Thankfully, we’re back to the threat-of-the-week format and the series improves exponentially once again.  I think this is an object lesson for me: I typically want the arc storytelling that I was introduced to with  Babylon 5, but not all series are cut out for it.  I am finding the quality of the stand-alone episodes of Angel far higher than the arc stories.  

In Waiting in the Wings, Summer Glau plays a ballerina and makes her mark on Joss Whedon.  She’d be back for Firefly when he got around to his incredibly popular space western.  The episode offers a chance for some romance for the regular cast too, which ties in with the story of a ballet troupe.  But am I happy with the end result?  Mostly, but I do feel badly for Wes… 

I’ve often mentioned a great ice-breaker book that I have called The Book of Questions.  It offers a lot to think about.  One question that comes up is who, if anyone, we’d want to trade places with.  Don’t get me wrong, being wealthier and living in a mansion sounds nice, but I rarely want to change lives with anyone; I’m a happy sort of fella.  However, I begin to think that maybe David Boreanaz would be a candidate I’d consider.  While possessed in the BARDIS – that’s my word for Ballet and Relative Dimension in Space due to having internal dimensions far bigger than the building that houses it – he and Cordy start taking on the personas of the lead ballerina and one of the troupe who have a love affair behind the jealous owner’s back.  This leads to some steamy scenes between Cordy and Angel.  I was very happy to see them bonding like this.  Now if only Wesley could have the same with Fred…

Fred, Wesley and Gunn are enjoying the ballet and both prepare to hold Fred’s hand at the same time just as Fred realizes that Cordy and Angel have been missing for far too long.  They go to investigate and, as one thing often leads to another, Gunn makes the first move on Fred who is incredibly receptive to the attention.  Wesley misses out because he waited in the wings for too long.  Gunn was more direct.  I don’t know if I really think it’s his style to become googly-eyed, but Fred is adorable, so I can ignore that.

Similarly, our ballerina has been trapped, repeating the same events for over a century because the jealous owner believes she dances for him alone.  She has waited in the wings, and only with Angel’s advice, does she break the pattern.  This weakens the owner’s hold enough that Angel is able to completely break the spell and free the ballerina (and presumably the rest of the troupe) from the plight.  Note to all would-be spellcasters: if you’re going to use a gem to house all your power, don’t wear it in plain site like a wannabe Dracula!  Angel figures it out almost as fast as the audience! 

As the episode ends, Cordy and Angel flirt, but Angel doesn’t make his move and Groo shows back up from Pylea.  Cordy runs into his arms and they embrace.  The message of the episode is pretty clear: don’t wait for your ship to come in; swim out to it!  It’s actually startlingly good advice.  Sometimes, you can miss out on a golden opportunity while waiting for something to happen when you could have made that very thing happen if you just acted.  (And that line is a double-edged sword for me: had I gone into acting, I might have met Charisma Carpenter and…. no, no, no, best not go down that rabbit hole!)

One of the things I was very impressed by in this story was the giggling characters that remain offscreen just long enough.  When they appear, I wanted to get those masks for my house.  (My wife will eventually have me move out if I keep trying to add such great props to my collection…)  Those faces were a mix of Guy Fawkes meets The Joker.  Bravo for one of the best sets of masks in the whole run of the series.  

Also, the series can do so much more when not bogged down by the need to follow a story arc.  The characters can enjoy personal development from their own arcs without the need for multiple connected stories.  To my surprise, that  works really well and we see how continuity still plays a part but doesn’t weigh down the story.  Cordy remembers what she was like at the start of Buffy The Vampire Slayer, but she’s grown as a person.  That’s character development told through an arc, but if you walked into the middle of the series, it wouldn’t impact ones enjoyment whereas a story arc could be the difference of sticking with a series or walking away because you have no idea of what’s going on.

The other thing this series does exceptionally well is comedy.  “Well, it’s a puzzler!  Are there snacks?”  The amount of laugh out loud moments I have while watching this series is off the charts.  (It’s not Resident Alien where, in nearly every episode, I guffaw at least once, but it’s an impressive amount of great lines.)

Cordy:  “Whoa!” 
Angel: “That’s a fair assessment!”   

But perhaps the best moment was also the most subtle one.  After Cordy and Angel have gotten pretty passionate, they escape the room where they were possessed by the previous inhabitants love for one another.  Cordy comments that at least the effects fade quickly.  Angel rapidly takes his coat off and drapes it over his arms.  The attentive (mature) viewer understands the significance perfectly but nothing need be said for the younger crowd.  I did get a hearty laugh out of that!

I am consistently impressed by this show. I had taken a brief hiatus for a work trip and wasn’t overly excited to come back because the Darla/baby arc just didn’t interest me.  I came back to a standalone episode that has made me want to dive right back in and binge the rest of the season.  I just hope we do more non-arc stories; they always have such consistently high-quality that I wonder why we ever need an arc story again.   ML