently typecast and had trouble outgrowing their Our Gang images. Spanky was played by George McFarland, whose nickname was said to have arisen from repeated warnings by his mother not to misbehave. He was discovered at the age of three and soon became a regular and then most popular member of the children’s comedy movie series. In January 1994, "Spanky" became the only Our Gang member to receive a star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame. Source patient zero Patient Zero refers to the central or initial patient in the population sample of an epidemiological investigation. In particular, it refers to Gaëtan Dugas (1953 - 1984), a Canadian airline steward who was Patient Zero for an early epidemiological study on HIV by the Centers for Disease Control. His sexual partners were surveyed for the disease in order to demonstrate that it was sexually transmitted. Several of them were among the first few hundred to be diagnosed with AIDS. Source Demi breaking up with Emilio Gunn is mocking how old the magazine information is. Emilio and Demi, who had been engaged for three years, broke up sometime in 1987. "running and evil Radio Shack" Fort Worth, Texas-based RadioShack Corporation (NYSE : RSH) is the nation’s most trusted consumer electronics specialty retailer of wireless communications, electronic parts, batteries and accessories as well as other digital technology products and services. With more than 7,000 stores nationwide, it is estimated that 94 percent of all Americans live or work within five minutes of a RadioShack store or dealer. The company’s knowledgeable sales associates and brand position, "You’ve Got Questions, We’ve Got Answers," support RadioShack’s mission to demystify technology in every neighborhood in America. For more information on RadioShack products and services, visit our e-commerce Web site at www.RadioShack.com Sarin gases Sarin or GB (O-Isopropyl methylphosphonofluoridate) is a nerve agent accidentally discovered by German scientists in 1938 while researching organophosphate pesticides. The name is an acronym of the discoverers. Sarin was produced by Nazi Germany during World War II but was never used. Sarin was discovered in 1938 in Wuppertal-Elberfeld in the Ruhr valley of Germany. The compound, which followed the previous discovery of Tabun, was named in honor of its discoverers : Schrader, Ambros, Rudriger and Van der Linde. In mid-1939, the formula for the agent was passed to the Chemical Warfare section of the German Army Weapons Office, which ordered that it be brought into mass-production for wartime use. A number of pilot plants were built, and a high-production facility was under construction, but was not finished by the end of World War II. Estimates for total Sarin production by Nazi Germany range from 500 kg to 10 tons. Source "looking at Fries like he’s OJ ", The Towering Inferno "The Towering Inferno," one in a string of disaster movies of the 1970s, was promoted as a tribute to firefighters and their heroic work. It was also among the highest-grossing box office draws of the mid-1970s. The finishing touches have just been made to the Glass Tower, a 138-story skyscraper in the heart of San Francisco. A huge celebratory gala, complete with VIP guests, has been planned to celebrate the dedication of what has been promoted as the world’s tallest building. But the building’s architect, Doug Roberts, suspects all is not right with the building. The contractors have used shoddy wiring, not the heavy-duty wiring he had specified. The overworked wiring develops short circuits, coincidentally enough during the height of the celebratory extravaganza ; it isn’t long before the Glass Tower becomes a huge towering inferno. The nearly 300 guests become trapped on the building’s 135th floor, where the party takes place. Fire Chief Michael O’Hallorhan immediately devises a daring plan to rescue the trapped guests, but his efforts quickly become a battle against time and the panicked guests. OJ Simpson appeared in the movie as Security Chief Harry Jernigan. Source Gilbert and Sullivan Playwright/lyricist William S. Gilbert (1836-1911) and composer Arthur S. Sullivan (1842-1900) defined comic opera in Victorian England with a series of internationally successful and timeless operettas. Their first major hit was HMS Pinafore (1878), satirizing the Royal Navy and the British obsession with social status. The Pirates of Penzance (1879), written in a fit of pique at American copyright pirates, also poked fun at romantic melodrama, sense of duty, family obligation, and the relevance of a liberal education. Patience (1881) satirized the aesthetic movement in general and the poet and aesthete Oscar Wilde in particular. Iolanthe (1882) pokes fun at English law and at the House of Lords. Ruddigore (1887) is a topsy-turvy take on the Victorian Melodrama, and viciously satirizes that entire genre. The Gondoliers (1889) guesses at what might happen if a republican democrat were to become king. Their most popular work was The Mikado (1885), where English bureaucracy was made fun of in a Japanese setting. Gilbert’s plots remain perfect examples of "topsy-turvydom," in which primeval fairies rub elbows with English lords, gondoliers ascend to the monarchy and pirates reconcile with major-generals. Gilbert’s lyrics employ double (and triple) rhyming and punning, and served as the very model for such 20th century Broadway lyricists as Cole Porter, Ira Gershwin, and Lorenz Hart. Sullivan, a classically-trained musician who devoted much of his career to religious hymns and grand opera, contributed catchy melodies which were also emotionally moving. As seamless as their onstage collaboration was, Gilbert and Sullivan were temperamentally incompatible, and their partnership was frequently ruptured. Their last joint work, The Grand Duke, opened in 1896, and the sickly Sullivan died four years later. Source The Pirates of Penzance The Pirates of Penzance Subtitled "The Slave of Duty", this Gilbert and Sullivan favorite features the trials of Frederick, an unwitting apprentice to the self-styled Pirate King. Finally free of his indenture, he swears to put an end to his former shipmates’ pirating ways and proceeds to fall in love with Mabel, the youngest daughter of a retired Major General. Complications arise when Mabel cannot be wedded until the rest of her sisters have done so, and when the Pirate King reveals that Frederick’s term of indenture is not yet finished. "Mother May I..."This is a children’s game of unknow origin. The rules are as follows : One person stands facing away from a line of kids. This is the "mother" "Mother" then chooses a child (at random, or in order), and announces a direction. These follow a pattern, such as, "Brian, you may take’ x’ giant/regular/baby steps forward/backward." The child responds with "Mother may I ?" The "mother" then states "Yes" or "No", depending on her whim, and the child complies. If the child forgets to ask "Mother may I ?" he/she goes back to the starting line. First one to touch "Mother" wins.

