Angel

Episode 5:15

A Hole in the World: Fateful Choices

By: Betsy Lusby

Written by: Joss Whedon

Directed by: Joss Whedon

“I believe it was predestined” - Drogyn

“This was all set in motion millions of years ago” - Knox

What is fate? What is destiny? Fate is the supposed force or power that predetermines events. Destiny is the inevitable fate to which a particular person or thing is destined or a predetermined course of events beyond human power to control.

But is fate/destiny really beyond our power to control? Don’t the choices and decisions we make along the way have any impact on the eventual outcome? In the end, everyone’s fate is the same - death. It’s the unavoidable departure from this world that is the ultimate and inescapable destiny of all living things.

I believe that fate/destiny plays an important role in Joss’ world. It is the destiny of some chosen girl to become a Slayer. Slayers have no real control over their fate, but they do have control over the choices they make while being a slayer. Buffy made specific choices in the type of Slayer she ultimately would become.

What about Angel? Was he always destined to be a champion for the Powers That Be? If this was his destiny, does this mean Liam had no control over what happened that made him a vampire? No control in the choice of the gypsy girl that led to Angelus’ being cursed? If he was never cursed, Angel would not have come into existence, and Whistler would have had to find another vampire with a soul to help the new Slayer in Sunnydale. Angel would not have come to LA. He would never have met Doyle, whose visions sent Angel to Tina and the “fabulous Hollywood party” where he saw Cordelia, later saving her from Russell Winters. Would Wes still be wandering around as a “Rogue Demon Hunter,” since he would not have met Angel in “Parting Gifts?” What of Gunn? Fred? Connor? All of their lives intersected, bringing them together to help fight the forces of evil in Los Angeles.

Did each of them have no control over events in their lives that led them to where they are now? Was it all predestined to happen? Was Skip correct? Were all of their lives manipulated for a predetermined end? I have to believe that while fate/destiny may have had some part in it, the choices each of them made led them to where they are now.

Each decision had an impact on where their life’s journey would take them to this point - some positive and some negative. So let’s start at the beginning shall we?

“There is a destiny that makes us brothers; None goes his away alone; All that we send into the lives of others Comes back into our own.”

“A Cree” - Edwin Markham

Winifred Burkle

In this week’s episode, we got a look into the past of Fred - about eight years ago as she’s preparing to leave home and come to L.A. to enter the Graduate Physics Program at UCLA. For all intents and purposes, it looks like Fred was destined for great things. She is smart as a whip and her becoming a great scientist looked to be her destiny.

Her parents obviously don’t want her to leave, but she is just itching to leave her stifling small town. Her father refers to Los Angeles as “Hell A.” Fred reminds him it’s Los Angeles, the City of Angels. Her fathers counters, “And if you meet one Angel there, I’ll eat the dogs.” But in about five years time, he will meet Fred’s Angel, the Angel that saved his daughter and brought her back from Pylea. She wants to go to the “big city,” experience things she’ll never be able to do if she stays where she is and goes to one of the many good schools nearby. She says to mother, “I’ll be careful. I’ll even be dull and boring.” And oh how unboring Fred’s life became once she was in L.A.

By opening the wrong book, she was transported to Pylea, a dimension where humans are slaves and treated worse than animals. She spent five years there, trying to get herself out, but to no avail. Thanks to a vision that Cordy had, the Fang Gang ended up in Pylea. They were there to save Cordy, but as fate would have it, they were where they were supposed to be. They found Fred and brought her back with them. Thus, she became a part of Angel Investigations, fighting the demons and evil of Los Angeles. A far cry from the girl she was when she left Texas and a far cry from the scientist she wanted to be.

Now she heads up the Science Department of Wolfram & Hart. Because of her work there and all that she is exposed to, Fred is now dead and her body is playing host to an Old One - one of the first pure demons that were here before humans.

So if Fred’s destiny was to become a scientist, she did accomplish that. But by the choices and decisions she made along the way, her life ended too early.

“Honor isn’t about making the right choices. It’s about dealing with the consequences.”

