“Smile Time”

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Episode 14 of Season 5

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“You’re a wee little puppet man!”

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Original US airdate: February 18th, 2004

Rewatched: September 20th, 2024

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• Writer: Ben Edlund & Joss Whedon

• Director: Ben Edlund

• Guests: Mercedes McNab, Jonathan M. Woodward, Jenny Mollen, Marc Vann

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Buffy had a good number of “special” episodes – a dream episode, a silent episode, a musical – but this is Angel’s first special episode, the one where Angel becomes a Muppet-style puppet. What’s interesting is that the special episodes on Buffy often represented key moments in the season or series, but this episode of Angel is really more focused on a humorous monster of the week.

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Demons have taken over a kids’ show (and possessed the puppets). They are draining the life force of kids, hoping to sell it and make a fortune. While investigating, Angel ends up in the room with the demons’ nest egg, some powerful thing they are using to drain and store the life force, and this somehow turns Angel into a puppet. The gang bands together to fight the puppets and break the spell on the nest egg, returning the life energy to the kids and Angel to his true form. It’s nice to see the gang do good again, and perhaps for a brief moment to forget all the gray areas of working for Wolfram & Hart, and it’s fun to see puppet Angel save the day.

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Despite the lightness of this episode, two important themes come up. First, relationships. It’s just after Valentine’s day and Knox gives Fred a card, but she responds that they’ve talked about it and she just wants to be friends. In fact, it looks like she’s sending signals to Wesley that she’s interested, but he’s just not picking up on them. At the end of the episode, Fred kisses Wesley. Then, Nina is back. It’s the full moon and she’s staying safe at Wolfram & Hart. She’s interested in Angel, who is picking up her signals, sort of, but is too afraid to start a relationship (he’s not done well in that department- he turned evil with Buffy, Cordy went evil, slept with his son, and then died (which no one seems to be talking about despite it happening just two episodes ago) and Darla was… Darla). However, Wes does point out what he had with Buffy may never repeat and by the end of the episode Angel has decided to give dating a werewolf a try.

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The final theme is Gunn’s place in the world. His new lawyer mojo is slipping. He visits the doctor who gave him the implant and he claims it must be what the senior partners want. Gunn isn’t willing to lose his new skills, calling them power, and claiming they’ve changed him. He says, “I’m not going back to who I was.” The doctor calls Gunn’s old self street muscle and a high-school drop-out, tugging at Gunn’s insecurities to get him to make a deal. The doctor is willing to give Gunn a new implant if Gunn helps him get an artefact through customs. It seems like such a small thing… unfortunately, it will have grave consequences. Gunn’s insecurities won’t let him think about whether this is truly the right course and whether he may be someone worthy even without his fancy brain upgrade. Conversely, like Wesley in season 3, his refusal to really discuss this with his friends is part of the problem. Perhaps they could have been voices of reason. Unfortunately, Gunn isn’t willing to think his decision through. He wants to keep his power and doesn’t bother to consider the possible costs.

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“A Hole in the World”

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Episode 15 of Season 5

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“There’s a hole in the world. Feels like we ought to have known.”

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Original US airdate: February 25th, 2004

Rewatched: September 28th, 2024

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• Writer: Joss Whedon

• Director: Joss Whedon

• Guests: Sarah Thompson, Jonathan M. Woodward, Jennifer Griffin, Gary Grubbs, Alec Newman

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It’s three episodes (and less than a month) since Cordelia died and now it’s Fred’s turn. Although, unlike Charisma Carpenter, Amy Acker will remain on the show, playing the demon Illyria who killed Fred, it does rub me the wrong way that all the female members of Angel Investigations end up dead this season. And Fred’s death does negate some of her character arc, as did Cordy's.

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The episode opens showing Fred leaving her parents in Texas and heading off to LA to study. We all know what goes in the blanks. She studies, she gets sent to another dimension by her crazy professor where Angel Investigations finds her. I would like to underline that although the episodes in which Fred is found read much like a fairy tale, she was never a damsel in distress. She helped Angel cope with his demon in Pylea and her math gave Angel Investigations the key to opening a portal (the only thing Fred was missing to return herself to LA was knowledge of where the portals could open). In LA, she became a valuable, smart, and brave member of the team, often finding the solution and using her skills to fight evil. She also was briefly in love with Angel, dated Gunn, and in this episode it’s clear she’s now together with Wesley, something Gunn is taking better than Wesley did when in the same position.