---

DETAILS, DETAILS

NITPICKY FACTS

There was no Vision Quest. Since Cordelia is in a coma, we are assuming there will be none, indefinitely. TheVillain of the Piece was Corbin Fries, a man on trail for pimping and kidnapping who threatens to unleash a virus on LA unless Wolfram & Hart gets him off. The Victim of the PieceVictim of the Piece was Corbin’s son Matthew, whose body was used as the vessel for the virus. The leader of W&H’s "special operations" military team is Agent Hauser. Agent Hauser’s team follows Angel through a tracking device in his jacket. The vampire that Angel kills in the alley was a W&H client. This episode takes place approximately one week after Angel and friends assume control of W&H. Wesley likes Cricket. Wesley & Gunn are given adjacent offices. The young woman who visits Angel and friends is named Eve. She will act as their connection to the Senior Partners. The address of the W&H offices is 1127 Spring Street. Harmony has been hired, apparently by Wesley, as Angel’s secretary. Harmony’s drink of choice is now pig’s blood , with a dash of otter. W&H offers its employees medical and dental benefits. Corbin Fries, if convicted, will serve 20 years. Corbin’s lawyer is named Desmond Keel. Lorne reads the auras of various W&H employees to figure out who’s evil and who’s not. One of the women is named Cindy Rabinowitz. Lorne’s rating system is OKAY - ON THE BUBBLE - EVIL - TO BE FIRED - YIKES ! Fred hangs a Dixie Chicks poster in her office. Not only does Angel find he now owns classic cars from every decade, he also finds out he owns a helicopter. Angel visits a mystic named Spanky, who had dealings with Corbin. Spanky’s apartment number is 5. Spanky is a fan of "Our Gang", hence his name. The virus Corbin created can only be released from its "vessel" if he says the "magic word". Gunn undergoes a scientific procedure, which we later learn turns him into a lawyer. Gunn reads "Scene" magazine during his 5-hour wait for the procedure. Corbin’s previous dealings with W&H involved the uses of illegal pesticides. The technician who helped Corbin create the virus was named Lopez. He’s since been set on fire. Lopez belonged to a cult called the Black Tomorrow, which specialized in viruses. Gunn gets Corbin off on a mistrial, therefore allowing Angel and friends enough time to destroy the virus.

The body count for this episode includes a vampire staked by Angel in an alley, and various members of the special operations teem (including Agent Hauser), taken out by Angel in a school building.

