Spuffybot...love it, hate it, let's talk about it

[cryptwarmer]

It's an unusual representation of Spuffy, but there it is...and canon no less!

My take on the bot...

Spike really didn't mean any disrespect of Buffy. I don't think he even saw it that way. In fact, we don't see any evidence of him doing any kinky or violent sex acts with the bot. It all seems sort of sweet and loving.

She isn't dressed kinky...tacky maybe. Clearly she has lots of programming they didn't show, but from what we are shown, it's not just his sex doll, he wants to play act a relationship he'd like with Buffy, even strolling in the cemetery together. He had her programmed to slay, so apparently she wasn't meant to stay put in his lair.

But in the end, yup, he had a sex doll made of Buffy which is weird...or at least ishy...or maybe something most of us would do if we could afford it and get away with it? I'm really not sure.

He knew Buffy would hate it if she knew, but he wanted his crumb and found a way to have it that he figured was harmless (pun intended).

And Buffy's reaction to the bot is interesting. She doesn't seem nearly as brassed off as I would expect. Her dressing up as the bot at ALL is interesting because seriously, she knew that she could get the truth out of Spike about whether or not he told Glory. She could get it out of him because she could beat it out of him, and she could get it out of him because she knows he'd do anything for her.

I think Buffy was a little bit flattered, in spite of herself. She knows how Spike's mind works. He is a vampire, he has no filters on doing or saying exactly what he thinks and feels, the bot is a manifestation of that. It's exactly what she would expect of him and I think she knows that from HIS perspective the bot is some sort of tribute. OMG..I completely sound like I am trying to justify twisted sick behavior.

Xander...has sympathy because heck, when he was younger and he'd had the chance I totally could see him having had a Buffybot made.

I love when Spike is talking to what he thinks is the bot and refers to the other Buffy, the less pleasant one...

Then there is the contrast after Buffy's death where the gang and Dawn take to the bot and use it for good, and Spike doesn't like it because it's not...the less pleasant Buffy...just a distorted pathetic representation of her.

 

[Athena]

Yeah, I agree, I think Spike created Buffybot for the pure and simple reason that he believed at the time he would never stand a chance with the real Buffy, so he created this ideal version of Buffy.

Most people do this in a way. If you like someone you can't have, you fantasise about what being with them would be like. You might daydream about what they'd say or do. but you'd skew it in them loving you like you love them. Spike did exactly the same, except he got a robot made, but he knows it's not her, it's just his representation of her, but in a respectful way. I mean, he didn't make the bot wear lingerie or anything, which he could have easily done.

 

[GoSpuffy]

I enjoyed all the buffy bot episodes. I thought SMG did an amazing job acting out that charater. I don't know how she delivered most of those lines without totally cracking up. I think its quite probable the world would be full of bots if you could order them online. I'm glad you can't but who wouldn't want one? Seriously, I think this was an excellent example of pro-active vampire logic. Spike has a line in an Angel episode to the effect of "Sex with robots is more common than you think". Makes me laugh everytime!

 

[Wildfly]

it did completely creep her out and i think at this point she wasn't sure she could get the truth out of him, nor was she sure he'd do anything for her. She thought he was a creep with a weird obsession with her, completely unpredictable, as likely to kill her as to help her. (after all, he threatened to set Dru on her in Crush, even if it was a bluff)

Only after he'd fallen for her bot charade and told her what motivated him she knew for sure she could trust him.

 

[Washburne]

I love Buffybot. I found her hilarious. As a character.

If we instead look to the reasons he had Warren make her things look a whole lot different. Can I understand Spikes reasoning/feelings that led to it being made? Absolutely. I think most do. It does not make it any less creepy. It happening in a tv-show/fantasy makes it feel more ok though. Imagine it being possible in real life and it would be a different thing. Still there's gonna be people feeling/being lonely "wanting" something like it anyway. A mix between Buffybot and Scarlett Johanssons character in Her sounds ok to me. In fantasy.

 

[Wildfly]

Yes, SMG was hilarious, l love watching her as buffybot. She and Ethan Rayne are my fav. comics characters.

But in general i am not in love with the idea. Warren's work was too perfect.
Both April and Buffybot had feelings.
Same as us, as far as i am concerned those are just electronic impulses in our brainz. Same diff.
that's the first and main problem i have with the bot and i dont have with the buffy doll or/and whatever fantasies Spike had in his free alone time.

The second problem was her being so alike to the original.

 

[Skanky Vamp]

Did April and Buffybot have feelings or were they just programmed to act like the did? They have robots now that can 'read' your emotions and can mimic those emotions. And the robots in that robot hotel in Japan can act sad or excited depending on what you tell them. So I am not sure if they actually did have emotions or were just programmed that way.

