Angel/Reprise

Reprise
Season 2, Episode 15
Airdate	February 20, 2001
Production Number	2ADH15
Written by	Tim Minear
Directed by	James Whitmore, Jr.
← 2x14 The Thin Dead Line	2x16 → Epiphany
Angel — Season Two

Reprise is the fifteenth episode of the second season of Angel, and the thirty-seventh episode overall. Angel attempts to find a way into the Senior Partners' "home office" and destroy them once and for all.

David Boreanaz (Angel), Charisma Carpenter (Cordelia Chase), Alexis Denisof (Wesley Wyndam-Pryce), J. August Richards (Charles Gunn)

Christian Kane (Lindsey McDonald), Andy Hallett (Caritas Host), Stephanie Romanov (Lilah Morgan), Sam Anderson (Holland Manners), Brigid Brannagh (Virginia Bryce), Thomas Kopache (Denver)

Co-Starring: David Fury (First Worshipper), Chris Horan (Second Worshipper), Jolene Hjerleid (Singing Lawyer #1), Wayne Mitchell (Singing Lawyer #2), Marie Chambers (Mother), Eric Larson (Internal Affairs Guy), Shirley Jordan (Internal Affairs Woman), Carl Sundstrom (Lieutenant), Kevin Fry (Skilosh Demon)

Uncredited: Elisabeth Rohm (Kate Lockley), Gerry Becker (Nathan Reed), Julie Benz (Darla)

Plot Overview

Angel gets wind of an impending event at Wolfram & Hart that will allow him the opportunity to strike right in their heart of operations.

Notes

Monster of the Week

• Senior Partner: The senior partner who appears in this episode is apparently a noncorporeal being that manifests itself in reality as a Kleynach demon with the band of Blacknil. Kleynach doesn't require an outside source to conjure it and can manifest itself without any aid. Angel apparently killed it with a blessed glove, but he may have only killed the demon shell and not the senior partner itself.

Body Count

#	Whom	By Whom	How	Where
1	Denver	Darla	Impaled	Bookstore
2	Francine	Demon	Snapped Neck	Francine's Home
3	Senior Partner	Angel	Incinerated	Wolfram & Hart

Music

No licensed music was used in this episode.

• Scott Nikoley & Jaime Dunlap - "My Heart Doesn't Live Here Anymore"

• Peaches & Herb - "Reunited"

• Daniel Stein - "Poolside"

Arc Advancement

Happenings

• Wolfram & Hart: The 75 Year review is coming up at Wolfram & Hart, meaning that one of the senior partners is coming for a visit. In previous reviews, huge swaths of middle-management types were killed for being inadequate. Although Angel prevents this, it's revealed that several Wolfram & Hart lawyers have contracts that extend beyond death, including Holland.

Characters

• Kate: Kate is brought up on charges by Internal Affairs when the precinct captain from the previous episode accuses her of allowing Angel into the building to pummel him and stop his zombie cops. Although the repercussions aren't clear, it would appear that she's been suspended.

• Wesley and Virginia: Virginia breaks up with Wesley after his job becomes a little too "real" for her tastes. Apparently fighting a two-headed, fire-breathing monster is alright, but getting shot by a zombie cop isn't.

• Angel: After realizing that all of humanity has at least a little evil in it, Angel has apparently given up on his mission because "nothing matters."

Referbacks

• 2x14 - The Thin Dead Line: This episode picks up directly after the previous. Wesley is in a wheelchair because he was shot and the case that is solved by the gang was first introduced in the previous episode. There are also several mentions of "zombie cops" which were the prevailing evil from the last episode.

• 2x02 - Are You Now or Have You Ever Been: The owner of the bookshop that Angel visits is the same man who instructed him on how to defeat the paranoia demon at the Hotel. Because they hotel patrons turned on him and attempted to lynch him, he let the demon kill them all.

Denver: You know you changed my life that day. I mean, a vampire comes into my place looking to kill a demon to save human beings?

• 2x06 - Guise Will be Guise: Wesley saved Virginia from being sacrificed by her father to a demon who promised him ultimate power if he sacrificed a virgin on his 50th birthday.

Wesley: You forgetting how we met? You were strapped to a sacrificial altar while the goddess Yeska was called forth from the nether regions to consume you.

• The episode's title is a play on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode "Surprise", which ended with Angel waking up after having sex with Buffy. The episode's climax is a reprise of this with Angel waking up after having sex with Darla.

Trivia

The Show

• Cameo: One of the men sacrificing goats in the opening part of the episode is played by Buffy/Angel writer David Fury.

Behind the Scenes

• Ratings: On its first airing, this episode scored a 4.3/6 in the overnight Nielsen ratings. It was ranked 4th out of the 16 WB shows which aired that week.

• Original Ending: Initially, Tim Minear wanted this episode to end with Angel staking Darla after they had sex and saying "Was it good for you?" This idea was vetoed by Joss Whedon, who wasn't ready to let Julie Benz go.

Allusions and References

• Rex Reed: Rex Reed is an American film critic who has acted as host of At the Movies, a syndicated review show. Reed's style of criticism has both been dismissed by other critics as lightweight and held by some as an important usage of "new journalism."

