Not Fade Away (Angel episode)
Encyclopedia
"Not Fade Away" is the 22nd and final episode of season 5, and the series finale of the television show Angel
. Written by series creator Joss Whedon
and directed and co-written by Jeffrey Bell, it was originally broadcast on May 19, 2004 on the WB network
. In "Not Fade Away," Angel convinces his team that they must take out every member of the Circle of the Black Thorn in a defiant and probably futile stand against the Senior Partners of Wolfram & Hart
. He tells his team to make the most of what may be their last day on Earth: Gunn
visits his old neighborhood; Wesley tends to the wounded Illyria; Lorne spends some time onstage; Spike performs poetry at an open mic, and Angel visits his son. When night falls, the team divides and sets out to eliminate the members of the Black Thorn, incurring the wrath of the armies of hell.
calls Angel to an emergency meeting of the circle, where the other members express doubts about Angel's loyalties. Angel proves himself to them by irrevocably renouncing his role in the Shanshu Prophecy
, thereby giving up his chance to become human.
Back at Wolfram & Hart, Angel meets with his old enemy Lindsey McDonald
and enlists him in the planned attack on the Circle. He then the rest of his group that the plan will proceed that night. Angel advises his friends to spend the rest of the day as if it were their last since it "probably is."
Angel visits his son, Connor. Connor reveals that he knows that Angel is his father; his old memories are now "mixed in" with his new ones, and he understands and appreciates why Angel gave him new memories.
Lorne has serious reservations about Angel's plan, and his mood is dark and somber. Lindsey spends the day with Eve, who is suspicious of Angel even though Lindsey now trusts him. Gunn
spends his day helping Anne at the homeless shelter she maintains. Spike goes to a seedy bar, drinks heavily, and goes onstage to recite a poem that he originally recited in 1880. Wesley
spends his day in his apartment tending to Illyria's wounds, telling her there is nothing else he wants and nowhere for him to be. She offers to comfort him in Fred's form, but he refuses the offer.
The team splits up to attack members of the circle separately, making plans to reunite if they survive their missions As they leave, Lorne tells Angel that this is the last thing he's going to do for him, and that they will never see him again. Hamilton, warned of the plan by Harmony confronts Angel, intent on stopping his killing of the Circle's leader. Angel reveals he has already poisoned Duke Sebassis. The two begin to struggle.
Gunn, Spike, and Illyria kill their targets. Lindsey and Lorne wipe out the Sahvrin clan; then, on Angel's order, Lorne executes Lindsey, drops his gun, and leaves. Wesley is killed as he knocks out Cyrus Vail; as he dies, Illyria comforts him in Fred's guise, then kills Vail when he revives.
Angel is losing his fight with Hamilton, until Connor arrives to fight on his father's side. Hamilton proudly announces that his blood runs with power, prompting Angel to assume vampiric form and drink his blood, acquiring enough of Hamilton's stength to kill him. Expecting a swift counterattack from the Senior Partners, Angel directs Connor to leave, then manages to rendezvous with his surviving allies (except Lorne).
An army of supernatural creatures descends on the group, and Angel announces "Personally, I kinda wanna slay the dragon," as the episode and series end.
is in bed with Adam Baldwin
's character, plastic inserts in her bra are clearly visible as she turns to the side. Ironically, Jeffrey Bell jokes in the DVD commentary that she is "not a special effect," that she is quite real, despite the digitally added fake blood on her lip.
says of this episode, "This was not the final grace note after a symphony, the way the Buffy finale was. We are definitely still in the thick of it. But the point of the show is that you're never done; no matter who goes down, the fight goes on." Whedon says that Angel is about redemption, "something you fight for every day, so I wanted him to go out fighting. People kept calling it a cliffhanger. I was like, 'Are you mad, sir? Don't you see that that is the final statement?'"
Producer David Fury
agrees, saying it was "the perfect way to end the series, and anybody who says otherwise is dumb." The central theme of Angel, Fury explains, is that "the fight never ends...You can't ever win but the fight is worth fighting. Any proper resolution of, 'Oh, we've defeated the demons, they've gone back to hell, let's get a beer,' just would have been absolutely wrong for that show." Part of Angel's story, Fury says, is that "everybody that he's ever been close to dies...he will always outlive the people he cares about."
Alexis Denisof
, whose character was also killed in this episode, says that he "couldn't think of anything more fitting...the perfect human death of a human life." Joss Whedon says he wouldn't have killed Wesley if the series hadn't been canceled, but that scene ended up being "one of my favorite moments that we shot... If you're going to go out, go out hard."
