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1) This review will almost definitely contain spoilers for episodes after this one.
1) This review will almost definitely contain spoilers for episodes after this one.
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“War Zone” is a rare piece of television in that it gets better with age, especially in relation to the characterisation of Charles Gunn. Gunn is presented here as a young gang leader that has a fascination with death. Yes, he’s fighting to defend his sister and his friends from vampires, but he’s also actively seeking a fight with the vampires. He’s not just defending himself, he’s fighting because he enjoys it. He has a death wish. What Garry Campbell does is take Gunn’s death wish and gives him the most disturbing consequences of that he possibly can, by having Gunn’s sister, Alonna, turned into a vampire, who then tries to convince Gunn to let her sire him. Having Gunn’s sister killed was shocking and I certainly didn’t see it coming. Even after she was killed, I was definitely not expecting Alonna to be turned into a vampire! That’s just cruel! However, when you stop and think about the episode and think about Gunn’s character, there was writing on the wall for a while that it was imminent. What makes the scene between Gunn and Alonna hold weight is that Garry spent a lot of time in this episode building up the relationship between the brother and sister. Alonna idolises her big brother and Gunn would do anything for his younger sister. He’s spent his entire life protecting her. Now, the vampire version of Alonna is twisting this back on Gunn and asking Gunn to let her protect him by siring him. Very good work!
However, as much as I enjoy the Gunn-Alonna aspect of “War Zone”, the B-plot leaves a lot to be desired. I like David Nabbit, but his story doesn’t seem to fit into the episode very fluently. I understand what Garry is trying to convey, but it feels a little disjointed. Perhaps this episode just feels a little lacking because it’s immediately following two of the best episodes ever of “Angel”, “Five By Five” and “Sanctuary”. It’s suffering from what I’ve coined ‘5B5 Syndrome’ (‘Five By Five Syndrome’), which is basically where the episode following Faith’s important episodes suffers. Think about it...“Superstar” doesn’t live up to “Who Are You?”, “War Zone” doesn’t live up to “Sanctuary”, “Players” doesn’t live up to “Orpheus”...the list goes on. The contrasts between Gunn’s story and David Nabbit’s story are apparent. They live in the same city, but belong to polar-opposite social classes. Yet, they’re both outcasts. David is a wealthy millionaire that can afford anything he wants. If he wants a new house, he can buy it. If he wants a new business, he can buy it. He hosts parties on a regular basis, yet he has no friends. He has all the money in the world, but he can’t talk to females and is incredibly lonely. In the same city, Gunn has nothing. He lives in an abandoned warehouse and has to steal food to survive. He’s constantly at war with a vampire gang and his friends are dropping like flies around him. These two characters couldn’t be more different (I’m glad they meet in the next season briefly!), yet they’re both outcasts and don’t belong. I love that “War Zone” is primarily shown from Gunn’s point of view, as it’s a rarity for any “Angel” episode to be from the point of view of someone outside of the main cast. I know that Gunn becomes a main cast member, but he’s not one yet.
I want to take a moment to talk about Charles Gunn. Gunn is a very polarising character amongst the fandom and I can see why. Gunn isn’t ‘friends’ with the show’s lead character until much later into the series because Gunn dislikes all vampires. For the first few years, Gunn’s quick to temper and follows his heart over his head. In the later years, Gunn makes some very questionable decisions (the biggest of which is allowing Illyria’s sarcophagus to pass through customs). However, I love Gunn! I always have! During my childhood and teenage years, Gunn was my very favourite “Angel” character. He’s so relatable to me. I grew up in a poor family, I went to a school where I was bullied for years, and I had to fight to survive to a certain extent. Gunn was one of very few characters that I looked up to because I could empathise with him. He embodied someone that I could strive to be. Angel was unattainable, Wesley has insanely intelligent, Lorne was a demon...Gunn was a regular guy that was fighting to survive and protect the people he loved. I needed that growing up. Also, let’s not forget, Gunn is the heart of the show for a while. During the second season, Angel leaves Angel Investigations. During the third season, Wesley is pushed out of Angel Investigations. Cordy ascends, Lorne moves to Vegas, and Fred passes away. Gunn is the only main “Angel” character that never leaves.
Cordelia: “I like to smell a little money once in a while.”
