Angel/Recap/S04 E01 Deep Down

The Fang Gang searches for Angel, unaware that Connor was responsible.

"Connor: "Do I have to watch this part?""
 * Actor Allusion: Linwood refers to his department at Wolfram & Hart as his "corner of the sky," a reference to the song "Corner of the Sky" in the musical Pippin. John Rubinstein, who plays Linwood Murrow, originated the title role in the Broadway production.
 * Almost Kiss: Fred and Gunn in Angel's first dream.

"Fred: (stroking Connor's hair) "I can't imagine what you've been through, Connor, being taken away by Holtz, raised in that place. It must have been horrible. I know you're still hurting but, I promise, it's not nearly as much as you're gonna hurt for what you did to your father." (zaps Connor repeatedly with a taser)"
 * Aloof Ally: Wesley
 * And I Must Scream / Horror Hunger: Angel is going mad with hunger after three months in a steel box.
 * As You Know: Some clunky exposition between Wesley and Justine.
 * Beware the Nice Ones / Mood Whiplash: Fred enters Connor's room with milk and a sandwich on a tray.

"Connor: "Did you see that? Wasn't that cool? (Laughs) That was cool!""
 * Blatant Lies: Wesley tells Lilah he doesn't know or care where Angel is. After she leaves he goes and unlocks the closet to reveal Justine in a cage, Bound and Gagged and chained to a Slave Collar. Given that she could hear everything Wesley and Lilah got up to, the scene has disturbing sexual implications.
 * Call Back: To BTVS "The Body" where Buffy remembers a happy family-and-friends dinner gathering, only to cut back to the reality of her mother's dead body.
 * Catch and Return: Connor catches an axe being hurled at Fred and then throws it back at the hurler.

"Justine: "He'll turn on you! He won't be able to help it. That's what he is. Sooner or later he will turn on you, and all your friends!""
 * Ceiling Cling: Marissa hiding from the Fang Gang.
 * Chekhov's Gun: Fluffy (for "The House Always Wins")
 * Continuity Nod: Angel mentions his girlfriend sending him to a hell dimension for a hundred years ("Becoming, Part 2").
 * Crashing Dreams / Mood Whiplash: Angel's dreams always start off with an ideal vision -- his True Companions (including Wesley and Connor) sharing a hearty meal and a Friendship Moment, Cordelia confessing her love like she intended in "Tomorrow", Angel and Connor fighting side by side -- then things turn ugly as Angel's hunger or rage breaks through.
 * Daydream Surprise
 * Designated Parents: With Angel, Cordelia, Lorne and Wesley not available, Fred and Gunn have fallen into the role of Connor's surrogate parents, worrying about his tendencies toward destructive rebellion in the way that his own parents might worry about it.
 * Easily Forgiven: Angel chooses not to punish Connor. He does throw him out of his house though.
 * Electric Torture: While Connor is tied to a chair he gets tasered again by a pissed-off Fred.
 * Foreshadowing: Wesley is helping Angel into his car.

""God, I am so bored.""
 * Fluffy Cloud Heaven: Where Cordelia is.

"Fred: "Wait. You don't think he was referring to anything of mine that's fluffy, do you? Because that would just be inappropriate.""
 * Game Face: Inverted - Marissa reverts to her human face when trying to sweet-talk Connor into letting her go. It doesn't work.
 * Getting Crap Past the Radar: Lorne calls from Las Vegas, telling the gang to "make sure Fluffy's getting enough love". Fred has no idea who he's referring to.

"Fred: "Don't let it go to your head."
 * And later when Fred tells Gunn he's top dog.

Gunn: (pulling her close) "That's not the direction it's flowing.""

"Lilah: "Hmm. That didn't suck. Well, maybe just a little bit."
 * Lilah and Wes, post-coitus.

Wes: "Perhaps that is something we can expand on next time.""

"Linwood: "This is outrageous! Are you actually telling me that you went over my head?"
 * Good Thing You Can Heal: Angel is weak, raving and hallucinating when Wesley pulls him out of the water, but after Wesley feeds him his own blood and carries him back to the Hyperion, Angel is strong and coherent enough to face down Connor. Subverted when Angel collapses after Connor leaves, showing that he was bluffing about being strong enough to take him.
 * Gratuitous Spanish: The vampire gang Gunn and Fred confront.
 * Hannibal Lecture: These fly thick and fast from all sides.
 * Honey Trap: Lilah to Wesley -- he's not fooled, telling her bluntly that he has no idea where Angel is.
 * Hyper Awareness: Justine is about to Wrench Whack Wesley from behind when (without turning around) he calmly threatens to take away her toilet bucket the next time she's in the cage.
 * Klingon Promotion: Gavin discovers that Lilah is bonking Wesley and tells Linwood in order to finally supplant his rival. Lilah responds by accusing Linwood of being afraid of Angel and his son, which is why he hasn't tried to find out where Angel is. Linwood is unimpressed until Lilah says that the Senior Partners agree with her.

