The Great Debate: Bangel 或者 Spuffy 

exchange: No weapons, no friends, no hope. Take all that away, and what’s left?

Your ability to choose Buffy’s perfect partner — Angel or Spike — in this Throwback Thursday poll.

Joss Whedon’s WB-turned-CW series premiered 20 years ago this week, and in celebration, we thought we’d decide the classic dilemma once and for all. Sure, there were other men who caught the Chosen One’s eye here and there (how’s it hangin’, Riley?), but any true fan knows that our girl’s heart only ever beat doubletime for these two fanged fellows.

Buffy to Grey’s to SVU) Showed Us That All Was Not Lost

THE CASE FOR ANGEL | He has Buffy’s best interests in mind even before they officially meet. In fact, he’s hesitant at first to get involved with her at all, because he knows that a life lived by his side will only bring her pain (not to mention a complete lack of sex, thanks to that pesky Gypsy curse). He’s a skilled fighter and a dependable fellow soldier — as long as you’re willing to look past that whole period where he lost his soul, reverted to the twisted killing machine known as Angelus, went to a hell dimension and then acted like a wild animal until he got his stuff back together. But even after Angel leaves town for Los Angeles, Buffy can count on him to be there when she needs him most, whether it’s to console her after her mother’s death or to provide an appreciative audience as she scythes an enemy from stem to stern. Best of all, he’s always striving to be a better man, one worthy of being in the presence of so great a woman/Slayer as Buffy.

PHOTOSBuffy, Lorelai, Olivia, Janeway, Murphy and 15 More Female TV Characters that Blazed a Powerful, Iconic Trail

THE CASE FOR SPIKE | Spike takes what we’ll call an “alternate” route to Buffy’s heart: He spends the first several seasons of the series actively trying to kill her. Then he becomes obsessed with her, commissions a sexbot in her image, tries to kill her a couple more times and

realizes that he’s falling in love with her. The course of true love never did run smooth, eh? The frustrated poet-turned-punk vampire has a deep affection for the Summers women — ‘Lil’ Bit’ Dawn, in particular — and works overtime to keep her safe when Buffy dies (albeit temporarily) by Glory’s hand. Oh, you want to talk about sex? Once Buffy’s back, she and The Bleached One engage in naked shenanigans so earth-shaking,

. But as time passes, he becomes more of an emotional anchor for her, growing so selfless along the way that he actually sacrifices himself in an effort to save the world — and Buffy — from an impending apocalypse.

Now that you’ve reviewed your options, it’s time to choose,:

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Spike is 100% the better choice but lately, I’ve kinda been into the idea of Spike/Buffy/Angel so…

LOL! Oh, Mark, you made my whole evening for me with your response. :) FYI.. I voted for Spike or “Heroin Boy” as my best friend, Dustin would call him. :D

Not even a debate! Spike was so much better with buffy. I found Angel so boring! There was so much more passion in her relationship with spike. And spike would do anything for her. Remember the beating he took when glory wanted to know who the key was, and even though he knew he would never tell her because it would hurt buffy too much. Even the fights between spike & buffy had more passion than the love scenes between buffy & angel.

Buffy/Angel. The original pair that ACTUALLY made the show a hit.

Buffy/Spike was loathsome. He was constantly contemptuous of her and his ‘sudden ‘love’ for her was a complete departure from his previous genuinely interesting characterisation and a degeneration into a desperate creepy loser. The whole Buffy/Angel/Spike love triangle made Buffy look like a wishy washy vampire fetishist and steadily undermined the plot. It was also an early example the rash of love triangles currently plaguing television, which just serve to make the woman involved look dumb and indecisive by having her chase after poor treatment by a nasty man whose goodness she ‘unlocks’ like some human key.

I agree. Spike with Buffy, Angel with a back from the dead Cordelia, Willow is good with the new girl, and Xander with Faith just because reasons.

Ugh….I never liked the idea of Angel and Cordelia. That relationship was so forced. They were friends but then out of the blue it’s ‘hey Angel, you know you love Cordie right?’

‘Hey Angel, you’re in love with Cordie.’

‘Can you pass me that crossbow?….oh and hey by the way, I think I should tell you that you love Cordelia’

‘No really….pick a karaoke song and let me sing to you about how you love her.

‘Yes you do Angel. You don’t know what you feel, that’s why we are telling you over and over.’

‘Oh…well when you put it that way, perhaps I should pine for her a bit until she sleeps with my son.’

