Willow Season 1 - Episode 5
Willow is an American high fantasy adventure television series based on and serving as a sequel to the 1988 film of the same name. Produced by Lucasfilm and Imagine Entertainment, the series was mostly filmed in Wales in April 2021,[4] and premiered on the streaming service Disney+ on November 30, 2022. In March 2023, the series was reportedly canceled after only one season,[5] though Jonathan Kasdan stated that the series was on hiatus.[6]
Willow Season 1 - Episode 5
In October 2020, the series was greenlit, with Jon M. Chu directing the pilot episode and Davis reprising his titular role.[7][29] Chu would announce that he had to step away from directing duties due to a production delay and personal reasons in January 2021.[30] Later that month, Jonathan Entwistle was hired to replace Chu as director of the pilot, and as executive producer.[31] However, due to production delays as a result of a recasting, Entwistle also exited the series, with Stephen Woolfenden coming in to direct the first two episodes of the series.[32] In March 2023, Disney+ canceled the series after only one season.[5] However, Kasdan took to Twitter declaring that the cast was released from their contracts due to the shifts going on at Disney and that there is hope that the series could still pick up at some point in the future.[6]
A trailer of Willow was released at Star Wars Celebration on May 26, 2022.[41] A second trailer and official poster were released at the Disney fan expo D23 on September 10, 2022. The D23 expo also featured a panel consisting of several Willow cast members including Davis and Slater.[42][43] On November 1 during the Lucca Comics & Games 2022, a part of the first episode and exclusive video clips of the series was shown in world premiere in the presence of actors Ellie Bamber, Erin Kellyman and Amar Chadha-Patel.[44][45]
Here's the full release schedule for Willow on Disney Plus, and we'll adjust if the company announces any changes or breaks. New episodes generally drop at 12 a.m. PT (3 a.m. ET/8 a.m. GMT/7 p.m. AEST).
The decision to give Ellie Bamber the role of Elora Danan was wise because she has been so consistent. It is just hard to take Willow seriously with the silly dialogue and poor delivery and it is difficult to be optimistic about the future of Willow, but younger viewers may enjoy it more than I did. The episode scores a 5.5 out of 10. Recaps of Willow can be found on Reel Mockery here. Find our recaps beneficial? Consider supporting our work at this link.
The new cast is great, including the one who will discover she is Elora (but it's a surprise in the first episode). These are endearing characters to whom it would be fun to watch Willow pass the torch were all other things equal to the movie.
The first episode really builds up to the appearance of Willow, but it goes a bit too far waiting 47 minutes for him to appear. In Episode 2, he's playing the hits from the movie, consulting the bones and giving the new characters the finger test he once took.Advertisement
That's a wrap on season one of Willow, which ended in fine form to tease a lot of upcoming adventures. This delightful fantasy series revived the aspiring sorcerer Willow Ufgood for new generation, with a new YA vibe and a solid cast around the returning Warwick Davis.
And the good news, though, is that the very end of Willow season 1 teases both Willow season 2 and 3. Yes, we're as shocked as anyone that a show could get that much of an extended runway, but clearly Disney Plus got what they wanted from Willow.
How we get to the finale: In episode 7, our band of heroes realized they had to actually work together to save Airk and Tir Asleen. That meant Elora Danan (Ellie Bamber) and Princess Kit (Ruby Cruz) had to actually work together. That said, finding the Immemorial City proved complicated. So what are heroes to do but to make a literal leap of faith, throwing themselves from the edge of the world.
Good news and bad news here. The good news: Graydon isn't dead. The bad news: He's been pulled into the Wyrm's world, and shown a vision of a wondrous life with Elora. It seems like Graydon will become the Harbinger of the Wyrm in season 2.
Folks who stuck around to the very end of Willow episode 8 see that a book (you know, how the credits all look like novels?) is put on a shelf. It was Volume I, and it now sits alongside Volume II and Volume III.
Last, but not least, is Prince Graydon. Forced to come on the quest and open about his lack of bravery, he is definitely out of his element. However, besides keeping a mostly positive attitude about the whole thing, Graydon is a clutch member of the party. He speaks and reads many languages. He has the kind of knowledge a kid who grew up loving books (and had access to them) has. Also, early in the series, Graydon is seen wiling away the evening playing on a flute. In Dungeons & Dragons, Bards are spellcasters but even without magic, Graydon fits the bill. Also, given his penchant for language and studious nature, he might even pick up some spellwork after kicking around with Elora and Willow.Perhaps the most D&D element of the series is the way common "fantasy" ways of speaking are interspersed with modern expressions. Similarly, the needle drops in the episodes of popular music are anachronistic in the way that most D&D Bards sing their "Inspiration" in the form of modern songs. Like all good Dungeons & Dragons parties, the characters in Willow feel like player characters where the real person behind them slips through during roleplay.See the party head into the dungeon and fighting the big bad Wednesdays when new episodes of Willow debut on Disney+.
