Question?

[lady_windermere]

After all the problems of getting my comics, I caught up yesterday. Yes, I totally enjoyed Angel: After the Fall, but have a question from it. Under a cut for spoilers!


In BtVS and AtS, during his life, Angel has facial hair, and changes his hairstyle. Spike's hair changes as well, in Basement Spike, his dye job is growing out, and his roots clearly show. This to me indicates that vampires hair grows, as well as being able to get strubble or any form of facial hair they may want.

Human!Angel berates the difficulty he has in shaving and cutting his hair. Why should it be more difficult now, if he has a reflection, than when he was a vampire?


I know the question is one often asked when it comes to vampires, but it stopped me short when I read it.

Comments

[hils.livejournal.com]

An interesting question. I have no idea. LOL!

[http://users.livejournal.com/woman_of_/]

I was scratching my head at that!

[hils.livejournal.com]

Vampire lore seems to change depending on the situation

Like Angel claiming not to be able to perform CPR because he has no breath, yet he is able to smoke when he's Angelus in S2

[http://users.livejournal.com/woman_of_/]

Yes, it is very changeable. And leads to much confusioning, but fun, speculation!

[hils.livejournal.com]

Heheh! Yes, that's true. Keeps things interesting

[http://users.livejournal.com/woman_of_/]

And, being geeky, we of course spend time thinking about it! *sigh*, great mysteries of universe!

[hils.livejournal.com]

Yup! I'm still thinking about it. LOL!

[flake-sake.livejournal.com]

Yeah, the hair, I thought about it quite a bit. stormwreath hat a theory on the matter in his review, but I fear that we'll just have to live with this tiny breach in continuity. Also his tattoo is missing in the scene.

[http://users.livejournal.com/woman_of_/]

I didn't read anyone else's review, as it took so long for me to get my comics, I was so out of date. In fact I waited until yesterday to read #4 and #5 together! I didn't want to be spoiled!

I guess it is just something put in for effect, and out of step with what happened in the series

[stormwreath.livejournal.com]

It was a remarkably silly theory...

Vampires are undead corpses, preserved by magic in the same state they were when they died. That includes their hair. If a vampire shaves or cuts his hair, it quickly re-grows back to whatever length it was at his death, then stops growing.

However, if you treat the hair with chemicals, such as bleach or hair gel, it slows down the process - making the hair re-grow at a normal human speed instead of magically overnight, as long as you keep applying the gel or the peroxide.

(This theory doesn't account for Angel's moustache. I prefer to believe that it wasn't actually a moustache, but an evil parasitic hairy caterpillar of Death that Angelus had attached to his upper lip for some unspeakable but nefarious reason.)

And the review was here:
http://stormwreath.livejournal.com/41983.html

[http://users.livejournal.com/woman_of_/]

I was a fun theory! Will read the review soon as I get a moment after replying to comments!

[kindredspirit75.livejournal.com]

In Bram Stoker's "Dracula", every time the vampire fed, he'd grow younger, turning from the old, wrinkled man Jonathan Harker met when he first arrived, to the handsome, younger man when he arrives in England.

Maybe this concept, that whenever the vampire feeds, his hair grows, he can have sex and I've read where some could tolerate being in the sun for short periods of time.

I guess, it's open to interpretation and whatever you want to believe.

[http://users.livejournal.com/woman_of_/]

Oh that is a good theory, I like it a lot!

[owenthurman.livejournal.com]

"I don't have to be the Slayer. I could be dead. Wouldn't be much of a change. Either way I'm bored, constricted, I never get to shop, and my hair and fingernails still continue to grow. So really, when you think about it, what's the diff?" -Buffy

So there, comix!

Also, the reason vampire lore is different in the comics from the show is the same reason the vampires in Buffy The Vampire Slayer: The Motion Picture could fly and had comical teeth and wriggled instead of dusting. The comics and the movie are equally non-canon.

[http://users.livejournal.com/woman_of_/]

Well, to be fair, even the TV series had inconsistancies! This one just seemed so easily avoided!

[shapinglight]

I think that Brian forgot all the scenes from the show where Angel and/or Spike has longer hair or even a moustache - though let's face it, we'd all like to forget Angelus's moustache.

It's a cute scene, but you're not the only one who has jumped on it.

[http://users.livejournal.com/woman_of_/]

though let's face it, we'd all like to forget Angelus's moustache, very true. And those awful wigs as well!

It does kinda stand out I guess!

[a2zmom.livejournal.com]

I noticed that too. I was more annoyed about the missing tat.

[http://users.livejournal.com/woman_of_/]

The tattoo was missing a couple of times in the series. I was kinda used to it.

[erin-starlight.livejournal.com]

There have been a few questions like this that have begun to nag at me during this series.

How can Betta George talk to Gunn when vampire thoughts can't be read, etc? (This bother me in Asylum too.)

What happened to Angels' tattoo?

Why does Lorne out of the blue suddenly think Fred is in heaven? Why not mention Cordelia and Gunn instead?

As for the hair, I've always assumed that it grew slower than human hair so they didn't have to bother with it much. Unless Angel(us) got someone else to cut and shave for him I would think that it would have been easier.

[http://users.livejournal.com/woman_of_/]

Yes, there have been loads of moments like that! Then the TV series was as bad, but I guess it gives us something to wonder about......and never have an answer!

[zoesmith.livejournal.com]

it stopped me short when I read it.
Oh yeah me too!! It was such a "what??" moment. I hope someone asks Brian about it. I'd like to see his answer. :)

And just for fun, I always wondered about his tattoo. He got it after he was turned right? If that's the case how come did it stay? Shouldn't his skin heal? Just curious.

*smooches*

[http://users.livejournal.com/woman_of_/]

Yes, the tattoo was always a mystery. With vampire healing it really shouldn't have been there. Then it does disappear every so often as well. I think it was something they thought was cool at the time, then every so often, forgot about it!

*smoochies back*