I agree! THey made great friends then the forced love thing almost ruined Angel for me.

omg totally agree, I hated that sudden development. They worked so well as friends.

angel was the great first love and they were so sweet and beautiful together. he was perfect for teenage/adolescent buffy who was discovering love and all.

but spike, in the end, was the best choice for grown up, weary and battle-ready buffy. she’d changed too much to ever go back to being satisfied with someone like angel.

i admit they took some wrong turns with spike and spuffy (let us never speak of that season 6 bathroom scene again), but i do believe they were meant for each other.

I totally agree. I think the adult Buffy had outgrown Angel. Angel always seemed to be like her protector in some sort of way. And angel would always see Buffy as that young girl he fell in love with. Spike on the other hand accepted and loved the woman she became.

In turn Angel had outgrown Buffy as well. He should’ve ended up with Cordy.

The one she ended up with at the end of the series was the right choice- neither of them. Neither were good enough for her

Not even a debate… Spike all the way! The way Spike talked about and described Angel – I’m with him. One of my favourite scenes actually happened on Angel, when Spike was on the rooftop doing the voiceover. Angel = wuss. Besides after the whole Cordelia mess, how could Buffy EVER?

Yeah, let’s NOT ship Buffy with the vampire who tried to rape her.

Thank god Sarah Michelle hates Spuffy ship as much as I do

“Tried to rape her”. Whedon has written many great things but this was awefully executed. Spuffy’s sex life was always violence-driven and most of the time Buffy was the violence-initiator.

We also have to consider that this is not SMG and JM, this is Buffy and Spike, two superpowered beings. Remember the last episode of season 2 where Spike came up with a plan to stop Evil!Angel? They traded blows there, too, and for them it was basically just a “hello”.

Buffy also demanded sex from Spike when she was invisible and when he openly denied his consent.

But suddenly, in “Seeing Red” Spike was supposed to know that THIS time Buffy really didn’t want sex and suddenly he became the worst of all monsters: a rapist.

Sorry but the storyline before made it impossible for Spike to know any better at that point.

They made a huge mistake in the way they set up Buffy & Spike’s violence prone relationship. She usually said no, but meant yes. I hated that. So when she really meant no, Spike couldn’t tell the difference. I hated that too. I hated the “when girls say no they mean yes” and “girls who have rough sex deserve what they get.” It’s sexist and demeaning.

The only positive thing was that Spike realized that he hurt Buffy and wanted his soul back so he wouldn’t hurt her again. Not having a soul meant not truly understanding right from wrong. I think they could have gotten Spike to the point of wanting a soul without that bathroom scene. That scene was the all-time low of the series, and I’m even including Beer Bad.

It wasn’t a mistake. It was intentional. Spike represented self harm. Buffy was depressed, she said she couldn’t feel anything so she started self harming with Spike because it make her feel something, the same way violence did. Both were not good.

Maybe she saying NO was a sign that she didn’t really want sex.

Wow.Really? That was not “basically just a hello,” that was Buffy doing her job when she hit him in Becoming, part.

Can’t say on the other part because Buffy having that kind of relationship with Spike made me want brain bleach.

And nice job excusing attempted rape because he didn’t believe her when she told him no.

About the whole attempted rape thing, from what I understand the Spike that tried to do that wasn’t the Spike at the end, When a person becomes a vampire they lose their Soul and are basically replaced by a Demon that has no memory of their own but only the memories of the person they replace becoming a sort of composite being a half demon so When Spike went and got his should back the Demon spike became repressed like angelus is with Angel making “Soul” Spike innocent of the crime but still having the memories of Demon Spike.

In that case, I presume you also don’t ship Buffy with the vampire who lusted after her since she was fifteen, stalked her at sixteen, committed statutory rape when she turned seventeen, all with a soul, then went on to terrorise her and all her friends, including killing one of her teachers and leaving the body in Giles’ bed.

(And of course there’s the “I want to sleep with you even though I know I’ll want to kill you afterwards” and the “I’m leaving for your own good but then I’ll come back and passive-aggressively stalk you again, also apparently for your own good” and the “Oh, yeah, I became human which is what you always dreamed of but actually I’m just going to steal 24 hours worth of your memory and then later be pissed off that you’re not taking into account the thing that happened because you don’t remember it, despite that being my fault.”)

You have every right not to like Spuffy, but I sincerely hope if you’re going to judge Spike by his worst actions that you’ll do the same with Angel… and that you will compare pre-soul Spike with pre-soul Angel.

