Deutsche Version | Angel: Season 2 | Angel: Season 4

Disc 1

Heartthrob

Synopsis: Angel skips about the same time as Buffy did. Buffy has been dead for three months and Angel has been mourning in a monastery in Sri Lanka for about the same time. Now he’s back and on his first hunt he kills an acquainted vampire before he recognizes her. But he also knows her boyfriend James and he wants vengeance.

My Opinion: On one hand I find it a pity that they jumped over these three months, on the other hand we would have only seen a broody and solitary Angel. The episode itself wasn’t that interesting and a bit weak for a season opener.

That Vision Thing

Synopsis: Cordelia now gets visions that physically hurt her and several of it in a very short span of time. It is unclear why the “Powers That Be” would suddenly hurt Cordelia but Angel does anything in his powers to quickly finish the assignments.

My Opinion: I am quite interested in that prisoner. He could be a formidable enemy or we could never see him again, both is possible in Angel. If it was not settled until now, now it’s clear that it is a bad idea to try to blackmail Angel.

That Old Gang of Mine

Synopsis: A number of demons are arbitrarily killed and there is no pattern to be seen. Some of them are dangerous, some of them are totally harmless. As it turns out, Gunn’s old gang is somehow involved in this.

My Opinion: I think it’s historic irony that a group of black people tells other living beings that they don’t belong here, that they have no right to live. Granted, demons are indeed no humans but blacks also were told that they were less worthy. The world is grey, it’s not black/white and neither is it separable into good/evil.

Carpe Noctem

Synopsis: Angel and the gang investigate in a case were a number of men mysteriously died. Everything points to a certain gym – or to the building opposite of it.

My Opinion: I love body-switch episodes. They are always fun because the actors can behave in a way which their usual role doesn’t allow. It’s also nice to see the confusion that comes out of such switches. The best body-switch episode I’ve ever seen was a Farscape episode.
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Categories: Angel Marathon, DVD / Blu-ray, DVD Marathon
Tags: Angel · Buffy the Vampire Slayer · Farscape · Star Wars · Stargate SG-1 · Xena: Warrior Princess
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Deutsche Version | Part 2

Every story has a beginning and for a TV show it’s (often) the Pilot. I simply love pilots. It’s the one episode that I watch more than any other episode of the show.

I’ll watch them in the order in which they stand on my shelves, so there’s no secret master plan why one show comes before or after the next.

As Kosh would say: And so it begins.

Xena: Warrior Princess

What’s the show about?
The former warlord Xena has reformed and fights now for the good. She and her sidekick Gabrielle travel through the ancient world of Greece, North Africa and Asia. They fight with and against other warlords, demons and gods.

What happend before?
Xena is a spin-off of Hercules where Xena was introduced. Back then she was still a warlord until she lost her army due to a mutiny. After that she helped Hercules defeat a vicious monster.

“Sins of the Past”
Xena cannot escape her past even when she tries to. On the way to her hometown Amphipolis she saves a group of people – including a young girl called Gabrielle – from being captured and sold into slavery. The attackers are under the command of Draco. When she denies him a real fight he decides to destroy Amphipolis and kill everyone. Now Xena has to protect a town that does not want her to be there…

My Opinion
Since the character was already introduced in Hercules one doesn’t learn much new about Xena in the pilot. Even if she had an affair with Draco remains unclear.
I always favoured Xena over Hercules because it was a bit darker and her enemies (Callisto, Ares, …) were more interesting

But there is one thing that bugs me while I’m watching the show. While I grew up I read a lot of greek mythology. I’ve read the Iliad, the Odyssey, I watched every Hercules/Heracles movie there was. And I am still used to the german names of everything: Herkules, Achilles, Zeus, … . While the spelling is only slightly different, the pronunciation is completely different. Everytime I watch Xena or Hercules and they pronounce greek names it sounds totally wrong. Period.
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Categories: DVD / Blu-ray, DVD Marathon, Pilot Marathon
Tags: Alien Nation · Buck Rogers · Farscape · Firefly · Quantum Leap · Star Trek · Star Trek TNG · Stargate Atlantis · Stargate SG-1 · The 4400 · Xena: Warrior Princess
Comments: No comments