Angel - After the fall #7

[rogin]

Thanks to the awesome moscow_watcher  I was able to read the new Buffy and Angel issues. I'll just review After the fall  though. I enjoy S8 well enough, but it just doesn't get my wheels turning so hard that I want to write about it. I'll just enjoy and comment on other much more qualified reviews than mine would have been.
After the fall is a whole different story, I can  babble about it for hours :)

So let's start in the beginning: I like the original cover a lot. It's obviously made from photos from the show, but gorgeous nonetheless. Gwen looks pretty cool on it and makes me wish not for the first time that we would hear more about her.

The frame story is about the fish in distress again and I'm afraid the artwork is rather dreadful (as is the variant cover). Somehow the artist managed to make Spike look square jawed, like Captain America or something *shudders*.
It's very interesting though as is about everything involving Gunn these days. Why is Gunn so keen on having a telepath? There are obvious reasons but I'm pretty sure Gunn has a special plan for Beta George. Also nice that he wants to look for Spike to help him.

The first story is about Wesley this time with artwork by Nick Runge. It hurt in a good way to read in the beginning and then went from heartwrenching to pretty chilling in the end. To me it was maybe the best short story so far.

What surprised me was that the Fake!Fred was Eve (at least that's what I made of the snake and the fig leave). I figured that it was a set up from the beginning but I was pretty sure it would be Lilah's turn to show up. She was after all a very cool character and had some history with Wesley. Also we knew that she works for the senior partners and that Wes is fond of her, so that he might take her advice in this situation (I'm still hoping that they'll meet s ghosts at some point). Eve on the other hand worked with Lindsey against the senior partners and it's a bit strange that they entrust her with an important mission again. They obviously have the measures to control her, but she fucked up last time and she sure isn't the best girl to get Wesley to comply.

So Wesley's the reason they'll win, huh? I can see, where Wesley is going to be a problem. Since all signs (see icon) point towards Spike and Illyria getting involved in some way and Illyria now has more Fred inside herself than she used to, Wes is not going to be happy about this. He might see no way for himself with Fred but he sure would be willing to go some lengths to get her back. Maybe even sell out Angel. Assuming that the "he doesn't know yet"-phrase in the end  really referred to Illyria's change.

Unfortunately Wes' story didn't fit with my little pet theory that everyone got something back that they lost in the W&H deal but that might be because Wesley's contract isn't terminated yet.

Artwork was pretty ok, obviously from photos and scary when they smiled, but they both looked very much like themselves.

Connor's story: I adore that three-dads-thing he does. His situation really is quite unique, which is illustrated nicely when he meets Kate. It was so funny, how both of them kept bringing up Angel, not realizing who they both were to him, especially when Connor found that Kate's "quote" sounded very selfimportant. And of course he had to try and hit on her...hehe..I wonder what would happen if he ever met Buffy. There where no terribly important revelations in this chapter though, well except that Kate is in Hell A. too, but I'm not terribly excited about this.

As for the artwork: Grrrarhggg...Kate's face looked different every time and never like it did on the show.

And then comes the big bang in the end. So there are slayers in Hell A. and Gunn pitted his vamps again them! Ok, some of them must have been there, when the transition happened but how did Gunn get a hold of them (if he did) ? Are they still around or did he kill them all in his little training program? With his twisted world view I even wonder if he sees them as the enemy. Anyway all of this makes me even more excited about the next issue where Gunn's story will finally be told .  I think Brian even said somewhere, that we'll find out who sired him.

He's answering questions on the issue on his blog, which is very neat by the way.

ETA: Brian said Fake!Fred is not Eve!, courtesy to moscow_watcher for the link.

Comments

[rowanda380.livejournal.com]

Nice review. I definitely think this is finally the best Angel yet. I actually liked it the whole way through.
I agree with you about Gwen, they need to get her into the story more...but I have a feeling that will happen when we get more into Gunns story as well.

[moscow-watcher.livejournal.com]

I enjoyed your review. I pretty much agree with everything you say. I have the impression that Fred and Wesley close-ups are processed screencaps and I wonder what you think.

What surprised me was that the Fake!Fred was Eve (at least that's what I made of the snake and the fig leave).

