Did This Monster Appear On Buffy Or Angel?
- by Jamie Gerber
- – on
- in Movies and TV
Over twenty years after its pilot aired, Buffy the Vampire Slayer remains one of the most influential and important series to grace the airwaves. BtVS not only challenged gender stereotypes and subverted expectations, but also gave us perhaps the greatest feminist icon ever to appear on TV: Buffy Anne Summers. Joss Whedon took the idea that high school is hell and literalized it, but always kept those extraordinary situations grounded in emotions that were all too real.
Creating a TV show capable of rising from the ashes of a film widely panned by critics and fans alike is impressive enough, but BtVS also boasted a spinoff that ran for five seasons. Angel had the same brilliant writing, clever use of metaphor and loveable characters, but was different enough tonally that it managed to become its own show. While it never reached quite the same heights as its parent series, Angel was excellent as well.
One aspect that both shows definitely had in common was their abundance of all manner of creatures, great and small. From the Biggest of Big Bads – it was BtVS that literally coined the phrase – to monsters that were less than memorable, both the Scoobie Gang and Angel Investigations had plenty of demons to fight both literally and figuratively.
Do you have what it takes to differentiate between the two? Take this quiz and find out! Did This Demon Appear On Buffy or Angel?
Where have you seen this demon?
“They need to take seven and they might take yours.” Joss Whedon was actually visited by these creepy, floating fairytale figures in a dream. The Gentlemen are probably the most terrifying villains ever to appear on either series. They glide into your city, steal everyone’s voices and then begin slicing and dicing. Also, they aren’t the prettiest guys in town. It turns out that screams make their heads go “pop”, so once our hero found their voice, it was all over for the Gentlemen…but not for our nightmares.
Did this demon appear on Buffy or Angel?
This vampire’s name is Greek for “worst of the worst”, and he was so old that his hands and feet were cloven. Kakistos was ancient and therefore struggled to get with the times, only appearing in a single episode. He also lacked anything even remotely resembling a sense of humor. In the end, even his own minions abandoned him. A stake wasn’t going to cut it for this guy, but he did meet a dusty end after our hero ran him through with a pole.
On which series did this demon appear?
This member of the Ano-Movic Clan went by the name of Richard Straley and he seemed like a super nice guy. It turned out though that he didn’t find his Ano-Movic customs as archaic as he claimed and one of our main characters almost literally lost their heads as a result! It was certainly a bachelor party to remember. Although the actor who played him, Carlos Jacott, has actually appeared on Buffy, Angel, and Firefly, you’ve only met Richard Straley once.
Where do you know this beastie from?
Eyghon was actually brought into the world by one of our heroes in his wayward youth. He and his pals took their rebellious streak too far by experimenting with black magic and one of them paid for it with their lives. Many years later, the demon that they summoned returned seeking vengeance. He definitely found it, but was stopped before doing irreparable damage to our hero, as well as his former pal turned frenemy. Eyghon may have been destroyed, but he dismantled an important relationship before being defeated.
Which show did this demon appear on?
This guy appeared during a much beloved Buffy/Angel crossover. Mohra demons are incredibly powerful warriors with amazing regenerative abilities. Dubbed a “Mutant Ninja demon thing” for its visible similarities to the famed turtles, its blood mingled with the blood of one of our heroes, yielding some pretty unbelievable results. The subsequent story was tragic, to say the least, involving time travel, tears and loss of memory. By episode’s end, the status quo may have been restored, but viewers were left heartbroken.
Where do you know this demon from?
Cyvus Vail was an amazingly powerful warlock, capable of the kind of magic that can completely reshape reality. That’s exactly what he did to our core group of characters, making them completely forget the way that the world was before. Vail was a member of the secret society known as the Circle of the Black Thorn, which was basically comprised of the crème de la crème of evil. He was also responsible for the death of a much beloved character, whose heartrending loss fans continue to mourn to this day. Thankfully, Vail got what was coming to him in the end.
Which series featured this creature?
