Wednesday, April 08, 2009

On sequels and vampire biology

Buffy's back!

Or is she? Well, probably not. Ever since Buffy the Vampire Slayer went off the air in 2003 (an event I recorded on video and refused to let anybody tell me about until I'd watched it, whereupon I wandered around in shock going, "But how could they??") rumours of a comeback have abounded. A Spike spin-off. A Giles spin-off. A Dawn spin-off (youch). A Faith spin-off. In fact, name a character, and a spin-off has been mooted. Everyone apart from Angel, who of course got his own spin-off, which was cancelled a year after Buffy ended. Rumours of a comeback usually fall in the Salt, Pinch Of category.

Today brings, as do so many other days, news of a possible Buffy movie. Forgetting, of course, that there already was one in 1992, from which the series eventually came. The news report I read today had an interesting twist, however: that Buffy could return as a 'vengeful mother'. Seeking revenge on who, I wonder?


Buffy,Spike & Angel

A more interesting question is this. Who's the father? At the end of the BTVS series, Buffy was still undecided between two beaux (a wise decision by the writers, since both had huge followings and a final rejection of either Spike or Angel might have led to violence at fan conventions). However, both her men were vampires, and according to the lore of the Buffyverse, vampires are technically dead: they have no body heat, no bloodflow, and therefore are as capable of fathering a child as a corpse.

However--again--in Angel the series, Angel does manage to father a child with a fellow vampire. How? I'm not sure, and I don't think Angel was either. Magic was suggested (that's the great thing about paranormals: when all else fails, it's explained by magic).

Bangel

So, maybe, Buffy could have had a baby by either Spike or Angel. After all, in the final few episodes of the series, she had a passionate on-screen kiss with Angel, but also shared a bed (platonically? We have no idea) with Spike. Then Spike got turned to dust, reanimated as a ghost haunting Angel's office, and Buffy relocated to Rome with her little sister. A great place to hide away! Spike and Angel did try to track her down in Italy, but failed.

But as I mentioned above, picking either one of Buffy's favourite vampires to be the father of her child would be a bad idea. And, of course, being the brainchild of Joss Whedon, whoever actually was the father would probably have to die a horrible death in order to be avenged, and I'm not sure either Angel or Spike could stand to be killed--again. Buffy's had other beaux, of course, some of them even human. My money would be on a liaison in Rome, possibly even a marriage, that ended tragically.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

The big question, however, is this. Is all this conjecture a bit, well, useless? Should sleeping characters be left to lie? Buffy et al have been so comprehensively written about, blogged about, fanficced and mythologised that Buffy and her friends have already had a million futures mapped out for them. Do we ever need a sequel? Isn't it enough that Buffy ended her screen life happily, with grace and dignity?

Should we ever bring back characters after their happily-ever-after?

Who am I kidding. The really big question is this: Since actors age and vampires don't, could either David Boreanaz or James Marsters ever feature in a Buffy screen future? And would either of them, perchance, be shirtless?

Buffy & Spike

(fan images from fanpop.com)

6 comments:

  1. Sigh...I completely understand. I do miss Buffy. She was my hero, in a way. Whenever I'm having a bad day at work, I stop and think to myself "What would Buffy do in this situation?" Maybe I'm just weird. Shrug.

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  2. Nope, you're not weird. I've asked myself that many times. Unfortunately, the answer usually involves kicking butt in a way I'd only be capable of if I kissed goodbye to any muscles I ever wanted to use again!

    Weirdly, just after I wrote this, I saw a news article that said SMG is pregnant herself. How's that for life imitating art?

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  3. Ok, so that last piccie of Spike and Buffy made me go all squirmy. WOuld I like a Buffy movie....hmmm, maybe. WOuld I like a Spike movie. Most definitely. WOuld I like Spike on a plate. Definitely :)

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  4. Instead of Buffy perhaps focus on someone else, not of the main pantheon that is still in the 'verse. They could have a guest star or stars with a few pop ins from old main characters to give spin off weight and then go off in a new direction. I'd love for them to revisit the Buffy world with whole new eyes.

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  5. I loved Buffy (erm the show not actually Buffy) I wasn't such a huge fan of the Angel spin off. Joss Whedon is such a genius I loved Firefly and was gutted when they only did one series. Am now loving Dollhouse - oh to be inside his head for an hour...

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  6. Anonymous1:49 pm

    I loved buffy and the angel spin off. Talking about the aging and shirtless thing i dont know about spike but from what ive seen angel is still in good shape ;)

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