The Host: I think the general angst isn't so much about the review, but more about the reviewer. And let's just say it ain't Rex Reed.

• Andrew Lloyd Webber: Andrew Lloyd Webber is a musical theater composer who is responsible for many popular musicals including Cats, Evita and Jesus Christ Superstar. Despite his popularity, many musical theater aficionados consider his songs to be trite and unsophisticated.

The Host: Kinda the down side of being here. That and the so-called 'musicals' of Andrew Lloyd Webber.

Goofs

• When Christian Kane's name appears as the first guest star, it isn't accompanied with any header. This, combined with three guest stars uncredited (two of which are featured prominently), suggests there might have been a technical error that cut their names off at the beginning.

• Angel pulls Darla's wig off, but for one brief shot during the fight, you can see her still wearing the wig.

Quotes

• Wesley: Things'll pick up. They're bound to.

Cordelia: Yeah. It's LA. The evil's probably just tied up in traffic or something.

• Lilah: The review's in 2 days.

Lindsey: I'm aware of that.

Lilah: So is everyone else. Look at them. It's like that they've had the fear of -- Well, "God" would probably be the wrong word.

• Lindsey: Either we pass the review or we won't. You really think a few last-minute dark rites and rituals are going to make a difference now?

Lilah: Everybody else seems to think so. I heard Henderson actually pulled her firstborn out of company day care to offer it up to... Brown noser. My mother was right. I should have had children.

• Darla: You always take a shower when you come back from that place. Don't know why. You're never dirty.

Lindsey: I'm always dirty.

• Angel: Is it bad?

The Host: Oy. But I really can't divulge to you what I read in another being. But I can tell you what I overheard in the men's restroom.

• The Host: I think the general angst is not so much about the review, but more about the reviewer. And, let's just say it ain't Rex Reed.

Angel: What is it?

The Host: It's evil. It's dark. It's merciless. Actually, now that I say it out loud, it sounds an awful lot like Rex, doesn't it?

• The Host: Look, these messy rites and rituals you've been crashing all over town? They don't mean anything. Nervous children trying to score as many brownie points as they can before daddy gets home. I got news. Daddy? Not impressed.

• The Host: Most anything that can manifest in order to move in this dimension can be killed. Kind of the downside to being here. That and the so-called "musicals" of Andrew Lloyd Webber.

• The Host: Oh, I am picking up one other thing. They'd really like to see you dead.

(Angel turns to see all the lawyers staring at him)

• Cordelia: What a jerk.

Wesley: Cordelia...

Cordelia: I mean if it was anybody else I’d just say "get laid already!"

Wesley: Cordelia...

Cordelia: But no, not him. One decent boff and he switches to evil psycho vamp. Which, in a way, would be better for everyone. Better for him because he'd get some, and better for us because then we could stake him afterwards.

• Denver: You know, you changed my life that day. I mean, a vampire comes into my place looking to kill a demon to save human beings? Well, I figured if something like that could happen there really must be good in the world.

Angel: Right, so you never heard of this term before, "Home Office"?

Denver: Hey, how'd that go, anyway? It was a Thesulac -- paranoia demon, if I recall.

Angel: Yeah, I don't know. I think it killed everyone there.

Denver: Oh. Well, the point is you tried.

Angel: Actually, I pretty much walked out and let the demon have the place and everyone in it.

• Denver: You realise what this Home Office probably is?

Angel: I think I have a pretty good idea.

Denver: Hell. Why the heck do you want to go to Hell?

• Denver: To kill the Kleynach and get the ring, you need the glove.

Angel: Okay, now you're making this up.

• Darla: The ring's not about vengeance, Angelus. It's about power.

• Angel: In the larger sense, I really don't give a crap.

Holland Manners: Now, I don't think that's true. Be honest. You've got the tiniest bit of "give a crap" left.

• Holland Manners: Something you're supposed to prevent. Now, what was that?

Angel: The apocalypse.

Holland Manners: Yes, the apocalypse, of course. Another one of those. Well, it's true, we do have one scheduled. And I imagine if you were to prevent it you would save a great many people. Well, you should do that, then. Absolutely. I wasn't thinking. Of course, all those people you save from that apocalypse will then have the next one to look forward to, but hey, it's always something, isn't it?

• Angel: You're not gonna win.

Holland Manners: Well, no, of course we aren't. We have no intention of doing anything so prosaic as "winning."

• Angel: Why fight?

Holland Manners: That's really the question you should be asking yourself, isn't it? See, for us, there is no fight, which is why winning doesn't enter into it. We go on, no matter what. Our firm has always been here, in one form or another. The Inquisition. Khmer Rouge. We were there when the very first caveman clubbed his neighbour. See, we're in the hearts and minds of every single living being. And that, friend, is what's making things so difficult for you. See, the world doesn't work in spite of evil, Angel. It works with us. It works because of us.

• Holland Manners: Welcome to the Home Office.

Angel: This isn't...

Holland Manners: Well, you know it is. You know that better than anyone. The things you've seen. The things you've, well... done. You see, if there wasn't evil in every single one of them out there... why, they wouldn't be people. They'd all be angels.