Joss Whedon
quashed the rumors that Sarah Michelle Gellar
would appear as Buffy in an interview with TV Guide
, saying he didn't want the finale to "revolve around a guest star." He added that "I want to end the show with the people who've been in the trenches together, the characters who have lived - and occasionally died - together." Writer Jeffrey Bell elaborates, saying Gellar was intended to appear in the penultimate episode of Angel but couldn't make it due to other commitments. By the time the producers learned she was available for the finale, Bell says, "to force her into the very last episode to reread stuff that we already dealt with didn't make any sense."
's list of the worst series finales because "we never saw the end of the fight." E! News
quoted another fan as saying, "Well, that was the best first half of a season finale ever...what happened to part two?" A different criticism came from Roz Kaveney, who argued that this episode was a classic example of "'Superhero Exceptionalism' - the idea that superheroes are exempt from normal considerations and entitled to ignore consequences." The characters' attempt at redemption via a single "gratuitous heroic act of defiance," Kaveney felt, was contrary to Angels message that redemption was slowly earned one day at a time, case by case. The Futon Critic named it the 4th best episode of 2004, saying "The series finale was filled with tons of great "holy shit" moments - Illyria's reaction to Wesley's death alone should be required watching for everyone - but the closing moments cut right to the heart of what the show has always been about: the good fight (and the quest for redemption itself) is always a constant struggle."
Actor Boreanaz says he is "comfortable with the way they're ending it. It's very open-ended [and] goes out fighting." Matt Roush of TV Guide
praised the series finale, finding it "incredibly inspiring" that Angel continues to seek redemption despite signing away the reward promised by the Shanshu Prophecy
. "The series retired with dignity, integrity — and, yes, soul," Roush writes. This episode was nominated for a 2005 Hugo Award
in the category of "Best Dramatic Presentation: Short Form."
Angel (TV series)
Angel is an American television series, a spin-off of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The series was created by Buffys creator, Joss Whedon, in collaboration with David Greenwalt, and first aired on October 5, 1999...
. Written by series creator Joss Whedon
Joss Whedon
Joseph Hill "Joss" Whedon is an American screenwriter, executive producer, director, comic book writer, occasional composer and actor, founder of Mutant Enemy Productions and co-creator of Bellwether Pictures...
and directed and co-written by Jeffrey Bell, it was originally broadcast on May 19, 2004 on the WB network
Television network
A television network is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, whereby a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay TV providers. Until the mid-1980s, television programming in most countries of the world was dominated by a small...
. In "Not Fade Away," Angel convinces his team that they must take out every member of the Circle of the Black Thorn in a defiant and probably futile stand against the Senior Partners of Wolfram & Hart
Wolfram & Hart
Wolfram & Hart − Attorneys at Law is a fictional international, and interdimensional law firm featured in the television series Angel, as well as other extended materials in Joss Whedon's Buffyverse.-Fictional history:...
. He tells his team to make the most of what may be their last day on Earth: Gunn
Charles Gunn
Charles Gunn is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series, Angel. The character is portrayed by J. August Richards, and was named by Whedon after filmmaker James Gunn and actor Sean Gunn, both of whom had worked with Whedon...
visits his old neighborhood; Wesley tends to the wounded Illyria; Lorne spends some time onstage; Spike performs poetry at an open mic, and Angel visits his son. When night falls, the team divides and sets out to eliminate the members of the Black Thorn, incurring the wrath of the armies of hell.
Plot
Angel briefs his team on his plan to kill all the members of the Circle of the Black Thorn. Marcus HamiltonMarcus Hamilton
Marcus Hamilton is a fictional character that appeared on the final season of the TV series Angel. The character is played by actor Adam Baldwin, who also worked with Angel creator Joss Whedon in the series Firefly, playing mercenary Jayne Cobb....
calls Angel to an emergency meeting of the circle, where the other members express doubts about Angel's loyalties. Angel proves himself to them by irrevocably renouncing his role in the Shanshu Prophecy
Shanshu Prophecy
The Shanshu Prophecy is a prophecy that appears in the fictional universe of the television series Angel. Contained in the Scrolls of Aberjian, the prophecy first appears in the episode "Blind Date" and is more fully revealed in the season finale of the show's first season, "To Shanshu in L.A."...
, thereby giving up his chance to become human.
