- “It took me a while to realize how the world is put together and where I belonged in it. Actually, the world isn't that complicated: it's designed for those who know how to use it.”
- ―Holland Manners[src]
Holland Manners was a high-ranking lawyer and executive at Wolfram & Hart, one of the top servants of the Senior Partners.
Biography
Life
- “It's not about good or evil, it's about who wields the power - we wield a lot of it here and you know what? I think the world is better for it.”
- ―Holland[src]
As a young man, he offers his card
Holland Manners was one of the oldest and most experienced lawyers in Wolfram and Hart, and the supervisor of Lindsey McDonald, Lilah Morgan, Lee Mercer, and a number of other lawyers by year 2000. His job consisted of assigning cases to and enforcing loyalty among those under his watch, carrying out latter task by employing mind readers and having disloyal staff "terminated". He was also responsible for arranging the murder of all outside parties who are seen as a threat to the interests of the firm. During his first years in the firm, Holland had also recruited personnel, among them fallen champion Número Cinco. Eventually, he would marry Catherine, a woman many years younger than him.
In early 2000, Holland was supervising the legal team defending assassin Vanessa Brewer, while at the same time rooting out the best among the lawyers under his supervision. He used a pair of mind readers and discovered that Lee Mercer had chosen to move to Klein & Gabler, a rival firm, and take his client list with him. Manners immediately had Mercer shot by Phil, a security guard. The mind-readers also detected that Lindsey had agreed to help the vampire Angel save three innocent children, putting Holland in the difficult decision of whether to terminate Lindsey, who had become Holland's favorite in the company, or not. Lindsey, however, had prepared incriminating evidence against his employer. In recognition of Lindsey's savvy and aware of his potential, Manners allowed him to go through what he referred as a "crisis of faith". After Brewer was eliminated, Holland welcomed Lindsey back and offered him a promotion to junior partner and a new office, Holland's very own. Manners had been given a promotion to Vice President of Special Projects.
Holland alongside Lindsey and Lilah
After his promotion Manners, oversaw the firm's operations regarding Angel, as the firm planned not on killing him or having him loose his soul, but corrupting him to their side. In particular, he supervised the resurrection of Angel's sire Darla by the demon Vocah, then having Lindsey handle all affairs concerning Darla.
Meanwhile, he also oversaw Lilah's pet project regarding Bethany Chaulk, a telekinetic Lilah sought to groom into an assassin to replace Vanessa Brewer. However, when Angel became involved, Holland ordered Lilah to cancel the project, as Bethany's presence at the Hyperion Hotel threatened Lindsey's project involving Darla.
Holland kept close tabs on Lindsey's handling of the Angel project, as the young lawyer not been given complete information. Lindsey believed that Darla was meant to give Angel a moment of happiness. However, Holland had in mind a more devious plan; he had Darla go through a nervous breakdown and then arranged for a pair of the firm's agents try to kill her so Angel would save her life and then obsess with the notion of saving her soul, meanwhile neglecting his duties to The Powers That Be.
Afterward, Holland and Lindsey arranged for Drusilla to be brought to Los Angeles in order to sire Darla. After the latter was reborn as a vampire once again, Holland offered the two women the firm's full support for them to engage in any activity they might desire, all to keep Angel hunting them down and further falling into darkness in his drive to destroy them.
Death
- Holland: “Angel - please. - People are going to die”
- Angel: “And yet, somehow, I just can't seem to care.”
- Holland: “Angel? P-please we can negotiate. We...”
- — Holland Manner's final words.[src]
Holland's meddling in Angel's life leads to his death
Believing himself successful, Holland organized a wine tasting at his mansion, inviting many lawyers, including Lindsey and Lilah. However, Darla and Drusilla crashed the gathering after being invited in by the oblivious Catherine Manners. Angry at being used by a pawn, Darla wanted to kill Holland and his cohorts. Even though the Powers That Be did not want Angel involved in Darla's revenge, he nevertheless appeared at Holland's wine cellar, having been allowed entrance by Catherine. Filled with fear, Holland begged Angel to save his life and that of his employees. However, in a form of poetic justice, Holland had succeeded in corrupting Angel so thoroughly that the heroic vampire instead locked the employees in the cellar and gave Darla and Drusilla free reign to attack them. Holland was the first to die, drained by Darla.
Undeath
- “See, for us, there is no fight. Which is why winning doesn't enter into it. We go on, no matter what. Our firm has always been here on Earth... in one form or another. The Inquisition. The Khmer Rouge. We were there when the very first cave man clubbed his neighbor on the head with a rock for stealing his dinner. See, we're in the hearts and minds of every single living being. And that, friend, is what's making things so difficult for you. You see, the world doesn't work in spite of evil, Angel. It works with us. It works because of us. ”
- ―Holland Manners[src]
However, Holland's death, while serving the firm's agenda in corrupting Angel, was not planned by the Senior Partners, and his contract extended beyond his death. Even though he was dead, Holland's corpse was reanimated, keeping his memories and personality intact, though the bite marks caused by Darla remained.
When Angel stole a Band of Blacknill in order to teleport to the Senior Partners' realm to wipe them out, Holland appeared to offer him an elevator ride to the firm's Home Office, which Angel believed to be where the Senior Partners' dwelled.
