[Preface: to avoid misunderstanding of the terms as I am choosing to use them, the Big Bad is the one who drives the season and the story arc; little bads are anyone/anything else, regardless of their degree of 'badness'.]

Season 2: Evil begins to grey and becomes personal.

The BIG BAD
In season 2 the Big Bad was Angelus. A vampire whose reputation for cruelty was legendary. The most vicious creature the Master ever met, and that's saying something. As Angelus, he has no conscience, no sense of much of anything other than the pleasure he derives from causing pain to others. And he is particularly adept at giving emotional and psychological pain. He prides himself on the artistry of it. He never surrounds himself with minions. While he does work with a small group of his family members, Drusilla, whom he sired, and Spike, who was sired by Drusilla, most of what he does is still accomplished on his own. He is alone when he finds Enyos, alone for Jenny; when he leaves the portraits, the fish, the roses he does so in solitude. Actual killing seems almost an afterthought. Perhaps he brings this from the wholesale annihilation of his family and home village: once they're dead, you can't get satisfaction from their reactions. He goes after the Scooby Gang but more to hurt Buffy who has made him feel emotions he despises, than against the Scoobies themselves. It is interesting to note that the only other Scooby he bothers with is Willow with whom he had developed, at the very least, a tentative friendship. He doesn't bother with Xander at all, even though he had an adversarial relationship with him at best. He does however, go after Enyos and Jenny directly, who are members of the clan that cursed him. They who could be seen as responsible for the century of torment he suffered. These two he killed in a spectacularly vicious manner, especially in the way with which he framed the discovery of each death. He looks for the greatest magnitude of destruction or pain he can bring. Quite a contrast to Angel. Angel had set himself squarely in opposition to everything Angelus embraces. He was growing in his ability to assist the Slayer and the Scooby Gang. He is beginning to open himself to emotions other than despair, self-loathing and tormented guilt. This very change, the one that allows him to redress the deeds of his past, to ease his pain, is the one that causes the return of the perpetrator of those deeds. The one thing Angel had in common with Angelus was Buffy. As Willow said, she was still the only thing he thought about. Souled or soulless, his strongest feelings were still reserved for her and her alone. While the season had its little bads there was through all of this the pervasive presence of Angelus, Spike and Drusilla. In the end, Buffy must accept Spike as an uneasy ally, and challenge Angelus in a final battle of Vampire vs. Slayer. And she slays, but the slaying turns intensely personal as Angelus gets his ultimate artistic revenge; she slays Angel.

VAMPIRES
Spike and Drusilla are the most notable of the little bads. It is they who initially challenge the Slayer in ways other vampires hadn't simply because they have a unique relationship and attitude toward themselves and their prey. They make excellent partners with Angelus, but stand effectively on their own as well. Spike removes the threat of the Anointed (or Annoying) one simply because he finds him, well, annoying, then takes over the leadership of the remaining vampires. The relationship between Spike and Drusilla shows the beginning of the graying of the evil. They are able to show affection for each other, which we were led to believe was not possible. They were found to "reek of humanity" by the Judge for their emotional connection. Spike is very much the opportunist, jumping the gun before the Night of St. Vigeus, going out into Ethan's chaos on Halloween, allowing Ford to set up the Lonely Ones Club for the kill, using Willy to capture Angel, using Buffy to regain Drusilla. Spike also shows qualities of a leader by delegating tasks to those who are competent to perform them, such as Dalton, who translates Du Lac's book of spells, and the Order of Taraka. But in counterpoint, many of his own schemes end up in failure simply because he cannot control his impulses or delay gratification. Drusilla is initially quite weak but the reports of her demise were greatly exaggerated. Her feyness adds a level to the insanity that makes her almost ethereal. It's easy to believe she was on the eve of taking vows - she retains an, albeit evil, spirituality. Drusilla shares with Angelus a talent for subtlety and a ruthlessness surpassed only by desire to create chaos. Her torture of Angel is superbly delicate, painful to both body and mind, yet always mindful of the need for Angel to remain alive. It is Drusilla who gives Dalton to the Judge; Dru who goes to the Magic Shop to find out what Jenny had purchased and kills the shopkeeper; Dru who obtains the tomb of Acathla, and kills the curator; Dru who goes to the High School library to get Giles and slays Kendra in the process. Her torture of Giles is exquisite; she invades and violates him in ways Angelus and Spike never even dreamed of. Drusilla enjoys the jealousy and rivalry generated between Spike and Angelus, and revels in exacerbating it whenever she can. Angelus joins her in this, the two of them tormenting Spike, who is in a wheelchair while recovering from the organ falling on him. The three of them make a truly unholy trio, each of them playing off the others, each trying to sow discord among the group, and by doing so sustain the balance of power within the group; Angelus over Drusilla over Spike, in a dysfunctional familial relationship.

