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sunnydaleherald · 12 days ago

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The Sunnydale Herald Newsletter, Wednesday, November 13

AMANDA: I think we got punished. BUFFY: What? KENNEDY: (nervously) We, uh...we followed her. And it was- VI: It didn't work out. BUFFY: You guys, it was a trap. It's not her fault. That could've just as easily happened to me.

~~End of Days~~

[Drabbles & Short Fiction]

BtVS Triple Drabble: Broken-Hearted by badly_knitted (Cordelia, Xander, PG)

Home Coming by Skyson (Buffy/Giles, E)

Desperate and Chained by JammySmut (Buffy/Spike, E)

Bloodbath by Apache Firecat (Buffy/Spike, R)

Family by Apache Firecat (Buffy/Spike, PG)

Home Again by Apache Firecat (Buffy/Spike, PG-13)

Sacrifice by Apache Firecat (Buffy/Spike, PG-13)

Buffy's Chosen by Apache Firecat (Buffy/Spike, PG-13)

Worthy of Her Choosing by Apache Firecat (Buffy/Spike, PG)

Mic Drop by Apache Firecat (Buffy/Spike, G)

[Chaptered Fiction]

Many, Many - ch. 1 by Nixiet (Buffy/Giles, E)

Streaming Life - ch. 1-2 by VerticalCouch (Giles/Jenny, Giles/Ethan, Giles/Jenny/Ethan, G)

When Faith Came to Town - ch. 1 by red_jacobson (Faith, Buffy/Xander/Cordelia, E)

Please Hold- My Soap is On by once_in_a_while (Giles/Spike, M)

The Shadow Within - Ch. 1 by Fmfan1980 (Faith, F/F, F/M, E)

[Podfic] Tatters - ch. 1 [reading of Tatters by Martha] by SEF_podfic (ATS ensemble, Stargate SG-1 and The Sentinel (TV) xover, T)

A Series of Fortunate Betrayals - ch. 2 by the_big_bad (Buffy/Spike, R)

The Big Bad...Poodle? - ch. 3 by EnchantedWillow (Buffy/Spike, R)

Mysterious Destinies - ch. 21 by EnchantedWillow (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

First Love - ch. 3 by Spikesgirl28 (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

Masquerade - ch. 3 by Holly (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

Be Back Before Dawn - ch. 16 by Blissymbolics (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

First Love - Ch. 3 by Spikesgirl (Buffy/Spike, Adult Only)

Revelations - ch. 6 by Niamh (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

Eyes Forward, Monster - ch. 1-8 [collection of one shots] by Desicat (Buffy/Spike, Adult Only)

[Images, Audio & Video]

Artwork: i love you. no, you don't. but thanks for sayin' it. by tenderjock (Spike, worksafe)

Artwork: ive seen some of ur black buffy posts and theyre AMAZING... by pzyii (Dawn, worksafe)

Meme: [Willow] by paperpuzzles (Willow, worksafe)

Moodboard: moodboard: wesley x fred by courtillyy (worksafe)

Moodboard: moodboard: fred x wesley x gunn by courtillyy (worksafe)

Gifset: iwryfanficmarathon's 20th anniversary bangel + locations ↳ cemetery by ptieuca (Buffy/Angel, worksafe)

Gifset: [Buffy and Spike in Season 5] by clarkgriffon (Buffy/Spike, mostly worksafe)

Gifset w/script: ANGEL ✦ SCRIPT TO SCREEN ⇥ 3.13 “Waiting in the Wings” by cangelgifs (Angel/Cordelia, worksafe)

[Reviews & Recaps]

I find Showtime (episode 7x11)….bad? by Forward_Activity1473

[Recs & In Search Of]

Fic recs: Myriad Recs [Spuffy and Cangel fic recs] by apachefirecat

ISO: thequeenofsastiel needs some Spangel songs.

ISO: samandcolbyfan is looking for Caitlin and Barry or spike and Buffy RP anyone?

