Spike Is Just Plain Awesome: A Character Study (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)

Geek post alert! I mean, most posts on here are, so I guess that kinda is a given, but I thought I'd warn you anyway. I guess Joss Whedon just yells "geek" to me more than other things. (I mean he did create both Firefly and Buffy, so really, can you blame me?)

By the way, this is all written from the perspective of having gotten about midway through season 5, so obviously I haven't technically gotten all the information I could get. And if you're behind me in the series, there will probably be spoilers. But it's just that some characters, to paraphrase John Green, "Sometimes you [see] a [character] and [they] fill you with this weird evangelical zeal, and you become convinced that the shattered world will never be put back together unless and until all living humans [love] the [character]."

So, without further ado, I'm about to weirdly and zealicly evangelize you about my current favourite Buffy character, William the Bloody. Also known as Spike.

Now, I've pretty much loved Spike since he first appeared on the show (early-mid season 2) - I liked his style. This was, of course, back when he was still an active villain. And I've talked about how much I adore villains, right? I just liked that he and Drusilla just strolled into Sunnydale, saw the Chosen One or whatever he was called - there was this kid, the Chosen One or something like that, and all the vampires in Sunnydale listened to him because he was the Chosen One and he was leading them all - Spike and Drusilla just strolled into Sunnydale and killed him. There. That solves that little conflict of interest.

And they research Spike and it turns out that he had killed two Slayers already in his past. Which means? This particular vampire is an actual threat.

Awesome.

Enter: Spike and Drusilla

And before I get into how he loses his whole being-a-threat-ness, I'd just like to say that right from the beginning, when he was with Drusilla, who, to keep it simple, was insane and did need help with a lot of things, it was clear that Spike was sort of, in a way, taking advantage of her. You know, for sex and stuff. Vampires are often like that. But, unlike most vampires, we can also percieve that there's something beneath that. Something extremely loving and affectionate, and he cares for Drusilla, truly. And when they awaken the killing machine who was programmed to kill all things human and not evil, the machine questioned them for a moment because it sensed something not evil between them. Something more weak and human. Because Spike is one of those wonderful villains who are evil on the outside, but with a very soft underbelly.

Not to mention that right from the beginning Spike's little quips were freaking HILARIOUS.

For instance:

Xander: (in reference to the troll that just entered and is destroying the place) I'll gonna run and get Buffy. Or maybe you could fight it?

Spike: Yeah, I could do that, but I'm paralyzed with not caring very much. 

Or

Spike: (referring to Angelus bringing the rock that the monster was encased in) It's a big rock. Can't wait to tell my friends. They don't have a rock this big.

Or even:

Buffy: What are you doing here? Five words or less.

Spike: Out - for - a - walk. Bitch. 

And when he first teams up with Buffy (they both loathe each other, but they both want to kill Angelus more, so it's a grudging "let's not try to kill each other for just a limited period of time" thing going on), yeah, it was mostly out of jealousy of Angelus, but also, Spike doesn't really WANT to see the world destroyed. See, for a vampire, Spike really isn't CRUDE. He's a little obnoxious, sure, but he also has a level of, sort of, sophistication. I'm not sure how to explain it. Spike likes the world. He doesn't want it all to literally go to hell. It's the ultimate act of evil, and Spike wants no part in it. He has the kind of forethought and reasonableness that not even Angelus, the ultimate evil and ideal vampire, does. 

I just keep seeing the scene where Buffy first has to tell her mom that she's a Slayer, and Spike happens to be around, and at first Spike tries to cover for her. THEY HATE EACH OTHER. So why is he doing this? Because he knows that if Buffy can't fight then his alliance is gone. And when Buffy invites him in to her house? As a vampire, that's a big deal. He could potentially take huge advantage of that for his own malicious intentions. And the thing is? He never really does. Fact, in that particular episode, he tries to make small talk with her mom. Spike is not like other vampires, that's for sure. 

Buffy's Mom: Have we met?
Spike: You hit me with an axe one time. Remember? 'Get the hell away from my daughter'?

