Aziraphale is right on Armageddon
Iām not entirely sure how posting/reposting on Tumblr actually works, so Iām making a post of what was originally a response to this excellent post by ileolai I really think that Aziraphale is given quite a hard time for how he handles things in relation to Crowley leading up to the Apocalypse.
In defence of my BAMF boi Aziraphale (referring to the TV series as I donāt remember all the differences in the book):
No, he shouldnāt have told Crowley at the bandstand that they arenāt friends/are over, he should have told Crowley when he knew the location of the Antichrist, and he might have been naive to think that he could change the minds of God/the Metatron/a higher authority. I hate that he lies to Crowley after figuring out the location of the Antichrist.
Crowleyās (admittedly desperate) plan, however, was romantic af but not any better morally or much worse practically. It would not have worked long-term. It would have been selfish, short-sighted and cowardly and gone against everything they stand for and believe in.
If they HAD actually escaped (for all they know, at least, discounting Adamās choices), Armaggedon would still have gone ahead, the War wouldāve taken place, and one side or the other would have won. The winning side would realise either straight away or eventually that one of their own had deserted from the war. Whether the next day or in a few millennia, eventually, surely, someone from the victorious side would have come across them somewhere.
(Mightāve taken me three run-throughs to capture the screenshot because I kept getting too caught up in watching the scene.)
Also, again, thereās the sticky moral issue of the two abandoning Earth and all the creatures thereof to the sole custody of either Heaven or Hell. The world would have ended, Crowley and Aziraphale would have been together, yes, but always looking over their shoulder, and only for a limited time until they were discovered and punished for desertion/their relationship.
Now, it seems there were two other things they could actually do. First, Crowleyās other suggestion: Kill the Antichrist, murder a child. Comes with its own lovely set of moral dilemmas #utilitarianism. Not something either is particularly keen on doing, although it is Aziraphale who gives it a go: He IS willing, in the end, all other options exhausted, to kill in order to save them and the world. (Granted, it kind of Ā makes sense that he should do it; heād at least be thwarting evil whereas Crowley would be going directly up against āhis sideā. But still, itās going directly against the Great Plan.)
The only option that could possibly, potentially, mayyyybe work is to convince a higher-up to actually get the whole Armageddon called off. Itās the only way to save everything - the world, humanity, Crowley, their relationship; the only potential long-term solution. So, he goes to see the Archangels, to get them to either call off the war or (possibly?) kill the Antichrist. Aziraphale tells them some of what he knows, but he is smart enough not to tell his superiors that he already knows where the Antichrist is. He lies to them too and keeps the information to himself until he knows what the Right thing to do is to save the world.
Donāt think Iāve seen this talked about this anywhere: While speaking to Archangels, he also tries out quite a clever plan to help out Crowley, whose massive cock-up and cover-up in the wrong Antichrist fiasco will be found out as soon as Warlock reaches Megiddo: He suggests to the Archangels that Crowley did it all on purpose to trick Aziraphale and keep the real Antichrist safe.
Heās not exactly making himself look great here, but itās worth it if he can convince the higher-ups that Crowley is really a demonic strategic genius who was actually protecting the Antichrist all along.
After the Archangels tell him to piss off and the Bandstand scene (RIP), where he declares that canāt be on their side anymore and Crowley is the one to leave, he tries to get to Gabriel once again, which obviously fails. After Gabrielās āWhat are you?ā, he looks at him running off towards the bandstand, which is in focus although it isnāt in the rest of the scene and reminds of us him and Crowley, and we get the lovely, romantic (?) āIām softā. Itās pretty clear already that he has no intention of fighting in any war (or against Crowley). Then, after telling Crowleyās heās being ridiculous for wanting to run away (and Crowley saying heāll run off and forget about Aziraphale), he tries once again to explain why the war shouldnāt happen to the archangel thugs and to get them to see what they, as angels, should be doing and why it is vital that the world (and A and Cās role in it) continue.