Anonymous

Charles Gunn

I’m thinking that Gunn’s destiny was a very short life. Here’s a street kid, who with his younger sister, formed his own gang to keep back the vampires that were invading their neighborhood. He sold his soul to the devil for a pick-up truck thinking that didn’t matter, he wasn’t long in this world anyway. With the death of his sister, he took Angel up on his offer to work with him every now and then. It wasn’t long before he became a permanent fixture at Angel Investigations. He became the muscle, fighting along side Angel for four years. He fell in love with Fred, and to save her the agony, he killed her professor, the one who sent her to Pylea. This led to the demise of their relationship.

He was never really secure with himself. Only saw himself as the muscle, knowing he was not as smart as Fred or Wes. Thus he was primed and ready for the Senior Partners’ offer of the brain boost. Now he’s just as smart as they are and heads up the Legal Department. But the Senior Partners played a pretty dirty trick on our Gunn. Seems that brain boost he agreed to wasn’t permanent. It was just a teaser - giving him a false sense of security in who he was. He was losing it; that led him to make a deal with Dr. Sparrow to get a permanent boost. That decision led to the sarcophagus being delivered to the Science Lab, thus killing Fred.

“Choices are the hinges of destiny.”

Edwin Markham

Wesley Wyndham-Price

Wesley, inept Watcher, Rogue Demon Hunter, Angel’s right hand man at Angel Investigations and then at Wolfram & Hart. He heads up Research and Magiks. We first met Wesley back in Season 3 of Buffy, and what a bumbling idiot he was. He followed a long tradition in his family by becoming a Watcher. But a good one he was not. He came to Sunnydale to become Faith’s Watcher, but we all know how that panned out. The Council fired him, and the next time we saw him he was a Rogue Demon Hunter, inept as usual. It wasn’t long before he joined up with Angel Investigations. Under Angel’s guidance and tutelage, he became an important asset in “the good fight.” We’ve seen a great change in Wesley throughout the years. Now he’s confident and self-assured. He’s secure in who he is and isn’t afraid to make those hard decisions to protect his friends and others who need his protection from the evil of L.A.

So if Wesley’s destiny was to be a Watcher, how did he end up where he is now? Let’s look at the choices he made that led him to be where he is now. One most certainly is becoming a Rogue Demon Hunter after the Council fired him; then his decision to hook up with Angel in “Parting Gifts.” How about his decision to take over Angel Investigations after being fired by Angel; his decision to save both baby Connor and his father in Season 3. That in turn led to his separation and his slide into becoming “dark Wesley.” In Season 4, his return to the fold, facilitated first by saving Angel from his swim with the fishes and then helping Angel and the rest of the gang to defeat Jasmine.

Now we have him at Wolfram & Hart with Angel. He’s finally gotten the girl he’s been in love with for the last three years, but now she’s is dead. What choices will Wesley now make that will change his destiny once again? What will he do when he finds out Gunn’s part in this whole fiasco? What of his reaction to Angel, who, it appears has decided that saving Fred just wasn’t worth the risk of putting hundreds of thousands of souls in jeopardy?

“He alone is great Who by a life heroic conquers fate.”

“The Inevitable” Sarah Knowles Bolton

Spike aka William the Bloody aka William

With Spike, it all starts with William. Obviously William was not destined to be a great poet. What his fate was I haven’t a clue, but I’m sure it wasn’t to be a vicious vampire - who would want that as a destiny? Bumping into Angelus, Darla, and Drusilla one night after a party sure changed the path his life was on - whatever it may have been. So upset was he that the woman he loved didn’t appreciate his poetry and found so him so beneath her, he doesn’t pay to attention. Drusilla wants a playmate, and Angelus tells her to go find one, hoping that someone else would help take care of his rather whimsical childe. Drusilla saw something in William, so much so she decided to make him her playmate. Who would have thought that one night in an alley could so drastically change one’s life - or unlife as William’s case turned out to be.

Under Angelus’ guiding hand, William became William the Bloody then Spike - a ruthless, vicious vampire second only to Angelus. Then Angelus was cursed with his soul, leaving Spike to care for Drusilla alone. Coming to Sunnydale has to be one of the most important choices Spike made; a choice that would change his life forever. If he never came to Sunnydale looking for that cure for Drusilla, he never would have found Angel whose blood was her cure. He never would have aligned with Buffy to save the world from Angelus; never would have lost Drusilla. Would he have eventually come to Sunnydale anyway looking for the Gem of Amarra? If not, then he never would have been chipped, never would have become part of the Scoobies. He wouldn’t have fallen in love with Buffy, gotten his soul, and wouldn’t have been there to wear the amulet that closed the Hellmouth for good.

