Angel Investigated - 2.6 Guise Will Be Guise
Posted by Jason Chamberlain on 11.24.2009
When Angel visits a swami to deal with his issues, Wesley is forced to impersonate the boss!
2.6 Guise Will Be Guise
Writer: Jane Espenson
Director: Krishna Rao
Whedon Speak
Guy: What about you? You got any special abilities? Wesley: A few, I dare say. Guy: Are you a creature of the night? Wesley: No, but I was a rogue demon hunter, so I know how to handle myself when things get rough. [He falls] Guy: Yeah, you're scary.
Lorne: Yeah, you’re rocky. And Rocky Two. And half of the one with Mr. T.
Angel: What's going on. Were you in Virginia? Wesley: That’s beside the point.
Cordelia: She slept with him? Bryce: You were supposed to be Angel, this wouldn't have happened. That's why I hired him. He's a eunuch. Cordelia: You slept with her? Angel: A eunuch? Wesley: Things happen, two young people, danger. Virginia: What are you talking about? Bryce: She was a virgin before you got here. Virginia: I was not a virgin. Bryce: What? Wesley: Oh thank goodness. Gunn: Yo, I could've told you she wasn't no virgin. Angel: Not a eunuch. Cordelia: One day as Angel - ONE DAY and he's getting some. Bryce: What? How could you? I kept you away from all men. Angel: The curse isn't even all that clear. Virginia: Daddy you remember that chauffeur from when I was 16, and the one at 18? I haven't been a virgin for a very long time. I even dated Rick. Bryce: Ginny don't this, don't make me angry. Virginia: Right because then you might do something bad. You were going to kill me! (She punches him.) You are not my father anymore. Angel: I'm not a eunuch.
Jeremy Thomas has the full review!
On the "Buffy" side this week we have a character-centric episode regarding one of my favorites on that show; here on "Angel," we have the same situation. Wesley has been a valuable member of Angel Investigations up to this point, but he's also largely been the comic relief who gets in the way when things get hairy. "Guise Will Be Guise" is the first episode where Mr. Wyndham-Price makes his first steps toward becoming a full-fledged demon fighter all his own. While Angel runs off to Ojai to find help from a swami named T'ish Magev, Wesley and Cordelia are keeping the home fires burning. When a situation falls into their lap, Wesley is forced to pretend to be Angel, and gets a plumb job protecting a hot virgin daughter. Things of course aren't what they seem, and as Angel talks to an imposter swami, Wesley finds himself in the midst of a double-cross...and with a daughter who he's falling in love with. That won't help Daddy Dearest's plans very well.
Alexis Denisof really gets the chance to shine in this episode, and he doesn't disappoint. The early scenes where he's trying to look suave and fumbling around, just barely avoiding detection at the hands of the mob-esque wizard/businessmen he's working for, are top-notch and a great example of Denisov's comic timing. But in the later parts when he starts to grow into his own, we see a new side of Wesley, and Denisov pulls that off well. The irony is that, while he's playing a human that's pretending to be a vampire, he's acting opposite Brigid Brannagh who played a newly-embraced vampire who acted human a lot of the time in the White Wolf-based television show Kindred: the Embraced. Brannagh was one of the best parts about that problematic show, and she does some very good work here as Virginia Bryce. Brannagh and Denisov have a good amount of chemistry and it shows here.
Virginia will show up three more times in Season Two as Wesley's girlfriend, and I wish we could have seen more of her. She's a great character and her introduction here is nice. We'd already had one rich person who's friendly to Angel Investigations, but I liked Virginia quite a bit more than David. She's less of a caricature than the software programmer nerd-turned-wannabe demon hunter. Her name alone is a play on what her father intended, suggesting that the only reason he had her was for this very sacrifice. While that makes him even more of a sleaze ball, it also adds a bit of irony to the idea that she hadn't actually been a virgin since she was sixteen. It was perhaps kind of an obvious plot twist but it worked well and I enjoyed it.
The other thing we have going on here is Angel's time with the fake swami. Let's face it...as fake as he is, he's got a lot of good advice for our favorite brooding vampire. He may not be a real magic man and he may even be there just to stall Angel, but he gives the man some great advice. The exchanges between them are great; one of my favorite lines in this episode happens when the 'swami" tells Angel he's ambivalent and Angel replies "Well, I am and I'm not." It's all going to end badly—for the swami, anyway—but there's no reason that the vampire with a soul can't learn something from the experience. We learn a little more about why Angel is the way he is, from his innermost thoughts to the mileage of his car and his hair gel choices. It gives Angel something to do while Wesley gets his turn to shine without seeming like pointless filler. Nothing wrong with that.