There were also Absolom and Colin, the Anointed One, who furthered the Master's agenda, and tried to restore him. They needed the blood (and death) of everyone who was near the Master when he was killed, thus endangering Giles, Jenny, Cordelia and Willow. Although the Anointed One is now the Master of the Order of Aurelius, he needs Absolom and his eloquence to assist his leadership. His leadership is tenuous and based on his being the one prophesied. Their attempt to restore the Master was crucial to Buffy's ability to come to terms with her own death at the Master's hands.

The Gorch brothers came into town looking for some fun. Found something else. Lyle finds a Slayer and has the good sense to run, Tector finds the inside of the Bezoar. The interaction between the two of them is so immature that it is a wonder they have lasted so long. Perhaps there is a good-ole boy luck of the vampire in effect for them, at least until they get to Sunnydale. Their recognition of Angel as Angelus helps to give us more of a sense of Angelus' reputation.

DEMONS
Machida, the embodiment of greed, was the reason for the long line of successful Zeta Kappa alumni. He had corrupted generations who gained financial success through the sacrifice of innocent victims. He's fairly straightforward as demons go: give me the sacrifice I require at regular intervals and I will grant you your avaricious desires. Finally vanquished (with no help from the Guys!-Buffy!-Snake!-Basement!-Now! group), all of the granted wealth and power dissolves.

The Judge was one of the more potentially intriguing demons, ages old, defeated, dismembered, yet not dead, whose purpose is to "rid the Earth of the plague of humanity." Once re-assembled he had the ability to "separate the righteous from the wicked and to burn the righteous down." He would spare only those with no spark of humanity. The first victims he attempts are Spike and Drusilla because of their affection for each other, but this attempt is deflected by Spike, and he is then offered Dalton instead. The books describe him and the battle that finally contained him; "no weapon forged" could kill him. Only the technological advances of our time, and the sheer luck of Xander dressing as a soldier boy for Halloween, allow Buffy to defeat him by blowing him to bits with a rocket launcher. Seriously dismembered, but still not necessarily destroyed. The Judge very nearly rids us of Buffy and Angel, and the aftermath of that encounter returns Angelus to the scene. It is the Judge who gives us confirmation of two important points: the humanity within Spike and Drusilla, and the total lack of humanity within Angelus.

MONSTERS
Daryl Epps is revived by his brother in a horribly disfigured state. He is both unwilling to re-enter society looking like this (his pre-death self was defined by his looks and athletic & sexual prowess) and to shun society in solitude. He was able to convince his brother to provide him with a female companion. Daryl was a reluctant monster; he never asked for his continued existence but in light of its being thrust upon him didn't insist on having it reversed either. He crosses the line eventually into evil when he insists that the companion be finished regardless of what is necessary to do this successfully (the acquisition of a head that has not been embalmed, i.e. a fresh kill). Daryl is an example of the natural order regarding life and death and why it is dangerous to attempt to subvert it.

