Question Why does Buffy mean so much to you?

[horrorshock666]

Quite a simple one really...
Why does Buffy mean so much to you?

Basically how do you feel its made an impact on your life?
Has it changed you or helped make you who you are today?
Has it helped you in any way?

I thought it might be interesting and a way of getting to know people a little more.​

 

[Blondie Bear]

Good question. I've always been a fantasy nerd, but when Buffy first came out, I was like "Really. Come on, reaaaaaally? Wasn't that movie campy as all hell? Why are they making a series?" But then, when I was about 19, I went through a rebellious-goth phase (yes, I was late; that's an entirely different story) and caught a few episodes. And I was hooked. It was S2, if I remember right (and some reruns of S1), and the storylines were amazing. I barely remember watching it when it first came out; I was working a lot and racing home after work (hard to do when you use public transportation) to catch the episodes. I don't remember why I quit watching early in S4; probably had something to do with work, church, and family.

Then I moved away from my family, got married, and as a Christmas present that first year, my hubby bought me Buffy S1 on DVD. And I was hooked all over again. At this point I had enough real-world experience under my belt to understand the metaphors. Between the fantasy and the deep exploration of themes that I had dealt with in my life, I couldn't get enough of it. And THEN I discovered that people were actually doing SCHOLARLY RESEARCH on the series, and I'm busily devouring those articles (in preparation for writing one of my own) right now.

So I guess the reason Buffy means so much to me is that there's always something new about it to discover, the topics are relevant to life without being cliche (managing to provide an escape WHILE saying something about real life--and how many stories can do that, really?), and the characters are likeable and relate-able.

 

[Veyron]

For me, it's the thought of the good verses evil struggle that we all face each and every day.

The viewpoint of one young girl who has apparently been chosen to fight against all that evil for the good of mankind fills me with both awe and humility at the same time - if she can do it, why can't we?

Then later on, we see her struggle with the day to day things that life throws at us as well as the vamps, demons and dorks trying to rule the world.

Not to mention the brain twister that is "Normal Again" (did I mention that that episodes has me seriously demented - in a good way)... this episode raises so many new questions and possibilities...

 

[Tueuse de Vampires]

Well I think for me it's the relating to it thing. Right now I'm starting college, so there you have Buffy s4. And constantly throughout my life I keep thinking 'hm, something like that happened on Buffy'. And that kind of makes my life easier to handle. it's hard to explain.
Also, I've always been interested in those supernatural themes, so there you go.

 

[Dancing man]

Ive closed Buffy from my life now I cant realate or enjoy it anymore. But back in the day It saved me from all the depression of school and social life or my lack in a way it helped build my confidence and Ill always like Buffy and Angel for that.

 

[sk]

I can't say that Buffy has had any huge impact in my life, except that I get even less "real stuff" done now since I spend (too much) time watching the show or browsing this forum.
Neither has it really changed me or helped me in any special way.

But I do love the show.
It is just a great way to relax and have a good time in general.

Good storytelling is something that I have always enjoyed.
Can't really imagine what a TV show could do to change the way I live my life tough...

/SK

 

[horrorshock666]

Well i'll go into now!

I only started watching Buffy about a year or so ago. I bought the whole series' in the box set. It was arisk... id wathed only a few episodes and before (and don't kill me for this) i actually thought the monsters and demons and stuff were a bit tacky... i now stand corrected obv because i am obsessed with the whole thing!
Anyway... for me it has changed my life, which sounds all cliche and stuff i know. Its because for me ive been searching for something that i can relate to for a long time, something to beleive in and be a part of at the same time. I was a Christian for a very long time, it helped me alot and became a huge part of my life and taught me a lot about how to live life... but there came a point for me when i needed to find something for myself and explore a bit more. For me Buffy has become this.
Its hard to explain, but the show holds so much. It rings deep in my heart with all the relationships and amazing storylines, the characters are great and its all also entertaining at the same time.
Its something that teaches you stuff without forcing it down your throat... it leaves room for interpretation and ideas and extensions on what is before you... it becomes something more than just a TV show, its almost a lifeline. I sound really sad saying that but its something that no matter what can cheer you up if need be, make you laugh, make you cry when you fancy it and scare the crap out of you. Also its because it creates a community... this place is a perfect example. Its ever expanding... the comics carry the world and story on, so theres never nothing new about the world of Buffy. It brings like minded people likee us together.
I cant explain, but for me its a big part of who i am now.
I also think that no matter who you are you can find a character to relate to. Like me... i find Willow to almost be me but in female form... and without the magic! ha ha. The way her character progressed and found her sexuality is something i can very closely relate to. Its amazing how someone fictional can be like you... its strange but at the same time it gives you a feeling of not being alone as much.

