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At the party, Angel skulks through the crowd and spots Cordelia Chase as she mingles with some execs. They talk about old times, and Cordelia announces that she moved to L.A. to pursue acting. She tactlessly excuses herself, explaining that she's busy "talking to people that ''are'' somebody." A bit deflated, Angel moves on and notices Tina arguing with a man. She and Angel take the elevator down, and are jumped by "Russel's" hired muscle. Angel fights them off and decides it's wise to stash Tina at his place.
Things go awry when Tina sees the slip of paper on which Doyle wrote her name. She flees upstairs, and when Angel tries to intervene, his hand bursts into flame from a ray of sunlight and he vamps out. Tina wails and runs outside, while Angel can only watch. Tina races to her apartment and starts packing, but Russell is lying in wait. He's interested to know who was with her last night. When Tina describes what happened to Angel's face, Russel vamps out (aha.) and drains her. Angel arrives too late and discovers Tina's body.
Cordy's contact from the party calls to reports that Russell Winters is very interested in furthering her career. Cordelia is escorted via limo and seems very happy with herself. Angel packs a bag of weapons and prepares to go medieval on Russell. Cordelia is at Russell's for only a few minutes before she realizes that he is a vampire. Russell feebly denies this, then shrugs and vamps out. Angel arrives just in time, and he and Cordy flee into the night.
At [[Evil, Inc.|Russell Winters Enterprises™]], Angel barges through the doors, only to be intercepted by the lawyer, Lindsey MacDonald. Lindsey is well aware that Angel's a vampire, and warns him not to meddle with his client. Russell offers to make peace with Angel, but Angel kicks his swivel chair out a window. Russell bursts into flame and combusts before he hits the pavement.
Angel returns to the office to find Cordelia setting up shop. Doyle took it upon himself to offer her a secretary position. Doyle tells Angel that there's still a lot of people in the naked city who need help. He intones, "Are you game?" We cut to a view of Angel standing on a skyscraper, watching over the city. In a voice-over, we hear his reply:
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=== Tropes in this episode: ===
* [[Always Camp]]: Oliver Simon, agent to the stars.
{{quote|
* [[Amoral Attorney]]: Lindsey, of course.
* [[Battle Discretion Shot]]: As Angel and Tina step out of a hotel elevator, two men grab Angel and pull him back into the elevator just as the doors close, while Stacy and his associate drag Tina away. When the elevator doors re-open, Angel is standing over the unconscious bodies of his assailants
* [[Beard of Evil]] / [[The Dragon]]: Russell Winters' swarthy-looking henchman, Stacy.
* [[Beautiful All Along]]
{{quote|
'''Doyle''' (laughs): Have you looked into a mirror lately? (hesitates) No, I guess you really haven’t, no. }}
* [[Big Fancy House]]: Casa de Vampire.
* [[Blood on These Hands]]: Angel tries to check Tina's pulse at her neck, and his fingers come away wet with blood.
** [[Deleted Scene]]: In the original script, the scene in which Angel finds Tina's dead body ends with him cradling her, then licking her blood from his fingers. Although creator Joss Whedon claims that moment was his favorite moment in the script, it was removed at the risk of [[Darkness-Induced Audience Apathy]]. You can see Boreanaz about to taste the blood, but it fades out just in time.
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* [[Broken Bird]]: Poor Tina.
* [[Call Back]]: Doyle says Angel needs to stop being a recluse. He also says that because Angel drank Buffy's blood back in the ''Buffy'' Season Three finale ("Graduation Day, Pt. 2") Angel has a renewed craving for human blood, and eventually he will feed off the people he's trying to rescue.
** Cordelia greets Angel at Margo's party by asking if he's still "Grrr," then asks to verify that Angel is not there "to bite anybody." Cordelia became aware that Angel is vampire in ''Buffy'' S2 ("[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Recap/S2
** Cordy also provides her backstory for those coming in late. In summary: Her parents were rich, they didn't pay taxes, the IRS got miffed, now she's broke. (''Buffy'', "The Prom")
* [[Car Fu]]: After (finally) locating his vehicle, Angel races to intercept Tina's kidnapper before he can leave the parking garage. Angel and the henchman play chicken in their car, and the henchman loses, crashing into a parked car.
* [[Casting Couch]]
* [[Casual Kink]]: According to Tina, Russel is a really big fan of-- well, pain. "He talks about it like it's a friend of his."
* [[Catapult Nightmare]] / [[Talking in Your Sleep]]: As the sun rises after a long, research-filled night, Angel makes his way home through the tunnels. He pops up from the sewer grate just in time to wake Tina, who is having a nightmare.
* [[Cement Shoes]]: Angel fixes some tea for Tina, and the pair discuss their unseen foe. One of Tina's friends, Denise, disappeared after getting involved with Russell. Angel goes off to research her friend's disappearance; he finds information leading him to believe Denise was killed and her body dumped.