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But in this episode, she accidently breathes in dust from inside a sarcophagus and is infected with an old one, an ancient demon who died before man. Fred is out of commission this episode, relying on the gang to figure out if they can save her. Wesley hits the books. Gunn visits the White Room, where the conduit now looks like him. They track down Eve, thinking she and Lindsey may have a role in this, but when she sings, Lorne says it’s not them. Gunn finally figures out that Knox is involved. Knox, and some others, worship Illyria, waiting for her return. That the demon ended up in LA was foretold. Knox chose Fred to be the vessel because he loves Fred. But it all hit one snag. The sarcophagus got stuck in customs. The paperwork Gunn signed for his upgrade allowed Illyria to be brought to Fred.

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Angel and Spike, although they spent 40 minutes at the beginning of the episode fighting about whether cavemen or astronauts would win a fight, and although Angel is thinking of sending Spike away, are able to join together to try to find a solution. They travel to the deeper well, the place the dead old ones are stored, hoping to find a way to draw Illyria back. The deeper well is a hole that goes straight through the earth, testimony to the history of the world before man arrived. Unfortunately, there is no feasible way save Fred. At the same time, Wesley brings Fred back to her apartment, keeping her company as she gets worse and worse, both still hoping for a miracle. Fred and Wesley share quite a few moments, but one in particular stands out, as it reiterates Fred heroism.

Fred: My boys. I walk with heroes. Think about that.

Wesley: You are one.

Fred: Superhero. And this is my power: to not let them take me. Not me!

Finally, however, it is clear Fred is going. Her last line is heartbreaking, as she begs to stay. “Please Wesley, why can’t I stay?”

 

Fred is gone. Illyria is here. It’s unclear whether Illyria is male or female, or something else, but I have chosen to use "she". She has taken over Fred’s body, and she proclaims, “This will do.”

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In some ways, Fred’s death is even more tragic because season 5 was the last season. Plans were made to explore Illyria having Fred’s memories and being able to look and act like her. It’s done on a few occasions in season 5 but was evidently meant to happen more often in a potential season 6, which may have allowed interesting themes of what a person is really made of. If Illyria can be Fred, is Fred really gone? But this was never done, and we are left with a hole shaped liked Fred.

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On a final note, Knox can be viewed as the epitome of toxic male behavior. If he can’t have Fred, no one else can have her. He will erase her and replace her. And he seemed like such a nice guy. There’s definitely a message in there.

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“Shells”

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Episode 16 of Season 5

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“My world's gone.”

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Original US airdate: March 3rd, 2004

Rewatched: October 4th, 2024

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• Writer: Steven S. DeKnight

• Director: Steven S. DeKnight

• Guests: Mercedes McNab, Jonathan M. Woodward, Marc Vann, Jennifer Griffin

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This episode deals with the fall out from Fred’s death. First, Angel Investigations is not willing to give up. They know people can be brought back from death and will not stop to find a solution. They reach out to Giles, in hopes of tracking down Willow, but he refuses to help. In the end, they discover that Illyria taking over Fred’s body destroyed her soul. There is no Fred to come bring back, although Illyria does show Wesley that parts of Fred remain in her and she can use this to mimic Fred. The final scene of the episode shows Fred driving off for LA, long before her death, leaving her Texas home (a continuation of the scene at the beginning of the last episode). It is Fred’s final send off.

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Grief affects the characters differently in this episode. Losing Fred allows Angel to finally also grieve Cordy. His unwillingness to give up and accept Fred’s death is colored by his anger over losing Cordy, and in such a similar both. Both women were taken over by another force, who used them for their own ends.

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Wesley is also set on finding a way to save Fred, but at the same time also on exacting revenge. He goes hunting for Illyria. He tracks down the doctor Gunn went to, and also confronts Gunn. Gunn, while mourning Fred, is less willing to accept his guilt. In their exchange, this becomes clear.

