why did xander want to kill angel in season 3 then? he made it seem like angel was evil to faith and then said "can i watch?" when faith went to kill him. but buffy had explained that angel had a soul. i never understood why, in season 3, everyone wanted to kill angel and didn't trust him--they knew the spell had worked before buffy sent him to hell and they knew that angelus is very different from angel. yet, xander still wanted to kill him. xander is very very petty sometimes.
"Kick his ass:" Xander was right
- Thread starter Parcae
- Start date
Blondie Bear
Zydrate Addict
I think that's your answer right there. I think--in this particular case--he failed to separate Angel from Angelus, he was angry that Buffy had been sneaking around, he was angry that Buffy was with Angel, and he was being petty. It all kind of culminated in this rush of "gotta kill Angel!" until Giles got hurt and he slowed down--and started worrying--enough to realize that this really wasn't Angel's style. But by then, he'd already pointed a volatile Slayer at Angel, and Faith wasn't the slow-down type. So when Buffy found out, Xander just got all sullen because he couldn't admit he'd been wrong (most people can't; it's a general psychological thing, not a bad Xander personality trait).
H
hazzard
[No message]
LorneyTunes
I've been forking!
Xander like my banner says hes my hero I love him. Yet in some ways I think it was ok for him to say "kick his ass" maybe he thought Willow couldn't do the spell she was kick messed up and hurt. Also he did want to see Buffy get rid of the bad guy who has hurt everyone close to her . But I think Jealousy was behind a large percentage of it.
I'm not so sure Blondie Bear, that he was being petty, but rather stupid and untrusting of Buffy (not that she actually deserved trust so much in this instance).
Buffy had shown a bit of an unstable streak at the end of season two begining of three with running away, as well as hiding Angel from her friends and lying to them. She was also acting strangly and not herself, due mostly to what had happened between her and Angel at the climax of season two. If I were her friend (and i sorta feel I am) when witnessed through the eyes of giles or xander or willow...I might think she has some mental issues to work through and that she could make some very bad decisions/ poor judgements concerning Angel/Angelus.
One of the undercurrents of season three is that love can make you do strange things..from the Jeckal and Hyde episode with the abused girlfriend protecting her abuser, to drugs and emotional immaturity leading to some strange hook ups (band candy and Zeppo) to the whole Angel "if you love someone set them free" effect, I saw a lot of 'romantic love' influence on season 3.
Perhaps Xander was thinking Buffy had slipped up (or might again) or that they were being played by Angelus. Angelus was last seen by xander as a monster that killed/harmed/tortured his friends....and had been sucked into hell. The odds of him walking around in Mr. Rogers mode is as rare as a good vampire.
I do agree he has difficulty seperating Angel from Angelus at this point in his character growth, but I don't think his drive to kill 'them' is petty, more so he wants to protect his friend from a monster and her own demonstrated (thus far) bad decisions.
I believe he thinks that either Angelus and Angel are one in the same, or (unlikely) that Angel is possibly hell deranged/ not really Angel....that it is all some sort of trick.
The difference between this act and the season two comment are very different to me. This one I believe to be a very poor decision made for a similiar motive but a different set of circumstances.
This event isn't in the same vein as the kick his ass comment to me....this one is more stupid blind protection whithout consulting Giles and crew and really having a heart to heart with Buffy (not that poor excuse for an intervention) when there was time available to and risk was not of armegedon caliber..
Buffy had shown a bit of an unstable streak at the end of season two begining of three with running away, as well as hiding Angel from her friends and lying to them. She was also acting strangly and not herself, due mostly to what had happened between her and Angel at the climax of season two. If I were her friend (and i sorta feel I am) when witnessed through the eyes of giles or xander or willow...I might think she has some mental issues to work through and that she could make some very bad decisions/ poor judgements concerning Angel/Angelus.
One of the undercurrents of season three is that love can make you do strange things..from the Jeckal and Hyde episode with the abused girlfriend protecting her abuser, to drugs and emotional immaturity leading to some strange hook ups (band candy and Zeppo) to the whole Angel "if you love someone set them free" effect, I saw a lot of 'romantic love' influence on season 3.
Perhaps Xander was thinking Buffy had slipped up (or might again) or that they were being played by Angelus. Angelus was last seen by xander as a monster that killed/harmed/tortured his friends....and had been sucked into hell. The odds of him walking around in Mr. Rogers mode is as rare as a good vampire.
