Mel's Synopsis

Previously on Angel: Angel had a son, Connor. Cordelia, who earlier got demon blood and whose powers have been growing ever since, expresses a belief that Angel's feelings are the only ones that matter-- right in front of Groo. Connor was taken by Wes, who thought Angel would kill the boy. Slashing Wes' throat, Justine takes the boy for Holtz, who then takes him to a Hell dimension. Both return, about 16 years older, and Connor hates Angel...yet they begin to bond, until Holtz, with Justine's _exceedingly_ reluctant assistance, kills himself with 2 puncture wounds to the neck, setting up Angel. Meanwhile, Wes survived, but was ordered/warned not to come back to the hotel by Fred. Lilah Morgan has made strong plays for his services, managing to dig her nails into the cracks in Wes' psyche, begun in "Billy" and continuing to undermine his belief in his own innate goodness...and both have now found out that Connor has returned.

Open with Groo entering the lobby of the Hyperion with a sad, longing sigh, bearing two mugs of...liquid. He offers them to Cordelia, telling her that he knows she has grave concern for Angel's welfare, and so has made makhna. A soothing brew to relieve tension...that looks like muddy water. "Yes," he says. "The mud gives it body and flavour." He then goes onto say that he had to substitute ingredients, so it's not _true_ makhna. "So, it's mock-makhna," Cordy says with a grin. He doesn't quite get it, but offers her a mug of it. She takes a sip, and it's less than palatable-- though she covers for his sake. Too bad some sediment goes down the wrong way...he then offers to rub her "shlugti" to further relax her. Cordy looks a bit embarrassed, and says maybe later at home... then quietly says that she doesn't feel comfortable doing "it" in the office. At Groo's confusion, she further specifies she means sex. "Oh!" he exclaims in surprise (and other emotions). "You wish to have sex!" "No!" He then explains he was proposing rubbing her shlugti-- her tense neck muscle. "But, it is always an honour to make sex with you." He then moves closer, to speak softly into her ear. "Later, at home. I understand perfectly." "Angel." We can't miss the sad resignation on Groo's face as he straightens. "Is not who I am, Princess." "I know," she says, pointing. "He's back." And we see that Angel has indeed entered the lobby. And, as she approaches him, he denies hearing anything that went on between her and Groo. He says he found Holtz, and didn't kill him. "Maybe you're growing as as person-- what _did_ you do?" They talked. About Connor-- _Stephen_? Angel says yes, and asks if Connor's come home-- the answer is no, he's still out with Gunn and Fred (Ed. uh...not exactly...) but Cordy picks up on the use of the term "home". Angel says it's a long story, but what Holtz wants is what's best for Connor-- to live with them. Cordy thinks it's great, and tells Angel she's so happy for him, giving him a big hug. "Yes," Groo says from the background, with quiet irony. "It is a happy time."

Cut to the back alley, where Connor clutches Holtz' inert form, sobbing. "This didn't have to happen," Justine tells the boy, kneeling on the ground nearby. "Your father was gonna leave...he just wanted to talk to Angelus..." "Leave?" "Angelus won," Justine continues, fulfilling Holtz' last, vengeful plan. "He could've just walked away..." Connor says it's his own fault...but that Angelus will pay. Justine says she'll help kill him, but Connor says no. "You don't wanna kill him?" she asks, in a tone of what might be disbelieving disgust. "After what he did? What _do_ you wanna do?"

And the gleam in Connor's eyes makes the point that death would be kinder...

CREDITS

Back at the Hyperion, Angel is looking around, trying to find a place for Connor (who still hasn't returned.) He enters one, saying to Cordelia that it might work-- southern exposure, not too close to his own room: "don't want him to feel like I'm... hovering." But, it's not too _far_ from Angel's room, so he can keep an eye. Straightening a crooked painting of Niagara Falls, he asks Cordy what she thinks...and she thinks it's just as good as the last 5 rooms he'd looked at. It's not about the room, it's about Connor-- who neither of them can get used to calling "Stephen". It's about Connor living there, getting to know his father. "I don't even own a tv," Angel realises, realising that his son will want to watch tv. "Not too much. I mean, after homework and chores." Plus needing clothes and a weekly allowance-- "What's good nowadays? Fifty cents? A dollar?" "Yeah," she replies. "If you're Tom Sawyer paintin' a fence." Angel realises he's so out of touch..."He's gonna hate me." Cordy says no, he'll love him. "How do you know?" he asks, as she sits down on the bed beside him. "Because you're you." "Me. A vampire." "You. A vampire." "Who drinks blood, keeps to the shadows, and is older than everybody he knows, put together." Cordy affirms those-- "plus, tight with a buck." But, she says none of it matters. "Because you have the biggest, and best heart of anyone I've ever known." She continues by saying that Connor's smart, and will figure it out. And that it's going to be all right. They trade smiles, and Angel says: "You're really--" "Aren't I?" She chuckles and he gets as close to it as he ever does, then she asks if he's feeling better, or if they need to look at any more rooms. "Both."

"Eh, he can have mine," Lorne says from the door. He's leaving on the Midnight Train to Georgia...okay, the 918 to Vegas, the next night-- "But where's the poetry in that?" Angel stands, and asks if it's because of Connor-- Stephen. Lorne says no, it's because of himself-- a friend has a club there and needs a singer and seer...maybe he can do a little good. Cordy suggests rebuilding the club right there. "Well that's a great idea, pixie-cat," he says sarcastically. "Except everytime I do, you all seem to destroy it." "It was only...three times." Lorne just gives her a look, then says he's got the big love there, and is grateful for the hospitality...but it's time to go. Angel knows, though, that some of it is because of Connor. Lorne says that the kid's in the mix. "Clearly not lovin' the demon kind." More seriously, he goes onto says that he understands that it was how the boy was raised. "But I loved that little baby. I just wouldn't, uh..." "What?" Cordy asks as the Host trails off with a sigh.

"Turn my back on him anytime soon."

And rolling into a very familiar-looking park is a pickup truck. Out of it, climb Connor and Justine. There are no white cliffs of Dover, but they chose the place because they think it looks like England. Connor speculates that maybe it's like the ranch where he was supposed to have grown up. Justine is surprised that he was told of the place...and somewhat hurt and saddened to hear she'd not been mentioned in those tales. Swallowing her reaction, she says they need to bury Holtz. "No," Connor says, pulling the shroud from Holtz' body, lying in the bed of the truck. He spends a long moment gazing at his face. Justine says she'll do it, pulling out a shovel. Connor says no. "He was bitten by the beast. He may rise again." And as Justine looks at the wounds with sad eyes--

--Holtz as she'd seen him when first returned "you said you'd do anything for me" his hand forcing hers to puncture the flesh of his neck--

And she returns to the present, saying nothing.