Holland takes Angel to hell
During the ride, Holland informed Angel that the power of Wolfram & Hart came not from a demonic source, but from the evil within humanity itself; thus, none of Angel's heroic deeds would ever amount to anything. Angel understood Holland's point when the elevator ride came to an end and the two were back on the same spot the ride had began. Holland watched as Angel observed everyday evil committed by regular people, the humanity Angel so desperately wanted to be a part of. As the firm's now broken enemy stepped out of the elevator, Holland wished him a nice day and closed the elevator's door, himself still inside, returning to his new role as an eternal servant of the Senior Partners.
Legacy
- “We will never be able to replace Holland Manners. He was a man of extraordinary talents.”
- ―Hunt Acrey[src]
This encounter with Holland completely broke Angel's spirit, causing him to turn to Darla to help him "not care", having sex with her in an attempt to shed his soul and revert to Angelus once again. Instead of perfect happiness, however, Angel found perfect despair, and, in a moment of clarity, realized that his purpose was still to do all of the good he could, if not all of the good he wanted, and rejoined Angel Investigations.
Holland appears in the Wolfram and Hart promotional video
Holland's death left an opening at the Special Projects Division, and with half of the firm's contracts department dead at Darla and Dru's hands, the Senior Partners decided to appoint both Lindsey and Lilah, sole survivors of the wine cellar massacre, as joint acting Co-Vice Presidents of Special Projects. Meanwhile, Holland's position supervising the firm's activities was given to the cold and ruthless Nathan Reed. Months later, Holland's favorite protege, Lindsey, would quit the firm, while Lilah would be promoted to sole Vice President of Special Projects.
Holland was also given a homage during the Highway Robbery Ball, where he was featured in a video to promote East Hills Teen Center. In it, Holland was depicted as a kind, fatherly figure concerned with the future of Los Angeles youth.
During his years overseeing Wolfram & Hart, Holland Manners proved himself to be one of the greatest assets of the firm due to his wisdom and ruthlessness, as his administration was remembered by clients such as Corbin Fries and Senator Helen Brucker.
Personality and traits
- Angel: “You set things in motion, play your little games up here in your glass and chrome tower, and people die - innocent people.”
- Holland: “And yet, I just can't seem to care.”
- — Angel and Holland Manners[src]
In contrast to his charming personality, Manners proved himself to be one of the most cold-hearted agents in Wolfram & Hart's employ. He showed no hesitation or remorse when liquidating any and all threats to the interests of the firm. Respected and feared by those around him, he concealed his incredibly calculating mind behind the guise of a caring father figure, in a manner similar to Mayor Wilkins. He used power's allure to control those below him and keep their interests in line with Wolfram & Hart's agenda.
Eventually, however, Manners' manipulative ways turned on him and caused his death: while he succeeded in corrupting Angel by using Darla and Drusilla as pawns, that same corruption led to Angel directly assisting Darla and Drusilla in the wine cellar massacre.
Behind the Scenes
- He was portrayed by Sam Anderson.
- Sam Anderson later guest-starred with Nicholas Brendon (Alexander Harris), Luke Perry (Oliver Pike), Mercedes McNab (Harmony Kendall), Juliet Landau (Drusilla), Clayne Crawford (Rodney Munson), Jennifer Hetrick (Ms. Moran), Edward Edwards (Travis), Jeff Kober (Zachary Kralik/Rack), Michael Cudlitz (Big Bob), Lindsay Crouse (Maggie Walsh), Leonard Roberts (Forrest Gates), Bailey Chase (Graham Miller), Maury Sterling (Barney) Conor O'Farrell (McNamara), Michelle Trachtenberg (Dawn Summers), Steve Rankin (Mr. Maclay), Randy Thompson (Aaron Kriegel), Nick Chinlund (Ellis), Abraham Benrubi (Olaf), Wade Andrew Williams (Gregor), Keith Szarabajka (Daniel Holtz), John Rubinstein (Linwood Murrow), Angela Sarafyan (Lori), Gina Torres (Jasmine) and Jon Billingsley (Evan Royce) on Criminal Minds.
Appearances
| Season One: | ||||||||||
| City Of | Lonely Hearts | In the Dark | I Fall to Pieces | Rm w/a Vu | Sense & Sensitivity | Bachelor Party | I Will Remember You | Hero | Parting Gifts | Somnambulist |
| Expecting | She | I've Got You Under My Skin | The Prodigal | The Ring | Eternity | Five by Five | Sanctuary | War Zone | Blind Date
Appears |
To Shanshu in L.A.
Appears |
| Season Two: | ||||||||||
| Judgement | Are You Now or Have You Ever Been | First Impressions | Untouched
Appears |
Dear Boy | Guise Will Be Guise | Darla
Appears |
The Shroud of Rahmon | The Trial
Appears |
Reunion
Appears |
Redefinition
(Mentioned) |
| Blood Money
(Video) |
Happy Anniversary | The Thin Dead Line | Reprise
Appears |
Epiphany | Disharmony | Dead End | Belonging | Over the Rainbow | Through the Looking Glass | There's No Place Like Plrtz Glrb |
| Season Five: | ||||||||||
| Conviction
(Only mentioned) |
Just Rewards | Unleashed | Hell Bound | Life of the Party | The Cautionary Tale of Numero Cinco
(Only mentioned) |
Lineage | Destiny | Harm's Way | Soul Purpose | Damage |
| You're Welcome | Why We Fight | Smile Time | A Hole in the World | Shells | Underneath
(Only mentioned) |
Origin | Time Bomb | The Girl in Question | Power Play
(Only mentioned) |
Not Fade Away |
External Links
- Template:IMDb character