Angel
Season 4, Episode 17
Air date	April 2, 2003
Written by	Steven S. DeKnight
Directed by	Steven S. DeKnight
Episode Guide
previous "Players"	next "Shiny Happy People"
Cast
Starring
David Boreanaz	Angel
Charisma Carpenter	Cordelia
J. August Richards	Gunn
Amy Acker	Fred
Vincent Kartheiser	Connor
Andy Hallett	Lorne
Alexis Denisof	Wesley
Special Guest Starring
Julie Benz	Darla
Guest Starring
Gina Torres	Jasmine
David Denman	Skip
Stephi Lineburg	Girl
Uncredited
Stephanie Romanov	Lilah
Jack Kehler	Manny

"Inside Out" is the seventeenth episode of the fourth season of Angel and the eighty-third episode overall. Written and directed by Steven S. DeKnight, it was originally broadcast on April 2, 2003 on the WB network.

Contents 1 Synopsis 2 Continuity 3 Body Count 4 Appearences 4.1 Locations 5 Behind the Scenes 5.1 Production 5.2 Music 5.3 Other 6 Quotes 7 References

Synopsis

As the rest of the gang finally learn of Cordelia's true nature, Angel seeks out and roughs up the charismatic inter-dimensional demon guide, Skip, to find out why Cordelia has turned evil. Skip initially feigns innocence, but eventually admits his part and begins to beat Angel. Angel fights back, and transports Skip back to the hotel where the Wesley, Fred, and Gunn assist Angel in interrogating Skip. Skip tells them that all of the events of the past few years are part of a higher being's plan to be reborn. He explains that Lorne's leaving Pylea, Fred opening the wrong book and being sent to another dimension, Wesley's sleeping with "the enemy," and all the events of the previous years have coincided to bring the Beast's Master to Cordelia's body. Angel figures out that the Master is only vulnerable inside Cordelia's body. Skip confirms this suspicion, confident that Angel's love for Cordelia will prevent him from taking action, since in order to kill the Master, the gang will have to kill Cordelia. However, he is shocked to see Angel spring into action, gathering the necessary materials to locate Cordelia. Angel decides to go alone, believing that it is best to kill Cordelia himself and spare his friends the pain of seeing her die.

Meanwhile, the cunningly evil Cordelia helps get Connor to whisk her away and into hiding by playing on his vulnerability, convincing him that his friends want to kill their unborn child. To expedite the birth before they're found, Cordelia makes a murderous request to kill a young virgin woman which leads Connor to a moral crossroads and elects a ghostly visit from his long-dead mother, Darla. She tells Connor that after centuries of murder, Connor is the only good thing she ever did and that she died out of love for him. She challenges the idea that killing an innocent woman can protect his baby. She explains that Connor has a choice and that he can stop this and not kill the woman. However, Cordelia shows up telling him that she could see Darla and that Darla is a cheap spell Angel made to stop him from saving the baby. Angel suddenly appears too late, after Connor put the blood of the virgin on Cordelia's stomach. The earth begins to shake and Skip begins to wreak havoc on Fred, Gunn, and Wesley. However, after unsuccessfully shooting Skip several times, Wesley finally hits Skip in the ear and kills him. Connor sees Angel coming to threaten Cordelia and fights him. Angel explains to an unconvinced Connor that Cordelia had lied to him and raises a sword over her body, saying "I'm sorry." In an explosion of green light, Cordelia "gives birth." Angel, thrown back by the force, comes forward with the sword but upon seeing a fully grown woman standing before him, drops to his knees and exclaims, "You're beautiful," lowering his sword. The woman steps forward and says Angel's name affectionately as he gazes upon her in awe.

Continuity

• It is revealed to Angel Investigations that Cordelia's body has been possessed by an evil higher being, which was awoken in "Spin the Bottle." It is also revealed that the lives of the team have been manipulated since the start. Events such as Angel moving to Los Angeles, Cordelia gaining the visions and becoming a higher being, Darla being resurrected, Connor's birth, etc. were all part of a larger plan.

• Skip, who has been helping manipulate Cordelia as her "demon guide," is killed by Wesley.

• The being who will be known as Jasmine gives birth to herself through Cordelia's body.

• Cordelia fell into a mystical coma and would not wake up until much later.^[1]

• Skip mentions that no one ever comes back from paradise... except for that one time with a Slayer, in reference to Buffy's return.

• Skip also repeats a common theme on Buffy, a disdain for guns as a choice of weapon, saying "do those things ever work?" as he easily shields himself against Wesley's attack. However, Wesley's well-aimed shot does in fact kill Skip.

• It is debatable as to whether Darla's ghost that Connor encounters in this episode was sent by The Powers That Be or a visit from The First in whom Jasmine, with his peace goals in the world, was an obstacle.

Body Count

• a vampire, dusted by Connor
• unidentified young girl, killed by Jasmine (in Cordelia's possession)
• Skip, shot by Wesley with a gun

Appearences

Locations

• Los Angeles, CA
• Skip's Demon dimension

Behind the Scenes

Production

• Jasmine is played by Gina Torres, who played Zoe on Joss Whedon's Firefly/Serenity. Many other Firefly cast members appeared on Buffy and Angel, including Nathan Fillion as Caleb, Summer Glau as the Prima Ballerina in the Angel episode "Waiting in the Wings", and Adam Baldwin as Marcus Hamilton .

Music

• Robert J. Kral - original score

Other

• Darla says she was sent by "the Powers" to send Connor a message. While there is no evidence that the vision is telling the truth, the writer, on the DVD commentary track, confirms that she was sent by the Powers that Be.

• The group came to the conclusion that Jasmine must have piggy-backed Cordelia to get from her dimension to theirs. Anya Jenkins referred to this as "hitch-hiking".^[2]

• Connor's unwillingness to believe that Angel and the others would betray Cordelia (and to an extent, Connor, himself), and his desire to put their fears at ease indicate that despite the way he acts, he has come to trust and love Angel Inc. as family.

Quotes

Gunn - "You sayin' Pop and Mama threw you a beatin'?"

Lorne - "Kid Vicious did the heavy lifting. Cordy just 'mwha-ha-ha-ed' at us."

Gunn - "Guy steps out for a few hours, half the place goes super-villain."

Skip - "Look out. The monkey's thinkin' again."

References

1. ↑ "You're Welcome"
2. ↑ "After Life"