On IDW forums people asked Lynch if it was Eve. He replied: "It wasn't Eve, no. Wolfram & Hart were tempting Wesley with the promise of his lady, so they were just going for some symbolic imagery."

http://idwpublishing.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=3933&start=15&sid=9a333a442ada51d6dbd57e9bf2ac6c5c

[flake-sake.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I'm glad you liked it. I hope they'll get Gwen into the spotlight at some point. At least she has to meet up with Connor and Nina.

[flake-sake.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

I have the impression that Fred and Wesley close-ups are processed screencaps and I wonder what you think.
They sure looked very familiar. And there were also those too bright smiles. I'm pretty sure at least some of the panels were made from screencaps. I usually prefer more comic style, less photo-realistic artwork but I liked it well enough and for once there was no trouble recognizing the characters.

He replied: "It wasn't Eve, no.
Wow, that's pretty interesting, thank you for linking it. Maybe it was Lilah after all,I'd like that. I thought she had to be someone they knew, because Wes was threatening her personally, not the senior partner but her, the messenger.

[rowanda380.livejournal.com]

definitely, and I am excited to see that...since she has never met either of them before and now she is living with them.
Though, I do have the feeling Gunn will bring her over to the dark side at some point, if someone is a traitor, it is her.

[flake-sake.livejournal.com]

That would be pretty interesting, Gwen always was one of the morally flexible characters. It would strongly depend on Gunn's plan though. I'm really looking forward to next issue for shining finally some light on him.

[littlesoprano15.livejournal.com]

I too figured it was Eve, what with the fig leaf, snake and the fact that the dialogue simply SOUNDS like her. Then I wondered if that was too obvious, but couldn't come up with anything better. It also seemed to me that if it is Eve, we are being led to believe that she was talking with the SPs. This doesn't entirely work though, as her ties with the SPs were definitely severed. Also, the dialogue from the "SPs" just sounded too... colloquial. Who would Eve be working with? Lindsay. It's a thought. Sure, he's dead, but who isn't at this point?

Maybe the reason that Wes is key has something to do with Illyria? Spider suggested to Spike that they ought to use her power, and Spike refused to "use her like that." She's arguably the most powerful demon in Hell-A, and certainly there are parties interested in exploiting that. Illyria is vulnerable to Wes, and, though she'd kill before admitting it, she has an odd tendency to do what he says. Could he manipulate her? Probably. "He doesn't know yet" could refer to the fact that Illyria is alive. Anyway, Fred showing up might be throwing a wrench into the SPs/mystery villain's plans, or it could be what they intended. Intriguing!

[moscow-watcher.livejournal.com]

Maybe the reason that Wes is key has something to do with Illyria?

Yes, I think it's pretty possible. Interestingly, the comics start with the line "It all started with a girl", implying Fred (who, obviously co-exists with Illyria in her body).

[flake-sake.livejournal.com]

Maybe the reason that Wes is key has something to do with Illyria?

I think soo too. I wonder how powerful Illyria is at the moment. Might be that she even is as strong as she was before they tuned her down.

I thought the "He doesn't know yet" might refer to Fred's return, but I can't really fathom what they're up to.

Thank you for stopping by, btw. *waves hello*

[littlesoprano15.livejournal.com]

*waves back* You're right-- "he doesn't know yet" could refer to Fred's return/existence, Illyria being alive, or even both. At the beginning of his scene in "heaven" with Fred, he says something to the tune of "so you WERE in there" (Fred was existing in Illyria). Not-Fred says "maybe a smidge" in agreement. Perhaps Wes thought Fred was in Illyria, and it was Illyria's death in the battle that released her. Then again, Not-Fred says that it wasn't heaven for a few months, until Wes got there with her. This implies that "Fred" was already in "heaven" from the time she died. A contradiction? Did Wes catch it? If Wes believes that Fred can't exist unless Illyria is dead, and Fred is the carrot that they are dangling in front of him, the SPs (or mystery villains making him think they are the SPs) sure aren't going to want him to know that Illyria is still around. Despite what Wes may say, I do think he believes Fred is in the afterlife, and he may get his reward. Note his excitement and hope when Lorne's messengers show up for Angel, and he thinks they may be for him, so he can move on.

