Angel

Last May, Angel (David Boreanaz) and his team saved the world from Armageddon and were rewarded with the keys to the L.A. bureau of Wolfram & Hart, the evil law firm that had so many times tried to destroy them. It was a surprise twist to a season that had mostly been a downer, with the overwrought Beast and Jasmine storylines and the creepy Angel-Cordy-Connor love triangle dominating much of the spring.

Hopefully, the W&H factor will re-energize the flagging series by opening the door to new characters and situations every week and shifting the focus away from emotional melodrama-rama. Also, the kids get a chance to show off their talents : Fred (Amy Acker) is in charge of science research and development ; Lorne (the faboo Andy Hallett) schmoozes celebrity clients ; Wesley (Alexis Denisof) heads the occult division ; and Gunn (J. August Richards) has traded in the security department for the intricacies of demonic law. (Charisma Carpenter’s Cordy is in a coma ; Angel’s perpetually petulant son, Connor, has no memory of his supernatural heritage and resides with a human family.)

Of course, there’s a catch to the deal : Cash from evil clients keeps the company running. If they want to keep the firm’s mind-blowing resources at their disposal, our heroes have to choose their battles wisely or WH will run out of paying patrons faster than Vera Wangs at a sample sale.

So far, this season has gotten off to a somewhat slow start, with the gang settling in to their new digs in the first episode and last week’s unexpected appearance of Spike (Buffy the Vampire Slayer refugee James Marsters), who’s now trapped in L.A. as a ghost after sacrificing himself to the Sunnydale Hellmouth. But the dialogue has been snappy and sharp, especially between undead odd couple Angel and Spike, as is almost anything uttered by the delightfully dippy Harmony (Mercedes McNab), a familiar face who has joined the team as Angel’s secretary. Angel may not be thrilled by Spike’s presence, which is interrupted by inexplicable vanishing acts, but at least he doesn’t have to feel self-conscious about being the only vampire with a soul in the room anymore. Finally, someone to brood with.

Tonight, Angel races against the clock to locate a young woman (Jenny Mollen) who was bitten by a werewolf, before the next full moon rises and her transformation makes her a killer - and a coveted culinary commodity. -