Giles and... Buffy?

[palabravampiress]

So, apparently, there are Giles/Buffy shippers in the world. There is one, at least. He or she made a video for YouTube.

Is anyone on that ship? I've never really thought of that before. I mean, there is that scene in which Buffy says to Spike: "You know that when I was kissing you I was thinking about Giles, right?" And, deadly serious and a little curious, he replies, "You know, I always wondered about you two." She quickly rebuffs him, though, with a "What? Eww! No." I guess that means Spike's thought of it before. Lol. That implies that somebody on the writing team thought of it. But I sure hadn't thought of a Giles/Buffy pairing. The show always portrays them as having a father/daughter relationship.

Anyway, now that I've encountered it, I was wondering what people would think of that pairing. On the one hand, I would hate to see them give up that father/daughter relationship. On the other... well, I can't think of another right now; that's why I'm asking you what you think! So... what are the possible "pros" of a Buffy/Giles pairing?

 

[Blondie Bear]

I can't think of any. It makes me go "Ick, ick, ick!" and jump up and down trying to shake it out of my brain.

 

[palabravampiress]

I can't think of any. It makes me go "Ick, ick, ick!" and jump up and down trying to shake it out of my brain.

While you're at it, do the hokey pokey and turn yourself around! lol.

I can't, either. It's not the age difference that gives me a wiggins. After all, I'm around Buffy's age and my Giles crush is common knowledge. Instead, it's the way their relationship is played on the screen as a father/daughter one. Plus, he slept with her mom. I can't imagine those two ever kissing without a bunch of awkward icky incest vibes. In my head, it goes something like this:

They kiss, then quickly pull apart. Giles immediately stiffens and cleans his glasses. Buffy shakes and makes her alcohol yuck face.

Buffy: "Okay. Eww. That was weird."
Giles: "Quite."

 

[ILLYRIAN]

I'm not bothered by the age difference either, but then I am about the same age as he is. Would I like to have a girlfriend that young ? I'd like to win lotto first, then there's the Aston Martin.

Mind you if you want the imagery, try imagining Giles under the carpet with Buffy, not Spike.

Hey Blondie Bear how about putting that in your thesis ?

 

[tearsong]

It was weird enough seeing Anya and Giles kiss... I don't think I coulda handled a Guffy Ship.... a whole lotta ewwwwie. I can't say it enough. I totally agree it's the whole incest vibe. Yeck.

 

[JCC]

Meh. I don't care about incest, I'm a 'liberty YAHHH' kind of guy, so what people do in their own homes is really up to them (though it does seem like a bit of a weird thought. Meh), but their relationship was played out as so asexual that it would seem muchos weird.

 

[Joyce Summers]

As you guys have said it's not the age difference that bothers me- I mean Anya is around the same age as Buffy (demon years aside) and I didn't completely wig when she and Giles kissed. Made me smile if anything.
But in my opinion Giles/Buffy is a just an entire bucket of wrongness. I mean he's the equivalent of her Dad! Which makes it mucho gross! I mean I've read essays where people have theorized that the two only say it's Father/Daughter relationship to cover their true feelings for one another. Now I personally thing anyone should come create any ship they want- that's the beauty of a fandom- but for this one I just say no!! It gives me the uber wiggins.
I mean the writers have even said in the scripts numerous times that it's Father/Daughter. In the script for The Dark Age, when he reveals that he created the demon they describe Buffy's expression as such

There is real fear in his surrogate daughter's eyes

Surrogate. Daughter. Plus in Helpless where Travers points out he has 'a father's love for the child'. And in the commentary for The Body Joss refers to Giles as 'her Daddy'.

In conclusion. Giles= Dad. Buffy= Daughter. Buffy/Giles= Incesty grossness.

And bad palabra for that mini-scene! Although I think that's exactly how it would play out.Especially if it was the consequence of some accidental sporadic kissing spell.

 

[Bangelxx]

Giles and Buffy as a couple...ICK ICK MAJOR ICK! lol But as a father/daughter relatonship its perfect

 

[Elithustra]

Shall I play devil's advocate here? Why, I believe I shall!

Imagine the relationship issues that would have sprung up from being a romantic relationship with your slayer. If we think our romantic relationships have had problems in the past, imagine what this would be like now.

Buffy: Darling, I can't go slaying tonight.
Giles: Er, um, yes. Why not?
Buffy: I've got a headache.
Giles: That's your excuse for everything. *removes glasses and polishes them*

Could you imagine the antics the two would have inspired? And how would that of then effected them in Band Candy? Would Buffy ever be able to forgive Giles, considering he was under the effects of candy? And then, in later seasons, would their relationship given Dawn the father-figure she always needed?

Age gap, sure, there's that to think about as well. Actually, I don't give it much thought. I've known plenty of people who are in relationships with people at least ten years their senior. Katie Holmes. Ashton Kutcher....

Another pro to their romantic pairing would be that they'd have a deeper understanding of each other, of where they're coming from, especially later on in Once More, With Feeling.

Giles dealing with his grief of loosing Buffy, not once, but several times over, also could have provided us with some wonderful episodes.

Giles & Buffy? Sure, the concept grosses us out because it's not something we've ever considered before. Thereagain, who'd have thought Xander would go for Anya? Two totally different people. And for the longest time, one of the two happiest couples on the show.

*takes off devil's horns*

 

[November]

The age difference doesnt gross me out as much as the father/daughter thing. And i would have thought it was way more then 10 years! Or just anyone over the age of 40 looks old to me, it could be either one! Hehe.

