Hi! *waves* I'm not sure if we've spoken before. I found this link on the Sunnydale Herald.
I love both scenes, but I can definitely see the unpleasant patterns of women sacrificing themselves for life. I think Darla's is worse in that regard, killing herself for her unborn child (and it becomes even worse in retrospect with all the other dead-of-mystical-pregnancy women on AtS). Buffy's at least has a possible interpretation of warrior-sacrificing-herself-to-save-her-family, with Dawn as damsel-in-distress rather than child, which is a little more gender subversive. It also helps that Buffy gets better. I suppose Darla coming back to life had become a cliche by that point, but it still would have been nice to see her again.
"Summers blood" makes no sense, but when did Buffy plots ever make sense? It works emotionally.
and it becomes even worse in retrospect with all the other dead-of-mystical-pregnancy women on AtS
Oh yes. I'm not sure they even realised how consistent they were about this, though I'm not sure how they couldn't see it... I mean, Darla, Cordelia, and Fred all go roughly the same way. And that's after Cordelia gets knocked up with demon spawn about 4 times. I'm not saying the trope should never ever under any circumstances be used, but come on.
"Summers blood" makes no sense, but when did Buffy plots ever make sense? It works emotionally.
^^ I think the mechanics of The Great Summers' Blood Debate is being over-thought. The genre relies so heavily on deux ex machina that the fine detailing is much less important than the emotional resonance. So, yes to the above.
Oh yes. I'm not sure they even realised how consistent they were about this, though I'm not sure how they couldn't see it... I mean, Darla, Cordelia, and Fred all go roughly the same way.
Now that is something that never hit me! Perhaps Doyle also meets the 'one death for the greater good' trope as well, but he's no where near as explicitly trading one life for another as the female characters.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2012-07-20 08:37 am (UTC)I love both scenes, but I can definitely see the unpleasant patterns of women sacrificing themselves for life. I think Darla's is worse in that regard, killing herself for her unborn child (and it becomes even worse in retrospect with all the other dead-of-mystical-pregnancy women on AtS). Buffy's at least has a possible interpretation of warrior-sacrificing-herself-to-save-her-family, with Dawn as damsel-in-distress rather than child, which is a little more gender subversive. It also helps that Buffy gets better. I suppose Darla coming back to life had become a cliche by that point, but it still would have been nice to see her again.
"Summers blood" makes no sense, but when did Buffy plots ever make sense? It works emotionally.
no subject
Date: 2012-07-20 09:30 am (UTC)and it becomes even worse in retrospect with all the other dead-of-mystical-pregnancy women on AtS
Oh yes. I'm not sure they even realised how consistent they were about this, though I'm not sure how they couldn't see it... I mean, Darla, Cordelia, and Fred all go roughly the same way. And that's after Cordelia gets knocked up with demon spawn about 4 times. I'm not saying the trope should never ever under any circumstances be used, but come on.
"Summers blood" makes no sense, but when did Buffy plots ever make sense? It works emotionally.
Absolutely.
no subject
Date: 2012-07-20 06:45 pm (UTC)Oh yes. I'm not sure they even realised how consistent they were about this, though I'm not sure how they couldn't see it... I mean, Darla, Cordelia, and Fred all go roughly the same way.
Now that is something that never hit me! Perhaps Doyle also meets the 'one death for the greater good' trope as well, but he's no where near as explicitly trading one life for another as the female characters.