Angel/Wes (Angel the Series)
Title: Angel's Repressed, and Wes Has a Bucket
Author: sockkpuppett
Spoilers: Buffy The Vampire Slayer and Angel the Series
Email: sockkpuppett@livejournal.com
Personal Website: http://kamil.slashcity.com/eyecandy
I've spent the past few weeks, ever since spren_cious asked me to write this, *fretting* about it. I vid a lot of Angel, and most of my vids have had an Angel/Wesley foundation. Angel/Wesley is, for me, romantic potential realized. For me, it's All About Angel, and for Angel, it's All About Wes.
Angel's Repressed and Wes Has a Bucket
And what about Angel? Well, to start with: Dark, brooding, immortal, demon-possessed (or at least leased), existentialist, unhappy, noble, selfish, asinine, tragic, well-meaning hero. Cursed with a soul, trying to fulfill his destiny with a direct line to The Powers That Be, every good intention fraught with despair and tragedy. Sexy, repressed, gorgeous. Did I mention gorgeous? Angel personifies no good deed going unpunished, which makes for very entertaining television. Also, he's an alpha male--dominant in nearly every situation by his mere presence. Angel inspires loyalty. Somehow. He also inspires envy, revenge and lust. I'm all over it. Angel drowns in guilt over his previous unlife, and he's on the wagon for any sort of emotional release. He's repressed. He has to be. He can't get too happy without reverting to Angelus. He can't get too angry without reverting to Angelus. He can't really do much of anything without reverting to Angelus or frightening the passersby. It adds to the mystique for the leading man to be all deep and obviously passionate and be unable to deal with it it because he's so repressed. Until, of course, he explodes into various acts of violence, sexual and otherwise. (God, I love that.)
That said, I adore Wes. Almost as much as I adore Angel. No other character in the Jossverse, with the exception of Spike, has evolved to the extent that Wes has. When I first saw Wes in Bad Girls, I was taken aback by the arrival of such a one-dimensional, priggish buffoon on a show where every character, from Anya to Oz, was nuanced and complex. That was what I was supposed to think. Wes's refusal to get with the program pissed me off, and in retrospect, it was supposed to. Around Graduation Day, layers started to appear. By the time Wes showed up in LA, holding a crossbow to Angel's throat, I was seeing lots of layers. Never mind that Angel disarmed him immediately. Sunnydale Wes would never have had the nerve to do it in the first place. What happened?
The Wesley who arrived in Sunnydale was the Watchers Council's best choice. He was Head Boy. Resourceful, politic, well-read, authoritative, athletic, egotistical...giving off a blatant bisexual vibe (had we not been privy to his ill-fated flirtation with Cordelia, there would have been no question of his orientation). He had NOT A SINGLE CLUE. He walked into an unheard-of state of affairs: two Slayers--one rebelling against the Council and the other gone over to Evil, a group of high school students holding back Hell, and a vampire cursed with a soul. Anyone the WC sent to Sunnydale would have been ill-equipped to deal with the situation, from Quentin Travers to Roger Wyndam-Pryce. Wes actually came around pretty quickly. It only took him a few months to realize that Buffy was right--the Council was in England and didn't know which way her back was facing. By the end of Season 3, Wesley discarded his Watcher misconceptions and came over to Buffy's side (which, politically speaking, was career suicide). Where he ended up in the battle of the Ascension foreshadowed where he'd be for the next five years in LA--at Angel's side.
Back to Wes's evolution. Every part of him seemed to evolve once he was in LA. (That Joss was able to pull off that sort of whirlwind character development and keep the core character intact was nothing short of genius.) There was only one thing that remained static: his fascination with Angel--from Parting Gifts to Not Fade Away. When Wes arrives in LA, he is emulating Angel in every way that he can, from his clothing to his job description. Angel is amused, but from their first leather-overdosing meet-cute in the demon's apartment, Angel sees the value of having a man of Wes's talents and education working at Angel Investigations. Over the course of the first season, Wes's fascination quickly evolves into devotion. Wes and Angel hit it off very well and have a comfortable, easy relationship, from the beginning.
ANGEL: Wesley, you don’t even have sales resistance. How many thighmasters do you own?