Angel: “She’s not just saying that. Hide some in the office sometime and watch her, it’s uncanny.”
Moving on from my annoyance that this scene was never shown, “War Zone” is yet another example of an episode that couldn’t take place on “Buffy The Vampire Slayer”. Sunnydale isn’t the right setting for a homeless street gang to wage war against vampires. It needs the gritty, realistic feel of a large city. Los Angeles is perfect. Living on the streets and being out in the dark a lot, it makes perfect sense that Gunn and his gang would be aware of the existence of vampires.
After seeing “Angel” dozens of times, it’s haunting to go back to Gunn’s first appearance on the show and see him interact with his sister. Even though we only see them together in one episode, Alonna remains a part of Gunn’s life and motivation throughout the shows entire run. The guilt he feels over her death never leaves him. Gunn is very much the leader of his crew here and he does a good job with it. Gunn is overly hostile and violent, but he has to be. He has to be hard on himself and the rest of his people to keep them alive. They need to be disciplined and they need to be prepared!
After witnessing Angel, in vampire form, hassling a human, Gunn comes to the realisation that Angel is evil. Why wouldn’t he? It’s not like vampires with a soul are common! Here is what makes “War Zone” work for me...Angel doesn’t push himself onto Gunn and his gang. Gunn is too proud and mistrusting to accept the help of a vampire – even a friendly vampire. This throws Angel through a loop. Helping people is what Angel does. He helps people and he saves souls, so why won’t they accept his help? Angel learns a valuable lesson in this episode: not everyone needs saving. Some people need to save themselves. It’s why I’m so satisfied with the ending. Angel gives Gunn his card to stay in touch, but he says he’s doing it in case he needs Gunn’s help, not the other way around. Angel has adapted his style to match Gunn’s pride.
I’m a little annoyed that Chain is never mentioned again after “War Zone”. Chain is Gunn’s right-hand man here and seems to be Gunn’s best friend, yet he’s never mentioned again. It reminds me of Jesse from “Buffy The Vampire Slayer” season one’s “Welcome To The Hellmouth” and “The Harvest”. Jesse is Willow and Xander’s childhood best friend, yet after he dies in “The Harvest”, he’s never mentioned again. It would have been nice if Chain had showed up with Rondell and George at some point in the next season, or even alongside Anne in “Not Fade Away”. There is always the possibility that Chain died at some point after this episode, but as it was never mentioned, I choose to believe he’s alive. I’m an optimist like that.
Cordelia: “Why don’t you ask him and I’ll check for taps?”
Wesley: “Because you can imagine him as a scantily clad young stud, while I’m stuck with the naked truth.”
After Alonna was kidnapped by the vampire gang, my 11-year-old self thought, “okay, we’ve seen this before. Angel is going to escape his cell, team up with Gunn, and save Alonna! That’s how this works!”. Wrong. So wrong. My 24-year-old self now wouldn’t have been quite that naive, but I still wouldn’t have seen Alonna’s siring coming. Things like that just don’t happen in most television shows – especially in early 2000. I like that the vampires turned Alonna into a vampire for no other reason than to mess with Gunn. They knew it would hurt Gunn more than anything in the world. Also, why is there so much testosterone in this episode?! Can’t Angel and Gunn discuss their plight over a nice cup of tea, like Wesley and Giles would, rather than Gunn locking Angel in a room?
All of that hard work to free himself, and then Cordelia opens the door for him from the outside...then he realises he also has his cell phone on him. Poor Angel. He’s not having the best day. It’s one of the reasons why I love him, actually. He’s a flawed hero. Not flawed as in “I’m seeking redemption for my dark and mysterious past” like most superheroes...okay, that too...but, he’s also the type of hero that is incredibly clumsy sometimes. He walks into door frames, trips over his own feet, jumps into the wrong car, and is about as un-suave as possible at times. I like that. He’s the klutziest champion I know.
