If you've been keeping track of my posts on here, you'll probably already know that I am a huge,ok,massive fan of Joss Whedon and his work, mainly though, his two most famous TV Series Buffy The Vampire Slayer and Angel. I love these shows not only because they are consistently exciting and interesting, but also because when you look behind the demons,vampires and other nasty things,it's a whole bunch of metaphors for people trying to find their way through life and encountering different problems along the way.
So anyway, I've been ill the past couple of days and so have been stuck in my bed. I decided to re-watch season five of Angel and noticed, as I do each time I watch an episode of either of the shows, the truly epic writing. I picked up on a few of my favourite speeches and decided I might aswell share with you all what I believe they mean in terms of our society.
Episode:Time Bomb Written By:Ben Edlund
Ok so this speech comes from none other than a slightly smurfish Amy Acker. Here she is portraying the 'goddess' Illyria,and talking to Angel about power.
Illyria That you learn when you become a king - you learn to destory everything that is not utterly yours. All that matters is victory. That is how your reign persists. You are a slave to an insane construct,you are moral. A true ruler is as moral as a hurricane, empty but for the force of his gale. But you, trapped in the web of the Wolf,the Ram,the Hart (AKA Evil Inc. in the Angel universe) So much power here, yet you quibble at its price.If you want to win a war,you must serve no master but your ambition.
Powerful stuff from Bed Edlund.Pretty much summing up that power does indeed corrupt,but saying, that that corruption is neccesary to be a true ruler. I don't presonally believe that,but I do believe that if someone is given absoloute power,then it will corrupt.
Episode: Underneath Written By: Elizabeth Craft and Sarah Fain.
Lindsey talking to Angel about the apocalypse.
Lindsey:You know what I know.Look around, the world's a cesspool filled with selfish and greedy beasts. We live.We die. [Bit of an exchange with the character of Eve in here]
Angel:Yeah, "Hell's On Earth". Holland Manners [Head of Evil Inc. at one point] tried to sell me that line three years ago.
Lindsey
id you ever prove him wrong?
Angel:It's all how you look at the glass.You know Lindsey,we can philosophize all night.Hell,we can do it forever.I don't need to eat,sleep,drink.How about you?
Lindsey:That's what I like to see.Angel of yore.Takes no prisoners,suffers no fools.Well how about this?It's here.It's been here all along,underneath.You're just too damned stupid to see it.
Angel:See what?
Lindsey:The apocalypse,man.You're soaking in it.
Spike:I've seen an apocalypse or two in my time,I'd know if one was under my nose.
Lindsey:Not 'an' apocalypse,'The' apocalypse.What did you think a gong was gonna sound?Time to jump on your horses and fight the big fight?Starting pistol went off a long time ago boys.And you're playing for the bad guys.Every day you sit behind your desk and you learn a little more how to accept the world the way it is.Well here's the rub:Heroes don't do that.Heroes don't accept the world the way it is,they fight it.
Angel:You're saying everything we do,it's a distraction,to keep us from looking under the surface?
Lindseying,we got a winner.World keeps sliding towards entropy and degradation and what do you do?You sit in your big chair,and you sign your checks.Just like the senior partners intended.The war's here Angel.
Ok so first off,the senior partners mentioned there,they represent pure evil in the Angel universe.
I think,as depressing as you may find that rather epic speech,it does ring true.Particularly from a Christian perspective.[I know a lot of people will want to argue with me on that one so feel free.] Basically to me it says that the world is moving towards it end and we're doing nothing to stop or prepare for it.Yes that does seem a bit dramatic,but it's true no?Ever since the world began,it's been counting down towards its ending.This speech also says that not only are we not preparing for it,we're both aiding it and fighting on the side of bad.It accuses us of adapting to the world the way it is and learning to accept the evils in it.I think that's a challenge that we,especially those of us who call ourseleves Christians,should take on board.We should try and fight the evil down,not adjust ourselves to it. Excuse me if this is getting anyone down,I just think it's the truth really.This speech reminds me of a nother line of Illyria's from the episode the first speech was from:
Change is constant,yet things remain the same mean things do change,every day they change.Yet the bad things still remain,they're still always the same and I think that that is something we should be doing something about,not just adapting to.
Ok so moving on.This next speech is actually from season four,from the first episode of season four,when Angel has just been dragged up from the bottom of the sea after being thrown down there the previous season by his deranged son.
Episodeeep Down Written By:Steven S. DeKnight
Please note,Connor is Angel's son,the one I mentioned above.
Angel:What I deserve is open to debate.But understand,there is a difference between wishing vegence on someone and taking it.So now the question becomes, what do you deserve?
Connor gets up and tries to run out the door.Angel stops him and throws him against the wall.
Angeladdy's not finished talking.[Some stuff about Cordelia,the woman Angel is in love with,who disapeared the same night as Angel did when he was sunk to the bottom of the ocean.Angel asks Connor if he done anything to Cordelia.He says no,Angel's gang accuses him of lying.]
Connor:I'm telling the truth ok?
Angel:I know.I can tell.I've done enough lying for me to know the difference.The truth has a better sound to it,less nasal you know?Get up.What you did to me was unbelievable Connor.But hey,I got stuck in a hell dimension by my girlfriend one time for a hundred years,so a few months under the ocean acutually gave me some perspective. Kind of an MC Escher perspective. But I did get time to think.About us,about the world. [and this is the bit I love] Nothing in the world is as it ought to be.It's harsh and it's cruel. But that's why there's us. Champions. 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.
I love that whole scene but my favourite line is 'We live as though the world were as it should be,to show it what it can be.' I think it is important that we do do this,live as though the world were as it should be.But also,as I mentioned before,we should fight what shouldn't be there,so that we can maybe have the world the way it should actually be.
ok so sorry if I come across totally wierdly obessessed with this show,I just wanted to give you all a few examples of the epic writing on it and how shows about fantasy things can ring totally true for our society,much more so I believe,than shows that try to be believable and realistic. :]
Catch
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