WESLEY: The second one was a free gift with my ‘Buns of Steel.’ (IGYUMS, ATS 1x14)
Within two episodes, Angel trusts Wes to chain him to the bed (Somnambulist, ATS 1x11). Within three, they're discussing their appearing gay to Cordy's friends (Expecting, ATS 1x12). Within six episodes, Wes has chained Angel to the bed without Angel's consent, and leaves him there (Eternity, ATS 1x17). This sort of set up is very appealing. You can see where this is going, right?
ANGEL: That was charming.
WESLEY: What about the fact they thought we were gay?
ANGEL: Adds mystery. (Expecting, ATS 1x12)
Where this is going is that Wes has a bucket. I believe that not only are Angel and Wesley a remarkably satisfying slash pairing, Wes is the dominant member of the two. All through the series, there are little hints to this side of Wes's character. Allow me to elaborate:
WESLEY: (aside to Gunn) Why do people keep putting me in charge of things?
GUNN: I have no idea.
REBELS: Hail! (There's No Place Like Plrtz Glrb, ATS 2x22)
ANGELUS: Oh, come on, we all know it's for the best. Now you can go for the real prize. (eyeing Wes) Mm. Man, I'm telling ya... man, if I swung that way... Look at him- (whistles) all rugged and handsome and brains... man, he's damn-near perfect.
WESLEY: Thank you. (Calvary, ATS 4x12)
ANGEL: Look, we're getting the work done. As long as I keep doing what I do, doesn't matter if I believe in the Shanshu or any other prophecy.
WESLEY: I'm sorry, Angel, but nothing matters more. Hope: It's the only thing that will sustain you, that will keep you from ending up like NUMERO 5. (The Cautionary Tale of Numero Cinquo, ATS 5x6)
WESLEY: Angel dedicated his life to helping others, not because he had to, but because it was a path he'd chosen. If he's been swayed from that, influenced... then maybe there's still time. We can bring him back. He'd do the same for any of us, regardless of our actions. (Power Play, ATS 5x21) That, my friends, is devotion. In the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary, Wes believes in Angel and his goodness.
All through the series, Wes has an understanding of The Mission before it's even called that. The greater good. In Wes's mind, Angel is part of, if not all of, the greater good. If he has to make a hard choice, it'll be for Angel, the greater good. I've said this before, but the reason that Wes was so devastated about Angel going beige and firing them is because Wes worships Angel the way a knight worships his king. The reason Wes stands firm in Power Play is because he knows that he cannot follow an evil manpire; therefore Angel cannot be unsalvageable. He has declared his allegiance to Angel and will die for his cause.
This understanding of and commitment to The Mission is like catnip to Angel. He needs someone to believe in him, even when it's difficult and burdensome. He needs someone with whom he can be himself, and Wes is the man who knows both Angel and Angelus and still stays around.
Finally, in Not Fade Away, as the gang disperses, each to kill his assigned demon or die trying, Wes looks at Angel and nods goodbye, and Angel understands. Wes has given his life to The Mission and for Angel's Good Fight. And that, my friends, is romance.
Recs and Links:
Go watch my vids! So Real, Prophecy, Here
Disclosure Series by Katriena Knights
Perfect Match by Overworked
Strategy by The Brat Queen
Take This Longing by Magpie and Wesleysgirl
All quotations are from the Project Angel Taskforce
Author: sockkpuppett
Spoilers: Buffy The Vampire Slayer and Angel the Series
Email: sockkpuppett@livejournal.com
Personal Website: http://kamil.slashcity.com/eyecandy
I've spent the past few weeks, ever since spren_cious asked me to write this, *fretting* about it. I vid a lot of Angel, and most of my vids have had an Angel/Wesley foundation. Angel/Wesley is, for me, romantic potential realized. For me, it's All About Angel, and for Angel, it's All About Wes.
