Becoming: Part 1

Flashbacks reveal how Angel was turned into a vampire by Darla in 1753, started to drive Drusilla mad in London in 1860 and was cursed as gypsies' revenge in a Rumanian forest in 1898 to suffer ever since being burdened with a soul and guilty conscience, and witnessed Buffy being shown her destiny in Los Angeles in 1996. In 1997, only tutor Willow enjoys preparing for final exams, Buffy is eager to slay Angelus and be done with Angel. Giles is called to the museum after the digging up of an inscribed block of stone which he realizes is a container. Angelus and Drusilla steal it and explain to Spike it's the tomb of the demon Acathla, who was killed by a righteous knight's sword before the demon's breath could swallow the earth. His awakening will open a gateway to a demonic dimension which can then spill into earth. Discovering Jenny's black magic research and and any intention to return Angel's soul is opposed by Xander, who wants his 'rival for Buffy' dead, and by Kendra, who suggests using a knight's sword she brought with her. Despite a human sacrifice, Angelus is apparently unworthy. So he has Buffy summoned for a duel, which she accepts only to buy time for the soul ritual Giles' gang prepares. But Angelus is a diversion that allows Drusilla's vampires to attack them in the library and take Giles. —KGF Vissers