Xander. The One Without the Superpowers.

S

sosa lola

Scooby
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Nov 26, 2007
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"Useless.


Stupid.


Listless.


Buttmonkey.



These are just a few of the names Alexander LaVelle Harris has been subjected to by Buffy fans. And we here at b&bt are sick of it. Xander doesn't get the props he deserves, and we're not just talking about raising the roof because he's slept with Anya. We're talking about real, honest to goodness hero stuff.



That's right, we said hero. And guess what? He's the coolest Scooby there is. Why? Certainly not for his fashion sense, we can tell you that. Because everything he's done, he's done as Xander. He has not the powers of super strength and killer quips, he knows not the magic, nor does he care to. His courage is greater than everyone else because he fights right beside them without the years of training, or slayer strength, or wiccan talent. He's Xander. And while it's true that the carpenter imagery is being laid on a bit thick of late, he'll always be just Xander. And just Xander saves the world. A whole damn lot.



Since so many in the fandom seem to need a swift kick in the ass reminder of just Xander's greatness, we present to you the greatest Xander hero-type moments. We tried to do a top ten, but we found too damn many moments for that. And sure, on some of these we may be stretching it a bit, but so what? It's Xander. Leave us alone. "

And here you can read the list.


I thought this link was so sweet, I couldn't help but post it in the Xander section. 🙂
 
palabravampiress
palabravampiress
Thanks for the link. Xander's awesome!
:jaw_drop:

Potential isn't on there! That is one of Xanders greatest moments.. When he gives the speech to Dawn
"They'll never know how tough it is, Dawnie, to be the one who isn't chosen. To live so near to the spotlight and never step in it. But I know. I see more than anybody realizes because nobody's watching me. I saw you last night. I see you working here today. You're not special. You're extraordinary."

😀
 
What about in "Hush," when he mistakenly thought Spike had drained Anya? He thought Spike was an active vampire again, and yet he attacked and pummeled him pretty fiercely. It wasn't saving the world, but it was still brave.
 
Xander is my hero. 'Nuff said.

Well, no. not 'nuff said. He was the regular guy who faced irregular situations. sure, willow was with him on that in the very beginning, but when she got into her magic, its not like he said "well, looks like buffy and will can handle the situation ill just stay in the background!"

No, he was amazing. He's the character who shows us that as a person, as nothing more than just a regular person, we can do whatever we want if we just follow what we believe in. We have the courage inside of us, we have the will, and sometimes it won't always go the way we want, but more often than not we will land on our feet.

I think it makes Xander one of the most important characters in the whole series.
 
Shoulda made a video 😀
I wouldn't go as far as the coolest scooby, if Oz is a scooby no one is cooler then him. ^_^
But Xander does deserve to be considered a hero. He was one of the only regular people on the show and still fought the good fight 😛
I liked him through most of the show up until around the end of season 6 then I only liked him a tiny bit, but that doesn't change how 'heroic' ??? he was
 
awww I love Xander! Everyone thinks he's this loser that can't do anything but he's really amazing! Its not his fault he doean't have superpowers! He does the best that he can and a lot of times its enough!! Xander's awesome!
 
Personally Xander is probably my favourite scoobe, yeah I think he has had MAJOR ass moments...kick his and ass and kicking Buffy out being the stand out moments...but when it comes down to it he has the biggest heart of any of them and in some way is the real hero becuase he doesn't have the super duper powers to rely on. So I am most definitely in the YAY Xander camp.
 
I actually love that Xander is flawed. His short temper and pettiness. I love that this flawed, normal, very human person can be such a brave hero. That just gives us normal folks a reason to try harder and never give up.
 
G
greetings
I completely agree.
Xander isn't my favourite character, in fact, he's not up there. But he should be. He's the only Scooby without any powers at all (Well, except his army moments 😛) he's really under appreciated, Xander rocks xD
 
Oh, that link made me so happy, thanks!

Xander is so underrated. I think it's clear that without him the scoobies wouldn't be as solid as they are (most of the time) and he definately brings something.

People always say he's judgemental and blah blah blah... But I like that he's flawed. It's not like Buffy and Willow and Giles aren't flawed too, but for some reason people find it harder to ignore if it's Xander.

He's not special, he's extrordinary. 🙂 lol.
 
I, too, adore Xander so much because he's flawed. If he was prefect he'd be so boring.
 