I never thought they had emotions. I mean, if the Buffybot had emotions that it was kind horrible what was done to her... er, it. It! That's the thing.. I think if it had emotions to would go from an it to a her. What happened would be more 'acceptable' when viewed as an it, but not so much as a her. In fact it would really change the entire dynamic both of Spike and how they used her during Buffy's resurrection and then being cannon fodder with Glory. It would be atrocious to think it had feelings. Christ. Seriously. That's a horrible thought.

 

[GoSpuffy]

I'm with @Mr. Pole again! Buffybot had no feelings, just programming. I would be so upset for being so amused by her if I thought she actually had feelings. Buffybot is kind of like the vampire version of the slayer. Buffy with no soul = buffybot.

 

[white avenger]

I think its quite probable the world would be full of bots if you could order them online. I'm glad you can't but who wouldn't want one?

You can, and quite a few people do, apparently. (I just looked it up on the net) Except for the part about not being fully animate and talking, there are several companies who make nearly lifelike "companion" dolls with full anatomical features, including body temperature and body fluids. They're quite expensive, obviously, but if you've got the money, they've got the bot.

 

[GoSpuffy]

You can, and quite a few people do, apparently. Except for the part about not being fully animate and talking, there are several companies who make nearly lifelike "companion" dolls with full anatomical features, including body temperature and body fluids. They're quite expensive, obviously, but if you've got the money, they've got the bot.

I can hear Buffy saying "Ewww". No wait, that's me lol. So I guess they're for more than being a passenger in the carpool lane?

 

[white avenger]

Both April and Buffybot had feelings.

It's been a favorite subject in movies, TV and books to have robots or computers become self aware and develop the ability to have human emotions, from "The Stepford Wives," to the Terminator, Data, and the Scarlet Vision today, so this isn't anything really new. I do think that portraying the Buffybot as displaying such childlike innocence, considering what her primary function was supposed to be could be seen as a bit disturbing, though.

 

[Wildfly]

yes. they were innocent. kids. like the clone guys in The Island.

 

[gite63]

Spike really didn't mean any disrespect of Buffy. I don't think he even saw it that way. In fact, we don't see any evidence of him doing any kinky or violent sex acts with the bot. It all seems sort of sweet and loving.

Yes, for a demon without a soul; Spike didn't want a doll with Buffy's face to simply sleep with, he wanted a Buffy doll that was pleasant and wanted to have sex with him... he ordered her with a programming that would make it as similar as the real Buffy and the bot's Slayer's qualities only brought trouble for him, because if it was just for sex, it wouldn't have left the crypt to fulfill her “obligation” and ending up running into Xander and Anya. He didn't ordered the bot to offend Buffy, as he himself tried to say to her:

SPIKE: And my robot?
BUFFY: The robot is gone. The robot was gross and obscene.
SPIKE: It wasn't supposed to-

Then there is the contrast after Buffy's death where the gang and Dawn take to the bot and use it for good, and Spike doesn't like it because it's not...the less pleasant Buffy...just a distorted pathetic representation of her.

Yes, it's interesting that Spike realized that, then - he thought that it's eagerness in praising him was something very inappropriate.

The Buffybot itself – I loved her! Sarah did an amazing job – I've already got myself thinking “why was that Sarah isn't in this episode (like Alexis Denisof when he left to get married, or even Sarah in Gone), and then realizing "the Buffybot is Sarah!” The not-broody version of Buffy was really cool.

 

[cryptwarmer]

The bot didn't seem to have feelings when the demons got hold of her and tore her apart, she wasn't screaming in pain or fear, nor did she cry out when she was shorted out at the fight at Glory's. She didn't seem to have the level of independent thought or feeling that April had. She was happy.

I felt absolutely sick and horrified watching the bot get torn apart. It's one of the hardest things for me to watch on the show.

 

[Skanky Vamp]

I've already got myself thinking “why was that Sarah isn't in this episode and then realizing "the Buffybot is Sarah!”

LOL... don't you hate when that happens? It happens to me with Orphan Black sometimes.

 

[cryptwarmer]

it did completely creep her out and i think at this point she wasn't sure she could get the truth out of him, nor was she sure he'd do anything for her. She thought he was a creep with a weird obsession with her, completely unpredictable, as likely to kill her as to help her. (after all, he threatened to set Dru on her in Crush, even if it was a bluff)

Only after he'd fallen for her bot charade and told her what motivated him she knew for sure she could trust him.