Back at Wolfram & Hart, Angel meets with his old enemy Lindsey McDonald
Lindsey McDonald
Lindsey McDonald is a fictional character from the television series Angel. He first appeared in the series' first episode, "City of," and featured prominently in the story arcs of seasons one, two, and five. Lindsey is the only character besides Angel himself to appear in both the first and last...
and enlists him in the planned attack on the Circle. He then the rest of his group that the plan will proceed that night. Angel advises his friends to spend the rest of the day as if it were their last since it "probably is."
Angel visits his son, Connor. Connor reveals that he knows that Angel is his father; his old memories are now "mixed in" with his new ones, and he understands and appreciates why Angel gave him new memories.
Lorne has serious reservations about Angel's plan, and his mood is dark and somber. Lindsey spends the day with Eve, who is suspicious of Angel even though Lindsey now trusts him. Gunn
Charles Gunn
Charles Gunn is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series, Angel. The character is portrayed by J. August Richards, and was named by Whedon after filmmaker James Gunn and actor Sean Gunn, both of whom had worked with Whedon...
spends his day helping Anne at the homeless shelter she maintains. Spike goes to a seedy bar, drinks heavily, and goes onstage to recite a poem that he originally recited in 1880. Wesley
Wesley Wyndam-Pryce
Wesley Wyndam-Pryce is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel...
spends his day in his apartment tending to Illyria's wounds, telling her there is nothing else he wants and nowhere for him to be. She offers to comfort him in Fred's form, but he refuses the offer.
The team splits up to attack members of the circle separately, making plans to reunite if they survive their missions As they leave, Lorne tells Angel that this is the last thing he's going to do for him, and that they will never see him again. Hamilton, warned of the plan by Harmony confronts Angel, intent on stopping his killing of the Circle's leader. Angel reveals he has already poisoned Duke Sebassis. The two begin to struggle.
Gunn, Spike, and Illyria kill their targets. Lindsey and Lorne wipe out the Sahvrin clan; then, on Angel's order, Lorne executes Lindsey, drops his gun, and leaves. Wesley is killed as he knocks out Cyrus Vail; as he dies, Illyria comforts him in Fred's guise, then kills Vail when he revives.
Angel is losing his fight with Hamilton, until Connor arrives to fight on his father's side. Hamilton proudly announces that his blood runs with power, prompting Angel to assume vampiric form and drink his blood, acquiring enough of Hamilton's stength to kill him. Expecting a swift counterattack from the Senior Partners, Angel directs Connor to leave, then manages to rendezvous with his surviving allies (except Lorne).
An army of supernatural creatures descends on the group, and Angel announces "Personally, I kinda wanna slay the dragon," as the episode and series end.
Production details
In the scene in which Mercedes McNabMercedes McNab
Mercedes Alicia McNab is a Canadian-born actress perhaps best known for playing Harmony Kendall on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spinoff Angel...
is in bed with Adam Baldwin
Adam Baldwin
Adam Baldwin is an American actor, known for his roles as Animal Mother in Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket, Ricky Linderman in My Bodyguard, Knowle Rohrer in The X-Files, and Marcus Hamilton in Joss Whedon's Angel...
's character, plastic inserts in her bra are clearly visible as she turns to the side. Ironically, Jeffrey Bell jokes in the DVD commentary that she is "not a special effect," that she is quite real, despite the digitally added fake blood on her lip.
Writing
Joss WhedonJoss Whedon
Joseph Hill "Joss" Whedon is an American screenwriter, executive producer, director, comic book writer, occasional composer and actor, founder of Mutant Enemy Productions and co-creator of Bellwether Pictures...
says of this episode, "This was not the final grace note after a symphony, the way the Buffy finale was. We are definitely still in the thick of it. But the point of the show is that you're never done; no matter who goes down, the fight goes on." Whedon says that Angel is about redemption, "something you fight for every day, so I wanted him to go out fighting. People kept calling it a cliffhanger. I was like, 'Are you mad, sir? Don't you see that that is the final statement?'"
Producer David Fury
David Fury
David Fury is an American television Screenwriter and Producer, best known for his work on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Lost, 24, and Fringe.Fury was a Co-executive producer and Writer for the first season of Lost...
agrees, saying it was "the perfect way to end the series, and anybody who says otherwise is dumb." The central theme of Angel, Fury explains, is that "the fight never ends...You can't ever win but the fight is worth fighting. Any proper resolution of, 'Oh, we've defeated the demons, they've gone back to hell, let's get a beer,' just would have been absolutely wrong for that show." Part of Angel's story, Fury says, is that "everybody that he's ever been close to dies...he will always outlive the people he cares about."
