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Darla

Darla is a fictional character in the U.S. television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, played by Julie Benz.

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Not a lot is known about Darla's life as a human. The earliest account of her activities puts her on her death bed in the Virginia Colony in 1609, when she received a visit from The Master, disguised as a priest. He called her "a woman of some property" to which she replied "I'm a WHORE!" She despised the clergy (and religion). We later come to learn that she was indeed a prostitute and had contracted syphilis, which had caused heart failure. The Master sired her (made her a vampire). So began her un-life as a member of the Order of Aurelius. Her human love of sex and hate of religion continued into her vampire life as well.

In the mid 18th century, Darla was out exploring the world and wreaking havoc, when fate brought her to the small town of Galway in Ireland, where she found a man named Liam, who was drinking and whoring his way through a rather uneventful life. Admiring him from afar, she later coaxed him into an alley where she sired him. Liam would become Angelus. Waiting for him atop his grave, she gave Angelus his first lessons in evil when she encouraged him to slaughter his entire town, including his human family.

After cutting a bloody swath across Wales and England, Darla brought her new consort back to The Master in London, but Angelus had no interest in The Master, the Order of Aurelius, or anything other than living a decadent life of evil pleasure with Darla by his side. Darla chose Angelus over her master. Over time, Darla and Angelus would make their way throughout Europe and North Africa, occasionally sparring with each other but constantly tormenting the vampire hunter Holtz. Back in London, their family grew as Drusilla and Spike were sired. Throughout their adventures, Darla always had to have a room with a pretty view.

Finding themselves in Borsa, Romania, in 1898, Darla brought Angelus a gift: a Roma girl with whom Angelus could have his way, so long as Darla watched. Soon after, the family of the Roma girl, a gypsy princess, cursed Angelus with the restoration of his soul. Darla noticed almost immediately, and banished Angelus from her sight. Obviously bewildered, Darla tracked down the Roma clan and took revenge. A few years later, Darla ended up in the midst of the Boxer Rebellion in China, and Angelus found her. Darla tried to convince herself that she could still be with Angelus despite his soul, but she soon realized that it could never work.

Little is known about Darla's activities between that time and 1997, but one can assume that she rejoined the Master and had been in Sunnydale, CA since at least the 1930s.

When Buffy Summers, a recently chosen Slayer, ended up in the same town, The Master was not pleased. After several attempts to kill the Slayer, Darla finally volunteered to kill her herself. Darla pretended to be a school friend of Buffy's and got Buffy's mother, Joyce, to invite her into the house. Darla bit Joyce but cleverly set it up so that it would appear that Angel had done it. After a tense three-way confrontation in The Bronze, Angel finally staked Darla, turning her into dust.

But that was not the end for Darla. She was resurrected, in human form, by Wolfram and Hart as a way to both torture Angel and to get him to turn evil. During her short time as a human, Darla found it increasingly difficult to live with a soul and desperately wanted to be a vampire again. Angel, through acts of bravery and nobility, finally convinced Darla to live out her remaining days as human (she was dying from syphillis as she would have if she weren't sired the first time) and re-assured her that he would help her. In an odd twist of fate, Wolfram and Hart brought in Drusilla to once again sire Darla. As a vampire, Darla went on another killing rampage that nearly ended when Angel set her on fire. She survived, and as Angel became more and more dark, he came to Darla to help him "not care." Angel and Darla had sex all night, the expectation being that he would have lost his soul as a result of "a moment of perfect happiness" (the other half of the gypsy curse), but the next morning Angel was still en-souled. Not even one moment of perfect happiness, that whole night. Surprised, angry, and upset, Darla left Los Angeles, supposedly forever.

However, the unthinkable had happened. Angel had impregnated Darla. Darla visited every shaman in the Western Hemisphere, who all told her one thing: it was impossible, and impossible to abort. So, with nowhere else to turn, Darla went to Angel. Various theories emerged about the child, from a cult of vampires worshiping it as a miracle, to fear that it was the evil spoken of in the Tro-Clon prophesies. It turned out the child was simply a healthy human baby boy, with whom Darla was sharing a soul. This did not matter to Holtz, who had been brought through time by the demon Sahjhan to hunt and kill Angel and Darla. Darla loved the child, and realizing that she could not give live birth, staked herself in an alley. In one final moment of redemption, Darla ended her 400+ year run for the life of her son, Connor.

