Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Here, I am addressing the television series by Joss Whedon, not
the 1992 motion picture. As I posted earlier, Joss Whedon uses mind,
body, and spirit characters very clearly in his work, as in Firefly/Serenity.
In Buffy, as in Firefly, the characters are clear and there are layers in each of the character types. For this post, I will only address primary characters for analysis, but I will mention the lower layer characters in the discussions. I am also looking primarily at episode 1.1 for this discussion, but there are things mentioned from later episodes and seasons.
Buffy is introduced dreaming of vampires. She doesn't want to resume her role as the Slayer, but she is drawn to it despite those desires. Her reasons for wanting to avoid her responsibility are all based on relationships. She says she will lose all her friends, get kicked out of school, and won't be able to tell anyone what she does.
It's no accident Buffy ends up in her new school. The librarian, Giles, is her Watcher. When she arrives, Giles is expecting her, but she is not expecting to see him.
Buffy's goal is simply to fit in. In other words, she is looking for relationships. She talks to Cordelia, the last voice on what is in fashion, but she is also able to get along with Willow, who often apologies for hanging out with someone as 'cool' as Buffy. She's even able to befriend Xander, despite his lust for her.
Buffy gets to know, and eventually dates, the second-layer spirit character, Angel, a vampire who is different from other vampires. He has a spirit (soul). He also acts as a protector, or guardian, for Buffy.
Willow is introduced when Xander asks her for tutoring. She tells him he needs get something from the library, "where the books live." Later, she acts very excited about the new librarian, Giles, because of all the great historical books he brought with him to his new job.
Willow is always the one to find 'another way' when everyone else's ideas fail. Her ideas usually center around technology. In episode 1.1, she hacks into and decrypts the city council computer system to find a way into the vampire's underground lair.
Willow isn't easily fooled. Even when overwhelmed by the fact a boy actually wants to spend social time with her, she immediately realizes something is wrong when he takes her off the path. She knows where they were going and how they should get there, even down to specific street names.
Giles, the librarian, acts as a companion or second-layer mind character, but in season two, the dynamic changes. She meet Oz, another mind character, and starts dating him.
Xander is introduced 'checking out' Buffy, and then slamming into a stair rail because he wasn't paying attention.
When the action starts to get heavy, Willow is working on the computer, Buffy is slaying vampires, and Xander says he is 'standing around like an idiot.' Willow tries to console him by saying he is 'just standing.'
While Buffy only sees Xander as a nice guy and a friend, he is constantly expressing a deeper physical desire for her. Even though he has a desire for Buffy, he often makes body-character comments to or about other girls. Ultimately, he ends up dating Cordelia, the second-layer body character. True to his character, though, he ends up cheating on her.
In Buffy, as in Firefly, the characters are clear and there are layers in each of the character types. For this post, I will only address primary characters for analysis, but I will mention the lower layer characters in the discussions. I am also looking primarily at episode 1.1 for this discussion, but there are things mentioned from later episodes and seasons.
The Spirit Character: Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar)
Buffy is introduced dreaming of vampires. She doesn't want to resume her role as the Slayer, but she is drawn to it despite those desires. Her reasons for wanting to avoid her responsibility are all based on relationships. She says she will lose all her friends, get kicked out of school, and won't be able to tell anyone what she does.
It's no accident Buffy ends up in her new school. The librarian, Giles, is her Watcher. When she arrives, Giles is expecting her, but she is not expecting to see him.
Buffy's goal is simply to fit in. In other words, she is looking for relationships. She talks to Cordelia, the last voice on what is in fashion, but she is also able to get along with Willow, who often apologies for hanging out with someone as 'cool' as Buffy. She's even able to befriend Xander, despite his lust for her.
Buffy gets to know, and eventually dates, the second-layer spirit character, Angel, a vampire who is different from other vampires. He has a spirit (soul). He also acts as a protector, or guardian, for Buffy.
The Mind Character: Willow (Alyson Hannigan)
Willow is introduced when Xander asks her for tutoring. She tells him he needs get something from the library, "where the books live." Later, she acts very excited about the new librarian, Giles, because of all the great historical books he brought with him to his new job.
Willow is always the one to find 'another way' when everyone else's ideas fail. Her ideas usually center around technology. In episode 1.1, she hacks into and decrypts the city council computer system to find a way into the vampire's underground lair.
Willow isn't easily fooled. Even when overwhelmed by the fact a boy actually wants to spend social time with her, she immediately realizes something is wrong when he takes her off the path. She knows where they were going and how they should get there, even down to specific street names.
Giles, the librarian, acts as a companion or second-layer mind character, but in season two, the dynamic changes. She meet Oz, another mind character, and starts dating him.
The Body Character: Xander (Nicholas Brendon)
Xander is introduced 'checking out' Buffy, and then slamming into a stair rail because he wasn't paying attention.
When the action starts to get heavy, Willow is working on the computer, Buffy is slaying vampires, and Xander says he is 'standing around like an idiot.' Willow tries to console him by saying he is 'just standing.'
While Buffy only sees Xander as a nice guy and a friend, he is constantly expressing a deeper physical desire for her. Even though he has a desire for Buffy, he often makes body-character comments to or about other girls. Ultimately, he ends up dating Cordelia, the second-layer body character. True to his character, though, he ends up cheating on her.
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