Spike killed a bunch of people after he had a soul. And Angelus (Angel without a soul) never tried to rape Buffy. Angel also tried to repent for his sins for decades, whereas Spike “moped around in a basement for a few months” and then was suddenly fine. Pre-Soul Spike and Pre-Soul Angel were both pretty bad, but Angel with a soul is better than Spike with a soul. (I don’t’ ship either of them for Buffy though)

What the actual… I’m not even a big angel fan but anything is better then what spike and Buffy had, Jesus.

IKR?! Buffy is this great icon to many and she has been reduced to a ship, plus some actually want her with a vampire that wanted to rape her… WTF….Some twisted shiz right there.

There were two different Spike’s, Demon Spike and Soul Spike I think people want her with Soul Spike

No. There’s not two different Spikes. They’re the same person. Can’t excuse the previous behavior just because he got his soul back.

BUt then why everybody forget and forgive what Angelus did because it wasnt hisself with soul? If you hate Spike for seeing red scene and he really didnt, so you must HATE Angel who did actually rape many women!

I think that the good Spike/ bad Spike argument is one of the big hangups with this discussion. When it came to Angel/Angelus there was a clear cut, distinct difference between the two. Angel was a brooding hero that felt terrible about the actions that he perpetrated as Angelus. Angelus was a total scumbag that would kill anybody just for the hell of it. But, the show spent so much time trying to humanize Spike that there isn’t that same line between good Spike/bad Spike. Bad Spike did so many good things that made him part of the gang that the line of whether he was bad or good is entirely blurred. Even the act of him seeking to get his soul means that even when bad he was good to some degree making the attempted rape even worse because that would mean that he knew what he was doing was wrong on some level. Rooting for Buffy and him to be together just seems, for lack of a better word, icky.

Spike, Buffy’s wannabe rapist, deserved to be dusted.

And Angel without his soul would have done far worse. I don’t understand how people can hate spike so much when angel without a soul was brutal. Spike fought beside buffy and their relationship dynamic was portrayed in a way of violence and loathing. Spike realized his mistake and fought to get a spike-to be the man Buffy deserved. Angel was cursed with a soul and when Angelus he didn’t want it and wanted to kill buffy.

I never could stand Angel. I was so glad when he left this show, making room for the much less broody/more entertaining Spike. Even Buffy and Spike’s fights were better than Buffy and Angel’s love story. Spike considered Buffy his equal, while Angel approached her as someone to protect.

Spike considered her an equal? You mean when he ripped at her robe, knocked her down and tried to rape her?

How about the continued spousal/so abuse that Buffy inflicted upon him for weeks? That’s ok?

So only male on female violence is bad, not female on male.

If domestic violence is bad, then it’s bad across the board, not one-sided. And Buffy’s past actions indicated that “no” didn’t always mean “no”. She’d say “no” until she changed her mind and said “yes”. His intention was clearly not to rape her, but to “make her listen” or “make her admit she loves me”. If you dare to harken back to Lover’s Walk, he basically describes his relationship with Drusilla “I’ll tie her up until she loves me again”; it’s all he knows about to love a partner. And that scene in Seeing Red descended into violence because that was their normal. Buffy was drowning in self-hatred at the time, also suffering from PTSD — and Spike had his own issues.

Angel stalked her when she was a 15 year old girl, and took advantage of her innocence. He put her on a pedestal and treated her as an object, not a person with their own thoughts and motivations. Angel inflicted so much damage on her self-esteem that it was almost irreparable. Watch his actions — they are not the actions of a good guy. He made unilateral decisions, kept her on the edge and for most of the time they were together, she wasn’t even sure she loved him! That is not true love. And leaving her for her own good? Really? No. Because she says “I could deal with not having sex, if you love me”. And he left her because he couldn’t have sex — because he’d be tempted. . . that is not true love.

The big difference for me was that Spike didn’t understand that he was hurting Buffy, and wanted his soul back so that he could understand and not hurt her again. He worked for his soul, and earned it. Angelus didn’t want a soul, but was cursed with it. He only understood what he was doing was wrong, and felt guilt for it, because someone else cursed him with his soul so that he would feel guilt. Angel isn’t the real person, but is the result of the curse. The real Angel, before he became a vampire, was a drunken lout.

Spike was funny when he was tamed by the chip. But he basically tried to rape her and there is no coming back from that. Angel was okay, but I liked her with a human. Riley was the best before he got all mopey. She needed a normal life and needed a human to make some slayer babies :)

Why haven’t you mention the episode where Spike tries to rape Buffy?

