Your Turn: Buffy Summers

Buffy just wants to be a normal girl, but she has been "chosen" and even though at times she wishes she could give up, she never does. First love, first job at a fast-food place, a martinet of a school principal, all the usual horrors of teen life -- but she gets them with a Hellmouth twist.

Buffy inspired girls and grown women, too, to stretch beyond their comfort zones, to have faith in themselves, and to make family out of trusted friends.

And talk about effect on language? This show generated scholarly tomes on the linguistics of its dialog. This show had a completely original, hour long musical episode. And an episode with almost no dialog, because demons stole the town's voices.

Buffy broke a lot of ground in seven years. Thanks Joss Whedon.

Sent by Barbara Boerger | 1:28 PM | 1-11-2008

Buffy the Vampire Slayer began as a movie of middling success. But when Joss Whedon transferred his vampire-slaying heroine to the small screen on the then-fledgling and now-defunct WB, big things happened.

There were Big Bads like The Master and The Mayor amidst the usual teen big doings -- prom, the SATs, love. It was the ultimate do-over for Joss Whedon -- a chance to show all the things about high school and growing up that the movie had been unable to communicate.

Movies were not the right medium for his heroine, but television was a perfect fit for Ms. Summers. It was hip, funny, and could be incredibly moving. It went so far as to have a musical episode, with music & lyrics by Joss Whedon.

Buffy's fans followed her erstwhile beau Angel to his own eponymous show and have lobbied for both Spike and Faith TV movies. For now we have to be content with the continuation of the Whedonverse (as we call it) via comic-book versions of BTVS and Angel.

Sent by Jenny Nelson | 1:38 PM | 1-11-2008

One of the aspects of the character of Buffy and of the show itself that interests me is the defiant, "anti-establishment" attitude -- oftentimes against a male-dominated establishment. It's referenced in the show that the original Slayer was a young girl (in an unspecified, ancient time and place) held against her will and infused with the essence of a demon by a cabal of tribal elders. Buffy must decide whether to cooperate with these primal forces in order to gain much-needed strength. She is earlier confronted by the influential Watcher's Council (Watchers being those charged with the tutelage of the Slayers), who wish to reign her in and maintain certain conventions as to her life and her relationship with her Watcher, Giles.

But she remains recalcitrant in these instances, choosing instead to find strength within herself and those close to her. So, while this certainly points to a feminist message, I think there's also a more general message in her character about diverging from past traditions and recognizing certain ambiguities in the world. This has echoes of social upheaval and general dissatisfaction with the administration in power, seen throughout history, especially among the younger generations.

Sent by John M | 8:27 PM | 1-12-2008

Buffy is more than just about trendy mid-90s "girl power." Shes about the heros journey, shes about coming-of-age, shes about seriously hardcore feminism. Buffy the Vampire Slayer as a TV series dealt with gay rights, the controversies of war, school shootings, sexual politics, divorce, sibling rivalry, spirituality, morality, and personal redemption. Buffy as a character proves that women can be powerful, funny, strong, vulnerable, multi-dimensional, and heroic. She bridges that gap in "geek fandom" between men and women and appeals to one of the widest audiences of any similar character ever created. I grew as a writer by "practicing" fiction writing with Buffy fanfic. I had people as members of my wedding party whom Id met due to our shared love of the work of Joss Whedon. I have been inspired creatively, politically, and personally by Buffys strength, determination, and perseverance in the face of adversity.

Sent by Kathleen Kollman | 9:11 AM | 1-25-2008

Buffy Summers is a ball of contradictions in a way that is utterly American. She was a teen girl who wanted to fit in, wanted nothing more than to have to worry about the SATs or cheerleading. But she carried the safety of humanity on her slender shoulders.

Moreover, as Joss Whedon aptly points out time and again, her struggles with demons were the same struggles of teens writ fantastic. She has sex for the first time and the guy who she gives her virginity does not just turn into a jerk, he literally loses his soul and becomes a monster that she eventually has to kill.

The earliest episodes had her battling students who were not just demonic but were actual demons. The world of high school wasn't only metaphoric hell, but it was situated on a hellmouth.

Buffy is such a wonderful character that years after its end as a TV show, it lives on in series of comics, in beloved fanfiction. The cast reunited just this month at the Paley Fest where they did a little bit of navelgazing and examined Buffy's role in our culture.

Sent by Kathryn | 3:58 PM | 3-25-2008

This piece made my morning, I only wish I'd thought to nominate Buffy myself. Jamie Tarabay is far from alone in seeking comfort from Buffy in times of anxiety and strife.

I don't know how I would have gotten through graduate school without the show, it's been a refuge, an encouragement, and a place to find friends for several years. There's an episode to fit every mood and to change any mood. The characters are smart, funny, and most of all have more emotional depth and complexity than almost any others on television. They're real people with real problems, which can't always be solved in an hour, or even a season.

More recently, Buffy has helped me connect with my sister, given two very different women something in common to talk about. Sure, "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" sounds like nonsensical fluff, but this is one book that should definitely not be judged by its cover. There's something for everyone and no matter who you are, it has something for you.

I'm very much looking forward to Joss Whedon's new show in the fall.

Sent by Megan Jacobson | 6:14 PM | 5-19-2008

Buffy Anne Summers continues to be a role model of strength for me, as a figure of power and as a gateway to a wonderful Internet community of fans who also loved her. At her core she is what any girl would love to be: courageous enough to push past restrictions of others to find her own way in the world. The only misstep Mr. Whedon ever had in the seven years we enjoyed watching our favorite Slayer were the times he strayed from this principle, ignoring what makes Buffy an iconic hero for people worldwide.

Sent by Christine | 12:47 AM | 5-20-2008