[Fandom Discussions]

Send me a ship to rate! [Buffy/Cordelia] by takaraphoenix

I would argue that Buffy is somehow even more [the most character ever] by paperpuzzles

Ask answered: does Zuko [from Avatar] remind you of Angel at all? by fishyupmywishy

POLL: Spangel or Spuffy? by thequeenofsastiel

POLL: which Buffyverse unpopular opinion do you at least partially agree with? by ohrupie

POLL: a little bit of a ship war but like... just for fun? best Buffy ship? by terapsina

What If: They said no? [to Wolfram and Hart] by nightshade and others

The First [was not a good Big Bad] by No_Introduction_4136

James Marsters Cameo (discussion) by nooneormaybesomeone

Anyone still listening to Rewatcher? [the podcast] by ewdayvid

Blu Rays on EBay [bootleg and discussion of HD and DVD] by bcakebeefcake

Jane Espenson episodes - what do you think of her humor? by foreseethefuture

... all the times someone asked [Buffy] what she/we should do. I found 18 by diehardnick

The greatest missed opportunity... [full BTVS and ATS crossover] by SnooSongs4451

[Spike gives you a choice:] staying dead, or being a vampire. What do you choose? by quoththeraven1990

Who has the best quotes in the show? by AnyNeck1885

[Buffy and Faith and fighting styles and Buffy vs. The Beast] by cigarettesonmars

Tara holding the Tower tarot card by rfresa

Five by Five - AtS S1E18 [how does Angel enter the apt?] by Physmo55

Dead Things [Katrina and injuries] by CleanUpOnAisle10

Wesley's most fierce "rogue demon hunter" moment, followed by hunger by sirtch_analyst

What's your headcanon for Angel and Buffy's reunion in S6? by porkchop_2020

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#btvs #buffy the vampire slayer #fan fiction #meta #fan art #ats #angel the series

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sulietsexual · 7 years ago

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I've seen people constantly asking about buffy/spike/angel!!! But what about Cordy and angel? Thoughts?!? Any meta? I love ur meta

So, I personally don’t ship Cangel, for me the chemistry was never there and the ship felt very forced. Butif you’re after an in-depth meta on the ship, here is an old meta of mine never published on Tumblr,polished up a bit, exploring what I believe went wrong with the Cangel ship.Warning – this is a loooong read.

Angel are a ship that, in theory, reallyshould have worked. The audience watch them evolve from strangers to friends tofamily, growing closer and learning more about each other in the process. Theyhave amazing chemistry as friends and are addictively watchable in theirinteractions. Moving their relationship into romantic territory seemed like themost natural step for the writers to take. Unfortunately it all went terriblywrong. The question is why? It doesn’t seem right that this particular pairing,with their chemistry and history, didn’t work onscreen.

The initial seeds of the Cangelrelationship are sown throughout the early episodes of Season 3. Season 1introduced their friendship, Season 2 established it and Season 3 is where itstarts to move towards something more romantic. We start to see the small hintsthat Angel’s feelings may be changing when Cordelia starts receiving physicalmanifestations of her visions in 3.2 That Vision Thing. Angel’s concern andrage over what is happening to Cordelia are similar to the emotions heexpressed when he was with Buffy. We also see a change in Cordelia’s feelingsas she tearfully tells Angel of her fear that he won’t need her anymore.Whereas in previous seasons she may have said that the group didn’t need her,or she didn’t know her place in the world, she now focuses on Angel and what itwill mean for him not to need her.

In 3.5 Fredless we are given more smallbut priceless gems to indicate the furthering of Angel and Cordelia’s feelings.Just watching Angel’s face when Cordelia calls him over to be patched up isadorable and her affectionate look along with her teasing “What adork” comment are equally touching. We are also treated to thedelightfully droll “I could sooth your ass off, pal” comment fromCordelia, along with Angel’s petulant “You think I’m fat?” line. Allof these separately do not indicate more than friendship but when put togetherstart to form a picture of what’s to come.

Episode 3.6 Billy gives us one of themost natural and beautiful scenes in the construction of the Cangel relationship.The episode opens with Angel and Cordelia working out in the basement as Angeltrains her to fight. As Cordelia brings a sword up over her head, she and Angellean into the blow together, moving in perfect synchronisation. Angel touchesher hip as he moves with her and she leans into him. The scene is notoverflowing with sexual tension (although there is enough to please viewers)but rather showcases the naturalness with which Cordelia and Angel interactwith and touch each other. This one scene shows the beauty of Cangel and theconnection that lies at the core of their relationship, highlighting how intune the two are with each other.