Connor bends down to speak to the man he regarded as his father one last time. "I will do as you taught me," he promises fiercely. "I will cling to the good, and I will lay waste to the evil." He bends down to tenderly kiss Holtz' brow. "Sleep now, Father," he says, rising again. "And forgive me..."

In a violent motion, he slides Holtz' body onto the grass, and beheads him.

Justine can only look away.

In a seedy bar somewhere else, we see a pair of nylon clad legs walking in. As the camera pans up, we see Wesley sitting at a table...a table with a few empty beer glasses on it. We see the woman approach, and what a surprise, it's Lilah Morgan. "Mind if I join you?" she asks quietly. "On many levels," he replies, not looking at her with eyes that hold an intensely sad and angry emptiness, as he pours a shot of whiskey into the glass of beer. "And with great intensity."

And there's still another shot on the table-- and two other empty shot glasses. "How's the throat?" Lilah asks, sitting next to him anyway. "Want a lozenge?" He looks up, clearly not happy about company. "Life's something, huh?" she says, seeming not to notice that Wes is a barely contained knot of hatred and anger. "One day you're a pivotal figure in the big battle, the next thing you know, thrown out on your lonesome. No one even cares what you think anymore. Well," she continues. "I care." "You care," Wes repeats sarcastically, his voice an angry, bitter rasp. "As one human being to another," she insists. He just gives her a look, and she smiles, saying she was just kidding. "I care," she goes on, "that your great big brain is going to waste. Now correct me if I'm wrong, isn't Angel Jr. a thing without precedent in Human history?" "You're wrong," he tells her, taking another sip of his beer. He lists several mythologies, as well as Darwin all support the coming of "something that wasn't possible before." Lilah says okay, and asks what does it mean. "Is it the herald of a new age, better things to come, or the mass destruction of everything we hold dear?" "Yes," Wes answers quietly, with a dark and distant note in his voice. "Every child born carries into the world the possibility of salvation. Or slaughter." "And one born to two vampires," she replies, "carries it in spades. Now, my people," she sighs, "will be rooting for slaughter. And your people-- sorry," she corrects herself, twisting the knife. "Your _former_ people, they won't know what to do if things turn sour." "No," Wes says softly, and if it's an agreement or denial I couldn't guess. "So, if the kid's the next Stalin," Lilah goes on, as we watch the sadness cloud Wes' eyes. "Do you kill him? You can't!" she exclaims. "He's Angel's son. But," she goes on. "On the other hand, if you just watch while he up and kills Angel, or somebody else-- that cute girl from Texas, say?"

And, unseen by Lilah, the look in Wes' eyes changes. From the sad cloudiness to the clarity of anger...

"Wow," she continues, oblivious. "Times like this, I'm glad I don't have a conscience."

And the rage seems to be returning, as Wes, in a tight, angry rasp, says he thinks Lilah should leave now.

After a moment, her hand absently massaging her neck, she quietly asks: "What was it like, when she cut you?"

And in a violent move, his hand is wrapped around her throat.

"Are you terribly anxious to find out?" he asks mildly, in a way that sounds a great deal like another ex-Watcher when moved to anger...

In the park, a fire blazes, reducing the mortal remains of Daniel Holtz to ash as Connor and Justine watch in silence.

In the lobby, Groo is sprawled on the couch as Gunn and Fred come in, debating on whether the fact that no one's there is good or bad, as they need to tell Angel they's lost Connor. Groo announces his presence to them, telling them that Cordy and Angel are upstairs, "trying out bedrooms." Gunn and Fred share a glance, and Groo clarifies that it's for Connor. From upstairs, we hear Cordy saying she's not telling a sixteen-year old boy "that"...

And we see Cordy and Angel walking through a corridor, as he's trying to get her to give Connor the "facts of life" talk, citing his track record as a "tragic farce". She still refuses, as they begin their descent into the lobby, and he asks her to at least help by filling in the blanks, "Like uh, what do you do with a woman's shlugti again?" As she gasps, whacking him and berating him for his hearing. She tells him that the next time he eavesdrops on her, she'll do whatever it is she whispers in his ear, which, judging from Angel's expression, may not have been overly unpleasant. "Easy there, sailor," he teasingly berates her. "You use that kinda language at home?" They descend fully, and Angel asks where Connor is...and Gunn tells him that Connor overheard him and Fred talking, and took off. He's not with Holtz...but, of course, Holtz wouldn't be there anyway, since last Angel knew, Holtz was leaving so that Connor could be raised by Angel. Fred and Gunn are informed of this, and Fred thinks it's a good thing...if they can find Connor and tell him that. Groo then remarks that Connor's "here"...as Connor walks in the door. Angel asks if he's okay, and Connor says he went to see his... "He wasn't there." Angel apologises, and says, after a long pause: "He left, Stephen." He then gives the boy the letter, which he reads...and repeats that his place is there now, with Angel. The vampire says it doesn't have to be forever, but asks him, hope and fear in his eyes, to try it for awhile. After a moment: "Okay," he says.

And then the boy gives him a predatory half-smile.

"We'll give it a try."

COMMERCIAL

In his room, in a sunbeam, Connor reads Holtz' letter. A knock comes at the door, with Angel announcing himself. The vampire enters, bearing a bookcase and books...asking if the boy's hungry. Connor says not really, but Angel offers going out-- "I'd hafta wear a burqa or something..." Rethinking, Angel suggests hanging out together in the hotel by day, and that night, going out to a movie, something Connor's never seen. An action movie...and Angel offers to show or do anything Connor wants-- all the boy has to do is say the word. Connor rises from the bed, and says there's just one thing.

Then he lunges at Angel.

The lunge fails, and Connor says he wants to know how Angel fights. "I want to learn...to be like you." Angel, misinterpreting the hesitation entirely, accepts.

In the lobby, an impromptu sparring session has sprung up. Gunn and Fred both sport pillows as Connor has a stake; Angel calls out whether or not the players are civilians or vampires, continually changing the field as well as attacking himself, managing to get Connor bent backward into an untenable position. "You're doing good, kid," Angel tells his son, after lifting him back up. "You've got heart." "I wanna be the vampire!" Fred chirps. "I wanna be in a hot tub," Gunn complains, "I wanna know who's cleaning this stuff up," puts in Cordelia, coming in from the office. Angel wants to call it a day, but Connor wants to continue. "Is this kid a chip off the old block, or what, huh?" Proud papa then asks Cordy if she wants to go to the movies with them; she first says yes, but then remembers she and Groo were going to have some time alone that night. Angel, disappointedly, agrees that she should do that.