Ampata the Inca Mummy Girl only wanted a chance to live after being buried alive for half a century as a sacrifice for her people. She was entombed and buried alive never to die, retaining her consciousness and was able to hear what people were saying when she was 'touring.' In Ampata's case she was not necessarily a willing sacrifice, and wanted the chance to be a normal girl. Unfortunately, the only way she could live was to take the life of another: Rodney, the real Ampata, her guardian, attempts at both Jonathan and Willow. She does have some of the experiences she wants with Xander when they fall in love at first smite. He is instantly smitten; she wants this very much. She is stopped only because Buffy and Xander delay her long enough that the re-mummification weakens her so that she can't overpower Xander, whom she is ultimately willing to kill for her own survival. Buffy sees something of herself here in the way Ampata was used by her people for their own survival while being denied any chance at a normal existence for all eternity.

Ted - the (potential) ultimate evil step-parent, insinuates himself into Buffy's life and then makes clear his intent to control her. If he can't control her then he intends to remove her from her life to make room for him. Buffy's instincts about him were quite accurate from the beginning but no one believed that she wasn't acting from jealousy. All assumed that her issues with him were simply because her mother was dating him. His drugging of all but her (only because she was too stubborn to eat his treats) gave her no one to talk to who would believe her after Ted threatened her. But when Buffy believed she had killed him, she cooperated with the police, told the truth to them. Ted's world was controlled and orderly with nothing and no one out of line. His speech was archaic, pure 1950's, as were his attitudes. Ted was Buffy's first confrontation with the possibility that she could kill a human with her Slayer strength out of nothing more than anger. That Ted turned out to be a robot could, however, explain why she was able to do it; perhaps she did 'recognize' his non-humanity.

The Bezoars were another very pervasive evil for humans. With the exception of Xander, whose paternal instincts left everything to be desired, and Buffy, whose Slayer speed and strength kept her safe, the entire school population, staff, students and visitors, were taken over by the baby bezoars and set to work to free the mother. Willow and Cordelia took Xander and Buffy out of action by attacking them unexpectedly. Giles infects Joyce. The bezoars appeared to have a form of collective consciousness in that everyone is often carrying out the same tasks, yet when necessary the mother bezoar is able to communicate specific instructions to individuals. The bezoars are intriguing in that they weren't of demonic origin, but were organic, possibly indigenous, creatures who may have been mutated by the energy of the Hellmouth, or not. In this case, it could be argued that the humans were just as evil from the viewpoint of the bezoars.

Der Kinderstaad, one of the more frightening monsters, had been encountered by Buffy when she was quite young and her cousin, Celia, was in the hospital. Buffy had even watched it kill, but didn't know what she was seeing. Since he is discernible only when the victims are most vulnerable, Buffy must put herself at risk in order to see and defeat the child-killer. It is not clear what kind of monster the child-killer is other than clearly predatory. He feeds on the life-force of his victims, and apparently had determined to take the course of least resistance in doing so, which was a wise choice on his part. Although, children are not his only victims: he also removes adults who stand in his way or are in a position to reduce his ready energy source. When he faces the Slayer, sick though she is, he faces a strength he had never faced before; she still has the ability to defeat and destroy him. Buffy is able to face and destroy an old enemy that had defeated her when she was a child because she couldn't see what was happening and couldn't understand. This allows her to avenge her cousin and remove the threat to other children.

The Amphibian Monsters were created when the swim team 'over-dosed' on a fish DNA steroids and metamorphosed into mammal/fish hybrids which can function both in and out of the water (thus, amphibians). The swimmers who used the most were the first to change, but if nothing had stopped the process eventually all of them would have transformed, including the newest member of the team, Xander. In the 'tadpole' stage they are changing beneath the human skin, then achieve their mature form by breaking out of the confining form through the skin. They are predators (the DNA used could also be considered predator) and when fully transformed have only the instincts of the new form. They are not actually defeated, but allowed to go into the ocean. While they are all male, it should not be assumed that this means they cannot reproduce, especially with the mystical energy of the Hellmouth involved in their existence. Trying to obtain the championship without truly winning it, subverting the process that should be necessary to achieve the goal, when weighed against the consequences is shown to be a far greater price than putting in the effort required to gain it legitimately.