With the return of a very pregnant Darla,Cordelia and Angel’s budding relationship is sidelined. Not only does Darla’sreturn bring up Angel’s unresolved feelings towards her, it cuts through thetrust that has been building between Cordy and Angel since Season 2. Cordeliais horrified at what Angel has done, not from jealousy but because of the trusthe has betrayed. She is deeply hurt that he lied to her and equallydisappointed by the way in which he treated Darla and it’s only natural for herto take a step back from him.

With the next few episodes focused onDarla’s pregnancy and the birth of Connor, little attention is paid to Cangel.It is not until episode 3.11 Birthday that we are tossed another scrap. Twovery small moments underline the growing feelings between Angel and Cordelia.The first comes when Cordelia is being shown the moment she first encounteredAngel in L.A. The love and affection on Cordy’s face as she watches the replayis beautifully understated and needs no further exploration. Her eyes say itall. She is looking at a man she loves and respects and it shows on every inchof her face. Likewise, Angel’s quiet moment with Cordelia as she lies in a comais equally understated and touching. In angry tones he tells her off for nottelling him how badly the visions are affecting her. Underneath his anger isthe very real fear of losing her and realising what she has come to mean tohim. At the end of the episode his joy when she wakes up is beautiful.

If things between Cordelia and Angel hadcontinued to unfold in this manner they would have ended up in a beautifullyconstructed relationship, built on trust, friendship and mutual respect, whilestill keeping their core personalities in place. It could have been thestrongest ship on AtS. Unfortunately the writers had other ideas.

Cue 3.13Waiting In The Wings, the episode which kick-starts the assassination of thispairing. Waiting In The Wings is not a strong episode to begin with and theridiculous route that they take Cordelia and Angel down only adds insult toinjury. All the way back at 3.7 Offspring, Fred introduced the term“kyrumption” in reference to Cordy and Angel, explaining to Angel howit means that he and Cordy are destined to be together. In Waiting In The Wingsthe writers’ felt the need to echo it, this time from Lorne. What’s problematicwith “kyrumption” is that it takes away the audiences’ enjoyment ofdiscovering where the relationship is heading, opting instead to push the relationship onto the viewers.It’s almost as if the writers were worried that they were being too subtle anddecided they needed to make it absolutely clear that Cordy and Angel were meantto be. This was completely unnecessary, as fans were already on board withCangel as a ship and had so far enjoyed watching the build-up. To drop an anvilso obnoxiously onto the viewers lessens the connection between Cordy and Angeland the connection the audience has to the pairing.

Waiting In The Wings continues to murderthe Cordy/Angel dynamic with the plot involving the “echoes” of theprima ballerina and her lover. At this point in the relationship Cordelia and Angelhave not even admitted their feelings to each other and have only just startedto display physical tendencies that would indicate growing romantic feelings.The relationship was not ready to be taken to a physical level, much less thelevel this episode took it to. Laced with obnoxiously dramatic dialogue, Cordyand Angel get hot and heavy in the ballerina’s dressing room, in a scene souncomfortable it’s a wonder the actors didn’t demand a script rewrite.

While it’s not the first time a potentialrelationship has gotten to a physical level before its’ time, the way the scenewas written made for very difficult viewing. Overdramatic dialogue has no placein the Cangel relationship, even via a spell (more on this later). If theepisode had played out in comedic fashion, along the lines of Spike/Buffy inBtVS episode Something Blue, it would have been easier to handle. However, thewhole scene in the dressing room comes across as just another way for thewriters’ to say “Look! Look at how these two are meant to betogether!”. It’s made even worse by the fact that Charisma and Davidseemed to have lost all their chemistry when filming the scene. Whether that’sdown to the dialogue, the storyline or the actors not being comfortable withthe scenario is open to debate.

