OMIGOD, that was so definitely the best episode of this season!!! Words are not enough. I could not even have imagined anything this fantasmogorical. Did I mention that I’m in love with you, Joss?

Oh wow, oh wow! Where to begin?! Firstly, LOVED B & A’s date; he even does the movies angstily – now that’s talent! OK, gaping mouth at their conversation! I couldn’t believe they addressed the sex (or lack thereof) issue so candidly! ROTFL. And what was htat film again, cuz it sounds interesting….. 

Faith-Buffy shippers would have loved the “Don’t worry, I”ll keep her warm” line – and notice how the Buffster wasn’t adverse to having Faith’s arm around her so cosily! Yeah, and I wanna know what Buffy was going to tell Faith about “when it comes to Angel, you should…” just before the demon guy appeared in the cemetary.

OK, Faith-Mayor: what was with the bits about her hair and calcium intake?! Does he consider her like a daughter or somethin? A Curfew?! Oh, and you have to admit, Faith was pretty gorgeous this ep – new makeup artist?

Rapturous applause and standing o for Joss man for the way he totally fooled us thoughtout the ep (well, for those of us who are living spoiler-free, anyway!) Firstly, I didn’t realise at all that Faith was playing Angel for the Mayor. Initially, I thought she was sincere about the reform spout (although in retrospect I start to realise that it wouldn’t have been a realisitic transformation anyway). Then when she started feeling him up, I guess it was all to do with her wanting to prove herself better than Buffy, by taking her Angel. Oh and BAD Angel! You almost kissed her, bastard, what the heck were you thinkin! Too right you love Buffy, now enter space between you and leather girl, and go write that out a hundred times.

And what is Buffy’s damage? Why is it every bloomin time she sees Angel with another girl (Dru, Cordy, Faith), she gets the totall wrong thought bubble and walks away without confronting him?! Arrrgh. BTW, about the happiness deal; I thought Angy could only achieve true happiness by making love to Buffy, not just sleeping with any old gal. Cuz he lurves Buffy. 

I liked Buffy’s talk with Will. Thank you Joss, for the footnote explaining why we know NOTHING, did you get that, NOTHING, about Angel’s time in Hell, even with only five eps (sob!) to go. “There’s so much he doesn’t tell me.” Gee, I don’t know about you, but I’m oh-so satisfied now. . I liked the line about Will “also knowing the love of a taciturn man”.  Go Will gal, you defend Angel “Buffy, you are the world to Angel”, and give Bad Buff a lecture on ninny-beingness, willya? As if he would ever cheat on her, duh. So why the hell did she defend Faith first of all first, knowing that she was bad?!

How much did I want to scream and jump for joy when Angelus came back?! Woo-Hoo!! I LOVE YOU EVIL ANGEL, I’VE MISSED YOU SO MUCH DARLING!!! OK, but I didn’t see why the first thing he did was kiss Faith, especially considering he was only pretending anyway. Hmmm – maybe he is a bit of a strayer, Slayer. (hee hee hee).

But man-o-man, that kiss! I wanna see him kiss Buffy with that much passion, violence, fire!! (Didn’t he look like he was enjoying it?) Relieved when he started whacking Faith around though, but I did like when she fought back to match him (still, Angelus-Buffy fight scenes win the rocking award). And didn’t Faith look damn good on top of him like that?! Woah, baby, watch where you stick that labido! And that "wriggle" line, (G)!

Oh, I missed you, Angelus. I was getting really annoyed with your whimpering soul man. Come back, honey, come back for good! I died at the line about him having missed tortuing Buffy – could there be a purer, more passionate love imaginable?! Such obsession! Sigh. Evn after so long, she is “still the only thing he thinks about”. KMN (Kill me Now).

In retrospect, I can see that that was not the real Angelus. (Which means thumbs up for DB for his brilliant acting as Angel pretending to be Angelus). See, real Angelus would never have stood to follow the Mayor – he would have killed Faith first thing, and then gone straight to obsessing over Buffy again. (Sigh, hand on heart.) And he so would have killed Xander – what was that prissy hit about!

But this is absolutely ridiculous – Angel has now kissed Faith more times (and with more oomph) in one episode, than he has Buffy (4 times only) for the whole season! (Does kissing Faith, not Buffy, mean that DB still has to buy his wifey a new outfit?)

