| ... You make some interesting hypotheses, LLBIMG, but I wonder... I don't think Spike's "true personality" was EVER thrown out, regardless of getting his soul back... He soul returning allows for him to feel guilt and remorse over his actions once more, but best I can tell he's always kind of played by his own rules, in the sense that "good" or "bad", if Angel pisses him off he's not above slighting him to make him feel like shit. Spike, as has been evidenced by his willingness and devotedness to his noble actions, does love Buffy and care about the world she is trying to save. He cares deeply about ppl and isn't really driven out of guilt for his past deeds, but rather by what he feels for people now. I think when he initially won his soul back, he was bombarded by his returning guilt and remorse, but after facing his demons (a la punking Principal Wood and reconciling his feelings about his hooch mum trying to take a piece with him... eeewww), Spike has moved to a level Angel hasn't: Spike is becoming more human through his actions. Good and evil are concepts that DO come into play, but I think he's removed himself from either extreme in an attempt to reclaim himself. So to say that he's being "pushed toward the edge" really isn't something I buy... I mean, say he did lose his soul again -- even WITHOUT a soul Spike was able to grow, and reclaim much of his lost personality, and even gain an understanding of what, to him, was right and wrong behavior. he cared for Buffy still, and tho his absence of a soul made it hard for him to understand consequence before acting (ie: nearly raping Buffy, b/c he didn't consider what he was doing before starting) he still knew it was not something he wanted to do in the aftermath, hence driving him to win his soul back. And it wasn't always that way for the vampire William, true. But again, he did grow as an individual both without and with a soul. Angel has not, really. He regained his old personality, sure... but his actions are driven out of an unending need to "atone", and reach humanity once more. Funny, it seems Spike is closer to that, b/c you really have to ask yourself -- what is humanity? A state of being or a state of mind? |