Acting
Christian Kane couldn't be on set for the final episode, so all the Lindsey scenes in this episode were written and shot about a month in advance. Kane says that he was unhappy with the way his character ended the season, but mostly because the series ending came as a shock and "we’ve all just now gotten comfortable in our skin."Alexis Denisof
Alexis Denisof
Alexis Denisof is an American actor who is known for playing Wesley Wyndam-Pryce in the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spin-off Angel.-Early life:...
, whose character was also killed in this episode, says that he "couldn't think of anything more fitting...the perfect human death of a human life." Joss Whedon says he wouldn't have killed Wesley if the series hadn't been canceled, but that scene ended up being "one of my favorite moments that we shot... If you're going to go out, go out hard."
Joss Whedon
Joss Whedon
Joseph Hill "Joss" Whedon is an American screenwriter, executive producer, director, comic book writer, occasional composer and actor, founder of Mutant Enemy Productions and co-creator of Bellwether Pictures...
quashed the rumors that Sarah Michelle Gellar
Sarah Michelle Gellar
Sarah Michelle Prinze , known professionally by her birth name of Sarah Michelle Gellar , is an American actress, singer and executive producer...
would appear as Buffy in an interview with TV Guide
TV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
, saying he didn't want the finale to "revolve around a guest star." He added that "I want to end the show with the people who've been in the trenches together, the characters who have lived - and occasionally died - together." Writer Jeffrey Bell elaborates, saying Gellar was intended to appear in the penultimate episode of Angel but couldn't make it due to other commitments. By the time the producers learned she was available for the finale, Bell says, "to force her into the very last episode to reread stuff that we already dealt with didn't make any sense."
Arc significance
- In the final episode of the series, Angel and the team make their stand against the Senior Partners and assassinate the Circle of the Black Thorn.
- In this episode the audience learns that Connor did indeed remember his past during "Origin."
- As Wesley dies he asks Illyria to lie to him, which mirrors a conversation Buffy has with Giles in the Buffy episode "Lie to Me" after a friend of hers has died. Illyria poses as Fred and tells him she loves him and they will be together soon.
- The dragon Angel wishes to slay at the end of this episode turns out to be an ally in "After the Fall"Angel: After the FallAngel: After the Fall is a comic book published by IDW Publishing. Written by Brian Lynch and plotted with Joss Whedon, the series is a canonical continuation of the Angel television series, and follows the events of that show's final televised season...
. Angel says that the dragon was deceived by Wolfram & Hart, and that he realized this not long into their fight. - David BoreanazDavid BoreanazDavid Boreanaz is an American actor, television producer, and director, known for his role as Angel on the supernatural drama series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, and as Special Agent Seeley Booth on the television crime drama Bones....
and Christian KaneChristian KaneChristian Kane is an American actor and singer/songwriter of Native American descent. He currently stars as Eliot Spencer on the TNT series Leverage. He is best known for his roles in the television shows Angel and Into the West, and the movies Just Married and Secondhand Lions.He is the lead...
are the only actors to appear in the both the first and last episodes of Angel as well as the 100th episode.
Continuity
- Spike takes Angel's advice to "live the day as if it were his last" quite literally, as the poem he reads is a completed form of the poem that was originally read on his last day before being sired by Drusilla. This poem was introduced in Buffy Season 5's "Fool for Love." The completed poem reads:
- My soul is wrath in harsh repose
- Midnight descends in raven colored clothes
- But soft, behold! A sunlight beam
- Cutting a swath of glimmering gleam
- My heart expands, 'tis grown a bulge in't,
- Inspired by your beauty effulgent
- Gunn chooses to spend his last day helping Anne, last seen in "The Thin Dead Line". Anne, played by Julia Lee, is a character who has sporadically appeared in both Buffy and Angel since Buffys second season.
- Before the end battle, Gunn says "Okay, you take the thirty thousand on the left…" This may be a reference to "Over the Rainbow" in which Gunn, when confronted by a gang of Pyleans, sarcastically quips, "I'll take the twenty on the left, you take the fifty on the right."
- During their argument over which of them has helped save the world more times, Angel and Spike refer to the events of "Prophecy GirlProphecy Girl"Prophecy Girl" is the season finale of the WB Television Network's first season of the drama television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and the 12th episode of the series. The episode first aired on June 2, 1997 with the series acting as a midseason replacement for Savannah...
