Buffybot
| Character | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Buffybot |
| Occupation: | Robot |
| Relationships: | Spike (former lover), Dawn Summers (regards as her sister) |
| Fandom: | Buffy the Vampire Slayer |
| Other: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
The Buffybot, played by Sarah Michelle Geller, was a robot double of Buffy Summers, first seen in Buffy S5.
Canon
Having become obsessed with Buffy, Spike commissioned Warren Mears to build a robot double of her as a sex toy. Mears built her using similar programming to his earlier robot girlfriend April, adding information on her personality, habits, family and friends etc. supplied by Spike. The result was an unremittingly cheerful and literal-minded double of Buffy, nearly as strong and fast as the real person. Eventually Buffy's friends came across Spike and the Buffybot having outdoor sex while Buffy was out of town, didn't realise that they had seen a robot, and decided to stage an intervention. Meanwhile Spike was captured by Glory who interrogated him about the location of her mystical Key. The Buffybot arrived seeking help from the other characters while they were talking to Buffy, resulting in some confusion and a successful rescue, during which the Buffybot was badly damaged.
Willow Rosenberg repaired the Buffybot and it was used to distract Glory during the final fight that resulted in the deaths of Buffy and Glory. Afterwards Willow repaired it again, and it was used as a fake slayer until Willow was able to resurrect Buffy. In the aftermath of the resurrection the Buffybot was torn apart by demons and destroyed.
A second Buffybot was built by Andrew Wells in the S9 comics, and Andrew transferred Buffy's personality to it magically to protect the real woman. This unfortunately left Buffy with very little of her original personality, and she was kidnapped and brainwashed, eventually being rescued by Spike, Andrew, and the Buffybot. Afterwards the personality was transferred back to Buffy, leaving the robot mindless. Later there were plans to transfer Dawn's personality to the Buffybot when she appeared to be critically ill, but this never became necessary. Its current status is unknown.
Fandom
The Buffybot was very popular, her perky personality and traits appealing to most viewers of the show, and there was some dismay when she was 'killed'[1]. She is a relatively uncommon character in fanfic, most often appearing in comedic stories. The second Buffybot has no fannish presence or fanfic, possibly because it only appeared in comics and because its personality and behaviour were identical to the real Buffy.
Fannish Opinion
There were times in Buffy when I thought SMG did a really great job playing Buffy, particularly as the series progressed, and there were times when I thought she sounded just like she was reading her lines BUT, and this is a BIG but for me, I think her portrayal of 'Buffybot' was flawless and I loved to see her being funny instead of ... well ... 'Buffylike'. Sarah did an excellent job as the Bot in my opinion, and some of the lines she had were fantastic! --- Lady Lancaster[2]
None of Buffy’s close friends and family think, at the beginning of Season 6, that they’re better off with the ‘bot — that’s why they’re willing to risk the powerful magic it will take to bring back the real Buffy. But, as Season 6 plays out, we will see the many ways in which people are inconvenienced by the complexities and needs of the real Buffy, so different from her comically uncomplicated robot doppelganger.
The Buffybot is a big hit at the parent-teacher conference; real Buffy is in danger of losing Dawn to a judgmental social worker. The Buffybot is always there for Dawn; real Buffy goes off on her own so much that Dawn feels neglected and lonely. The Buffybot is a domestic powerhouse who won’t stop making sandwiches; real Buffy doesn’t spend much time at home. Willow, who puts the most effort into reviving the real Buffy, is disappointed she isn’t happy about that — unlike the Buffybot, who is indefatigably cheerful. We never see the Watcher’s Council interact with the Buffybot, but throughout the series they have made it clear she fits their ideal model for a Slayer: a superhuman vampire-killing machine with no will to challenge their authority. Not surprisingly, the demons also get what they want from the Buffybot — a physically vulnerable Slayer who isn’t much of a threat compared to real Buffy. --- Julie McGalliard [3]
Shipping
The canon pairing is Buffybot/Spike. Other pairings have included Buffybot/Dawn, Buffybot/Faith, Buffybot/Willow, and Buffybot/Cordelia but all are rare.
Example Fanworks
Fanfic
- The Buffybot Adventures by visitorfic; Two virtual seasons starring the Buffybot.
- Dwarfbread by Keswindhover; "Buffybot follows a dragon to Ankh Morpork. Wackiness ensues." (2006 - Discworld crossover)
- Legend by Shayne Terry; "Trapped by an alien collector, Lieutenant Commander Data discovers an early 21st century android excavated from the ruins of Sunnydale and a capsule containing the frozen body of one of the Eugenic wars most notorious figures...Buffy Summers." (2011 - Star Trek crossover, Data/Buffybot)
- Secret by Calle Dybedahl "Inspired by a picture of Realdoll's booth at a porn industry fair and a LiveJournal post by Penny Dreadful." Buffybot/Willow
- Correspondence by Calle Dybedahl "This is the worst case I ever had of a character hijacking the story and turning it somewhere I'd never imagined. It was just meant to be a silly Fred/Willow PWP ending with them meeting in RL, but somewhere along the way Fred decided otherwise..." Buffybot/Fred Buffybot/Willow
- The Buffybot and Mr. Gordo Save the World by Smilingmichigan and Shindobear; Post-series, Gen
- Tea Parties by Snickfic. Drusilla/Buffybot (2013)
Art
Videos
Meta
- Where did I go? A farewell to the Buffybot by mcjulie
Archives and Communities
Links and Resources
References
- ^ "Reactions to the 'death' of the Buffybot".
- ^ "The Buffybot - Good, Bad or Ugly?".
- ^ mcjulie. "Where did I go? A farewell to the Buffybot". Archived from the original on 2021-04-20.