She didn't act that creeped out. And I really think she could have gotten the truth out of Spike, and I believe she knew it too. She wanted to find out what happened ,yes, and she did think it would be easier with the bot and that she would likely get a more candid response, but I have no doubt she knew she could get him to talk.

She thought he was a creep with a weird obsession, yes, and HE WAS...but she kept him around and let him hang around, and made use of him. If she really thought he was dangerous and creepy she wouldn't have. She could have staked him at any point, or simply ran him off and scared him enough to make him stay away. She felt confident that she could control him if she needed to.

Granted, this was due in large part to the fact that the show probably wouldn't have lasted very long if they got rid of Spike, but for better or worse, that is how the writers handled it, and how Buffy reacted or didn't.

I've dealt with a weird obsessed guy, if you are actually scared and disgusted you cut ALL contact and get a restraining order.

 

[Athena]

Sarah did an amazing job – I've already got myself thinking “why was that Sarah isn't in this episode (like Alexis Denisof when he left to get married, or even Sarah in Gone), and then realizing "the Buffybot is Sarah!” The not-broody version of Buffy was really cool.

I think over the course of the show you see Sarah as Buffy and think "Yeah, she's quite a good actress", but not only did she play Buffy, she also played Buffybot and Faith-as-Buffy flawlessly, and you realise she's not just good, she's great and she really holds the show together. Without SMG at the helm, Buffy would have been a mid-season replacement cancelled after one season, I'm sure of it.

It brings to mind Tatiana Maslany from.....

Orphan Black

who also flawlessly plays multiple characters, however she plays them in the same episodes constantly. Orphan Black is quite something in that regard, but the underpinning of that show can definitely be seen in BtVS.

Thanks @Mr. Pole - great minds think alike 😉

 

[gite63]

She thought he was a creep with a weird obsession, yes, and HE WAS...but she kept him around and let him hang around, and made use of him. If she really thought he was dangerous and creepy she wouldn't have. She could have staked him at any point, or simply ran him off and scared him enough to make him stay away. She felt confident that she could control him if she needed to.


I've dealt with a weird obsessed guy, if you are actually scared and disgusted you cut ALL contact and get a restraining order.

It's what I've being saying when some people say that, when/after sleeping with him, he disgusted her. No, he didn't, never did. She would never be with him again, so or no soul, if the physical presence of him, or his personality, caused her revulsion.

But about the Buffybot: it was her world - where vampires, demons, robots that are perfectly built as to look like humans exist... she had an understanding about all that; the whole thing was "gross and obscene", but was a vampire who did it, not a real man.

 

[Wildfly]

Yes, for a demon without a soul; Spike didn't want a doll with Buffy's face to simply f******, he wanted a Buffy doll that was pleasant and wanted to have sex with him... he ordered her with a programming that would make it as similar as the real Buffy and the bot's Slayer's qualities only brought trouble for him, because if it was just for sex, it wouldn't have left the crypt to fulfill her “obligation” and ending up running into Xander and Anya. He didn't ordered the bot to offend Buffy, as he himself tried to say to her:

Sure, Buffy wasn't supposed to know and the bot was not just for sex. Spike in this period (The Crush - Intervention) was pretty lonely. That's why he ordered the bot, to create the illusion of Buffy loving him and wanting him. Wanted conversation and company. Harm left him, no friends, (not sure if Clem was in the picture then). Even the scoobies threw him out. ("We're not your friends. We're not your way to Buffy.")
So the magic box and Buffy's house were closed to him. As was the demon bar.

She didn't act that creeped out.

dunno...she looks pretty much creeped out when she encounters the bot.

And I really think she could have gotten the truth out of Spike, and I believe she knew it too. She wanted to find out what happened ,yes, and she did think it would be easier with the bot and that she would likely get a more candid response, but I have no doubt she knew she could get him to talk.

maybe she knew, maybe not. But she couldn't gamble Dawn's life on it, so she decided to imitate the bot which was programmed to imitate her 🙂

She thought he was a creep with a weird obsession, yes, and HE WAS...but she kept him around and let him hang around, and made use of him. If she really thought he was dangerous and creepy she wouldn't have.

She could have staked him at any point, or simply ran him off and scared him enough to make him stay away. She felt confident that she could control him if she needed to.

I've dealt with a weird obsessed guy, if you are actually scared and disgusted you cut ALL contact and get a restraining order.

BUFFY: It changes everything, Spike! I want you out. I want you out of this town, I want you off this planet! You don't come near me, my friends, or my family again ever! Understand?