Flash forward: season 3. Spike and Drusilla have escaped elsewhere. Except guess what? Spike makes a reappearance in Sunnydale. Perhaps his original intentions were a little more malicious. What ends up happening is he breaks into Buffy's house and breaks down crying and Buffy's mom offers him tea. 

And why is he breaking down? Because Drusilla broke his heart. That's right, Drusilla, someone who he actually really loved, broke his heart. "I caught her making out with a chaos demon!" It's terrifically funny in a pathetic sort of way. Which only goes further to prove my point that, unlike most other vampires, Spike is capable of loving, really loving with all his heart. For a soulless demon, Spike is remarkably human. And a true fool for love, as well. More so than any of the Scoobies, or really, any character on the show.

Spike: What do you know? It's your fault, the both of you! She belongs with me...... I'm nothing without her.

Buffy: Yeah, that I'll have to agree with. You're pathetic, you know that? You're not even a loser anymore, you're a shell of a loser. 

Spike: Yeah? You're one to talk.

Buffy: Meaning?

Spike: The last time I looked in on you two, you were fighting to the death. Now you're back making googly eyes at each other like nothing happened. Makes me want to heave.

Buffy: I don't know what you're talking about.

Spike: Oh yeah, you're just friends.

Angel: That's right.

Spike: You're not friends. You'll never be friends. You'll be in love 'til it kills you both. You'll fight, and you'll shag, and you'll hate each other 'til it makes you quiver, but you'll never be friends. Love isn't brains, children, it's blood, blood screaming inside you to work its will. I may be love's bitch, but at least I'm man enough to admit it.

And this was all before his major character development and arcs, so that just goes to show you how awesome Spike is. 

But to the point, to when Spike really starts to get some attention: season 4.

Spike's been a resident of Sunnydale for a while, but when he gets captured by a secret organization that studies demons called the Initiative, they put a chip in his head so that he can't hurt any living thing without being in an extreme amount of pain. He can't even aim a gun at someone with an intention to harm them without getting a massive pain in his head. So what ends up happening is he ends up at Buffy's house, thrown out of all his old haunts and just desperate to get out of the sun (you know, cause that burns vampires and all). And he's pathetic. And the Scooby Gang, who, rightfully, are suspicious tie him up and end up sort of taking care of him for a while - first in Xander's place, and then with Giles. 

And the interesting thing is that even through all these strangely personal encounters with the Slayer and the Scoobies, it's made perfectly clear that they mutually loathe each other. But since Spike is no longer a threat, since he can't hurt anything, they find he makes a rather good ally. Oh, yes, he would kill them all if he could, and they would kill him if he ever became an active threat again. But as it is, Spike actually helps them once in a while (when Giles turned into a demon - sure, he had to bribe him, but still) and they enjoy his extensive, though grudging, knowledge of the demon world. And Spike just has to settle with verbal bullying to satisfy his malicious urges. That is, until he discovers that the chip doesn't cause him pain if he hurts a demon. 

Eventually they just let him go, or he gets out of their houses or whatever, because they're all sick of each other. He finds a nice crypt and gets cozy. And of course, Spike wants to see the Slayer dead. And yet? That seems to be him and the Scooby Gang's only conflict of interest. For one of them being a team working to save the world and the other being literally a blood-sucking demon, they have a lot of the same goals. And yes, in the finale Spike manages to turn them all against Buffy. Because he's close enough to them that he can do that. But what happens after that? He saves them from a demon they didn't know about. 

Which is probably the only thing that stopped them from staking him then and there.

So what do I get from season 4? Not only is Spike hilarious, he's a wonderfully conflicted character. The kind of villain you don't need to feel guilty about loving, because he's not always a villain. Sometimes, just sometimes, in his obnoxious yet smart way, he's helping them out.

But the interesting thing about Spike? Just when you think you've figured him out, just when you think, okay, for sure this is the direction he's going now, he backtracks. He changes his mind.

