For a hundred years, Angelus roamed the world and killed whoever he pleased, he even ate his parents. He was renowned as the most vicious demon that had ever walked the earth and even other vampires kept their distance. What made him different from other vampires was his enjoyment of the pain he caused. He killed simply for pleasure and enjoyed making his victims suffer.
One of his obsessions was a young English girl who he met in 1860. She was sweet, pure, and chaste and her name was Drusilla. Angelus tortured her mind as a kind of game for him. He killed her parents and her family and slowly drove the poor girl insane. Finally, Drusilla ran away to hide in a convent and on the very day that she was to take her Holy Orders, he made her into a vampire.
Then, in 1898 in Romania, Angelus attacked the wrong girl. He killed the beloved daughter of a gypsy tribe and all those who had touched her life, no-one was spared. As a punishment, the elders of the tribe decided to restore his soul, something that he had lost when sired. Along, with the soul, came guilt and remorse over his actions of the past century.
He shut himself away and vowed never to drink human blood again. With the consequences of his violent actions plaguing his thoughts, Angel moved to New York City, America, in the 1990's. He lived like a vagabond on the streets and fed off rats. One day he was approached by a demon called Whistler, who had been sent to correct the balance between good and evil. Whistler proposed that Angel could make something of his life, that he could be somebody. He took Angel to LA where, on a bright afternoon, he caught a first glimpse of a young Buffy Summers. He saw her being called to her duties as a Slayer by her first Watcher - Merrick - and he saw the novice slay her first vampire. From that moment, Angel decided to dedicate his life to helping and protecting Buffy in her fight against evil.
And so Buffy moves to Sunnydale as Season One begins and unknown to her, so does Angel. Their first meeting is brief but soon this mysterious stranger appears more and more often by her side whenever she is in trouble. Buffy and Angel grow close as the years pass and Angel has done his best to try to make amends for his wrongs. However, one event on the night of Buffy's 17th birthday causes the soul to stop it's suffering for a brief moment and then that soul was taken from him. (See Love & Loss).
Once again a monster, the evil Angelus hooks up with Spike and Drusilla who are out to destroy the world although Angelus is intent on hurting Buffy first for making him feel human. During the next few months, Angelus sneaks into Buffy's room leaving pictures of her and her friends on her pillow and killing Willow's fish. He is obviously trying to play the same tricks on her that he once did on Drusilla. However, Buffy soon uncovers Jenny Calendar's secret - that she is a direct descendant of the Romany tribe that cursed Angelus - and now that this curse is broken they first ask her to re-curse him. Jenny reveals that the curse has been lost through generations but one night we see her sitting at a computer trying to translate old Romany texts. She seems to have found the curse but before she can tell anyone, Jenny Calendar comes to an untimely end. Angelus chases her around the school grounds, corners her, and snaps her neck. (Check out the poem Passion which Angelus recites in the episode of the same name).
In the season finale of Season Two, Angelus has decided to send the entire world into hell by awakening the demon Acathla who, with his first breath, will create a vortex to hell. This vortex can only be opened and closed through Angelus' blood but this does not bother him because all humans will die in hell whereas the demons will survive and rule. Buffy has also realised that she must face him once and for all for the greater good and she is prepared to fight it out to the death. Unknown to anyone, Willow attempts the Restoration [of the Soul] spell once again from her hospital bed.
{BACKSTORY FOOTNOTE : Jenny had saved the spell on a floppy disk which had not been discovered until quite a while later by Willow. After fierce opposition from Xander, Giles agreed that it had been Jenny's last wish to curse Angelus and so the spell is attempted by Willow. However, this is interrupted by a group of vampires lead by Drusilla. Willow ends up in hospital where she decides that performing the spell might help Buffy who has gone to confront Angelus.}
Buffy arrives at the mansion to stop Angelus but while she is fending off other vamps, he awakens Acathla. Soon, there is a battle to the death between them and after a struggle, Buffy seems to get the upper hand. Angelus has fallen to his knees in front of Acathla and just as Buffy is about to stab him, his eyes glow bright and his face softens - his soul has returned. It is now too late however and Angel is sent to hell to face an eternity of pain and torture.
All is not lost though for about nine months later Angel appears back on earth for no apparent reason. He acts like an animal before Buffy restores him back to health but this time it cannot last between them. They have some good times but their best attempts at being 'just friends' fail and Angel leaves Buffy and Sunnydale at the end of Season Three.
Angel goes to LA and sets up his own business, Angel Investigations, with the help of Cordelia Chase and a half-demon named Doyle who gets visions of those in trouble from The Powers That Be. They are a good team and 'help the hopeless' together until Doyle gives up his life in order to save a group of demon refugees in Hero. However, soon after, an old Watcher going by the name of Wesley Windham-Pryce joins the team after revealing he was sacked from the Council and has been working as a rogue demon hunter since leaving Sunnydale. At the end of Season One the evil lawfirm, Wolfram & Hart, raise Angel's sire Darla whilst Angel gets to know of a prophecy which says that after his battles are over he will become human.
Season Two sees our trio back to work with the help of Gunn, a vampire hunter whom Angel met in Season One. In the meantime, Wolfram & Hart are planning on using Darla as the ultimate weapon against Angel. He did kill her after all. So, the story continues and it seems that there is nothing Angel won't do to save those in need of his help, except of course 'tan, date, and sing in public'.
