I've never gotten this at all. Topher, for all his moral failings, has never struck me as a Warren. If anything, he's Andrew.

Yes. A more socially adept and scientifically successful Andrew, someone who just doesn't think through what he's doing.

I liked Topher from the beginning for sheer entertainment value. However, very early on, a friend commented that she figured Topher would eventually turn into a good guy because he was funny - an interesting insight, I thought. How often are the real Joss villains in deadly earnest (The Master, Glory, the First, ohmygoodness Adam), and how often do the ones with the senses of humor eventually come over to the good? (See Spike.)

At any rate, I'm tickled pink at all the deeper Topher character development.