If Spike made none of these choices, he certainly wouldn’t be in L.A now. He wouldn’t have been there to help Angel against Hainsley in “Just Rewards.” Maybe without Spike’s appearance in L.A., Angel wouldn’t have become so lost in his doubts about the Shanshu Prophecy. Angel would have had no one to lose the fight to in “Destiny.” Yes, Spike’s decisions have definitely had an impact on Spike himself and also on Angel.

“She stung him, sapped his firm advance, But, when her worst was done, And he, unmoved, regarded her, Acknowledged him a man.”

Emily Dickinson

Angel aka Angelus aka Liam

Now we have Angel, whose choices not only impacted his own fate, but also the fate of the others in his life. His began his journey as Liam. We can pretty much guess where Liam’s behavior was leading him - probably an early death in a drunken pub brawl, killed by a pissed off husband, or some other violent way. Instead he chose to “go places” with Darla, a strange woman he met one night in an alley. She sure took him places and she was right, he did know what to do. There wasn’t another vampire like Angelus anywhere. All feared him, even his own kind. He sired Drusilla after making her absolutely crazy. Drusilla in turn sired Spike. Angelus gladly took Darla’s offering of the young gypsy girl, which in turn led to him getting cursed with a soul.

He wandered aimlessly for 100 years until in 1996 Whistler, a guide from the Powers That Be, told him great things were in store for him. Angel chose to help Buffy once she got called. He fell in love with her knowing it was wrong. That led to his leaving Sunnydale and setting up shop in L.A. When Doyle, another emissary from the Powers That Be, came to him, he agreed to become their champion. If Angel had made any other choice, Cordelia wouldn’t have been saved from Russell Winters and Angel Investigations and the Fang Gang would have never been.

I think one of the most important choices Angel made was requesting that the Oracles turn him back into a vampire with a soul in “I Will Remember You.” If Angel had stayed human, Wolfram & Hart wouldn’t have been so worried about him. They wouldn’t have felt the need to bring Darla back, thus Connor never would have been born. With Connor never being born, there would have been no prophecy for Sahjan to manipulate, there would have been no Jasmine, and Cordy would still be alive and so would Lilah. No Jasmine, no need to make the deal with Wolfram & Hart. No deal with Wolfram & Hart, Gunn wouldn’t be where he is now and Fred would still be alive. Whether or not the gang would still be at The Hyperion, going about their jobs helping the helpless we can only guess, but I’d say yes.

So I’d say that the decisions that Liam/Angelus/Angel made have had the greatest impact on them all. If not for Liam taking Darla up on her offer, Gunn would still be on the streets with his gang fighting vampires or more probably dead, Fred would still be lost in Pylea or more likely dead, Wesley would still be a Rogue Demon Hunter or killed by a demon, Cordy would probably still be dead (at the fangs of Russell Winters), Drusilla would have died a century ago, never siring Spike, who would have remained William, now long dead, a failed poet, Lorne would still be running Caritas, and Wolfram & Hart would have free reign in Los Angeles. Crossing paths with Angel did influence all of their lives - for better or worse?

“Bottom line is, even if you see ‘em coming, you’re not ready for the big moments. No one asks for their life to change, not really. But it does. So what are we, helpless? Puppets. No. The big moments are gonna come. You can’t help that. It’s what you do afterwards that counts. That’s when you find out who you are.”

Whistler in “Becoming”

Questions and Tidbits:

· Where are the Powers That Be? Why would they allow Cordy to come back to put her “guy back on track” if he is to make the devastating decision to letting Fred die? Can Angel come back from this decision, or is it going to destroy him and the gang?

· In the TV Guide ad for this episode, they captioned “She trusted him with her life - Big mistake.” Knowing Angel the way we do, was there really any other decision he could have made? Would Fred understand Angel’s dilemma? Would or will she forgive him? Will Wes? Will Angel forgive himself? After all, Angel did almost kill Cordy before she “gave birth” to Jasmine. He just hesitated a second too long.

· A lot of Angel’s decisions are for the greater good. Is that playing God? Is it a burden? Is it just plain arrogance? Do you have to be a bit arrogant to be able to make these types of decisions?