Bringing things back to seriousness, the scene between Gunn and the newly vampiric Alonna is just perfect and heartbreaking. It’s such a powerful scene. Gunn, the biggest vampire hater we’ve seen on “Angel” thus far, has to kill the only family he has left and the only person he’s ever loved to save her from the vampire she’s become. Before that, there is a moment, a brief moment, where Gunn seems to consider Alonna’s proposal to turn him into a vampire. Gunn has a death wish and now he’s closer to death that he’s ever been, and it scares him. He’d never admit it, but it scares him. He’s scared to live without his sister. He’s scared to go on fighting alone. God bless J. August Richards in this scene. He’s sheer perfection here. The confusion, the guilt, the regret, the consideration...it’s written all over his face. Michele Kelly is also fantastic in this scene. She’s still loving towards Gunn, but she’s changed just enough of her personality to show that she’s soulless now. She doesn’t need protecting anymore, Gunn does. She’s the one with all the power. Then, the climax happens, and J. just absolutely shatters my heart into a million pieces...
Alonna: “Say goodbye to everything you ever knew.”
*She wraps one arm around his neck and stretches up to bite him.*
Gunn: “...Goodbye...”
*Gunn plunges a stake into his sister’s heart*
The way that J. says “goodbye” is just goosebump-inducing. The look of pain and absolute heartache on his face is nothing short of tear-inducing. His entire world has been stolen away from him and he was the one who snuffed out her life. It’s the most important scene of Gunn’s character arc and it’s the final act that prompts Angel to end the war between Gunn’s gang and the vampires. He refers to himself as ‘Angelus’, kills the lead vampire, and tells both sides that they can either keep fighting and dying, or they can move on. Without his sister, Gunn has no desire to fight anymore. He’s lost everything due to this war. I’ve just got to say that I am so proud of the work that J. is currently doing on Marvel’s “Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.” (which I will also be reviewing every episode of in depth at some point). For those of you that have seen the show, you will know that J. has been the best actor of the first season and has really helped bring that show to life. I’m really proud to say that I’ve been following his career for 15 years before he became a superhero. For those of you that haven’t seen the show, go and watch it!
The closing scene between Angel and Gunn reminds me a lot of the earlier scenes between Angel and Doyle overlooking the city. Only this time, it’s Angel giving Gunn a pep talk instead of Doyle giving Angel one...I miss Doyle. Angel inspires Gunn to keep fighting and gives him his business card...and three becomes four. Gunn’s introductory episode wasn’t perfect, but it was a damn good way to introduce Gunn to the show. We learned a lot about Gunn in just 42 minutes and I can’t wait to see him back in the next episode, “Blind Date”, to deliver his “What about the black man?!” speech.
Quote Of The Episode
Alonna: “We were on the right track, just on the wrong team. All that rage and hatred we got? We get to keep all that, only on this side there’s no guilt, no grief, just the hunt and the kill...and the fun! Come on, how often did we go out in the daylight anyway?”
Gunn: “Alonna, I can't do this!”
Alonna: “You were made for this! Oh, and all that misery and moping gone, I promise you.”
Gunn: “I was never gonna let anything happen to you. I was supposed to protect you. You were my sister.”
Alonna: “I still am. So why don't you kill me? Why don't you? You can't! Because you got the guilt, and I got the greatest guilt cure ever. I can free you! We can be together, our family can stay together...forever. Remember when we were kids in that shelter on Plummer Street, hmm? Second floor was all rotted out. You used to dare kids to cross and of course you were the best at it because you were the...you were the bravest. I wanted to be like you so bad, so I went up and the floor gave out. I would have broken my neck, but you'd been watching me the whole time. You were standing right below and you caught me. Ever since I can remember you've been looking out for me, but you don't have to anymore because I'm good and it's my turn to look out for you now.”
Gunn: “How?”
Alonna: “Look at you. You're running and hiding, cold and hungry. You call that living? You're the one that's falling now. Let me catch you. Don’t you want to stop falling? I'm gonna fix it...oh, say goodbye to everything you ever knew.”
*She wraps one arm around his neck and stretches up to bite him.*
Gunn: “...Goodbye...”
*Gunn plunges a stake into his sister’s heart*
FINAL SCORE: 6.5/10
What are your thoughts on "War Zone"? Did you enjoy this episode? Dislike it? Let me know all your thoughts in the comments section below!
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Interesting how perceptive vmapires cna be. Of coruse Alonna knows Gunn already.
ReplyDeleteWas thats scene in the shooting script or was it filmed and cut? I didn't know there was any access to deleted scenes from these 2 shows. D'C'A'
What scene, buddy? :)
Delete- Shangel