All That Matters Is What We Do

 Episode 2.16: Epiphany. Original Airdate: 2.27.01

“Angel has an epiphany which has him questioning his actions over the past few months. Meanwhile, the three eyed demon clan is after Gunn, Wes and Cordy. It’s up to Angel to save them … if they can all start trusting him again.”
 

Zelda’s Thoughts:

All right y’all. Let’s have us an epiphany.
Starting where we left off, with Angel waking post-coital with a gasp. As in Buffy, he runs out into the rain, his shirt half on. Pretty sure this rain only exists at the Hyperion, since Cordy doesn’t seem to encounter it on her money-getting errand/trap.
Darla assumes what we’re all assuming (if we don’t know the future), that his soul is flying the coop and soon he’ll be smoking and wearing eyeliner again.
But Angel looks at her, stricken. “You saved me.”
And he apologizes to her. And somehow that apology makes her realize it didn’t take. “You saved me. I’m sorry I couldn’t do the same thing for you.”
She even asks the same thing poor Buffy asked, “Was it not good?”
Angel agrees it was perfect. “It was perfect despair.”
He says she’s always been the reason, for everything. (um, okay) I don’t quite know why he’s classifying sex with her as saving him from what he was sinking to.
But on the plus, what she’s saying is making him recall echoes of the message Kate left, and he rushes off to save her. And he’s able to enter her home, even though he’s never been invited in. And he couldn’t save Darla. But he can save Kate.
Powers-That-Be intervention? Or was she truly, momentarily dead?
Honestly I have to go with PTB because … if she was dead he would have had to do CPR, and he told us he couldn’t administer it to Buffy in “Prophecy Girl” because he has no breath. If the show doesn’t want me to call shenanigans, it has to be PTB intervention.
Darla’s back at Lindsey’s, where he knows he has to keep her even more of a secret. But she’s got the ring that Angel stole, and Lindsey recognizes it. Apparently after Angel swiped it they disenchanted it, so Darla doesn’t even get her Power Ring. She’s having a rough year.
Caritas in off hours! Lorne’s got an adorable honeycomb-colored robe. 

He thinks Angel’s turned a corner. Heyo we’re done with Beige Angel! Swank.
“It’s called a moment of clarity, my lamb. And you’ve just had one.”
Angel doesn’t know how to get back to what he was. “Well, that’s just the thing. You don’t. You go on to the new place, whatever that is.” I love this.
Wow, Lorne even gives Angel the out that the wine cellar slaughter would have happened with or without Angel’s help. And like. I just. I get not holding Angel accountable for Angelus’s atrocities. But he needs to be held accountable for stuff he does while still in possession of his soul.
Lorne tells Angel he needs to save the rest of his team, and I have so many questions about how Lorne knows any of this. No one’s singing. I thought singing is how he unlocks his thang. But he just seems to be in possession of all necessary knowledge, from Angel’s sexing to his not-beiging, to the team in danger, and you know what, this time I am calling a shenanigan.
Anyway, Cordy arrives at the Sharp home, and no one’s there, the lights are out, but the door is apparently unlocked so she lets herself in and I know she has seen horror movies come on.
Welp, that’s four dead bodies on the floor.
And she has a vision too late to save herself. She shouts to the PTB: “That was helpful!”
Aw man, since this is the same night as last ep, poor Wes is wheeling around his apartment, newly dumped, when he hears what we know is Skilosh demons approaching. And he can’t reach his weapons, though he’s trying.
Oh he got the shotgun down. Good job Wes.
But it’s Angel at the door, demanding to be invited in before the demons can get to him. And soon enough, hey, that’s two demons down.
Wes almost smiles in triumph at Angel, then remembers, and frowns: “What are you doing here?”
*snort* Lindsey, after pouting on the couch, gets his cowboy boots out of the closet. Yee-haw!
Wes is in the car with Angel, off to try to rescue Gunn and Cordy, but he’s still not too fond of broody boy.
And Angel’s doing this fake-cheerful attempt at bonding (over gut-wounds) that I always superhate from him because they’re going for funny awkward but it’s so far away from Angel’s energy that I don’t even buy it as an overcompensation. I’m really gonna hate it when it comes back in S5 with Wes’s father.
Aaaaaaaaand hey it’s time for another Please Why No Stop recurring theme of demons forcibly injecting Cordelia with their spawn and CAN WE PLEASE FUCKING NOT.
Wes reminds Angel that he doesn’t know the team anymore, that Cordelia isn’t the party girl he seems to think she still is. “It’s the visions, you see. The visions that were meant to guide you. You could turn away from them. She doesn’t have that luxury.” I guess they’re implying that she’s continued to have visions we haven’t been seeing?
Meanwhile Gunn and Wes have a secret handshake now. Angel’s feeling all jealous. Good.
“Does it make sense that she would go there in the middle of the night without calling either one of you?” // “They owe us money.” // “Let’s go.”
Aaaaaaaaand Cordy’s got that third eye spawn thing going on.
Wes and Gunn are both pretty dismissive of Angel’s epiphany. “That’s real good that you can have one of those. Ain’t that good, Wes? Cuz, you know, epiphanies, they handy. When do you think you might be having another one? … No, I’m interested, you know, cuz they could strike at any time. Could be the next time you see one of them lawyers, you get all epiphanied off right back at them.”
Welp, that’s five Skilosh here to attack our three in the car. Angel tells the other two to keep driving to Cordelia, while he stays to fight the ones that found them.
But before they can battle, the quintet all scatter—because Lindsey and his cowboy boots and old truck have shown up and he literally crashes his car right into Angel and his epiphany.
I have a hard time believing Lindsey’s been lawyering around in this truck. Did he just keep this as his spare vehicle for when his cowboy self re-emerged? With how difficult parking is in LA?