"Powerless" Xander

It's probably a good thing that Xander doesn't have any special powers. Willow and Anya have both misused and abused their powers, and Buffy has occasionally allowed herself to become overconfident because of her powers (and sometimes over-reliant on them). Xander does the best he can with what he has, because that's all he can do. He's a very good fighter for a human, and probably the best among the Scoobies that don't have any superhuman powers. He's also pretty good at researching demons, and Buffy could also use an extra hand when it comes to that. He's selfless and brave when he needs to be, and that especially came in handy when he revived Buffy in "Prophecy Girl" and helped stop Willow from destroying the world in "Grave" (sidenote: I question how much Xander saved the day then, only because Giles suggested that it was his magic that infected her and eventually stopped her. However, if he wasn't there, Willow might have been distraught enough to commit suicide or at least suffer a psychotic break. So, Xander's comfort probably saved Willow's sanity). However, I'll agree that Xander's jealousies and insecurities can get the best of him, and his raging hormones have mad him an easy target for demon women (and Faith). But for the most part he's a loyal friend who has overcome most of his flaws to become a strong leader. I guess I just usually choose to see the good in him, and choose not to dwell on the bad.
 
i Love xander he doesn't need super powers or super strength, he is xander, he tries his best.

XANDER: "All I can...." Can you believe this!? Like I'm some sort of useless lunk. It happens I'm good at a lot of things. I help out with all kinds of . . . stuff. I have skills . . . and . . . stratagems. I'm very . . . (looks to Anya) Help me out."


if he wanted to, he could of just left sunnydale if he thought he was that useless, but no he stayed and helped buffy the best he could, he could never leave
his friends behind, well basically his family.
 
"Buffy Summers, she can fight,
She punches and kicks with all her might.
Buffy Summers... she's a badass.

Willow Rosenberg, she's real smart,
She's got computer brains and a magic heart.
Willow Rosenberg... is also a badass.

Tara has a few spells to cast
Demon Anya has a vengeful past
When the moon's out, Oz transmogrifies

Spike and Angel are forever young
Rupert Giles can speak ancient tongues
Even Cordelia knows how to terrify

He can't do any of that
He can't do anything cool at all
There's just lots of Xander to love
Lots of Xander to love
He can't fight
And he doesn't bite
There's just lots of Xander to love

Every morning, he greets the day
With his comic books and bills to pay
Every morning, he's just like the rest of us

He's gone on a few hellish dates
He's got Babyloon 5 commemorative plates
Xander Harris is just like the rest of us

He gets donuts
He gets jokes
He gets syphillis
And drunken folks
He gets panicked when he tries to walk down the aisle

Maybe he could get more respect
If he joined some cultish demon sect
Maybe... But that's not his style

Cos he always does his part
He doesn't shurk his duty at all

Cos there's lots of Xander to love
Lots of Xander to love
When evil attacks,
He's got snacks
Plus lots of Xander to love

When he dreams,
He finds himself lying
And it seems
That he is death-defying
There's no barrier to hold his superpowers
He's got muscles and he's got brains in the deep night hours

In the end, there's not much to know
He's just a hard-working wood-working regular Joe
Who just happens to be friends with powerful girls
But of the Scoobies, he's my favourite ones
He's loving and loyal till the day is done
In the end, that's enough to save the world
It's true that I miss him
And it's true he misses his eye

But there's still lots of Xander to love
Lots of Xander to love
Got one eye
But he's a hell of a guy
And there's lots of Xander to love !"

That's a Megan Gogerty song, I think it sums up everything you guys have been saying and it makes me love Xander a little more. I think it's great there remained a character who had never any special skills... Just lots of Xander to love ! 😉

(I'm sorry for potential faults in the lyrics, I transcripted them myself and heh, Frenchie here...)
 
See this is one of the reasons that I love "The Zeppo." Everyone that has powers and stuff spends that whole ep saving the world from the hellmouth. They are all so involved in that whole issue, that when Xander showed up to them for help with his problem they didn't even take notice. Which . . . . I guess the fans aren't the only ones guilty of overlooking Xander.
But anyway, did he get angry? ...naw. He went and stopped them himself. And he wasn't overly concerned with taking credit for it either. I have Xander love. 🙂
 
Xander was definitley the heart of the scoobies. Like he said in season 7, it was hard for him to not have anything special about him. But the guy did have something special. He kept the scoobies together and he was a loyal fighter and friend. For them to get through all those things that they overcame, well Xander grew alot and he was one of those people you could just relate too. That is why Xander is one of my favorite characters.
 
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