In Intervention Buffy is still reeling from the events that happened in Crush and wants nothing to do with Spike. In the period between The Crush and Intervention Spike come the closest of being staked by Buffy than ever, and that's taking into account the AR.
In Crush Spike pretty much destroyed the tentative camaraderie Buffy allowed herself to have with him. (and yes, i think there were other feelings in the mix as well, though Buffy wouldn't admit that at that point, not even to herself)
He made the worst impression on her with the Buffy shrine, chaining her up, promising to stake Dru for her, then threatening to set Dru on her.
Buffy probably concluded that Joyce was right, Spike is extremely unstable and he'd developed a dangerous obsession, and the wise and healty thing is to keep her distance from him.
Btw, the decision to uninvite Spike was made even before the scene in Spike's crypt, after his confession, hearing Joyce's advice and probably remembering soulless Angel.
(i was reminded of it in an excellent review on Crush in here)
Also in Intervention she was scared that Spike may tattle off Dawn's secret and endanger her. That was a real concern, Dawn took priority, and if Buffy would have believed Spike to be capable of sharing the info with Glory, to prevent that she'd have staked him in a heartbeat. (a human heartbeat 🙂 )

But nevertheless it was in Crush that the situation is completely changed.
We got our answer as in what would happen if Dru would return, ready to take him back.

Dru failed to convince him that he is inherently evil and no amount of conditioning could change that, through she tried and had the best intentions to reunite her happy family 🙂
("Electricity lies, Spike. It tells you you're not a bad dog, but you are.")

And Buffy is of the same opinion:

SPIKE: ...I've changed, Buffy.
BUFFY: What, that chip in your head? That's not change. Tha-that's just ... holding you back. You're like a serial killer in prison!

But Spike is his usual obnoxious and stubborn self, and when had he cared about others telling him what he can or can't do? Angel in School Hard warned the scoobies how obstinate Spike can be if he set his mind on something. He's real subtle about it, too 😀
So Spike stopped playing games, he chose Buffy's side with all the consequences and tried very hard not to stray from it. Not that Buffy was overly enthusiastic about it, more like repulsed that a soulless vamp could find her a fitting partner.

Interestingly enough, though, Buffy wasn't intimidated by him, not even when she was chained up, as if she'd known instinctively that she wasn't in real danger. Revolted by all the stalkerish stuff, but not scared of him the least.
Compare that to her behavior when soulles Angel stalked her with those artistic drawings of his. Then she was scared out of her wits. In Crush she isn't, and it couldn't be just because she trusted the chip. After all, Spike could have used Dru. But it is as if she is daring him to do his worst.

("Spike... the only chance you had with me was when I was unconscious.")

Now that's risky. To provoke a vamp who had just found an effective workaround the chip and fed off some poor victim (as Dru informed Buffy earlier on).
Yet Buffy acts as if has the upper hand in this conversation, calling Spike out his bluff. So awesome 😀
And she is right. If Spike would allow Dru to kill her, that'd mean that he had admitted defeat. That'd mean that Dru was right, and Buffy was right and he has no chance to be ever at the Slayer's side. So he pushes away Dru and frees Buffy.

Also look at their body language and how they're positioned. It's Buffy and Spike together, confronting Dru.
Buffy may be creeped out, but interestingly enough she trusts Spike to have her back and not to hurt her.

and look here how close she stands to him:

Which probably means that even without his heroic withstanding of Glory's torture Buffy might have allowed him to help her out in emergencies later on, after given a bit of time enough to cool down and to blur the events in Crush.

If there's someone i feel sorry for though, it's Dru. Pampered and spoiled by Spike for so many years and now he barely pays attention to her. She is reduced to a mere sacrifice to win over another female, or even worse, to an annoying background noise to be ignored.
("Could do without the laugh track, Dru") or when she starts talking to him and Spike turns his back to her and completely filters her out, concentrating on Buffy. 🙁

 

[gite63]

In the period between The Crush and Intervention Spike come the closest of being staked by Buffy than ever, and that's taking into account the AR.

In Crush Spike pretty much destroyed the tentative camaraderie Buffy allowed herself to have with him. (and yes, i think there were other feelings in the mix as well, though Buffy wouldn't admit that at that point, not even to herself)
He made the worst impression on her with the Buffy shrine, chaining her up, promising to stake Dru for her, then threatening to set Dru on her.
Buffy probably concluded that Joyce was right, Spike is extremely unstable and he'd developed a dangerous obsession, and the wise and healty thing is to keep her distance from him.
Btw, the decision to uninvite Spike was made even before the scene in Spike's crypt, after his confession, hearing Joyce's advice and probably remembering soulless Angel.

Yeah, Buffy was spooked and right; but while for Buffy was something creepy, for Spike was the moment he realised he was "through playing". Lucky him he didn't get staked - he had the opportunity to prove later that he really had changed.