''[Lilah touches her stylus to the palm-pilot in her hand. We hear an electronic beep -- then a blade whips out of the backrest on Linwood's chair slicing quickly and neatly through his neck.

Lilah: "Just under it, actually."

[Gavin and the other board members stare shocked as Linwood's head rolls along the table.]

Lilah: "Mr. Suvarta didn't think Linwood's sky was sunny enough. You're all reporting to me now. (Sits down) Get out."

[Everyone quickly and quietly gets up and files out the room.]

Lilah: "Gavin."

[Gavin freezes. Lilah gives him a slight smile, then indicates the decapitated head with her stylus.]

Lilah: "Please remove that.""

"Angel: "Nothing in the world is the way it ought to be. It's harsh, and cruel. But that's why there's us. Champions. It doesn't matter where we come from, what we've done or suffered, or even if we make a difference. We live as though the world were as it should be, to show it what it can be. You're not a part of that yet. I hope you will be. I love you, Connor. Now get out of my house.""
 * Knight in Sour Armor

"Wesley: You [Justine] and Holtz deserved each other. You two have so much in common. Pain, loss, deep-seated lack of anything approaching humor.""
 * Lecherous Licking / Not Staying for Breakfast: Lilah Morgan
 * The Last of These Is Not Like the Others

"Gunn: "His nickname back in Quortoth was the Destroyer. And unless you put Conan in front of that, I'm guessing it's not a good sign.""
 * Given that Wesley is saying this; it could also be a case of I Resemble That Remark.
 * Love Confession / Big Damn Kiss: Cordelia and Angel in his second dream. Then he vamps out and feeds on her.
 * Mandatory Line: Cordelia
 * Manipulative Bastard: Wesley wins the prize in this episode -- fooling everyone including Lilah about his intentions while keeping control of a vampire-hating prisoner in order to locate and rescue Angel.
 * Morality Pet: Angel makes it clear that whether Connor lives or dies depends on whether he did anything to Cordelia.
 * Names to Run Away From Really Fast

"Vampire: "I see Angel left you a little toy toy, huh?"
 * Neck Snap: Angel to Connor in his third dream.
 * The Nicknamer: The Powers That Screw You
 * Nothing Up My Sleeve: During the opening fight, a vampire snatches a crossbow off Fred.

Fred: "More than one." (Fred stakes him using Angel's wrist-stake-launcher)"

"Fred: "He's just a boy."
 * Not So Different: Implied with Wesley and Justine; both have betrayed their mentors and are helping their enemies.
 * One Hero, Hold the Weaksauce

Gunn: "Are you sure about that? Offspring of two vampires. Last time I checked that's not supposed to happen. And jumping off a six-story without busting your coconut kind of sways me to the side of not just a boy.""

"Gunn: "Or we can do it the loud way.""
 * Open Says Me: Connor kicking open the door to Marissa's crib.

"Justine: "Oh, screw you. I'm not feeding that thing."
 * Offscreen Teleportation: Marissa jumps out a window, clambers up a wall onto the roof and finds Connor already there.
 * "Previously On...": A long one due to all the plot elements that the audience has to be reminded of from over the summer break.
 * Put on a Bus: The last thing we see of Justine is when Wesley throws her the key to her handcuffs, telling Justine to stop being a slave.
 * Promotion to Opening Titles: Vincent Kartheiser as Connor.
 * Reassigned to Antarctica: Linwood and Gavin suggest reassigning Lilah to a "third world dimension".
 * Series Continuity Error: No mention is made of Groo disappearing, even though Cordelia is the only one who knew he was leaving and didn't have an opportunity to tell anyone. Gunn also has his goatee in Angel's dream, which Angel shouldn't know about.
 * Slow Motion Drop / Dramatic Shattering: The glass in Angel's first dream.
 * Stab the Scorpion: Wesley discovers that pig's blood isn't enough to revive Angel. He takes out a wicked-looking knife and looks at Justine.

Wes: "Your blood's too thin." (Cuts open his own vein)"

"Wes: "That part of my life is dead. Doesn't concern me now.""
 * Super Window Jump: Marissa, quickly followed by Connor.
 * Spiky Hair: More jibes.
 * That Man Is Dead


 * Totally Radical: Fred trying to master Gunn Speak.
 * Villains Never Lie: Connor appears to accept Angel's word that he didn't kill Holtz. But then again, he's had three months to think about it and so probably suspects the truth anyway. Gunn is skeptical when Connor says he didn't kill Cordelia, but Angel says that Connor has lied enough to him that he's learned to tell the difference. "The truth has a better sound to it, less nasal."
 * Wall Crawl: Marissa fleeing Connor.
 * You Know Too Much: Connor staking Marissa when he realises she might have seen Connor and Justine disposing of Angel.