" and "The Zeppo" (in which Angel helped to close the Hellmouth), "Doomed" and "Chosen" (in which Spike did so), "Graduation Day, Part TwoGraduation Day (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)"Graduation Day" is the season finale of the WB Television Network's third season of the drama television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, consisting of the twenty-first and twenty-second episodes. They are also the fifty-fifth and fifty-sixth episodes of the show overall...
" (in which Angel helped to defeat the Mayor), "Peace Out" (in which Angel Investigations defeated Jasmine) and "Becoming, Part Two" (in which Spike conspired with Buffy SummersBuffy SummersBuffy Summers is a fictional character from Joss Whedon's Buffy the Vampire Slayer franchise. She first appeared in the 1992 film Buffy the Vampire Slayer before going on to appear in the television series and subsequent comic book of the same name...
so that she could kill Angelus before he could awaken the demon Acathla).
Cultural references
- Jesus Christ: When preparing for the final battle, Angel says, "this may come out a little pretentious, but one of you will betray me." In the same conversation after Angel says that it's not Spike but Wesley, Spike asks, "Can I deny you three times?" Both are references to the Last SupperLast SupperThe Last Supper is the final meal that, according to Christian belief, Jesus shared with his Twelve Apostles in Jerusalem before his crucifixion. The Last Supper provides the scriptural basis for the Eucharist, also known as "communion" or "the Lord's Supper".The First Epistle to the Corinthians is...
and The CrucifixionDeath and Resurrection of JesusThe Christian belief in the resurrection of Jesus states that Jesus returned to bodily life on the third day following his death by crucifixion. It is a key element of Christian faith and theology and part of the Nicene Creed: "On the third day he rose again in fulfillment of the Scriptures"...
involving Judias' betrayal of Jesus and of Peter denying three times that he knows Jesus during his arrest. - Legion (demon)Legion (demon)Legion is a group of demons referred to in the Christian Bible. The New Testament outlines an encounter where Jesus healed a man from Gadarenes possessed by demons while traveling, known as Exorcising the Gerasenes demonic.- In the Bible :...
: With his last words, Marcus Hamilton, Angel's connection with the senior partners, tells Angel that he cannot win his war against Wolfram & Hart for Hamilton states: "We are Legion, we are forever." which is a reference from Mark 5:9 and Luke 8:30 in the Bible, when the devils (demons) refer to themselves as "Legion."
Reception and reviews
The series finale provoked mixed reaction from critics and fans, appearing on Zap2itZap2it
Zap2it is an American website and affiliate network that provides news, photos and video, local TV listings and movie showtimes. The site is produced by Tribune Media Services , part of the publishing division of the Chicago-based Tribune Company...
's list of the worst series finales because "we never saw the end of the fight." E! News
E! News
E! News, previously known as E! News Daily and E! News Live, is a nightly entertainment newsmagazine program airing on E!: Entertainment Television. The program debuted on September 1, 1991 and talks about Hollywood celebrities and gossip...
quoted another fan as saying, "Well, that was the best first half of a season finale ever...what happened to part two?" A different criticism came from Roz Kaveney, who argued that this episode was a classic example of "'Superhero Exceptionalism' - the idea that superheroes are exempt from normal considerations and entitled to ignore consequences." The characters' attempt at redemption via a single "gratuitous heroic act of defiance," Kaveney felt, was contrary to Angels message that redemption was slowly earned one day at a time, case by case. The Futon Critic named it the 4th best episode of 2004, saying "The series finale was filled with tons of great "holy shit" moments - Illyria's reaction to Wesley's death alone should be required watching for everyone - but the closing moments cut right to the heart of what the show has always been about: the good fight (and the quest for redemption itself) is always a constant struggle."
Actor Boreanaz says he is "comfortable with the way they're ending it. It's very open-ended [and] goes out fighting." Matt Roush of TV Guide
TV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
praised the series finale, finding it "incredibly inspiring" that Angel continues to seek redemption despite signing away the reward promised by the Shanshu Prophecy
Shanshu Prophecy
The Shanshu Prophecy is a prophecy that appears in the fictional universe of the television series Angel. Contained in the Scrolls of Aberjian, the prophecy first appears in the episode "Blind Date" and is more fully revealed in the season finale of the show's first season, "To Shanshu in L.A."...
. "The series retired with dignity, integrity — and, yes, soul," Roush writes. This episode was nominated for a 2005 Hugo Award
Hugo Award
The Hugo Awards are given annually for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year. The award is named after Hugo Gernsback, the founder of the pioneering science fiction magazine Amazing Stories, and was officially named the Science Fiction Achievement Awards...
in the category of "Best Dramatic Presentation: Short Form."