Turning back to the training, he points at Fred, saying "vampire". She, raising her hands like claws, says: "GRR!" "You're a vampire," Angel tells her tolerantly. "You're not in _Cats_." "Grr," she says, more quietly. "Innocent bystander," Angel designates Gunn, who replies with a weary "by-sitter." Angel tells Connor to close his eyes, to _feel_ where an attack is coming from...he does so, and he and Angel again begin to spar...

Cordy is just entering her apartment, arms laden with grocery bags. She calls to Groo, telling him she's got his favourite: tuna and ice creme. She suggests _not_ mixing them this time...then sees him standing silent in the doorway of her bedroom. She comments on how nice he looks...and then he looks at her with pain-filled eyes. She asks what's wrong... "I am," he softly replies. "Wrong. For you." "What?" "I am not the one you love," he continues, in a voice devoid of anger, or bitterness. There is only sadness as he goes on: "He is." "He is?" she repeats, blankly. "Who he?"

Cut to Angel's room, where there's a knock at the door. It's Lorne, who Angel greets in a very chipper mood. Seems he's all excited about taking Connor to the movies. All bloody action, no subtitles or anything artsy. But, it seems that Lorne has come to say good-bye. He's really leaving. He gives Angel a copy of his CD as a remembrance: _Songs For the Love Lorne_. "Oh, I get it. Love Lorne. `Cause your name is Lorne." Give Angel-boy a gold star for the interpretation, as Lorne says it'd been his publicist's (bad) idea. But that's not the real gift he leaves with Angel; that is the fact that Cordelia's just as crazy for Angel as the vampire is for her.

"I love Angel?" Cordy is asking Groo, back at her place. "What are you talking about? I...love..." And under his gaze, she eventually finishes. "You know...us."

"You two are so obviously connected," Lorne tells Angel.

"You finish each other's --" Groo begins saying to her.

"--sentences," Lorne continues. "You laugh at the same--"

"--jests," Groo finishes. "When he grieves...when he is hurting..."

"...her heart breaks for you."

"In my heart," Groo goes on, emotion choking his voice. "I have known the truth for some time. I have just been...struggling, to find the courage to do what is right."

"Boobala, all I'm saying, is stay open. Connor's back, your whole life's coming together. Sometimes things _do_ work out." And with that piece of advice, the Host says he needs to "skiddoo". Angel tells him to take care and keep in touch, and Lorne says he'll drop him a line.

And turning away with a wave, Lorne exits the stage.

"I don't know what to say," a stunned Cordy tells Groo. "Tell me I am wrong," he asks her, with tears in his great dark eyes. "That I should stay. That you love only me."

She tries...but can't.

And with sad, sweet music as the backdrop, Groo packs up his things, and silently leaves the field.

Leaving Cordy alone with tears in her eyes.

And all of a sudden, a military chopper flies over a desert plain. Angel has apparently taken Connor (plus Fred and Gunn) to a drive-in that was showing "Courage Under Fire". Connor's enthralled by the movie (and why not-- it's a good one. :) Gunn, meanwhile, is amazed that Fred emptied the jumbo tub of popcorn-- which he then goes to get refilled. Connor is startled by a plane appearing to be headed straight out of the screen, and Angel tells him that it's just make-believe.

At which point, a chopper flies up and over the screen.

"How'd they do that?" Connor asks, as Angel, Fred and Gunn all catch sight of the helicopter...which then discharges several of the Wolfram and Hart tactical team.

A look at Angel's expression of dismay...

COMMERCIAL

We're back where we left, with the commando guys heading straight for the Angelmobile. Angel orders Fred to get down, while he, Connor, and Gunn enter the fray.

Change of scene, and we're watching the fight from monitors inside a van, where Linwood and Gavin are commanding. "Tie me up," Linwood says, "threaten me with sharp objects. But don't let me go. Chowderhead." (thus reminding us this is network television...) Gavin remarks that Connor's a pretty good fighter, and Linwood says he can't wait to get his hands on the boy..."Cut him open, see what makes him tick..."

Back outside, Angel tries to get Connor to back off from bad odds, but he won't-- he appears to be fiercely protective of Angel...which was something Gavin hadn't been counting on.

Meanwhile, Gunn gets rolled over the top of the convertible by a foe, then gets an assist from Fred, kicking the foe in the groin from her position on the backseat. "Hey, thanks!" Gunn tells her, managing to be adorable even in the midst of a battle. "Welcome!"

Angel and Connor finish off the last of them, and the chopper aborts...and Angel makes a beeline for the van Linwood and Gavin are sitting in. Linwood orders the driver to get them out of there...as Angel rips the back doors open and grabs Linwood by the lapels, pulling him out of the van. Linwood tries to say now they were even: "Now you're dead." "What," the lawyer taunts, "you're gonna kill a human in front of your son? Set an example?" Gunn votes yes, and Angel says Linwood isn't human... but the sound of sirens comes in, and Linwood suggests both sides beat a retreat... until Connor pushes his way past Angel, grabs Linwood, and orders him to stay away from his father. Then he throws the lawyer down into the van. "I'm not your enemy," Linwood tells him. "We can help you, Stephen."

And after a long moment:

"My name is Connor."

A look at the pride in Angel's eyes, as well as in Gunn and Fred's, then Angel claps a hand on his son's shoulder and leads him away, as the storm clouds gather in Linwood's eyes...

In Cordy's apartment, she looks at a picture. She herself is at the centre, smiling, with Angel leaning in on the left, half-smiling, and Wes on the right, looking like he's trying _not_ to smile. She's still out of sorts, not understanding or accepting what Groo was saying. "I don't feel...and even if I did, it's impossible." "It's ridiculous," her voice says...as her lips don't move. "That's right, it's--" and she cuts herself off and looks up...and sees herself in front of her. "Whoa..." It's not her current image...Cordy-in-the-vision is surrounded by white fog, and seems to be out-of-synch with the local time. "Maybe," the mirror image says, "on some level, I've always known it's true." "I have? It is?" "I'm in love," her vision-self says passionately. "I am? I am. With Angel, right?" "With Angel!" "Just checking," our Cordy says, looking rather shell-shocked. "I'm scared," the vision-Cordy goes on. "But I know it's right. I know, somehow, it's all gonna be all right." "It is? Really?" Another look at the vision-version's beatific smile, then she fades away. "Thanks for the tip."

