r/ANGEL • u/PyleanCow06 • 7d ago
One of the silliest continuity errors that cracks me up.
I’ve watched this show since it aired. When I was a kid, you could give me a season and episode number and I could tell you what the episode was called and what it was about.
It’s been about 6 years since I’ve rewatched last but something that keeps cracking me up is moments when Angel is like “I don’t breathe.”
But then he’s constantly shown out of breath 🤣😂. I love it.
23
u/starkravens 7d ago
The one that irks me the most is when Spike puts Drusilla in a sleeper hold and she passed out. Like, Why would that work lol
20
u/FilliusTExplodio 7d ago
I mean, that one is pretty easy to explain (relatively): a sleeper hold cuts off blood flow, not air flow. If vampires do indeed require blood to live, and we know their brains work somewhat like a human brain (or else Spike's chip wouldn't work), the next step is "they need blood in their brains." We know vampires can get knocked unconscious, so that all tracks.
That does beg the question "how does their blood flow," but it must. We see blood come out when they get scratched, when they feed their blood to others, etc. I can accept "magic" as the reason their blood flows, they are demons.
15
u/Ankle_Drag 7d ago
It's made worse when the same thing emphatically does not work on Angel in the season 5 premiere.
"You know what I'm doing now? Not using my windpipe"
10
u/PyleanCow06 7d ago
I also just watched the episode where Angel is fighting pregnant Darla and he was strangling her and she was like I DONT BREATHE 🤣
3
u/ItAllWent19 7d ago
YES!! This post made me think about that exactly. I remember thinking "that would not work."
2
u/PyleanCow06 7d ago
LOL that’s hilarious. I don’t remember that one but it absolutely makes no sense. I love it so much 🤣
13
u/Square_Beautiful_238 7d ago
I’m watching Buffy S7 (in tandem with Angel) with my daughter (11) and The First has an Acolyte torturing Spike by holding his head underwater.
Daughter: Wait… Didn’t Angel just survive three months in the ocean? Why is Spike trying to breathe? Or not breathe? HE DOESN’T BREATHE!
Ahhhhh….. continuity, thou art a fickle thing.
8
u/Brodes87 7d ago
Allegedly, it was meant to be holy water and they forgot to do the affects. Even that's a bit suss though, because wouldn't they have done burn makeup on Spike?
3
u/dirtylittlehart 5d ago
Water entering the lungs by drowning hurts, like, a lot, so I think it's fine they decided to torture Spike like that. During the scene, The First as Dru says, "That's why our kind make such good dollies - hard to kill." Meaning drowning Spike wouldn't kill him because he doesn't need oxygen, but it's still torture.
13
u/ArseCrayonGaming 7d ago
My favourite continuity error is in S4, just after Cordy comes back, her and Angel are sitting in the garden of the hotel and she ask if they were in love. It's the cliffhanger ending for that episode. Angel is massively beat up, his face covered in bruises. When the next episode picks up, in this same conversation, his face has miraculously healed 😄
I'd imagine if you were watching week to week it wouldn't be noticeable but I'm usually binging it during rewatches and it always stands out.
4
u/IndependentMango8282 6d ago
I’m sure I remember reading that this scene is the one Charisma had a haircut in the middle of as well! 😂
1
31
u/a_different_pov_85 7d ago
It doesn't fix all the continuity aspects, but I've always just viewed it as, they can breathe, but it's not a requirement to live. I forgot which character it is, but someone (male) requires CPR, and Angel says, "Sorry, no breath." Just to avoid mouth to mouth with a guy (at least that's how I took it as "comedy")
The being out of breath when fighting or running is a simulated reaction left over from being human. Vampires would have to be able to breathe, or speech wouldn't be possible either. Vampires are also known for having a really good sense of smell, can't smell without breathing.
This is actually an issue I've had with the show as well. I've always thought about bringing it up, but thought a lot of people would think it's a stupid question.
25
u/Marillpop 7d ago
It was Buffy on season 1 finale. Angel can’t do the mouth to mouth so Xander does it.
21
u/StrategyWooden6037 7d ago
"But someone (male) requires CPR..."
Lol, err, it was Buffy.
5
u/a_different_pov_85 7d ago
Yea, I had the characters confused and thought it was Xander that needed the CPR. I stand corrected on that. I'm actually kind of embarrassed that I remembered that scene so wrong.
11
u/PyleanCow06 7d ago
I love this! Apparently people don’t like my post because it’s been downvoted. God forbid I try to make a fun post pointing out a small flaw.
