is a
Fictional Character from the
Television Series ''
Angel '', played by
Stephanie Romanov . She first appeared in the episode "
The Ring ," and would appear regularly in the show's first and second seasons. After
Lindsey McDonald left, Lilah became the primary face of
Wolfram & Hart , and figured largely into the Season Three and Four story arcs. She guest-stars in more ''
Angel '' episodes than any other recurring character.
Lilah is a lawyer for the evil law firm
Wolfram & Hart , and in her first appearance, she tries (and fails) to persuade
Angel to work for her employers. She then works to kill Angel; she is co-architect of a plan to hire renegade
Slayer Faith Lehane in order to do just that. Over time, Lilah and another lawyer,
Lindsey McDonald , become rivals, competing for the favor of their superiors.
The
Vampire Darla is resurrected as a human by
Wolfram & Hart and ultimately turned back into a vampire by
Drusilla . Darla and Drusilla massacre a group of
Wolfram & Hart lawyers in
Holland Manners ' wine cellar. Only Lilah and Lindsey are spared, and with only the two of them left on
Wolfram & Hart 's Special Projects Team, their rivalry reaches an all-time high as they start a power struggle for the vice-presidency of the team, as well as for survival. Eventually, Lindsey is offered the promotion, but he elects to leave the firm, disillusioned by the extent of its evil. He tosses his promotion to Lilah, thereby saving her life.
In the third season, Lilah ups the ante in her vendetta with
Angel , and blackmails him into freeing a mysterious young man, Billy Blim, from a
Hell dimension by torturing
Cordelia Chase . In the episode "
Billy ," the effects of these actions come back to haunt Lilah. As it turns out, Billy is a half-
Demon Misogynist , and has the ability to bring out primordial violence in men simply by touching them. He touches Lilah's newest rival,
Gavin Park , causing Gavin to beat her severely. Lilah hides herself and her bruises in her apartment for a time, and refuses to assist Angel when he comes to her for help in sending Billy back to
Hell . Later on, Cordelia also comes to ask for aid in ending the evil Lilah helped begin, and Lilah again refuses. "I am not Lindsey McDonald," she states flatly. "I don't switch
{Link without Title} whenever it gets tough." In response, Cordelia calls her a "vicious bitch." Lilah shrugs. "So you know me."
"Please. I ''was'' you, with better shoes," Cordelia snaps. Still, Lilah asks why she should help them. "
{Link without Title} no woman should ever have to go through that. And no woman strong enough to wear the mantle of 'vicious bitch' would ever put up with it."
Lilah gives in, telling her where Billy is going and letting Cordelia go confront him on her own. The final conflict among Billy, Cordelia, and Angel takes place on the runway of a private airport, and Lilah arrives at the eleventh hour to fire the fatal shot, killing Billy and regaining her own sense of self-worth. It is around that time that she also receives a new boss,
Linwood Murrow , who joins Lilah in trying to manipulate Angel and kidnap his newborn son,
Connor .
Lilah herself investigates the return of
Daniel Holtz , an old enemy of Angel's. Holtz has broken away from his partnership with the demon
Sahjhan , who wishes to eliminate Angel for his own reasons, and he seeks out
Wolfram & Hart . He brokers a deal with Lilah, a deal that ultimately results in Connor and Holtz being lost into the Quor-Toth dimension.
At the end of the third season, Lilah begins sleeping with
Wesley Wyndam-Pryce after his betrayal of Angel and ejection from
Angel Investigations . She tries to convince him to join
Wolfram & Hart , but he continues to refuse those advances.
Lilah's relationship with
Wesley , which begins as a series of
One-night Stand s, continues throughout the fourth season, through the emergence of
The Beast and the destruction of the
Los Angeles branch of
Wolfram & Hart that results in the death of all employees present except for Lilah, who is able to escape with Wesley's help. Shortly before that time, she kills
Linwood , and once more rises in power.
Lilah is killed shortly after the re-emergence of
Angelus , stabbed to death by
Cordelia (who is under the possession of the being later known as
Jasmine ) and left for Angelus to drink from. Wesley is forced to behead Lilah, as he believes she could rise again as a
Vampire . When Wesley prepares to decapitate her body, Lilah appears, standing across from him, and the two of them discuss their relationship and Wesley's regret that he could never save Lilah from her own evil. The vision of Lilah implies that she had loved Wesley, though Wesley refuses to believe it, and with the decapitating swing of his axe, the vision is gone.
As shown earlier in the series with branch of
Wolfram & Hart with all its resources. During a tour of the facilities intended to seduce
Angel Investigations into accepting the offer, Wesley attempts to burn Lilah's contract in order to give her peace. Though the contract cannot be destroyed, Lilah is touched by the attempt, and tells her former lover in their final scene together, "It means something that you tried."
Angel takes Lilah's offer in an attempt to save his son
Connor from a life of misery, and Lilah apparently returns to the
Hell division of
Wolfram & Hart . In the fifth season,
Eve takes over as liaison for the
Senior Partners .
Lilah appears to be cold-hearted, ruthless, self-serving, and deceitful. This is unusual given the overall themes of
Feminism and woman power in
Joss Whedon 's universe. However, as the show goes on, we learn more about Lilah, the
Logic behind the choices she has made, and the circumstances of her life. She is once shown talking on the phone with her mother, who appeared to have some form of
Alzheimer's , and she later remarks to Angel that she does what she does so her mother can have the best room at "the clinic". As the show goes on, she is shown to be more pragmatic than her colleagues at Wolfram & Hart, even going so far as to assist Angel Investigations on occasion.
- — While in Angel's body, Marcus made a move on Lilah and kissed her. She responded, and the two continued kissing and undressing until Marcus bit her (cf. " Carpe Noctem ").
- — Once Wesley was estranged from the rest of Angel Investigations , Lilah took an immediate interest in him as a possible asset to The Firm . Though Wesley saw through her ploy, he allowed himself be seduced, and the two embarked on a relationship that would haunt Wesley as much as it would give him solace. Though Wesley believed she was incapable of love, even Lilah was moved by his selfless personality, and grew attached to him despite herself.
Lilah has appeared in:
; ''
Angel '': Appearing in 35 episodes in total, Lilah appeared in the following episodes:
- Season 1 - " The Ring ", " Five By Five ", " Sanctuary ", " Blind Date ", " To Shanshu In L.A. "
- Season 2 - " Judgment ", " Untouched ", " Reunion ", " Redefinition ", " Blood Money ", " Reprise ", " Dead End "
- Season 3 - " That Vision Thing ", " Carpe Noctem ", " Billy ", " Quickening ", " Lullaby ", " Dad ", " Loyalty ", " Sleep Tight ", " Forgiving ", " The Price ", " A New World ", " Benediction ", " Tomorrow "
- Season 4 - " Deep Down ", " Ground State ", " Slouching Toward Bethlehem ", " Supersymmetry ", " Apocalypse, Nowish ", " Habeas Corpses ", " Calvary " (dies), " Salvage ", " Peace Out ", " Home "
