Amanda (Buffyverse)
| Character | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Amanda |
| Occupation: | Potential Slayer, Slayer |
| Relationships: | Mother (name unknown) |
| Fandom: | Buffy the Vampire Slayer |
| Other: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Amanda, played by Sarah Hagan, was one of the Potential Slayers introduced during Buffy season 7, the only Sunnydale native in the group.
Canon
Amanda was first seen in early S7 as one of several students counseled by Buffy Summers; in this case, after an incident in which she beat up a boy who had been bullying her. Several episodes later word was received that another Potential Slayer had been magically detected, someone who was already in Sunnydale. Willow cast a spell to locate her more precisely, releasing an orange cloud which immediately flew at Dawn Summers and hit her, making everyone believe that she was the Potential. Dawn later sneaked out for a walk and ran into Amanda, who had come to tell Buffy that there was a vampire trapped in one of the high school classrooms. Dawn decided to handle it herself, but along the way to the school learned that Amanda had actually come by earlier, but had been hit by a cloud of light outside the house. When they tried to deal with the vampire things quickly got out of hand, and they retreated to another classroom where they were attacked by Bringers. It became obvious that the Bringers were after Amanda, not Dawn, meaning that she was the Potential. Dawn helped her to fight the Bringers, but insisted that Amanda should fight the vampire, since it was her destiny. Amanda successfully killed it, the first Potential to slay a vampire single-handed, then Buffy and others arrived to help with the Bringers.
In later episodes Amanda was involved in most events that affected the Potentials. She was initially a fan of Faith but later turned against her after several Potentials died in a raid she had led. In the final battle she was killed by a Turok-Han vampire which broke her neck.
Amanda was shown as shy but occasionally outspoken and violent, a member of the school Swing Choir and debating team. She played Dungeons and Dragons and appeared to be a better player than Andrew Wells.
Fandom
This article or section needs expansion. |
Fannish Opinion
Amanda was very positively received as a character:
God, I just… I can’t quite pin down what it is I love about Amanda so much, but her characterization this season is INCREDIBLE. I mean, this is not an issue of her just being shoved into the role of a Potential. Her appearance earlier in season seven when she spoke to Buffy so perfectly fits in with where she ends up in “Potential” that I can’t believe I didn’t figure this out earlier. She initially was bullied, learned to fight back, silently won the respect of Buffy, and then, through Dawn, became confident enough that she could be forceful and beat down her opponents. THIS IS SO BEAUTIFUL. I LOVE WHEN SECONDARY CHARACTERS GET FULL STORIES. -- Mark Oshiro[1]
I really like Amanda, she’s kind of this weird mixture of quiet and shy and surprisingly tough and direct. Plus, she takes the existence of vampires really well, and her plan to use the vampire against the marching band is hilarious. I think she’s my favorite Potential. -- hpfish13 in comments to the above.
Fan reaction to her death was generally dismayed and shocked, though somewhat overshadowed by the other deaths in the final episode:
The best of the potentials is an actual person who is actually compelling and actually fun to watch. Wonders! So of course she dies in the Battle of the Hellmouth. DAMN YOU, WHEDON! -- Adam B. Vary BuzzFeed News[2]
Shipping
In fanfic she is often shipped with Dawn Summers, occasionally with Vi and other Potentials.
Example Fanworks
| Examples Wanted: Editors are encouraged to add more examples or a wider variety of examples. |
- Drunk by dreamiflame; "After the Potentials hit the bar, Amanda is very drunk. Dawn helps her find the way home." (Amanda/Dawn)
- No More Mr Nice Guy by Lilachigh; "Spring festival in Sunnydale and The Mayor has plans."
- Amanda: the Potential Slayer (video) by Jonathan W.
Meta
Archives and Communities
- Stories tagged Amanda(BtVS) on AO3.
- Amanda works on FFN
Links and Resources
References
- ^ "Mark Watches Buffy The Vampire Slayer S07e12 Potential". Archived from the original on 2021-01-25.
- ^ "117 Buffyverse Characters, Ranked From Worst To Best". Archived from the original on 2022-05-11.