He is clearly terrified. The archangels clearly arenāt there with good intentions, and yet he Stands Up to them and tries to make them see reason: They shouldnāt want the war, thatās not what they, the angels are there to do - they should be upholding one side of the moral coin, letting humanity choose between good and bad. (As an aside, I love all the āAziraphale is terrible at being an angelā fun, but I - and probably god, and possibly even Aziraphale himself - think that he is the best angel: Even with the Arrangement, he has actually been doing the exact job of Heaven and Hell, upholding this careful balance between Good and Evil, allowing people to choose, navigating via his own moral compass, and taking care of humanity ever since giving away the sword, as a good principality should). Heās already saying pretty clearly that heās on the side of The World, that he doesnāt want the war.
His last hope for actually avoiding the Apocalypse (and saving his and Crowleyās continued existence together) is God herself. Obviously and beautifully, he doesnāt get through, and the Metatron is no better than the other bureaucratic, dogmatic, powerhungry arsewipes in Heaven. Heās exhausted all other options, all hope of a long-term real solution for him and Crowley, and so he calls up Crowley to let him know Adamās location so that they can go off in desperation and try to stop/kill the Antichrist. It wonāt save them, but it might just be possible for them to save the world.
After his discorporation, he takes a very public, burning-all-bridges stand in Heaven and gives a metaphorical two-finger salute as he yeets back to possess people like a demon. He finds Crowley and is very much set on the task at hand - getting to and stopping the Antichrist - even though he and Crowley clearly have a lot of personal shizzle to discuss. At the Airfield, finally, heās the one who actually does try to kill Adam to save the world.
Also, Aziraphale comes up with the brilliant distinction between the Great Plan and the Ineffable Plan, which implies that Heaven and Hell might be going against God, and that he and Crowley (and Adam) might just under Her protection, and would give Crowley and himself an out if only their bosses were flexible/good enough to see reason.
When it works and Armageddon IS actually avoided, he greets Gabriel coolly and unwieldingly while Crowley tries out a sycophantic (and fabulous) grovelling bow.
He has Taken A Stand and heās not moving. For all that he frets and wiggles, heās the guardian; constant, secure with a steady, certain inner moral compass that is much too good and intelligent to constantly align with Heaven. Crowley is the snake; wiley, slippery, flighty, constantly moving (and I mean that in the best way, I love Crowley as much as Aziraphale).
He grounds Crowley. When Crowley is finally giving up, saying goodbye to Aziraphale, refuses to give up, knowing exactly how to get Crowley moving again - pulling out another card in hisā¦ infinite varietyā¦ of ways to surprise and touch and steady the demon.
Morally, itās like that old philosophy conundrum, the trolley problem with more heartbreak: If you could only save one, would you save your loved one or a group of strangers? When push comes to shove, Aziraphale cannot let himself throw the random bunch of strangers to the wolves, choosing his own unhappiness over the unhappiness of humanity. Add to that the fact that avoiding the Apocalypse is also the only long-term way to possibly save Crowley their relationship. (TV) Crowley is more concerned with saving Aziraphale and himself. Not a bad instinct; a very human one, in fact. His world IS Aziraphale, he moves around the angel, grounds himself in him. Aziraphaleās own happiness and well-being is contingent on Crowley being in the world, but he is willing to sacrifice that to save the actual world. He IS committed to Crowley, itās just that Crowley canāt be in Aziraphaleās world if the world doesnāt exist. Aziraphale might owe Crowley an apology for throwing him under the cart for this, but heās a damn good person/being and a really damn good angel.
I was gonna tie this down better to this thought Iāve been thinking a lot, but this got so long that Imma just gesture vaguely towards it, itās not hugely related to the events of Armageddon: Aziraphale has to be constantly selfless everywhere except for with Crowley. He gets to be selfish in his relationship with the demon. Crowley, on the other hand, can only ever be allowed to be selfless and good through his relationship with the angel. Aziraphale being selfish allows gives Crowley a space to be giving and loving (in whatever way) and kind.
I know there are already lots of lovely fics out there exploring these things in profound and beautiful ways, but I got started on this essay journey, and I was damned if I wasnāt gonna finish it too.