Lawyer Lindsey now available in Farmhand Lindsey

Hot damn, he’s got a big ol’ mallet to beat Angel up with. This isn’t toxic masculinity at allllllll, beating someone up for having sex with someone who’s not even your actual partner. Nothing gross to see here, moving along.
So since Angel didn’t do battle with the five Skilosh, does that mean they have circled back to the Sharp house and in fact will be there to hurt our trio? Angel, already failing on his redemption mission.
But first let’s have him beat the shit out of Lindsey, including the fairly brutal blow of smashing his prosthetic hand with the mallet. “Could have been the other one. Just be glad I had an epiphany.” Before then, he did get in an apology that hit some valid points, including that he didn’t try harder to save Lindsey when it seemed possible to save him, last season.
Wes has come so close to giving us some pratfalls, but I’m grateful he hasn’t, since he would definitely tear his stitches. But the almost-falls are still amusing. He’s a good physical comedian.
Angel smashes Lindsey’s truck into the house, which is the confirmation we didn’t need that the entire Sharp family is dead. Sorry, Cordy, you’re still not getting paid.
The eye-spawn thing is undone by Wes, Angel fights off the demons, I have about 30 questions about why they didn’t just plant their spawn in Mama Sharp, and why they seem to have just fled now because I don’t think Angel killed them, but whatever, let’s get to the emotional beats.
No, you know what, before we get to that, shenanigans on the whole Skilosh masterplan. They should have implanted in all the Sharps rather than slaughtering them, and they shouldn’t have just fled in disgrace when Cordy was un-implanted. We’ll never see them again so I guess their vengeance vendetta is an only-sometimes situation?
Why is it a recurring issue on this show, that even when their emotional arc stuff is strong, the minutae of the demon-of-the-week is invariably sloppy? It wasn’t this consistently sloppy on Buffy.
Cordy tells Angel he really hurt her feelings, and lets Wes and Gunn help her, Angel returns the  car to Lindsey with a “Thanks” message, Lindsey sees that Darla has moved out, and Angel and Kate finally have their heart to heart.
“In the greater scheme or the big picture, nothing we do matters. There’s no grand plan, no big win … If there is no great glorious end to all this, if nothing we do matters, then all that matters is what we do. Cuz that’s all there is.” This is the line, the line people always quote when they talk about why they love Angel. The notion that even with no final reward to expect, the fight is still worth it. Doing good is still worth it. Being good is still worth it, as end in itself. It’s the most important thing. It doesn’t have to be about one grand gesture that saves the world. It can be one small gesture that makes one part of the world a better place.
It’s also a reiteration of his conversation with Buffy in “Gingerbread.” “We never win … We never will. That’s not why we fight. We do it cuz there’s things worth fighting for.” Wait does that mean his epiphany is something he already knew two years ago? And that another show already covered? Oops.
Ooooooops.
Kate’s had her own little epiphany, having survived her suicide, and she’s ready to keep fighting. “I think maybe we’re not alone in this.” // “Why?” // “Because I never invited you in.” I think she’s siding with the PTB intervention too.
And for our final emotional beat, Angel visits the office where the trio are. “I’m sorry.”
And in another capitulation, he doesn’t want them to work for him anymore. He wants to work for them. “Why?” // “Because I think I can help.” And that’s right. They’re the ones who didn’t abandon the mission, whose commitment has been unshaken. Better to follow their lead, and work on re-earning their trust.
“Let’s go.”
 