Gunn: It was just a piece of paper. I was losing it. Everything they put in my head. Everything that made me different, special. And he could fix it. Make it permanent. So, I signed a piece of paper. It was a customs release form, I didn’t think anyone would get hurt.

Wesley: Nothing from Wolfram & Hart is ever free. You knew that.

Gunn: I couldn’t go back to being just the muscle… I didn’t think it would be one of us. I didn’t think it would be Fred.

Wesley: I understand not wanting to go back, not wanting to be who you were. I understand it and I can forgive it, but you knew what was happening to her. You knew who was responsible and you didn’t say anything. You let her die, I’m less forgiving of that.

Wesley stabs Gunn (but misses all vital organs). Later in the episode, he shoots (and kills) Knox. Wesley does know, deep down, that Gunn didn’t mean it. But Gunn also didn’t communicate, which could have saved them all a lot of pain. Viewers should remember, however, that these rash decisions are not fully out of character for Gunn. After all, he did sell his soul for a truck, not thinking about the consequences. Also, the irony of Wesley being angry about Gunn’s lack of communication in the group and the consequences it caused is an interesting parallel to what happened when Wesley’s actions caused Connor to be kidnapped. True, Wesley cannot remember now what he did then, as all memories of Connor are gone, but for viewers to see Wesley angry at Gunn for a similar reason why Angel was angry at Wesley in season 3 is interesting.

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Spike also mourns Fred, but his mourning leads to a decision to stay in LA. First, he claims it’s because Fred would have wanted it, but then he gets a bit more nuanced.

Spike: It’s what I want. I don’t really like you [Angel]. Suppose I never will. But this is important. What’s happening here. Fred gave her life for it. The least I can do is give what’s left of mine. The fight’s coming, Angel, we both feel it. And it’s gonna be a hell of a lot bigger than Illyria. Things are gonna get ugly. That’s what I live.

 

Finally, there’s Illyria. She does not grieve Fred. But she does grieve the world she lost. On her arrival, she is set on finding her temple and raising her army and taking over the world again. She does find her temple, but it’s in ruins. Her army is dead. The world she knew is long gone. She ends up back at Wolfram & Hart because she has no where else to go. She goes to Wesley.

Illyria: We cling to what is gone. Is there anything in this life but grief?

Wesley: There’s love. There’s hope. For some. There’s hope that you’ll find something worthy, that your life will lead you to some joy. That after everything, you can still be surprised.”

Illyria: Is that enough?

Illyria asks Wesley to help her live in her new world, and Wesley agrees. Illyria is going to stay. And to get Wesley to teach her, she’s willing to live by Wesley’s terms of not killing anyone.

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Angel Investigations is left a bit shattered by Fred’s (and Cordy’s) death. Angel, Gunn and Wesley are all on uneasy terms. Angel has not forgotten what Wesley did to him. Gunn and Wesley, once on the road to having their friendship recover from their love triangle now need to get past Fred’s death (or not). Lorne, Illyria, Spike and Harmony are all outsiders to some extent, not part of the core group and in no position to hold Angel Investigations together. The family of season 1 is finally, fully no more.

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“Underneath”

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Episode 17 of Season 5

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“Not an apocalypse, the apocalypse.”

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Original US airdate: April 14th, 2004

Rewatched: October 11th, 2024

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• Writer: Sarah Fain & Elizabeth Craft

• Director: Skip Schoolnik

• Guests: Christian Kane, Sarah Thompson, Adam Baldwin

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The team is still dealing with the aftermath of Fred’s death. The episode starts with Angel trying to hold a team meeting. Lorne is MIA, getting drunk at a bar which may be a rebuild Caritas, although the fact that the bartender seems to view Lorne as a customer may call this into question. Wes is babysitting Illyria, and getting drunk and dreaming of Fred, a dream which may foretell Fred still being a part of Illyria (something only briefly explored this season). Gunn is still in the hospital, wallowing in guilt and refusing to use the skills that cost Fred her life. Only Spike turns up, showing in his own way that he wants to be on the team. But of course, on his own terms. He brings a briefcase full of beer to the meeting.

