<P> In the character's backstory, he was an 18th - century Irishman who, after becoming a vampire and assuming the name Angelus, became famous as the most sadistic vampire in European history . After angering a gypsy clan, he was cursed with his human soul, leading to great personal torment and the decision to resist the evil impulses that come with being a vampire . He later assumes the shortened name Angel, and over the course of Buffy and Angel, he matures into an altruistic champion of mankind, and learns he is a central figure of several prophecies concerning an approaching apocalypse . Angel ended its five - year run in 2004 . However, the canonical comic books Angel: After the Fall (2007--2009), Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight (2007--2011) and Angel & Faith (2011--2013) depict the character's continued story, in which he is caught up in events of cosmic proportion and must deal with the fallout from enormous mistakes he has made . </P> <P> Season two of Buffy and season four of Angel feature storylines in which, deprived of his soul, he resumes his Angelus persona and torments and kills some of his allies . Academic literature concerning the character has often focused on the implications of Angel's dichotomous personality in the presence or absence of his soul, and the ways in which his relationship with Buffy conforms to and subverts the tropes of romantic drama and horror fiction . </P> <P> Angel's first appearance is in "Welcome to the Hellmouth", the first episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer in 1997 . In it, he meets the protagonist Buffy Summers (Sarah Michelle Gellar), a young girl destined to fight evil in the small town of Sunnydale, California . For the first half of the season, Angel is an enigmatic love interest for Buffy, showing up only to offer her cryptic messages about upcoming threats . It isn't until the episode "Angel" that the character is revealed to be a benevolent vampire from Galway, Ireland, who immigrated to the United States to escape his past as the sadistic Angelus after his soul is restored by a vengeful gypsy clan . Although uneasy about trusting a vampire, Buffy and the Scooby Gang eventually come to view Angel as an ally . In the second season (1997--1998), Buffy and Angel's romantic relationship develops and the pair have sex in the episode "Surprise". For experiencing a moment of pure happiness, however, the gypsy curse on Angel is revoked, unleashing his soulless alter - ego, who reunites with his old friends, vampires Spike (James Marsters) and Drusilla (Juliet Landau), and begins terrorizing Buffy and her friends . Upon discovering gypsy descendent Jenny Calendar (Robia LaMorte), who is working to translate the text of a spell to restore Angel's soul, Angelus murders her by breaking her neck, and places her body in the bed of her boyfriend, Giles (Anthony Head), for him to discover . Angelus then attempts to destroy the world by awakening the demon Acathla . In the season finale, neophyte witch Willow (Alyson Hannigan) manages to restore Angel's soul at the last moment, but Buffy is forced to kill him to save the world from Acathla, and Angel is sent to hell . In season three (1998--1999), episode three, "Faith, Hope & Trick", Angel is inexplicably returned from hell by an unknown party . The Scooby Gang are outraged when they discover that Buffy has been secretly caring for him since his resurrection, but grudgingly accept him after he saves Willow's life in episode seven, "Revelations". In the episode "Amends", the primordial First Evil attempts to manipulate Angel to murder Buffy, but Angel chooses suicide instead by waiting for the sun to rise on Christmas morning . California's heatwave is interrupted by a freak snowstorm, sparing Angel's life, which he takes as a sign from above . Buffy and Angel initially attempt to be friends but eventually resume a celibate romantic relationship . However, Angel becomes more aware of their limitations as a couple and breaks up with her in the hopes that she will be happier without him, leaving Sunnydale altogether after attending Buffy's prom and helping her in the battle against Mayor Wilkins (Harry Groener). </P> <P> After his departure from Buffy, Angel appeared in his own spin - off series, titled Angel . Moving to Los Angeles, he starts a supernatural detective agency called Angel Investigations . He dedicates himself to "helping the helpless," and becomes a Champion of The Powers That Be, who send him psychic visions through his employees Doyle (Glenn Quinn), and later Cordelia (Charisma Carpenter). In doing so, he frequently clashes with the powerful law firm Wolfram & Hart, who represent the evil of the world . During this season (1999--2000), Buffy and Angel appear in each other's shows (the Buffy episode "Pangs" and the Angel episode "I Will Remember You"), but are forced to accept that nothing has changed and they still can't or shouldn't be together . Later in the television season, Buffy crosses over into the episode "Sanctuary" where she attempts to kill rogue Slayer Faith (Eliza Dushku) to whom Angel shows compassion, and Angel appears in Buffy's "The Yoko Factor" where he squares off with Buffy's new boyfriend Riley (Marc Blucas). In the season one finale, Angel is given some hope at redemption when the Shanshu prophecy reveals that a vampire with a soul may eventually become human after fulfilling his role in the upcoming apocalypse . </P>

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