Or... on the flip side, the actual Fred coming back is part of their plan, they just didn't want Wes to know too soon. Maybe they even were the ones who brought Fred back (the fire circle on the ground implies a spell of some kind). I do think that the gaining of Illyria's power could be the end goal. She is very powerful (maybe, like you said, as powerful as she was pre-drain, but doesn't have control yet) and surprisingly vulnerable and easy to manipulate at times. (My pet theory about Knox, for instance, is that he didn't resurrect Illyria because he worshiped her, but because he wanted to use her power). Fred's resurrection could have been done to stabilize her powers, or to drive her over the edge, or to bring her even closer to their "key", Wes.

[flake-sake.livejournal.com]

My pet theory from the last issue is that everyone got something back that they lost in because of their contract with W&H. Connor regained his memory, Angel his prophecy and Fred lost her life and even soul. Now it was restored inside Illyria. I'm nt sure if the SP are happy about these developments or if they are just a side effect of the broken contract.

I think Wes noticed the contradiction in Fake!Fred's speech. But now that he's dead it might be more interesting to him that her soul was restored than her body. He might come to the conclusion that by killing Fredllyria he could sever them and have a happily ever afterlife with Fred.

I'm also not sure how happy he's going to be about Illyria's pet-vampire.

I also wonder what exactly the Sps mean by winning? Killing Angel? Or maybe really tapping into Illyria's age old power...

Heh, It's all so very cool!

[zoesmith.livejournal.com]

Great review honey!!

I loved the issue so very much. I have to admit that I was crying from the first page Wes and Fred appeared… God.. I miss Fred so much, and it’s so so heartbreaking that they’re doing this to Wesley.

I was very excited to see Kate!!! Kate!!! It’s good to know what she’s been up to, and her interactions with Connor were priceless. I hope we’ll see her again!

I adore that three-dads-thing he does
Lol yeah it’s very endearing!!

About Buffy, It was an ok issue. I like it much better than others even though I absolutely hate Renee’s death. But Buffy saying that she finds it sexy when Satsu calls her Ma’am cracks me up every time!!

xxx

[flake-sake.livejournal.com]

Thank you, I'm glad you liked it.

To bait Wes with Fred really was a mean move. They might live to regret it, I think.

Connor and Kate were fun. She would also fit nicely with the other girls.

It was an ok issue. I like it much better than others
I liked it too. It's great fun and I enjoy while reading it, it just doesn't make me think that much. The Xander/Renee/Dracula scene was priceless and I agree it was sad to see Renee die, now that she had developed some profile.

Buffy's line about Satsu was lovely too, I wonder where they're going to take this. I think it's save to say that this relationship is messed up enough, so that we don't have to fear for Satsu's life.

[littlesoprano15.livejournal.com]

I think you could very well be right about Wes at some point being in a position where he is going to try to kill Fredlyria, for whatever reason. Maybe the SPs (or whoever the villain is) want him to get Illyria out of the way. He's "key" because he is the only one who can get close enough to do it. They can't "win" until she's gone, if their ultimate goal is to re-gain power over Hell-A. Wes probably could do it without Illyria seeing it coming-- this seems to be a pattern of hers. Notice that she wasn't killed in battle back in the primorium, she was "murdered." Or, like you said, they could want to get Ancient!Illyria back (which would be mega-cool). I don't think they could entice her on to their side; she hates them and I doubt she would succumb to their promises/bribes.

Still, I'm not convinced that those really are the SPs who are using Wes. I've got this weird notion that the villain could actually be Lindsday, or heck even soulless Fred herself, using Illyria to her own ends. She might want revenge on "her boys" for not trying harder to get her back, not killing Illyria, and even becoming somewhat close with her. Vengeful!Fred was never a pretty sight!

[flake-sake.livejournal.com]

I kind of liked how tragic the idea was that Wes died under the contract and is now forced to serve W&H for eternity. It's heart-wrenching mean.

But of course it wouldn't be Angel if there weren't some secret players too. I'd really love to see Lilah again.