Buffyverse Wiki
Register
Advertisement
Buffyverse Wiki

Lyle Gorch was a vampire, the brother of Tector Gorch and the husband of Candy Gorch.

Biography[]

Early life[]

Before he was sired, Lyle and his brother were murderers, coming from Abilene, known for their extreme brutality, such as massacring an entire Mexican village in 1886. According to Lyle, their mother abandoned them during their childhood. Left to fend for themselves, Lyle was self-taught about many facets of life, which he in turn taught his brother. At a certain point without explanation, the vampire brothers meet Angelus (recognizing him when they spy the Slayer kissing him in a cemetery and apparently shocked to discover that he was not anymore the famous evil vampire).

The Gorch Brothers[]

In 1998, Lyle and Tector arrived to Sunnydale. When seducing a young woman at the local mall, Lyle crossed paths with the Slayer Buffy Summers. After a brief fight, Lyle fled before she could stake him. Lyle and his brother then relocated into the sewers where they fed exclusively on rats in order not to draw attention to themselves. Lyle and Tector then attacked Buffy at her school while its student body, faculty and Buffy's mother were possessed by the Bezoar. Lyle then became enraged when the Bezoar devoured Tector, inexplicably blaming Buffy for his brother's demise. While fighting Buffy, he also fought off some of the attacking students. After witnessing Buffy kill the Bezoar and emerge covered in its blood and guts, Lyle then fled the scene out of fear.  

Slayerfest '98[]

At some point in 1998, Lyle married fellow vampire Candy. The two had robbed a bank in Texas in order to finance their honeymoon, but put their plans on hold to participate in "SlayerFest '98", traveling to Sunnydale months after his encounter with the Slayer in order to kill Buffy and Faith Lehane  as to avenge his brother. They used the stolen money for the contest's entrace fee instead. Despite lacking any weapons or preparation as the other contestants did, Lyle devised a plan. He and Candy broke into the Sunnydale High library, knocked out Buffy's Watcher Rupert Giles and waited for the Slayers to come for their Watcher in hopes of ambushing them with Buffy's own weapons. After Candy was staked by Buffy, Lyle threatened her until Cordelia Chase (who had been mistaken for Faith) stood up to him and claimed to be a superior Slayer to Buffy. Because of his "fight or flight" personality and not knowing that Cordelia wasn't actually a Slayer, Lyle fled Sunnydale, once again.

Behind the Scenes[]

  • Lyle was possibly after a similar (non-vampire) character from The Wild Bunch, played by Warren Oates.
  • He was portrayed by Jeremy Ratchford.
  • Lyle, along with Drusilla, Sheila Martini, Julia, Dav and Harmony Kendall, is one of the few non-souled vampires who survived the full series of Buffy and Angel.
  • The 1969 Sam Peckinpah classic The Wild Bunch had two outlaw brothers named Tector and Lyle Gorch (played by Ben Johnson and Warren Oates). Set in 1913, both Gorch brothers are definitely not vampires. Whether these Gorches are related is unknown.

Gallery[]

Appearances[]

Advertisement