Angel 4.4 FAQ
What’s it called?
“Slouching Toward Bethlehem.”
Who’s responsible?
Teleplay is credited to Jeffrey Bell (“Forgiving,” “A New World”).
What did Herc say about this one in his Aug. 20 “Angel” spoiler post?
* At the end of 4.3 – scripted by "Furious" David Fury ("Disharmony," "The Price") – Angel, Fred and Gunn will return from their adventure in Vegas with Krevlornswath. In the lobby they find the long-lost Cordelia. They are shocked to see her safe and alive. The hitch: Cordelia greets them with the words, “Who are you people?”
* 4.4 will begin, however, with Angel’s spawn, Connor/Steven, coming to the rescue of a family of three. The family’s minivan has broken down in the middle of nowhere and they are beset by a tow truck driver and a mechanic who also happen to be vampires. Connor dispatches the soulless ones, but totally freaks out the people he rescues. Feeling ever so much the misfit, he resigns himself to hooking back up with his vampire pop.
* In the second scene of 4.4 – titled “Slouching Toward Bethlehem” by the way – we can see that Cordy really doesn’t know who her friends are. When Angel approaches her, she backs away, her expression one of fear. Before episode’s end, she will come to refer to Angel as “Mr. Bumpy-Face.”
* Cordy will also fail to recognize her greenish song-happy demon pal Krevlornswath, even though he has now returned to the City of Angel.
* Cordy doesn’t remember Steven/Connor either. This will not prevent Angel’s son from saving the lovely Ms. Chase from a demon looking to make her into an end-of-act-two snack. Has she forgotten she has demony superpowers?
* Toward the end of 4.4, Gunn will battle a Wolfram and Hart agent as tall and evil Wolfram attorney Lilah Morgan watches from a nearby rooftop.
What does TV Guide say?
After months of existing on a higher (and evidently very boring) plane, Cordelia inexplicably appears back at the hotel - with no idea why or even how she arrived there. Sadly, a serious case of amnesia prevents Cordy (Charisma Carpenter) from remembering either her friends or her past. Believing the full truth may scare her off, the gang attempts to hide the freaky facts about their lives. Unfortunately, that secrecy leads to mistrust on Cordy's part when the reality of their situation is revealed. Things get even more complicated when Lorne (Andy Hallett) reads her mind and sees a terrifying vision of the future. Meanwhile, outcast Connor struggles to find his place in the world.
The big news?
Connor touches Cordy’s gigantic right breast, Cordy and Connor end up in bed, and the two end the episode by moving in together.
Does Herc mislead us? Is there actual Connor-Cordy romance?
No kissing yet. But one senses chemistry.
What else is TV Guide not telling us?
Cordy may be an “Alias” fan. When she comes across pictures of herself wearing all the different hairstyles (and colors) over the years, she begins to suspect she’s a spy. (A suspicion seemingly confirmed when she finds herself employing Bristow-esque martial arts techniques to dispatch Wolfram & Hart agents.)
So Cordy has retained fighty skills? Does she still get visions?
None this week.
Does she still have demony superpowers?
None displayed this week.
Do we learn how or why she got out of the boring bright-light place?
Not this week.
What’s this about Krevlornswath gaining a terrifying vision of the future?
It’s so disturbing he doesn’t even want to talk about it at first. When Angel insists, Lorne offers this: “Ohh... do the words ‘slouching towards bethlehem’ ring a bell? Or how about ‘despair,’ ‘torment,’ ‘terror’? […] what I saw was jumbled. It was the pieces, flashes. It was enough to make my skin crawl away and scamper under the bed. Evil's comin', Angel, and ... and it's plannin' on stayin'.”
What’s this “Slouching Toward Bethlehem” business?
It’s from a famous 1919 poem by William Butler “Dubyabee” Yeats describing the approach of the antichrist.
At what point does Cordy discover the gang’s ruse?
She gets all the secrets about halfway through the hour.
Hey, what about Wes?
He and Lilah continue to have the dirty dirty sex. But one could say the relationhship takes a bit of a bump this week.
A bump big enough to split them up?
Perhaps not.
Does Wes make contact with any of his former employees?
He does.
Does he rejoin Team Angel this week?
No.
Is Andy "The Host" Hallett's name in the title sequence this week?
No.
What’s Justine the vampire slayer up to?
No Justine this week.
And the lightning lass? Does the fabulous Gwen Raiden lurk about?
Not this week.
But she’s coming back?
This I swear.
Um, didn’t you also swear that Jack Bauer would learn of Teri’s …
I don’t remember anything about that! My intel on Gwen is unimpeachable! Now get out of my FAQ!!
What’s good?
Cordelia going through the puzzling messages in her Sunnydale High yearbook. The way Angel stealthily scurries around with his jars of blood. Wolfram’s sneaky sneaky plot in general – and Lilah’s red nightclothes in particular.
What’s not so good?
For a bunch of “private detectives,” Team Angel sure turns out to be a bunch of boneheads; why don’t they just sit Cordy down from the get-go, let her ask lots of questions, and bring her up to speed gently? Also? Lorne just got back to the Hyperion like ten minutes ago, following three months in Vegas; so what’s that demon guy already doing up in his room?
How does it end, spoiler-boy?
The final line belongs to Wes: “It’s never simple, is it?”
Herc’s rating for “Angel” 4.4?
***1/2
The Hercules T. Strong Rating System:
- ***** better than we deserve
- **** better than most motion pictures
- *** actually worth your valuable time
- ** as horrible as most stuff on TV
- * makes you quietly pray for bulletins
9 p.m. Sunday. The WB.
