Angel

HOLLYWOOD - Acting nothing like his brooding character, Angel, the first vampire with a soul, was buying the drinks - all straight shots.

In what seemed like that perfect moment of happiness Angel must avoid, the stars of WB’s ``Angel’’ and creator Joss Whedon celebrated the start of another season, one they weren’t certain would happen.

``I’m excited about the new season. I’m going to hell with a sword in my side!’’ star David Boreanaz joked loudly at a WB press party earlier this week for the Television Critics Association at the White Lotus restaurant.

WB decided at the last moment in May to renew ``Angel’’ and will air the series at 9 p.m. Wednesdays, following the popular ``Smallville.’’

Boreanaz said he’s excited about working with James Marsters, whose Spike comes to ``Angel’’ this season.

Mum as ever about plot spoilers, Whedon said Spike’s return will be long and complicated. Spike, the second vampire to get a soul, died saving the world in the ``Buffy the Vampire Slayer’’ series finale and could come back as a human, a ghost or whatever Whedon dreams up.

``He’ll still have his soul,’’ Whedon said, adding that he likes the tension between Angel and Spike: The two vampires have never liked each other.

Whedon said the final events of ``Buffy,’’ in which the vampire slayer shared her superstrength with women around the world, eventually will affect ``Angel.’’

``There are other slayers, and we’ll deal with that,’’ he said.

Another ``Buffy’’ spinoff is likely but won’t happen for a while. ``I’d like to get some people back together,’’ Whedon said, referring to his producers, writers and crew.

``If Eliza (Dushku, the Boston native who plays Faith, the other vampire slayer) is interested in making it, absolutely,’’ Whedon said.

Dushku is starring this fall in Fox’s ``Tru Calling,’’ about a college student with power to relive the last 24 hours.

Whedon said the new season of ``Angel’’ will emphasize stand-alone stories as opposed to the serial approach of previous seasons. Whedon, who’s writing and directing the ``Angel’’ season opener, said he’s happy to be working on just one show.

When told that fans weren’t upset with the ``Buffy’’ finale despite Spike’s death, Whedon made a funny face. ``I failed to p—s them off!’’ he joked.

He explained why he killed Anya (Emma Caulfield), the ex-demon who found her humanity.

``I knew she wasn’t going to come back. And if I killed any of the core group, you couldn’t consider it a happy ending,’’ he said.

Whedon said he would like to make a ``Buffy’’ movie, but noted that Sarah Michelle Gellar, who starred as Buffy, has been opposed to it. He said he thinks that might change after Gellar has finished some other films.