(no subject)

[rhienelleth]

A recent conversation in the comments of snowdrifted's journal prompted me to write this entry. She mentioned Season 6 of Buffy, and how sad it was, and in the comments thereafter ensued a multi-LJer conversation about Spike/Buffy in S6 and the direction the story/ship went, and Spike's good/evil-ness and love/not love for Buffy. I was going to just reply in her comments like everyone else, but quickly realized my "comment" was turning into an epic. Hence this flashback post to the good -- or not so good -- 'ol days of Season 6.



When it was airing for the first time, and my RL friends and I obssessed about exactly two shows every week -- Buffy and Angel, obviously -- we had a lot of RL conversations about Buffy and Spike and the...hmm, change in tone that was S6. I have one friend who hated it. She hated what she considered the over-the-top use of sex in the episodes, the abusive nature of the Spike/Buffy relationship. And let me clarify here, Spike was not alone in inflicting abuse. Buffy, as she later admitted, was using Spike. And not only did she use him, but she verbally beat him down every chance she got. When she wasn't ripping his clothes off. There was definite mutual abuse going on.

The question is, why? Well, let's look at the backstory, shall we?

I'll go with Spike first. Spike, unlike Angel, did not have a soul. He had a chip. A chip that prevented him from harming humans, but allowed him to harm demons. He made it pretty clear on more than one occasion that "helping" the Scooby gang and Buffy was the only we he was able to get his violence on anymore. And there was the added benefit of trying to win points with Buffy, who he was obssessed with. Not in love with. Not yet.

See, in S6 Spike was still an evil vampire. His body was inhabited by a demon, not a soul, and therefore I'm not so sure he was capable of truly loving another being. Possessing, admiring, and lusting after, yes. He had killed two Slayers, and for all his efforts, Buffy triumphed over him every time. I'm sure he felt a certain admiration for her, just for that. She is obviously a better Slayer than any he's faced before. Then there's the fact that she and Angel were lovers. Angel and Spike sort of competed over Dru while Angel was evil, and I'm sure it wouldn't take much for Spike's subconscious to fixate on Buffy for just that reason.

Then let's go back even farther, to William the Bloody Bad Poet. He had on obssessive nature even then, before he became a soulless creature of the night. I'm sure being an evil vampire for a couple hundred years would only intensify the unhealthy personality traits. And we already know from his exploits, and Angel's, that vampires (without souls) have healthy, if twisted, sex drives. Hence lusting after the one person destined to destroy all your kind isn't such a stretch. I'm sure it adds a kind of dangerous flair to the act itself. She could whip out a stake and dust you in the middle of it all, if she wanted to.

I'm sure that whatever part of Spike was still capable of feeling felt something for Buffy in S6. I'm just not sure it was love. All of the things listed above are what lead him to his act of desperate almost-rape after Buffy rejects him. Their entire relationship is based on sex and obssession at that point, and in Spike's mind, he just knows if he can be with her sexually again, he'll possess her like he thought he did before. When that fails, he decides it's time to pull out all the stops, to do whatever it takes to get rid of the chip's limitations and come back ready to "give her what she deserves". This is left deliberately ambiguous until the very last moment of S6, and to tell you the truth, I'm not sure even Spike knows he's asking for a soul. He just wants to be "whole again", to "give the Slayer her due." At this point, I believe he's not fully sane anymore. Being a demon crippled by that chip for so long didn't help, but the thing with Buffy finally drove him over the crazy cliff (as is evident during the almost-rape). I think we have two internal Spike's battling to be whole -- one who really wants to be a better vampire and be able to love Buffy, and one who just wants to get his head fixed so he can really challenege Buffy again, as vampire to Slayer. (Yes, I'm remembering that by this point, the chip didn't prohibit Spike from hurting Buffy. But it did prohibit him from living like a real vampire, drinking blood from humans and killing and generally being able to wreak havok and mayhem -- which, from what I've seen, means a lot to a vampire's psyche and basic self-confidence.) Well, he ends up with a soul, and all of the feeling that goes with it. After which he is fully capable of loving Buffy. And by the end of S7 (no sppoilers here, for those who haven't seen it), I believe he does.