I think i've said enough... but how ever much it would be too little. I do beleive a TV program can change your life because for me it has, and i know that when i look back in the future i will see Buffy as a big part of helping me to become the person i am.
It already has.

 

[Lindsey McDonald]

TV programs can definately change your life. Anyone that says they can't just hasn't been lucky enough to experience it. Buffy wasn't so much life changing for me though - that honour would go to Skins - but it was definately something that I just clicked with. I only started watching as they aired towards the end of Season 6, but I had seen tons of repeats on BBC2. It meant that I was kind of spoiled for most of the big events, but I still really liked it. It was when I got (completely at random from a mother who didn't really have a clue if I wanted it or not) part of Season 6 on VHS one Christmas (the bit with OMWF, TR, Smashed, Wrecked and Gone) that I realised I needed to get the DVDs! I haven't looked back since, especially because the fandom is so active and inviting.

 

[Fake Shemp]

erm.... i think we had a thread like this before and i cant quite remember what i said then.... but for me ive watched it from the beggining and im 20 so its been a part of my life for so long, that it has shaped how i speak and act and brought great friends into my life.

 

[caritas08]

Its because for me ive been searching for something that i can relate to for a long time, something to beleive in and be a part of at the same time. I was a Christian for a very long time, it helped me alot and became a huge part of my life and taught me a lot about how to live life... but there came a point for me when i needed to find something for myself and explore a bit more. For me Buffy has become this.

This statement really sums up what Buffy did for me but I just have to go further and say that I honestly would be a different, less happy, less strong person if it wasn't for Buffy and I honestly can't imagine living in a generation without it. I was raised in a very strict, very Christian household and there was a time in my life where I saw a lot of that hypocracy and judgement fall apart and I was left really alone and searching for a way to define myself away from that and discover who I was. I had had a lot of bad stuff happen and was really depressed but I didn't know who or how to ask for help.

Buffy really gave me a role model and most importantly an understanding that its okay to make mistakes and be human. Buffy helped me to be more comfortable as a girl and feel kinship rather than competition with other women. I was raised in a really anti-gay, homophobic household and Buffy was one of the many things that caused me to realize the stupidity and injustice of that and although I am ashamed to admit that I once thought that way I just think it's important to mention the impact that Buffy can have for breaking down barriers like that.

Although I still consider myself a Christian, Buffy helped me to see the gray in things and helped me to think more freely for myself and others. I'm sorry this is so long but I don't think Joss will ever know how deeply he has impacted people's lives with this show.

 

[LorneyTunes]

For me, it was something to focus on rather than my mothers illness we bonded while watching Buffy and Angel , It will always be special to me x

 

[white avenger]

I've always loved stories about one highly motivated person, or a small group of highly motivated people, taking a stand against overwhelming odds. That was the initial hook that grabbed me about "Buffy The Vampire Slayer." What kept me watching was the consistant high quality of the stories and the actors. It also helped that I have always been a sucker for the fantasy genre in general, vampires and werewolves in particular, and the concept of the girl who looked like dorky helpless little blond bimbo but was really a super powered bad ass martial arts expert was just crazy enough to appeal to my imagination and sense of the absurd. Plus, I love a good against-all-odds love story, and since the first episode I ever saw was "Once More With Feeling," the Buffy/Spike chemistry just added the final touch.

 

[Kean]

To quote Ayn Rand, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, without me ever knowing she was doing so, convinced me to never let the fire in my heart go out.

I started watching Buffy at one of the most difficult periods of my life. The show provided a solace that I didn't even realise I had been looking for. When life became more than I could bare at the time, Buffy gave me a place I could melt into where I didn't have a care in the world. That was invaluable to me.

Since then the show has continued to provide that same solace among many other wonderful things. BB being one of the greater consequences of loving the show. I generally don't get invested in genre shows, I don't really care for sci-fi too much and I'm fairly sure that I've never seen any other vampire or monster tvshow/movie. Buffy was different though, it just sucked me in and now I geuinely cannot imagine what the last ten years would have been like without it.

I look forward to Buffy being a part of my life for years to come. I feel like it is something truly special I can pass on to my children, something that they too might find worth while. At least I hope so.

Buffy is the hero I could believe in when there was nothing else. It may sound over the top or dramatic but when you have no one to turn to it was pretty sweet to have the Slayer on your side. Keeping your fire alight, spark by irreplacable spark.

