Who Was The REAL Doctor?

[white avenger]

Riley Finn comes back to Sunnydale, new wife in tow, in "As You Were" to kill/capture the Suvolte demon and deal with the big bad international arms dealer, the Doctor. Now, assuming that Spike is innocent, who do you think that the real Doctor was?

My vote would go to Warren. It's just the sort of ruthless cold blooded thing that he would do, and it might also explain how Spike got involved with it. Warren could have promised to pay Spike enough money for storing the eggs to help Buffy Buffy
(that might have even been what Spike meant when he tried to get Buffy to quit her job at the Double Meat Palace)

 

[MinwaraYana]

Lol, Spike was the real Doctor. But assuming he's not? I'll go for Doc from season 5 because his name is Doc and we still don't know if he's dead yet after Buffy pushed him off the tower. 😀

 

[Tueuse de Vampires]

I thought it was just a random demon, no one worth mentioning. But now that I heard the Warren theory, it does sound logical!

 

[Skanky Vamp]

Well, since we are ASSUMING that Spike is not the good Doctor and Dan Aykroyd (anyone? does ANYONE get that?) was busy.. when we consider a large amount of Suvolte demons would make a favorable army I can conclude that (assuming the doctor is not spike) the Doctor is actually Xander. This would sever two purposes, if Spike does deliver the Suvolte demons to him he can launch his campaign as Twilight with a demon army at his command (which did not happen) or, if Riley busts Spike then Spike is removed and disgraced from Buffys life, ergo Xander wins. In either case it is a win/win situation. Xander is the Doctor.

 

[ukkid09]

I thought spike was the real doctor or did i miss something lol ...

 

[Mumrik]

I thought spike was the real doctor or did i miss something lol ...

This is hypothetical. And since the episode leaves a lot of unanswered questions and doesn't really make any sense in character (Spike's), a good question. I remember reading a very good article on this topic but I have no idea to which conclusion it came.

 

[Tranquillity]

Well I don't think Spike was the Doctor - I mean it makes no sense. No phone, no refrigeration, no money, hell they guy had a shark after him for kittens, no way he was going to have the deals in place to arrange international demon smuggling. I do believe he was holding them 'for a friend' and it was to get money for Buffy so she wouldn't have to work at Double Meat Palace. i don't think the 'friend' was actually a friend but more a passing business aquaintance because Spike is pretty much dispised in the demon world or it might suggest that Clem is our international demon dealer. But no, I think that Riley is 'the doctor' and that he set up Spike to take a fall and teach Buffy a lesson. That's my story and I'm sticking to it 🙂

 

[Wesley]

I think it's the Doctor from Angel S5 who gave Gunn his Super Attorney Powers...


Or maybe it's Lilah?

Glory?

The Master?

 

[Skanky Vamp]

But no, I think that Riley is 'the doctor' and that he set up Spike to take a fall and teach Buffy a lesson.

No. Not at all. See, unlike others in the 'verse, pretty much if Riley has a problem he is straightforward. He wouldnt need to create this Doctor persona; not once in the season was he portrayed as anything but the little 'boyscout' he was... to do something like that would be out of character, especially considering he was not acting out of character anywhere else in that episode. I agree Spike was Lee Harvey but Riley was not Jack Ruby.

 

[Flannen]

I agree with sco, if it's considered out of character for Spike to have done it, then it most certainly is for Riley. I could see why he'd want to do something like that considering his past with Spike, but there's no way he'd even dream of doing something like that.

 

[Joan the Vampire Slayer]

white avenger, I've put a lot of thought into this and although it seems to fit that it was Warren, I think Riley set the whole thing up in an attempt to bring down Spike. After all, he always hated him. Hostile 17 - the guy who got away. The one he failed at capturing. The one who got his girl.

In all fairness to him, I think he felt bad about it later and tried to make up for it. Remember in S7 when that message is relayed about Spike, that Buffy could get his chip removed or keep it in? I think Riley had a hand in getting it removed. Thoughts on this? I could be wrong. Been a while since I watched As You Were.

 

[Skanky Vamp]

Remember in S7 when that message is relayed about Spike, that Buffy could get his chip removed or keep it in? I think Riley had a hand in getting it removed. Thoughts on this? I could be wrong. Been a while since I watched As You Were.

Well, they DID say that Agent Finn said Buffy could do whatever she wanted to do in regards to the chip, so yeah. You think that was because he felt guilty? If he felt guilty of anything it is because he was happy with a living partner and she was scrounging for scraps with another dead man.

 

[Tasha]

Yeah I've always been confused about this subject too... :/

 

[Flannen]

I pretty much said this earlier, but I just don't think that Riley is capable of even thinking of doing something like that, let alone actually going through with it. Sure, he hates Spike, and quite rightly so, but he'd clearly moved on from Buffy by this point and is not the type to be so petty. He has never shown any signs of having a side like that. You could argue the vampire thing was dubious, but that was clearly a weak and very low point in his life, and not something that actually shows his true self.

 

[Skanky Vamp]

You could argue the vampire thing was dubious, but that was clearly a weak and very low point in his life

you cant fault him for that because what red blooded American man wouldnt want to get sucked on by a vamp tramp.. wait.. not THAT one! 😉

 

[white avenger]

The fact that something like this IS so out of character for someone like Riley would put him among my list of top suspects, or, even better, Sam. If she feels at all possessive and protective of her husband and his feelings, she would certainly want to get back at the woman who broke his heart, and breaking up that girl's relationship with the vampire who Riley hated would seem to be the perfect way to kill two birds with one stone. She no doubt expected Buffy to stake Spike immediately.

Riley's (supposed) statement to leave all decisions concerning Assface to Buffy to me seems more like the reaction of someone who is wiping their hands of the whole situation and walking away in disgust than someone who trusts the Slayer to do the right thing.

But then I've expounded on my Riles/Sam Conspiracy theories concerning "As You Were" before, and Warren is still my prime candidate for the Doctor right now.

 

[Mumrik]

Even though I don't like Riley I tend to agree with Flannen and Scobro. He doesn't like Spike (or any demon for that matter) but he wouldn't do that to Buffy just to rub in her face how low she has sunken in his eyes. Now, killing him, that he probably would do if he got the chance but framing him like this... no. That's out of character. As is Spike as the doctor.

I, personally, like the Warren theory.


Edit: HAH! I found the article I was referring to earlier:

Captain Cardboard, or How I Learned To Stop Seething And Love "As You Were"

There's also a thread in the Cemetery.

May be interesting for people who haven't read this.

 

[sosa lola]

Sadly, I think it's still Spike. It was a badly written plot, sure, but it's not an out of character thing for Spike. He said he'd bring the money to Buffy, and I wouldn't put it past him to do it in an illigal way.

The Warren theory can't work, he wasn't even in the episode, and there was no mention of him even.

 

[Wesley]

Oh this is a real question? I haven't seen the episode in maybe a year but I have to say I thought they hit you over the head with 'The Doctor is Spike' at the end there?


Why the heck would Riley sell eggs of a demon just to show off his new wife to Buffy? Just seems very odd.

 

[Flannen]

Yeah I find the Warren idea a bit strange. It just doesn't seem like something he'd get involved. He was one of the nerds then, they were preoccupied with their own silly ideas and Warren didn't get so crazy until Seeing Red. It just doesn't seem like something he'd do, to me, anyway.