These are the vampires that vampires fear. Turok-Han are to vampires what Neanderthals are to man and they are vicious killing machines. The first time our hero faced off against one of these guys, it emerged victorious without breaking a sweat. However, this character always finds a way and in the end, destroyed him gladiator-style in a brutal battle. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the last Turok-Han that we would see. The series finale featured an entire army of them, but ultimately, they were no match for our heroes!
Where have you seen this monster?
Known only as “the Beast”, this demon bore a fairly striking resemblance to the Darkness from Legend. He seemed like the Big Bad, but he was basically just a lackey – albeit a formidable one – with the real villain pulling his strings the entire time. He also had ties to a major character, although that character didn’t remember him at all. The Beast was in service of a goddess who would later go by the name of Jasmine after she gave birth to herself. Yes, you read that right.
Which series did this monster appear on?
Thesulac demons are also known as Paranoia demons, named so for their penchant for feeding on fear and insecurity. They are both invisible and incorporeal, making it easy for them to telepathically influence their victims. This particular demon had been haunting a hotel for nearly a century, before it was finally stopped. In order for the Thesulac to be killed, it first needed to be made corporeal with a spell, at which point, our hero was able to electrocute it.
Where have you seen this creature?
This demon was never given a proper name, generally just referred to as a bug demon. This was good enough, considering they resemble gigantic insects. Our heroes thought that the hive was after them, but in reality, they were merely trying to reclaim their young. The bugs had laid their eggs inside the head of a Durslar beast – perhaps not the best place – so when the beast was decapitated, the creature’s spawn remained. Strange that our hero chose to keep the head in the first place, but who are we to judge?
Did you see this demon on Buffy or Angel?
This demon may have been all about the big scares on Halloween, but in reality, he was actually a tiny fellow. The haunted house was just for the holiday, but when someone accidentally painted Gachnar’s symbol, it literally became haunted. The demon spent all night preying on the fears and insecurities of the house’s inhabitants, even managing to briefly drive a wedge between our core characters. When the demon was summoned, that fact that he was kind of cute didn’t keep him from being squashed like a bug.
On which series did this monster appear?
This demon appeared in a birthday episode and birthdays never go particularly well for this character. However, this time it was another character who wound up having the worst day ever when they were transformed into a Fyarl demon. The longer they remained in that form, the more of themselves they began to lose. When they spoke, everything that they said came out in Fyarl, so they couldn’t even explain this tragic turn of events to their friends. Luckily, strong ties enabled someone to see the truth before it was too late.
Which show introduced this creature?
This demon was probably the most frightening Monster of the Week to appear on either show since the Gentlemen. Gnarl’s paralyzing fingernails enabled him to slowly devour his helpless victims alive. He ate their skin and lapped up their blood. It was an agonizing way to die and the creature made it take hours. One character discovered this firsthand and was almost killed. In the end, our hero used their thumbs to gouge out his eyes. It was disgusting, but inarguably effective.
Was this demon on Buffy or Angel?
Vocah was a particularly brutal beast, also known as the “Bringer of Calamity”. He wore a bronze colored mask and with good reason – the dude’s face was literally full of live maggots! He wreaked quite a bit of havoc, taking out our hero’s friends one by one. Vocah may have been a hardcore supernatural assassin, but he shouldn’t have messed with our hero’s closest confidants, as it made them all the more intent on tearing Vocah apart piece by piece.
Where have you seen this lovable demon?
Krevlornswath of the Deathwok Clan or Lorne, to his friends, may be a demon, but he sings like an angel. Originally born in Pylea, Lorne eventually found a portal out of his miserable dimension and into Los Angeles. He then proceeded to open a demon karaoke bar named Caritas. Lorne is an empath demon and he can read people while they sing. While he began his journey as a fairly minor character, it wasn’t long before this fan favorite became a series regular.
Speaking of lovable demons, where have you seen this one?
Sure, Clement, or Clem for short, is a demon, but that doesn’t mean the guy’s not a sweetheart. His debut episode revealed a troubling fact about demons: they play poker for kittens! Apparently, they’re delicious. The kittens in that episode were set free, but let’s not think too hard about what happened to the others. Clem was not only the closest confident to one of our major players, but also became pretty tight with the rest of the characters on the show, despite being a late addition.
