Angel

I'VE GOT YOU UNDER MY SKIN

The Good;
Nice counterplay at the end when the family get back together and Angel Investigations walk away as if they are a family too.

The Bad;
Rather an uninvolving story although a nice twist

Best line:
Wes; "It's for killing extinct demons"

Jeez, how did they get away with that?
The cross into Wes' neck, yeesh!

Apocalypses: 4

Angel Cliches
Damsel in distress; 15,

Inverting the Hollywood cliche;
The dad is shown smoking cigarettes in front of his kids which is rare indeed nowadays

In disguise; 3

DB get's his shirt off;
4

Cordy's tattoo;3

Cheap Angel; 2

Fang Gang in bondage:
Cordy: 5
Angel: 5
Wes: 1

Fang gang knocked out:
Cordy: 8
Angel: 7
Wes: 2
Doyle; 1

Kills:
Cordy: 3 vamps, 1 demons
Angel: one demon so 8 vamps, 5 and 1/2 demons, 2 humans.
Doyle; 1 vamp
Wes; 1/2 a demon

Fang Gang go evil:
Cordy: 2
Angel: 1

Alternate Fang Gang:
Cordy: 2
Angel: 5

Characters killed:
25

Recurring characters killed;
1;

Total number of Angel Investigations:
3, Angel and Cordy and Wes

Angel Investigations shot:
Angel: 6,

Packing heat;
Wes; 1
Doyle; 1

Notches on Fang Gang bedpost:
Cordy: 2 ?+Wilson/Hacksaw Beast
Angel: 1;Buffy

Kinky dinky:
Wes owns a 2 thighmasters and a 'buns of steel' video

Captain Subtext;
Our first hints on Wes' relationship with his father

Know the face, different character; 2

Parking garages;
3,

Buffy characters on Angel;
6; Angel, Cordy, Oz, Spike, Buffy, Wes

Questions and observations;
Cordy can cook, who'd have thought? Angel mentions Doyle in poignant moment. Cool bait and switch, we think the dads the villain. Also we have Kate in her middling phrase, aware that Angel's a vamp but not totally anti.The scenes with the circle are very reminiscent of classic Brit horror flick The Devil Rides Out (Christopher Lee as a good guy!) Ricks magic, the LA branch of The Magic Shop. Cordy puts her shopping skills to good use. A lot more christian than normal. 'Three blind mice' is actually about 3 bishops executed by Bloody Mary. Anyone know what rock-a-bye-baby is about? Lizzie Borden was actually found innocent but the circumstantial evidence against her was overwhelming.
Marks out of 10; 6/10, ok ep but still supernatural threat of the week

After an episode that felt more like a massively flawed ratings stunt than a natural progression of the season’s character arcs, the writers get back to business. Oddly enough, they choose a rather pedestrian topic to continue their sweeps period episode run: a knock-off of “The Exorcist”, which just about every supernatural series eventually tries to do. This has a few interesting twists to it, especially in terms of Wesley’s character development and final act, but it’s still not the most awe-inspiring episode in the first season.



The episode begins with a scene that almost suggests that the previous episode was inserted into the schedule out of nowhere; this could easily be the true follow-up to “Expecting”. Angel is back to hosting some “family” meal times, thus proving that his ability to connect with humans (even if just two of them) is improving. Wesley is still trying to demonstrate his worth, but not nearly as stridently as in the previous episode.



The point of the scene, however, comes when Angel slips and calls Wesley “Doyle”. This is an especially painful moment, because it immediately plays on the insecurities of the entire gang. Angel reveals the depth of his loss, Cordelia is reminded of everything she might have had, and Wesley suddenly has every reason to question Angel’s acknowledgment of his individual contribution. It’s rather clear, as the episode marches on, that this initial scene is meant to highlight Wesley’s insecurities and how far he will go to overcome them.



Angel’s reaction is to tighten his hold on the people under his care, because he still feels that Doyle’s death was his fault. He sees Cordy suffering like Doyle used to suffer, and he has to wonder at the point of it all. (It probably doesn’t help in later seasons, when he discovers that all this death and pain really was all about using him and his colleagues to bring about some diabolical plan!) This ultimately runs counter to Wesley’s desire to prove himself.



