Episode 5: Ballad of Fallen Angels Oh yes. Everything, just everything, is perfect, beyond perfect. Introducing Vicious in this way is genius, he instantly shown as someone to be feared, someone who is threat lurking in the shadows, waiting to pounce, just as he walks out of the shadows to kill at the beginning of this episode. Not only is Vicious portrayed as a badass villain, with a name to match, but he also used as device to give us a taste of Spike’s backstory. Making a 2-dimensional plot device like this, someone who would be a one and done, throw away character, with generic motivations in any other show, a 3-dimensional character, who has backstory just deep as Spike’s that is hinted at through lines of dialogue, and through Spike’s flashing memories at the end, is a choice that is difficult to execute, but so effect when done correctly. Here, it’s done perfectly, further showing the incredible story telling talent of the team behind this, which is then shown in a visual sense with the church fight. Not only is it great to look at, but it shows things that will later be revealed as big details, things that make no sense with the context we have at this point in the show, as if we know what they, as if they need no explanation, because in real life you don’t pause whenever you see something, and then spend 20 minutes trying to explain it. If I could give this 6 stars I would, because nothing can compare to this, what an incredible show, and this is the best of it.