In the Hyperion, the phone rings. Angel, Gunn, Fred and Connor have just returned, and Angel, whistling, answers the call. It's Cordelia, saying she needs to talk to him, in person. Not for something bad-- for something good...she thinks. "Well," she elaborates, as we see Connor listening intently on his father's conversation, "it sorta depends on how you feel." "About what?" "Well...about me." "Oh." Angel looks like deer caught in headlights, as Cordy asks him to meet her somewhere that night-- a viewpoint on a dune on the beach, which she gives him directions to. He says, after repeating the directions to confirm them, that he'll meet her there in about an hour. After some very adorably uncomfortable confirmations and reconfirmations amounting to "see you there", they hang up. We see both of them, in their respective places, taking deep breaths, then Angel tells Connor he has to go out for awhile. "With Cordelia?" Angel says yes, and asks if Connor will be all right. "She's beautiful," the boy answers. "And she cares about you. I like her." (Ed.: Holy Oedipus...) "I'm glad," Angel replies. "It's good to see you happy, Dad." And, Angel, missing the dangerously silky note in the boy's voice, begins to hum. "Now, he's humming," Gunn comments, rather discomfited. "He's _really_ happy..." and Fred rises, grabbing the stake on the coffee table. "But not perfectly happy, I hope," she says, jabbing him low in the back a few times with the stake. "No! Ow!" "Just checking..." Angel moves away...

And we're in a darkened bedroom. Wes is there...slightly breathless...and the part of him we see...is very...naked.... (Push-ups, oh gods, _please_ let him be doing push-ups....) "Hmm," he says conversationally. "You know that sinking feeling you sometimes get the morning after?" he asks, and we know it's not push-ups he's doing as he moves over to lie on his back...next to...Lilah...

(the reviewer takes a moment to gather her thoughts and give thanks she hasn't eaten yet today. When she resumes:)

"It arrived early."

"Hmm. It's like a little death," Lilah agrees...then she smiles. "Several, in fact." "Get out," Wes tells her, as the reality starts setting in. She laughs, rising, and asks him mockingly: "What, no sweet kiss? No `when can I see you again?'" He shoots her a look that could melt steel, and she tells him to watch the dirty looks. "It's what got me goin' in the first place." A pained look crosses his face as she turns away from him, exposing her nude back to him as she retrieves her clothes. "I'll give you this," she goes on, driving the knife in deeper. "You sure know how to channel your rage, frustration and hate. Always a bigger turn-on than love." "You still here?" he asks, seeming to be having trouble keeping his last meal inside. She chuckles and turns back to him. "I'm starting to like you, Wes. Don't go making more of this than it is. I'm not one of the doughy-eyed girls of Angel Investigations," she continues resentfully. "Don't be thinkin' about me when I'm gone." "I wasn't thinking about you when you were here." (thank the gods...I think.) Still, it's a score off her, as she turns back to him. "So," she says. "Your former boss has a soul, and you're losing yours." He turns to throw a dirty look at her, and his eyes have regained their earlier look... "Well," she continues, "you're just new all over, aren't you?" And with that parting shot, she leaves Wesley alone, as he stares into the middle distance...

On a dune overlooking the ocean-- which also looks familiar-- Angel arrives, awaiting Cordelia. He stands, staring out at the ocean...and checks his breath. (of course, he doesn't have any, not being the type who, well, breathes, but...)

Anyway, Cordelia is fighting traffic, as she is naturally running late...and also checks her breath.

Angel still stands atop the dune, looking down into the choppy ocean. He checks the time, checks his hair, then pulls out his cell phone...which his shaking hands drop, and it ends up falling down onto the sands below. "I hate those things!"

Cordy, driving, is psyching herself up for The Talk...and very soon...begins to glow. "Oh, no," she says, still at the wheel. "No, no, no, not _now_!" And the glow fills her Jeep...and then everything slows down...and stops. The entire freeway is frozen in place.

Except for her.

"Oh, sh--"

She's cut off by the crash of the waves as we head back to Angel. He starts heading back to his car...when Connor comes walking up. They greet each other, and Angel asks what the boy's doing there. "We're family," he says. "I wanted to show you how I feel about that."

And he rushes Angel, knocking them both down the dune.

COMMERCIAL

We're back where we left. On the beach, Connor attacks, managing to knock Angel to the sand.

On the frozen freeway, Cordy gets out of her car and walks around, her eyes wide and fearful...

"Don't be--"

And Cordy gasps, startled, as Skip finishes "--frightened." He asks if she remembers him, and she naturally does, given that he was her guide when she got her demon DNA. She asks what's going on, he says he thinks she all ready knows. "I'm dying." "No. No, you're not dying." "Not dying." "No." She whacks him, telling him to say that part first. He tells her it's not the end, it's the beginning. He goes onto to tell her she's a great warrior, and is needed for battle elsewhere; she's outgrown her current dimension. Become a higher being...citing her opting to take the visions over happiness, normalcy, even her life. And her non-abuse of power, which she was given a lot of. "The glowy thing." Which she used well, to fight evil, heal Connor (Ed. I wouldn't exactly count him as "healed") "And only that one time as a night light. Bad dreams." (which begs the question of just what she was dreaming about...) But she doesn't understand...but Skip says she does. "It's ridiculous," she says. "I'm just a somewhat normal girl who...has visions and...glows and occasionally blows things up with her crazy new power..." and her eyes widen as she realises. "I'm a higher being." And outgrowing her current level means moving onto a new one, which Skip confirms. "Now I'm really scared." He knows, but says she's ready. She doesn't think so, but "The Universe begs to differ." And, deep down, he thinks she-- "Yes, all right, stop saying I know." She goes on, saying that maybe she does know...maybe given time, she could get used to the idea...and then she realises that she doesn't have enough time.

On the beach, near the ocean's edge, Connor and Angel fight. Angel gets his son into a hold, and tries to get the boy to talk to him...Angel releases him, and Connor zaps him with a taser. Both go into the surf, still grappling. Angel manages to get him into a hold again, but Connor breaks it, and zaps him several more times with the taser, until he becomes unconscious. Connor flashes a torch at a boat staged just offshore...which cones in at his signal, Justine at the helm.

Cordelia is still on the frozen highway. "No," she says, "of course not. Why would the Powers give me time to have the most important conversation of my life. I'm on my way to-- I'm in love. With Angel." "What you're being Called to do, transcends love." "How is that fair?! I can't leave without telling him! I won't! He has to know how I feel. Why did it have to be now?" Skip says there's work to be done at higher realms. She asks if Skip can at least tell Angel for her...but it's not allowed. She then refuses to go...and asks how the Powers could do this now. He doesn't have to answer, as she realises that this is the last test.

