There are few demographics more underrepresented in Buffy the Vampire Slayer than Adult Female Characters. As a coming-of-age story, the bulk of Buffy’s cast is understandably made up of Adolescents, who carry on their stories as Young Adults as the show moves on past high school. Beyond these characters though, the show finds time andContinue reading “I’m A Teen, I’ve Yet To Mature (Band Candy)”
Tag Archives: buffy the vampire slayer
We’re Like Sisters, With Really Different Hair (Homecoming)
Since this series started, Cordelia Chase has existed for one specific purpose – to act as Buffy’s Shadow Self. She has represented Buffy’s pre-Slayer self, and her desire to return to that state. That part of Buffy’s life is her childhood – both literally in the sense that she was fifteen years old when sheContinue reading “We’re Like Sisters, With Really Different Hair (Homecoming)”
I May Be Love’s Bitch (Beauty and the Beasts)
“Love isn’t brains, children, it’s blood. Blood screaming inside you to work its will. I may be love’s bitch, but at least I’m man enough to admit it.” Spike, 3×08 Lovers Walk The nature of love is an impossible thing to distill. If it were possible, then the poets would have done so already –Continue reading “I May Be Love’s Bitch (Beauty and the Beasts)”
Her Name Alone Invokes Awe (Faith, Hope, and Trick)
When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; thenContinue reading “Her Name Alone Invokes Awe (Faith, Hope, and Trick)”
Some Friends You Are (Dead Man’s Party)
The legacy of Buffy the Vampire Slayer has remained so powerful over the near twenty years it has been off the air not because of its lack of faults, but because of its strengths. Its faults were aplenty. It did not trade in intricate, watertight plotting. It had no capability for visual spectacle. Its worldbuildingContinue reading “Some Friends You Are (Dead Man’s Party)”
Who Are You? (Anne)
Part One: Lily In Season 5, Episode 22 of Angel – the very last episode of the Buffyverse, Not Fade Away – we meet a very important character for one final time. Her name is Anne. Or, it will be. That’s not her name yet. We have met her once before, and back then sheContinue reading “Who Are You? (Anne)”
You Don’t Have A Good Choice (Becoming: Part Four)
We have seen Buffy, the Slayer, fighting evil for two seasons now. We were introduced to her in Welcome to the Hellmouth, as she introduced us to the show. In Killed by Death, we saw her experiencing some vital firsts: her first brush with the supernatural, her first acts of heroism, and her first experience with death. We got a full non-canonical-but-informative prequel story in 1992. But this episode, right here, is where we finally get it. Buffy Summers’ origin story. This is the start of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
He’s A Vampire – He Should Die (Becoming: Part Three)
This is the third of four essays on Becoming. The first focused on Willow’s arc; the second on the journeys of Angel, Spike and Drusilla; the fourth will focus on Buffy’s arc and final choice. I feel like we should acknowledge, at this point, two big clouds of controversy hanging over this episode: the debateContinue reading “He’s A Vampire – He Should Die (Becoming: Part Three)”
You Made Me The Man I Am Today (Becoming: Part Two)
This is the second of four essays on Becoming. The first focused on Willow’s arc; the third on the re-souling debate and Xander’s Lie; the fourth on Buffy’s arc and final choice. It’s a shame that Darla is dead. She is notable for her absence in this season, which introduces and then focuses so heavilyContinue reading “You Made Me The Man I Am Today (Becoming: Part Two)”
The Magicks I Used Are Very Powerful (Becoming: Part One)
This is the first of four essays on Becoming. The second will focus on the journeys of Angel, Spike and Drusilla; the third on the re-souling debate and Xander’s Lie; the fourth on Buffy’s arc and final choice. “Willow… channeling such potent magicks through yourself… it could open a door that you may not beContinue reading “The Magicks I Used Are Very Powerful (Becoming: Part One)”
Insect Reflection 