Angel's Repressed and Wes Has a Bucket
And what about Angel? Well, to start with: Dark, brooding, immortal, demon-possessed (or at least leased), existentialist, unhappy, noble, selfish, asinine, tragic, well-meaning hero. Cursed with a soul, trying to fulfill his destiny with a direct line to The Powers That Be, every good intention fraught with despair and tragedy. Sexy, repressed, gorgeous. Did I mention gorgeous? Angel personifies no good deed going unpunished, which makes for very entertaining television. Also, he's an alpha male--dominant in nearly every situation by his mere presence. Angel inspires loyalty. Somehow. He also inspires envy, revenge and lust. I'm all over it. Angel drowns in guilt over his previous unlife, and he's on the wagon for any sort of emotional release. He's repressed. He has to be. He can't get too happy without reverting to Angelus. He can't get too angry without reverting to Angelus. He can't really do much of anything without reverting to Angelus or frightening the passersby. It adds to the mystique for the leading man to be all deep and obviously passionate and be unable to deal with it it because he's so repressed. Until, of course, he explodes into various acts of violence, sexual and otherwise. (God, I love that.)
That said, I adore Wes. Almost as much as I adore Angel. No other character in the Jossverse, with the exception of Spike, has evolved to the extent that Wes has. When I first saw Wes in Bad Girls, I was taken aback by the arrival of such a one-dimensional, priggish buffoon on a show where every character, from Anya to Oz, was nuanced and complex. That was what I was supposed to think. Wes's refusal to get with the program pissed me off, and in retrospect, it was supposed to. Around Graduation Day, layers started to appear. By the time Wes showed up in LA, holding a crossbow to Angel's throat, I was seeing lots of layers. Never mind that Angel disarmed him immediately. Sunnydale Wes would never have had the nerve to do it in the first place. What happened?
The Wesley who arrived in Sunnydale was the Watchers Council's best choice. He was Head Boy. Resourceful, politic, well-read, authoritative, athletic, egotistical...giving off a blatant bisexual vibe (had we not been privy to his ill-fated flirtation with Cordelia, there would have been no question of his orientation). He had NOT A SINGLE CLUE. He walked into an unheard-of state of affairs: two Slayers--one rebelling against the Council and the other gone over to Evil, a group of high school students holding back Hell, and a vampire cursed with a soul. Anyone the WC sent to Sunnydale would have been ill-equipped to deal with the situation, from Quentin Travers to Roger Wyndam-Pryce. Wes actually came around pretty quickly. It only took him a few months to realize that Buffy was right--the Council was in England and didn't know which way her back was facing. By the end of Season 3, Wesley discarded his Watcher misconceptions and came over to Buffy's side (which, politically speaking, was career suicide). Where he ended up in the battle of the Ascension foreshadowed where he'd be for the next five years in LA--at Angel's side.
Back to Wes's evolution. Every part of him seemed to evolve once he was in LA. (That Joss was able to pull off that sort of whirlwind character development and keep the core character intact was nothing short of genius.) There was only one thing that remained static: his fascination with Angel--from Parting Gifts to Not Fade Away. When Wes arrives in LA, he is emulating Angel in every way that he can, from his clothing to his job description. Angel is amused, but from their first leather-overdosing meet-cute in the demon's apartment, Angel sees the value of having a man of Wes's talents and education working at Angel Investigations. Over the course of the first season, Wes's fascination quickly evolves into devotion. Wes and Angel hit it off very well and have a comfortable, easy relationship, from the beginning.
ANGEL: Wesley, you don’t even have sales resistance. How many thighmasters do you own?
WESLEY: The second one was a free gift with my ‘Buns of Steel.’ (IGYUMS, ATS 1x14)
Within two episodes, Angel trusts Wes to chain him to the bed (Somnambulist, ATS 1x11). Within three, they're discussing their appearing gay to Cordy's friends (Expecting, ATS 1x12). Within six episodes, Wes has chained Angel to the bed without Angel's consent, and leaves him there (Eternity, ATS 1x17). This sort of set up is very appealing. You can see where this is going, right?
ANGEL: That was charming.
WESLEY: What about the fact they thought we were gay?
ANGEL: Adds mystery. (Expecting, ATS 1x12)
Where this is going is that Wes has a bucket. I believe that not only are Angel and Wesley a remarkably satisfying slash pairing, Wes is the dominant member of the two. All through the series, there are little hints to this side of Wes's character. Allow me to elaborate:
- Angel fires the gang, and Wes becomes their leader (Redefinition, ATS 2x11). He's very authoritative, and even when Angel comes back to the fold, Wes doesn't give an inch (Epiphany, ATS 2x16). Also in Epiphany, Angel, recognizing Wes's authority, wants to work for him, not the other way around.
