Angel/Apocalypse, Nowish

Apocalypse, Nowish
Season 4, Episode 7
Airdate	November 17, 2002
Production Number	4ADH07
Written by	Steven S. DeKnight
Directed by	Vern Gillum
← 4x06 Spin the Bottle	4x08 → Habeas Corpses
Angel — Season Four

Apocalypse, Nowish (also known as Rain of Fire) is the seventh episode of the fourth season of Angel, and the seventy-third episode overall. As the sun permanently sets on Los Angeles as the seemingly invulnerable Beast awakens, Cordelia continues her forbidden relationships with Connor.

David Boreanaz (Angel), Charisma Carpenter (Cordelia Chase), J. August Richards (Charles Gunn), Amy Acker (Winifred "Fred" Burkle), Vincent Kartheiser (Connor)

and Alexis Denisof (Wesley Wyndam-Pryce)

Special Guest Star: Andy Hallett (Lorne)

Guest Starring: Stephanie Romanov (Lilah Morgan), Daniel Dae Kim (Gavin Park), Vladimir Kulich (The Beast)

Co-Starring: Tina Morasco (Mrs. Pritchard), Molly Weber (Waitress)

Plot Overview

As Cordelia is in fear of the evil rising, signs of the apocalypse quickly ramp up. It’s not long before the Beast itself arrives and quickly begins demonstrating its power.

Notes

Monster of the Week

• There was no monster of the week in this episode.

Body Count

#	Whom	By Whom	How	Where
12+	Rich People	The Beast	Mutilated	Sky Temple

Music

There is no licensed music in this episode.

Arc Advancement

Happenings

• Big Bad: The demon from Cordelia's visions appears in this episode and causes fire to rain down from the sky.

Characters

• Wesley: For the first time since the last season, Wesley rejoins Angel Investigations for longer than a few minutes. He helps them fight the Beast and shows genuine concern for Gunn getting hurt.

• Connor: The theme of Connor as Oedipus begins in this episode when he has sex with Cordelia, the closest thing to a mother he's ever had.

Trivia

The Show

• Dearly Departed: Gunn's hubcap axe from the second season is crumpled up and tossed aside by the Beast in their battle with him.

Behind the Scenes

• Ratings: On its first airing, this episode scored a 3.5/5 in the overnight Nielsen ratings.

• Alternate Title: This show was retroactively titled Rain of Fire by the WB and later semi-officially by the creators, presumably due to a copyright issue with the previous title, Apocalypse, Nowish. It was labeled as a WB Event under the title Rain of Fire, something that would not be replicated until the season five episode, "Why We Fight". Although the episode shows up as Rain of Fire on the R2 DVD Season Four release, it shows up as Apocalypse, Nowish on the R1 DVDs.

Allusions and References

• Apocalypse Now: The title of this episode refers to the Francis Ford Coppola movie, Apocalypse Now. The film stars Martin Sheen as a man sent to terminate a soldier gone rogue in Vietnam, played by Marlon Brando. As the film progresses, it becomes less linear and more involved in the journey through the human psyche rather than a simple war movie.

Lorne: I hate to be the little demon that cried apocalypse nowish, but uh...

Quotes

• Angel: No.

Lorne: Why?

Angel: No.

Lorne: Why?

Angel: I said, no.

Lorne: I said, why? Let's meet in the middle with a, why no?

• (to homeowner after rats emerge from her bathroom)

Fred: Um, you might want to look in to an exterminator.

Gunn: Or just burn the place down.

Fred: Either way.

• Angel: You think I should keep these alphabetical or rearrange them by how much damage they inflict?

Lorne: Damage. Nomenclature goes out the portal when, uh, hacking's afoot.

Angel: Still, good to know what you're using. I mean, what if I'm fighting a Glurgg and I ask for a Khopesh to finish him off What would you throw me?

Lorne: Uh, a towel? Glurggs are ninety percent pus.

• Angel: He's right, you should probably get some sleep.

Cordelia: Yeah, because impending doom almost as good as warm milk.

• Lorne: No, I don't think that much mucus is ever a good sign. Uh-huh. Oh, please. Please, yeah, describe it in detail.

• Angel: Maybe we can help each other, huh? The enemy of my enemy...

Lilah: Can kiss my ass, too.

• Lorne: Well, it might take a couple of days You're fifth on the bleeding walls list. Spritz a little 409. We'll get back to you.

• Gunn: Okay, what's the plan?

Angel: You're holding it. We figure out what all this means, then do something large and violent.

Wesley: I see you've given this considerable thought.

• Angel: If it's alive, we kill it. If it's not, we bury it.

Reviews

• Overall Grade: A- with 1 review
• Review Breakdown: A+: 0 A: 0 A-: 1 B+: 0 B: 0 B-: 0 C+: 0 C: 0 C-: 0 D: 0 F: 0

1. This episode really kickstarted the epic, sweeping season four arc that has yet to be matched by any other Buffyverse season. It's a great start, at that, but sometimes you can't help but feel that this is all just set-up to the calamity that lies ahead with the Beast and the other entities that surround the tail-end of this season. Having a whole cluster of episodes that are just as good, if not better, than this episode is just a testament to how great this season is. Grade: A- --Wizardryo|✎ 16:24, 17 Dec 2005 (EST)