The cherry on top of the awfulness thatis Waiting In The Wings comes right at the end of the episode. At first we aregiven hope that maybe Cordelia and Angel will finally get to start arelationship, as Angel tentatively starts to tell Cordelia about his feelingsfor her. He is unfortunately interrupted by the arrival of the Groosalug andwith him a ridiculous plot point designed to throw a spanner in the works. Whythe writers’ felt the need to turn Cangel into a love-triangle is beyond me.Bringing Groo back onto the show seemed to serve no purpose other than keepingCordy and Angel apart, a curious move for the writers, given how strongly theyhad been pushing Cangel onto the audience in the very same episode. Whatfollows the Groosalug’s return is an almost complete demolition of therelationship that has been building between Cordelia and Angel. Cordy is senton vacation and Angel is left to brood silently until the biggest tragedy ofhis life occurs; losing his son.

It is completely unforgivable that thewriters’ left Cordelia out of the episodes that centre on Angel losing Connor.She is the one person who has been with him from the beginning and the oneperson who has always been there for him. He has now reached a point where he lovesher and she him (even if they haven’t admitted it) yet she is not present whenhis son is taken from him. That is a travesty and underlines how badly thewriters’ had lost the plot (pun intended) when it came to the Angel/Cordydynamic. To remove the heart of the group and the woman Angel loves during sucha pivotal time in the series was a huge mistake and furthers the destruction ofthe Cordelia/Angel relationship. They have been through everything together yetthey are separated during one of the biggest losses in the show and that hasnever sat well with me.

The tail end of Season 3 takes the messalready created and, if possible, seems to make it worse. When Cordelia returnsfrom vacation she is out-of-character and veering dangerously towards Mary Sueterritory. She has traded in her sarcasm and bluntness for “wiser”, softerstatements, which are very jarring. Her romance with the Groosalug seemsincredibly shallow, her interactions with Angel and the other characters areawkward and she is used as a Deux Ex Machina in several episodes (3.19 ThePrice comes to mind).

In the midst of being treated to an OOCCordelia, the writers resume their campaign to show us how much she and Angelare meant to be together, with Groo now weighing in on their relationship. Thewhole tail-end of the season comes across as being rushed and badly written,including the awkwardly set-up meeting between Cordy and Angel which, ofcourse, neither of them makes it to. Season 3 ends with the completeassassination of Cordelia as a character as she suddenly decides that leavingeveryone she loves and everything she cares about to go and float around in theHeavens is a good idea. The fans were left on a cliff-hanger, wondering whatthe hell happened to their ship and fervently praying that Season 4 wouldresolve all the issues. Unfortunately this was not to be the case.

Season 4 opens with Angel at the bottomof the ocean and Cordelia floating around in the Heavens. For the first threeepisodes of Season 4 we are treated to (very small) doses of the old Cordeliaas she bitches about being bored and fruitlessly yells at Angel to help her getback to earth. When she finally descends back to earth, she has convenientlydeveloped amnesia and stays in this state for several episodes, thuseliminating any hope the fans had that maybe their ship would be repaired.

4.4 Slouching Towards Bethlehem treats usto uncomfortable and slightly hostile interactions between Angel andAmnesia-Cordy. In trying to find out more about her former life Cordy grillsAngel about her identity and Angel in turn decides it would be best to lie toher for her protection. In a very OOC manner he seems to ignore the fact that,memory or no memory, this is Cordelia Chase, an incredibly strong and capable womanwho is one of the least likely people to need protection. Cordelia is, rightly,pissed off by his lies and ends up rejecting him and going to stay with Connor,creating the first of many rifts that occur between these two over the courseof Season 4.

4.5 Supersymmetry shifts the focus fromCordelia/Angel and onto Fred/Gunn, however a scene at the end of the episodebrings us back to Cordy/Angel, in an exchange which smacks of the writers onceagain trying to push Cangel onto the viewers. Cordelia sits Angel down to askabout the nature of their relationship. Rather than ease in with a mildquestion such as “Did we have feelings for each other?” or “Werewe a couple?” Cordy is given the God-awful line “Were we inlove?”. No subtlety, no hedging. The writers just can’t seem to grasp theconcept show don’t tell and decideinstead to shove this relationship down our throats. This question is onceagain brought up at the end of 4.6 Spin The Bottle, with Angel this time posingthe question to Cordy just after she receives her memory back. With a tearfulchoke in her voice she replies “We were” thus smacking the audiencein the face with the obvious (yet again).