I do agree he has difficulty seperating Angel from Angelus at this point in his character growth, but I don't think his drive to kill 'them' is petty, more so he wants to protect his friend from a monster and her own demonstrated (thus far) bad decisions.
I believe he thinks that either Angelus and Angel are one in the same, or (unlikely) that Angel is possibly hell deranged/ not really Angel....that it is all some sort of trick.
The difference between this act and the season two comment are very different to me. This one I believe to be a very poor decision made for a similiar motive but a different set of circumstances.
This event isn't in the same vein as the kick his ass comment to me....this one is more stupid blind protection whithout consulting Giles and crew and really having a heart to heart with Buffy (not that poor excuse for an intervention) when there was time available to and risk was not of armegedon caliber..
B
Blondie Bear
Makes sense to me.
I think it was more anger at Buffy, because she kept Angel coming back a secret, not to mention that he'd found her "kissing" Angel recklessly after knowing that giving Angel a happy was what made him Angelus in the first place.
I understand his anger and think he went too far with it. I think he was doing it to hurt Buffy more than wanting to kill Angel. Which in my book makes him appear worse than if he was just being scared and paraniod at Angel's return.
clemsgirlfriend
Potential
I've read through all the posts now, and i'm surprised that something still hasn't been brought up, which bothered me while reading the very first post of this thread. Buffy had not proven herself again and again in season 2 to be unwilling or unable to kill Angelus. She was only unable to kill him that one time that she had a chance, *right after he turned evil*, when she had started out completely in love with Angel, and knowing that he was completely in love in her, and having lost her virginity to him in an evening motivated by love.
The very next day, he says hurtful things to her, but she still doesn't know that he has lost his soul because of a loophole in the curse that she did not yet know about, and feels hurt but still loves him. Then, when she finds out that the curse has made him lose his soul, she stops the judge and fights angelus, but at that moment hesitates and is unable to kill him, in their first fight after he loses his soul.
She does realize afterwards that she needs to kill him. We see her apologizing to Giles for not killing him when she had the chance. We see her seeking him out in the graveyards and wanting to fight him and get it over with so that he can't kill anymore innocent people. She doesn't kill him in one such scene in Killed by Death because she is sick and faints, not because she has fluffy bunny feelings for him. In other scenes in Becoming part 1 we see her hunting him and him hiding from her. Then when he does show up for a fight, she is willing to kill him there, but when she realizes that it is a trap to pull her away from her friends, she runs back to try to protect them as her first priority. But in all of those episodes after Innocence, we see her ready and willing to fight and kill Angel. In Becoming, she even tells the scoobies that she will fight and kill him if necessary, but that she thinks that Willow should try to re-ensoul Angel in case her fight is unsuccessful and he kills her, so that earth will be protected from his violence and they will have a back-up plan.
So at the time that Xander lied to her about Willow's message, she had demonstrated herself to be willing to fight and kill Angelus on more than one occasion, with the only time she couldn't being immediately after his turning, when she was caught by surprise by it.
So i disagree with the whole premise of the lie being okay because it kept her alive or protected her. She was there to fight Angelus, prevent him from awakening the demon, and kill him. Without Xander's lie. But by telling the lie, he did indeed betray both Buffy and Willow, and not in a way that protects her, as she was there already to kill Angelus, but because he wants angelus/angel killed, regardless of what form he is in, most likely out of jealousy and mistrust. (Note his trying to get Faith to kill Angel-with-a-soul in s3, and his unwillingness to let Anya be killed in s7 - those are pretty good after-the-fact indicators that jealousy was part of his motivation, and not just safety of the world's populace.)
What could he have said to egg her on to battle instead of lying about Willow's message? He could have said "kick his ass", without telling her that Willow said it, so that she knew she had his approval for the kill, without making her think that Willow agreed with that, too. He could have said nothing at all. If he really wanted to start the message and then stopped himself, he could have said 'She loves you. Now go out there and kick his ass', or something that doesn't misrepresent what Willow is doing, but still without giving her hope. He could have done what one poster suggested - say 'nothing, it's not important - i'll tell you later. No go and kick his ass.'
Note that by letting her think that both he and Willow wanted her to kill Angelus, he actually created some distance that made her think (apparently correctly in his case but incorrectly in Willow's case) that they couldn't understand what she had gone through once the fight was over. That, combined with Joyce telling her not to come back and being expelled from school, left her feeling like there was no one she could talk to about what had happened, and that she couldn't return home. Although she could have called, say, Willow or Giles that summer to let them know that she was okay and should have done that, it is also true that Xander's lie distanced her from Willow as well as from him, so he cut her off from her best friend, exactly when she most needed her best friend in her life.
