Vampire Healing

[white avenger]

We've seen both Angel and Spike jump out of 2nd and 3rd story windows and hit the ground running without so much as a sprained ankle and been hit so hard that they literally crash through walls. Illyria threw Angel out a window that had to be 20 stories or more above the ground, a fall that should have at the least broken every bone in his body, and he gets up a few moments later, spits out a mouthful of blood, and he's ready to fight again.

My question is, what made the beatings that Spike got from Glory and the First Evil, and, to a lesser extent, the beating that Angel and Spike gave each other when they fought over the Cup of Perpetual Torment, so much worse that they required considerably more healing time?

 

[Blondie Bear]

Um . . . plot convenience? 😀

 

[Kali]

Um . . . plot convenience? 😀

Funny, I said the same thing about some claims of 'foreshadowing' a few weeks ago (well, I said plot device, but, you know!)

I think it's the inconsistency that is the issue. Sometimes much more minor fights seem to cause greater pain and discomfort. Or maybe they are just hamming it up for their girl's sympathy vote. Like vampire man flu.

Yeah, I'd go with the latter 😀

 

[Crazy Flakes]

I was going to argue and say, "Hey, maybe those guys are all just really strong?", but then I remembered another incident like those that didn't involve fighting another character. In season 4, while Buffy was running from Adam, she tripped over a rock and fell unconscious as well as having a scrape on her forehead for the next couple of episodes. One season later, she fell about three quarters of the way down from that HUGE tower Glory's minions built and got up after about a second without a scratch on her.

Yeah, when it comes to their characters' strength, Buffy and Angel have some of the worst continuity I've ever seen.

 

[Fusions2]

Like everyone else I do think its bad continuity that comes down to it although for some moments their different healings can be feasible. Like with Glory beating Spike up to a bloody and bruised pulp that could be down to her extreme strength. But it doesn't make sense when he goes flying off the tower after being stabbed that it takes him forever to move off the cracking floor.

Yet Angel will go flying off a building (same with Darla) and land perfectly on his feet or just cough up some blood and he'll be ok.

Talk about confusing... lol.

 

[Buffyverse Fan]

We've seen both Angel and Spike jump out of 2nd and 3rd story windows and hit the ground running without so much as a sprained ankle and been hit so hard that they literally crash through walls. Illyria threw Angel out a window that had to be 20 stories or more above the ground, a fall that should have at the least broken every bone in his body, and he gets up a few moments later, spits out a mouthful of blood, and he's ready to fight again.

My question is, what made the beatings that Spike got from Glory and the First Evil, and, to a lesser extent, the beating that Angel and Spike gave each other when they fought over the Cup of Perpetual Torment, so much worse that they required considerably more healing time?

Glory, Spike, Angel & Slayers hit harder than a 20-story fall 😛

 

[itsxpaperdoll]

Yeah, mostly it would be just crappy continuity. But, well, what with Glory being a God, I can imagine Spike feeling reasonbly shitty after a good beating from her. And same with when Angel and Spike were fighting, they're both the same strength, so I guess they can really hurt eachother. Or it was the vampire man flu.

 

[ILLYRIAN]

As Dawn told Amanda, when Dawn thought she was a potential but it turned out to be Amanda; vampires do feel pain but they don't let it stop or hinder themselves.

 

[Kana]

Well vampires are quite resilient as well. I think Spike and Angel also cut each other up a little with wood (vampires are severly alergic which explains why it doesn't take much strength to stake a vamp) that could also hinder a vampire more. Also Glory may have tortured Spike in heart which gives vampires severe ouchies (if they are not using wood). Other than that Angel and Spike are relatively resilient and even if they are hurt they can still go on relatively well.

 

[Silum]

I dont see TOO big of a continuity problem. I think falling hurts but their strong, they have stronger bones etc. So when two really strong vamps fight (both have extra strong bones in their fists for example, then they are gonna start doing some serious damage. Its like the joker says "this what happens when an unstoppable force ..hits an immovable object". Take Glory for example, she was sticking her hand inside of him with very little effort, shes strong, every punch is like a freight train and is very different from a fall.

The only anomaly is Buffy gettin knocked out against Adam, id say when she fell she hit her head hard. When she fell from up high she always landed on her whole body sideways or on her feet... we never saw anyone fall directly onto their head.