As for Buffy, her actions are more easily explained. It's called post-traumatic stress syndrome, and it happens to soldiers who face terrible things in battle, like death. And it wasn't just Buffy who suffered from it. Willow became addicted to magic. Xander and Anya imploded. Buffy's was the worst, obviously. She started a relationship with Spike because it was the only way she could get past the numbness she'd been cocooned in since her resurrection. Fighting with him, snarking at him, having sex with him, they were all ways she was able to lash out and feel something. And she hated herself for it. She turned her own self disgust onto him by verbally demeaning him every chance she got...unless she was looking to "scratch an itch", as Spike would say. When she tells him it's over, she's taking back her life, and it's the beginning of her truly healing past her experiences in S5.

I won't go on into how their relationship changes in S7, for spoilers sake, because I know of two people on my f-list who haven't seen it yet. :)

Comments

[snowdrifted.livejournal.com]

That was great to read. Thanks for posting! :))

Great analysis of Spike there. I really enjoy his character and it's been interesting seeing him and Buffy circle each other through S5 and 6. After Seeing Red, whoa, it kind of was kind of like he went off the crazy cliff. I think at that point he really had lost it, like he knew he couldn't be in the grey area anymore. And it's frustrating for him because the chip wasn't his choice - it's a place he was forced into. And as long as he had the idea of loving Buffy, he had some kind of purpose for himself.

The post-traumatic stress really does explain a lot about why they were acting the way they did. It was just so sad to see everyone closed off, and Buffy and Willow losing control, and Dawn being brushed off like just a kid, and Xander being such a schmuck. So right about Buffy, that when she put Spike down it was because she was disgusted with herself. I kept thinking in S6, how different it could have been if she'd just been honest with Spike sooner.

It is definitely interesting watching these season by season as a newbie when there is already such a huge fandom in place. The writing is so good that there is so much to analyze. :)) Although I'm also sensing there are a lot of fandom lines drawn, and I'm afraid of crossing them! *g* But there are so many good pairings and good characters to appreciate.

[rhienelleth.livejournal.com]

There are a lot of lines drawn in the fandom, but I wouldn't worry about them too much. You're as entitled to your opinion and 'ship as they are, after all. I'm glad you're enjoying the series. :) It is very good, if underappreciated writing, and the characters absolutely make the show (which is pretty much true of all Joss stuff, come to think of it.)

[carmen-sandiego.livejournal.com]

I really enjoyed reading your post! A very thoughtful discussion.

As for Buffy, her actions are more easily explained. It's called post-traumatic stress syndrome, and it happens to soldiers who face terrible things in battle, like death. And it wasn't just Buffy who suffered from it.

I completely agree - and to me this was the main arc for all the characters in Season 6, including the villains. They were all doing crazy things (and "real life" kind of crazy, not just supernatural crazy like we'd been used to) and wrestling with how to stop and move on.

I'm sure that whatever part of Spike was still capable of feeling felt something for Buffy in S6. I'm just not sure it was love. All of the things listed above are what lead him to his act of desperate almost-rape after Buffy rejects him. Their entire relationship is based on sex and obssession at that point, and in Spike's mind, he just knows if he can be with her sexually again, he'll possess her like he thought he did before.

I really agree here, too - in S5 as well as S6 it was clear that Spike was lusting after her/obsessing after her, but I wasn't fully convinced it was real love. I know he thought it was, but it was hard to tell what he was basing that on other than the already violently physical nature of their relationship, and the fact that he began dreaming about her.

I do look forward to seeing more of their interaction in Season 7!

[rhienelleth.livejournal.com]

I can't take credit for the post-traumatic stress idea, actually. About halfwat through the season, a fairly famous author of military SF posted an argument that explained how this was exactly what the characters were going through on a Buffy newsgroup. He sited examples and explained how the writers were doing a brilliant job of portraying this, and it was like a lightbulb went off for me. It fit too exactly to be coincidence, and the scoobies had been fighting a war for five seasons -- it seemed likely that the psychological weight would eventually lead to this.

I can't wait until you watch S7!

[haleyj-the-bat.livejournal.com]

You know... I want to hiss at you and go, "No! Spike and Buffy were IN LOVE."

Instead I'm going to admit that you had very good points here that make more sense than mine. This was very interesting to read, and I even recced it to a friend!

[rhienelleth.livejournal.com]

I shipped Spike and Buffy with the best of them starting during S4-5, and was a little unhappy with how things unfolded in S6. I had hoped that when they finally had sex, it would be for different reasons (like say, love). But S7 made up for it. :) One of my favorite S/B moments ever is when they lay in bed together and he just holds her through the night. No sex, just love and support.

And thanks for the rec. :)