He was cool, funny and a badass. But come on… He tried to rape Buffy!

Cause mentioning Spike wanted to RAPE her makes him look BAD……and we can’t have that.

Wonder if the people who ship Buffy with Spike would be A OK shipping their daughter, sister, friend, niece, aunt (insert son, brother, nephew, uncle) with somebody who wanted to rape them? I think not

But you’re okay if the guy just tried to murder her and had killed her friends. That’s what Angelus did. WATched her sleep and what not. Don’t compare a soulless Spike to a souled Angel…doesn’t make much sense

What ever makes you happy shipping your rape ship….

Lol so you just don’t acknowledge the fact he didn’t have a soul and forget how horrible Angelus was when he didn’t as well. Ignorance is bliss I guess lol

Exactly! Everyone is comparing soulless Spike with souled Angel. If they are going to compare the worst thing that Spike did without a soul, then it must be to the worst thing Angel did without a soul. Angel without a soul was worse than Spike without a soul, no matter what Spike tried to claim. lol

Two different Spikes, the Demon Spike that tried to rape her and the Spike with a Soul that was so horrified by what his demon counter part did that it drove him crazy.

How about neither, Buffy is such an iconic character and never needed a man by her side, it was good that she ended up with neither of them, both of them were great, i prefer Angel, but one of the many great things about Buffy is the fact that she wasn’t defined by a guy or a relationship she was so much more and the fact that she didn’t end up with anyone was good since most tv characters end up with someone as if that is all there is to them, but Buffy she was more and it was refreshing that she didn’t end up with anyone, she did not need any man by her side.

I’m Team Angel since day one. Although I did enjoy the Spuffy dynamic, I never truly got over Bangel. Maybe I’m due a rewatch. I saw the chemistry between Coredelia and Angel in season 3, but I never wanted it to be romantic because I enjoyed there close connection being strictly platonic – plus I loved Cordy with Doyle (RIP Glenn Quinn). Not to mention it felt like they only paired them up because Cordelia was running out of the storylines.

Plus for me S1-3 Buffy was at its best, although admittedly Angel was very broody – in Angel they managed to find the comedic side of it.

Even SMG says Angel! Buffy herself! She is not a fan of the man that tried to rape Buffy

And Joss says Spuffy. It has nothing to do with SMG’s preferences. She was “friends” with DB, and still is. It has more to do with that than anything else.

No it doesnt. Since she cried when Bangel permanently broke up in S3. She has long said, even while the show was airing, that Angel is Buffys soulmate. Do some research on how much of a hardcore Bangel shipper SMG is

Also Josh said he was a spuffy shipper, and then said actually I’m a Angel and Spike shipper. He never said who was “the one” for buffy

Where’s my fourth option? Love them both but neither was good for her. :)

Team Spike! If you watched ‘Angel”, then you know he and Cordy were meant to be together.

I did watch Angel. Hated him with Cordelia. That was a highly debated love it or hate it ship with lots of people on either side.

It’s hard to say. I lean toward Spike – but only season 7 Spike. Even without a soul, Spike fought through the demons to become good. And with a soul, he was just incredibly good and selfless. But she was much better with Angel when Spike didn’t have his soul because Spike was too obsessive and creepy (albeit entertaining – minus some of that weird rape stuff in season 6). But then when you compare Spike without a soul to Angel without a soul, Angel was much worse! But both relationships were good and what she needed at different times.

Everyone claiming that Spike tried to rape Buffy seems to be forgetting a very important point (which is also not mentioned in the case for Spike above), his soul. He didn’t actually try to rape her, he just didn’t realize at first that she actually meant no this time when she’d always given in before. When Spike did realize what was happening (which he might have earlier if he had a soul), he was so remorseful that he went and fought a demon to get his soul for Buffy. He did it voluntarily, it wasn’t cursed into him and he literally went temporarily insane from the guilt of the things he’d done.

While I do like Angel, when he was evil, he was truly evil. He gleefully killed his family, tortured Drusilla until she was insane before turning her, killed Jenny and left her body in Giles’ bed, stalked Buffy and her friends, etc. Spike, on the other hand still retained a smidgen of his humanity without a soul. He turned his mother so she wouldn’t be sick anymore and they could be together forever. When he realized she was completely evil, he staked her rather than have her alive like that. He teamed up with Buffy to save the world (and Dru) from Angel because he liked the world.

Well said. People just don’t like to look at it that way. Which is so ridiculous.

