I really liked seeing Xander acting as a watcher of sorts. I wasn't a fan of Xander S1-7 but I am starting to like him a bit more in S8. He seems to have grown into his role and is working well with Buffy and the others.
I love Xander in all seasons, but he's so awesome in S8. Here are my Xander thoughts in the first two issues:
Just like Buffy, Xander gave up normal life all together. Right now he's a squad leader, living in a castle in the middle of nowhere, away from normal folks and surrounded by supernatural people. He's literally the only normal human in the castle, but oddly enough, he's far more useful now than he ever was. And he knows it and feels it, which gives him a confidence he never had about himself before. A confidence he only had when he was in the construction site surrounded by equals who depend on him and look up to him.
I personally love when characters borrow lines from each other, like Xander's "Five by five," which makes them real human beings. Didn't you ever find yourself saying a phrase your best friend uses all the time? I know I did.
Xander, like Buffy, hates the formality. He hates being called Mister just like Buffy hates being called Ma'am. He rejects the title "Mister" and prefers to be called by name or something cool like "Sergeant Fury."
One of the interesting developments is how Buffy and Xander are viewing Andrew now. They never seemed to accept him at all in S7, and now he's a trusted equal, even though he has his flaws, but they seemed to accept him with his flaws as well.
Xander is now Buffy's eyes that guide her through the dark. Kinda like Giles used to be. Which is why she calls him her watcher, even though he rejects the title, twice.
Xander is also Buffy's only friend in Scotland, a friend who's not under her charge. She looks comfortable around him and at ease, wearing her normal clothes and eating a sandwich as they discuss the new symbol.
Xander shows concern over Dawn and Buffy tries to ignore his voice of reason. She just came back from a mission, so tired, there was no time to rest, and Dawn won't make it easy with her not cooperating. In a nutshell, Buffy has no time to take care of another person. Until Xander gently reminds her that she's her "sister".
Buffy can't find the time to be there for her sister, but Xander can. He listens to Dawn and defends Buffy, he's not taking sides and he's sympathetic to both girls. His scene with Dawn and Buffy show how much of a good listener he's becoming, not to mention how much he can read them both. Xander comes to the conclusion that Dawn wished to be a giant to gain Buffy's attention. And he's right. He doesn't have all the details, but from the way Dawn talks about Buffy, he realizes that Dawn seeks Buffy's attention and protection. When Buffy starts blaming herself, he stops her right away, noting that she does this all the time when it's not her fault.
Xander's ability to see is stronger because of the lack of conflict in his life. Things are going well for him, no problems at home, no girlfriend quarrels, no unrequited love, no confidence issues, nothing. He's so secured and content with his life that he can clearly see what's going on with Buffy and Dawn.
There's no question that Xander is far more confident now. And that he's a Tweety fan. Years ago, Xander thought a Tweety wristwatch was so unmanly compared to Owen's gold pocket watch and chain. Now he's marching into Buffy's room followed by slayers while wearing Tweety PJs. Old insecure Xander would have preferred being naked over being caught wearing that.
There are two ways to read Xander's hesitance to kiss Buffy:
1) He's so sure he doesn't have any romantic feelings for Buffy, which is why he asks if a friend kiss can work. He knows that kissing Buffy would be a moot point because he's completely moved on.
2) Or he's unsure about his feelings and is afraid that Buffy waking up due to his kiss would complicate things between them. Especially with a bunch of teenage girls around who would make a big fuzz about the unrequited love Mr. Harris has for Miss Summers. Xander tries to find ways around the kiss to avoid the heartache it'll bring if he still has feelings for Buffy. He was burned once, he can't go through that again.
Either way, I think Xander should have kissed her, just to save her, regardless of the consequences. I'm leaning toward the first reason because nothing Xander does all season shows that he's into Buffy and his conversation with Buffy later in #31 shows clearly that he's over her.
Its interesting that neither Angel or Spike realized that it wasn't Buffy they were watching dance, maybe they were too focused on one another. Spander! 😛
That would be Spangel, but yeah, Spander is way way way more interesting and cuter.
😉 *points at banner*
