Via the kindness of yabympan, I was able to sit down last night and watch the first three Angel episodes, 'City Of, 'Lonely Hearts' and 'In the Dark'. Below are just a few, largely unconnected thoughts. I suspect many of them are very old news to most Angel watchers, and apologise in advance for this. My only real claim is coming at the series with fresh eyes.

1.1 'City Of...'

Exactly how long did it take me to realise that this show was fundamentally Whedon-esque in style? How long before I knew it couldn't be anyone else? About two minutes. The most obvious criticism which could have been thrown at the series opener was that it contained long patches of boring exposition, necessary for a new audience, tedious for Buffy fans. Whedon side-steps the 'spouting my entire history' clich� so beautifully, by making the stranger, (Doyle) do the exposition for him. While the explanation is got out of the way, the more fanatical viewer is wondering just how he knows this, what it purports, and just generally cheering at the trademark Whedon subversion.

Other thoughts about this episode. It's made clear right from the start that the position of the characters in relation to society is entirely different from that in BtVS. In Buffy, it's about children growing to be adults, rigidly within society, and growing up through it, even if it sometimes seems alien. In a sense, the original idea of the episode is people stuck within a society being led to someplace else. Buffy, Willow and Xander are all normal people who become invested in an abnormal society. But metaphorically, it's just all about growing up.

In Angel, all the characters are transparently aiming for re-integration. Angel wants 'forgiveness', and he is persuaded to stop brooding in the dark by Doyle, who contends that everyone has their issues. Of course, Cordelia has become a social isolate in a really painful way. I admire the fact that in BtVS Season Three, Cordelia's fall from grace is tragic, rather than being a simple example of the popular, unsympathetic person getting their comeuppance. At the beginning of 'City of', Cordelia is trying to become a part of the showbiz community, but is having trouble. The theme bringing them together is a need to re-integrate into society- to define themselves once again.

Of course, standing against these outcasts is the very scarily done patriarchy of Wolfram and Hart. No such element exists in Buffy up to this point, (if we can discount the excellent appearance of the police at the end of 'Out of Mind, Out of Sight', and this patriarchy somehow ties in both with the contrast to the outcasts, and with the city itself, a place with a hierarchical structure, and with skyscraper structures.

The style of Angel is quickly defined as different from Buffy, which is something I appreciated. There are many more smash cuts and white-outs. The series quite quickly positions itself as, at a surface level, an antidote to lawyer shows. And I can see the more left-wing aspect of Angel, which some have mentioned.

1.2 Lonely Hearts

I thought 'City of' was a really excellent episode. 'Lonely Hearts I had less time for, once again succumbing to my lack of interest in Fury episodes, with long, draggy scenes at the bar. But there were a couple of interesting points above the transparent AIDS metaphor. Loneliness was done well, and I really admired the construction of Kate, a character I want to (and I think will) see more of. The whole vibe of this episode reminds me strongly of the portrait of LA painted in Buffy's excursion in 'Anne'. There's that feeling of underclass, of dinginess, of loneliness and walls. The hierarchical structure of Wolfram and Hart reminds me of Greenwalt's aversion to structured privilege, which he vents in his commentary for Reptile Boy.

1.3 In the Dark

An interesting episode, if really mostly about the excellently written and acted Spike until the last few scenes, which I really enjoyed. In some sense, Angel is admitting that an attempt at simplistic re-integration to society without penance is useless. He needs to look after the people of the dark, but also to grow from out of the darkness, rather than merely transplanting himself. My problem with this episode is the swamping of the nascent characterisation of Cordelia and Doyle by the arrivals of Spike and Oz. It seems like an obvious backwards step. I don't like it as much as Buffy yet, for several reasons. Boreanaz and Carpenter have only one tenth the acting skills of Gellar and Hannigan, which makes me less invested in the character. But the season hasn't built to a crescendo, nor the character interactions yet, so I am much looking forward to giving it more time.