Character of the Day: Buffy Summers

'Ello! I'm here to do one of my favorite things.......talk about fictional characters that I love. 

I'm starting off with the titular heroine of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Spoilers ahead. 

Brief Facts

Buffy Summers is the main character on Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

She's the Slayer, which means it's her destiny to slay vampires, demons and the forces of darkness. She's sort of the leader of the Scooby Gang in the first five seasons, and then fully becomes the leader in Season Six. 

Oh, and she died twice. 

Why I Like Her:

I feel like Buffy doesn't always get the recognition she deserves. Sure, in Season Six.....she's a bit of a mess [but who isn't? It's Season Six], and I couldn't stand her in Season Seven, but, for the first five seasons, she was one of my favorite characters. And she's a great character, so let's dive a little deeper, and start talking about why I like her.

She's A Great Example of The Chosen One Done Right

The Chosen One trope gets a lot of criticism, and a lot of it is for good reason. However, I don't think we should completely discount it because it can be done well. And Buffy is one of those that is done well. Sure, she has super strength, and is an extremely talented fighter, but she doesn't win every fight. Sometimes she loses [she lost against Glory multiple times], she has good traits and things she's talented at, but she has plenty of flaws [like her tendency to be judgmental], and the show paints a fairly realistic picture of what it would be like to be the Chosen One. She has to fight evil for the rest of her life. She can't quit. She'd love to do other activities, but she just doesn't have time. 

She's Also A Great Example of a Girly Girl Hero

I love my tomboy heroines, but I also love seeing more traditionally feminine girls/women as heroes, and Buffy fits the bill. She's stylish, likes shopping, and cheerleading.....and still fights monsters and stakes vampires. Her femininity isn't treated as a weakness, and I love that.

She's Really Funny

Pretty much everyone in the Buffyverse is super snarky, so this goes for multiple characters, but some of Buffy's quotes really were the best. I greatly appreciate snark in characters. 

She's Genuinely A Nice Person [Most of the Time]

While she definitely has her moments of being a huge jerk, she was pretty friendly and loyal most of the time [especially with the Scooby Gang]. You can see that with lots of her interactions with Dawn. Sure, Dawn annoys her, but she still loves her, she still takes care of her, and she still sacrificed herself, so Dawn wouldn't have to. 

She's Super Determined

Buffy rarely [read: almost never] gives up. Back in Season One [when she's sixteen], she doesn't want to fight the Master, she doesn't want to die, but she goes and she fights him anyway. I think that's part of what made her a good Slayer. 

She's A Hero

As mentioned before, no matter how hard it is, Buffy will save the world. She makes plenty of mistakes, sure, but she always comes around. She's determined, she's brave, but most of all, she's willing to make sacrifices. She may complain about how hard being the Slayer is, but she still does it. 

And that is where I'm going to end this post. 

So, have you seen Buffy the Vampire Slayer? Who are your favorites?