Sunnydale Fanfic Club Discussion #2: Girls Who Like Girls

[Grace]

This thread is for discussion of the second fic for the Sunnydale Fanfic Club podcast.

Girls Who Like Girls
by myth_taken
Summary: Tiny season one Willow has a crush on tiny season one Buffy. Warnings for homophobia.
Rating: General Audiences
Words: 1,323
Relationship: Willow Rosenberg/Buffy Summers

The podcast episode with this author is set to be released on Dec. 18 (I think!).

This fic was featured in a New York Times story!

 

[WillowFromBuffy]

What I liked:

It is a very positive story, almost didactic in form. It describes some of the forms that homophobia can take and how you can deal with them. It would be a great story for young teens to read.

The bit about Will dancing with Tara in the same spot she imagined dancing with Buffy really got to me. That was really beautiful

What I did not like so much:

It was all a little too neat. There was not much conflict. The tension in the story comes from Shelia's homophobia, but it never feels threatening.

The characterisation of Will and her mother seem off to me. The problem with Sheila was never her conservatism. On the show, Sheila comes across as a well informed woman with progressive values. I never imagined her to be homophobic. In fact, when Will comes out, Sheila congratulates her daughter on her "political statement". That being said, if you go by her appearance in Gingerbread, it is not inconceivable to imagine that she holds some of the negative beliefs about homosexuality that is common in psychoanalysis.

My biggest problem is Will herself. I cannot imagine her being so confident and self aware. When she is is thinking about how confident she is in herself and that she believes her friends like her and will stand by her no matter what, that does not feel like the Willow I know. I think this line from Restless is telling: "Everyone's starting to wonder about you. The real you. If they find out, they'll punish you, I ... I can't help you with that."

I sound very negative here. It was a sweet story and the ending made very happy

 

[Grace]

I like the ending a whole lot, too! I agree with your take overall. I see the story as more about Willow the icon than Willow the character, but it's very sweet.

 

[Grace]

I haven't had a chance to listen yet, but the new episode is up:

https://did%3D6b3651a31b71a354326d022ae360e7b1beb417da%3Bid%3D168670560906%3Bkey%3DQouiyvL0_-4eTA4TlggxKA%3Bname%3Dthesunnydalefanficclub
Direct link:

 

[flow]

Thanks for linking the new podcast and the fic @Grace.

I haven`t listened to the podcast yet. I hope I`ll find the time tonight. But I have read the story.

I don`t really feel in the position, to say much about it, because I am not gay and I don`t know, how it is nowadays or back then for a teenage girl (or boy), to find out, that they have a crush on a girl (or boy). I`d like to hear someones opinion in that story based on own expiriences as a teenager. Still, I do think, that 1997 is not that far away. Not for me at least ;-) Do people still think or even say, that girls, who like girls have a terrible life, no one likes them and so on ? I really don`t know about that. As I said, I`d like to hear someones own expirience on that.

I also couldn`t help thinking, that canon tells us, that Willow had a crush on Xander in season1 . While I was reading, I wanted to asked the whole time : "Hey ! What about your feelings for Xander ?"

I loved the ending with Tara and Willow in the Bronze. That was very sweet.

flow

 

[Grace]

Finally got a chance to listen to this episode and I enjoyed it a lot! Phoenix is so prolific! I'm envious, since getting words out of my brain can be a slooooow process. The idea of finishing NaNoWriMo, let alone doubling the word count, is so impressive to me!