“Can we rest now? Buffy… can we rest?”
“I designed Buffy to be an icon, to be an emotional experience, to be loved in a way that other shows can’t be loved. Because it’s about adolescence, which is the most important thing people go through in their development, becoming an adult. And it mythologizes it in such a way, such a romantic way-it basically says, ‘Everybody who made it through adolescence is a hero.’ And I think that’s very personal, that people get something from that that’s very real.” (x)
144 things to love about BtVS | 1x01: Welcome to the Hellmouth
So I’m not going to talk about how incredible the role reversal in this scene is, how this show begins by undoing and reshaping all our prior expectations, because that’s been done to death. I’m going to talk about Darla, who could have just been a throwaway vampire, there for the opening, gone after The Harvest and never seen again. But that’s not what Joss does- he gives us characters with rich history and depth, characters who matter no matter how irrelevant they are, and he makes them relevant until we’re so attached to them that every bit character has a role. Even if AtS had never happened, Darla’s already been cast as Angel’s sire, as someone vital to his growth and change. And as this season continues, we begin to see bits of her own story, her wants and needs and frustrations and desperation for him to return to her. What could have just been an early Monster of the Week instead has a story of her own beyond plot and foil, even if she only lasts a few episodes. And thus begins a trend of characters who feel real in a show so far removed from reality.
“Prepare me for what? For getting kicked out of school? For losing all of my friends? For having to spend all of my time fighting for my life and never getting to tell anyone because I might endanger them? Go ahead! Prepare me.”
(1x01: Welcome to the Hellmouth)
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