This is one of the most fascinatingly emotional episodes of any show on television you'll ever watch. And consider the source: I was only a fan of Angel, never having seen Buffy. And if the events which transpire in this episode, aptly entitled "I Will Remember You", hit me that hard without any prior knowledge of Buffy+Angel's relationship, then imagine how good it is once you've experienced "Buffy" through its first few seasons.
What is so amazing is that everything leading up to the last ten minutes isn't all that great. In all actuality, it's very gooey, very melodramatic, very romantic. Which isn't what embodies "Angel" as it progresses through the years. However, the one theme that does tie all the seasons together - atonement - is in full force here. Angel makes countless difficult decisions throughout his arc on "Buffy" and "Angel", but the one he makes at the end of this glorious episode might be the toughest. It will assuredly make you weep like a little school girl, and Joss Whedon, forever the master of creating instantly relatable characters who go through times no mere mortal should endure, wouldn't have it any other way. For sheer emotional torment, this episode is up there with "A Hole in the World", "Shells", "Tomorrow", and "You're Welcome".
What is so amazing is that everything leading up to the last ten minutes isn't all that great. In all actuality, it's very gooey, very melodramatic, very romantic. Which isn't what embodies "Angel" as it progresses through the years. However, the one theme that does tie all the seasons together - atonement - is in full force here. Angel makes countless difficult decisions throughout his arc on "Buffy" and "Angel", but the one he makes at the end of this glorious episode might be the toughest. It will assuredly make you weep like a little school girl, and Joss Whedon, forever the master of creating instantly relatable characters who go through times no mere mortal should endure, wouldn't have it any other way. For sheer emotional torment, this episode is up there with "A Hole in the World", "Shells", "Tomorrow", and "You're Welcome".