When Angel opens a portal to a hell dimension as a tool to deal with Sahjhan, a few characters blather on forebodingly about the consequences of engaging with such dark magic. They said the same thing on Buffy earlier this season when the Scoobies perform a resurrection spell. In either case, these foreshadowed consequences, when they finally come to pass, are not so serious that they can't be dealt with and dispatched during a single episode.
I find that annoying. This is supposed to be a show ABOUT consequences, about impossible choices. Yet there's no real fallout. Well, except an innocent person once again gets caught in the crossfire. For someone who sets himself up as a champion of the innocent--a helper of the helpless--Angel sure puts innocent people in danger any time it suits his purposes. Letting Darla go free, opening portals to hell dimensions, not killing Wolfram & Hart when they're in the midst of very despicable things. I get that the writers are trying to show he's a fallible character who will alter his code of ethics when his emotions get involved--who among us doesn't?--but the problem is, nobody ever calls him out on it.
The episode is worth watching entirely for the uncomfortable scene between Wes and Gunn. I'm Team Wes all the way during this run of episodes. Yes, he could have handled the "prophecy" business better, but he did what he thought was right with the information he had. He's the only character who consistently sees things clearly, without allowing emotion to cloud his reason. This goes back even to season three of Buffy, where he expressed reluctance to endanger the entire world just to rescue Willow, who was being held hostage by the Mayor. Even then he was shouted down, as he is so often on Angel, yet he continues to abide by his own moral code with admirable integrity, no matter what it costs him. Gunn here becomes a representation of AI as a whole, and I take great pleasure in seeing Wes unblinkingly shut him down.
