S5 was really all about Spike, and the tragedy of Angel's inability to save himself.
I think that this theme is also apparent when you consider Season 5 against the first AtS episode that Spike appeared in. In the Dark,an AtS episode, and not BtVS, is also the last we ever see of Un-chipped Evil Spike. On the next BtVS episode he goes back to Sunnydale and promptly gets tasered by the Initiative.
In In the Dark Un-chipped Evil Spike loses the Vampiric Holy Grail (or Gem of Amara) to Angel, who resists its charms and deliberately destroys it. Angel is aware of the power the ring could give him, but chooses to stay in the dark, helping the hopeless. He knows the light holds too many distractions, and the daytime already has lots of heroes; he wants to stay where he is needed. So, he gives up super-duper powers and immunity from the sun, and crushes it under a rock.
But it doesn't last. A few years later, and Angel has simply replaced the Gem of Amara with Wolfram and Hart. He can stand in the sun, has more power than he ever dreamed of, and starts to forget about the little guys. And while Angel wanders around his office a newly un-chipped but not Evil Spike, perhaps from idealism or maybe just from contrariness, lurks in back alleys and convenience store parking lots to rescue the stupid.
And towards the end of the series, even Spike starts to get hypnotized by the W&H spell. I only wish we'd had another season, so we could have seen how he handled it.
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Date: 2004-09-22 06:30 am (UTC)I think that this theme is also apparent when you consider Season 5 against the first AtS episode that Spike appeared in. In the Dark,an AtS episode, and not BtVS, is also the last we ever see of Un-chipped Evil Spike. On the next BtVS episode he goes back to Sunnydale and promptly gets tasered by the Initiative.
In In the Dark Un-chipped Evil Spike loses the Vampiric Holy Grail (or Gem of Amara) to Angel, who resists its charms and deliberately destroys it. Angel is aware of the power the ring could give him, but chooses to stay in the dark, helping the hopeless. He knows the light holds too many distractions, and the daytime already has lots of heroes; he wants to stay where he is needed. So, he gives up super-duper powers and immunity from the sun, and crushes it under a rock.
But it doesn't last. A few years later, and Angel has simply replaced the Gem of Amara with Wolfram and Hart. He can stand in the sun, has more power than he ever dreamed of, and starts to forget about the little guys. And while Angel wanders around his office a newly un-chipped but not Evil Spike, perhaps from idealism or maybe just from contrariness, lurks in back alleys and convenience store parking lots to rescue the stupid.
And towards the end of the series, even Spike starts to get hypnotized by the W&H spell. I only wish we'd had another season, so we could have seen how he handled it.