I could not agree with you more. Even without a soul, Spike had an odd sense of morality. When Angel’s soul was removed, he was purely evil and tortured Buffy to no end.

“Spike, on the other hand still retained a smidgen of his humanity without a soul.”

Don’t excuse this POS vampire. Don’t makes excuses of attempted rape. I don’t care if he has a soul or not. Or if he was high. Or drunk. He wanted to rape a woman that said no.

Can you be my lawyer when I’m on trial? I swear she wanted it. I didn’t know she really meant no. I mean I figured I could keep going until I was 100% sure she didn’t want it.

Spike tried to rape her. Y’all are ill.

Angel tried to kill her, how is that different?

People tend to forget that part cause they only see Angel with a soul, and Spike without one. They can’t even acknowledge it.

It’s different because she killed Angel and sent him to hell. Spike was narratively allowed to get away with horrendous behaviour which made her look like less of a slayer.

His presence diminished Buffy in a way Angel was never written to do.

The writers were more concerned with redeeming Spike than preserving Buffy’s integrity and it hurt the show.

Spike tried to rape her and Angel tried to kill her so im gonna go with neither.

Well Buffy is with Spike in the comics so there’s that. Joss made the decision who she ends up with and that’s now canon. You can’t argue for either vamp if you accept the transgressions of one soulless vampire over the other.

I love both Angel and Spike. She was great with both but ultimately and realistically should be with neither. In fanfic, though, either way works for me. Unless it’s badfic.

Spike with Buffy, Angel with Cordy, no question.

Angel with Buffy. Spike with Dru. No question.

I’ve got no argument with your choice, as long as you’re okay with being wrong.

Oh come on ;) Angel will always win in the end, he’s her true soul mate!

What they shared, Spuffy never even began to compete!

SMG is the captain of this ship and who better than Buffy herself!

I enjoy Angel and Spike individually, but if we’re talking relationship with Buffy, it’s Angel for me. Spike’s obsession with Buffy turned sexual when she was in a really low place after being ressurected. Never understood why so many people shipped a relationship that was based on self loathing. She considered Spike a punishment.

Everything between Buffy & Spike after the attempt rape is such a wrong message for a feminist show like BtVS!

Basically, it says: “Hey, you’ve been sexually assaulted? Don’t worry, your abuser might change because he loooves you, and then you’ll be able to love him too as a reward.”

And don’t even try to argue about the soul because during his 6 seasons, they portrayed Spike basically the same without or with a soul. Soulless Spike is as much responsible for his love feelings as for his evil acts.

Also, using the rape trope to make evolve only the male character is so wrong for a show like BtVS. Buffy’s POV about this attempt rape has never been really treated.

I absolutely love both. Easily two of my favorite couples of all time. Buffy/Angel are my favorite couple of all time though — their chemistry and passion and their journeys are so incredible. They are two champions that deserve to find happiness with each other. I feel like it always comes back to these two. I will say that Spike/Buffy have insane chemistry and were written extremely well and have some of the best scenes of the series and sometimes I just want them to be together because they have such an intense and incredible connection.

I don’t think Buffy ever aired on the CW. Didn’t it move to UPN?

I’ve always enjoyed Buffy and Angel more, but that could be because I enjoyed the show more during the time of their relationship (especially seasons two and three) and thought those years had better storytelling in general than the years of Buffy and Spike.

the couple angel-buffy is overrated , they have been together how much? 10 episodes in 3 seasons? people always talked about them but i’ve always seen it like a platonic relationship , i always loved Buffy with spike and Cordelia with Angel , those were actual relationships!beacuse they looked REAL!something that grows episodes after episode , season by season.

What show were you people watching? Spike was abusive and extremely rape-y with Buffy. They had fun chemistry before that but after that it got dark.

People will excuse anything – even rape – if an actor is cute.

Even attempted murder because Angel was cute i guess too.. Eyeroll

Angel didn’t try to kill Buffy; Angelus did.

Angelus was a part of Angel..and by the way the fact that Spike (soul and not soul) was so intertwined made him so much more real and complex as the character than Angel/Angelus who was above all reduce at Good/Bad persona..The complexity of Spike made him the best mate for Buffy who was herself complex and flawed. ps: Angel became a great character on Angel the tv show..not on BTVS.

Love Spike, never really cared for Angel. But I voted neither. Because let’s be real, every character in the show (including Buffy herself) is messed up or has had some serious questionable moments. No one is overall “perfect” LI material.

That being said, if we only go with the soul versions of Spike vs Angel, I choose Spike, no contest. Soulless versions should not even be an option for anyone with a moral compass anyway.

