I think the phrase is really just shorthand for not recognising the characters they used to like/not *liking* the characters. That is very true, but speaking for me *personally* that was never the case. 'Liking' them is not something I've ever been bothered by. F.ex. I don't 'like' the AR, but I can't deny that it isn't OOC for Spike to behave how he did, and I understand why they went that route. I 'like' a lot of things in s8, but still think it OOC.
at least as open with Dawn and Willow as they are with her No arguments there!
This year the issue isn't her ability to connect with friends/family/loved ones but with humanity as a whole. I started writing out this whole thing about the Slayers being Watcher-less, and Buffy's job necessitating her being hidden, but it wasn't going anywhere, so I'll spare you my rambling.
Re. Buffy's ruthlessness, then the examples you use are all about her being emotionally invested in something, and her actions spring from that. It wasn't ruthlessness that made her ready to sacrifice the world in The Gift, but reaching her limit and being unable to kill her own sister - i.e. love. Of course she has to be ruthless in doing her job - she can't hesitate when it comes to killing things - but that doesn't mean that she is by nature a ruthless person. As she tells Kendra, her emotions give her power. She knows this, and uses it. (In S7 f.ex. she tries her very best to be ruthless, especially in 'Get It Done', and we see how uncomfortable this makes her.)
Having pondered this whole comic-book-ness in the last few days, then I think that when it comes to AtF it flows naturally from the show. I can analyse that comic as if it were the show, even though the format is vastly reduced. The characters' actions and motivations can be traced back directly to their history, and I always understand where they come from, whether I like the developments or not. I can't do that with s8 - increasingly, the comic and the show are at odds in their portrayal of these people, and although it might be possible to join them up it requires a lot of mental gymnastics, a willingness to jump over the huge gaps that have been created. s8 can be analysed on it's own, and there is certainly enough there to work with, but I quite simply can't get comic and canon to align in any meaningful way. I hope that makes my position clearer?
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branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2009-01-07 08:23 pm (UTC)That is very true, but speaking for me *personally* that was never the case. 'Liking' them is not something I've ever been bothered by. F.ex. I don't 'like' the AR, but I can't deny that it isn't OOC for Spike to behave how he did, and I understand why they went that route. I 'like' a lot of things in s8, but still think it OOC.
at least as open with Dawn and Willow as they are with her
No arguments there!
This year the issue isn't her ability to connect with friends/family/loved ones but with humanity as a whole.
I started writing out this whole thing about the Slayers being Watcher-less, and Buffy's job necessitating her being hidden, but it wasn't going anywhere, so I'll spare you my rambling.
Re. Buffy's ruthlessness, then the examples you use are all about her being emotionally invested in something, and her actions spring from that. It wasn't ruthlessness that made her ready to sacrifice the world in The Gift, but reaching her limit and being unable to kill her own sister - i.e. love. Of course she has to be ruthless in doing her job - she can't hesitate when it comes to killing things - but that doesn't mean that she is by nature a ruthless person. As she tells Kendra, her emotions give her power. She knows this, and uses it. (In S7 f.ex. she tries her very best to be ruthless, especially in 'Get It Done', and we see how uncomfortable this makes her.)
Having pondered this whole comic-book-ness in the last few days, then I think that when it comes to AtF it flows naturally from the show. I can analyse that comic as if it were the show, even though the format is vastly reduced. The characters' actions and motivations can be traced back directly to their history, and I always understand where they come from, whether I like the developments or not. I can't do that with s8 - increasingly, the comic and the show are at odds in their portrayal of these people, and although it might be possible to join them up it requires a lot of mental gymnastics, a willingness to jump over the huge gaps that have been created. s8 can be analysed on it's own, and there is certainly enough there to work with, but I quite simply can't get comic and canon to align in any meaningful way. I hope that makes my position clearer?