* [[Chekhov's Gunman]]
* [[Cheshire Cat Grin]]
* [[Crossover]]: David Boreanaz and Sarah Michelle Gellar had cameo parts in each others’ season premiere episodes. A despondent Angel calls Buffy, but hangs up as soon as she answers. Buffy's side of the call is shown in "[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Recap/S4
* [[Destination Defenestration]]: Angel heaves Stacy through the window of his own gym. Later, Russell takes the quick route to the ground floor of his own high-rise.
* [[
* [[Drowning My Sorrows]]: The episode with Angel in a bar, [[Exploited Trope|pretending to be drunk]], and babbling on about Buffy to a bald guy who is not amused.
** When Marlo rings up Cordy to deliver her 'good news', we see her popping pills and swigging alcohol.
* [[Eek!
* [[Establishing Character Moment]]: [[Word of God]] states that the [[Batman Cold Open]] is structured toward the uninitiated members of the audience, since it shows off every side of Angel's personality.
** [[Establishing Series Moment]]: [[Show Runner|Jeff Greenwalt]] was particularly delighted with Angel [[Wrong Genre Savvy|jumping into the wrong car]]. Joss, on the other hand, was over the moon with regard to Angel failing to save the girl.
* [[Evil Cannot Comprehend Good]]: Russell tries to talk sense to Angel. Russell says he doesn't make waves, and adds, "In return, I can do anything I want." Angel appears to contemplate this, as he puts one leg on the chair Russell is sitting in. "Can you fly?" Angel asks, and with that he kicks the chair so that it rolls back and smashes through the floor-to-ceiling windows, incinerating Russell.
{{quote|
* [[Evil Redhead]] / [[The Mole]]: Cordelia's 'friend', Margo, acts as a go-between for Russell and his new playmates.
* [[False Reassurance]]: The scene between Tina and Russell exemplifies his ability to snare and control others. He goes from staring down Tina's revolver (admittedly not a health hazard for vampires, but still) to consoling her, claiming that he bought Denise a ticket home and that he will do the same for her. As Russell works his magic, Tina breaks down and cries.
* [[Foreshadowing]]: When Angel complains, "Why me?", Doyle's reply - that the "balance sheet" isn't exactly in Angel's favor - outlines the theme for ''Angel''. When Angel next asks, "Why ''you''?", Doyle uncomfortably replies, "We've all got somethin' to atone for." We follow up on this peek into Doyle's history in the episode "Hero".
** Tina tells Angel that he's "[[Irony|just like]]" Russell. This foreshadows the revelation that Russell, like Angel, is a vampire.
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* [[Fridge Logic]]: The incongruity of [[Fridge Logic|a vampire surrounding himself with sunny windows]] was addressed much later in S4 ("Home"), in which Lilah Morgan revealed that Wolfram & Hart encased its building in "necro-tempered glass" that filters out the sun's rays.
* [[Genre Savvy]]: Cordelia notes the heavy curtains and conspicuous absence of mirrors.
{{quote|
'''Russell:''' [half-heartedly] [[Bad Liar|What? No I'm not]]. <br />
'''Cordelia:''' Are too! <br />
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'''Cordelia:''' I'm from Sunnydale; We had our own Hellmouth! I think I know a vampire when I... [[Oh Crap|am alone with him... in his fortress-like home]]...and you know, I think I'm just feeling a little light-headed from hunger. I'm just wacky. And kidding! Ha ha! }}
* [[Good Is Not Nice]]: At the same time as he is swilling alcohol, Angel he is watching a group of men playing pool with some women. They leave with the girls, and Angel silently shadows them. Hey, wait a minute! [[Captain Obvious|He's not really drunk at all!]] Outside the bar, the trio reveal themselves as vampires, but Angel swoops to the rescue. One of the girls tries to thank him, but Angel glimpses the blood on her forehead and snarls at them, "Get away from me."
* [[Hard Work Montage]]: Angel skimming the internet inside the L.A. Public Library.
** The library was intended to be a frequent location on ''Angel'' (a possible nod at ''Buffy'', in which the Scoobies convene regularly in the school's library). Tons of stock footage of Angel accessing computers and books was shot, but they were only ever used for this episode.
* [[Hawaiian-Shirted Tourist]]: Angel and Doyle drive up to Russell's mansion, with Angel wearing a tacky luau shit. He approaches the security booth while performing the old "[[Obfuscating Stupidity|we're lost and need directions]]" bit for the guard. Angel inquires about the football game the guard is watching. Then he [[Tap on the Head|punches the guard]] and [[Insecurity Camera|yanks the wire out of the security camera]].
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* [[Ironic Echo]]
* [[It's Personal]]: Doyle tries to delve into Angel's guilt complex regarding Tina's death, but Angel says he doesn't want to share his feelings:.