Her friends and family should have been held responsible for their parts in her leaving, and Xander was being the hardest on her when she came back, riding her for running away and making her mom worry, when her mom had kicked her out and Xander *himself* had distanced himself, and Willow, without her (Willow) knowing it, from Buffy, with his 'kick his ass' comment, making it clear that he would not understand what she had gone through, and making her think, incorrectly, that Willow wouldn't have understood, either. Instead of picking on her when she came back until she saved their lives from the zombies that Joyce summoned to the big party, they could have had a quiet gathering and discussed the role that each of them played in her leaving, instead of only her role/blaming everything all on her, and they all could have forgiven each other. Instead, Joyce and Xander, the two most responsible for her leaving, were the harshest, didn't acknowledge their roles in it at all, and then just dropped the subject when she saved their lives.
The very next day, he says hurtful things to her, but she still doesn't know that he has lost his soul because of a loophole in the curse that she did not yet know about, and feels hurt but still loves him. Then, when she finds out that the curse has made him lose his soul, she stops the judge and fights angelus, but at that moment hesitates and is unable to kill him, in their first fight after he loses his soul.
She does realize afterwards that she needs to kill him. We see her apologizing to Giles for not killing him when she had the chance. We see her seeking him out in the graveyards and wanting to fight him and get it over with so that he can't kill anymore innocent people. She doesn't kill him in one such scene in Killed by Death because she is sick and faints, not because she has fluffy bunny feelings for him. In other scenes in Becoming part 1 we see her hunting him and him hiding from her. Then when he does show up for a fight, she is willing to kill him there, but when she realizes that it is a trap to pull her away from her friends, she runs back to try to protect them as her first priority. But in all of those episodes after Innocence, we see her ready and willing to fight and kill Angel. In Becoming, she even tells the scoobies that she will fight and kill him if necessary, but that she thinks that Willow should try to re-ensoul Angel in case her fight is unsuccessful and he kills her, so that earth will be protected from his violence and they will have a back-up plan.
So at the time that Xander lied to her about Willow's message, she had demonstrated herself to be willing to fight and kill Angelus on more than one occasion, with the only time she couldn't being immediately after his turning, when she was caught by surprise by it.
So i disagree with the whole premise of the lie being okay because it kept her alive or protected her. She was there to fight Angelus, prevent him from awakening the demon, and kill him. Without Xander's lie. But by telling the lie, he did indeed betray both Buffy and Willow, and not in a way that protects her, as she was there already to kill Angelus, but because he wants angelus/angel killed, regardless of what form he is in, most likely out of jealousy and mistrust. (Note his trying to get Faith to kill Angel-with-a-soul in s3, and his unwillingness to let Anya be killed in s7 - those are pretty good after-the-fact indicators that jealousy was part of his motivation, and not just safety of the world's populace.)
What could he have said to egg her on to battle instead of lying about Willow's message? He could have said "kick his ass", without telling her that Willow said it, so that she knew she had his approval for the kill, without making her think that Willow agreed with that, too. He could have said nothing at all. If he really wanted to start the message and then stopped himself, he could have said 'She loves you. Now go out there and kick his ass', or something that doesn't misrepresent what Willow is doing, but still without giving her hope. He could have done what one poster suggested - say 'nothing, it's not important - i'll tell you later. No go and kick his ass.'
Note that by letting her think that both he and Willow wanted her to kill Angelus, he actually created some distance that made her think (apparently correctly in his case but incorrectly in Willow's case) that they couldn't understand what she had gone through once the fight was over. That, combined with Joyce telling her not to come back and being expelled from school, left her feeling like there was no one she could talk to about what had happened, and that she couldn't return home. Although she could have called, say, Willow or Giles that summer to let them know that she was okay and should have done that, it is also true that Xander's lie distanced her from Willow as well as from him, so he cut her off from her best friend, exactly when she most needed her best friend in her life.
