Cool article, well thought out and written. Although I'm gonna be an Andrew for a second and correct her in that it's not "Billy Holly" but "Buddy Holly", and the title of McLean's song referencing the plane crash isn't "The Day the Music Died", (that's just a lyric) but "American Pie".

I am an annoying nerd. I will go now...

EdDantes | May 20, 21:43 CET

Well done, 'kat. I'm repeatedly impressed by her essays. The former English major in me is proud of 'em...

RambleOn623 | May 20, 22:56 CET

Ditto. Bravo SK. But then I already bravo'd her. Well, bravo agin! Dagnabbit!

ZachsMind | May 21, 01:04 CET

Again, excellent article by this person. So much insight that really gets you thinking even more.

Firefly Flanatic | May 21, 02:16 CET

Great essay from Shadowkat. Again. But I'm not so sure Angel, Gunn, Illyria and Spike are heading as inexorably to their deaths as Butch and Sundance were. Maybe they were all going to die, maybe they weren't. We can't know for sure. Angel & Co. have beaten seemingly insurmountable odds time and again. Yes, I get that the ultimate point is not whether you're heading towards doom but *how* you approach it. Fighting the good fight not for the glory but for the pure good of it. I get that.

And yet, as always, Joss provides an extra layer of possibility and speculation.....he makes his point about the purity of Angel's essential mission but if he had left us with the certain knowledge that Angel would die in a blaze of glory fighting that dragon, I would have been disappointed. It would have seemed too dogmatic for the Whedonverse. I expect curve balls from Joss and I feel I got it in "Not Fade Away." It is the openness, the creative possibilities of Joss's endings that I admire so much. We, the faithful viewers, are given the gift of spinning endless marvellous scenarios of what happens after the fade to black.

phlebotinin | May 21, 06:20 CET

Keep in mind too that this ending was going to be the same even if there was a next season so obvioulsy they weren't all going to die and Joss has said he had great plans for Illyria. Gunn is the only one that possibly wouldn't have made it but I don't think they would've let Gunn survive to the final battle just to kill him off in the opening episode of the next season. They would've all lived to fight another day! Plus between Spike, Angel and Illyria, they more than made up for the lack of numbers with enormous strength. Even toned done Illyria was still flinging Spike across the room. Oh and Angel was still enabled with the extra strength from drinking Hamilton's blood and Hamilton beat the crap out of Illyria.

[ edited by blwessels on 2004-05-21 04:33 ]

Firefly Flanatic | May 21, 06:32 CET

Exactly, blwessels! And who's to say Connor wouldn't have shown up? Or how about a phalanx of slayers showing up? Or White Witch Willow? Or one of the PTB intervening? Or with Drogyn dead, the Old Ones are unleashed and Wolf, Ram and Hart are suddenly besieged with forces primeval that scorn them? Or Illlyria's army is renewed? The possibilities are endless.....and they certainly weren't endless with poor old Butch and Sundance. Yep, those two were headed towards the Big Sleep.

phlebotinin | May 21, 06:47 CET

Phlebotinin, we think too much alike! I posted earlier the possibilities of what could happen and I also thought that Connor could be lurking about not wanting to leave Angel and wanting to help. I'm sure he would've been part of the solution if there was to be a next season.

I like your possibilities! When they asked Giles to send help they were turned down because they thought they were working for the bad guys. I'm sure they'd show up in large numbers once they realized what was happening and Andrew had quickly gathered a large number of Slayers to help take Dana away from them. So that is a major possibility that Willow would show up leading an army of slayers too. Zachsmind had even speculated that the demons rushing towards them weren't rushing in to battle but to worship Angel (something like that - sorry Zachsmind if I got it wrong).

Can't you picture that happening. The new season opens with that scene, them all ready to battle and when the mob gets to them they start bowing down and saying "Long live Angel" or something like that. Angel, Spike, Gunn and Illyria just look around at each other confused at first and then realize what has happened. That would be a twist Joss Whedon would do.

Ahh, but we'll never know how they were going to get out of it! But we have our vivid imaginations and can come up with a ton of ways that they win the battle.

Firefly Flanatic | May 21, 06:57 CET

the finale being open ended, combined with everyone's theories about what happens after that final scene is what makes it easier to handle the cancellation, and to happily watch the dvds and reruns.

i was so worried with the Buffy and Angel finales that things would end in such a way that it would sort of pain me to revisit the episodes... much the way i was never able to deal with Xena after it ended.

t r a c y | May 21, 07:53 CET

But we WILL know!

Can't you just see the wheels turning in Joss's mind? He won't be able to silence those voices. That of Angel, Illyria, Spike, and more. They all still have so much to say, to DO!

C'mon Joss, as Angel would say: "Let's go to WORK!"

Willowy | May 21, 07:54 CET

And I know this might make some of you cringe... but I can just see the first scene of the first movie... the camera swoops in from far away, down to our Hero's alley. Swords a clashin', fur a flyin'... then one quick, tight zoom.

Buffy. With an army of her own. Slayers all.

Why the hell not? Angel's saved HER bacon more times than not. Now its her turn to save him. And his.

Willowy | May 21, 07:57 CET

Oh, I could see that happening in a feature film! It even would seem somewhat predictable and I wouldn't care! I'd love that!

Firefly Flanatic | May 21, 08:05 CET

Willowy, you just made my heart jump.

And for the first time in weeks, I have hope. :)

Thank you.

Lalia | May 21, 08:10 CET

blwessels, Lalia, you so get it!

Even though I know Joss will probably do it way different, it's my brain's way of coping. Projecting what I'd love to see...

Thanks for understanding...

Willowy | May 21, 08:44 CET

Willowy, blwessels, Lalia, I like the way all of you think! Willowy, I couldn't agree more that Joss won't be able to silence the creative voices in his head. The stories will come out, someway, somehow.

phlebotinin | May 21, 17:15 CET

I don't think that there is any doubt that the slayers have a part to play in that fight. I mean, really, when was there an apocalypse you could keep a slayer AWAY from? The real interesting part comes after -- Angel, who has his hands as dirty as they have ever been, Illyria, who doesn't know what the hell a slayer is, Gunn (who of course survives, don't you know -- the opposite of the stereotype where the brother gets killed first is the brother who gets killed last) has all kinds of possibilities as a lawyer with a conscience and a battleaxe, and Spike, Spike is always in the mix.

I could even see the slayers taking Angel in for incarceration because of his role in killing Drogyn and in Wolfram & Hart.

brother_grady | May 21, 19:39 CET