Angel: There's No Place Like Plrtz Glrb

Wesley and Gunn lead a band of rebels in battle to end slavery in the demon dimension, Cordelia realizes her life might not be as nice as it could have been and Angel must fight his inner demon for control.

You get the feeling that nothing's going anywhere in this episode. After two episodes of wandering, being captured, sitting about talking and not doing anything, this story isn't really any better. The only saving grace it has is that it brings the cast home, returns The Host to full technicolour life(he doesn't die unless his head is cut off AND his body mutilated) and brings the whole saga to a welcome end.

It's got a distinct shortage of funny moments, most coming when people see The Host's head talking, the characters surrounding our heroes are as two-dimensional and wooden as they come, and new inductee Winifred, while quite sweet, doesn't really seem to offer anything more than a second female perspective and some quirky lunacy. With reports that she is going to become a regular next season, I'm not sure exactly how she'll fit in.

The recent experiences of the main cast are put into perspective in a particularly heavy-handed way too. Gunn learns that sometimes people die for the good of others, Wesley learns more about leadership, Cordelia learns that being at the top of the tree isn't always a good thing and Angel learns he's a man first and a demon second. They're not particularly good lessons and they don't seem to add anything to the characters, making this whole experience seem like an almighty waste of time. Even The Host's final goodbye isn't funny or clever, and we viewers are left wondering how it all went horribly wrong after such a promising start to the season. The only comfort is that we hopefully won't get more drivel of that kind next season. Although it's quite a nice touch to have Willow turn up at the end as a tie-in to Buffy, it's pointless and doesn't end the season on an upbeat or downbeat note, just a slightly puzzled one.

**

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