From the Vault

The Internet is a wonderful place for geeks. There's all sorts of cool stuff to be found, the trick is knowing to look for it. So, here's the debut of a little segment I'm calling "From the Vault". The things I talk about may not be new for everyone (in point of fact, they probably won't be, if you've been around for awhile), but they're new to me - and I think they're cool. Enjoy!
This time, we're featuring a lost gem from the TV series 'Angel'. Back when the show spun off of 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Joss Whedon said of it,


"We wanted a much darker show, darker in tone. It's set in Los Angeles because there are a lot of demons in L.A. and a wealth of stories to be told. We also wanted to take the show a little older and have the characters deal with demons in a much different way. Buffy is always the underdog trying to save the world, but Angel is looking for redemption. It's those two things that creatively make the shows different." (Credit: Wikipedia)



Overall, 'Angel' certainly achieved this darker tone. What many people don't know, however, is that the script for Episode 2 of the series was blocked by the network because it was too dark. The episode was never shot, replaced instead by 'Lonely Hearts'. 

This lost episode is titled 'Corrupt', and was written by 'Buffy' and 'Angel' scribe David Fury, who went on to write for 'Lost' and '24'. The script contains several bits that would eventually resurface in other episodes of the series, but the overarching plot, which concerned a prostitution ring and introduced Detective Kate Lockley as an undercover officer who had fallen prey to her surroundings, had to be abandoned. 
But, lucky for us, the interwebs are around to catch the things that the studio discards. 'Corrupt' can be found in its entirety here. It's well worth checking out. You can also find more general information about this episode here.