Aftermath is an appropriate follow up that compliments After the Fall, instead of trying to outshine it. But would we want to read another intense arc straight away without having any downtime to take it all in? It would've been too soon if we got big event after a big event. Not to mention Team Angel are rather drained after their sojourn from Wolfram & Hart's hell dimension. After the Fall already had its conclusion in #16, and the coda in #17 gave us a hint of how Angel & Co would deal with their lives next. Aftermath does what it's supposed to do. It explores the repercussions of After the Fall, and even opens up new ones to move the story forward. It goes into more depth on how each character is dealing with the Aftermath of taking residence in Hell-A. Everyone is clearly in different states of minds; some are lost, confused, uninspired or lacking direction. It was nice how Aftermath was character driven and had each characters motivation interweave into each other. The character plots were ones you could empathise with; Angel feeling disconnected, Connor figuring out what he wants and doesn't in life, Kate wanting to help people again and Gwen trying and failing to win back Connor. It was general consensus that Aftermath wasn't perfect, but the whole confused vibe of it actually served as an advantage rather than hindrance to the story. It was actually entertaining how Angel used the demons hired to kill him as therapists, in order to figure out what he should do in his state of flux. We have all at one time been lost, lacked direction and had to rebuild our lives and adjust after tragic life changing events. Aftermath is a damage control story to seek solace in to get through that mending process.
What gave Aftermath its weight was its focus on fermenting the Angel/Connor relationship. Showing how much Connor meant to Angel and the emotional resonance with it. It was really moving how Connor was Angel's main inspiration in rediscovering his purpose as a champion, after feeling a lack of direction during all of #18. Since Angel indirectly influenced Connor to become a hero in After the Fall it was a nice call back. Losing Connor affected Angel greatly, which explains why he is protective of him. A definite highlight was Connor's heartfelt speech to Angel in #19: “I know that what happened in hell is never far from your head. Or mine. But… I'm dealing with that. I can't go back. Time to go forward.” There is more insight and exploration here for Connor than in After the Fall, and he was a favourable choice to be part of the new team.