Darla's backstory (BtVS/Angel)

[The Borgified Corpse]

I'm glad they brought Darla back. She's one of my favorites. Plus, incredibly easy on the eyes AND the ears (as we learned from her excellent rendition of "Ill Wind" in "The Trial"). Screw Buffy. Screw Cordelia. Darla is the one that Angel deserved to wind up happily ever after with.

In retrospect, I'm bummed out that they didn't also involve Luc in the various Angel/Spike/Darla/Drusilla/Master flashbacks they did in later episodes.

So Buffy/Angel didn't do the CSI/NYPD Blue/Law & Order/Star Trek thing where actors keep coming back as different characters?

No kidding! There's one guy on Law & Order in particular. (I don't recall the actor's name but he's the same guy that played the Chechen in The Dark Knight.) So far, I've seen him play at least 3 murderers on Law & Order and his IMDB page indicates that he's probably played at least 3 more.

There were a few who were on three most notably Jonathan Woodward (The Vamp in Conversations with Dead People, Knox on Angel, and Tracy in The Message on Firefly).

Yeah. The other really obvious one is [guy whose name I can't remember] who played Ken in "Anne," Doyle's ex-wife's new fiance in "The Bachelor Party," and a passenger who turns out to be an Alliance agent in the pilot episode of Firefly.

 

[RoJoHen]

Screw Buffy. Screw Cordelia. Darla is the one that Angel deserved to wind up happily ever after with.

I'm glad you said this because I completely agree. I actually think, of the 3, that his relationship with Buffy made the least amount of sense. That was just puppy love.

I liked that he Cordelia grew to love each other, even though they never really got to act on it.

But Darla. Man, in those episodes where she comes back in Angel Season 2 and 3 (when she is a human and then later when she's pregnant), I really feel for her, and she and Angel make their history seem so real. I wanted her to find redemption.

 

[The Borgified Corpse]

Yeah. And the end of "The Trial" is such a double kick in the crotch. First, we learn that, after all of Angel's efforts, it is metaphysically impossible for them to cure Darla's syphilis. Then, just when she & Angel start to come to terms with her death, Lindsey bursts in and has Drusilla re-sire her. "How did you think this was going to end?"

 

[RoJoHen]

Yeah. And the end of "The Trial" is such a double kick in the crotch. First, we learn that, after all of Angel's efforts, it is metaphysically impossible for them to cure Darla's syphilis. Then, just when she & Angel start to come to terms with her death, Lindsey bursts in and has Drusilla re-sire her. "How did you think this was going to end?"

That scene, and the scene where she stakes herself to save Conner, both left me with my mouth hanging open.

 

[Skywalker]

Yeah, Darla and Angel were definitely made for one another. His relationship with Buffy always seemed a little...I dunno. Weird. Especially in the first season when every conversation they had started with "Angel!" "Buffy!"

 

[RoJoHen]

Yeah, Darla and Angel were definitely made for one another. His relationship with Buffy always seemed a little...I dunno. Weird. Especially in the first season when every conversation they had started with "Angel!" "Buffy!"

I guess I just never understood why Buffy and Angel loved each other right off the bat. There wasn't enough set up for me to ever really believe it.

 

[The Borgified Corpse]

IMO, "I Will Remember You" was the only episode where Angel & Buffy had any chemistry. Angel belonged with Darla (or, barring that, Kate Lockley). And Buffy should have ended up with Xander in the end; I don't care what anyone else says.

 

[Anwar]

Didn't Darla even say that Angel's was just projecting his feelings for her onto Buffy? Angel wasn't able to reply to that, implying she was right.

Of course, it was worse for Darla because she loved Angelus even though Angelus was a pure monster who had no feelings for her (or feelings at all).

 

[Forbin]

You're probably thinking of Camden Toy
http://buffy.wikia.com/wiki/Camden_Toy

Probably!

 

[Anwar]

IMO, "I Will Remember You" was the only episode where Angel & Buffy had any chemistry. Angel belonged with Darla (or, barring that, Kate Lockley). And Buffy should have ended up with Xander in the end; I don't care what anyone else says.

Well, Whedon himself realized it. I mean Angel and Buffy's relationship was meant to be the usual "Young Girl falls for mysterious older guy" cliche and was SUPPOSED to end badly hence the whole "Sex makes you evil" thing and Angelus. If it wasn't for his popularity I think Angel was meant to stay in Hell for good.

 

[Skywalker]

But if that had happened, we wouldn't have gotten Angel and Wesley wouldn't have become the bestest Whedon character ever.