BooBoo Kitty Shades of Angelus Vamp Hijinks Forearmage Here’s Blood in your Eye Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing Batman Alert Cruisin’ Mad Hatter

REFERBACKS

This whole episode is a continuation of Home, in which Angel and friends accepted Lilah’s offer to take over the LA branch of W&H. Other references to that episode included Gunn’s visit to the "white room" and Connor’s going to live with a "normal" family. Angel and Wesley tell Harmony about Cordelia being in a coma. Cordelia has been comatose since "giving birth" to Jasmine in Inside Out. Harmony mentions "the time I tried to kill you all", referring to her last appearance on the show in Disharmony. Corbin mentions how different W&H was "when Holland Manners was running things". Holland was a big boss at W&H until being murdered by Darla and Drusilla in Reunion.

IT’S ALL AN ALLUSION

Fred’s line about someone eating her "trail of breadcrumbs" reminds us of "Hansel and Gretel". In the story, the children leave a trail of breadcrumbs to find their way out of the forest, where they had been abandoned by their parents. However, they find that the trail is gone, that the crumbs had been eaten by the birds of the forest, leaving them to wander, lost, until they stumble upon a gingerbread house, which we learn later belongs to a children-eating, wicked witch.

THINGS THAT MAKE YOU GO HMMMMMM

Why is a professional wrestler delivering interoffice mail ? What happened to Wesley’s team ? Have they been forgotten as well ? If everyone has forgotten Connor, does Lorne remember why Caritas was destroyed the second time ?

---

HITS & MISSES HITS

New sets. The automated Ritual Sacrifice phone service. Harmony, the evil ditz. Lorne’s rating system — OK, On the Bubble, Evil, To Be Fired, YIKES ! Commandoes with wooden knives. Gunn in a suit. SPIKE ! ! MISSES Angel’s city-block-long, Tarzan-series-promoting swing. Everything with the apple. Angel’s Hair. UGH ! Lorne’s "disguise" — if they’re going to send him out in public, they should provide a decent reason that people don’t freak.

---

AND THE SURVEY SAYS !

DEVIOUS DEB Well, here we go with Season Five. Over the past summers, I counted the days until Angel was back on the air in the fall. Not so this summer. However, once the show was on, I was happy to see those old friends. My excitement increased as the tag of the show approached because I knew my favorite character was about to make his appearance, and I was not disappointed. In my opinion, Spike will be the one to keep this ship from sinking.

It was nice to see Harmony again, but honestly... she’s playing Cordy. Check out your Season One DVD’s. I loved the old Cordy, so I will probably like Harmony. But, I’m sorry ! They screwed up Cordy’s character so bad they couldn’t fix it so they ditched her. I’ll miss you, Charisma.

The new and improved Gunn is interesting, but I didn’t like how easily he gave in to the change. Wolfram and Hart is the big bad and he seemed eager to let them into his head. Again, a drastic change in character. He’s walking a fine line. I’m worried another character is going by the wayside.

I’m not happy with Angel, so I’m not going to talk about him. (I heard that !)

Okay, can we please just bring Lilah back and get rid of this Eve.

The story line was interesting, clever how they worked around Wolfram and Hart. I have to admit this might make for some excellent fodder.

I’m trying to pump myself up, to get excited about this new turn the show has taken. I’m really looking forward to seeing more of Spike, but honestly don’t know how much I’ll like him now that he’s here. On Buffy, he was the old Angel. Spike and Angel were both at their best when pining for Buffy.

My rating for Conviction, 2.5 Slants

SYRENEMYST Nice season opener. Each season seems to open strongly, giving the hope of an equally strong middle and end.

I enjoyed this episode for a number of reasons. First, I want to see how the team is going to use such an evil tool to beat evil. My dad always tells me not to get mad at people but to play their game by their rules. Hence, once I overcome, it will be with the very ideas my opponent tried to supress me with. This idea works here. The only way to beat the Senior Partners are by their rules. The problem is, just how far on those rules are Angel and the gang willing to go. If Eve has her way...

Speaking of Eve. I don’t like her. Period. DOne. She reminds me of a little girl you’d see at mommy’s "take your daughter to work day". We’ll just see if she is anything she professes or tries to profess she isn’t. I was a bit concerned with the edition of Harmony to the cast, but I can see the potential for her in future episodes.

