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City of Angel

           Buffy bloodsucker David Boreanaz splits Sunnydale for L.A. - and gives EW an exclusive first look at his WB spin-off

           By Bruce Fretts Entertainment Weekly

           On a blindingly bright Saturday afternoon in seedy downtown L.A., David Boreanaz pulls up outside a dilapidated office
           building in a jet-black Mercedes. His automotive choice is apt - right down to dark-tinted windows - given that he’s here to
           shoot his title role as a sun-averse prince of darkness in a pilot presentation for Angel, The WB’s hotly anticipated spin-off of
           its occult hit Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

           "It’s a darker show," the actor says of his new TV vehicle, set to debut this fall. "We’re moving from Sunnydale to Los
           Angeles, so that lends itself to more adult themes." Boreanaz’s 240something-year-old vampire leaves Buffy’s suburbia to
           help tormented souls battle their personal demons in the grittier City of (appropriately enough) Angels. "It’s more of an
           anthology show than Buffy," explains Joss Whedon, creator of both series. "There’s not a soap opera at the center of it."

           How about a sense of humor? The premise sounds sort of grim, and without Buffy’s trademark biting wit, Angel could go
           the way of this season’s moody casualty Brimstone. "We want to find the humor in Angel and not have it be some dark
           dull-athon," says Whedon. The fact that Angel has a sense of humor may come as a big shock to Buffy fans. "We’ve played
           him very brooding, and we’ve seen his evil side, but his humor is starting to come out," says Boreanaz, 28. "It’s dry and
           sarcastic, very subtle. It’s not a way-out kind of humor."

           More comic relief will come in the form of Doyle (Glenn Quinn, 28, who played Becky’s husband on Roseanne), an undead
           dude who serves as Angel’s spiritual mentor at a low-rent detective agency. "The higher powers have called Doyle to be
           Angel’s guide, and he’s the last person in the world who wants to - or should - be doing this," says Whedon. "He really just
           wants to play the ponies and drink a lot. But he has unexpected wisdom in the midst of his extreme foibles."

           Angel will also receive assistance from a familiar Buffy face, Cordelia (Charisma Carpenter, 28), who comes to Hollywood
           to pursue her dreams of stardom and ends up working at the agency. While Whedon promises "she’ll still be somewhat
           self-involved and in her Cordelia bubble - which is her charm," the bratty ex-cheerleader will be forced to grow up when she
           loses her family’s financial support. Sudden poverty "brings her a little more down to earth, both fashion-wise and
           reality-wise," says Carpenter.

           With his old sweetheart Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar) still staked out in Sunnydale, will Angel be necking with Cordy? "We
           don’t have that in the works," says Whedon. "It’s not like Angel is ever going to get over Buffy, but he won’t be whining
           about her every episode. She’ll just be the spectre of his one true love."

           Don’t expect to see Boreanaz and Gellar crossing over to each other’s shows too often, either. "Production-wise, it’s difficult
           because they’re in so much of each show," says Whedon, who doesn’t rule out the possibility of supporting characters
           shuffling between series "when the story suggests an opportunity. It’ll really be a question of, ‘Hey, you know who would be
           great in this Angel - Willow [Alyson Hannigan].’ Or ‘We really need Cordelia back in this Buffy.’ "
           Such stunts would seem seamless if Buffy and Angel aired back-to-back. But The WB won’t decide that until its fall lineup
           is announced May 18. Whedon isn’t afraid to say he’s dying to see a Buffy - Angel block: "They’re companion pieces, alike
           enough that they would draw the same audience and different enough that they wouldn’t feel like two hours of the same thing."
           WB entertainment president Susanne Daniels says she hopes Angel "will continue to grow on Buffy," holding on to the
           show’s core teens while also attracting a slightly older crowd.

           Chances are the persistent and persuasive Whedon will get his scheduling wish. "Susanne said it looked good, but it wasn’t
           written in stone," he says. "So I actually sent her a stone that it was carved into: ‘Angel, Tuesdays at 9.’ " Says Daniels of the
           gift: "That’s so Joss, it’s hilarious. It’s in my office right next to my desk."

           The only serious concern is whether Whedon - who’s also a successful screenwriter with credits ranging from Toy Story to
         Alien Resurrection - will have the energy to keep two series running. "Oh, God, please kill me now," he moans at the
           prospect. Buffy executive producer David Greenwalt will take charge of day-to-day operations on Angel but Whedon will
           oversee the project. "The worst thing about working for Joss is that I’ve become a much slower writer because it has to be
           much better," says Greenwalt, whose TV resume includes The X-Files and Profit. "You can’t just crank it out."

           As Angel’s skeleton crew scurries around them, Greenwalt and Whedon gaze into the monitor at a smoky two-shot of Buffy
           alums Boreanaz and Carpenter. "It’s like we never left," says Greenwalt. Sighs Whedon: "That’s because we never did." -
           Additional reporting by Dan Snierson