What If: What if Angel never returned in S3?

[famicommander]

The Mayor was always going to have some sort of henchmen at his side, if it wasn't Faith it would have been Mr Trick and we don't know what he would have conjured up and we don't know what The Mayor would have added to his team if he didn't have Faith but it would have been something so I don't know how you can say with certainty that the gang would have destroyed the box of Gavron and the ascension would have been prevented if Faith hadn't done some things because that's just imagining the same events playing out but without Faith without considering what would have taken Faith's place on The Mayor's side and what that could contribute to the situation.

Faith was considerably more capable than any of the rest of The Mayor's henchmen. It's a big part of the reason why he favored her so much.

None of them would have known about the Books to begin with if Faith hadn't been there with Buffy when the demon approached them.

As for the box, when the Mayor's people initially collected it Buffy was there and would have intervened had Faith not killed the guy with her longbow; that's when Buffy decided to follow her. And then when they broke into City Hall to steal it back they got away with the box, but Faith was able to grab Willow to make the trade.

 

[NoShip]

I admit I was thinking more of it happening in S5.

"I'm in love with you Buffy."

Faith stakes him. "Mine!"

That works. 😀

Post automatically merged: Mar 30, 2024

I admit I was thinking more of it happening in S5.

"I'm in love with you Buffy."

Faith stakes him. "Mine!"

Although, if Whedon succeded in getting rid of the sexy vampires, we never would have seen Spike again.

 

[Bop]

Faith was considerably more capable than any of the rest of The Mayor's henchmen. It's a big part of the reason why he favored her so much.

None of them would have known about the Books to begin with if Faith hadn't been there with Buffy when the demon approached them.

As for the box, when the Mayor's people initially collected it Buffy was there and would have intervened had Faith not killed the guy with her longbow; that's when Buffy decided to follow her. And then when they broke into City Hall to steal it back they got away with the box, but Faith was able to grab Willow to make the trade.

In Faith's absence I think The Mayor would have found someone with more power than Mr Trick to collect the box he seemed to like Mr Trick for his creativity, and the slayerfest was creative but failed to kill Buffy. I don't think The Mayor would rely on Mr Trick to retrieve the box.

In the case that The Mayor gets the box, even someone like Mr Trick could have managed to kidnap Willow when they raid The Mayor to take the box.

 

[CardboardGhost]

I think it would have both given the season a bit more of a melancholy tone (because Buffy would still be grieving) but also remove some of the interpersonal tension early in the season (since Buffy wouldn't have ever hidden Angel's return from anyone). I don't think either of these is a bad thing. Personally I would have waited a while before bringing Angel back... I think Buffy having to go through that grieving process fully and move on and then be faced with seeing him again, possibly years later, would have so much more drama and significance to it. We see the hints of this (her saying goodbye and leaving the ring to show that she's moving on), but ultimately I think he just comes back way too quickly for me to appreciate it. But I also don't really like the character and appreciate him much more as a villain than as a love interest, so I might have been doomed to be bored by him post-season two, regardless.

And if Angel isn't there, this would really change Buffy's dynamic with Faith; I like the idea of maybe having Buffy flirting around with boys who remind her of Faith/are the kind of guys Faith would want, or coming around to Faith's more cynical view of romance and relationships, especially leading up to "Bad Girls" (where Buffy tries to follow Faith's lead and act like her) and after Faith joins the mayor (to show Buffy's complicated feelings about missing Faith).

 

[NoShip]

Personally, I think if Buffy and Faith were together, Faith would have staked Spike. 🙂

Rest assured - if Buffy and Faith were together, Spike would not have survived Consequences. Faith would NEVER put up with Spike's sh!t for more than about thirty seconds. No Angel and Spike becomes a Dead Man Walking.

 

[AlphaFoxtrot]

Angel's return is the only direct clue in a thousand years that the First Evil is anything more than one of the better Twilight Zone Villains, just between Billy Mumy as One and a tie for Third between Angry Bigot and Haunted Object. Buffy may have been at a disadvantage in Season 7 if she never had contact with the Ghost of Christmas Dead Girlfriends Past.