By the time that Angel saves Ryan from his apparent doom, the writers have established that something is Very Wrong. Certainly the early scenes try to establish that Seth is abusive, emotionally and possible physically. Paige comes across as a wife who looks to outside sources for psychological support (hence her belief in angels), and her constant hints to Angel suggest that she’s hoping someone will see the truth that she cannot bring herself to face directly. Unfortunately, as anyone who watches genre television knows, it’s always the innocent looking child that turns out to be the one with the demonic side.



That doesn’t mean that Seth isn’t very controlling. There are still some abusive overtones to his personality. But in this particular situation, it’s more honest to say that Seth is forced to be more controlling and strict, because it’s the only way he knows how to keep the family together. Paige is clearly the type to internally understand the situation yet live within a fantasy where everything is just a huge misunderstanding, and that’s not going to keep everyone alive. Seth, for all his obvious faults, is trying to keep a sinking ship afloat.



One inconsistency is the nature of Ryan’s evil spree over the years. Early in the episode, the “family friend” goes missing. Later, it’s clear that there’s a fire involved. Why would the news accounts from that incident exclude something as important as “presumed dead in a fire”? It would certainly paint a different picture than someone simply being “missing”. One might assume that revealing that plot point would take away from the end of the episode, but it would actually give the whole story a more focused perspective.



It’s rather apparent from the dinner scene that one of the kids will be revealed as the demon, if only because Angel develops such a quick and human rapport with them. There’s a quick hint about the final plot reveal when Stephanie mentions that Ryan has always been “bad”, but that’s overshadowed by the revelation of the Ethros demon. Indeed, the treatment of the demonic manifestation is problematic from a plot element perspective.



The writers clearly want the audience to believe that the Ethros demon is the one committing all the evil actions. The final reveal, however, plainly states that Ryan is inherently “soulless”, without a conscience, and that the demon is trapped and trying to get out. So if Ryan’s actions are not dictated by the demon possession, it’s a question of whether or not the depiction of Ryan’s exorcism makes sense in terms of the true source of Ryan’s evil. One can assume that Ryan begins acting out once the forced reveal of the Ethros possession gives him an excuse; the Ethros demon’s powers become his to exploit, but he’s firmly in control along the way, no longer forced to hold back.



If the demon needs to be bound before the exorcism can begin, then it seems rather odd that Ryan doesn’t try to lash out and get away before he’s bound by the spell. He just sits on Mommy’s lap, and then lets everyone take him into Angel’s bedroom to be bound. Does the eucalyptus temporarily incapacitate the demon or something? Because that’s a lot of time for Ryan to play possum for no good reason.



One of the best scenes of the episode takes place in a church. Vampires have sometimes been a bit too happy to run around places of worship in the Buffyverse, but Angel is definitely wary of this particular venue. It adds to the overall impression that Angel is forcing himself to face great personal discomfort, all for the sake of Ryan. It’s a display of his character. The scene is made that much better by the fearless nun that moves the story along, making it clear that Angel and Wesley are the ones who have to help Ryan.



It comes down to Angel’s desire to take all the potential danger upon himself, in the name of protecting his friends, and Wesley’s desire to prove his worth and put to rest the personal demons that the case has resurrected. Both of them have the capacity to get over these issues rather quickly: Angel already knows that his friends have free will and can make their own choices, and Wesley has already defied his father’s wishes to do the right thing. But it all comes down to which one of them can more easily accomplish the task. Wesley’s method of communicating that point to Angel reveals a side of his character that would ultimately take hold in later seasons.



The implication of the exorcism scene is such, in retrospect, that Ryan is the one using the demonic guise to implement his true nihilism. Thus he is the one who wants to kill his mother, and he’s using the demon as a means of doing so without penalty. The exorcism rituals sap away the demonic power, but the core evil remains; Ryan is just apparently very good at hiding it.



The scenes with Cordy are used to lighten the mood somewhat, at least as far as the writers want the mood to be broken up. That’s a good thing, because as predictable as it might be at times, the exorcism scenes are creepy because of their character exploration. Wesley is forced to fight the demons of his father’s sense of discipline, which in and of itself is predictable yet still satisfying. When Ryan uses the strained dynamic between Wesley and Angel against them, Wesley pays the price. (The end of the third season makes this particularly satisfying, even if Wesley recovers far too quickly.)



Ryan uses Angel’s guilt over Doyle against him. Ryan wants to have the Ethros demon out of him, because it was holding him back. But if the struggle was too easy, Ryan would be exposed. One has to assume that Ryan was intelligent and clever enough to know that using Angel’s guilt over Doyle would be a good enough trigger to get Angel to drive the Ethros out, thus freeing him to act once his innocence is assumed.