Ronny Sarnecky
This was a really good episode. I am a big fan of seeing characters being put in situations where they act like someone else. Joss Whedon is a master at this. Look at Willow in the “Buffy” episode “Doppelgangland” where she had to portray Vampire Willow. Joss seems to do this often and to perfection. In this episode of “Angel,” Wesley is forced to portray the character of Angel, while the real Angel is away. This is the first episode where Wesley showed an air of confidence, and a fighting spirit. It was a nice change, and a change that we will see more of from Wesley as the series progresses.
Besides Wesley’s impersonation of Angel, this episode also delivers comedy at Angel’s expense. It seems to be a running joke during the series regarding the fact that Angel keeps up on his appearance, despite the fact he doesn’t have a reflection. This episode makes fun of all of the quirks about him; his hair gel, clothes, and car. While he denies that he cares about his public appearance, when he sees Wesley wearing his coat, Angel keeps asking if that is his coat, and then asks for it back. Like if Wesley wearing the item is going to hurt Angel’s ensemble. If I can use one word to describe this episode it would be “entertaining.” While there was no “big baddies” or advancement of the season storyline arc, this is a can’t miss episode just for the sheer entertainment value.
9
Mike Gorman
It was Wesley's week to shine as the Angel crew gets a bit of a breather after the intensity of last week. Wesley's playing the role of "Angel" allowed for him to shine as a character showing depth and bravery while also allowing a few good chuckles to be had at Angel's expense. The episode was not necessarily jam packed of seasonal continuity but it had a lighter air that allowed for some other members of the crew to stretch their proverbial wings. I think that "Guise Will Be Guise" was a lot of fun and a sturdy episode overall.
8
Jason Chamberlain
I LOVE this episode. It has always been one of my favourites. It’s just so much fun, and a great showcase for the character of Wesley, who even now has come a long way from the wimpy simpleton he was in Buffy’s third season. Taking charge at the end and manning up to save Virginia (who is smoking hot by the way), he’s inching towards becoming a real rogue demon hunter. But he’s still got the slapstick side going too.
I like Angel’s story too. It may be a diversion and a holding pattern for the character but I enjoyed seeing the guru (fake though he was) call him out on his issues, from the hair gel to the black clothes to the convertible. And the banter at the end about Angel being a eunuch, and Angel’s reaction to it all was priceless. Definitely one of my favourite episodes of the series.
9.5
GRR!!! ARGH!!!
The 411: A Wesley-centric episode this week allows Alexis Denisov's talents to come into focus, and we get to see more of Wesley growing into his own which will continue throughout the course of the series. The introduction of Virginia Bryce and the conversations between Angle and the fake swami add to the fun and make this another fantastic episode of Angel.
Alexis Denisof really gets the chance to shine in this episode, and he doesn't disappoint. The early scenes where he's trying to look suave and fumbling around, just barely avoiding detection at the hands of the mob-esque wizard/businessmen he's working for, are top-notch and a great example of Denisov's comic timing. But in the later parts when he starts to grow into his own, we see a new side of Wesley, and Denisov pulls that off well. The irony is that, while he's playing a human that's pretending to be a vampire, he's acting opposite Brigid Brannagh who played a newly-embraced vampire who acted human a lot of the time in the White Wolf-based television show Kindred: the Embraced. Brannagh was one of the best parts about that problematic show, and she does some very good work here as Virginia Bryce. Brannagh and Denisov have a good amount of chemistry and it shows here.
Virginia will show up three more times in Season Two as Wesley's girlfriend, and I wish we could have seen more of her. She's a great character and her introduction here is nice. We'd already had one rich person who's friendly to Angel Investigations, but I liked Virginia quite a bit more than David. She's less of a caricature than the software programmer nerd-turned-wannabe demon hunter. Her name alone is a play on what her father intended, suggesting that the only reason he had her was for this very sacrifice. While that makes him even more of a sleaze ball, it also adds a bit of irony to the idea that she hadn't actually been a virgin since she was sixteen. It was perhaps kind of an obvious plot twist but it worked well and I enjoyed it.
