Amoral.
Ambitious.
Patient.
Gavin Park, Attorney at Law.

On May 8th, 2001, Gavin Park walked into the lives of Angel Investigations, Inc. and Daniel arrived in the world of the hit show, Angel. Daniel's first episode was supposed to be his only episode. He had actually been brought on board by Fred Keller, who had been impressed by Daniel's performance when Keller directed him in Pretender. Obviously, the Angel folks were impressed too. Gavin was brought back early the next season and has returned for Season Four.

On the Angel Season 2 DVDs (UK release), Fred Keller in his director's commentary makes the following statement about Daniel's scene in "Over the Rainbow":

"This is an actor who has done an awful lot of work for me over the years. His name is Daniel Dae Kim, and he's playing one of the attorneys. And one of the things that the producers most liked about his audition was that he didn't try to do too much. He's really just very, very serious and very steady and steadfast. And of course when you try to do a show with vampires and all of the kind of make-up that goes into that, so exciting and out of this world, to have a sort of steady influence in the scene also helps to have contrast between the characters."

To explain who Gavin is, one must first start with his employer -- The Wolfram & Hart law firm.

Law firm Wolfram & Hart doesn't exactly cater to the stars of Los Angeles. It's more the law firm for the underworld -- specializing in representing evil at all levels and having a hand in everything from illegal demon fighting to drug-dealing demon gangs. Now, this doesn't account for specialized services offered to the firm’s high-profile clients. If you have the mullah, these lawyers have the time to help you murder, steal -- any activity your evil little heart desires.

This isn't your typical "practicing evil-to-get rich" law firm. Wolfram & Hart is not without direction or goals. At the core of the firm is a plan. Accepting only complete secrecy and devotion in its employees, the firm resorts to random mind readings to assure complete loyalty and deals quickly and swiftly with those who go wayward. With the promise of power and money, young executives like Gavin are recruited to continue the firm’s mission.
(Description from City of Angel website, who know a heck of a lot more about Angel than I do.)

Gavin is certainly young and determined to gain power and money. He knows full well the type of law firm he works for and intends to make the best of every opportunity. To that end, he works to prove himself to long-time Wolfram & Hart attorney, Lilah Morgan, who is also the head of the ominous Special Projects division. Lilah does not hide her dislike of Gavin and his efforts, regularly mocking his methods and reminding him of his former lowly position in the Real Estate division.

Gavin's appearances -- Episode: "Over the Rainbow" (episode # 2.42) (5/8/2001) Gavin introduces himself to Angel and company when he comes to appraise the hotel. Episode: "That Vision Thing" (episode # 3.46) (10/01/2001) Gavin renews his campaign to "paperwork" Angel to death. Episode: "Carpe Noctem" (episode # 3.48) (10/15/2001) Gavin engages in some office politics with his co-worker Lilah. Episode: "Billy" (episode # 3.50) (10/29/2001) Gavin is infected by a woman-hating demon and gleefully throws Lilah against a wall then tries to choke her. Episode: "Quickening" (episode # 3.52) (11/12/2001) Gavin's surveillance of Angel reveals shocking news that sends Wolfram & Hart into a frenzy. Gavin has a lot of screen time as he and Lilah maneuver to gain the most in the chaos. Episode: "Lullaby" (episode # 3.53) (11/19/2001) Gavin, Lilah, and their latest human boss try to determine what happened at Angel's place when the lights went out. Episode: "Dad" (episode # 3.54) (12/12/2001) Picking up right after "Lullaby", Gavin continues to conspire, undermine, curry favor and look sharp in a suit - so a normal day at the office. Episode: "The Price" (episode # 3.63) (04/29/2002) After an absence, Gavin is back to harass Lilah, trying to get her to make a wrong move in dealing with Angel's latest disaster. Episode: "Tomorrow" (episode # 3.66) (05/22/2002) Gavin has a brief appearance, watching his commandoes try to kill Angel and then watching Angel threaten his boss. Episode: "Deep Down" (episode #4.67) (10/06/2002) Gavin's fortunes change significantly when Lilah goes from his co-worker to his boss. Episode: "Rain of Fire" aka "Apocalypse, Nowish" (episode #4.73) (11/17/2002) Gavin makes an extremely brief appearance as a pitiful silent bundle. Episode: "Habeus Corpses" (episode #4.74) (1/15/2003) Gavin tries to save Wolfram & Hart and himself from The Beast, and fails to do either. He is killed by the beast, but rises as a zombie to fight Angel and his friends.