Her friends and family should have been held responsible for their parts in her leaving, and Xander was being the hardest on her when she came back, riding her for running away and making her mom worry, when her mom had kicked her out and Xander *himself* had distanced himself, and Willow, without her (Willow) knowing it, from Buffy, with his 'kick his ass' comment, making it clear that he would not understand what she had gone through, and making her think, incorrectly, that Willow wouldn't have understood, either. Instead of picking on her when she came back until she saved their lives from the zombies that Joyce summoned to the big party, they could have had a quiet gathering and discussed the role that each of them played in her leaving, instead of only her role/blaming everything all on her, and they all could have forgiven each other. Instead, Joyce and Xander, the two most responsible for her leaving, were the harshest, didn't acknowledge their roles in it at all, and then just dropped the subject when she saved their lives.
I disagree that he wanted Angel killed. If he did, he would have cheered Kendra on in What's My Line. Instead, he was against the idea of killing Angel. Angelus' role in hurting the gang was obviously the biggest reason why Xander wanted him killed.
I don't think Xander went to Buffy with the intention to lie. He was about to tell her the truth when suddenly Buffy interrupted him with a hopeful, "What?" Seeing how hopeful she got, Xander got scared and lied. What if Buffy stalled while waiting for Willow to do the spell, that is if Willow was able to do it right in her weak condition, what if Angelus killed Buffy? What if Angelus sent the world to hell?
I think the mere reason why he lied was fear, and yeah, he wanted Angelus killed. Why wouldn't he want Angelus killed after all he did?
I agree with you that Xander should have told Buffy the truth in S3, should have had a talk about what happened with Buffy and Willow. But in S2, I actually sympathize with how he feels. In the beginning of S3, he was out of line. At least, he made up for it when he helped Buffy save Angel in Amends and Graduation Part 1.
clemsgirlfriend
Potential
I agree with you that Xander does not want Angel killed at the time that he makes that statement to Kendra in What's my line?. But i think that his sending Faith after Angel-with-soul in early season 3 Revelations shows that he does want Angel killed at that time. So the question is, when does his opinion change? I think there is evidence in the show that it changes when Angelus kills Jenny. Not only does Xander at that point say i told you so and urge Buffy to kill Angelus, but he also tells the gang that he hated angel long before they did (yes, he says angel, not angelus), and he is angry when buffy and willow discuss doing a spell to re-ensoul angel, which would kill angelus and leave angel alive. That happens in becoming, before his lie to buffy, so he has demonstrated in the show by that point that he did want angel dead, and not just angelus. Staking angelus kills them both. Re-ensouling him kills only angelus and leaves angel alive. In the fight for world safety, having a strong vampire with a soul fighting evil is better for the world, so i do think that jealousy played a role in his decision at that point. It was responsible for his not liking angel in the first place (before ever knowing that he was a vampire), and for telling buffy that she should kill him, even when he had a soul (in season 1, episode Angel). It was responsible for him telling kendra that he doesn't like angel, and for telling buffy to kill angelus in passion, and then for getting *angry* with her in becoming for wanting to re-ensoul him, even though that is a safer option, as far as human safety is concerned. It was a completely understandable and human emotion to want angel/us permanently dead after he killed Jenny - i don't fault him for feeling that way at all. But i do think that he hurt Buffy by isolating her from her friends by telling that lie, especially since she was already on her way to fight and kill angelus anyway, and was ready and willing to do so (unlike during the only chance she had had previously, during innocence).
Who knows what the effect would have been if she had known about the spell? Maybe without feeling like she could run him through with a sword as a 'back-up' plan, she would have put more focus on preventing him from awakening the demon in the first place, but most likely the battle would have turned out no differently. But as other posters mentioned already and i repeated in my post, even if he had originally intended to give Willow's message and then changed his mind, he could have said something else (see the post above for two examples) that would have had the same fighting effect that he thought he needed to have (wrongly, in my opinion, but if that were his goal), without distancing her from her best friend and betraying both her and willow in the process. That's the problem that i have with his lie. It caused lots of emotional damage that he not only never took responsibility for, but that he even had the gall to completely blame buffy for in s3. But even telling it in s2 i think was problematic, and he could have handled that differently, by not saying the lie, and the fight would have been the same (because he could still have said 'kick his ass', but coming from him, when he stopped himself from saying the original message, after saying 'nothing. never mind.' when she said 'what?').
