The Buffyverse Character Countdown (#19)

#19.

Hero: Allen Doyle (Angel Season 1)

Doyle is a character whose arc isn’t particularly impressive on first viewing: he occupies only half of the first season of Angel, some of his mannerisms are somewhat irritating, and his departure from the series is ultimately far too overwrought to resonate on par with some of the other deaths that take place in the series. But, when one steps back from the character sheet, we’re left with one of the more admirable heroes in the Buffyverse. While Doyle certainly won’t make it far on anyone’s personal list of favorite characters, he stacks up remarkably well against nigh every other minor hero in the series. In fact, only three non-lead characters managed to top Doyle off in the overall rankings. He’s an integral character who forges much of Angel’s identity as a series.

Doyle is a half-demon cursed with visions of violent actions that are about to commence. He’s only able to survive these visions due to his being part demon, but his lack of pain at feeling these visions when combined with an apathetic attitude towards others leads him to fail to save a large group of half-demons from getting murdered by a racist demon collective known as the Scourge. Realizing that he must atone for his crime, Doyle travels to a morose Angel and pairs up with him to save innocents around Los Angeles. Doyle is actually one of the founding three members of Angel Investigations, along with Angel and Cordelia. While he is one of the most cynical characters in the entire Buffyverse, that cynicism is combined with an endless dedication to do the right thing, as he must atone for his previous apathy. And he does end up following through: when the Scourge threatens another group of half-demons, Doyle sacrifices his life to destroy their greatest weapon and stop another massacre. His abrupt death is the first character sacrifice to take place mid-season in the entire Buffyverse, and it’s a shocking turn for his character.

Though Doyle’s arc within Angel is very small – indeed, he’s only given character development in one episode before dying in his next big appearance – it is more satisfying than that of Robin or Gwen by virtue of its completeness. Doyle is a very simple archetype: the failed protector seeking to redeem himself. Yet within that archetype, we manage to get a lot of rich character development. After the events of “The Bachelor Party,” we learn that Doyle is highly passionate yet impetuous with love, storming into relationships too quickly and not being able to weather too many shocks to his romantic system. This explains why his “relationship” with Cordelia feels awkward: he’s stuck in a pattern of falling in love yet not being able to follow through completely. It’s only with his sacrifice that he’s able to truly connect with Cordelia and leave the impact he wants. His redemption scene is also directed very well, with some great shot composition and some truly affecting music.

Doyle’s weaknesses, though, are pretty apparent. His chemistry with Cordelia is never quite as good as David Greenwalt and Joss Whedon wish it to be, so it’s somewhat difficult to see her being as hung up on him as she ultimately is. His dearth of episodes is also a major factor against him; no sooner are we introduced to Doyle’s character than is he removed from the plot entirely, his lasting contribution being the imparting of visions to Cordelia. Joss Whedon ultimately felt as if Doyle’s character was too intense and too much like Angel; thus, he decided to give the character the axe rather than waste more of the viewers’ time on him. Given that context, Doyle can seem as if he’s a plot device rather than a character. Fortunately, Doyle’s replacement on the cast is a vastly superior character in every way, so we did get something out of his death, but, for Doyle’s die-hard fans, the death must definitely leave a bad taste in the mouth.

Villain: Vampire Willow (Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 3: "The Wish"/"Doppelgangland")

Another villain from “The Wish?” One would think with three different villains featured on this list coming from that one-off that it’d be my favorite Season Three episode, but that would be an inaccurate assumption. Plus, Vampire Willow doesn’t so much make this list for her individual villainous actions in her two episodes but instead for her role in her non-vampiric counterpart’s development. Vampire Willow is the rare Buffy doppelganger whose actions have a lasting impact on the hero, right down to the adoption of certain mannerisms and a very villainous catchphrase.

One of the Master’s children in the wish universe, Vampire Willow immediately establishes herself as more threatening than the typical one-off vampire. Her first appearance is remarkably similar to Drusilla, the single scariest and most unpredictable villain we’d encountered in the Buffyverse so far. The thought that a Drusillan demon would occupy the body of Willow – our sweet, insecure, nerdy, delightful best friend character – is simply horrifying. Moreover, Vampire Willow has a penchant for torture not seen in any vampire since Angelus, the Big Bad of the last season. These sinister traits compound upon each other to make the most memorable villain of the alternative universe.

However, unlike all of the other wish universe villains, Vampire Willow comes back. Thanks to a spell gone wrong, good Willow accidentally ends up teleporting her vampire self into her own version of Sunnydale. From here, Vampire Willow proceeds to take control of a significant faction of the Mayor’s vampire army, using them to turn the Bronze into her personal bloodletting ground. It’s only by mimicking her shadow self’s confidence and dominance that Willow is able to infiltrate the club and help Buffy take out the undead threat. While Vampire Willow’s defeat in “Doppelgangland” is, in all honesty, somewhat embarrassing, Willow’s personal growth in defeating her goons is one of the most crucial moments in her character arc; we see that not all of Vampire Willow’s qualities are necessarily bad, and Willow could benefit by emulating them. Plus, unlike Willow, Vampire Willow is comfortable in her bisexuality. So, there’s that.

Vampire Willow’s greatest villainous attribute, however, is highlighting those elements of Willow’s character that are, in fact, dark. Vampire Willow’s sadism and authoritarianism are qualities that Willow starts to take on in Season Six, and they very nearly cost the witch her life and her morality. Her limited attention spans for her foes is also a key piece of foreshadowing, as we come to see just how quickly Willow can move on from one act of cruelty to another. Vampire Willow devours humans just as her human self devours books: there’s no end to the consumption and limited time to savor each moment. While some viewers might deem this a negative element to Vampire Willow’s character, I think it merely makes her more unpredictable and more ominous. Vampire Willow is a perfect inversion of Willow’s personality in Season Three, but she resembles the Willow of Season Six remarkably well.

That said, there was little doubt that Dark Willow would far outclass Vampire Willow on this list, seeing as she is the villain who left a legitimate impact on the plot. While Vampire Willow does affect Willow’s individual character arc, her effect on Buffy and the other Scoobies is relatively small. She’s a delight in the episodes that she is in, but she’s somewhat overshadowed in “The Wish” by Anya and the Master and her role in “Doppelgangland” is limited by her hilarious yet pitiful defeat halfway through the episode. Also, over the course of her two appearances, she only manages to kill a single redshirt. She’s one of Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s most memorable monster-of-the-week villains for Alyson Hannigan’s performance alone, but that’s not enough to grant her a spot higher than the mid-tier Big Bads or the very best one-offs in the series.