I actually love this explanation though! Also I forgot about the “no breath” thing when he didn’t want to do CPR haha. That’s so funny.
2
u/Big-Acanthisitta8797 6d ago
I don’t see any downvotes. I like the post by the way and the conversation it generated.
2
u/PyleanCow06 6d ago
When it was first posted it was being downvoted hahaha. Glad it gained some traction!
14
u/plastic_venus 7d ago
I had a conversation with someone today on a similar thread about the inconsistency in both Buffy and Angel in relation to basically anything requiring a heartbeat (including breathing, fucking and being poisoned, none of which should happen and all of which are either possible or impossible depending on the plot) and didn’t realise until that moment how passionate some folks are about arguing that it all still somehow makes sense. Which honestly I disagree with but I love for them because any passion for a show this old brings me joy.
8
u/PyleanCow06 7d ago
Omg exactly! It’s a fictional tv show. It doesn’t NEED to make sense! It is crazy how defensive people will get. I made a similar post in a walking dead subreddit about how detached zombie heads shouldn’t be able to make noise since there’s no lungs attached and I got attacked 🤣😂
2
u/PM_NUDES_4_DEGRADING 7d ago
Omg exactly! It’s a fictional tv show. It doesn’t NEED to make sense! It is crazy how defensive people will get.
Some people also just like to come up with in-universe justifications for what’re clearly plot holes. It’s like a combination puzzle and creative writing exercise: figure out a way to “patch” the mistake using only existing stuff that’s part of established canon.
Some people can be defensive and jerks but sometimes it’s just a detailed response written out of geeky fun, haha.
3
u/PyleanCow06 7d ago
Haha yes! I am absolutely down for people making up their own head canons to justify stuff. I love them and can even adopt some of them if they’re good enough haha
2
u/PM_NUDES_4_DEGRADING 7d ago
/r/DaystromInstitute used to be really great with that, since it was a very active sub dedicated to discussing a very large franchise that hadn’t put out a new episode of anything in like 15 years. Tons of continuity errors and little details to stick together endlessly, was fun.
Now there’s new stuff again though so it’s not at all the same mood anymore.
It’s a shame Buffy/Angel didn’t get, like, 3 other spinoffs with a few hundred episodes split between them. Could’ve easily had the same thing here…
5
u/plastic_venus 7d ago
To be fair I’m actually That Guy saying it does need to make sense but only within the confines of the rules the show itself makes. So if the show says poison doesn’t work on vampires then next minute Angel is tripping balls because someone spiked his drink with ecstasy imma call shenanigans. But I wont be that guy insisting vampires don’t exist or applying real world decomp rules to zombies. If you really wanna piss off the people (mostly dudes) in TWD sub just point out that people hate Laurie because misogyny and ignore the fact that Shane is a literal attempted rapist and murderer for the same reason. They hate that.
2
u/PyleanCow06 7d ago
LOL that makes sense. I can still respect it. I’m all for people enjoying things however they want 😂 and omg you’re so right about that getting twd people worked up. There’s definitely some crazy opinions over there lolol
3
u/chickwithabrick 7d ago
I was on that same thread (I think I actually replied to you hahaha) and I don't understand how fans don't just accept the inconsistencies and roll with it lol, there are too many little ones to even keep track of, especially if you consider the written books (I do) and comics (I don't 😂 with the exception of the Spuffy ending)
6
u/Traveler-3262 6d ago
To me the most egregious is in Buffy season two when she says, “We don’t know Spike and Drusilla are dead! We never saw their bodies!” 🤣
3
1
u/Luna93170 6d ago
Wait do they say that? 🤣
1
u/Traveler-3262 6d ago
After the big fight at the church, yeah. It kills me. I have to head-canon that she’s just so exhausted she misspeaks, and everyone around her is being uncharacteristically accepting of foibles that day 😅
3
u/Luna93170 6d ago
I guess my brain just understood something else lmao, I’ve watched the series 50 times, I’m currently watching reactors and I never picked up on it 🤣 (neither do they?) that’s hilarious
3
2
1
1
u/Chach_El_79 5d ago
Don't forget the vampires are constantly boning...but erections are created by blood flow...and their blood doesn't.
1
u/Fancy_Boysenberry_55 2d ago
He can survive without oxygen. The show interprets that as "I can't breathe" thus confusing everyone
44
u/ItAllWent19 7d ago
Or they are always smoking. It always got to me.