Who knows what the effect would have been if she had known about the spell? Maybe without feeling like she could run him through with a sword as a 'back-up' plan, she would have put more focus on preventing him from awakening the demon in the first place, but most likely the battle would have turned out no differently. But as other posters mentioned already and i repeated in my post, even if he had originally intended to give Willow's message and then changed his mind, he could have said something else (see the post above for two examples) that would have had the same fighting effect that he thought he needed to have (wrongly, in my opinion, but if that were his goal), without distancing her from her best friend and betraying both her and willow in the process. That's the problem that i have with his lie. It caused lots of emotional damage that he not only never took responsibility for, but that he even had the gall to completely blame buffy for in s3. But even telling it in s2 i think was problematic, and he could have handled that differently, by not saying the lie, and the fight would have been the same (because he could still have said 'kick his ass', but coming from him, when he stopped himself from saying the original message, after saying 'nothing. never mind.' when she said 'what?').
Which still links to what Angelus had done. The first time Xander sees Angel after S2 was in the mansion where Buffy was recklessly kissing him, knowing full well that a moment of true happiness sets Angelus free. That sight angered and scared Xander at that same time.
I think he wanted to hurt Buffy's feelings more than actually wanting to kill Angel, because when Xander found Giles knocked out on the floor, he tried to stop Faith from going after Angel telling her that Angel wasn't the one who hurt Giles. If he really wanted Angel dead, he would have lied and told Faith that it was Angel.
But then Xander implied to Buffy that Angel was the one who hurt Giles, because he wanted to hurt Buffy. Now that for me is worse than him merely wanting Angel dead. He was petty and cruel in that episode.
Xander had been so supportive of Buffy after Angel lost his soul "“see Phases. He'd saved his "I told you so" until one of them had died, which was understandable and easily sympathized with.
Here's a drabble by a2zmom that shows Xander's feelings:
Xander was scared, but not worried. OK, Angel was now crazy psychopath guy, but Buffy would protect them. She always saved the day.
But instead classmates started dying. And Angel left a little present for Willow. And finally he murdered Ms. Calendar.
Through it all Buffy did nothing. Xander had read enough comics to know this was not how superheroes behaved. The more he stewed about it, the more his fear morphed into anger.
As he stepped into the library, his harsh words spewed out. If she thought she couldn't kill Angel, he'd shame her enough that she would anyway.
Actually everybody calls him Angel in s2, no one called him Angelus, not even Buffy.
I guess it shows that Xander couldn't separate Angel from Angelus at that point. Soul or no soul, it was the same guy.
Of course, Xander didn't like Angel, in the beginning, because he was jealous that Buffy liked him. He didn't like Owen and the other men Buffy was interested in because Xander liked Buffy. But then, Xander finally moved on by the end of S2 -or the beginning of S3- as he wasn't jealous of Scott and didn't care if Buffy dated him.
I don't think Xander wanted to isolate Buffy from them, if he did, then her leaving town wouldn't have hurt him so much.
As for Buffy killing Angel, she could have done it so many times. They already knew where Angel was -the factory- and yet Buffy did nothing. I don't think she was ready to kill him... until Passion.
I don't think when he said "Kick his ass", he meant putting words into Willow's mouth. It was a spur of the moment, he didn't think when he said it. He said exactly what he felt. He wanted Angelus dead.
BuffyElevated
Scooby
This is such a tired subject by now... but I will state my case yet again.
I really hate that people bash Xander for this. I truly think that it was not the writers' nor the character's motive to lie or put words into someone else's mouth. I think that his intention was that he didn't want her to know what was going on in case it didn't work. Why tell her and then let her get herself killed just because she kept waiting for someone who was never going to show? Stalling could have proven to be a deadly mistake for Buffy in that situation, and Xander knew that. He had already seen that Angelus would stop at nothing to get to Buffy, and I think Xander was terrified that Buffy might end up like Mrs. Calendar or worse. Was it wrong to say that Willow said it? Yes. He shouldn't have said "Willow said" before he said "Kick his ass". But you know what? BLAME THE WRITERS, not the character! LOL
I really hate that people bash Xander for this. I truly think that it was not the writers' nor the character's motive to lie or put words into someone else's mouth. I think that his intention was that he didn't want her to know what was going on in case it didn't work. Why tell her and then let her get herself killed just because she kept waiting for someone who was never going to show? Stalling could have proven to be a deadly mistake for Buffy in that situation, and Xander knew that. He had already seen that Angelus would stop at nothing to get to Buffy, and I think Xander was terrified that Buffy might end up like Mrs. Calendar or worse. Was it wrong to say that Willow said it? Yes. He shouldn't have said "Willow said" before he said "Kick his ass". But you know what? BLAME THE WRITERS, not the character! LOL
I don't think Xander lied out of pettiness or hatred. He lied because as soon as he said "Willow-" Buffy stalled. She stopped right in front of him, hopeful, and Xander worried that would put her and the world in danger.