With the separation of the Buffyverse in two shows, the episodes sometimes would share more than the common settings and lore, having scenes directly connected with each other. In these crossovers, a scene from a series would explicitly build an event for the other, often involving a character traveling between the respective main locations (Sunnydale and Los Angeles); or even the scene itself be divided in two settings, notably through phone calls.
The two shows were originally aired sequentially, so a crossover would notably happen connecting episodes of a same date. Although, for its sixth season, Buffy had moved to network UPN while Angel remained on The WB, and the shows aired on different nights. Because of network rivalries, direct crossovers were banned; however, references between the two shows were still made.
In the premiere of Buffy season four, "The Freshman," Buffy returns home, feeling disillusioned with her new life at college. The phone rings and she answers it, only for the caller to hang up immediately. Buffy looks at the phone, puzzled, and walks off. Later, she goes to the Bronze, she imagines a tall, dark haired man as Angel (actually played by David Boreanaz), but is disappointed when the man gets up and it isn't him (played by another actor).
In the Angel debut episode, "City Of," Angel leaves behind Sunnydale for Los Angeles. He is visited by a half-demon named Doyle who explains Angel's destiny as a future champion. While Doyle is talking, Angel has brief flashbacks of fighting alongside Buffy back in Sunnydale. Angel later meets Cordelia at a party, a former Sunnydale resident, who is now pursuing her dream of becoming an actress in LA after her parents were made bankrupt a few months previously. Later, Angel makes a phone call to the Summers' house, but hangs up as soon as Buffy's voice is heard on the other end.
In the Buffy episode "The Harsh Light of Day," the vampire Spike and his newly vamped girlfriend Harmony discover the Gem of Amara in Sunnydale. Buffy manages to take the ring from Spike and has the intention to give it to Angel. Oz, who has has a gig scheduled in Los Angeles, volunteers to bring the ring to him.
He arrives at Angel's headquarters in the Angel episode "In the Dark," and is reunited with Angel and Cordelia; while meeting Doyle for the first time. He gives the Gem of Amara to Angel; however, Spike has also shown up in LA looking to get the ring back. Angel, Cordelia, Doyle, and Oz eventually thwart Spike's plan, and Angel makes the decision to destroy the ring.
In the Buffy episode "Pangs," Angel shows up secretly in Sunnydale although his presence is uncovered by Giles, Willow, Xander and Anya. Willow briefly converses with Angel about Cordelia being his secretary at Angel Investigations. When they have defeated the Chumash tribe that was attacking Buffy in Doyle's vision, Angel asks the Scooby Gang to keep his presence secret from Buffy. However, Xander later lets this detail slip while sitting down for Thanksgiving Dinner with Buffy.
In the Angel episode "I Will Remember You," Buffy is reunited with Angel and Cordelia and introduced to Doyle when she shows up at Angel Investigations offices. She expresses her anger at Angel not informing her of his presence in Sunnydale but later helps him fight a Mohra demon.
In the Angel episode "Parting Gifts," Angel and Cordelia are reunited with Wesley Wyndam-Pryce. The two has previously known Wesley as an incompetent replacement Watcher for Giles in Sunnydale, responsible for training Slayers Buffy and Faith. Despite still showing some of this incompetence, Wesley joins Angel Investigations.
In the Buffy episodes "This Year's Girl" and "Who Are You?", the rogue Slayer Faith wakes from her eight month coma to cause havoc in Sunnydale, deliberately swapping bodies with Buffy in the process. When Buffy gets her body back, Faith runs off and is seen leaving on a train from Sunnydale.
In the Angel episode "Five by Five," Faith shows up in LA and is hired by Lindsey McDonald, Lilah Morgan, and Lee Mercer of Wolfram & Hart to assassinate Angel. Angel then called Giles for information on Faith, who told him she had she left Sunnydale a week before. However, Giles had withheld any specifics over what Faith had done to Buffy during her time there, and simply told Angel it was "rough." Faith gets to torture Wesley, but eventually breaks down in Angel's arms, overwhelmed in remorse and self-hatred for all the harm she'd caused. 041b061a72