Goodbye, Angel
Yes, the end is here. But don't cry. There might be life after death for the vampire with a soul
As the cast of Angel congregates to shoot the series' finale, the mood on set is as unpredictable as the vampire drama itself. David Boreanaz, who plays the totured title character, casually snaps pictures of his wife, his toddler son and his parents, who have flown in from Pennsylvania. J. August Richards, the vigliante-turned-lawyer Gunn, wolfs down his steak-and-lobster dinner so he can run to his trailer in time for the finale of The Apprentice. Then there's Amy Acker. The cast's only femme fighter, she has just spent two hours being transformed into the blue-skinned demon god Illyria and is under strict orders not to well up. "I'm the one who keeps crying," she says. "I don't know how I'm gonna make it through the night." Fans feel her pain.
After five seasons, Angel is biting it. But the Buffy spin-off will not go peacefully into the night. The last episode finds the gang in an apocalyptic battle that will claim the life of at least one major character. "It's a good final statement for Angel," says creator Joss Whedon.
But just how "final" is it? The show's swan song --called "Not Fade Away" as an ode to a Grateful Dead cover and Deadhead Boreanaz-- ends ambiguously, fueling rumors of future Ange TV or DVD movies. "That could be very interesting," Whedon teases. James Marsters, who plays Spike, agrees. "It would be cool to come back and be the badass for awhile," he says.
But Boreanaz is ready to stake Angel. "I was never into reunions," he says. "You live. You learn. You move forward." But first he must survive the next seven hours. The actors will shoot their last scene --which takes place in a dark alley in the driving rain-- until 5 am. Says Whedon, who has to miss this rain-soaked conclusion due to a previous commitment, "I'm good at 'hello', not great at 'how are you' and I suck at 'goodbye.' "
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