On the boat, Angel awakens to the sound of a drill. He's tied in a steel box, and the bolts to the restraints are being driven in by Connor. He asks his son why he's doing this...and Connor answers that it's because Angel murdered his father. Angel tries to deny it, but Justine says he's lying. Angel tries to tell Connor that _she's_ lying, but Connor calls Angel the "Prince of lies". Angel realises this is why the boy had been so protective earlier, so he could kill Angel himself. "Killing is too good for you," he says cruelly. "You don't get to die. You get to live. Forever." And he continues bolting the box.

Cordy still remains on the freeway. "If I ever come face-to-face with those Powers That Be, we're going to have a talk. A _big_ talk." Skip knows that this means she's made the decision to go-- one that he says is the right one. She's still scared, but she knows it's right. Somehow, she knows everything's going to be all right. But there's a look in Skip's eyes I'm not sure I trust, as she asks what she has to do... "Just say yes." "I all ready have." And she shines with an unearthly light, and begins to ascend from the ground, as Skip looks on in awe.

Angel is still in the box... "Someday," he tells his son, "you'll learn the truth. And you'll hate yourself." Connor ignores him... "Don't. It's not your fault," Angel goes on. "I don't blame you." "Liar!" "Listen to me!" he cries, as they walk away, picking up the cover for the coffin. "I love you. Never forget that." As they place the cover atop the box, Angel continues to call his son's name, "Never forget that I'm your father and I love you!" He calls the boy's name one last time, as the cover is slid and locked into place, a clear screen over Angel's face. Father and son look at each other through the window, as Justine pulls out a blowtorch to weld the coffin shut...on one side.

And together she and Connor both push the coffin overboard, where it plunges into the sea.

It's a solemn expression on the boy's face, as the camera pulls back, showing him alone.

Back at the hotel, Fred and Gunn have no idea what's gone on. Fred asks didn't Connor want to join them for a midnight snack? Gunn breaks the news that Connor's not in his room, and they realise he's gone again. Fred asks if Gunn had asked Lorne-- but, then remembers that the Host is gone, too. But she says she's sure it's nothing...still, maybe they should call Cordelia or Angel? Gunn's been trying, but gets no answer. "Where'd everybody go?" asks Fred.

Cordelia ascends...

Angel falls...

Cordelia enters a spot of bright white light in the clouds...

...as Angel's prison sinks out of sight to the bottom of the sea.

THE END

Mel's Review

THE BOTTOM LINE

Full fathom five, indeed...this cliffhanger is sure to drive everyone insane with the waiting, as we can only try interpreting the symbolism for answers. But it was a terrific ending to a great season, certainly leaving us wanting more.

Continuity: Connor still believes that Angel killed Holtz, and Justine continues to support this. Connor also gave Angel some of his own medicine, playacting concern and affection to get in under his father's guard and hurt him, much as Angel recently did to Wesley.

Connor's determination that death is "too good" for Angel fulfills Holtz' last desire for vengeance.

Speaking of, Wes is still caught somewhere between Darkness and Light, and, judging by his reactions, still cares very much for his old friends at Angel Investigations...but Lilah is still trying to get him to work for her, in that complex game of point and counterpoint that started so long ago between them.

Cordy's power has grown to the point that she's a higher being, who was being tested by the Powers (with a spiel much like what the Watchers' Council was always telling Buffy, interestingly enough...) Still, she's now gone to a higher plane to continue the battle.

Groo and Lorne have both taken off, each for their own reasons. But, in doing so, both managed to convey to Cordy and Angel that feelings are mutual.

Relationships: Fred and Gunn are still going strong. Thank the gods, because if they weren't, there'd be no comic relief anymore...

Angel and Connor...Angel loves his son very much, despite everything, and will forgive him anything. Connor, for his part, has been so manipulated that he hates his father.

Angel and Cordelia...thanks to the Powers, are still in a state of limbo, even though Angel knows her feelings thanks to Lorne.

Cordelia and Groo...are history. He still loves her very much, but knows it's not returned in that way.

Wesley and Lilah... ::shudders:: I have a strong stomach, but the implications...the sheer THOUGHT of Wes and Lilah...ew! Still, I must admit, the two of them have great adversarial chemistry, as they dance around, manipulating and scoring points off each other.

Characters: Easier ones first...

Not much for Fred and Gunn to do this time out, beyond fight the bad guys, be sparring partners for Connor, and be the only example of a functional relationship going strong.

Nor was there overmuch for Linwood and Gavin. The latter seems to be the former's new favourite, but the botched stakeout may send Linwood running back to Lilah for the next scheme. Or someone else entirely...

Lorne has gone. We know he misses the life of a lounge singer/seer-- and who wouldn't?-- but he's uncomfortable with Connor around. As he said, Lorne loved Angel's baby boy...but the youth Connor was twisted into is dangerous. The fact that he tells Angel of Cordy's feelings was sweet, though-- but, given that rather strange rotational shot that was done, I almost wonder if the Powers (or someone) weren't using him to tell Angel what Cordy asked Skip to convey. Still, we'll miss Our Host... but I've a feeling he'll be back.

Groo..what can you say about the sweetest man in the world? Once he realises that Cordy loves Angel and not him, he doesn't argue, he doesn't get angry, or bitter...he gets sad and resigned, and, once he gathers the courage to do so, tells her that she doesn't love him. He simply asks her to tell him he's wrong...and when she can't, he quietly leaves. No blame, or anger...no guilting her, though Cordy surely feels some anyway. He takes everything with the grace of a prince and the sweetness of a true and noble spirit. Good-bye, sweetheart. We'll miss you...come back anytime.

Justine is still screwed up. Helping Holtz' last plan out of a sense of...loyalty? Love? Guilt? All of the above? Hard to say-- she's another of the characters who is in desperate need of therapy. Her interactions with Connor are intriguing-- she's allying herself with him to kill Angel, but letting him take lead. She almost reacts like Andrew in the Buffy season finale-- when The Leader is gone, both looked to someone else to give them orders, to tell them what to do. In a way, Wes was like this when first we met him, dependent on the Council to tell him what to do, before he realised that independent thought works better.

Still, Justine still is the only person who knows every bit of truth-- she knows what Wes did and why, she knows how Holtz got Connor (i.e. involuntarily from Wes) she knows how Holtz died, and that Angel didn't do it. We know she has a conscience, we know she feels guilt over Wes and remorse over Holtz. But, she's a wild card, unpredictable...hopefully, someone will pin her down on things sometime, and the truth will out. At which point, she'll be in a _lot_ of trouble...

