Was Buffy Ever Wrong?

Hmm. Was Buffy ever wrong.. probably, a lot of times. She made some bad decissions. Sleeping with Parker, not killing Ben, not killing Spike when she had her chance.. I guess the important thing is she belived her actions are right.
 
I don't think sleeping with Parker was wrong. To me, that suggests that Buffy was to blame. It was just simply a misunderstanding. Parker was honest about his intentions, and Buffy wasn't. Buffy was looking for a boyfriend, and Parker was looking for a lay. It was niave of her to assume it meant more than it did.

That said, Parker was unnessesarily cruel to her after the fact. In case it makes any difference, I think he was truly sorry for how he treated her. I'm not defending Parker. All I'm saying is that it takes two to tango, and in my opinion, wanting to make a connection with someone (i.e. sex) is never wrong - although the reasons behind the act might not be the healthiest.
 
brinkster130
brinkster130
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prophecygrrl
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white avenger agrees: I always thought that that was a very irresponsible thing to do. If she had only activated the Potentials in Sunnydale, it would have made much more sense, but NOT every girl in the world. Irresponsible!!!

It just made no sense, insofar as it being something Buffy would do. The whole series was about her struggle, about how she hated having this life forced upon her. And for her to burden that life on thousands of girls across the world, with no idea what is happening to them? To force something demon to become part of them? To me it was the last thing Buffy would do.

Even the speech she gives is just so full of audacity:

Here's the part where you make a choice.

Choice? Choice? There was no choice here. None of these girls get any choice at all. Whether they want to or not they are going to be given power they cannot even imagine. And an even greater responsibility.

This was not the slayer I knew, that's for sure.
 
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SlayerOfVampyrs
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Shift in Meaning

Uh, becoming a Slayer in Chosen doesn't mean the same as becoming a Slayer before. This is the show's feminist agenda coming forward. It means all the girls out there taking charge of their own lives, not being afraid, having and using power. You weren't inspired by that?

You know, I started this thread, now I see I should've put the question differently.

How many cases are there where Buffy is discussing a course of action with an authority figure, and the two disagree, and authority is right while Buffy is wrong?

Not many I'll wager.

The case of sleeping with Parker for instance isn't quite the case I had in mind. The case of telling Giles that Angel was back (early S3) is.
 
Midwestern Watc said:
You weren't inspired by that?
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When it first aired? Absolutely. Even up until very recently I found that speech a real source of strength. I was this close to getting "Are you ready to be strong" tattooed on my wrist.

However, when you actually analyse that speech and compare it with what happens, it loses all credibility. At least for me.

In fact, a S8 reading of that speech would suggest it became more a story about corruption than empowerment.
 
What do you think about this?

Kean said:
When it first aired? Absolutely. Even up until very recently I found that speech a real source of strength. I was this close to getting "Are you ready to be strong" tattooed on my wrist.

However, when you actually analyse that speech and compare it with what happens, it loses all credibility. At least for me.

In fact, a S8 reading of that speech would suggest it became more a story about corruption than empowerment.
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How does this sound ... becoming a Slayer is a metaphor for growing up (cf. Marti Noxon). Growing up is not a choice. And it involves loss as well as gain. Innocence is usually one of the things lost.

But it's empowering. Do we want to be without it?

The choice Buffy gave the potentials, as I see it, was something like this:

What is 2+2 ? a) 1 b) 2 c) 3 d) 4 ... pick one.

... except there were only two choices. To complete the picture, remember that in traditional cultures, the program was to keep women innocent and immature throughout life. This seems to actually succeed, sometimes.

However ... I hope to also get your take, as well as that of other people, on the question I meant to ask. It seems to me that Buffy is always, or at least almost always, right when she comes into conflict with authority, even when she's still a teenager. So far, I've been clued into one exception, her failure to tell Giles when Angel came back early in S3. Even that is a bit iffy, I think. The more exact case I'm looking for would involve her talking to an authority figure in advance, then ignoring the advice.

I do appreciate your help.
 
I think she was wrong when she started beating up Ted with her Slayer strength. It was okay when it was self-defense but when it stopped being that and she kept beating him up. Yeah, that was wrong.

I personally wish she'd invited Xander to her house on Christmas when she knew why he slept outside. I mean, she was forced to invite Faith, it wouldn't hurt to invite Xander, too.
 