POSSESSION
Eyghon the Sleepwalker who returns to those who once summoned him and then attempted to kill him, including Giles. Ethan Rayne is back once again, as one of the group who, with Giles (Ripper), summoned Eyghon. The three others in the small group, five in all, have been dealt with. Eyghon possesses their dead bodies long enough to get to the next victim but hadn't found a suitable permanent host. The demon attempts permanent possession of Jenny and is thwarted by the unique and most likely unprecedented method of allowing two demons to fight it out for possession of a host; Angel threatens fatal damage to the host body (Jenny) causing the demon to jump to the nearest dead body: Angel. Eyghon lost the battle to a well-entrenched vampiric demon who was "Just waitin' for a good fight." Eyghon crumbles into dust. He wasn't a match for the demon in Angel. Eyghon forces Giles to reveal more of his past and his nature than he wished, but allowed a valuable insight into his character.

The ghosts of James and Grace haunted the halls of Sunnydale High. They weren't seen in current times until the revival of the event that coincided with their deaths: the Sadie Hawkins Dance. Once again, James and Grace are fated to play out their tragic night. Only this time, Buffy becomes involved. She 'sees' the real events in bits and pieces. Things begin to happen in the school that do not reflect the replaying of the murder/suicide. These happenings are of the sort that literally call for the intervention of the Slayer. It is actually not clear which of them is responsible for this. It is generally believed that James was responsible, but a case could be made for Grace doing this. It is Grace who wants to forgive James, to relieve his pain, to allow him to move on. For this to happen she needs the Slayer and the Vampire. She needs to block Willow's spell because binding James would only result in stasis. She surrounds the school with an impassable barrier (thus also preventing more innocent victims) that will allow only Buffy and Angel to pass. The roles are reversed. This is no longer an inevitable re-enactment. Buffy/James 'kills' Angel/Grace, but Angel cannot be killed by gunshot, thus freeing Grace to intervene at last and end the cycle. It is Buffy who recognizes why the two are still bound to the school, and in her comment that James' act does not deserve forgiveness, she reveals how she feels about herself in relation to Angel/Angelus. When James uses her as his representative and she experiences Grace's love and forgiveness and the release of the anger and hurt that tied them here, she is given a beginning to forgiving herself for Angelus, a realization that Angel would forgive her.

The Order of Taraka is a mix of demons and humans who are bounty hunters. They hire out as assassins and don't stop until the job is complete. If the ones originally assigned to the job fail, others simply come in their place until the task is successfully completed. They exhibit a complete disregard for anything other than completion of their mission. The demons involved in the Order are a much more sophisticated variety, far above see-kill-eat. The humans who join are also of a particular type; willing to hunt and kill other humans for a price, possibly just for the satisfaction of getting the job done. The rules are simple: do whatever it takes. The consequences are equally direct: if you succeed, you live, if you don't, you're already dead. For some the simplicity of this has it's attraction. It is not clear why they were called off, unless perhaps finances played into it. In the confrontations with the Order, we find Angel learning that Buffy has completely accepted his vampiric side, Buffy and Kendra working together with a common agenda, and Xander and Cordelia discovering that they don't exactly hate each other.

HUMANS
Chris Epps and Eric, the Doctors Frankenstein of Sunnydale, have revived Chris' brother Daryl and are now assembling a female companion for him from parts of dead girls. They encounter a problem however in the necessity of acquiring a head, with no fresh death in sight and time running out. Chris balks at killing someone but Eric moves blithely along by showing Daryl pictures of Cordelia, Buffy and Willow for Daryl to pick his favorite. Chris is unable to carry out the abduction and assists Buffy in saving Cordelia. Eric, however, sees only his own agenda, which happens to coincide with Daryl's. He wants to create the girl of his/Daryl's dreams just to see if he can. In the end, we don't really know what happens to them except that Chris and Eric both survived. We find that while the two worked together on the same project with the same outcome in mind, their motivations were polar opposites: Chris did it out of love for his brother; Eric did it because he could, out of contempt for those who couldn't.