The final twist is actually very clever, even if the execution leaves something to be desired. One can assume that the Ethros demon wouldn’t know how else to describe a child with no sense of morality, a “bad seed” that no amount of good parenting could control, but if taken as described, the explanation for Ryan is a little out of the usual Buffyverse bounds. How would a child be born without a soul? Then again, Angel and Darla later produce a child with a soul despite both being vampires, so anything is possible. It just doesn’t ring true.



Seth and Paige also seem to accept Ryan’s recovery at face value. Sure, they would want to believe that Ryan is better, but that’s closer to Paige’s way of thinking. Seth seems like a far more wary individual at this stage of the game, and one would expect him to be more skeptical of the abrupt cure. It works well enough, but under the circumstances, Ryan doesn’t do quite enough to make it seem like he’s suddenly all happiness and light. Once Ryan’s attempt to kill Stephanie is repelled, it’s equally odd how quickly Seth and Paige hand Ryan over to the authorities. For that matter, one has to wonder what they expect the authorities to do for Ryan at this point.



Beyond reminding the audience that Kate exists (very important for the next episode), the final scene drives home one of the themes of the episode. It’s not just an exploration of abusive fathers, potential or otherwise. It’s about what it takes sometimes to keep a family together and as intact as it can be. Angel needed to remember that, just as Wesley had to remind himself that he’s a man with his own sense of purpose now.



In a sense, this episode was a return to the kind of character development that had been momentarily abandoned with “She”. And in fact, for all its faults, this episode is entirely in keeping with what the fans themselves had been looking for. After all, this episode is an analogue to the early episodes of “Buffy”, where standard plot elements were used to introduce and expand character elements that would become important later in the series. Indeed, Wesley’s character becomes much closer to the haunted and determined warrior that emerges here, a far cry from bumbling fool of the previous episode.



Angel, on the other hand, is still a work in progress. This early in the series, his purpose is still unclear, his mission undefined. He knows that he should be helping people for the sake of personal redemption, but he hasn’t come to the point where he recognizes that it’s his ability to bring together resources in common cause that matters. This episode is one step closer to the more ensemble scope that would dominate the future of “Angel”.

Although a two very intresting forshadowing plotlines begin to take place here, Wesley and his childhood trauma issues with his father, and Wesley and his extreme willingless to kill Angel for the common good, this episode is not one of my favorites. You know those common characters in both movies and tv shows that absolutely make you want to strangle them? Say for example the character of Lily in the movie Star Trek: First Contact, who gave you the sudden urge to punch her in the face for being so stupid. Well, the mother in this episode really made me wanna do that. She has no resistance to the evils that are clearly surrounding her child. And although i am not a mother and have not yet come to realize the intense bound between a mother and her child in pain, i have come to understand that if i see someone turn into a demon, i'm not gonna wanna go to them and hug them. In my opinion, crappy characters, nice foreshadowing.

‘I’ve Got You Under My Skin’ is a very powerful episode about exorcism and family issues.



The episode begins as usual with Wesley and Cordy having a fight about something, Angel tries to stop them and accidentally calls Wesley, Doyle.

When Angel stays behind alone Cordy walks up to him and confronts him about Doyle, he says that he misses him.



Cordy soon gets a vision about a little boy and Angel was able to save him from a car accident. The boy had escaped even though his room had locks on. His mother believes in Angel and thinks that he is one and wants him to eat with them the next day, but the father doesn’t and tries to get rid of Angel.



Wesley also found plasticize in the house which means that someone in the house is possessed by a demon. Angel has to make the family eat some sort of powder that will reveal the demons face, Angel puts it in the brownies and brings it to their home. Angel thinks that the father is the one being possessed but it turns out to be the little boy.



Angel brings Ryan to his house because he is going to exorcist the demon out of the boy, but there is no and the problem is that after the demon is summoned out it jumps into the nearest warm body.



Wesley is the one who is going to try to summon the demon out of the kid, but the demon is to strong and takes Wesley over the edge. Angel gets sick of it after the boy begins to talk about Doyle so he scares out the demon but it escapes because Cordelia didn’t bring the right box.



When Angel and Wesley go after the demon in corporeal form it tells them that the boy was the blackest hell he ever knew, the kid is the one who did everything not him. They kill the demon and go to save the family from Ryan who destroys everything without any reason at all.