Daniel’s Thoughts:

 
Rainy windy evening at the Hyperion. We start where we left off.  Angel wakes.  Is his soul leaving his body like when he slept with Buffy? Let's see.
Darla joins him on the balcony satisfied with herself.  She wanted this.  She expected this.  
She thinks he needs a fresh kill to wipe away the memory of his soul.
She also admits she was planning on killing him.  
Whoops, he still has his soul. The thing is, Angel’s not playing her here. He genuinely feels sorry for her.  What we're seeing is Angel's [insert title of episode here].
I dunno. I think Darla is smarter than this. Especially as an ex-prostitute, she should know that orgasm doesn’t equal perfect happiness.  But maybe she trusted in their centuries old relationship.  Vampires can be idealistic too.
When Darla says “I trusted you,” Angel suddenly remembers Kate.
He runs to her apartment.  He’s able to come in – I’m assuming because she was legally dead on the ground.  I’m not really sure how Angel saves her.  He drags her into the shower but that’s about it.  He has no breath so he can’t do CPR.  Does that mean she wasn’t actually dead when Angel entered?  It’s a bit odd. [Wait. - 40 Minutes Later Daniel]
Meanwhile Darla is back home and Lindsey arrives.  He’s so in love with her and Christian Kane really sells it.
This scene is too long.  Lindsey finds out Darla & Angel are together and he acts like a jealous boyfriend.
Caritas. Angel comes to tell Lorne about what happened; ask for advice.
He feels guilty about the death of the lawyers. And other things he's done.
“I’m not your link with the powers, Angel. I never was.”  Yeah, that was Cordelia.
Lorne: “It depends on whether or not they live through the night. “  How does Lorne know this?
Cut to Cordelia…being dropped off by a taxi to the Sharp residence.  She kinda just walks in?  The door was open but still weird to do.
She finds the entire Sharp family dead.  She has a vision and kinda…too late?  Wish she had the vision in the cab. “That was helpful,” she shouts to the heavens & I laugh.
We don’t see what happens to Cordy but she wakes up after being knocked out.
“Three are responsible. Three must pay.”  The demons have a third eye in the back of their head.  Cordelia realizes the connection now.
Cut to Wesley.  He hears the demons coming but he’s stuck in his wheelchair.  It’s a nice tense and suspenseful moment while he's trying to get his shotgun from the closet.  A shotgun isn't the first weapon I'd associate with Wesley.  He seems more of an axe man, being a demon hunter and all - but I'll allow it.
Angel arrives to the rescue! He begs Wesley to invite him in.  He does. The demons break through the window. They fight.
Wesley shoots  one.  Eww, Yellow gory blood. 

Unintentional Homoerotic Content

Wes does a quick smile but then he remembers that he’s angry with Angel and asks what he’s doing there and it’s very cute and so in character.
And now Angel is being awkward and it’s also sweet. 