Now, in this episode the team is supposed to have forgotten about Connor and everything that happened. While I see shades of that, Wesley isn’t as dark and Gunn and Fred aren’t in that gray breakup area, I wonder how deep it really goes and what is going to come out as the season progresses. At the end of last season, Lilah made them the offer to get them there. Do they remember ? Does Wes still have that dollar ? Do Gunn and Fred remember offing that professor ? Do any of they remember Holtz or Justine or Jasmine ? Do they know WHY Cordy is in a coma ? When should we expect Darla ? Did Bobby Ewing guest star and I missed it ? (Sorry, little Dallas blip). I can’t wait to see how these questions and more are answered.

ONe thing that is going to be interesting to find out is if Knox is evil or just a scientist, as he said. Sometimes science can be a cold thing and scientists will do things that could be viewed as evil get to the end of an experiment or produce an outcome, without realizing the line they have crossed. Sometimes, scientists purposely leave morality outside of their labs, so they can do the research or deveolpment and not feel remorse or guilty. Is this Knox ?

Couple of neat things. After Angel shot Hauser, he walks out of the school, right under a sign that says "Respect-Learn It-Know It-Show It". Wonder how the special ops team is doing now. The other is that we Trinity sisters have long been aware of the cuts and shots that are used in the flashes in between. In this week’s episode, one flash shown after a scene with Gunn, shows the black cat in the white room. Another flash, right after the standoff scene between Angel and Hauser, you can see Eve examining the blood and brain matter on the wall. What, if anything, are this shots implying ?

And could someone please tell me...What the hell is going on with Angel’s hair ? For crying out loud... if the hair and makeup dept can’t fix it, maybe we should get a one of the Queer Eye guys on there.

There were many more positives and negatives to this episode but for now let’s say, I love the way Joss has reintroduced the A-team and I hope the rest of the season remains as strong as this episode.

3.5 :\

SPECIAL REVIEWER- JACKATTACK (GYNGERT is on Hiatus) Hello, everyone, good to see you here. Autumn has returned, Angel is on the air again, and the fun is back on Wednesday nights.

After an extremely dark couple of seasons, Whedon and crew seem to have decided to reclaim the lighter mood that dominated the first couple of seasons and built the success of this series. While retaining elements of supernatural and existential horror, the comedy-adventure leanings of this episode are a refreshing change from the doom and gloom of the Connor and Jasmine story lines.

And why not ? Whedon has effectively erased much of the previous angst that was weighing down his characters by eliminating Connor from the memories of everyone but Angel and certain key Wolfram & Hart employees. Angel still broods over Cordelia and Connor, but he is driven to succeed in using the evil law firm to fight the very evil they represent. Wesley is no longer crushed beneath the weight of his betrayal and his failure, but still quietly pines for Fred. Gunn is embracing his own ambition, taking on a vital new role to match the A-Team’s new endeavor. Fred has broken from her relationship with Gunn, but still maintains a discreet distance from Wesley. Lorne is still delightfully Lorne, now in an environment where no one faults him for being a demon. Relationships between the characters are once again comfortable and friendly, making the team aspect of the show much more natural and believable. Although some plot threads seem to have been dropped (for the moment ?), such as Gunn’s and Fred’s still-unannounced breakup and Wesley’s broken relationship with the still-indentured Lilah, the new season is beginning more streamlined, and easier for the new viewer to jump aboard.

The return of Harmony was a pleasant and hilarious surprise. As Angel’s new secretary (or is it "assistant" ?), she is delightfully ditzy, the character remaining unchanged from her beginnings at Sunnydale High — entirely appropriate for an eternal, unchanging vampire. I did find myself pondering the irony of (re)introducing a character nearly identical to the original Cordelia, when that character has been written off the show for the stated reason that they had run out of things to do with her, but it’s nice to have someone so self-involved and carefree in the mix to interject needed humor when things become too dark.

I’m of mixed feelings concerning Eve. The symbolism of her name is very heavy-handed, and at times she sounds like a cross between Lilah and Lorne, but in time she may find her own unique voice. In addition, she fulfills the vital function of narrator, to explain the workings of the world that the A-Team has entered. This season will be a fish-out-of-water story, meaning that both the cast and the audience need a guide to this new territory.

As for the episode itself, I found it very enjoyable. Admittedly, I have been jonesing for new Angel episodes for months, what with the WB inexplicably removing one of its major properties from the air entirely, but I think it stands on its own. Exposition was, on occasion, glaringly obvious, but brief enough to keep the regular viewer from being bored and clear enough to get the new viewer caught up. The threat to innocents was dire, the action decisive, but the mood not overly dark. Humor, even the gallows variety, rolled easily for the most part. The plot had a logical flow, from learning of a threat to investigation to discovery to neutralization. All of the characters were used to good effect — no one had to be written out of the episode to make it work.

