Angel

Show Times: —Saturdays 7 pm,Wednesdays 9 pm

General Description As this supernatural thriller begins its fifth year on The WB, Angel (David Boreanaz, "Valentine"), a vampire cursed with a conscience and a soul, will finally emerge from the dark underground tunnels he has inhabited for centuries. Angel will be free to roam Los Angeles without fear of sunlight when he and his loyal friends take over the city’s powerful supernatural law firm, Wolfram and Hart, and wage war against the dark side - one evil client at a time.

The City of Angels has proven to be the ideal address for a fallen vampire looking to save a few lost souls and, in turn, redeem his own. Now, in his new position at the head of Wolfram and Hart, Angel makes use of the firm’s state-of-the-art technology and the darkly tinted windows in his luxurious new office, stunning penthouse apartment and fleet of limousines. After more than 200 years spent hiding from the light, he will at last be able to move about during the day.

Early on in his life as a vampire, Angel began a bitter rivalry with fellow vampire, Spike (James Marsters, "Buffy the Vampire Slayer"), that ended only when Spike died a horrible death, sacrificing himself to save the world for Buffy Summers, the woman he and Angel both love. When Spike suddenly materializes in Angel’s offices, the rivalry begins anew. Walking the earth as a ghost, Spike is furious about his new incarnation, especially when he sees the power and money now at Angel’s command. Angel wants nothing more than to send Spike on to whatever hell awaits him, but no one knows how or why Spike has returned.

Still unsure of the reason he has been handed control of the most powerful law firm in the city, Angel will rely on his friends to run Wolfram and Harts’ many departments. Wesley Wyndam-Pryce (Alexis Denisof), the fallen Watcher Angel has come to depend on for his intellect and knowledge of all things supernatural, will head up the firm’s research department. The Host, also known as Lorne (Andy Hallet), has rejoined the group after his disastrous gig in Las Vegas, and is the perfect demon to run the entertainment division. No one can schmooze evil show-biz types like Lorne. Winifred "Fred" Burkle (Amy Acker), who joined the group after being rescued from another dimension, is blessed with a brilliant scientific mind that has saved Angel and his friends more than once. Fred is thrilled with her new job heading up the companys scientific research department, complete with a high-tech laboratory, the best equipment money can buy and a staff of scientists.

Most surprising of all is the role played by the streetwise renegade vampire hunter Charles Gunn (J. August Richards, "The Temptations"). Gunn receives an instant legal education when all knowledge of the law is downloaded into his brain. Gunn has gained a brilliant legal mind, but he has lost some of the trust of his friends since no one, not even Gunn himself, knows what else the Wolfram and Hart doctors may have downloaded or uploaded from his mind.

With Wolfram and Hart under new management, Angel and the gang will take on one supernatural case after another. Their client list will be a mix of good and evil characters, including a werewolf, a necromancer who uses human bodies as vessels for demon spirits, and terrorist who threatens Los Angeles with a deadly virus. Along the way, familiar faces from Sunnydale will turn up unexpectedly, including Spike’s former squeeze, vampire/valley girl Harmony (Mercedes McNab), who is Angel’s new secretary. Willow (Allyson Hanigan, "Buffy The Vampire Slayer," the "American Pie" movies) is also expected to pay her old friends a visit in Los Angeles this year, along with the Slayer herself, Buffy Summers (Sarah Michelle Geller).

For now, however, Angels finds himself in a new and brighter world, surrounded by hundreds of co-workers and clients, but only a handful of people he can trust. Angel may have emerged from the darkness, but the line between good and evil will be harder to see than ever before. All he can do is go on with his quest to redeem himself - and the rest of the world.

"Angel" was created by Academy and Emmy Award-nominated writer Joss Whedon, along with David Greenwalt. Whedon serves as executive producer, along with Sandy Gallin, Gail Berman, Fran Rubel Kuzui, Kaz Kuzui, Jeffrey Bell and David Fury. "Angel" is a Mutant Enemy, Inc. and Kuzui/Sandollar production in association with Twentieth Century Fox Television.