The Zeta Kappa Frat boys, and all their esteemed alumni, were a long-standing evil. For at least half a century they had consorted with the demon Machida to bring them fortune and power without effort. They were wealthy, charming and lethal. No conscience bothered any of them regarding what was necessary to continue their success. They corrupted generation after generation, each succeeding class indoctrinating the next. They show us how shallow and insubstantial these things are in the absence of any real effort; and also give Cordelia her start into becoming someone of more substance.

Ethan Rayne is more of an enigma. It is not only unclear exactly what power he is invoking (Janus the Roman God? Chaos?), but what his purpose is. He wreaks havoc among those who wear his costumes. They become what they are dressed as in mind and body. Their physical and mental abilities are completely altered. But Ethan remains in the back room of his store taking no advantage of the chaos he has brought forth, unless his purpose was to see what would happen. Being beaten into submission by Rupert (Ripper) Giles was not likely what he had in mind. In some ways this is some of the purest evil we've seen - bringing chaos forth just to see what it would do. When trying to avoid Eyghon, his motives are much clearer: remove the mark from himself and place it on someone else. This is an act of self-preservation by finding a substitute target, since Eyghon is drawn by the Mark, not by the bearer. In the ensuing chaos, Ethan, being no fool, runs. Ethan continues to give us insights into Giles' background and character that the self-effacing Watcher/librarian wouldn't ordinarily divulge.

Billy Fordham wanted to become a vampire so he won't completely die. To achieve this he was prepared to set up a group a innocent fools to be killed while he arranged that he alone would be turned. Ford was Buffy's crush in 5th grade and obviously a friend who knew her fairly well. He is both sympathetic and villainous at the same time. One can understand why he wants what he does, but not that he's willing to bring so many sacrificial lambs to the slaughter in order to gain it. It's not entirely clear why he didn't just have the blonde vampire turn him in return for not staking her, instead of just making her tell him where he could find the vampires lair. In allowing her to go free, he is also indirectly responsible for Drusilla's recovery, as it is the book she takes from the library that contains the ritual to restore Dru's strength. It may be that he's so drawn to the tradition that he has to have his ritual, must be turned by the leader, must have all the right things said. And in the end, he gets what he wants and the Slayer is waiting. Billy's case is particularly sad because we can understand his despair, his desire to have a life to live. What we, and Buffy, can't forgive is his willingness to have so many other die for him to survive.

Cain the hunter, hunted for sport and profit. Having been prohibited from hunting elephants he turned to an entirely unprotected species for which he found a lucrative market. He has no doubts about what he does; for him it's a job that satisfies him. He rationalizes killing the human aspect of the werewolf in several ways: only killing while it is in wolf form (although granted - no pelt in human form), killing the werewolf prevents it from making future kills (death penalty versus imprisonment), they are animals and therefore subject to his whims. He is not defeated in the end, nor does he learn anything (except maybe not to underestimate little girls); he simply has to take his predations to a different venue. Cain is a villain with no moral code, no ethics, no compassion, who hunts because he's good at it, with no regard for the rules unless they impact the market for his kills.

Coach Marin wants success so badly that he is willing to achieve it regardless of the cost. He has managed to produce a 'steroid' that will enhance his swim team's performance in the pool. He uses his boys as alpha test subjects, with or without their permission. When it becomes clear that there are 'serious side effects' he ignores them. As the boys metamorphose one by one, his only real concern is that he's having trouble fielding enough swimmers to have a competitive team. He still 'takes care' of his changed boys by feeding them and providing for other needs when possible. He has absolutely no conscience regarding his actions with the boys, or those he's willing to take to keep his activities unchallenged. He murders the school nurse, he tries to do so to Buffy, and is willing to take out Xander, but Xander is ready for him. He is finally killed by his own 'boys' when he swings at a rescued Buffy and falls into the water after she trips him; the amphibian monsters attack and kill him.

Willy is the stereotype of the show. Opportunist, sneak, squealer, stooge. He's always on the lookout for the best deal, and would cross, double-cross and triple-cross anyone for the right price. He professes his loyalty, exudes his fear, but both of these are only of the moment, and when the next chance comes by, the circumstances alter to fit it. He provides a hangout for the (H)ST's of Sunnydale, but doesn't exclude humans. The only rule at Willy's seems to be "don't do your fighting in here."

