The ABCs of Sunnydale

spike 'n' dru Spike (aka William the Bloody):

Debut -- School Hard (Season 2)

Last Seen --The Harsh Light of Day (Season 4)

In School Hard, Spike is introduced as one bad-ass vampire; he wears leather, smokes, and has quite the 'tude. Also has a lot of good lines. Spike brought Drusilla to the Hellmouth so that he might help restore her to good health. In School Hard, he kills the Anointed One, goes after Buffy, and reveals that Angel was his sire. Also in this episode, Spike goes up against Buffy during the parent-teacher night at school, and Buffy's mom, Joyce, is the one who finally gets rid of him after she attacks him from behind. Spike sometimes comes off as rash and impulsive, but here we can see that he's not incapable of planning ahead...

Spike on Spike:
"I don't like to brag -- who am I kidding, I love to brag!" -- to the Anointed One and others, on how many slayers he's killed.

Other 2nd season appearances -- Halloween; Lie to Me; What's My Line parts I, II; Surprise; Innocence; Bewitched, Bothered & Bewildered; Passion; I Only Have Eyes For You, Becoming part I, II

In Halloween, Spike sends a vampire to videotape Buffy's fighting techniques while she's dusting a vamp in the Pumpkin Patch. See? He really does do the planning thing. Anyhoo, Dru tells him that "everything's switching" and he observes that people are being turned into the personas/monsters of their chosen Halloween costumes. Buffy's rendered helpless, and he goes on the attack. But he's driven off when she regains her sense of self.

Line That's a Keeper:
"Well, this is just...neat!" --to himself, as he witnesses the mayhem in the streets as a result of the "switching" spell.

Lie to Me showcases Spike's flair for comedy. Good lines abound. When Ford comes to offer Spike a deal -- Ford'll bring Buffy to Spike if Spike makes him a vampire -- Spike accepts, and later he and his gang end up trapped in a basement-type warehouse place with no easy escape hatch. Probably the most important thing we learn here is that Spike's real weakness is Dru. We see this first when he apologizes to Dru for making her cry -- he remarked that her bird is dead because she didn't feed it -- and we see it again when Buffy holds a stake to Dru. Spike calls off his attack so that Dru's life might be spared.

Spike on Meeting a Trespasser:

Spike: "Do I have anyone on watch here? It's called security, people...."
Ford: "I know who you are."
Spike: "Yeah, I know who I am too, so what?" --
to Ford, who's just entered the Warehouse.

What's My Line parts 1 & 2 feature Spike going all out for the key to Dru's cure. He has Angel kidnapped, since he's the key element in a ritual that will restore Dru's health (yes, vampires can be in poor health..). And he also sets The Order of Turaka on Buffy so she won't get in the way. We see Spike pay off Willy for delivering Angel to him. Part two of this episode provides much in the way of foreshadowing the romantic triangle of Angel, Dru, and Spike. We see here that Spike's jealousy can get the better of him...jealousy comes into play in later episodes of the season. Also, this episode marks the beginning of Spike's "poor health" -- an organ collapses on him in the church and the next time we see him, he's..wheelchair-bound.

Spike, Sarcasm on the Side:

Willy: "What are you gonna do with him, anyway?"
Spike: "I'm thinkin' maybe dinner and a movie. I don't want to rush into anything -- I've been hurt, you know." --
regarding Angel, who Spike's just vamp-napped.

Surprise is the first time we see Spike in a wheelchair, and with bruises, etc. He's gotten his men to assemble The Judge in an effort to bring about Armageddon for Dru.

The Softer Side of Spike:
Spike: "He's a wanker, but he's the only one we've got with half a brain. If he fails, you could eat his eyes out of his sockets for all I care." --to Dru, when she's about to snuff out Dalton for losing a piece of The Judge.

Innocence is the first time that Spike must deal with the all-demon Angel. Spike endures the jibes Angel makes about his being in a wheelchair, and witnesses Angel's flirtations with Dru. Spike starts to get left out of things since he's not really mobile...

In Bewitched, Bothered & Bewildered, Spike is shown up by Angel in the gift-giving department on Valentine's Day. He keeps remarking to Angel to kill Buffy, but to no avail. More jealousy in this episode, and still in a wheelchair.

Spike & Angel, on Wooing:

Angel: "Dear Buffy. I'm still trying to decide the best way to send my regards."
Spike: "Why don't you rip her lungs out? That might make an impression."
Angel: "Lacks...poetry."
Spike: "It doesn't have to. What rhymes with "lungs"?" --
well, it's Valentine's Day, y'know.

Passion keeps feeding Spike's frustrations where Angel and Dru (and being in a wheelchair) are concerned. He refuses to eat the dog that Dru brings him. Part of this is driven by the fact that it makes him "less manly" -- let's face it, Spike's in a bad situation with seemingly no way out. He holds Dru back when Angel's fighting with Giles because he doesn't want anyone interfering if Angel's about to get killed.

I Only Have Eyes For You prolongs Spike's agony, annoyance, etc. of watching Angel and Dru cozy up to one another. He sees Dru falling for Angel's attention, and he's still wheelchair-bound, taking digs from Angel. But this episode is actually where the tide starts to turn, and it also shows just how much of a planner Spike is....For the entire episode, Spike's still taking digs from Angel and missing out on going on hunts for food, or being able to hold Dru's attention. It's not until Angel and Dru leave Spike that we're clued in to what's going on...for this is when Spike gets out of the chair! He makes neither Angel nor Dru aware of this though, so one has to wonder just what it is he's planning....

Becoming part I gives Spike more dry'n'witty lines. He still hasn't let Dru or Angel know that he's mobile yet. Also, when Angel tries to reanimate Acathla and fails, Spike has a good laugh. He sing-songs, "Someone isn't worthy.." If Spike has an ace up his sleeve, he'd better draw it and soon, in part II...

