faith

(S01E18) Faith... must be enforced by reason... when faith becomes blind it dies. -- Mohandas Gandhi

The best, most intense, angriest fight scene of Angel up to this point appears in this episode. It's between Angel and Faith, who . . .

I'm sorry, did you say 'Faith who?'. You remember Faith: she was the slayer who had a recurring role on Buffy the Vampire Slayer during the third season. She arrived in Sunnydale to assist the Buffster in her slaying duties. Later on in the season we found out that Wesley was her Watcher (just as Giles was Buffy's Watcher). At first, she seemed like your standard fun-loving, wacky teen with superhuman powers. But, as the season went on she became a bit crazy, began working for the evil mayor of the town, and eventually got the crap beaten out of her by Buffy.

(S05E09) This week's episode provided some revelations, just like the title promises. There are answers to questions about Gene Purdy's past that the show has only hinted at prior to now.

(S05E05) The Dead Zone is losing its cohesiveness. At least during the early seasons of the show, there was a coherent subplot to all of the shows. The current season's shows seem to be stand alone, but they also seem to be marginally relevant. They are, instead, rather heavy-handed and preachy. Looking back through the episodes from earlier in the season, the most compelling one seems to be the season premiere, in which Greg Stillson's fiancee is (apparently) killed by snake venom right before her own wedding. But instead of continuing with anything about Stillson, none of the other episodes are the least bit inter-related. I know I am going on and on about this, but I do like for my television shows to at least acknowledge that there have been other episodes before that one, and that there will be another episode next week. I am not all about stand alone television.

(S17E21)

Ned: We want you to teach alternative theories to Darwinian evolution.

Skinner: You mean Lamarckian evolution?

Last night The Simpsons took on creationism versus evolution, pitting Lisa against the rest of the town. This isn't the first time the show has tackled the issue of science and religion, most notably in the "Lisa the Skeptic" episode in which the supposed skeleton of a dead angel is found. Last night's episode had some good moments, but it did feel like they were treading upon somewhat familiar ground and not saying anything especially new.

Y'know, I thought it would be a cool idea and all to let you in on what I think are the top five episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, seeing as it's almost Halloween and all (and yes, I know, baddies find the day to be boorish and cliché). But can I really sum up seven seasons of episodes within a measly list of five? Well, I'll do my best, and I'm sure no matter how I order them or list them, someone's going to disagree. Big time. So, without further ado...