Instead of the more esoteric tools such as soothsayers and demons used by his co-workers and predecessors, Gavin uses his knowledge of what he terms "officialdom" to persecute Angel and his friends. His attacks have included massive filings of building codes against the abandoned hotel where Angel and his friends work and live. On one occasion, Gavin sends in a pest control company who actually plant "bugs", i.e. mini-cameras that record every movement and conversation. Gavin regularly demonstrates ingenuity and persistence, such as cobbling together video equipment in an basement office to oversee the Angel surveillance. He is not afraid to make use of any resources he can, like co-opting the company mail clerk to run errands and deliver messages for him.

Gavin's surveillance of Angel's hotel generates significant dividends as he stumbles upon some demonic news that sends shock-waves through Wolfram & Hart. A vampire lover of Angel has somehow become pregnant -- something considered impossible. Gavin takes full advantage of the situation, sparring with Lilah, feeding information to their boss, and directing a tactical "intercept" team.

Over the summer, Gavin has spent his time working with the psychic team, digging up dirt on Lilah, and cozying up to the boss. This backfires when Lilah becomes the boss.

So, what does Daniel think about Gavin?

That he's competitive. That he's aggressive, yet at the same time, I think he is a team player. He asked Lilah to be a partner with him, he asked to be [in] on the way up and I think the fact that he threatens Lilah is something that's beyond his control.
(Read the entirety of this interview and article focusing on Gavin at The Bronze Shelter.)

Most of Gavin's screen time is interacting with Lilah, who is played by Stephanie Romanov. Romanov recently discussed her role as Lilah and working with Daniel:

"I'm not a method actor, but my cruel behaviour [at their first meeting] caused Daniel to doubt whether it was Lilah or me talking to him," Romanov recalls, with a laugh. "The lines were written in a way that called for me to be a bitch, and I genuinely think that he was afraid of me. Of course, after the scene I apologised, and we get along great now, but needling him in that way created the right chemistry and tension."

One less successful aspect for Romanov this year was the writers' attempt to make the Lilah/Gavin relationship more akin to her previous coupling with former colleague Lindsey. "They tried to make us spar like Lilah and Lindsey, but I felt that was inappropriate because we're different people. With Lindsey we'd both been there from the beginning, and each of us was trying to pull ahead. But with Daniel's character I'm already ahead of him - I'm the Senior Vice President of Special Affairs. So, I treated him more a bug that I had to step on, rather than someone I was in danger from."
(From "The Rise of the Romanov Empire" by Nick Joy, Dreamwatch, September 2002.
Also see another interview where Romanov talks about her character and (briefly) Gavin Park. )

Even in twelve episodes, we didn't really see a great deal of the character of Gavin Park. Daniel, no surprise, added depth to the limited material that he was given.

Gavin's law career, and life, came to an ignomious end on January 15th, 2003, when he is caught by The Beast trying to find the secret escape hatch from Wolfram & Hart. The Beast snaps his neck. Not done yet, Gavin rises as a zombie to get killed again and again until he is finally decapitated by Gunn, one of Angel's friends. Gunn delivers the eulogy, "Hate seeing someone I know like that. Even someone I know I hate." This appears to be the end of Mr. Park. But then again, this is Angel and anything can happen!

More Gavin pictures and screen captures from Angel are available in the Image Gallery.

Also check out the new Gavin Park Trading Cards.

(Thanks to the many Angel sites out there, especially City of Angel website and The Bronze Shelter for catching me up on the world of Angel. Also thanks to Special Project for the Romanov interview.)