We could call it an epiphany as the title suggests or Angel might be bipolar?
“Guess who stabbed me,” “Darla?” Heh.
Wesley fills Angel in on the Skilosh demons.  They’re an interesting species: Asexual, they reproduce by infecting a human host….that explodes out of the human when it’s born.  What a fun existence.
And for the second time this series, Cordelia has been impregnated by a demon.  
Angel and Wesley look for Cordelia at the office but of course she’s not there.  We still haven’t seen Gunn.
Angel thinks she’s out with friends but Wes shows Angel that he doesn’t know Cordy as well as he thinks he does.  He tells Angel that she’s changed partly because of the visions. Angel is shamed and rightfully so.
Gunn’s back. For some reason Wes thought he was leaving for good.  I didn’t get that from the last episode.  I’m not sure why Wes did.
Angel is pretty much in goofy repentance mode and it’s silly but I’m here for it.
Clues! Gunn figures out where Cordelia went. 
Cordelia, who has now passed out for a second time, wakes up.  [One day I'm gonna wake up in a coma - Cordy] This time, with a third eye in the back of her head.
“You just wake up and, ‘bang?’” “Kinda the other way around.” HA.
Holy crap! A demon just jumped into Angel’s moving car!
They fight it off.  But there are more coming.  Angel tells Gunn to take the car and get to Cordelia while he fights them off.
Angel’s about to fight when they run off.  Lindsey, in some weird truck runs him down.  

Farmhand Lindsey now comes with Truck from the 1930s!

Wes & Gunn are outside the house.  They see Cordy with her third eye with all the demons.  Wes says gestation might be almost complete – but the little girl had this eye for way more than just one night. SHENANIGANS.
Lindsey comes out looking like a farmer and hammers Angel. Wait. I mean with a literal hammer.  He’s pissed about Darla but he doesn’t know the whole story.  He thinks Angel did something to Darla.
Lindsey puts the hammer away and gets a stake.
“I’m sorry she’ll never love you.” Ouch.  Angel knocks Lindsey out and takes his truck.
Wes & Gunn have been captured. It’s all up to Angel now.
Oh hey, they want to impregnate Wes & Gunn now. 
Angel smashes though the living room with Lindsey's truck.  How did he know he wouldn’t hit his friends?
Anyway, Angel fights and kills the demons while Wes performs the magic spell to….er….abort the demon spawn.
Lindsey comes home to Darla being gone.
Oh hey, Kate stopped by the Hyperion.  
This is Kate’s last episode and for so long, I’d forgotten she had such a long arc. And I think I forgot that because it was a long arc – but it wasn’t a detailed one.   I’m glad she’s having a happy ending and an epiphany of her own.
Kate brings up a loose end as well and I’m glad she did.  She never invited Angel in, yet he was able to come in anyway.  And she wasn’t dead, as I thought….so something else intervened.  And It doesn’t feel forced.  It doesn’t feel like a plot hole. It feels earned. And it’s a nice moment.
“I don’t want you to come work for me.  I want to work for you.” And shut it, you’re crying.
And Cordy has another vision.  Some generic big scary.  Wesley says “Avengers Assemble” and the all go.  The gang is back together.

Favorite Lines:

Zelda: I was tempted to go with the line that everyone knows, but I really like this one too:  Angel: “I don’t know how to get back.” // Lorne: “Well, that’s just the thing. You don’t. You go on to the new place, whatever that is.”
Daniel: Gunn: “You just wake up and, ‘bang?’” Angel: “Kinda the other way around.” 

 

Arc/Continuity:

Recurring: Detective Kate Lockley (final episode), Lindsey McDonald, Lorne, Darla, Francine Sharp (as a corpse), Skilosh Demon
Lorne’s Nicknames: my lamb, sparky
 

Stats:

Cordelia’s Hair – well there’s this third-eye-egg situation
Dead Humans – 3
Dead Undeads – 2
Dead Flashbacks – 0
Dead Lawyers – 0
Cordelia Has a Vision – 2
Wesley Prat-falls – 0
Lawyered Ex Machina – 0
Evil Reveal – 0
Unevil Reveal – 1 (Angel isn’t Angelus … YET)
Shenanigans Called – 3
Apocalypse Called – 0
Prophecy Called – 0