Buffy: Darling, I can't go slaying tonight.
Giles: Er, um, yes. Why not?
Buffy: I've got a headache.
Giles: That's your excuse for everything. *removes glasses and polishes them*

that is very cleaver though!
I think I will forever be in the *too gross* catagory!!

 

[Blondie Bear]

I like your scenario, Eli, and great job on the devil's advocate. However, that all depends on the relationship starting out on COMPLETELY different footing than it did. There's really no way they could be a couple NOW and get away with it, but if they had started out differently. . . . Joss did mention on the commentary to "Welcome to the Hellmouth" that Giles was standing rather creepily close to Buffy a couple of times, that they hadn't quite got the teacher/student personal space thing down at that point. That would be where it had to start, not any time after about midway through S1. It's not a bad arc idea, just with someone besides Buffy and Giles.

 

[Kemy]

One of my best friends is an avid Buffy/Giles shipper, been writing fiction and doing artwork for years now about it.

 

[palabravampiress]

I agree with Blondie Bear. It would had to have started out a lot earlier in the series. By the end of season 7, well, he's her father figure.

Furthermore, I'd go on to say it was intentional. Not only did some of the scripts and dialogue reference the father/daughter relationship, but Buffy was also kept out of scenes that might cause her to see Giles in a different light. Take, for example, the Espresso Pump. How any person who is the least bit attracted to men can watch Giles perform at the Espresso Pump without going a bit weak in the knees is beyond me. The other scoobies stood transfixed. Heck, lesbian Willow remembered her high school crush. Buffy was very pointedly nowhere near. For most of the scenes that make my Giles-loving heart go pitter patter, Buffy was very purposefully kept out of the loop. My theory was that the purpose there was to keep the relationship strictly father/daughter. And you wouldn't be able to do that if Buffy, who is not really his daughter, had often been privy to his hotness.

Now, if Buffy were to become privy to the hotness at some point now in season 8 and find herself sort of squicked by having to view Giles in a different light, I'd be okay with that, but only if it was played for comedy. One of the younger slayers says: "that's Watcher 1.0? Well, hello Mr. Robinson." It might be funny to have Buffy cock her head, go, "Well, I guess he might be kind of..." Then, she shakes the disturbing mental image out, and adds, "I mean, eww! Gross! Go clean your mind out with soap."

 

[Tueuse de Vampires]

Even if there wasn't this whole father figure/age gap thing: Could you seriously imagine Buffy with Giles? I mean look at all the guys Buffy did date, not one of them was ANYTHING like Giles.

 

[Rowan Hawthorn]

There's a whole online fanfiction Season 8 centering around a Giles/Buffy pairing.

 

[Joyce Summers]

I would karmafy Palabra for the second little scene you did there about Buffy noting G-man potential in season eight, but apparently you were the last person I karmafied.
Anyhoo, yeah like you guys were saying; the relationship would have had to have been different from the very beginning to even allow the Buffy/Giles dynamic to take this (disturbing) turn.
The thing is there are some very good fanfiction online based around the two that I find very very sweet. One of my favorites involves Willow casting a spell to heal Buffy from an uber fight, backfiring and causing her to age twenty odd years thus making her the same age as Giles. It was a fun story generically and just had a cute way of getting them together. However, no matter how cute they stories may be written my mind always wanders back to the ick factor and shouts at me 'wrong! wrong! wrong!' and demand I stop reading.

Plus there is another angle that makes this all not just the wrong, but the impossible. Giles is, for want of a better word, a gentlemen and would never, I personally believe, in a million years ever find himself attracted to someone as young as Buffy, particularly any member of the Scooby Gang as they are in effect his charges. He feels a responsibility towards them and while he may be protective and assure Buffy that her hair look good (usually followed by a 'Can we get back to the matter at hand?' glare) he would never be able to cross that boundary of seeing her in a different light. Doing so, would essentially make Giles a little bit creepy and a creep he is not. He is pure gentlemenly goodness. Hence another veto on the Buffy/Giles 'ship.

 

[tearsong]

I don't think gentleman has anything to do with falling for someone Buffy's age or not... gentlemen do it all the time. I do agree the way he has come to view the scoobies would prevent it...
Someone also said Buffy doesn't go for Giles type, but maybe she should.... god only knows she could use a grown up 'ship... it might force her out of her comfort zone and into adult land more often. It's like she's two ages... for slayage it's some 40 year old quipster, and off the slaying field she regresses to some 15 year old half the time in any "real life" sitch. I don't think she could handle Giles or the expectations of a relationship with him

 

[Joyce Summers]

I didn't mean gentlemen in general as like you said, it has happened many times. But Giles is a certain type of gentlemen. You know the traditional, old fashioned type. I think maybe it's a consequence of being so liberal in his teens maybe....::shrugs::. Anyway, what I was saying Giles is the particular type of gentlemen that wouldn't ever be able to look at Buffy in that way. Even if they didn't have the close Father/Daughter relationship I think he would still view her in an adult-protecting-the-child fashion

 

[tearsong]

I disagree.... besides Joyce who was in his age bracket both Jenny and the chick from London (can't remember her name off the top of my head) were at least 6 years younger if not wayyyy more.... I don't think Giles would be narrow enough to discount a 'ship based on age.... it has to do with perception. He thinks of Buffy as a daughter so all other issues are moot....

 

[Elithustra]

Well, now that I've played Devil's Advocate, I'm jumping on the 'Ewwwwwwwwwwww' band-wagon!

Yes, PV, I know Katie Holmes and Ashton Kutcher personally! We all get along really well, though Katie's gone a bit strange in recent times... :lmao: