Buffy Summers

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Character
Name: Buffy Summers
Occupation: Slayer
Relationships: Family: sister Dawn, mother Joyce; Scoobies: Giles, Willow, Xander; boyfriends: Angel, Riley, Spike
Fandom: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Other:
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Buffy Summers is the eponymous heroine of the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer. She is played by Sarah Michelle Gellar.

Canon

Created as an anti-archetype, the small, seemingly defenseless blonde who turns out have superpowers, Buffy is forever juggling life as the Slayer on whose petite shoulders rests the weight of the world with the normal business of being a teenage girl... friends, schoolwork, dating. Early seasons were focused on her High School years, and her doomed romance with the souled vampire Angel. She dies for the first time at the end of season one at the hands of The Master, and is brought back to life when Xander performs CPR.

Later seasons focus on the trials of growing up, her time in college and her relationships with her friends and family. She becomes the primary guardian to her sister Dawn following the passing of their mother Joyce. In the season 5 finale, "The Gift", Buffy dies for the second time, sacrificing herself to save Dawn and the world. Later, Buffy struggles to return to her normal life after her time in the afterlife.

In season 7 and the commics, Buffy is shown as a capable Slayer who has accepted her duty and taken responsibility for training a new generation of Slayers.

Fandom

Despite her status as eponymous heroine, Buffy came in for a lot of criticism, particularly for her treatment of Spike in season 6.

Buffy Bashing

Buffy's characterization in fanfiction, from season 5 onwards, sometimes veered towards character bashing. She was often portrayed as rude, self centered, uncaring for her friends and/or abusive towards the chipped or souled Spike. Her behavior was sometimes the result of ignorance, that her friends or a Mary Sue OC corrected, but other times Buffy was essentially the mean girl villain of the fic.[1]

I've found that fanon characterization is starting to effect the way I view certain characters. I've ran across a couple of stories that make Buffy into an uber bitch and insert your favorite Scoobie as her victim that just got me to start hating the Scoobie in question. If author has to warp other characters to make one character into a saint then I might as well be reading an orginal story instead of fanfiction.[2]

Wait, wait, you mean like those "Buffy gets mad and beats the ^&$^%*# out of someone who disagrees with her" stories? Or how about "Buffy is an idiot and easily manipulated" stories? I don't believe I've ever actually heard of anyone flaming a fic because it didn't bash a character enough. On the other hand, I'm beginning to see that Fanfic is a much, MUCH different beast from when I first dropped out of the running, back in season 4. [3]

I can't say fanfic had much of a part in making me a Buffy fangirl. But I was used to reading Buffy's a Bitch or Buffy Learns a Lesson About Spike's Awesomeness or Self Insert Going By the Name of "Buffy" fics. Nah, it took lots of fannish discussions and essays for me to come around on her character.[4]

Buffy bashing in fanfics often served to get together a pairing, often Spander but sometimes Spangel. However fics featuring Buffy as one half of the main (usually het) pairing also featured their fair share of Buffy bashing. See St. Spike vs. Buffy the Bitch for more information.

Fans of Buffy often distinguished between sometimes writing Buffy as a bitchy character, which she can be in canon, and writing Buffy OOC in order to bash the character. In fanfiction there are many fics which portray Buffy as a multi faceted and flawed character. There are also many fics which portray her as St. Buffy, a perfect character who has never done anything wrong and is not responsible for any of her poor choices.

Ships

The major ships are Buffy/Angel (Bangel), which was popular early in the series, and Buffy/Spike (Spuffy), which later overtook the pairing with Angel. (See the Bangel vs Spuffy article for details of attendant fireworks.) Buffy is also paired with numerous other characters including Giles in het, and Faith and Willow in femslash.

Fannish Opinion

Fannish reaction to Buffy's actions in Season 6 varied considerably. There were some who viewed her treatment of Spike in this season as abusive.

I started out this season with the assumption that ... I knew what kind of girl Buffy was, that for all her flaws, and they are many, she was essentially a caring person. By the middle of the season I was reluctantly convinced that I was completely wrong, and that the only thing Buffy felt for Spike was lust, loathing, and some kind of possessiveness which demanded he remain her devoted worshiper but denied him even the most basic respect in return. I'm willing to take the word of the writers that this was not what they intended, but the sad fact is, this is how it came off to a large portion of the audience--even those who are not Spike fans in particular. And that is not good. This season Mutant Enemy made me hate a character I'd previously liked a lot. Even after she acknowledged that she was using Spike, Buffy kept on doing it, and by her silence encouraged her friends to do likewise. Because it was easy for her. Because she was afraid of what they'd say. This season Buffy became the worst kind of moral coward.

Barb Cummings [5]

Others defended Buffy.

Ultimately, I tend to think that one of Buffy's greatest crimes, in a show whose main characters are often social rejects, geeks, unpopular, awkward, outcasts, and in a world where people like Cordelia and Lilah are punished for being successful and confident and -- shock! -- even popular? Is that Buffy has some self-esteem. It's that she knows that there are things she does well. She knows that there are things that make her valuable. She knows that she is important.

And, again, in what is a great shock to all of us? She's not happy with it. ... Buffy, like Lilah and Cordelia, shows us that beautiful, popular, talented, successful people? Do have pain. Just like people who aren't successful, or popular, or socially adept.

And god knows we can't have that.

Juleskicks, Idol Reflection [6]

Notable Fanworks

Fanfiction

Fanvids

Meta

Fanart

Example Art Gallery

Archives & Fannish Links

Resources & Links

References

  1. ^ LusciousXander livejournal post 22 September 2006, accessed 3 June 2019.
  2. ^ Fanon vs. Canon Characterization by dedwards, 22 May 2004. Accessed 10 May 2024
  3. ^ Comment on I don't hate Buffy. Guess I'm nuts. by M McGregor on Livejournal, Jan 21 2005. Accessed June 12 2019.
  4. ^ Making of a Fangirl post and comment by gabrielleabelle on livejournal, Jan 2 2010. Accessed June 12 2019.
  5. ^ "All About Spike: Barb's end-of-season review-cum-letter to ME". Archived from the original on 2021-01-26. Retrieved 15 February 2012.
  6. ^ "Idol Reflections: BtVS/Angel: Buffy Summers: And you are?". Archived from the original on 2017-04-08. Retrieved 15 February 2012.
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