Angel's Accent

white avenger

white avenger

white avenger
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Assuming that David could have managed it, would you have liked to see Angel played with an (Irish) accent the way that Spike was portrayed with the British accent?

Personally, I think that it might have made the character a bit more authentic, if it wasn't laid on too thick. Assuming that he had been away from Ireland for most of his undead two hundred years, the accent would have certainly faded, but it should be at least noticeable, possibly becoming more prevalent in moments of stress.
 
Yes, I agree with you, that would've been great to see. But the fact is that his accent wasn't great, so it's better that he didn't. Although I give him total props for at least trying!

James' accent OTOH, was fantastic! Say this American anyway. 🙂
 
spikecakes said:
If the accent was a tad better, absolutely! But, personally, I think it would've taken the focus off Spike and all the fangirls saying:

"OOOOOOH MY GOD! Spike's accent is so hot!"

.. and that would be bad. 🙁
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LOL!

And then we would've had 2 Irish accents on ATS, and that might've been too much. 😉
 
S
spikecakes
LMFAO. There'd end up being no American's on ATS, just purely run by the English and Irish.. and Cordy.
VisionGirl said:
LOL!

And then we would've had 2 Irish accents on ATS, and that might've been too much. 😉
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If you're referring to Doyle, as he was only there less than a single season, I don't think that there would have been much of a problem. And, as far as that goes, there wasn't any problem caused by Spike and Giles having similar accents, or Giles and Wes, or Wes and Spike.
 
I don't know, he'd have to make it sound really authentic for it to be passable. I don't really like fake Irish accents much. It made sense for him to not have that accent though, due to all the travelling he did over the years. Infact I'm more confused that after so much time spent away from Britain that Spike has a British accent.
 
VisionGirl
VisionGirl
[No message]
Kean
Kean
Just a tad! :p
sisterofmercy said:
It made sense for him to not have that accent though, due to all the traveling he did over the years. In fact I'm more confused that after so much time spent away from Britain that Spike has a British accent.
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As for Spike, quite possibly he retained his accent just out of pure stubbornness and a refusal to change. Or maybe Dru told him at some point that she liked his accent.
 
S
sisterofmercy
Valid points
white avenger said:
As for Spike, quite possibly he retained his accent just out of pure stubbornness and a refusal to change. Or maybe Dru told him at some point that she liked his accent.
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Didn't he change his accent though? To my American ears, anyway, his Spike accent sounds different from the cultured British one you'd expect from William. I think he kept the accent cause it fit his Spike personality.
 
Well about Spike...some peeps lose thier accents and some don't.....I personally stood with my accent when I moved away yrs ago while my older sister developed a down south accent....everybodys different.....some people got a knack for picking up accents when they move to other places....I'm not one of them
 
I am going with a no. I was going to say yes because I was thinking of how much I love hearing Nathan talk on Misfits but yeah I don't think I would have liked it.
Spike's accent seems natural so natural I forget James doesn't have one.
 
T
Tintaglia
Misfits! <3
No, I would not have liked it if David played Angel with an Irish accent throughout the show. I like him with the American accent much much more 🙂
 
The original question had the qualifier, "Assuming that David could have managed it," so I wasn't suggesting the "accent" that Angel actually uses in the series. I was referring to David being able to di an Irish accent at least as well as Adrian Paul did as Duncan Macleod in the "Highlander" TV series. I agree, as it actually was presented, David's Irish was terrible.
 
I'd agree that Spike's London accent doesn't reflect the social background that William came from, so it's probably an attitude thing which he adopted to reflect his new persona. I might be wrong but I occasionally hear a slight Irish intonation in some of Angel's lines, though- nothing specific, just in the speech pattern. The one that winds me up, however, is Drusilla- she has a very corny stage West Country accent which never sounds real.
 
P
prophecygrrl
Interesting about Drusilla. I'm American, but it sounds real to me. :D
sisterofmercy said:
I don't know, he'd have to make it sound really authentic for it to be passable. I don't really like fake Irish accents much. It made sense for him to not have that accent though, due to all the travelling he did over the years. Infact I'm more confused that after so much time spent away from Britain that Spike has a British accent.
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The theory that I have cooked up for myself to explain Angel's sudden American accent is that it was his choice to change it. When Angel came to America on the poor ships, being Irish in America was not something to be sought after. In fact, during that time the slogan "No Dogs, No Blacks, No Irish" was being used to full effect. You got off the boat and you moved into a slum or tenement. That was how it was. From what we see of Angel pre-AYNOHYEB he appears to assimilate into American society. He looks after himself, he wears nice clothes, he eats well. An Irish accent would have hindered that. So, dropping the accent was part of how he faded into the background of society. A well to do man with an Irish accent stood out, but an American accent obviously didn't.

That's my theory and I am sticking to it! The fact that Dru, Spike and Darla all retained their native accents despite centuries of travel show that travel itself doesn't result in the loss of accent and re-enforces that adopting an American persona was a conscious decision by Angel.

#historyexplainseverything!
 
S
sisterofmercy
You've clearly put some thought into that :p
Skanky Vamp
Skanky Vamp
I thought it might have also been an attempt to avoid the draft, but it was after the war so thats a moo point.
Taake
Taake
[No message]
If it could have been done well, I think it'd make that character way hotter. But I think Angel wanted to distance himself completely from Angelus, so he dropped the accent.

(That and DB can't do a proper Irish accent to save his life... 😛)
 
Considerring DB's irish accent was the worst one I've ever heard in my life then i'm glad they didn't, if he could have managed it then it would have been better, gotta love the irish accent 🙂 x
 
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