The kid is mad at his sister because she got more marshmallows so he burns up her room but Angel was right ontime to save her. The kid will be taken to police where he will be judged, Angel tells the father that he was able to keep his family save.



This episode is very strong because of the evil kid, he didn’t have a soul. The episode also introduced Wesley’s problem with his dad. The best scene was when Ryan almost killed his mother, I also liked that the writers decided to talk about the forgotten Doyle.

It was a wonderful episode, one of the best so far.

This episode is the most exciting and scariest one since the beginning of the series. I'm not easily scared by movies or series but this episode got to me (maybe only because demon-possession actually happens and therefor is realistic).

I really like the fact that the exorcism wasn't easy and things got complicated. The best part of the episode, also the part that makes the entire episode so good, is the amazing plot twist: we found out the demon didn't make the boy 'bad', he doesn't have a soul and because of that is evil.

I also like the fact that Wesley really puts in some good work, Angel is really gonna need him.



One of the best episodes so far.

a very cool season 1 episode featuring the exorsist. a boy is posessed by a demon but thw twist turns out to be that the boy was pure evil and that the demon was trapped inside of him. nice twist!



this is the first episode where i really liked wesley. he stopped being a pansy for a couple of minutes and stole the episode. the little boy did a great job at being possessed and this episode ended as one of the most memorable of the first season. well done!

I really enjoyed this episode. Through Cordys latest vision we are introduced to a nice family with 2 small children, although something is amiss because we see the parents padlocking the sons bedroom door. I dont know about anyone else, but I was seriously suspecting the Father as a bad guy. It blew me away when we find out the son is possessed by a demon. There were some truly scary scenes with the son being prepared for the excorcism. But I gotta say, the most chilling part for me is when I find out the demon who had possessed the boy was TRYING to get out because the boy was just "empty" and the most evil being the demon had encountered.

Fun words to learn and know: Cordelia: "Jeez, we got it! Circle, angry, kill-kill-kill! Go to church already."



Dialogue to lose inside the sofa in Hell: Angel: (performs the exorcism incantation in Latin, then, in English) "Now get the hell out!"

I don't like it when the characters try to jazz up their spells by inserting modern English into the mix; it always causes me to roll my eyes so hard I can see California (which is some feat, considering I live in central Europe).



So, Cordelia and Doyle must have done some off screen bickering the fans are unaware of. If not, Angel's little mix-up doesn't make much sense. I understand that the writers needed to get Doyle's name out there front and center, I just think they could have come up with a more believable way of doing it, although it serves well in bringing Wesley's insecurities to light. Another little problem I have is this: if Joss et al are trying to fly under the radar on the whole religion issue, it seems odd that a Christian ceremony should work in the exorcism. However, I guess that's what happens when you pay homage to something; even elements that would have been better left behind get brought along for the ride.



Moving on…



Overall, I thought this episode really worked and was deliciously dark on many levels. Once again we've got a possibly abusive, certainly overbearing father to contend with in the form of Seth. Though overused in the extreme throughout this series, the father's potential malevolence doesn't seem out of place here, and, in fact, serves to reinforce the things we learn about Wesley's father later on (and had been hinted at earlier in the episode). I felt it was fairly apparent that Seth wasn't the baddie we were after, but thoroughly enjoyed the little plot twist at the end. More importantly, the group's tension and insecurity were nicely exploited by Ethros/Ryan (I'm under the impression that it was Ethros and not Ryan who had the ability to scan the minds of the people around him, though I also think it may have been Ryan who took advantage of the situation by putting the knowledge Ethros had gained into play, the devious like tyke). All and all, a very good outing.

Angel, Wesley, and Cordelia stumble upon a demonic possesion case. Angel persues the case, trying to find out which memeber of the family is infected. At first suspecting the father the case get's even more complicated when the demon is found to be dwelling in his young son. Performing an excorcism, the gang does their best to expell the demon and finally manage not only to best him but to kill him as well. During this time we see how potentially important Wesley could be to Angel's team and his work, in the end though simply killing this demon that has posessed the boy isn't enough and we learn that though there are many demonic evils in the world there are others kinds that can not be fought.