 

[Buffyverse Fan]

The only anomaly is Buffy gettin knocked out against Adam, id say when she fell she hit her head hard. When she fell from up high she always landed on her whole body sideways or on her feet... we never saw anyone fall directly onto their head.

Slayers are less durable than Spike & Angel anyway.

 

[Relic]

With the ground bit when Spike falls from Glory's tower and it takes him awhile to get up, I think some of it was because Glory had just beat him bloody not long ago and he was still on the mend.

Also, though it never says anything to suggest this as true, another possibility is that the ground is consecrated for Glory's ritual and had been blessed. Be it by good forces or bad in D&D, +1 is still +1 as far as vampires go. Hitting consecrated ground from a height like that would be like getting wailed on by a blessed baseball bat.

One theory I have about Angel and Spike being able to tear into each other so easily is that they are linked so closely in their blood line, I've never saw this fight and thought that whole "cup of perpetual torment" was just a wise guy remark about their brooding and what not. That said, you can clearly see i don't know much about their fight.

During this point are Spike and Angel both souled vampires? If thats the case they are very closely linked besides just bloodline and they may be both so closely in tune that they could loose some of their supernatural resistance to one another.

Just supposing and working off of other vampire lore not really supported by Joss and co. It could be just plot convenience, but whats the fun in that? I enjoy trying to cook up excuses for oddness in the writing elements like these.

 

[Buffyverse Fan]

Well if you don't watch Angel I don't know how much you can weigh in here at all. Most of the examples of Vamp durability are in Angel, since the show follows a vampire rather than a slayer.

Angel gets hurt, but not knocked out from jumps off of high-rises.

Angel gets hurt from bullets, but can still stay in a fight.

Angel gets hurt from being impaled with a sword, but he can still stay in a fight.

Angel gets hurt from being staked in the neck, but still stays in a fight.

Most of those things would kill Buffy or Faith.

 

[atticus]

It is bad continuity, and a definite plot convenience, but also in regards to Buffy, being knocked out. You have to remember she is living and breathing. Spike, Angel and all Vampires are dead. Just walking corpses. Why not throw yourself of a roof, hey, what's it going to do kill you, nope,already dead. If Buffy was done the damage that the likes of Angel and Spike face, she would probably die, her body would give up, they don't have to worry about that.

 

[Buffyverse Fan]

It is bad continuity, and a definite plot convenience, but also in regards to Buffy, being knocked out. You have to remember she is living and breathing. Spike, Angel and all Vampires are dead. Just walking corpses. Why not throw yourself of a roof, hey, what's it going to do kill you, nope,already dead. If Buffy was done the damage that the likes of Angel and Spike face, she would probably die, her body would give up, they don't have to worry about that.

I don't know about bad continuity, but I'm with you on the rest. The fact that Spike often seems to get hurt more is because Angel enjoys pain and Spike doesn't. Angel's also older and somewhat stronger, imo (when properly motivated).

I always thought Joss should have made Slayers more resistant to bullet & stab wounds. A smart bad guy would just arm all his guys with machine guns to take her out. We saw that 3 Watchers with guns posed a major threat to Buffy & Faith, and Angel had to do most of the work since he's resistant to bullets...

 

[ILLYRIAN]

What would make Angel keep going when Spike would have had enough?

Spike wore his inner demon on his sleeve, where-as Angel's inner demon ( Angelus ) taunted him at every opportunity.

On another note...how many times did Angel fall out of a high rise building?
Illyria threw him out at extra slow speed, he only fell normal speed the last six foot, that wouldn't have been a problem.

 

[Buffyverse Fan]

What would make Angel keep going when Spike would have had enough?

Spike wore his inner demon on his sleeve, where-as Angel's inner demon ( Angelus ) taunted him at every opportunity.

On another note...how many times did Angel fall out of a high rise building?
Illyria threw him out at extra slow speed, he only fell normal speed the last six foot, that wouldn't have been a problem.

I'm with white avenger. Especially since a toss through a window + a six foot drop would not have caused Angel as much damage as he took.

 

[Kana]

I don't know how to explain it but Illyrian is partially correct. Illyria WAS NOT moving superfast, Wesley actually stated that was illusion because everything else was was moving really slowly, was Angel was 'falling in slow-mo'. I think even if Angel was falling in slow mo, he'd still be as hurt as he was if he was falling at full speed, still got injured, but in slow motion. I almost think of it like a tape player, everything happened as it would but in slow motion. Theoretically, it could have reversed the process and Angel would be fine again. lol.