Big Bads: Angelus, Drusilla, and Spike
Aliases: Take your pick—Angel; The Vampire With A Soul; Dru; Mother Superior; William Pratt; Captain Peroxide; and more
History: It was the vampire Angelus who begat the vampire Drusilla, whom he dubbed his “masterpiece” on account of just how much he’d make her suffer. And Drusilla begat the vampire William, a poet who would later assume the mantle of Spike. Along with their grandsire Darla, they made up The Whirlwind, a vicious family of vampires that left wanton destruction in their wake. That is, until a curse gave Angelus back his soul, and he dropped the “-us” in his name as well as his old vampiric crew.
Flash forward to 1998, when, after a moment of “true happiness,” the curse was lifted and Angel’s soul disappeared once more. This was terrible news for Buffy, but it meant that the conscience-free vampire could become Angelus again and take up with his old pals, which he promptly did.
Angelus proceeded to terrorize Buffy and the Scoobies, even killing Giles’ lover, Jenny. Dru had bigger plans, of course. She plotted with Angelus to summon Acathla, a demon who would—surprise—would bring about the end of the world. They struggle to figure out the right ritual for such an occasion, but Dru manipulates Giles into giving up the key, which is Angelus’ own blood.
How’d they bite it? They didn’t, actually. In season two’s finale, “Becoming, Part Two,” Buffy duels with Angelus and Willow performs a ritual that the slain Jenny had discovered, which restores his soul yet again. Their relief is short-lived, as Buffy still has to send the guy to hell for trying to destroy humanity (this also may have just been Angelus’ destiny).
Spike chooses the better part of valor, and strikes a deal with Buffy: He’ll help her take down Angelus, if she spares him and Dru. (Seems he wasn’t all that keen on the reunion after all.) He has to knock Dru out to get her to go along with the plan, but they all live to fight another day (and on another series).