Intervention: Being the Perfect Slayer

Buffy Summers

Yataro
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In Intervention, Buffy tells Giles, "To slay, to kill. It means being hard on the inside. Maybe being the perfect Slayer means being too hard to love at all."

Do you think Buffy was right?
 
Yes. I totally agree. That is why the slayers typically act alone and are insulated from the world. But that's also why perish early as well. Buffy was imperfect, that is why she succeeded.
 
I think it was Buffy being Buffy. She thinks that she doesn't have a choice or something.

'Being the slayer made me different. But its my fault I stayed that way.'

She has a choice and she chooses not to let her friends in a lot of the time. Hell even her own flesh and blood (Dawn) or another slayer ( Faith)- she's reluctant to let them in.
The only person she really opened up to was Angel. The more the show went on the more it seemed that their S3 doomed romance thing really messed Buffy up emotionally.
 
Yes. I totally agree. That is why the slayers typically act alone and are insulated from the world. But that's also why perish early as well. Buffy was imperfect, that is why she succeeded.

Buffy imperfect!! Careful Mr Pole this could be pistols at dawn
 
Buffy imperfect!! Careful Mr Pole this could be pistols at dawn
But it's true. According to the Watcher's Council and what they wanted, Kendra (and possibly Faith) were 'better' Slayers than Buffy. Giles even complained initially about her, until he realized she was different.
 
But it's true. According to the Watcher's Council and what they wanted, Kendra (and possibly Faith) were 'better' Slayers than Buffy. Giles even complained initially about her, until he realized she was different.

True Mr Pole but Buffy is SMG now she is perfect
 
Seen from the Watcher's Council's point of view, and from those who created the first slayer, I think Buffy got it right. To them, the Slayer were to get the job done, taking nothing else into consideration.
 
Seriously Buffy said.. no one has been through what I have been through.. and certainly no one has died twice! she must least ptsd
 
But it's true. According to the Watcher's Council and what they wanted, Kendra (and possibly Faith) were 'better' Slayers than Buffy. Giles even complained initially about her, until he realized she was different.
I think Kendra was the council's idea of a perfect slayer but not Faith. Faith was too rogue. Buffy was too connected to friends and family. In the end it was the connection to family & friends that kept her alive. She died for Dawn but her close friends brought her back to life. They wouldn't have brought her back to life if they hadn't loved her and missed her so much. And if she hadn't had the connection with Spike she likely wouldn't have made it through her depression in S6 or her fight with the first in S7.
 
Skanky Vamp
Skanky Vamp
I think its hard to figure how she was BEFORE her watcher died. She might have been different before seeing the trauma of that. She seemed fond of her watcher so that might have kept her in line.
Tough one. If the slayer has nobody and nothing to live for then what pushes them to go on living?
 
I think that the reason Buffy lasted as long as she did is that she wasn't the Council perfect slayer .
They want a robot . But a robot doesn't last long & that why Buffy was so good.
 
I think Kendra was the council's idea of a perfect slayer but not Faith. Faith was too rogue.

But Faith went rogue because her Watcher was killed in front of her, and then in Sunnydale she couldn't deal with being in Buffy's shadow. If she had been the only Slayer, as was meant to be with the whole line thing, the Council would have had a 'trigger happy' demon killer so to speak on their hands, and as we saw with the Mayor - she didn't mind taking orders or doing someone elses dirty business.

That's not what happened obviously, but she had potential. 🙂
 
Agreed . She does what she told & doesn't talk back or get angry at them.
 
I don't think Buffy was right that being a Slayer means being too hard to love at all, I think it means being hard to love however...
They're constantly in danger, being around them puts everyone else in danger, and they have an immense responsiblity on their shoulders. Practically it makes sense for them to create a distance, emotionally, between themselves and other people, because it's maybe harder to love and lose people, than to not love at all. Or at least it seems that way. Look at Wishverse Buffy. She didn't seem to have much love, but she also met a premature death... loving helped Buffy survive.
 
The council would have loved Buffybot.
Agreed . She does what she told & doesn't talk back or get angry at them.

And there's an off-switch 😉 (you know if she gets too peppy)
 
But Faith went rogue because her Watcher was killed in front of her, and then in Sunnydale she couldn't deal with being in Buffy's shadow. If she had been the only Slayer, as was meant to be with the whole line thing, the Council would have had a 'trigger happy' demon killer so to speak on their hands, and as we saw with the Mayor - she didn't mind taking orders or doing someone elses dirty business.

That's not what happened obviously, but she had potential. 🙂
Right, I said this in karma but since you read it and stole it... "I think it's hard to figure how she was BEFORE her watcher died. She might have been different before seeing the trauma of that. She seemed fond of her watcher so that might have kept her in line."
 
Tough one. If the slayer has nobody and nothing to live for then what pushes them to go on living?
Saving humanity. The thrill of the fight.
 
Right, I said this in karma but since you read it and stole it... "I think it's hard to figure how she was BEFORE her watcher died. She might have been different before seeing the trauma of that. She seemed fond of her watcher so that might have kept her in line."

*gasps* I'm glad the gauntlet has been dropped already because you stole what I said. There was no karma when I posted. Thief.
 
Skanky Vamp
Skanky Vamp
How dare you sir!
Right, I said this in karma but since you read it and stole it... "I think it's hard to figure how she was BEFORE her watcher died. She might have been different before seeing the trauma of that. She seemed fond of her watcher so that might have kept her in line."
 

Saving humanity. The thrill of the fight.

The thrill of the fight ? Sounds like Spike was right . Slayers have a death wish.
 
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