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coalescentWhat, you thought I could let a DVD release for my favourite TV show pass without comment? Not likely.
It seems to me that the thing about TV show fandom - the thing that makes it fundamentally different from film or book fandom - is that the work is available for discussion and dissection whilst it's still in progress. I'm generalising, of course, but I hope you can see what I'm getting at: The complete story is told in a comparatively shorter time, and installments are far more regular, than is the case for series of movies or novels. One of the consequences of this is that when caught up in the thick of it, it is easy to become obsessed with minutiae. The DVD release, then, is a welcome chance to change perspective: To step back, and look at the story as a whole.
Angel's third season is a season of parts, and that's much more obvious now than it was at the time. The central idea - a collision between Angel's attempts to build the family he has never had, and the designs of one of Angelus' victims out to avenge his losses - is more than solid, but on an episode by episode basis, the quality is inconsistent. The best example of this is the midseason run from 'Lullaby' to 'Waiting In The Wings', which veers from masterful to dire on a weekly basis, but it's a problem that afflicts the entire season to a greater or lesser extent. 'Carpe Noctem', 'Dad', 'Offspring', 'Provider', 'Tomorrow'; season three is a rich tapestry of love, hatred, betrayal, vengeance and justice, but it is too frequently let down by setup or followup that simply isn't all it should be.
Don't get me wrong, I love this season. I think the highs are extraordinary: The horror of 'Billy', the grandeur of 'Lullaby', the beauty of 'Waiting In The Wings', and the epic tragedy that runs from 'Loyalty' through to 'Benediction': These are powerful, interesting stories. And since one of the best things about the season is the variety of different styles it attempts it feels a little churlish to complain that some of them don't work; indeed, despite the consistent quality of the arc in season four, I find that it is a little all-consuming for my tastes. I miss the perfectly formed standalone stories, to an extent. There isn't an episode in S4 that I could show to a friend and say 'here, this is my show. This is why I watch it', because it has become impossible to understand the episodes in isolation.
As it happens, there was a throwaway comment hidden away on one of the DVD extras that I think may be relevant here. One of the writers describes how each season is a separate story, like a novel, and then suggests that S3 is 'the middle volume'. That's essentially true, I think; the first half of the season deals with numerous issues introduced in season two - Gunn's old gang, the arrival of Fred, the consequences of Angel's one-night stand with Darla, Cordelia's worsening visions - whilst the second half fundamentally changes the group dynamic in ways that are still being played out now, over halfway through S4. And if that is how the writers see the story, then it explains the arc-density of the season; it is the culmination of story threads that have been developing or waiting for years.
Back to season three, though: What makes it work? Over and above all the usual strengths of Angel, I would point to two things. The first is the quality and nature of the villains, and the fact that they spend as much time sabotaging each others' plans as they do causing trouble for Angel Investigations. It makes the story feel more real - and to be honest, it's just a whole lot of fun watching Sahjan, Holtz and Wolfram and Hart bounce off each other.
I could write an entire essay on the brilliance of Holtz and Sahjan as antagonists; the depth and ambiguity of the one, the machiavellian nature and black, black humour of the other, but I won't. Suffice it to say I think they're probably the two most entertaining bad guys yet to appear in a Mutant Enemy production - and yes, I'm including the Mayor in that.
The second factor is Angel's propensity for change. I bring this up frequently, and often go on about it at great and tedious length, but I think it's important: There is no status quo on this show. On Buffy (to make the inevitable comparison), characters may go evil, characters may have relationships and break up, characters may die, but the core structure of the cast stays the same. Buffy, Xander, Willow and Giles: So it was, so it shall ever be. What season three of Angel demonstrates once again is that it does things differently. By the end of the season, the core group is fractured, separated by distance and by feeling. Early episodes showcasing the friendships amongst Angel Investigations take on an added poignancy. And it's not just the relationships between the characters that change, it's the characters themselves - all of them. Much has been made of the spare-wheel nature of Fred and Gunn, but even they end the season in a far different position than they started.
(Much has also been made of the alleged destruction of Cordelia's character. I don't see it myself, and although I don't much care for 'Tomorrow', I applaud the writers for pushing her story to a logical conclusion in the way they have done.)
That's why season three is good. The DVDs are good because you get two entertaining commentaries from Tim Minear and friends, and one informative commentary from Joss Whedon; because you get out-takes and deleted scenes; because you get a couple of nicely put together featurettes about the writing process and about Darla - but most of all, the DVDs are good because you get twenty-two episodes of Angel, in all their widescreen glory.
It seems to me that the thing about TV show fandom - the thing that makes it fundamentally different from film or book fandom - is that the work is available for discussion and dissection whilst it's still in progress. I'm generalising, of course, but I hope you can see what I'm getting at: The complete story is told in a comparatively shorter time, and installments are far more regular, than is the case for series of movies or novels. One of the consequences of this is that when caught up in the thick of it, it is easy to become obsessed with minutiae. The DVD release, then, is a welcome chance to change perspective: To step back, and look at the story as a whole.
