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5.15 A Hole in the World

Fred: "Cavemen win. Of course the cavemen win."

Fred again a reluctant damsel in distress, her men all around her sickbed, Angel saying meaningfully, "Winifred Burkle," Wesley actually shooting that guy in the leg ... all very touching. Whedon's moving script and the sheer Buffy-ness of the dialogue were all quite satisfying. But to be honest, I can't help but feel manipulated; this is ground we have covered before. Wesley and Fred finally get together, and one of them dies? Fred's body is possessed and goes wildly evil with a striking change of appearance? There was even the parallel of Fred spitting blood on Wesley and passing out, very much like Tara's blood splattering Willow. We're "Seeing Red," except this time, Illyria's icy makeup makes it more like seeing blue.

The Angel/Spike scenes were so wonderful, though, that they completely overshadowed Fred's lingering and horrible death. I loved it all, from the theoretical argument about cavemen and astronauts, to the two of them flying in a jet for the first time, to -- of all things -- holding hands in the Cotswolds. Angel and Spike are family, when you come right down to it, and Boreanaz and Marsters are simply wonderful together. They bounce dialogue off each other like... well, like Spike and almost anyone, come to think of it, but with a special zing because of their shared past and all they have in common.

Poor Eve, crouching in Lindsey's apartment, hiding from the senior partners; she's heading for a bad end, according to Lorne. I almost felt sorry for Eve; she was a lot more human here than she's ever been before. And Lorne was actually scary, which is a new look for him. I loved the simple way he explained his love for Fred: "Winifred Burkle once told me, after a sinful amount of Chinese food and in lieu of absolutely nothing, I think a lot of people would choose to be green. Your shade, if they had a choice."

Lindsey was used as a red herring to keep us from realizing right away that it was Knox. I bet Knox is dead, really dead, not-coming-back dead... and Gunn killed him. How did Lorne's screening miss Knox? Was it because Knox, like many religious fanatics, thought he was doing something good?

The conduit has gone from mysterious, to enigmatic, to frightening. It's interesting that Gunn is now seeing this conduit to evil as himself. In bargaining away Fred's life as well as his own, Gunn has become a tragic figure, much as Wesley was at the end of season three; essentially, he and Wesley have traded places.

Again, a main character has died... but the question remains: is it permanent? After all, Angel and Spike are both dead and they're still around; I think Fred will be back. But if Fred's skin has hardened into a shell and her organs have liquified -- I'm assuming that includes her extremely sharp brain -- this can't be good, resurrection-wise. In order to get to the possibility of bringing back Fred, they'll first have to defeat Illyria... and I have a thought. Couldn't they take Illyria's sarcophagus from L.A. to the New Zealand Hole in the World over the ocean, thereby avoiding all populated areas in between? Sure, it'd be a long flight, but as Knox said, they have good jets.

Lots and lots of bits and pieces:

-- Fred's wonderful parents, Roger and Trish from "Fredless," were in the opening flashback. Fred told Wesley to tell her parents that she wasn't scared. Will we be seeing them in a future episode? I hope so; I loved Roger and Trish.

-- The flamethrower/nest scene was an obvious takeoff of "Aliens," with Fred as Ripley. The Deeper Well looked a lot like the life capsules in "The Matrix." And Drogyn, keeper of the well, looked Lord of the Ring-y. Okay, I'm done now.

-- The hole in the world thing was an interesting addition to Buffyverse lore. And it's in the mystical Cotswolds, which are mentioned fairly often.

-- Feigenbaum the bunny, the "master of chaos," reminded me of Mr. Gordo.

-- The jewel on the sarcophagus that Fred touched was pink and shaped like a heart. Ironic, huh? Reaching for love, and she gets death?

-- Angel: "You just like stabbing me." Spike: "I'm shocked, shocked that you'd say that. I much prefer hitting you with blunt instruments."

-- And my favorite: Angel: "You and me. This isn't working out." Spike: "You saying we should start annoying other people?"

-- Angel mentioned Cordelia's death again. Appropriate, since now both female "Angel" cast members are now dead.

-- Lorne talked about praying for Fred. I wonder what god or gods Lorne prays to? Not Illyria, anyway.

-- "Make like Carmen Miranda and die"? Is that along the lines of "make like a tree and leave?"

-- We finally got the Gilbert and Sullivan: "Three little maids from school." J. August Richards has a good voice. Lots of good voices on this show.

-- It wasn't just echoes of "Seeing Red"; there were lots of references to past episodes. "Handsome man saves me [from the monsters]" from the Pylea episodes; "Wes and Fred?" "You didn't know?" Angel said much the same thing when Fred was dating Gunn.

-- Was it me, or did Alexis Denisof look even handsomer than usual in this episode? Maybe married life agrees with him.

-- The book Wesley was reading to Fred was one of my childhood favorites: "A Little Princess," by Frances Hodgson Burnett. It's about a rich little girl who loses everything, but retains her dignity and character. I wonder if this was a hint that the essential Fred will somehow survive.

-- The mention of Spike taking off, working out of Wolfram & Hart offices all over the world, 007 without the poncy tux... would some network please pick up "Angel" and pair it with a Spike spinoff? I know, I know, but I can dream, can't I?

Four out of four stakes, again. And next week, Amy Acker in very cool makeup finally gets to chew the furniture,

Billie





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