And of course, Principal Snyder, who just won't go away. He's more active this season, involving himself with Buffy the delinquent and her gang of ne'er-do-wells. He's more directly related to causing harm to others. In School Hard, it is at his instigation that the window is opened and one life lost. If he had not insisted that Buffy 'volunteer' for the Halloween safety program, she might have been able to prevent some of the damage caused. He encouraged Coach Marin to continue his enhancement program so he could brag at the principals' meetings and required Willow to give a passing grade to one of the swimmers so he would remain eligible. And not to forget his statement to the police when they arrest Buffy at the scene of Kendra's death, and his expelling of her in the final episode. It is this season when we learn of his purpose at the school and his involvement with the mayor. We learn that he, and the police, know about the Hellmouth.

And the other bads of this season in BBB and Phases - Buffy's friends, Oz, Xander, Amy, even Giles. In these episodes, the damage that was done was unintentional. In Oz's case it was, as much as can ever be, innocent damage. And only because he takes two whole days to figure out that the werewolf might be him, after his cousin Jordy, who doesn't like to be tickled, bit him. He tries to restrain himself for the third night but is unintentionally prevented by Willow. He then willingly submits to being caged for the safety of others during his change. Xander's case is different. He intends harm, just not the harm that results. Amy is brought into Xander's plan by blackmail, but what is the subject of the blackmail? Casual use of witchcraft for personal gain. Xander wants revenge. Thank the heavens there wasn't a male vengeance demon wandering around Sunnydale at the time. Amy submits to the blackmail rather than recognize that what she was doing, casual magic for her own benefit, was wrong. Amy also doesn't hesitate to use transformation, once successfully, once prevented, against those she saw as rivals. Giles was one of the group who summoned Eyghon and then created more problems by trying to keep the group out of it. If he had told Buffy what was happening, the group might have been more prepared when they were attacked in the library; if he had told them more about Ethan, Buffy might have had more caution in dealing with him. But to do so he would have had to reveal parts of his past that no longer fit with his perception of himself as he is now: the Watcher, the keeper of the knowledge, the sage.

The evil faced in season 2 is less black and white. This time, there are still the vampires, monsters, demons, possession and evil humans. But another layer is added. This time it's personal. Angel becomes Angelus; now we have a Big Bad whose motives are examined. Buffy and Angel are used to exorcise the HS ghosts and their personal relationship is reflected cruelly. Two schoolmates, one of whom is a friend of Willow's, attempt the murder of Cordelia to create a Bride of Frankenstein. Billy Fordham was a crush of Buffy's in fifth grade who is now willing to sacrifice others to ensure his longevity. Giles' past comes back to endanger them all when he is unwilling to share it. Ted is romancing her mother, and insinuating himself into her home life. The frat boys present themselves as friendly college boys who are interested in Cordelia and Buffy, neither of whom find this unlikely, then become dates from hell. Amy is a friend of theirs. Oz is beginning to develop a romance with Willow, and is, of them all, the one who most takes responsibility for himself. Xander betrayed them all with his desire for revenge on Cordelia. Willow and Cordelia appear to turn on Buffy and Xander when they are under the influence of the Bezoars. Most of the swim team, including someone she went out with, turned into monsters. Machida, Daryl Epps, the amphibian monsters and Eyghon were brought to Sunnydale through human machination. Even Buffy's mother is taken aback when she learns that Buffy is the Slayer and slow to adjust to the significance of the calling. The evil faced this season is most significant. It is not clear cut. It forces the Slayer and the Watcher as well as the Scoobies to reassess their vision of evil, since it now includes themselves, as well as demons who show humanity. In the end, Buffy is reft and bereft; not welcome at home, expelled from school; not knowing how Angel had returned, knowing only that she had sent him into hell. Again, the ultimate revenge for Angelus: no weapons, no friends, no hope. In the end, just Buffy.

Your feedback is welcomed!

part three...