The Shroud of Rahmon

Infobox Television episode
Title = The Shroud of Rahmon
Series = Angel


Caption =
Season = 2
Episode = 8
Airdate = November 21, 2000
Production = 2ADH08
Writer = Jim Kouf
Director = David Grossman
Guests = Elisabeth Röhm
Danny Ricardo
Tony Todd
Episode list = List of "Angel" episodes
Prev = Darla
Next = The Trial

"The Shroud of Rahmon" is episode 8 of season 2 in the television show "Angel". Written by Jim Kouf, it was originally broadcast on November 21, 2000 on the WB network. In this episode, Angel and Gunn go undercover to foil the theft of a demonic burial shroud at a museum, unaware that the garment makes people psychotic. Angel attacks Kate, who tries to stop him, and Wesley and Cordelia also go crazy when they enter the museum to look for Angel and Gunn; Wesley ends up getting blamed for the attempted murder of Kate and the killing of a security guard. See List of "Angel" episodes for a complete list.

Plot

Two detectives interrogate Wesley about an attempted murder. Wesley tells them everything just went very wrong. Without revealing the vampire's name, Wesley explains that Angel wasn't supposed to be there, but since he's so stubborn, he was there anyway. Before this, Wesley stopped by the hotel and talked with Cordelia. She's cut her hair and he's noticing it for the first time. Since Angel is on a case with Gunn, Cordelia and Wesley go to a movie premiere.

Angel and Gunn meet with Gunn's cousin, Lester, who asks for their help. Lester is supposed to be a driver for a demonic robbery but he wants nothing to do with it. A vampire Angel knows by reputation, Jay-Don, is being brought in to help. Much to Gunn's dismay, Angel takes charge of the case. Angel returns to the hotel and finds Kate in his room. She wants information on Darla and despite the cross she carries, Angel is not threatened and warns her to back off before she is killed. Angel meets Jay-Don at the bus station and kills him, taking over the un-life of the exuberant vampire. A demon named Menlow meets with the vampire he thinks is Jay-Don and takes him to the others. Another demon, Vyasa, a human security guard, Bob, and Gunn pretending to be his cousin complete the team.

Cordelia researches museums to find which one may be the location of the robbery, learning the Los Angeles natural history temporarily contains the Shroud of Rahmon - a mystical object that causes people around it to go insane. Meanwhile, Angel breaks inside the museum, where the Shroud's effect causes him to revert to his vampire visage. Wesley and Cordelia enter the building and are immediately affected as well. The demons, humans and vampires slowly carry the tomb on a path out of the building, becoming violent towards each other. Vyasa kills Bob by ripping off his head. Wesley encounters Kate at the building and has trouble keeping focused on his mission to help Angel. Wesley confronts Angel and tries to warn him about the shroud.

Kate finds Angel and the others and pulls a gun on them. Angel confronts her, knocking her gun out of the way and biting her. A police team arrives and finds Wesley leaning over Kate's body. The tomb is carried to another building and shroud's effect on the demons, Angel and Gunn leads them all to fight over it. Gunn and Angel play tug of war with the shroud until Angel convinces Gunn to let go. After dousing the shroud in alcohol, Angel sets it aflame.

In the interrogation room, the detectives are convinced that Wesley is the killer. As they're about to arrest him, Kate shows up and tells them to let him go. She remembers that Angel did bite her briefly, but told her to stay down or be killed. Wesley and Cordelia think about what happened, and Wesley worries that Angel's bloodlust has been reawakened by the taste of human blood. Angel sits in his room, his thoughts focused on biting Kate.

Acting

Main Cast

*David Boreanaz as Angel
*Charisma Carpenter as Cordelia Chase
*Alexis Denisof as Wesley Wyndam-Pryce
*J. August Richards as Charles Gunn

Guest Stars

*Elisabeth Röhm as Kate Lockley
*W. Earl Brown as Menlo
*Dwayne L. Barnes as Lester
*R. Emery Bright as Detective Turlock
*Tom Kiesche as Detective Broomfield
*Tony Todd as Vyasa

Co-stars

*Robert Dolan as Bob
*Michael Nagy as Jay-Don
*Jim Hanna as Surveillance Cop #1
*Danny Ricardo as First Cop

Production

This episode was nominated for "Best Special Makeup Effects in a Series" at the Hollywood Makeup Artist and Hair Stylist Guild Awards. [Citation |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/buffy/news/archive/archive26.shtml |title=News - 19th February |first=Rob |last=Francis |publisher=BBC ]

Translations

* German title: "Das Leichentuch des Rahmon" ("The shroud of Rahmon")
* Italian title: "Il sudario di Rahmon" ("The shroud of Rahmon")
* Spanish title: "El sudario de Rahmon" ("The shroud of Rahmon")
* French title: "Le linceul qui rend fou" ("The shroud that drives crazy")

References

External links

*

ee also