Becoming part II is another great Spike outing. He's the unlikely hero who comes to Buffy's defense when a cop is about to arrest her. He beats the policeman up and then tries to talk to Buffy about becoming allies so they can kill Angel. This all comes out in between fighting; they both smack each other a few times, I think it's a trust issue or something. Anyhoo, Spike tells Buffy that he wants Angel dead so that he can have Drusilla to himself again; plus, he doesn't want the demon Acathla to swallow the world, either. Spike lets on that no vampire really wants to destroy the world, it's just sorta locker-room talk. But he believes Angel is hell-bent on bringing the world to its knees, so this is why he needs help.

Spike's also reacquainted with Buffy's mom Joyce in this episode. First he poses as a band member as part of Buffy's lie; but then when Joyce asks if they've met before he tells her that she once hit him with an axe, saying, "Get the hell away from my daughter!" This is an absurd scene, but a great one nevertheless. So anyway, Spike helps Buffy attack Angel, and then he has to fight off Drusilla, also. Spike's promised Buffy he'll leave town for good if she'll help him against Angel, and so we see him carrying Dru off, leaving Buffy to face Angel. Spike drives out of town the same way that he came into town, with a worn-out Dru. I don't know if a vamp is as good as his word, but I'd say I don't think he's out of the picture for good...At least, I hope he isn't. Farewell, Spike. And beware of mothers wielding axes...

SEASON 3 APPEARANCES

Lovers Walk

Lovers Walk is Spike's episode! From start to finish, hands-down, no questions asked, no substitutes accepted. I mean, it's because Spike's back in Sunnydale to get Drusilla back that the Willow/Xander liaison is turned on full-blast. Don't believe me? 's alright. It's also Spike's privilege to lay out the Buffy/Angel relationship for what it really is. Who'd have thought Mr. Bad Ass vamp could know about love and its despair?

Anyhoo, Spike turns up as a broken vampire, totally a wreck, lovelorn and drunk and depressed. Been there...no, wait, not really. Anyhoo, he enlists Willow's help (just think: forceful) to cast a spell that'll bring Dru back to him, since she left him. While he wails about the city, he kills a shopkeeper, visits Joyce -- accounting for the absolute best scenes in the show -- does some damage with Angel and Buffy, and regains his self-confidence. He's a man repossessed (heh) of his finer virtues...after all, he's got some humanity in him. He blasts out of Sunnydale with a song in his heart. Sid Vicious's version of Ol' Blue Eyes's "My Way." As a last note, I'd just like to say that Spike comes full circle by running over that Welcome to Sunnydale sign, like he did in School Hard. Spike's like the egg...no end and no beginning...no...he's like...cool!

Spike & His Mummy?:
Spike: "No, this is different. Our love was eternal. Literally. You got any of those little marshmallows?" -- commiserating with Joyce..over hot chocolate.

SEASON 4 APPEARANCES

The Harsh Light of Day

The Harsh Light of Day puts Spike back in Sunnydale..or underneath it, anyway. It turns out he's digging for the Gem of (insert name here, have to check tape for spelling), which renders its wearer unkillable. Which pretty much means, sunbathing for vamps, back in style. Anyhoo, he wants his mission to be kept secret, but that's sorta impossible when your galpal of sorts is Harmony!

Anyhoo, we learn that Spike and Dru are definitely over..mostly because she left him for..if we believe Harmony, a fungus demon. And Spike's intent on becoming unstoppable and being the kickass vamp he is. But a big monkey wrench is thrown into his plans when he meets up with Buffy. He first meets up with her at a party, which alerts her to his presence. Then later, when he's sporting the ring of whozzit, he meets her in broad daylight, with plans to make her his third slayer kill. (Third slayer kill? You know what I mean.)

He's pretty much got the upper hand on her, baits her a lot about her pitiful love life and the fact that she slept with some guy who isn't really into commitment, etc. Then he brings up Angel. Bad move. Buffy bests him and yanks the ring off of his finger. Hello, vulnerability. And goodbye Spike.

Spike's bent on getting the ring, so he treks to L.A., to get the ring from Angel...'cause he knows that's where Buffy's going to send it for safekeeping, etc. Since I'm not covering Angel, I'll just say here that Spike does his thing where he arranges for Angel to be tortured, blah blah blah, he doesn't get the ring back, and Spike's on his own, yet again. Hm. Well, he can always go back to Harmony, I guess. (Ack. No! Please?)

Spike's Sing-Songing Away:

Okay, so Spike does resemble a certain '80s rock star...which could explain his penchant for sometimes sing-songing his lines. Works great with the accent, baby!

Sing-a-Song in School Hard: "Some-one's in the ceil-ing." -- when he hears Buffy crawling around up there.

Sing-a-Song of Angel, Becoming, part I: "Some-one was-n't wor-thy." -- when Angel's unsuccessful in awakening Acathla.

Sing-a-Song of Frank-cum-Sid, Lovers Walk: "I did it...my-y-y-y-y-y wa-a-a-a-a-a-a-y."-- apparently, it's like his theme song throughout this ep.

Hmm..what're the odds that Spike's really in a band?!


spike Buffy vs. Spike & Dru Story Arc

The ABCs of Sunnydale

The 411/Mythology

The 511/Relationships

The 611/Slayerships

The Episodes

Dingo Action

Sunnydale

Main Entrance

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Sound file courtesy of Techzero

Thanks to Anime Nut at Domain of the Slain for some quotes I was too lazy to check.

Thanks to Tim for tipping me off to the Sid Vicious fact.

This page last updated October 19, 1999