- When they're in Pylea, more people recognize that Wes is a leader. He makes the hard decisions, like sending men off to die and encouraging Angel to let his demon out.
WESLEY: (aside to Gunn) Why do people keep putting me in charge of things?
GUNN: I have no idea.
REBELS: Hail! (There's No Place Like Plrtz Glrb, ATS 2x22)
- In Season 3, when Wes discovers the prophecy that The Father Will Kill the Son, his love for Angel is so strong that he takes Connor. Wes was ready to sacrifice that relationship to save Angel. He nearly dies, and all hell breaks loose, but consider his intentions. (That, my friends, is love--not just eros, not just filial, but *agape* love for Angel.) (Sleep Tight, ATS 3x16)
- Wes, after his throat is cut, after Angel tries to suffocate him, spends an entire summer with a woman chained in his closet with only her bucket for company in his unceasing effort to locate Angel. (*That*, my friends, is Love.) And he does! After Wes rescues Angel, he feeds him his own blood (it's a metaphor). (Deep Down, ATS 4x1)
- Angel recovers, finds Wes and apologizes (Ground State, ATS 4x2). Not the other way around. That may have been Angel's dream scenario, but that's not how it happened. (Awakening, ATS 4x10)
- Wes stands his ground when the gang calls forth Angelus, and when they face off, he doesn't blink. (Soulless, ATS 4x11)
ANGELUS: Oh, come on, we all know it's for the best. Now you can go for the real prize. (eyeing Wes) Mm. Man, I'm telling ya... man, if I swung that way... Look at him- (whistles) all rugged and handsome and brains... man, he's damn-near perfect.
WESLEY: Thank you. (Calvary, ATS 4x12)
- When the gang takes over Wolfram & Hart, there's a question of who's in charge when Harmony calls for the boss, and both he and Angel answer her. Wes just forgot where they were for a second. (Conviction, ATS 5x1)
- Wes is Mr Pep Talk.
ANGEL: Look, we're getting the work done. As long as I keep doing what I do, doesn't matter if I believe in the Shanshu or any other prophecy.
WESLEY: I'm sorry, Angel, but nothing matters more. Hope: It's the only thing that will sustain you, that will keep you from ending up like NUMERO 5. (The Cautionary Tale of Numero Cinquo, ATS 5x6)
- Even in the midst of Wes's unparalleled grief for Fred, when he throws down the Orlon Box and gets all of the memories back in a rush, Wes understands and still loves Angel. (Origin, 5x18)
- When the rest of the gang is worried that Angel has finally gone over to the Dark Side, Wes still believes in him.
WESLEY: Angel dedicated his life to helping others, not because he had to, but because it was a path he'd chosen. If he's been swayed from that, influenced... then maybe there's still time. We can bring him back. He'd do the same for any of us, regardless of our actions. (Power Play, ATS 5x21) That, my friends, is devotion. In the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary, Wes believes in Angel and his goodness.
All through the series, Wes has an understanding of The Mission before it's even called that. The greater good. In Wes's mind, Angel is part of, if not all of, the greater good. If he has to make a hard choice, it'll be for Angel, the greater good. I've said this before, but the reason that Wes was so devastated about Angel going beige and firing them is because Wes worships Angel the way a knight worships his king. The reason Wes stands firm in Power Play is because he knows that he cannot follow an evil manpire; therefore Angel cannot be unsalvageable. He has declared his allegiance to Angel and will die for his cause.
This understanding of and commitment to The Mission is like catnip to Angel. He needs someone to believe in him, even when it's difficult and burdensome. He needs someone with whom he can be himself, and Wes is the man who knows both Angel and Angelus and still stays around.
Finally, in Not Fade Away, as the gang disperses, each to kill his assigned demon or die trying, Wes looks at Angel and nods goodbye, and Angel understands. Wes has given his life to The Mission and for Angel's Good Fight. And that, my friends, is romance.
Recs and Links:
Go watch my vids! So Real, Prophecy, Here
Disclosure Series by Katriena Knights
Perfect Match by Overworked
Strategy by The Brat Queen
Take This Longing by Magpie and Wesleysgirl
All quotations are from the Project Angel Taskforce