Season 4 continues the slow destructionof Cordy/Angel as Cordelia once again rejects Angel in 4.7 Apocalypse Nowish.In a scene overflowing with ridiculously dramatic dialogue and wangst thatrivals the Buffy/Angel relationship, Cordelia informs Angel that while sheloves him, she can’t be with him because of all the horrifying things he did asAngelus.

Time out. This scene is one of the mostdamaging in the entire Cangel destruction. I previously mentioned that dramaticdialogue has no place in the Cordy/Angel dynamic and this scene emphasisesthat. Cordy and Angel have always had one of the most natural and drama-freerelationships in the Buffyverse. Their exchanges are usually quick, intelligentand razor-sharp, bouncing back and forth and staying refreshingly real. Eventheir more intense discussions stay very close to earth, reminding the audiencehow in tune they are with each other and how well suited they could be as a pairing.

This makes the scene in Apocalypse Nowishextremely OOC for both of them. The dialogue comes out sounding unnatural andstilted, leaving the audience cringing. Additionally, everything Cordy isactually saying to Angel is OOC. Cordelia has always been aware of what Angelcan become. She lived through Angelus’ reign of terror in Sunnydale, so sheknows exactly what he is capable of and she will protect herself and othersagainst him without hesitation were he to lose his soul. However this has neverclouded her view of him nor has it ever changed the way she feels about him.She knows that he is a good man who, yes, has a dark side, but she acceptsthis. For her to turn around and claim that Angelus is standing in the way ofher being with Angel is ridiculous, to say the least.

Season 4 then offers us the biggest andgrossest OOC moment for Cordelia, as she seduces and sleeps with Connor.Thousands of fans were left wondering what the hell just happened as theywatched Angel stumble onto the sight of the woman he loves having sex with hisson. The rift that this action causes ensures that for the rest of the seasonCordelia and Angel don’t stand a chance of reconciling and the dozens of Cangelshippers out there were left stunned and outraged. Of course the biggest revealwas yet to come.

Over the course of the next severalepisodes, the focus is shifted away from Cordy/Angel and onto the group as theyface battle after battle, strip Angel of his soul, recruit a Slayer to save himand finally bring in Uber Witch Willow to re-ensoul him. In the midst of allthis, two bombshells are dropped in quick succession ““ Cordy has turnedevil and is pregnant with Connor’s child. Both of these plot points furtherdrive Angel and Cordelia apart, leaving the fans with little to no hope forthis pairing.

The revelation that Cordelia isn’t evensteering her own body brings both relief and anger. On the one hand, at leastwe now know why Cordelia has been so OOC for the entire season and a reasonableexplanation is given for all her indiscretions. On the other hand that meansthat Angel went through all of this pain for nothing. The woman he loved nevertruly came back and once this discovery is made Angel is then faced with makingthe decision to kill her in order to save the world. In the end he escapeshaving to do so however Cordelia is left in a coma with Angel not knowing ifshe will ever return to him. The ship was seemingly sunk, with fans leftdevastated. Luckily the writers were busy gift-wrapping one last offering.

Cue 5.12 You’re Welcome, anappropriately-named episode which finally restores the natural and beautifuldynamic of the Cordy/Angel relationship. Cordelia returns, completely back incharacter and does what she always does best – steers Angel down the rightpath. Everything is restored, from their sarcastic banter, to the realness oftheir more emotional scenes, to Cordy being back in Action Girl mode. The scenewhere Cordy bluntly but beautifully reminds Angel of who is his, of what hestands for is played out in the most natural and understated way, with bothcharacters struggling to express their feelings but still managing to get theirmessages across. The final scene of the episodes is possibly the most amazingand wonderfully written Cangel scene in the entire show. Cordelia reaffirms herbelief in Angel before quietly explaining that she can’t stay. Their final kissis truly the only Cangel kiss that really shows how well they work together,being natural and full of chemistry. Their relationship, which went through somuch destruction at the hands of the writers, is allowed to end on abittersweet note and fans and shippers alike are finally given closure.

#angel #ats #ats meta #cangel #cordelia x angel #long post #meta #Anonymous #answered

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