Did this monster appear on Buffy or Angel?
“Do you like my mask? Isn’t it pretty? It raises the dead!” This zombie demon’s name means “evil eye”. Ovu Mobani was trapped in a Nigerian mask and when one of our characters mistook it for nothing more than art, it began raising all the dead in town. They were all desperately making their way to the mask in order to become the zombie overlord. This innocent – if irritating – bystander was killed in the melee, so when she rose, the first thing she did was put on the mask and become Ovu Mobani.
Which series featured this monster?
You have to appreciate the idea of a fraternity that worships a giant phallic demon in their hidden dungeon. You just have to! This demon goes by the name Machida and his followers were members of Delta Zeta Kappa. He fed on young women, so naturally these frat guys were sacrificing them to him in order to continue to live the lives to which they had become accustomed. In the end, everyone got what they deserved. The frat guys were assumedly thrown in jail and Machida was practically sliced in half with a sword.
Where have you seen this demon?
This unnamed demon assassin was hired to kill a slayer. She had become a bit of a nuisance and these villains were confident that this demon would be able to solve the problem for them. We’re not going to tell you which slayer the creature was after, but suffice it to say that the assassination attempt was unsuccessful. The slayer killed the demon, although it was difficult for her on so many levels. Luckily, she had a friend to help her through it.
Which series did this demon appear on?
Barney was an empath demon. He was also a serial killer. Barney spent his time murdering powerful creatures and auctioning off their body parts. A certain rogue demon hunter rolled into town hot on his trail. However, Barney appeared harmless, appealing to our heroes to help him. Unfortunately, one of them turned out to be his ultimate prize. Initially, Barney had everybody fooled. However, the rest of the team realized his nefarious plan before he was able to mutilate his prisoner.
Have you seen this demon on Buffy or Angel?
Toth was a member of an incredibly sophisticated race of demons known as the Tothric Clan. They were known for their impressive technology and in Toth’s lone appearance, he used a magical staff known as the Ferula Gemini. He missed his intended target, but hit another character, splitting them into two versions of themselves: one who possessed all of their strengths and the other with all of their weaknesses. The actor has a real life twin, who stood in as the double during this episode.
Where have you seen this creature?
The episode in which this Ethros demon appeared was basically The Exorcist à la the Buffyverse. A child was possessed by the demon and our heroes were forced to perform a good old fashioned exorcism. Ethros are powerful creatures who enjoy wreaking havoc through their human hosts. The twist in this episode, however, was that the child himself was soulless, so not only was the demon not the one forcing him to commit horrible acts, but he was also the one who was trapped.
On which series did this demon appear?
Sweet, Hinton Battle’s tap dancing baddie, definitely brought the party with him when he rolled into town. Sure, it seems pretty harmless when people start bursting into song…until they start bursting into flames for the big finish. “That’s the penalty when life is but a song.” Sweet knew how to make an entrance, but he made quite the grand exit as well. The demon may have left the stage free of literal carnage, but he left plenty of figurative bloodshed in his wake.
Did this demon appear on Buffy or Angel?
Kal Penn, who has actually appeared on both Buffy and Angel, played John Hancock, aka Brain Man, in this episode. In the script, he was merely referred to as “Fez-Head”. He was hired by an enemy to hurt one of the show’s core characters in order to force our hero to free someone from hell. The demon was freed, but Brain Man wound up with a crowbar through his head and the villain who employed him learned a valuable lesson about messing with those closest to our hero.
Which series introduced this demon?
The Judge was “brought forth to rid the earth of the plague of humanity”. No weapon forged could kill this demon and he wasn’t defeated until a literal army dismembered him. The pieces were then scattered across the world, until someone just crazy enough to do it put this Humpty Dumpty back together once again. No weapon forged indeed, but in one of the most epic shots of the entire series our hero told him, “That was then. This is now,” before blowing him to bits with a rocket launcher!