Angels found their way to “Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip” last night in Matt Albie’s flashback to the days when he was still a new (and struggling) “Studio 60” writer seeking attention from the senior staff and attention from new hire-comedienne Harriet Hayes.

In an attempt to get a fresh sketch noticed by writing for his crush, Matt starts off on the wrong foot by pitching an idea about “crazy Christians” to Harriet. To illustrate the kookiness of Red State believers, Matt asks with disbelief: “Did you know 68% of Americans believe in angels?”

After he calls the Religious Right ”honey-crusted nut bars,” an offended Harriet cuts off Matt with the revelation: “I’m a honey-crusted nut bar.”

Shocked and embarrassed, Matt thinks of a way to get back into Harriet’s good graces. They argue about the existence of angels–Matt asking how many exist, while Harriet mentions the Book of Revelation, where it’s written that “10 thousand times 10 thousand” (or, 1 million) angels exist.

As Matt wraps his head around the concept of angels, he also attempts to help Tim Batale, a writer/friend fired from “Studio 60” for his addiction to pills. Even though nobody on the present-day “Studio 60” crew remembers Batale, Matt’s flashbacks repeatedly reveal personal encounters with Tim, always dressed in a blue shirt and khakis.

Even when Matt realizes Tim Batale (an anagram of Matt Albie) never did exist but was a hallucination created from Matt’s present-day addiction to pills, one wonders if Tim wasn’t a metaphysical angel after all. In a partially drugged, dream-like state, Matt found himself face-to-face with an older mentor/angel meant to mirror his future self; an angel meant to warn Matt of the terrible results of addiction. Whether or not Tim Batale reappears in future flashback episodes, hopefully Matt will still find some sort of angel to help him kick his escalating dependency on pills.