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So I was thinking the other day about the flaming bookshop scene, and it struck me that I couldn’t quite remember the order of events and what ended up pushing Crowley to go back to the bookshop in the first place. There’s no bad excuse to rewatch Good Omens, so off I went.
I don’t think I quite got the full effect of what happened the first time – of course Crowley tries to go find Aziraphale, that’s just what they do. However, I realized that, at this point, they didn’t just have one falling-out, but two. The Bentley screaming through the streets of London to the tune of You’re My Best Friend, whilst Crowley desperately tries to ring Aziraphale, obviously comes after both of them.
So here we have Crowley, who has just had a major fight with Aziraphale at the bandstand, who has just had a definitive wedge driven between them, who was just told there is no “our side”, who was just told that the angel doesn’t even like him.
We have Crowley who, despite obviously being very hurt by all of this, still goes to Aziraphale immediately after being threatened by the Forces of Hell in the movie theater. We have Crowley who was then turned down, again, and has just said some hurtful things himself to the angel.
And yet, despite all of this, who is the first person he calls directly after killing Ligur and escaping Hastur? Aziraphale. He’s still fighting, he still has hope, and he still goes straight to Aziraphale when he needs someone on his side, even after all of the things they’ve said to each other. It makes sense; after the fight over holy water in the 1800s, Crowley clearly still keeps tabs on the angel – enough to know when he’s in danger in the 1940s.
It makes the scene in the pub hit a little harder as well, when you realize that for 6000 years, Crowley has never just given up. He might’ve been complacent with his job, he might’ve had moments of doubt, he might’ve taken a step back from the angel, but he never just gave up. He never gave up until he lost his best friend, and he suddenly found himself totally alone. He was just going to sit and drink until the end of the world came, because what was the point, otherwise?
And also!
Aziraphale, having twice heard that Crowley is ready to abandon Earth and run and twice told him to get on with it and we’re not friends and absolutely not etc, the moment Aziraphale realizes that he’s not getting any help from Heaven, what does he do?
He glances over at the phone. He calls Crowley and tries to tell him everything.
It’s a little sad. Neither of them has anyone else. There’s not even an option for Aziraphale to call anyone else. Like, who? Shadwell? Call Adam’s house again? Call the mobsters who threatened to burn down his shop in a deleted scene?
And it’s also really sweet. Knowing that if Crowley abandoned him he would have no one, Aziraphale knows Crowley didn’t abandon him. Even though he said he would, even though Aziraphale told him to. Crowley has always been there when he needed him, and he has faith Crowley will be there now.
And he is. Crowley doesn’t know what Aziraphale was planning to say, his message was cut off, all he know is that Aziraphale needs him and he zooooooms off.
Anyway. They are very devoted to each other and it’s great.
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