Darla's spirit was sent by the Powers That Be to her son, who was faced with a difficult decision, to try to convince him to do right, as she had done. She failed, however. There are also theories among the viewers of both "Angel" and "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" that this version of Darla was not sent by the Powers That Be, but was actually an incarnation of The First Evil attempting to prevent the coming of Jasmine, an occurrence that would interfere with the First's own plans. This, however, is pure speculation and unproven.

Other than that, Darla has not been seen again (except in flashback).

Darla has probably died more times than any Angel or Buffy character (twice as a human and twice as a vampire). She was a particularly disturbing character, arguably the most genuinely malevolent of either series. Julie Benz gave an effective performance as a woman who was consistently dedicated to degredation, murder, and blasphemy while both human and vampire.

Her episode catologue is as follows:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Season One 1997-

Welcome to the Hellmouth
The Harvest
Angel

Season Two 1997-1998

Becoming Part One of Two (flashbacks)

Season Five 2000-2001

Fool For Love (flashbacks)

Angel

Season One 1999-2000

The Prodigal (flashbacks)
Five By Five (flashbacks)
To Shanshu In LA

Season Two 2000-2001

Judgement
First Impressions
Untouched
Dear Boy (present/flashbacks)
Darla
The Trial
Reunion
Redefinition
Reprise
Epiphany

Season Three 2001-2002

Heartthrob (present/flashbacks)
That Vision Thing
Offspring
Quickening
Lullaby

Season Four 2002-2003

Inside Out

Season Five 2003-2004

Origin (clips from previous episodes - uncredited)
The Girl In Question (flashbacks)

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 Not a lot is known about Darla's life as a [[human]]. The earliest account of her activities puts her on her death bed in the [[Virginia]] Colony in [[1609]], when she received a visit from [[The Master (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)|The Master]], disguised as a [[priest]]. He called her "a woman of some property" to which she replied "I'm a [[prostitute|WHORE]]!" She despised the [[clergy]] (and [[religion]]). We later come to learn that she was indeed a [[prostitute]] and had contracted [[syphilis]], which had caused [[heart failure]]. The Master sired her (made her a [[vampire]]). So began her un-life as a member of the Order of Aurelius. Her human love of sex and hate of religion continued into her vampire life as well.
-In the mid 18th century, Darla was out exploring the world and wreaking havoc, when [[Fate]] brought her to the small town of [[Galway]] in [[Ireland]], where she found a man named Liam, who was drinking and whoring his way through a rather uneventful life. Admiring him from afar, she later coaxed him into an [[alley]] where she sired him. Liam would become [[Angelus (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)|Angelus]]. Waiting for him atop his [[grave]], she gave Angelus his first lessons in [[evil]] when she encouraged him to slaughter his entire town, including his human family.
+In the mid 18th century, Darla was out exploring the world and wreaking havoc, when fate brought her to the small town of [[Galway]] in [[Ireland]], where she found a man named Liam, who was drinking and whoring his way through a rather uneventful life. Admiring him from afar, she later coaxed him into an [[alley]] where she sired him. Liam would become [[Angelus (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)|Angelus]]. Waiting for him atop his [[grave]], she gave Angelus his first lessons in [[evil]] when she encouraged him to slaughter his entire town, including his human family.
 After cutting a bloody swath across [[Wales]] and [[England]], Darla brought her new [[consort]] back to The Master in [[London]], but Angelus had no interest in The Master, the Order of Aurelius, or anything other than living a [[decadent]] life of evil pleasure with Darla by his side. Darla chose Angelus over her master. Over time, Darla and Angelus would make their way throughout [[Europe]] and [[North Africa]], occasionally sparring with each other but constantly tormenting the vampire hunter [[Holtz (Angel)|Holtz]]. Back in London, their family grew as [[Drusilla (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)|Drusilla]] and [[Spike (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)|Spike]] were sired. Throughout their adventures, Darla always had to have a room with a pretty [[view]].