 

[Lyri]

I started watching BTVS when I was 13 years old. I was, and probably still am, kinda of a shy person, I didn't have many friends, and those I did have were at a different school, so I was pretty much on my own. Then Buffy came along. This little blonde girl who looked so pretty, but could kick butt better than anyone I had ever seen. As a natural blonde, I was amazed that someone like her could be the hero. Usually the blonde is the first to go in all the horror shows and movies. That's one of the reasons I love Darla's introduction so much. Here was the typical blonde ditz, breaking into the empty school building, with a boy who was clearly older than she was, of course she was gonna get it, and die some horribly painful death. Then, she flipped the stereotype on it's head and became the killer. That was when I knew that this was the show for me.

Throughout high school and college, whenever my confidence began to go, I'd just picture Buffy, Faith or Cordelia in my head, and apply them to certain situations. They are three of the most confident and self assured women on TV, they know their place, they know they have to fight the bad guys, to save the world. And knowing that they had the strength to go up against unbeatable odds gave me the strength to deal with my trivial everyday problems.

Buffy is my hero, the person I looked up to when everyone else was bowing down at the feet of Westlife or the Spice Girls. lmao

 

[Joyce Summers]

I started watching Buffy back when I was 16. I remember seeing it advertized and thinking 'Oh yeah, like I'm gonna be watching this trash. The movie was totally lame and- heyhey, this sounds pretty cool'.

And from that first time when me and Mom sat down to watch Welcome to the Hellmouth, I was hooked. I mean this show spoke to me. As Lyri said above- the blonde was the heroine and as a natural blonde myself it was just so cool to see her busy not-being-killed and also, more importantly, kicking ass. And the fact she was the same age too meant I could directly relate to what the characters were going through- only without the vampires and stuff. And the more I watched the show the more I felt I had in common with the main character- which had never happened to me before on any show with any character- and I loved that. We the same age, only children with single mothers and in South California...course she had a much better and much more extensive wardrobe than I ever managed. And to be able to relate, especially in your teens, to be able to relate so massively with a TV character was such a big help and I truly believe it contributed to making me who I am today as dramatic as that may sound.

And as Lyri said, if I was ever afraid of the situation I would think of what Buffy or Willow or Cordy or whoever was appropriate for the situation would do and that would give me just that little burst of confidence to help me through.

And what I think makes this show so great IS that relation. I mean whether it's a character, a storyline, a couple, or even just an episode I think each and everyone of us can find something in the show that we connected with, that we feel directly relates to us, almost as if it were written/created just for your benefit.

And I do go through lots of different favorite shows- my current being things such as Supernatural and Private Practice 😉 but despite that and how my favorites and tastes in favorites and viewing habits may vary, Buffy is always there, in the background so-to-speak as a constant favorite. It's the one show that when I'm down about something or I'm missing someone I can flip on an episode and it immediately makes me feel that little bit better. It's been a part of my life for over eleven years and I honestly believe it will continue to be a part of my life and as my life changes, the way I relate to the show and the way it helps me in my life will undoubtedly change too. And I like to think it's a TV legacy I will one day be able to pass onto my children.

It's dramatic, it's over stated, and so many people have said it in the past and even on this thread that I think for the fandom as a whole we're getting pretty tired of it and anyone not in the fandom probably just thinks it's pretty weird, but Buffy is, I have to admit, my hero. Not just the character but the entire TV show. And that's not something that happens often.

 

[OldSwede]

It's dramatic, it's over stated, and so many people have said it in the past and even on this thread that I think for the fandom as a whole we're getting pretty tired of it and anyone not in the fandom probably just thinks it's pretty weird, but Buffy is, I have to admit, my hero. Not just the character but the entire TV show. And that's not something that happens often.

Yep, sign me in, too... I have little to add to the great posts above, but I think the strength of the show is shown by the fact that you can relate to it at any age, if you just let it. Too many people in my age group never give it a chance.

 

[definition of insane]

Hmmm....well Buffy is always going to be my number one show. It's my security blanket, the constant reminder that in life, there's nothing else you can do but to keep on trying.

Buffy is my hero. Because we know who she is. All the good, all the bad, all the downright annoying...and proof that just because you want to give up, it doesn't mean you have to.

And as far as superheroes go, I loved the fact that there was never a lycra costume and there wasn't a mask. She was this girl who fought for the good of the world and the only way she hid it was to not tell people what she was about. One of my absolute favourite moments has got to be at the prom, Buffy getting her class protector award...it's not like Bruce Wayne is ever going to get one of those for being Batman. She didn't hide. She didn't have to.

And those of you who know me know...yeah, I'm usually pretty peppy and stuff. I wasn't always. And the lesson I learnt to just keep trying, even when you feel like there's no hope...I learnt that from Buffy.