Buffy update

[rm]

So we just watched "Into the Woods" and I have to say what the fuck just happened there?



Let me get this straight, Riley gets out of bed with Buffy, after they've just fucked, to go to a vampire whorehouse, as has been his habit lately. Then Spike, acting out of his lovelonging for Buffy, breaks into her house, wakes her up, and then brings her to see Riley cheating on her WITH VAMPIRE WHORES in action. And then when Buffy and Riley finally speak to each other about it the next day, it's all Buffy's fault?

Now, okay, I agree, that Buffy's head was never in that relationship, and she didn't really treat him fairly, but in a situation like that, reasonable people break up with the person or meet someone else as they drift apart. They do not start frequenting VAMPIRE PROSTITUTES and then blame their girlfriend for it!

Buffy, to her credit, dumps his sorry ass, which is not what I would have done at her age (in circumstances remarkably similar, oddly enough, just, without the vampires).

And then fucking Xander shows up to explain to Buffy that no, it really is all her fault, Riley is the man she should marry, and she should go beg his forgiveness immediately.

WHAT THE MOTHERFUCKING FUCK IS THAT?

Yes, relationships can (and often should) survive cheating/breaking of promises. But Riley was a class-A asshole to blame Buffy for his response to their mutually broken circumstances, and Xander showing up to be all "how dare you have self-respect, that's getting in the way of looooooove" was icing on the cake of chick-hating/victim-blaming absurdity (that is, if I don't even mention that absurd, "let's chase the helicopter down" scene).

What was that?

THIS SHOW IS FEMINIST? HOW IS THAT? Because Buffy gets to kick the shit out of her enemies before being 'splained to about how her strength makes men feel bad and ruins her relationships?

WHAT BULLSHIT IS THIS?

OH MY GOD.

And then the next episode Xander and Anya are on about Buffy's "terrible" relationship track record. You know, two long-term relationships at her age, in one of which she at least has detente with the ex, is not even remotely the worst track record in the world. But oh no, there must be something "wrong" with Buffy.

Jeez, kids, ever think that (a) she's the Slayer and (b) has some self-respect and (c) really has been thrown a lot of curve balls in both relationships that were completely outside of her control?

Because sure, she's made some bad choices, BUT WHO WENT TO THE VAMPIRE WHOREHOUSE? IT SURE WASN'T BUFFY.

HOW CAN THIS SHOW HATE WOMEN SO MUCH?

Also, don't get me started on the whole "here have a bucket of judgmental metaphors" thing with said vampire whorehouse. Find a through-line, people!

Holy crap. WHUT?

Comments

[thatwordgrrl.livejournal.com]

There was some behind the scenes shit going on with Seasons 5 and 6.

At that time, Whedon was gearing up for Firefly and in the middle of a nasty dispute between the WB and FOX over distribution rights (which eventually led to the show finishing it's run on UPN, also owned by FOX).

So Buffy was left to the not-so-tender mercies of Marti Noxon, who appears to have this amazing talent for getting her ass fired from show after show due to "creative differences."

One could argue that Whedon was still technically in charge and responsible, but he was spread pretty thin at that time, and it only gets worse for Seasons 6 and 7 of Buffy, as by that time he had three shows on three different networks.

There will come a Season 6 Spike/Buffy interaction that will have you howling for blood. Go blame Marti Noxon for that.

[matthewwdaly.livejournal.com]

Ooh, can I also blame Marti Nixon for turning Oz into a homophobic psychopath? Because I'd love a name to associate with that piece of epic dumbassery.

[thatwordgrrl.livejournal.com]

Frankly, I just blame Noxon for every last bit of Seasons 6 and 7. It makes my life much easier that way.

With the singular exception of "Once More With Feeling"

[matthewwdaly.livejournal.com]

I'm thinking of the part in Season 4 where Oz masters his control over the full moon but now turns into a werewolf when thinking about how Willow has become a lesbian. Because, of course, it is so much within his character to be judgmental and intolerant and unable to control his emotions. /sarcasm

I'm with you on S6 and S7 mostly. I thought the last couple eps of S6 were very watchable, not for the least because it really marked a change in Xander from six seasons of being a useless jackass to someone who actually had something to contribute to the team through S7. But the rest ran the gamut from meh to ugh. Especially the insistence on focusing on Buffy/Spike despite my complete lack of interest and frequent revulsion at his lack of maturity.

[chaos-by-design.livejournal.com]

I'm thinking of the part in Season 4 where Oz masters his control over the full moon but now turns into a werewolf when thinking about how Willow has become a lesbian. Because, of course, it is so much within his character to be judgmental and intolerant and unable to control his emotions.

I thought that was jealousy from seeing her with someone else, not necessarily being bothered by that someone else being a woman. ie, I thought his reaction would have been the same if Tara had been a new guy Willow was going out with.

[pandarus.livejournal.com]

Word.

[rm.livejournal.com]

I agree with this in terms of what I suspect authorial intent was, but because the situation adds in a queer element, it arguable reads as a more dangerous situation for Willow who Oz may wish to punish for rejecting him _and_ rejecting his masculinity. Certainly, that's how it read to me.

[chaos-by-design.livejournal.com]

That's interesting. Is there any way you think it could have been written where you wouldn't have gotten that feeling?

[amberite.livejournal.com]

Without spoiling any particular details: I actually watched the end of season six and the beginning and didn't get what people hated about it, because I reconstructed the logical story of what happened in the middle and it worked just fine.

Then I actually watched the Marti Noxon episodes that make up the middle of the season. *headdesk*

It's like seeing two slices of bread and then discovering that they're part of a crap sandwich.