Lilah...she's still playing mind games with Wes, trying to get information from him, trying to get him to work for her...trying to get him to consider killing Connor. Way over the line, dear-- you can only twist a knife in so far, before it gets caught on bone. I am curious, however, as to whether or not she meant to...um...interact with Wes in so intimate a way. As the scene wore on, she seemed to be getting angry at herself for everything-- not to mention getting pissed at him for not thinking about her while she was there. I also find her earlier question about what his getting cut felt like. It was a serious question, but for what reason was it asked? Fear? Empathy? Angel keeps grabbing her by the neck (as Wes did at the end of that scene) and she seems in hot water at the company...is our lady lawyer starting to realise she might be in for a fall? And, what _did_ make her couple with Wes? She keeps insisting that she has no conscience or morals...and Wes is caught inextricably in a web of his own morality, and betrayal thereof. Is she reaching for an embodiment of what she's lost, that "buried spark of decency"? Or, is this all part of a game, trying to seduce Wes over to the Dark Side? If her name is from Delilah, then Wes may become her Sampson. His strength isn't in his hair, but in his heart, soul, and mind, all of which she's trying to get hold of...

Angel...poor Angel. Played so completely by his son, as much as we know it's a taste of his own medicine, it is nevertheless heartbreaking to see his hopes and dreams and happiness expressed so fully...pride may goeth before a fall, but not usually pride in one's child. It was heartening to hear Angel forgiving him and telling the youth he loves him, even when Connor is doing this to him...which, in retrospect, makes watching as Connor's playing with him worse; we know, at least in a general sense, where things are going. And, because Angel commits a sin of omission-- he doesn't tell Connor he's going to see Holtz, nor does he tell him the full story-- the facts get twisted and Connor reacts in vengeance, fulfilling Holtz' plan of rewriting the truth with lies. If this sounds familiar, it should; given that Wes did virtually the same thing, accidentally fulfilling a plan of Sahjon's, with similar results from Angel. Here's hoping Angel learns something from it. He'll have plenty of time to think while he's down there...

Cordy's having a rough time of things, too. She thinks she loves Groo-- and I'm certain she does, just not in the way she loves Angel. Groo realises this, tells her, and leaves to allow her to be with her true love. To make matters worse, when she realises all this, and tries to meet with Angel to discuss everything, she gets frozen in time and told she's a higher being, mandated to fight on another plane. Talk about getting hit with everything at once! Still, one has to wonder about some things. She clearly has strong feelings for Angel, that's a given. She's been attracted to him since she first saw him, way back in first season Buffy. But she's convinced of being in love with him by having a vision of herself, out of synch with normal time flow, talking to Skip. By the time she's talking to Skip, she's accepted that she loves Angel from the previous vision. So...is this a self-fulfilling prophecy? Since her visions are sent by the Powers, is this part of them manipulating her? Clearly they are and have been-- look at the events of "Billy". She gets a vision of a horrible murder that was committed by Billy (by proxy) who was freed from his cube of fire to save her...a maneuver that she had no knowledge of or say in. Not to mention being told here she'd "healed" Connor. Uh... not _exactly_...

The spiel Skip gives her is a LOT like what the Watchers used to tell Buffy-- fight evil first, everything else is unimportant, even love. Buffy told the Watchers where to get off, and I can't imagine even the appeals to vanity are going to stop Cordy from eventually doing the same. Her devotion to what she sees as her duty is admirable, and probably based out of a sense of guilt, like Angel's own mission of redemption (look back at "Rm W/ a Vu", when she mentions that sort of thing.) But Cordy is Cordy, and she won't be played for long.

Moving on to Connor, I think he, Justine, and Wes could do well getting a group rate for a counselor. Like his father before him, Connor reacts very badly to being (as he sees it) betrayed. Thanks to a very good frame job, Connor believes completely that Angel(us) killed Holtz, Connor most likely also feels guilt over it, thinking perhaps that he'd betrayed Holtz by being "tempted" by Angel, or that there was more he should've done, should've seen it coming...any number of variations on that theme, a tune Angel himself knows well, as he was singing it a few episodes earlier, when his son was gone.

In a way, the punishment Connor chooses for his father is similar to that which Holtz chose-- to live "forever" but in a frozen or limbo type of state. In a way, his punishment is also better for what Holtz would have wanted. Why let your enemy die, if you can condemn him to an eternal, conscious suffering, with his last sight being that of his son fulfilling that plan? Even worse was the playacting, the pretend affection and concern, all of which served to get under Angel's guard and eventually betray him.The boy knew what he was doing, certainly, but while he thinks he's doing as his father bids, he's showing just how much Angel there is in him.

And yet, in this episode, we are reminded that for all his hate and skill...Connor is a boy. Watching the movie, being startled by make-believe like a child, not realising that the chopper coming in is _not_ part of the movie...most telling, perhaps, is his cry of "Liar" to Angel as the vampire tells him he holds the boy blameless. It's a non sequitur...or is it? It's hard to enjoy vengeance if the party you're inflicting it upon doesn't hold you responsible. Plus, as we saw in the Buffy season finale, it's hard to keep attacking and hating when your target insists sincerely that he loves you. Still, the outburst was in the voice of a child.

Sooner or later, someone will tell Connor the truth. He'll survive-- his parents were both too strong for him to not-- but how well, will likely depend on who tells him, or how he finds out. Justine might tell him, but not of her own volition, I think. Possibly unintentionally, if she were to be arguing with someone else or something similar. He wouldn't believe anyone at Angel Investigations, and I doubt he'd believe anyone at Wolfram and Hart, so...the other candidate is our outlier, Wes.

Speaking of, Wesley is VERY screwed up at the moment. Drinking heavily-- and, if I'm not mistaken, shots in beer is an Irish practice. *sigh* He really should stop doing that, given that we've seen time and again on this series that alcohol does NOT help the characters in the long run (the same, of course, being true for reality; don't drink to excess kids.) Still, as the song goes "Sometimes I think it's a shame/When I get feelin' better when I'm feelin' no pain..."

Still, his search for comfort is unsurprising, really, given all he's been through, not to mention ending up alone, with only Lilah for company. He still cares very much about his friends, which is how Lilah manages to get under his skin...but he's no fool. When she invokes Fred as a potential victim of Connor's, he realises how she's playing him, trying to get him to at least consider killing Connor "for everyone's best interests". Which gets him angry, understandably. What scared me most about the scene, I realised, was not so much that he'd grabbed her by the neck-- Angel's done it enough for it to be considered a theme, and the parallels they're doing are clear-- but the fact that the way he said the next line, asking her if she was terribly anxious to find out...that wasn't an Angel-analog. That sounded an _awful_ lot like Giles when he shades to Ripper. What does that mean? For speculation, see the comments section.

