While this romance is a major piece of characters and their series', they seem to speed up the flirtation between the two of them in this episode. That doesn't even take into account what will really divide these two! There is no way that Buffy and Angel can have a life together, but the bond between them is too strong for either to deny. It is a lot to atone for, and leaves a lot of potential for the future. It could be almost easy to ignore his past if he was average in his evil. It also helps to have Angel's evil vampire persona be one of unparalleled brutality even The Master has to admire Angelus' brutal methods. This episode serves as a template for Angel's entire story, with basic information sprinkled into the episode without avoiding prolonged exposition dumps. Luckily, he decided to keep that element, and the show had some great storylines in future seasons (not to mention Angel's spin-off series).
Originally, Joss Whedon balked at the idea of having Buffy's romantic interest be a vampire because he felt the notion was too cliché. So the twist's shock value almost ten years later is all but gone, but the meat behind the twist makes it still memorable. It may be pointless, however, as that piece of information would be in Joss Whedon for Dummies' first chapter if it were ever printed. Man, it was tough writing the first six reviews without spoiling that huge piece of information from anyone who may not know the twist. Let's say it: Angel is a bloodsucking vampire.
It is fitting that the man who would be the show runner for the first seasons of "Angel" wrote this episode, as it laid out the groundwork for this mysterious, pivotal character. This episode is a much welcome improvement for him, and is a major stepping stone in the show's early days. I gave David Greenwalt a lot of grief in his first penned episode, "Teacher's Pet", and for that I do feel a little guilty (but I stand by my review) because he did prove himself later like this episode.
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