Daniel Holtz

"I swore I would show no mercy. And I won't."

- Daniel Holtz to Sahjhan

Daniel Holtz was a vampire hunter during the 18th century and an enemy of the vampires Angelus and Darla. Holtz was the Big Bad of Season Three of Angel. He was portrayed by Keith Szarabajka.

Biography
Holtz was a vampire hunter from York, England who started slaying vampires from 1754. He chased Angelus and Darla through much of Europe and North Africa. The book Vampiricus Conquestus documents some of the encounters Holtz had with Angelus and Darla. He has killed 378 vampire's during his pursuit of Angelus and Darla.

In May 1764, Angelus and Darla attack Holtz's family, raping his wife and killing her and their infant son. As a finishing touch, they turned his remaining daughter, Sarah, into a vampire. Upon returning home, Holtz had little choice but to throw his sired daughter into direct sunlight and watch her burn to ashes.

In 1765 Holtz tracks Angelus and Darla in Italy. The vampires flee to Arles, France but are eventually trapped by Holtz in a barn. Darla escapes on their only horse and leaves Angelus to fend for himself. The two meet up shortly after this in Vienna but it's unknown as to whether Holtz knew of this rendezvous.

In 1767 the vampire James burns down the villa of the Count de Leon, much to the anger of Angelus as this is brought to the attention of Holtz and tracks them in Marseilles, France.

In 1771 Holtz finally managed to trap Angelus in the sewers beneath Rome, and tortured him for hours; but eventually Darla arrived and broke Angelus free. Following this incident, Holtz gave up his hunt and became a hermit.

In 1773, the demon Sahjhan came to Daniel and offered him a chance for revenge. Holtz is placed in a state of mystical suspended animation, and reawakened in Los Angeles in the year 2001. There he was briefed by Sahjhan on navigating the city, and is also given a new army, this time a cadre of demons. However, a lot had changed in those 200 years: Darla was pregnant and Angelus now had a soul.

Since his motives were not in the interest of justice but rather vengeance, Holtz spared Angel's life--unsatisfied with merely killing him--and instead devised a more elaborate plan to use Angel's newborn son Connor to cause the vampire as much pain as Angelus caused him.

Holtz poisoned his demon mercenaries for being soulless soldiers of fortune. Holtz wanted real warriors, people who believed in his cause and would be ready to die for it. His first recruit was a brash young vampire hunter, Justine Cooper, who had lost her twin sister to a vampire attack and had since fallen to drinking and wandering graveyards at nights hunting vampires. Holtz manipulated her thirst for vengeance, as well as that of many others, and built an army of like-minded individuals.

Shortly after Connor's birth, Holtz arranged for Wesley Wyndam-Pryce, who believed a false prophecy that announced Angel would kill his own child, to kidnap Connor. Out of devotion to Holtz, Justine helped abduct the baby and slit Wesley's throat.

Holtz and Justine planned on keeping Connor for themselves and raise him as their own. However Wolfram & Hart's Lilah Morgan and the firm's Special Operations Team, as well as Angel ambushed Holtz's truck. A tense four-way confrontation between Angel, Wolfram & Hart, Holtz, and Sahjhan ensued beneath a bridge at the edge of town.

Sahjhan threatened to swallow all of them into portal leading to Quor'toth, "the darkest of the dark worlds", but at the last minute Holtz leaped into the hellish portal with Connor clutched in his arms.

For years Connor grew up in Quor'toth, where time moved faster than on Earth. During his childhood and teenage years, Holtz acted as Connor's adoptive father, as well as trainer, teaching the boy to hunt demons and survive, as well as instilling great hatred for Angel. Connor found a way to return to Earth, and an elderly Holtz soon followed.

Back on Earth, the now older Holtz is confronted by Angel and gave him the impression that he wanted Connor to live a healthy life with his biological father. However, this was simply the final phase of his scheme. Reunited with Justine, Holtz ask her the to perform one final demonstration of her loyalty: to kill him in order to fulfill his revenge.

Death and legacy
"You promised. You said you'd do anything for me. Come on, Justine. I'm not asking you to follow me into hell. Just help send me there. Do it!"

- Holtz

Together, they simulated a vampire attack by stabbing Holtz twice in the neck with an ice pick, in a manner resembling a vampire's bite. Connor arrived to find his father's corpse cradled by a crying Justine. Just like Holtz had planned, Connor, goaded by Justine, believed Angel was responsible. The two plotted to kidnap Angel and exact their own revenge. Instead of killing him, the two locked him inside a metal crate and dumped it into the ocean. After Angel returned, he revealed the truth behind Holtz's death to Connor.

Trivia

 * The song Holtz can be heard quietly singing to himself throughout the series was first sung by him to comfort his daughter, Sarah, after finding his wife and son murdered. The song is Ar Hyd y Nos (All Through the Night), a Welsh song that later became widely used as a lullaby in England.


 * Holtz is first mentioned in Season Two's "The Trial", though doesn't appear until the first episode of Season Three, "Heartthrob".


 * Like many villains in Angel, Holtz did not start out evil; in fact, he was a force for good in the 18th century. However, Holtz's life was completely destroyed by Angelus, and he never recovered. He found no solace in Angel's remorse, or his ensoulment, and instead exploited his soul as an instrument of torture. Even in death, he thought of nothing but his own revenge against Angel. One could argue that, with his schemes to turn Connor against his father and his obsession with getting revenge, Holtz finally gave Angelus what he deserved.


 * Holtz has certain similarities to Robin Wood; both have loved ones who were killed by notorious vampires (ironically, the vampires in question - Angel and Spike - are related) and both desire revenge for their deaths. Like Holtz, Robin found no solace in Spike's remorse or ensoulment, only caring about getting his revenge. However, the major difference between the two is that Robin managed to let go of his hate and became a trusted ally of the Scooby Gang, while Holtz's hatred led to his ultimate downfall.

Appearances

 * The Trial
 * Heartthrob
 * Offspring
 * Quickening
 * Lullaby
 * Dad
 * Provider
 * Loyalty
 * Sleep Tight
 * A New World
 * Benediction
 * Tomorrow (body only)