I'm not saying Xander's always right, I think his worst episode in the series is 'Revelations' where he tried to have Angel murdered behind Buffy's back, but I don't think 'Becoming' was one of those cases. He honestly did what he thought was right.
I think Xander's unable to see clearly with the Angel/Angelus situation. I don't agree with his "Angel needs to die" rant in 'Becoming' even if I somewhat understand it. If they could get Angel back they should at least give it a go, he didn't want to hear it. I’ve also always been a bit worried about what he says in ‘Passion’ when he says he deserves to say “I told you so.” That proves Xander can’t seem to distinguish between Angel and Angelus and their different nature and that he expected this kind of behaviour from Angel all along. That’s really worrying and a tad sad for Xander he’s unable to appreciate the dichotomy in their behaviour.
I do like that it was left ambiguous (though in an interview Joss said it wasn't out of jealousy) and I can see why people believe it was out of hated and jealousy. This happened only an episode after Xander voiced his disgust at giving Angelus back the soul and wanting him to die. I can see why people would find it hard to believe he’s suddenly all about nobility and not revenge.
I'm not saying Xander's always right, I think his worst episode in the series is 'Revelations' where he tried to have Angel murdered behind Buffy's back, but I don't think 'Becoming' was one of those cases. He honestly did what he thought was right.
I think Xander's unable to see clearly with the Angel/Angelus situation. I don't agree with his "Angel needs to die" rant in 'Becoming' even if I somewhat understand it. If they could get Angel back they should at least give it a go, he didn't want to hear it. I’ve also always been a bit worried about what he says in ‘Passion’ when he says he deserves to say “I told you so.” That proves Xander can’t seem to distinguish between Angel and Angelus and their different nature and that he expected this kind of behaviour from Angel all along. That’s really worrying and a tad sad for Xander he’s unable to appreciate the dichotomy in their behaviour.
I do like that it was left ambiguous (though in an interview Joss said it wasn't out of jealousy) and I can see why people believe it was out of hated and jealousy. This happened only an episode after Xander voiced his disgust at giving Angelus back the soul and wanting him to die. I can see why people would find it hard to believe he’s suddenly all about nobility and not revenge.
BuffyElevated
[No message]
I know that a well-tried, but he still should not say this! Willow asked him about something completely different. He could tell the truth. That they will try restored Angel soul. But he didn't. Maybe if he told the truth... Angel be still alive (if I can say that 😉)? Because Buffy will seeks to stop him alive as long as possible. I bet that it would be.
It wouldn't have made a difference.
Buffy was intercepted by the vampire henchman and couldn't get to Angelus in time before he pulled the sword out of Acathla. Wether she knew or didn't know it changes nothing, it'd have just caused her even more necessary heartache throughout the rest of the fight.
Besides, what if she had went “easy” on him to try and by time for Willow’s spell to kick in? Angelus wasn’t playing anymore, he wanted her dead and he almost succeeded when Buffy was already giving it all. It was too risky for Buffy to “hold back” against the guy when he’s trying to cut her up with a sword.
Buffy was intercepted by the vampire henchman and couldn't get to Angelus in time before he pulled the sword out of Acathla. Wether she knew or didn't know it changes nothing, it'd have just caused her even more necessary heartache throughout the rest of the fight.
Besides, what if she had went “easy” on him to try and by time for Willow’s spell to kick in? Angelus wasn’t playing anymore, he wanted her dead and he almost succeeded when Buffy was already giving it all. It was too risky for Buffy to “hold back” against the guy when he’s trying to cut her up with a sword.
Revolver
Sir Douche
Ummmm, Angel was still alive after this. I mean, Buffy says a number of times that she killed Angel but this isn't really true. She stabbed him with a sword. Swords do not kill vampires. Then he got sucked into a hell dimension, but he wasn't anymore dead than Fred or Connor when they went to hell dimensions.
B
Blondie Bear
As far as she knew, though, he was gone.
Yeah, yeah, I know. But I was thinking that she might not need to kill him (or rather send to Hell, but sometimes, like you wrote, Buffy says "I killed Angel" and I know it's wrong but sometimes I say that too 'cause I am accustomed 😉) and Angel would be "alive" - so stay in Sunnydale and not have to go to Hell 🙂 But I a little badly expressed this. 🙂