Loved the whole sequence of pretending to Buffy until they got to the mansion. Oh, they played their parts impeccably, the tragic twosome. And what’s the what – does Joyce have a thing for Angel now? Ewww. And since when did she start being so nice to him anyway? Oh, get a life Joyce, you piss me off!

Oh my god, Angelus and Buffy together again – I was in heaven, I’m tellun ya. And the fact that he played Evil Angel so perfectly must mean that he remembers everything, even down to the “Buff”. How much have I missed seeing him hit her?!  Also, loved the line about how he loves to see her sleeping. Think Passion. Aaaaahhh. Thought: Angel is the artistic type even when evil (reading, drawing). Sigh, clutch heart in longing.

Yes, I would live to see them try it with chains!  C’mon Angel, don’t tell me you weren’t having a blast being bad. But did you see Buffy’s heartbroken face when he revealed he was evil again? You could just hear her screaming inside; “No, not again, I can’t take it any more!” Oh my god, how it must have killed Angel to put her through that again. Yes, she knew he was pretending, but still – it may have been worse this time, knowing that he was good underneath and still able to hurt her like that again. Thank you, Angelus – it took you turning bad for us to hear Angel’s take on the Hell thing. Have to wonder though – does he feel like that really, even in the darkest corners of his silent heart? Perhaps any resentment towards Buff was released here. And did she mean that when she said “I will kill you”? She didn’t seem to be ready in Amends.

It started to get pretty obvious that he was just plain old Angel in the confrontation scene. Angelus would never have stood aside silently and let Faith do all the talking. He always had to be the centre of attention when Buffy was near. But woah, check out the jealousy face on Buffy when Faith kisses him in front of her. (Kool kiss, btw). And he didn’t show any signs of hating the experience a whole lot, either, tsk tsk. (But cmon, they do look damn good together!)

The Faith-Buffy talks was really well done. Hate me not, but I still like Faith. Not like in the conventional sense, but what can you expect from the gal who prefers a bloodsucking fiend to a soul-having guardian? Liked the subtle insights in Faith’s past (drunkard mum, neglected childhood), and finally the whole jealousy of Buffy thing is addressed. Oh and now we finally learn the real reason why Faith suddenly became such bosom buds with the Buff – “Nobody asked whether you should be more like me.” And so she tried to turn Buffy bad like her. And good on ya Buffy, sticking up for yourself like that! Finally you shed the politeness thing, yay!
“I am better than you” Ouch! “And how did you get him, Faith? Magic? Cuz we both know in the real world Angel would never have touched you.” Ooooh! “Ther’s only one word for you: Loser”. Woo hoo!

Loved the part where Angel makes his revelation “second best”, and the camera zooms on Faith in slo-mo to give her pov. Now she’s lost the only person (Buffy) who truly believed in her, huh? You can understand why she repelled Buffy though: wanting to help her only made Buffy even more sickeningly good in Faith’s eyes, and hightlighted her own faults. But – why didn’t she kill Buffy? She knew Buffy would never kill her. Hmmm. Could the tin girl have a heart after all? She certainly didn’t want to kill Willow last ep – but then, she didn’t mind others doing so. See how fascinating Faith’s character is? You gotta luv her.

Poor Xander, the jealous bastard. (I bet secretly, Angel really enjoyed hitting the ‘annoying kid’!) Not only that, but he’s the only uncoupled one of the gang; and it doesn’t help that his first time tried to kill him, and that his only girlf is drooling over a coward Englisholdman. And on that note – WHY?! So not Cordy’s type – she’s much more into the rich preppy boy scence. And why would she choose to get back involved with the Scooby gang, those freakish losers. I guess joss had to do something with her – can’t let that awesome tan go to waste. Oz and Will look tres cute as always. But what’s the deal with SG? Does he get paid by the word or the hair colour?

OK, last scene. Sigh. Did you see the pain, did you feel the angst! And I wanted her to run into his arms and give assurance that she would always be his girl, that he was really good Angel who loves her and would never ever hurt her. But I understand the reason for the ten metre distance between them. I guess that experience reminded her of the time when she had had to hate him, to forget him, to fight him. And now she’s back to loving him again – even more. She’s probably scared that if he were to turn again, she’d be too weak to defeat him, hence the break. But we can’t forget the other key factor here: green eyed monster syndrome. I don’t get how pushing him away is going to make Buffy feel bettter on that front though, other than giving her time to absorb. And realise that she and he can never be together, doomed for disaster, and he might as well go to LA, work with unemployed Cordelia, and get involved with a red-head who is *so* not as good looking as Buffy. NO!!! Joss, get them back TOGETHER, time apart is bad, very bad!