· Was it just me, or did Fred remind any of you of Ripley from “Aliens” when she was torching the next eggs. That was the first thing that popped into my head when I saw that scene.

· I think Fred should have known better than to touch the sarcophagus before knowing anything about it. When I viewed the episode again though, she did look to be in some sort of trance. Did she touch the sarcophagus out of curiosity, or was there something or someone pulling her to touch it?

· How awesome was Lorne? I just love the entire scene of him belting Eve and getting all threatening with her. He sure came across as very human to me.

· While they were interrogating Eve in Lindsey’s apartment, Angel said something that made my ears perk up - “Say it with a song in your heart.” This one line made me think back to Buffy Season 1 when Angel was explaining to Buffy what he was like as Angelus - “For a hundred years I offered an ugly death to everyone I met, and I did it with a song in my heart.”

Favorite lines:

Fred’s Dad: “And if you meet one angel there, I’ll eat the dogs. A bunch of junkies and spoiled movie actors-that’s who you’re gonna meet.”

Fred’s Dad: “I slept in a drawer ’til I was three. Didn’t stunt me none.”

Fred: “I’m gonna study, mom. I’m gonna learn every damn thing they know up there, and then figure out some stuff they don’t. And I’ll be careful. I’ll even be dull, boring. Cross my heart.”

FRED: “Kind of cool, physiologically. They reproduce by vomiting up crystals that attract and mutate the microbes around them to form eggs. WESLEY: (with a sly grin) Are you trying to turn me on. FRED: (grins, approaches Wesley) It is kind of romantic. A roaring fire. A snug little nest.

Fred: It’s my boys. I haven’t had this many big, strapping men at my bedside since that night with the varsity lacrosse team. (no one reacts; Fred laughs) That was a joke.

Fred: “Handsome man save me.” Angel: “That’s how it works. Let’s get crackin.” Fred: “Get cracking’. He’s such an old fogey.”

Angel: “Well, I’ll be damned all over again.”

Lorne: “Oh, I’m sorry. That was a knuckle buster. I’m Jake LaMont over here. It’s pathetic. Here’s the thing Eve. You’re going to sing for me and I’m going to read you right now. And here’s one more think, Winifred Burkle once told me after a sinful amount of Chinese food and in lieu of absolutely nothing, ‘I think a lot of people would choose to be green. Your shade if they had the choice.’ If I hear one note - one-quarter note - that tells me you had any involvement, these two won’t even have time to kill you. Oh and anything by Diane Warren will result in your death. Well, except for ‘Rhythm of the Night.’”

Lorne: “If I had to face your future, I’d make like Carmen Miranda and die.”

Wes: “Time is not on our side.” Spike: “Nobody is on our side.” Angel: “Come on, let’s save the day.”

Fred: “I am not-I am not the damsel in distress. I am not some case. I have to work this. I lived in a cave for 5 years in a world where they killed my kind like cattle. I am not going to be cut down by some monster flu. I am better than that! (softly) But I wonder ... how very scared I am.” (looks away)

SPIKE: “Back to the mother country. Hey, after we save Fred, we should hit the West End, take in a show.” ANGEL: “I’ve never seen Les Mis.” SPIKE: (scoffs) Trust me, half way through the first act, you’ll be drinking humans again.”

SPIKE: “When is a door not a door? When it’s not soddin’ - well there.” ANGEL: “Right there. You wanna bet that’s the entrance to the Deeper Well?” SPIKE: “Either that, or Christmasland. Do you ever have any fun?” ANGEL: “I’m about to.” SPIKE: “And they even brought us weapons. Strategy?” ANGEL: “Just hold my hand.” SPIKE: “St. Petersburg.” ANGEL: “Thought you’d forgotten.”

Angel: “To hell with the world!”

Fred: “My boys. I walk with heroes. Think about that.”

Fred: “Superhero. And this is my power: to not let them take me. Not me.”

Spike: “This goes all the way through to the other side. So, I figure, there’s a bloke somewhere around New Zealand standing on a bridge like this one, looking back down at us. All the way down. There’s a hole in the world. Feels like we ought to have known.”

Wesley: “I’ve loved you since I’ve known you. No, that’s not-I think maybe even before.”

Fred: “Wesley, why can’t I stay?”

Illyria as Fred: “This will do.”

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