| "I Will Remember You" | |
|---|---|
| Angel episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 1 Episode 8 |
| Directed by | David Grossman |
| Written by |
|
| Production code | 1ADH08 |
| Original air date | November 23, 1999 |
| Guest appearance(s) | |
| |
"I Will Remember You" is episode 8 of season 1 in the television show Angel, originally broadcast on the WB network. In this episode, Buffy follows Angel back to Los Angeles, where she confronts him about his surreptitious assistance back in Sunnydale. They are attacked by a Mohra demon; when Angel kills the demon he is restored to life by its powerful blood. After The Oracles — a link to The Powers That Be — confirm he is human again, Angel and Buffy spend a blissful night together. When Doyle receives a vision that the Mohra has regenerated itself, Angel leaves to kill the demon for good. In the ensuing battle, Angel discovers the consequences of having only human strength; Buffy must come to his rescue and slay the demon herself. Angel returns to The Oracles, who agree to turn back time so that Angel, accepting the entire cost of the bargain, can kill the Mohra before its blood makes him human. This episode is #78 on the TV Guide list of TV's Top 100 Episodes of all time.
Plot[]
Buffy surprises Angel with a visit to Los Angeles. Their emotion-driven discussion is interrupted by the arrival of a Mohra demon. Angel stabs the demon, but it retreats to the sewers. Buffy and Angel hesitantly follow, discussing their future as a couple and their feelings for each other. They split up, and Angel meets the demon on his route. As they fight, the Mohra demon cuts Angel. Angel kills the demon, and its blood, eventually found to be the Blood of Eternity, merges with his own, making him human.
Realizing what this means for their relationship, Angel spends the night with Buffy. However, Doyle shares the news that the Mohra demon is alive: the demon's rejuvenating blood also worked on itself. So, Angel sets out with Doyle to kill the demon, without Buffy's much-needed supernatural assistance. Angel fails miserably until Buffy shows up and slays the demon. Angel realizes how useless he is in his human form, and asks the Oracles to turn back time to make him a "demon with a soul" once more. They consent, and time is set back twenty four hours despite a heartbroken Buffy begging Angel to remain human before the Mohra demon is killed, with only Angel as a witness to the night he and Buffy shared in the erased timeline.
Production details[]
In his essay on the music used in Angel, Matthew Mills points out how, when Angel asks the Oracles to turn back time, the slow tempo and use of the clarinet in the background music adds "emotive weight to the Oracles' sympathy" for his situation. As the Oracles explain that only Angel will remember the moments he shared with Buffy, Angel's theme ends on a minor key, underscoring the sacrifice being made.[1]
"Angel is one of those heroes who flourish on frustration," Peter S. Beagle says, "who thrive on never achieving their hearts' desire." This episode, in which Angel relinquishes the chance to have a normal, happy life with Buffy in order to "fulfill his penance," perfectly typifies Angel's character and fate, says Beagle.[2]
Reception[]
Noel Murray of The A.V. Club liked the premise but not the whole execution, writing, "It's an undeniably sweet episode, but I have to say I found the set-up clunky and the complications a little forced, no matter how beautifully it all plays out."[3]
In Entertainment Weekly's list of the 25 best Whedonverse episodes—including episodes from Angel, as well as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly and Dollhouse—"I Will Remember You" placed at #14.[4] This episode was rated the series' best episode in a poll done by Angel Magazine in 2005.[5]
References[]
- ↑ Mills, Matthew (2005), "Ubi Caritas?: Music as Narrative Agent in Angel", in Stacey Abbott, Reading Angel: The TV Spin-off With a Soul, I.B.Tauris, pp. 33–34, ISBN 1-85043-839-0, https://books.google.com/books?id=7B42U0hgDy0C&q=angel+%22city+of%22+debut+episode+first&pg=PA75, retrieved 1 November 2007
- ↑ Beagle, Peter S. (2004), "The Good Vampire: Spike and Angel", in Glenn Yeffeth, Five Seasons of Angel, BenBella, pp. 120, ISBN 1-932100-33-4
- ↑ Murray, Noel (7 August 2009). ""The Initiative", etc". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 3 July 2013.
{{cite web}}: - ↑ Bernardin, Marc; Vary, Adam B. (24 September 2009). "25 Best Whedonverse Episodes". Entertainment Weekly. http://www.ew.com/ew/gallery/0,,20302134_20307632_20672923,00.html#20672938. Retrieved 3 July 2013.
- ↑ Top Angel episodes, BBC, 18 January 2005, https://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/news/cult/2005/01/18/16581.shtml, retrieved 2007-10-16
Further reading[]
- Muir, John Kenneth (2008). The Encyclopedia of Superheroes on Film and Television (2 ed.). McFarland & Company. pp. 55. ISBN 9780786437559.
External links[]
| Angel episodes | ||
|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | "City Of" • "Lonely Heart" • "In the Dark" • "I Fall to Pieces" • "Rm w/a Vu" • "Sense & Sensitivity" • "Bachelor Party" • "I Will Remember You" • "Hero" • "Parting Gifts" • "Somnambulist" • "Expecting" • "She" • "I've Got You Under My Skin" • "The Prodigal" • "The Ring" • "Eternity" • "Five by Five" • "Sanctuary" • "War Zone" • "Blind Date" • "To Shanshu in L.A." | |
| Season 2 | "Judgment" • "Are You Now or Have You Ever Been" • "First Impressions" • "Untouched" • "Dear Boy" • "Guise Will Be Guise" • "Darla" • "The Shroud of Rahmon" • "The Trial" • "Reunion" • "Redefinition" • "Blood Money" • "Happy Anniversary" • "The Thin Dead Line" • "Reprise" • "Epiphany" • "Disharmony" • "Dead End" • "Belonging" • "Over the Rainbow" • "Through the Looking Glass" • "There's No Place Like Plrtz Glrb" | |
| Season 3 | "Heartthrob" • "That Vision Thing" • "That Old Gang of Mine" • "Carpe Noctem" • "Fredless" • "Billy" • "Offspring" • "Quickening" • "Lullaby" • "Dad" • "Birthday" • "Provider" • "Waiting in the Wings" • "Couplet" • "Loyalty" • "Sleep Tight" • "Forgiving" • "Double or Nothing" • "The Price" • "A New World" • "Benediction" • "Tomorrow" | |
| Season 4 | "Ground State" • "The House Always Wins" • "Slouching Toward Bethlehem" • "Supersymmetry"
| |
| Season 5 | "Conviction" • "Just Rewards" • "Unleashed" • "Hell Bound" • "Life of the Party" • "The Cautionary Tale of Numero Cinco" • "Lineage" • "Destiny" • "Harm's Way" • "Soul Purpose" • "Damage" • "You're Welcome" • "Why We Fight" • "Smile Time" • "A Hole in the World" • "Shells" • "Underneath" • "Origin" • "Time Bomb" • "The Girl in Question" • "Power Play" • "Not Fade Away" | |
| This page uses Creative Commons Licensed content from Wikipedia (view authors). |