Meanwhile my darling Angel is dying inside, This is what, the fouth time she’s dumped him? She, who is his world. Bitch. Still, he probably needs time out to remember how horrible he was as Angelus, all the pain he put her through, what a curse he is for her, that he should leave her, go to LA and work with unemployed Cordelia, and get involved with a blonde woman who is so not as good looking as Buffy.... NO!!! Joss you can’t do this to us. This is the beginning of the end, huh?

Loved how he calls out “You’re still my girl?” Awww.
“Always.” Yay – she remembers the poetry book he gave her. (Never mind that it’s also the most obvious response to that qu.) How romantic.

Now get over you emotional crises and get back together, there aren’t many eps left with both of you together!

Other points to notice:

Angel's Clothes:
Omigod, Angel in that skin tight red shird is to die for! Don't like him in a white vest though; he looks too bulky. Either everything (long black coat please, none of this leather crap), or nothing. :) Hey - kinda like the B/A relationship, huh? Loved the coat he was wearing for their date - where *does* he get all these clothes, anyhoo?

Inconsistencies:
How the heck did the demon guy buy any of the stuff in his appartment, heck even the dump itself, with that face on him? Giles, not only do they not have standards anymore, but they don't have logical scriptwriters!

Buffy-Willow
They so need more on their relationship; I mean, other than being eachothers' confidantes, what do they talk about? Buffy seems closer to Angel than to her bosom bud, really. Also, check out hte clothes difference, people! How could two such different characters be best friends? In reality, Buffy would have never allowed herself with Willow, and *definately* not with Xander. And what the crap are they making Will wear lately, anyhoo?

Oz:
Suddenly feeling very peeved that Oz NEVER speaks, if he manages to appear at all, that is.

Faith
What was with Faith looking at her hands after she killed the demon? Was that internal conflict mode, or yuck I've got monster guts on me. And btw, she TOUCHED Angel with those hands! All though their 'intimate' scene, I was going ick, ick, get those OFF him, I like that shirt!

Date:
What did Buffy mean by the 'cold shower'? Together?! :) OK, I was cracking up all though that first scene, and not just at the funny bits either. Were we supposed to take that stuff about excitation without a smirk? Cuz c'mon Joss, the things that came out of B & A's mouths (when they weren't kissing!), were a tad ridick! (A kimono...?!!) Here follows my translation:

Buffy - "You didn't get a stiffner watching that film didya? Cuz we could never do the kinky again - expecially not like *that*, considering oriental gear wouldn't show my bra straps for the audiences. I really hate getting your southern compass pointing north like that; how'ya handling it, hun?"
Angel - "Buffy, just seeing you makes me wish they had a reverse-viagra pill. But don't worry babe, I'm content knowing that I can still get a lift out of the ol' rod even after the Hell I've been through. I'm so control man at the mo, so no stress ness, 'kay? Convinced yet? C'mhere and pucker up!"

I know they wanted to reintro the sex issue, but *come on*! Besides, he lived in the past, just pretend that you're waiting for the post-nuptuals, guys.
It's Buffy that I feel sorry for; I mean, not only has it been a whole year of chastity, but the only one she's bonked was a dead man! But I guess with the effect she has on guys in bed, she's probably not itching to rush right back into the sack just yet.

Oz and Willow:
Meanwhile, was sex even an *issue* for these two?! They barely say two words to each other! And what's the post script of Willow's reaction to Xander sleepping with Faith? Is she still in love with him or what?

Final Scene:
Understanding better. The real reason Buffy wanted a break was the jealousy thang. She was so going to say "Druscilla" before she stopped short. Just look at the mouth movements. But WHY??!! Angel didn't even *like* her, and anyhoo, Buffy never saw them together doing the provocative when he was Angelus. (Hey - d'ya think they ever did the happy together?) Oh, these two are unbelievable! Can't they learn to TRUST eachother? So much for the eternal love part. I can't believe that's the motivation for the break; fear of Angelus I can accept, but *this*?!!

Hey, does that mean if Angel (EVER) comes back to BtVS, he'll get head over heels in jealousy when he finds out Buffy's with the Riley dude? And vice-versa for Buffy with Kate? (I hate that name btw; so pretentious). Here's hoping!!.