There were also some subtler touches. Wesley was only shown from the left side once (and then very much in shadow), teasing those of us paying rapt attention to see if his scar was there or not. Fred and Gunn were never alone together in a single shot, and almost never interacted directly, reflecting their estrangement without ever mentioning it directly. Fred’s friendly banter with Wesley while refusing to let him help her with a box, and then passing it to her new lab assistant, clearly illustrated the distance at which she is keeping Wesley. All lovely bits of scripting without a single word of direct dialog.

After wondering how Spike would return, I was impressed with the simplicity and the mystery of his resurrection. It seems natural (in a fantasy-horror universe sort of way) that the amulet that destroyed him would also bring him back, and the mystery of how the amulet was returned to Wolfram & Hart might make for an interesting ongoing plotline. Seeing that James Marsters has second billing, I think we can expect him to be a major character at the center of much of this season’s action. (Who wants to start a pool on how long it takes Spike to stake Harmony (again) ?)

I’m going to give "Conviction" 3.25 slants. It was a lot of fun, had very good action sequences, made me laugh out loud, and reminded me why I enjoy the series and love the characters. There were some rough edges, and some meta-plot and character issues to be addressed, but this is a strong beginning to what might be one of the best seasons yet.

GUEST REVIEW by EC ? First off, for four season of Angel : The Series, I’d been waiting for it to develop its own identity, separate from Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Instead, each week there was some tie-in to its mother show and each week I got more frustrated. Then, as BTVS ended its 7 year run with a win, Angel limped along and finally gained momentum to end its fourth season as just OK. By the closing episode, "Home", nothing was clear about Angel’s future : its cast, direction, or whether it would be renewed at all.

The WB gave the renewal and, splendidly, Joss Whedon set aside most of that speculation with his script.

What I loved about "Conviction" was that it felt like Angel : The Series. We began back in the alley first seen in "City Of" in a scene that could have been taken from Cordelia’s script for The Dark Avenger from "Hero". Or, maybe Spike could have been giving us the bird’s-eye-view like he did from "In The Dark". We’re out of the Art Deco world of the Hyperion Hotel’s and back in an office setting, the modern-day wood and glass of Wolfram and Hart.

Where the past two seasons of Angel had gotten into a time lag — episodes ending one week and picking up in the same place the next, the pacing of Conviction was contradictory. At the half-way point, there’d already been a great deal of exposition, character movement, action, and scene changes that it felt as if the episode was nearing its final commercial break. Instead, there was another half the program left to add more exposition, redevelop the characters and include yet more action.

And, we saw at least two days !

There was a moving moment regarding Cordelia’s plight from last season. The character of Harmony was brought in to replace her old best friend and she is Season 1’s version of our former plucky heroine before Cordelia went all Mombastic. She provided some light-comedic moments that worked well. [Sidebar : I’ve never cared for Harmony so they must have worked.]

Another new character, Eve, the Fang Gang’s liaison with The Senior Partners actually came off appropriately creepy. She shows up at just the right moments with just the right words to keep the person she’s speaking with off-balance. In this episode she did a good job of drawing out each character, be it Gunn’s insecurity about batting in the supernatural big leagues or Angel’s regret over changing the course of his son’s life for the better.

Fred has an associate by the name of Knox. Whether he’s evil-evil is still up in the air. He’s innocuous enough, so far. Courtesy of the villains of the week - one a client, one a W&H employee, we know that this season’s evil won’t just have demonic forms, they’ll also be human.

This first episode made me optimistic about the potential of the season. Angel took human lives, and took them ruthlessly. I shivered when he replied that the man he’d just help shoot off his own head had seen the last of Mercy. Angel will need the expertise of the final character added. Spike’s appearance in the very last minute of the show couldn’t have been more timely since he’d already taken the journey that Angel, Wesley, Gunn, Fred and Lorne have all just begun : learning that the most powerful adversary is oneself, the most powerful weapon of all is personal history. Angel has been struggling since we first met him eight years ago to reconcile with the man inside of him. Maybe this is the year he’ll finally advance.

Episode 1 has restored my faith in Angel. I give it a whopping 3 3/4 Slants

The Trinity of Iniquity rating : 3.25 Slants