Some rambly thoughs about the differences between Buffy and Angel (show & character)

[askye]

I've been thinking about how Buffy the show and character and Angel the show and character are different when it comes to morality and actions. I've seen some discussion about this recently, the black and white and gray of Angel.

The other day on FX they showed the Btvs episode where Anya is back in the vengeance business and her wish fulfillment leads to the death of the frat boys. Buffy goes off to kill Anya because it's her job. Buffy is the Slayer she kills demons and vampires and other nasties.

Buffy, however doesn't kill humans. She didn't kill and wouldn't consider killing Warren even though he was a monster because he was human.

That's one of the differences in Buffy and Angel. Angel kills humans if they are monsters and helps demons if they are helpless.

Buffy can't kill humans because they are human. Even if they are monsters.

Before Warren, there was Ben and Glory. No one seriously entertained the idea of killing Ben because he was an "innocent" even though he was aware of Glory's actions and helped clean up her messes (which they didn't know) but it came down to Ben was human. Giles had to kill Ben instead of Buffy, as her Watcher.

Someone, I think on b.org, said "wouldn't it be cool if it was Xander instead of Ben." Which never would have worked. If it was unthinkable to, to dark and terrible for Buffy the show.

Instead on Angel we have Cordelia. Unlike the Ben and Glory situation where it was very clear Ben was separate from Glory but aware and awake and walking around. Cordelia was different, there was something walking like Cordy, talking like…well not quite like Cordy, and the real Cordelia had no way of getting out, no distinction from what possessed her—they were one.

When it came down to it, with Angel's back against the wall and no other options left he was going to do what needed to be done. Kill the demon. Something Buffy never could have done. It would have been too wrong for the character and the show.

This is what Angel's about. Being pushed against the wall and making those decisions that are impossible and dealing with the fallout. Charging in on false assumptions and dealing with the fallout.

Comments

[coffeeandink.livejournal.com]

When it came down to it, with Angel's back against the wall and no other options left he was going to do what needed to be done. Kill the demon. Something Buffy never could have done. It would have been too wrong for the character and the show.

See -- I thought the point of that scene was that Angel hesitated, and fatally; hesitated just the way he kept doing with Darla, too. And that it parallelled Buffy in "Becoming," when she could strike.

I don't know how it would have played if CC hadn't been pregnant, if they'd have killed Cordy and not Jasmine -- but I don't think the difference between the shows is really as clear-cut as that.

Re:

[askye.livejournal.com]

I always, always forget about "Becoming", I couldn't watch all of S2 and then didn't get back to watching Buffy until S4 and even though I have the dvds I don't watch those 2 episodes. I always feel like a bad fan becuase I can never remember about "Becoming" but the Buffy/Angel relationship was never a huge draw for me. '

So I only thought of the episode in terms of Ben/Glory. I was going to say that Buffy's never killed a human but I think she killed the Knights of whatever and they were but somehow they don't really seem to count because she's so adamant about the no humans.

I really need to go back and watch all of S2 a few more times.

[marguerite-26.livejournal.com]

Great comparison of evil!Cordy vs. Ben and Glory. You are absolutely right that given the same option, Buffy will choose the one over the many if "the one" is human and Angel will choose the many over the one regardless of human or demon.

Buffy's motto is to be the law, where there is no law.
Angel's motto is to protect those who need protecting.

I guess that's why I've always like Angel as a character better than Buffy as a character.

Cool.

[tikiaceae.livejournal.com]

Now to put it like that I want to start watching Angel again...

[riani1.livejournal.com]

One of the reasons I find myself like AtS more than BtVS is the moral ambiguity. The world is a grey place, more often than not, and the wrestling with that knowledge makes for good drama. I always found Buffy jarring when she showed up on AtS, because there was more than a collision of personalities, there was a collision of philosophy.

[serenada.livejournal.com]

I felt that Buffy was a group of black and white people in a grey world, and I liked the dissonance that caused.

Angel's always been greyer (or more beige), but right now that's his pain -- I don't think he feels all that grey. And W&H, whatever Gunn's embraced, is grey.

Angel gets grey as a reaction. Gunn's getting in love with being proactively so.

Re:

[askye.livejournal.com]

I keep hoping that we'll see more of Gunn because he's changed so much. He used to be very demons=bad, show cased so well in That Gang of Mine and now he's got the brain upgraded and cuts deals with demons.