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The main question of this episode is what the Senior Partners are up to. We finally find out a bit more about Eve – she is an immortal child of the Senior Partners, there to do their bidding, but she doesn’t know much about them. Or rather, if she does, she can’t access it. With the Senior Partners out to get Eve, Angel and Spike decide to protect her, in hopes of gaining her knowledge. They save Eve at Lindsey’s apartment, take her to the Wolfram & Hart offices, where Gunn, convinced by Angel to use the knowledge that cost them so much to fight the good fight, tells Angel he can put Eve under Angel’s protection. A lot of the episode is spent running from whatever is chasing Eve, but at the end of the episode, Marcus Hamilton, their new liaison with the Senior Partners shows up and Eve is forced to sign over her immortality to him. The Senior Partners have indeed killed Eve… sort of. She’ll still lead a human life until its end.

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While Eve is fighting to stay immortal, she tells Angel that if he wants to know about the Senior Partners, he needs Lindsey, so Angel, Spike and Gunn set off to free him from his Wolfram & Hart holding dimension, a hell that looks like suburbia. They are able to free Lindsey, but it comes at a price. They have to leave Gunn behind. In a way, it’s an act of atonement. In another way, it’s a sign that Angel Investigations is not the same anymore, as they are willing to leave someone behind.

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Earlier in the episode, Angel visits Gunn in the hospital. There, Gunn is able to admit his guilt in Fred’s death for the first time. He knew there would be consequences when he signed the papers. He just didn’t think they’d be that bad. Angel gives Gunn a speech about atonement:

The thing about atonement is, you never run out of chances, but you gotta take ‘em. You can’t hide in some hospital room and pretend it’s gonna go away. ‘Cause it never will.

Gunn’s choice to stay is his chance at atonement. Maybe. Is it worth it? Maybe. Lindsey does know what’s going on, as he tells Angel after being rescued:

Lindsey: Not an apocalypse, the apocalypse. What, did you think a gong was gonna sound? Time to jump on your horses and fight the big fight? Starting pistol went off a long time ago, boys. You’re playing for the bad guys. Every day you sit behind your desk, and you learn a little more how to accept the world the way it is. Well, here’s the rub. Heroes don’t do that. Heroes don’t accept the world the way it is, they fight it.

Angel: You’re saying everything we do, it’s a distraction? Keep us busy from looking under the surface?

Lindsey: Ding! We got a winner. World keeps sliding towards entropy and degradation and what do you do? You sit in your big chair, and you sign your checks just like the Senior Partners planned. The war’s here, Angel, and you’re already two soldiers down.

So, now Team Angel knows more. The question remains what they will do with this knowledge. Will they be able to be heroes?

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While the main theme of this episode revolves around the Senior Partners, Lorne also has an important scene. Drinking at the bar to drown his sorrow over Fred, he expresses his overall dissatisfaction with where he has ended up, showing once more that he is, at heart, not really a true member of Angel Investigations.

What do I think? I think I’m tired. I think I’m sick and tired of wearing bells on my toes and making like everything’s gonna be okay. I think it’s pathetic that lately I’m too scared and sad to tell people the truth, so I just say what they want to hear instead. Most of all, I think the term “happy hour” should be banned from the English language. There’s nothing happy about this hour or any other … What I know is I started drinking the moment that I found out that a girl I loved was gonna die and every time I get to the bottom of the glass, I hope that that last drop is gonna take me the distance … A simple plan that failed utterly, which is why I’m gonna heave my tuchus off this stool, strap the bells on and with a smile and a quip, go back into the belly of a very ugly beast, and pretend like I can help, ‘cause that’s what the green guy does.

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Angel Investigations is not, as Lindsey said, down two soldiers. They are down Cordy, Fred, Gunn and Lorne. They have gained Spike and maybe Harmony and Illyria, but it’s unclear how ready the team is to face the apocalypse that Lindsey says is on the way.

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On a final note, while filming this episode, the showrunners let the crew know the show was cancelled. It came as a bit of a surprise, as they were certain the show would be renewed for a 6th season. Much of what this episode (and some of the previous) laid the groundwork for needed to be sped up to fit into the remaining five episodes of this season, which I think can be felt while watching them.

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