{{quote|
'''Doyle:''' Then what?
'''Angel:''' ''Then'' I'm gonna [[Roaring Rampage of Revenge|share my feelings]]. }}
* [[Last-Second Word Swap]]: Angel remarks on passing through Tina's hometown, Missoula, during "the Depression", then stammers, "--''My depression. ..I was depressed there."
* [[Meet Cute]]: Angel's initial attempts to strike up conversation with Tina are less than successful. He only gets her attention by using his [[Super Reflexes]] to catch a falling cup.
{{quote|
'''Angel:''' No! [[Cringe Comedy|I was looking towards there-– and you kind of walked through... there]].<br />
'''Tina:''' You don't hit on girls very often, do you?" }}
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* [[Negated Moment of Awesome]]: Angel, in a race to catch Tina's kidnappers, is a bit over-enthusiastic in leaping into his convertible. Turns out, it's the ''wrong'' convertible.
** At the sound of gunfire, Doyle drives away, but his Jiminy Cricket-ness [[Conscience Makes You Go Back|gets the better of him]] and he turns the car around and tries to ram through the gates. The gates hold, and steam erupts from the car's hood.
{{quote|
* [[Nothing Up My Sleeve]]: Angel has a pair of retractable stakes up his sleeves.
* [[Not What It Looks Like]]
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* [[Pre-Ass-Kicking One-Liner]]: Angel strolling out of the shadows and declaring (in a voice of [[Tranquil Fury]]): "I have a message... from Tina."
** Seconded by Cordelia, who turns to Russell and asks, "You don't know who he is, do you? Oh ''boy!'' [[Lampshade Hanging|You're about to get your ass kicked!]]"
* [["Previously On..."]]: For the uninitiated viewers out there, Doyle offers to tell Angel a "bedtime story" and recaps Angel's entire past. We see a montage of short clips of Angel's life from Europe to Sunnydale.
** [[To Make a Long Story Short]]
* [[Properly Paranoid]]: Tina has ample reason to be jittery.
* [[Rescue Sex]]: Back at Angel's place, Tina assumes that [[This Is the Part Where]] Angel "comforts" her. Angel, noting that Tina is accustomed to being used, tells her that he has [[Subverted Trope|no intention of taking advantage]], causing her to break down crying.
* [[Retroactive Recognition]]: Josh Holloway (the vampire who tells Angel to "piss off") and Tracy Middendorf both went on to appear on ''[[Lost]]''. Holloway plays series regular Sawyer, while Middendorf played Bonnie in Season Three.
** Daniel Dae Kim (Gavin Park), Sam Anderson (Holland Manners), and Marc Vann (Dr. Sparrow) all appeared on ''Angel'' as employees of Wolfram & Hart later in the series, and also went on to portray characters on ''Lost'' -- Kim and Anderson playing regulars, and Vann playing a recurring character (again a Doctor).
* [[Speak of the Devil]]
* [[Spider Sense]]: Tina races home and starts frantically packing her bag. Among her possessions is a revolver. She suddenly grabs it and whirls, aiming at the well-dressed man standing there. It's Russell.
* [[Starter Villain]]: Russell.
* [[There Are No Good Executives]] / [[Vampires Are Rich]]: Russell is vaguely referred to as "that investment guy", but he evidentially has fingers in alot of pies. Tina says he's a depraved killer, and that he picks people with no family and no one to care.
** The latter trope is subverted with Angel, presumably because while [[Vampires Are Rich]], private eyes are expected to be poor.
{{quote|
* [[Vampire Invitation]]: Russell sets up his victims in apartments that he already owns. As they are ''his'' guests, he doesn't need an invitation to walk in on them.
* [[Waiting for a Break]]: Tina.
{{quote|
** Also, (Ssh, don't tell anyone) <small>Cordelia.</small>
* [[You Are Too Late]]
* [[You Have No Idea Who You're Dealing With]]: Stacy, who is apparently unaware of Angel's vampire nature, warns Angel that he's in over his head.
{{quote|
* [[You Remind Me of X]]: Angel is sitting at a bar, very drunk, and relating the story of why he came to Los Angeles. This version of the story seems to center mostly on the fact that the large, bald black man sitting nearby "reminds" him of Buffy.
{{quote|
* [[You Would Make a Great Model]]: At the party, an older bearded gent named Oliver observes that Angel is very attractive, and offers to be his management. Angel repeatedly insists he is not an actor. This might have been a self-referential dig at how David Boreanaz was discovered while walking his dog.
* [[Your Door Was Open]]: Our introduction to Doyle.
** Takes a darker turn in Russell's first on-screen appearance:
{{quote|
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:Back to ''[[{{TOPLEVELPAGE}}/Recap]]''
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