Angel's third season is a season of parts, and that's much more obvious now than it was at the time. The central idea - a collision between Angel's attempts to build the family he has never had, and the designs of one of Angelus' victims out to avenge his losses - is more than solid, but on an episode by episode basis, the quality is inconsistent. The best example of this is the midseason run from 'Lullaby' to 'Waiting In The Wings', which veers from masterful to dire on a weekly basis, but it's a problem that afflicts the entire season to a greater or lesser extent. 'Carpe Noctem', 'Dad', 'Offspring', 'Provider', 'Tomorrow'; season three is a rich tapestry of love, hatred, betrayal, vengeance and justice, but it is too frequently let down by setup or followup that simply isn't all it should be.
Don't get me wrong, I love this season. I think the highs are extraordinary: The horror of 'Billy', the grandeur of 'Lullaby', the beauty of 'Waiting In The Wings', and the epic tragedy that runs from 'Loyalty' through to 'Benediction': These are powerful, interesting stories. And since one of the best things about the season is the variety of different styles it attempts it feels a little churlish to complain that some of them don't work; indeed, despite the consistent quality of the arc in season four, I find that it is a little all-consuming for my tastes. I miss the perfectly formed standalone stories, to an extent. There isn't an episode in S4 that I could show to a friend and say 'here, this is my show. This is why I watch it', because it has become impossible to understand the episodes in isolation.
As it happens, there was a throwaway comment hidden away on one of the DVD extras that I think may be relevant here. One of the writers describes how each season is a separate story, like a novel, and then suggests that S3 is 'the middle volume'. That's essentially true, I think; the first half of the season deals with numerous issues introduced in season two - Gunn's old gang, the arrival of Fred, the consequences of Angel's one-night stand with Darla, Cordelia's worsening visions - whilst the second half fundamentally changes the group dynamic in ways that are still being played out now, over halfway through S4. And if that is how the writers see the story, then it explains the arc-density of the season; it is the culmination of story threads that have been developing or waiting for years.
Back to season three, though: What makes it work? Over and above all the usual strengths of Angel, I would point to two things. The first is the quality and nature of the villains, and the fact that they spend as much time sabotaging each others' plans as they do causing trouble for Angel Investigations. It makes the story feel more real - and to be honest, it's just a whole lot of fun watching Sahjan, Holtz and Wolfram and Hart bounce off each other.
I could write an entire essay on the brilliance of Holtz and Sahjan as antagonists; the depth and ambiguity of the one, the machiavellian nature and black, black humour of the other, but I won't. Suffice it to say I think they're probably the two most entertaining bad guys yet to appear in a Mutant Enemy production - and yes, I'm including the Mayor in that.
The second factor is Angel's propensity for change. I bring this up frequently, and often go on about it at great and tedious length, but I think it's important: There is no status quo on this show. On Buffy (to make the inevitable comparison), characters may go evil, characters may have relationships and break up, characters may die, but the core structure of the cast stays the same. Buffy, Xander, Willow and Giles: So it was, so it shall ever be. What season three of Angel demonstrates once again is that it does things differently. By the end of the season, the core group is fractured, separated by distance and by feeling. Early episodes showcasing the friendships amongst Angel Investigations take on an added poignancy. And it's not just the relationships between the characters that change, it's the characters themselves - all of them. Much has been made of the spare-wheel nature of Fred and Gunn, but even they end the season in a far different position than they started.
(Much has also been made of the alleged destruction of Cordelia's character. I don't see it myself, and although I don't much care for 'Tomorrow', I applaud the writers for pushing her story to a logical conclusion in the way they have done.)
That's why season three is good. The DVDs are good because you get two entertaining commentaries from Tim Minear and friends, and one informative commentary from Joss Whedon; because you get out-takes and deleted scenes; because you get a couple of nicely put together featurettes about the writing process and about Darla - but most of all, the DVDs are good because you get twenty-two episodes of Angel, in all their widescreen glory.
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no subject
Date: 2003-03-10 11:14 am (UTC)Reading this, I suddenly realised that ever since the Angel Investigations group started to become fragmented in S3 I have in fact been waiting for them all to come back together. Because that's what usually happens. As you point out, it's what happens in Buffy. I suppose I should have learnt; Angel's always had more of a tendency to shake things up, dating back to the killing off of Doyle in S1. So, quite realistically, there is no reason to expect that the group will slowly drift back together again at the end of S3/in S4, even though that is what I've come to expect because that is what the usual narrative conventions have led me to expect. I like it when a series doesn't give me what I'd predict it would give me.
Vague spoilers for S4
Date: 2003-03-10 02:49 pm (UTC)I think it's pretty much certain that they'll end up fully back together at some point, if only to provide a change of pace. I fully expect that the configuration will be different to last time around, though - I can't see Wesley being the leader again. I can't really see Angel being comfortable with the leader role any time soon, either...