Spike cemented himself as Buffy the Vampire Slayer's most complex antihero thanks to James Marsters' portrayl of the character over six seasons – and in 2014, The actor behind everyone's favorite Blondie Bear penned a graphic novel starring the character, taking place during the start of Buffy's seventh season, the time period in which Spike gained a soul.
Spike explores what having a soul means for himself in Spike: Into the Light – written by James Marsters, penciled by Derlis Santacruz, inked by Andy Owens, colored by Dan Jackson, and lettered by Richard Starkings and Comicraft's Jimmy Betancourt – with the former William the Bloody unexpectedly finding himself opening up to a new love interest named Dylan.
Spike Reveals Why He "Was a Very Bad Man"
Spike first meets Dylan early in the story, after saving her from an alleyway mugging. As they bond, he walks her home but declines her invitation to come inside. When they run into each other again the next night, she invites him again, and he accepts. From there, the two spend the night walking through the streets, talking. Eventually, she promises to give him a kiss if he tells her his secret. It is then that he admits, "a long time ago, I was a very bad man. I thought I was protecting myself, but I was only hurting people. Now, I've ... woken up, and I'm trying to help people."
Into the Light Recontextualizes Spike's Villainy
This brief series of panels offers a new perspective on why Spike was evil, beyond just his brain being re-wired once he became a demon. This scene may even cause readers to recall Spike's origins with the Whirlwind, specifically when audiences learn in the Angel episode "Destiny" that he first develops a harsher mean streak after he finds Angelus sleeping with Drusilla. That moment might be Spike's last vulnerable moment, before he committed to the Billy Idol-esque bad boy persona he adopted shortly after, a moment where he was severely hurt by his would-be-lover. The bad boy attitude subsequently protects him from being hurt ever again.
The graphic novel also recontextualizes Spike's decision to regain his soul at the end of Buffy Season Six. After putting Buffy through such a traumatic, vulnerable ordeal, he realizes that the only way to repent would be to put himself through the same vulnerability, which he'd been avoiding for so many centuries. Although the graphic novel's place in the canon may be questionable, the fact that it's written by Spike's actor tells readers this at least is how he viewed the character while playing him. Buffy the Vampire Slayer featured some of television's most complicated multi-layered characters, but the Into the Light graphic novel proves why Spike is the show's most complex antihero.