Case in point:

Season 5. Spike has developed a sort of obsession for Buffy. I guess.... he kinda... has a crush on her? (Ya can't say there wasn't a lead up. They had an episode where Willow sort of accidentally made them fall in love for God's sakes [HILARIOUS!]) And you get the feeling that he wants to hate her, but he can't really. And he's already had basically a nervous breakdown because the Slayer was "haunting" him. No matter where he went she turned up. So when Buffy asks him to tell her how he killed the other two Slayers, he grudingly does, for a fee. And the thing I find interesting here is that Spike isn't necessarily trying to upset Buffy when he says the things he does. He's actually speaking from his rather grim observations (I suppose for a vampire they're not as grim, which is what makes it so easy for him to share them, I guess) about Slayers and the nature of their duties. He's serious when he talks about how all Slayers have a death wish. And his advice about reaching for your weapon first, since a vampire already has theirs? Actually decent advice. You don't get the feeling Spike is really trying to screw up Buffy here. Which leads you to believe that he's going to help her now. He's strangely insightful.

Spike: What are you looking at?

Buffy: (in reference to killing the Slayer) You got off on it.

Spike: Well, yeah. I suppose you're telling me you don't? How many of us do you reckon you've killed?

Buffy: Not enough.

Spike: Exactly. 

Then he backtracks, changes his mind. After Buffy's "you're beneath me" comment (so horribly close to the one he got from the girl who broke his heart before he even became a vampire) he decides he'll kill her once and for all. He gets his gun prepared, gets ready to endure the pain he'll have to endure for the act by reassuring himself "she'll be dead longer" and sets out to kill her. And the cold resolution he has is just so chilling that one is left with no doubt that he means what he says and intends to follow through.

Hasn't got a death wish? Bitch won't need one.

Until he gets to Buffy's house. And sees her crying on her doorstep.

He backtracks again. Changes his mind again. When he sees her tearstained face what comes out of his mouth is an awkward yet undeniably concerned, "What's wrong?"

Awkward shoulder pat. Melts my frickin' heart.

Yeah, Spike is a funny dude, but right from the beginning he's also been remarkably complex. More complex than any other character on the show, I would argue. I mean, Angel was supposed to be the dude we all really sympathized with, but seriously? All he did was brood. Spike seems much more human than Angel ever was, which is ironic because Spike doesn't have a soul and Angel did.

So here is a summed up list of things that I love about Spike and why I think he's an amazing character:

• His fashion sense! Haha. But seriously. Loving the long leather jacket. Very dramatic.
• His episodes tend to be hilarious.
• He's a villain who loves with more of his heart than any other protagonist. He really is love's bitch, he knows it, but he really just can't help it.
• He's intelligent and often insightful.
• In spite of this ^ it's quite clear that Spike thinks with his heart. A heart that should be cold and unfeeling, since he's dead and a demon and all, but isn't.
• He's the only vampire on the show that has actually maintained it's humanity. Which, I guess, means that his empathetic nature is strong enough to be sustained through death and evil. It doesn't conquer, certainly - Spike has killed countless people over the years, of course, including two Slayers - but it's sustained. And that's definitely something.
• In spite of all this Spike is not a good guy, really. Not initially. He has his good guy moments. All in all, he takes advantage of people when he can and tries to kill them when he feels like it and, you know, craves the taste of blood and the feel of a good kill. You know. Vampire stuff. Evil stuff. Awesome, evil stuff. 

Angel: Leave her alone!

Spike: Yeah, that'll work. Now say pretty please.

Angel: Take me. Take me instead of her.

Spike: You're not clear on the concept, pal. There is no instead. Just first and second.

Freakin' awesome.

But Megan, those things contradict each other. You just can't make up your mind, can you?

But that's where you're wrong, young padawan. The sign of a complex (and therefore more real) person is contradiction. Because people aren't just one way. For instance, I love my friends but hate the idea of having to be social. I love to tell stories but can't tell them out loud to save my life. I've been called creative, but all my best ideas started as someone else's. I like to experiment with things but hate uncertainty. They contradict, but they're true. It's a sign of complexity. And I would challenge someone who knows their Buffy to argue with any of the characteristics I've attributed to Spike on this list.

Now: Obligatory awesome pictures of Spike.

Okay, so we all know I'm not usually one to see a guy and notice that he's attractive unless someone points it out. But when Spike smiles like that..... ack. Be still my heart.

Spike from the freakin' 70s. Your argument is invalid. 

And that's all I've got for you. But to be fair, those are the only pictures that matter. :)