Buffy & Xander - Friends?

LadyLavinia

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I came across an essay called "Belly of the Beast". In it, the author proclaims that although Buffy and Xander had started out as friends, their real friendship had ended somewhere around Season 2. Well, here is the essay - http://www.beast916.com/buffy_xander.htm. I don't know what to make of it, but I would like to read your opinions.
 
I think its a load of rubbish, because there are more types of friendship then those that braid hair and talk about boys.
 
The author does present good arguments, but like most issues within the buffyverse its one that can easily be argued both ways. It was an interesting read, thank you 😀
 
Cordelia said:
The author does present good arguments, but like most issues within the buffyverse its one that can easily be argued both ways. It was an interesting read, thank you 😀


That was the conclusion I had came up with. The arguments are good, but there was something about it . . . well, it wasn't exactly on firm ground, if you know what I mean. But, it was interesting.
 
It seemed that at points, they were manipulating conversations and taking them out of context to make their point, but anywhere in the buffyverse there is vagueness, there's room for debate.
 
Personally, I always saw that whole Buffy/Xander/Willow relationship as evolving into something stronger over the years, rather than devolving as he seems to be suggesting.

It always felt to me like they almost became family.

In fact in the Xander dream sequence in Restless doesn't dream-Buffy call dream-Xander big-brother?
 
I think it's bullcrap. The writer of this essay has obviously not seen some of the more touching Buffy/Xander interactions.
 
I actaully think that in the latter Seasons, they didn't even seem like friends. Even though I love me some Buff, she more or less used them as pawns for her life.

Xander to fix things, Willow to look after Dawn and research, Giles money and handling Dawn and ect.

In Season 6 and 7, you never see them interact as friends, go out on outtings or goto the Bronze all together(without one of them having something else on there mind, i.e. Willow magic and Buffy spike!. Willow and Xander may have formed a stronger bond, but look at Season 7, do you see any real interaction. I sure didn't.

I didn't even think they were friends at all, somewhat like family, in the way that they use and abuse each other.
 
C
Cordelia
I agree...Friends are the family you choose...
Willow: Buffy, you never...

Buffy: (nears the breaking point) Willow, please. I can't take this
from you, too.

Xander: Let her finish! You at least owe her that.

Buffy: God, Xander! Do you think you could at least stick to annoying
me on your own behalf?

Xander: Fine! You stop acting like an idiot, I'll stop annoying you!

Buffy: (steps up to Xander) Oh, you wanna talk acting like an idiot?
Nighthawk?

Well they aren't friends by the third season. They're family. Thats how I bicker with my brothers, it doesn't mean I don't love them.
 
In Season 6 and 7, you never see them interact as friends, go out on outtings or goto the Bronze all together(without one of them having something else on there mind, i.e. Willow magic and Buffy spike!. Willow and Xander may have formed a stronger bond, but look at Season 7, do you see any real interaction. I sure didn't.


Actually, they did a lot of interacting in Season 7 in the early part of the season and especially in "First Date". Thanks to Giles' rant in that episode, Buffy became General von Summers and their friendship didn't seem all that close from then on.
 
That kind of thing happens in a family. You distance then come together in a continuous series of circles.
 
I think Buffy and Xander are more like brother and sister, then just friends, that's why they fight so much. Siblings fight all the time. I don't think Xander sees Buffy as his hero, he sees himself as her bigbrother, and he feels he needs to look after her kinda, and when she makes mistakes, he gets mad. Like a caring bigbrother would!
 
F
FahrbotDrusilla
I agree 100%
Sorry, just found this thread, in fact this forum. But, I noticed last week when I was watching Superstar that Xander says something when they're all sitting around the college grounds after Jonathon has been exposed. He says something like, "I miss the way he made me feel, like I was respected, like he always valued my opinion'. Or words to that effect (can't find the exact quote). And I thought at the time that it was an odd thing to say, like, doesn't Buffy ever make him feel that way? Doesn't Buffy treat him with the same amount of respect that Jonathon did when he was the Big Good? Well, maybe not!

Anyway, I'm not saying I agree with all the points raised in this article, but it is interesting and I'm sure I'll be paying more attention to their interactions from now on.
 
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