Now, for...that scene. I must say, I REALLY have no objection to seeing Wes in a state of undress. (by Zeus what a _body_...okay, I'm back now.) But seeing him with _Lilah_... ::shudders:: I need a brain scrubber and a shot of compazine (anti-nausea/anti-emetic) after that.

At any rate, the question for Lilah is the same for Wes; good gods _why_?! There's chemistry there, certainly, and her approach to him has always been edged with seduction and sexual tension. But why did Wes accept? Or initiate? Possibly for the same reason Buffy went to Spike-- just to _feel_. Apathy, thy name is Wesley...or perhaps despair is a better word. Lilah, however, commented on all that buried anger, frustration and hate-- what Billy brought out in him, one might mention-- that Wes channeled during their, um, time together (or several times, during that one span of time.) It is probably also worth mentioning that she brought it to the surface with her games. So...with apologies for the Freudian language, was Wes simply venting the poison? Lilah's all ready toxic with it and seemingly immune. He was regretting it as soon as they stopped, obviously. Or was he coupling with evil, "losing his soul", as Lilah suggested? (another parallel to Angel, especially following upon the heels of Fred checking to make sure Angel wasn't perfectly happy.) It's hard to say. Wes had been drinking, he hasn't been in a good mindspace since he found the prophecy... and, he's guilting. In "Benediction", which this ep starts almost immediately after, Wes finds out that Connor is back. He's no fool; he knows the way that a person is a baby one day and a teen days later involves going to another dimension. And given how good a fighter the boy is, even if Wes doesn't know specifics he knows Connor wasn't in Paradise. This all happened, as Wes likely sees it, because he himself lost the child to Justine. She played him, got under his guard, and betrayed him...much as Lilah seemed to be doing in the bar where Wes sat brooding, guilting, and unfortunately, drinking. And guilt is an emotion Lilah didn't mention, but must know he has, because of how well she was using it against him. Much of the emotions she _did_ mention are in fact self-directed-- as Sidney Freedman from _MASH_ once observed, anger turned inward is depression.

The last thing in this section to mention about Wes is another parallel to "Billy". In that one, when Wes was infected by Billy's touch, he tried to kill Fred, but his attraction to her played a part in his approach to the madness Billy brought upon him. Here, those emotions are brought up again, in a more natural way (but I have no doubt that Billy's actions forced them up closer to the surface, where they stayed, despite Wes' efforts to repress them.) Wes grabbed Lilah by the throat, a violent act, though more a warning than a clear and present danger. She seems to have been turned on by his anger, and they coupled. What concerns me is that link between sex and violence that seems to exist in him. It is most likely just because those impulses are repressed together in him, and have been for a long time. But it is worth mentioning that some of the other characters who have this same link are Angelus, Darla, Spike, Drusilla, and Faith. This is not really good company for Wes to be in at this point.

Symbolic (Over)analysis:

There is so much symbolism going on here, that it would be impossible to examine everything. But, I'll give it a try.

Looking at Dante's circles of Hell, there are some interesting symbols. Earlier in the season, Lilah implied Wes was Judas Iscariot, stuck in the ninth circle of Hell. Judas, along with Romans Brutus and Cassius, are trapped in the three mouths of Satan, where they are eternally tormented by the Devil's teeth gnashing upon them. Judas, being the worst of them, in the red mouth of hatred, was also torn by the Devil's claws. Angel was called "Prince of lies" by Connor, implying Angel was a Satanic figure. So, if Wes is Judas, then he's going to be in trouble when next he and Angel meet. It is worth mentioning that Judas, upon seeing the consequences of his actions, was filled with despair, and killed himself. Wes has the despair part down, and if he weren't so apathetic, he'd be suicidal. As it is, he's heading toward self-destruction at a supralight pace; if something doesn't catch him soon, there might only be pieces left.

It should be noted, however, that Wes in this episode committed a carnal sin. Carnal sins, in Dante, are level two, fairly light as torments go (blown about by hot winds.) So...perhaps it will be revealed that _Wes_ is the one in ascent? Cordy's rising to the clouds does imply she's going to Paradiso, but who actually believes it's going to be as simple as that? Also, from what Lilah said about being "new all over", Wes may have gone through a baptism/rebirth; certainly he participated in the "Original Sin" part of the package. (I know, that sin is actually put on the product of the sin, but I'll be getting to that later.) There was a shot of ocean tides immediately thereafter, and water is a common literary purifying image.

It can also be mentioned that in Circle eight of Dante's Hell, (the Hell of the Fraudulent and Malicious) that mock-baptism (by fire, another common modern literary purifier) is a torment for Simoniacs, who made a mockery of the papal office. Wes didn't really do that, but, as I said, the parallel exists.

Angel himself could be argued to be in one of five places. Purgatory or its analog, in many beliefs, is a place of waiting and/or limbo (though not in Dante.) His limbo is in the vestibule of Hell, those angels who were indecisive about whether to support the Judeo-Christian Father god, or Satan are kept, in a limbo-like state, along with others who played both ends against the middle, for their own advantage. They wail in lament, with no hope of death to end their suffering. They're stung by wasps and hornets (flashback to "I Only Have Eyes for You", during Angelus' appearance in season 2 of BtVS) and slog through blood and other bodily fluids. And, Angel is obviously fitting in that.

But, he could also be argued to be in level 1 of Hell-- the "virtuous pagans" who were simply older than everyone else (i.e., born before 1 AD). They weren't tormented, they were just kind of...there. There were two places in the hierarchy where people were trapped underwater. In circle eight, in a deeper pocket than the Simoniacs, souls of grafters were trapped beneath burning pitch. Not quite the perfect analogy, but it can be said. But, beneath the swamps of the river Styx, in the boundary between the upper and lower sections of Hell, the sullen were kept. Do I really need to explain how that relates to Angel? I thought not.

The water again can serve as a baptismal/rebirth image for Angel, but there is also another element there. Angel tells his son that he is always his father, and always loves him, and implies forgiveness for all. This almost suggests Angel is in a role of the Judeo-Christian Father God (being a polytheist, I'm trying to be specific) who, even though his angry children are shoving him in a box and throwing him away, is still...well, a Father. It's another Biblical reference, which I'll get even more into later.

Flaming tombs were a feature of the sixth level of Hell, where the heretics, "those who did violence to God by denying immortality" were. Kind of puts an interesting spin on Billy's cell...