Joan the Vampire Slayer said:
Well, I don't know if you read Season 8 so I won't spoil it for you, but in that case Buffy has something something monumentally wrong, which is having dire consequences on her and her friends.

As for Buffy ever being wrong....yes, I think she has. Her intentions are always in the right place, and yes, she does have good instincts, but she's not perfect. She makes bad calls. I think a good example is Empty Places, where she orders the Slayerettes to go find Caleb. Clearly, they weren't ready for that. She didn't deserve to be kicked out, but that's another discussion.
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I dont read the comics so Im just going by the show
 
Wasn`t Buffy wrong when she faced Angelus alone in Becoming, part 1? I know it was a trap, but it may have been a wrong decision with Kendra dying and all?

And I think Buffy was wrong to let herself influence by Faith in S3 (Bad Girls/Consequenses).
 
Wasn`t Buffy wrong when she faced Angelus alone in Becoming, part 1? I know it was a trap, but it may have been a wrong decision with Kendra dying and all?
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Hmm, well, I don't know if we can call it a wrong decission.. Buffy tried to protect her friends. She left Kendra there to protect Willow, Xander, Giles.. if Kendra went with her, we don't know who else could've die. Buffy thought she can handle Angelus herself, and she didn't knew it's not all about her... she had best intentions.
 
I think she makes wrong decisions all the time. But the fact that most of the time she gets out of them isn't always a coinky-dink or cosmic fortune...isn't a huge part of being a hero correcting your mistakes as well? I think the way those situations ultimately ended isn't because Buffy just happens to be right all the time, or because she's better than everyone else. She just deals. She happens to be quite good at it, IMO. 🙂

Not to mention a lot of the time apocalypses are averted and lives are saved as part of a collective effort, not just Buffy. It's led by her, of course, but still. :/
 
brinkster130 said:
Even though she is The Slayer at the end of the day Buffy is still human and I am sure she made mistakes just like every other human has. Buffy does have killer instincts and we did see her being right for more often than being wrong.
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yep yep yep

Hated that she used Spike but...its human...its messed up but eh. As well as the lying to Dawn about her being the key...EVEN though it was a big thing>.>
 
When She Was Bad springs to mind... Her decisions there were completely wrong and almost got her friends killed.

I don't like how Buffy lies to Dawn, even just a little, about her mom's medical condition. In my life, that's the ONE thing I don't trust my mother with. I've learned to talk to doctors, nurses, and the like. Everyone deserves to know what's going on and be scared together.
 
Midwestern Watc said:
Doesn't Buffy seem to have a lot of luck in facing down authority? Giles, the Council, Snyder, Wood, even her mother?
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Funny that it's okay for Buffy to question authority, but when Buffy is authority it isn't. The potentials not wanting to follow Buffy in S7 is exactly like Buffy not wanting to follow the council.
 
H
Himiko
I agree entirely
Kana
Kana
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TheVoid68
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everyone forgetting her choice to let Angelus live during the Judge battle at the Sunnydale mall?

Big choice there, and soooo wrong on so many levels...

she chose to let him live, knowing he was a psycotic, sociopathic monster who would kill the nearest person just for fun...

After Innocence, every single person killed or tortured by Angelus, their blood rests solely on Buffy's hands

M
 
Z
zobothehobo
Oh dude, you're right! I forgot about that
methos said:
everyone forgetting her choice to let Angelus live during the Judge battle at the Sunnydale mall?

Big choice there, and soooo wrong on so many levels...

she chose to let him live, knowing he was a psycotic, sociopathic monster who would kill the nearest person just for fun...

After Innocence, every single person killed or tortured by Angelus, their blood rests solely on Buffy's hands

M
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I've never seen that has she choosed not to kill him.
I think there is a difference between choosing to do something and not being able to do something even when you know it is the right thing to do.

/SK
 
looks to me like she chose not to kill him...

she was fighting him in the mall, had him beat, had the stake out ready and... let him go... pure and simple, she let him go...

she could have knocked him unconscious and caged him up somewhere, they had the cage they used for Oz... they had ways of securing him around... but she chose specifically to let him go, knowing full well he was a sociopathic killer...

her choice

M
 
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