Always hated the Spike/Buffy thing. It was ridiculous and gross. Didn’t like it as Buffy hates herself or as “he has a soul” thing

I always felt Angel was Buffy’s true love/soul mate, while Spike was her attraction to the forbidden “bad boy.” In a 2014 interview with E!Online Sarah Michelle Gellar – Buffy herself – said Angel was Buffy’s true love, so I’m sticking with her – Angel it is!

Before her resurrection by Willow, Angel. After her resurrection by Willow, Spike.

I was Spike but then that episode when he tried to borderline rape her in the bathroom was disgusting and he’s trash

Neither. It bothers me that people think Spike would be a good match. He tried to rape Buffy. That’s unforgivable.

Are you just forgetting what Angelus did? I’m sorry but it was worse. No question. Murdering her friends and tormenting her was worse. Idk why people are so defensive of Angels actions without a soul but not spikes

Love them both, but to me the last Buffy episode answered it all. She grew to greatly admire and respect the man souled-Spike turned into, so much so that she gave him the one thing he wanted for so long: an “I love you” as he sacrificed himself to save them all. Even he knew she was only trying to give him his dying wish and that she didn’t mean it the way most people interpret it. She loved her (dare I say it) friend and hero that he turned into by the end. They never slept together after he got his soul, and cautiously approached each other after that. Furthermore, I’m not even convinced souled-Spike was as in love with Buffy as his demon counter part was, even though he was driven mad by his past actions. Given he fell in love with her without his soul, why would his souled version feel the same way? I’m probably getting way too deep into this, but whatever. Such is life as a Buffy fan.

While I think it was fitting she ended up with neither at the end of the episode, I do think that the scene in the beginning of the episode says it all… When Buffy is done one day, when she’s “cookies” the person that comes to mind for her is Angel. Yes even though he was her first love and Angelus was terrible (just like Demon Spike IMHO), there was a driving force and deep passion to Bangel beyond the lust Spuffy ever had. But that’s the thing with Buffy (and Angel and Spike), they are never done. That’s the lesson Angel learned the hard way in “I Will Remember You.” None of them will ever be done trying to save the day. None of them will ever be able to be “cookies.” They will fight until their very last “breath” before they’re done. So in the end, it doesn’t really matter? Damn what a sad conclusion. Sorry for that lol.

You need to revise your description of Angel (and, to some extent , Spike) to indicate that he was lusting after her when she was only 14 or 15 (as was his habit as a human), did very little to support her (Xander saved her life after the Master bit her) except mutter about his own redemption, and left her to go LA because he didn’t think he could pass up her nubile little body as was necessary to keep his soul. The only thing that made him “good”. The PTB sent him to help Buffy, not to have a love affair with her, but he did. Soulless Spike, on the other hand, helped her save the world twice before he got a chance to have a short, passionate affair with her. One that sent him off to fight a demon to get his soul back for her. And then he died to save the world. Comparing manipulative mysterious older man/teenage crush with someone who went from reluctant ally (season 2) to primary support system (season 7) most of that time with no hope of having her body or her heart….. yeah. There really is no contest here. FYI

Buffy dies by Glory’s hand? Did you watch The Gift or not? Buffy kicked Glory’s a$$ and while Buffy was busy climbing the unstable tower made by the people Glory had messed up, Giles was killing Ben/Glory. Buffy jumped on her own.

I went with neither, but definitely never Spike since he tried to rape her and I’m pretty sure he wasn’t intending to get his soul back when he went on his mission. He wanted to become the man he was and he seemed more like he wanted to go back to being a cold ruthless killer because he didn’t like being rejected by Buffy.

I totally agree! Everything in the episode pointed to Spike wanting to be the way he was, pre chip-in-head; NOT that he ever intended to get his soul back. He wanted to not care or feel, like his pre chip self. Fate (or all the influence of all the Spike-loving fans) gave him the soul.

Spike by far and for one reason : the relationship between him and Buffy was so much more complex and interesting. And Spike as a character so much more fun and entertaining than Angel although Angel redeem himself in his own tv show. By the way i did not like at all Angel and Cordelia as a romantic pairing, they were great as friends and that is all ! Cordelia was best with Doyle and before with Xander. And the best pairing for Buffy was Spike. And for Angel his best pairing actually was also Spike and if i had to chose a woman for him it would be Darla, the mother of his child and the one who made him a vampire. End of story. But he would always be at his best with Spike, his best dynamic hands down.

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