In two episodes, "Sleep Tight" and this one, there is a critical error made in a wooded area. Wes chooses to go to Justine's aid and is slashed, and Connor desecrates Holtz' body. Dante, in the first canto, says that he was lost in a wood of error. Dante also says that the sinners choose to embrace Hell, and to crave their punishments, rather than allow themselves salvation, with at least some suggestion that a guilty conscience is to blame. If that doesn't describe both of our brooding boys to a tee, I don't know what does.

And finally, in the first bolgia of the ninth circle, those who were traitor to or violent against their kin were punished. In the frozen lake, these shades were buried up to the neck, suffering from the extreme cold. Angel, Wes, and Connor all qualify for the torment, but whether they're encased in ice is an open question.

Another great work that can be used as a parallel is that of Shakespeare's Cursed Scottish Play. And, depending on who is plugged in as King Macbeth, who betrays and murders the rightful king Duncan, his rivals, _and_ the child of the noble Macduff, you get different results. Make the king Angel, and the honourable Macduff, who "...was from his mother's womb/Untimely ripp'd." (and the only one prophesied to be able to kill the King) becomes Connor. Make the king Wesley...and Macduff becomes Angel. I suggest reading Act V, Scene 8, the final battle between the King and Macduff, to get things fully, but the king by this point in the play has lost his wife (a major impetus toward the king's betrayals, who later becomes guilt-ridden) to suicide (making her Darla to Angel's King, or either Lilah or more likely Justine to Wes') and the King is filled with despair, though rejects committing suicide outside the battle like a Roman. When Macduff comes for him, the King says:

"Of all man else, I have avoided thee. But get thee back, my soul is too much charg'd With blood of thine already."

He reiterates this after Macduff tells him of his birth by Caesarean. But when Macduff calls him coward, and tells him that he'll be executed by Malcolm, Duncan's son (who could be Gunn if Wes is King, possibly Justine if Angel is) the King decides to fight anyway. "Before my body I throw my warlike shield. Lay on, Macduff, And damn'd be him that first cries `Hold, enough!'"

No matter who winds up as the King, it's going to be painful. In a sense, Angel has all ready had his turn-- Connor has tried to kill him, though he hasn't succeeded. Wes, on the other hand, is becoming much like that Scottish king in the beginning of his final scene-- both are despairing, but haven't yet tried to fall upon their swords. Yet.

Moreover, the movie _Courage Under Fire_, which is very good, deals with an investigator who drinks too much and who accidentally killed friendlies in the Gulf, trying to determine what actually happened during a daring rescue mission, in order to give the lieutenant in charge of that mission a posthumous medal. The "facts" of the mission are told by various members of her team, all distorted. As it happens, the lieutenant had to put down a mutiny after her chopper was shot down; the mutineer was later so guilt-wracked he killed himself, the team medic was so broken up that he began using drugs, and another member, terminally ill and very close to death, opted to escape into his morphine pump's max dosage. Am I concerned about the use of this movie in context? Oh yes...

In the parallel department, it is worthy of note that there is a habit of trinomy in both _Angel_ and BtVS, generally used to denote various phases of life. Liam is the given name of the Human Angel was, Angelus the name that was given him by Darla when he was turned into a psychopathic vampire, and Angel the name he took for himself. Giles is another example; Rupert being the given name from childhood, Ripper the name he either took or was given when he rebelled and became a bad boy, and Giles the name he chose to go by as an adult. In both cases, the second name or phase of life carried over into the third, being a primary influence, even though neither Angel nor Giles is either fond or proud of that second phase. (They've both also had relapses to that second phase, now that I think of it.)

One of the first things Cordelia said to Wesley when they met was "I like a man with two last names." Thus, Wes currently has a trinomy. Wesley is his given name, Wyndham (presumably) his mother's, and Pryce his father's. We know his parents were terrible, psychologically abusive at the least, le aving him with _severe_ parent issues. Interestingly, in "Forgiving", Angel uses only Wes' father's name as he's railing against him while being bodily removed after trying to smother him. But, without knowing more specifically about which parent did what to Wes, all that can be assumed is that he's proceeding through the traditional phase: innocent to treading in the "dark side", then returning traumatically to the service of "good".

Cordelia doesn't have a trinomy per se, but since we're discussing names, it's interesting that Angel begins calling her "Cor" in this episode. We know Angel speaks at least some Latin (so he can help me with my homework next semester ;) so, he should know that "cor" is how the Romans would say "heart".

And last, we must ask ourselves about the prophecy itself. Sahjon says it was a rewrite, and a lie. But, virtually everything he said was a lie, so, I'm not certain I trust that the prophecy won't, in some way, come true, or be stopped at the last minute. So, here are my various interpretations. 1. Perhaps the word Wes translated as "father" could actually mean "parent". In this case, Justine could just as easily be the one to kill him. In a sense, she's all ready doing this, by perpetuating Holtz' lies.

2. Wes screwed up a subject and object pair-- easy enough to do in Greek. So, the Son will kill the Father, and we've seen that theme all ready.

3. Wes has severe parent issues. They caused him at least in part to react the way he did to the prophecy-- it may not be a stretch to say he thinks that all parents are capable of hurting their children, even "for their own good".

4. Going back to the Biblical concepts, we can look at the Holy Trinity. We saw Cordy looking at a pic in this episode-- her, Angel, and Wes. A trinity. Cordy is clearly analogous to the Holy Spirit. For reasons mentioned above (i.e., speaking like a Father god) and the obvious (he's a father) Angel ends up as the Father in this concept. Wes, by default, by the baptismal suggestion Lilah made, plus the fact that he parallels Angel but is behind him chronologically, and because he has no children that we know of-- ends up the Son. We have seen this theme too, but only once, and it was absolutely _not_ resolved. Plus, it works with the Scottish play parallel, and this is not mutually exclusive with interpretation 2.

5. The fifth is the second worst. Wes was taking Connor away from everyone-- though he clearly had no plan beyond "get away"-- but that leaves him in loco parentis (Latin: in place of the parent) so, it's not a big stretch to the an analogy to Wes being "father". The fact that in this episode he sounded an _awful_ lot like the Buffyverse's archetypal father Giles only supports this...and Lilah was certainly encouraging Wes to kill Connor in that scene. And if number 5 occurs, or is even attempted, a try at number 4 will soon follow... 6. There are parallels to Angel and Darla in Lilah and WesΠbeing together. Which begs the question: what if they weren't careful? What if Wes turns out to be the Father, and a baby he and Lilah begat becomes the Son? Or, worse, if _Angel_ is the Father, and he were to kill this potential child? Or, if number 1 is also correct, and it's Lilah who performs that act...well, no matter what; if this interpretation comes to pass in any way, things will get _messy_.

SunSpeak