I've Got You Under My Skin-When one of Cordelia's visions shows a young family in trouble, Angel goes to investigate. Before long, he suspects that one of the family is suffering from demonic possession, but he must determine who is possessed and how to remove the creature without harming the host. An underrated episode which is far more than just an Exorcist rip-off but a classic in it's own right. This episode is full of creepy (even scary) moments mixed with a humorous undertone. The story of an exorcism is used very well on Angel and the guest stars who make up the desperate family to get their son back all do well. Our main trio all give great performances with Cordelia's hilarious moments like her sympathy toward the family and getting the wrong box to trap the demon. Angel's dedication to helping the family was nicely played by David and Alexis gives some needed depth for Wesley, in which the scene where he loses it whiling his trying to exorcise the demon from Ryan. It's really disturbing as the demon uses the cross to stab Wesley in the neck. Just the way the demon gets into everyone's head is creepy, especailly when the demon starts taunting Angel with Doyle's voice and telling him he failed in saving him. But the ending twist is what makes this a true classic as the revelation of the demon being trapped in Ryan, who had no soul at all is more disturbing that it actually is! If there is one thing that Angel as a series did with perfection was showing that humans are just as bad, maybe even in some cases, worst than demons. That humans are flawed and once we've given into darkness, there's no stopping us. All and All, one of the best episodes from the first season and another early classic of the series with some shocking developments!

In this episode, Angel and crew run into a family where one of the members is possessed by a demon. After thinking it may be the father, Angel finds out it is the son. Angel and Wesley go looking for the priest that can exorcise the demon, only to find that he died during his last exorcism. Wesley decides to perform the exorcism himself only to fail; Angle takes over and exorcises the demon which gets away. They track down the demon only to find that the child the demon was in was more evil that the demon himself. Angel kills the demon anyway, so it won't possess anyone else. In the mean time, the evil child sets fire to his house trying to kill his little sister and Angel arrives just in time to save her.



This episode gave me the creeps. I was out walking in the dark this morning and started thinking about the episode; chills overcame me and I had to think about something else. There is something about evil children that always scares the bejesus out of me.

In this episode, Angel and crew run into a family where one of the members is possessed by a demon. After thinking it may be the father, Angel finds out it is the son. Angel and Wesley go looking for the priest that can exorcise the demon, only to find that he died during his last exorcism. Wesley decides to perform the exorcism himself only to fail; Angle takes over and exorcises the demon which gets away. They track down the demon only to find that the child the demon was in was more evil that the demon himself. Angel kills the demon anyway, so it won't possess anyone else. In the mean time, the evil child sets fire to his house trying to kill his little sister and Angel arrives just in time to save her.



This episode gave me the creeps. I was out walking in the dark this morning and started thinking about the episode; chills overcame me and I had to think about something else. There is something about evil children that always scares the bejesus out of me.

I've Got You Under My Skin is a fantasic episode of Angel and a series classic. The episode has a lot of twists to keep you entertained, the storyline was excellent and the performances were as usual magnificent. Whilst the storyline may not be highly original, it was handled extremely well and made for a great episode. In previous weeks Angel's dialogue has usually been better than it's story but in this episode, that wasn't the case. The story shone and it was this that kept you glued to the screen. The entire episode was creepy and exciting and the actor who plays Ryan was good for a child. I like how they made you think it was the father terrorising the family; then it's revealed that the child is possessed by a demon; then it's revealed that it's not the demon who is doing these terrible things- it's actually the young boy himself doing them.



This is an episode that will get you hooked on Angel if you weren't before. The usual witty dialogue isn't there but its a good thing- the episode is dark and serious and it doesn't need jokes to make it good. The performances were also great- the guest actors were very very good and the characters themselves were good enough to make you feel for them. Kate made a brief appearance near the end, a good thing in my book. The only complaint I have is directed to that of the Ethros Demon. I found it hard to understand what he was saying and had to put subtitles up. His voice was much too low and it was a strain to understand his words; it wouldn't be so bad but he reveals the main twist of the episode.



IGYUMS was a return to excellence for Angel and definitely should be watched. One of the darker episodes of S1 and that was a definite good thing.



Line of the episode:



Wesley: That blade is very old. Who knows what kind of corrosive effect her cooking may have on it?

I've Got You Under My Skin was a perfect and classic episode of Angel. This episode dealt with demonic possession and exorcism. It was very entertaining and a fun mystery to unravel. I think viewers were surprised to learn the true nature of the possession. The family Angel helped seemed like any other normal family, however their son Ryan was not so normal. There was a lot of emotion flying through this episode and it was interesting to watch the characters deal with the situations at hand. The episodes title is very telling!!! I can't wait to see what happens next!!!!!!!