BTVS How to Stake Fiends and Influence A Genre

Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Just saying it out loud can make you feel vaguely silly. In fact the entire premise is vaguely silly even in a genre (vampires) full of vaguely silly conventions. Well if BTVS (as fans refer to it) is a guilty pleasure then I may get a life sentence! I am not sure how many 51 year old men are hooked on all things Buffy but I am certainly among them. Recently it occurred to me to think about why that is.

My first exposure to “the one girl in all the world” was the plethora of posters featuring a pretty girl and a wooden stake put up around NYC to promote the 1992 film. It seemed that they were on every building and on the side of every bus in town. I gave the movie a pass. As I found out some years later after seeing it on TV, I realized I had made the right choice. The less said about that movie the better.

Fast forward to 1997 and a plethora of TV spots of an even prettier girl and a wooden stake and I decided again to give the Buffster a pass. BIG mistake but I went along in blissful ignorance until midway through the sixth season when a friend told me I HAD to tune in to catch a “musical” Buffy episode, “Once More With Feeling”. Since this friend had also turned me on to X-files some years before I relented and in thanks for all things Mulder and Scully I watched the episode. And I was hooked forever and ever amen! I quickly got my hands on the DVDS which were just hitting the marked at the time and my friend’s video tapes (That was before DVD recorders kiddies). By the time Season Seven rolled around I was all caught up and Buffy was not must see TV for me.

So WHY Buffy? How can such an absurd premise hold so much fascination for so many people? How is it that BTVS has influenced so many shows that followed including Heroes, 24 and Smallville? Several reasons!

First, BTVS, perfected the use of season long story arcs that had really first come into play with my beloved X-files. But in this case, most of the episodes and almost ALL of the episodes in the second half drove to the yearly conclusion. “How many apocalypses is this for us? Oh at least six…seems like a hundred”. And there was an arc that ran through the entire seven seasons and that was the maturation of Buffy and the Scoobies from adolescence to adulthood. This arc held nothing back. These characters dealt with everything from dating , to death in a real world sense (Joyce Summers, Tara ) to the heartbreak of psoriasis and more. These young people would learn about loss and betrayal and redemption. These sorts of arcs make the characters seem very real regardless of the Sci-fi/Horror setting.

Next, and very important is that BTVS empowered women in a way we have never seen on TV. Females DROVE the show. Not just Buffy, but Willow , Faith and Dawn all were key players and leaders. While doing this, Buffy did not belittle the role of MEN either. Xander really became the heart of the team. Spike taught us about redemption and Giles showed us that one can always find time for tea even during the apocalypse. In addition Buffy of all shows had the most realistic and respectful portrayal of gay characters that I have ever seen on a television series.

Finally, and most important , this was a wonderfully written show performed by attractive and very talented actors. You never really knew what was coming next on BTVS. One moment you are laughing at the jokes and the next you might be in a truly dramatic moment. In other words Buffy is just plain good TV.

That’s 30!