Post by tranquillity on Mar 12, 2007 2:04:22 GMT -5
just re-watched ‘The Girl in Question’ and it got me thinking about how the comic book might handle the issue of Buffy finding out that Spike is still alive. So what follows is wild speculation on my part that will probably be proved to be entirely incorrect as the story unfolds but I have to get this off my chest and that’s what forums are for after all……
The first four times I’ve watched TGIQ, I always assumed that Spike had not contacted Buffy up to this point. However, watching it this weekend and perhaps assisted by some knowledge of a certain spoiler concerning the comic I was struck by the fact that nowhere in the episode does it ever actually say that there has been no contact between Spike and Buffy. It doesn’t say there has either… but I think the ambiguity is telling – surely if Spike was about to confront her with the truth of his resurrection he’d make a comment or observation of some sort – after all this is Spike we’re talking about [something along the lines of, The Immortal? That wanker! Stuff him! Wait till she finds out I’m alive…].
In the episode Damaged, Spike assures Andrew that he will take care of telling Buffy about his return himself. I think we know enough about this character to suggest that he would have followed through with this. Hate to say it, but I think it happened conveniently off-screen probably just after ‘You’re Welcome’.
OK,
Now we get to two possibilities:
Spike called Buffy, told her he was alive and got one of two reactions:
A) She was happy to hear from him
Or
B) She was not happy to hear from him.
If it was possibility B then that explains the events of TGIQ quite adequately. But, if it was possibility A then the episode becomes funny on a whole new level. Go with me now…
Back to those two possibilities:
So, why would Buffy not be happy to hear from Spike? Maybe things might be a little awkward over the whole ‘I love you No you don’t’ thing but since when have Buffy and Spike stopped communicating because of awkwardness (come on, the guy chained her up to declare his love, built a sex robot that looked exactly like her, and lets not forget various season six activities…enough said). Maybe she would be pissed off with his lack of communication after returning from life in the amulet but Buffy would have to be completely unsympathetic and selfish not to accept his ghostyness as a valid excuse. Not to mention the fact that it would be extremely two-faced of her to reject the idea that he needed a little time to come to terms with what has happened and to decide what to do with himself when it took her damn near a year to adjust to the fact that she’d been returned from the dead! So in short, I can’t see any reason that Buffy would not be happy to hear from Spike. (If you’ve got other ideas I’m open to suggestions)
Reverse question, why would Buffy be happy to hear from Spike? Well, obviously he was dead and now he’s not (well technically…), and anyway, who’s not happy to hear from someone who’s returned from the dead! They were good friends, close friends who may or may not have been in love. Of course she’s going to be happy to hear from him! He was her right hand man, her strongest ally, her sounding board, her confidant. Dare I say,her best friend. In my mind there’s no question, she would certainly be happy to hear from him (again, other opinions, share away).
Right…. So in my assumption Buffy and Spike have talked sometime between Andrew’s visit to LA and the trip to Rome with Angel and she has been happy to hear from him. This brings us to two more possibilities - when they talked either:
c) She lied to him
Or
d) She told him the truth
Why would Buffy Lie to Spike? Well, she wouldn’t unless it was a lie by omission or for reasons of their personal safety but on the whole, I think Buffy would tell him exactly what had been going on since the destruction of Sunnydale. This would mean that she has told him the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth including the fact that she is.....
SPOILER WARNING - the rest of this post has reference to information known about the comic so don't read if you don't want to know .........................................................................
....a wanted terrorist and has body doubles in various locations, one of whom is dating the immortal.
The season 7 relationship was founded on trust and to have her lie to him now would be a huge lapse in her character
Which brings me back to TGIQ and reading it on a whole new level with the possibility that Spike knows they are chasing a figment the entire time. A few things support this reading including:
• That Spike, at first, displays no interest in going to Italy to retrieve the demon head, despite the fact that Andrew had previously told him that Buffy was in Rome. Surely he’d be champing at the bit to get to the continent to see her? But he’s not remotely interested because he knows she is not there!
• That he only says he’ll go when Angel says he is going. Yes, this could be just another example of the highly competitive nature of Angel and Spike’s relationship but it could also mean that Spike needed to go on the trip to run interference so that Angel wouldn’t betray the truth if he found out it was not the real Buffy. After all, it was Angel in whom Buffy and team had lost faith in not Spike
• Spike is the one who keeps them on track of the demon head recovery, suggesting the possibility that his mind is not clouded by thoughts of ‘Buffy’ and the immortal.
• Both the boys are pathetic in this episode but Angel beats Spike in the pathetic stakes hands down suggesting that Spike’s pathetic-ness is more of an act (yeah, yeah - I know this last reason is a long bow….)
I know I’m looking at this particular episode with hindsight and formulating my own theories as to how they’ll re-introduce the topic of Spike into the comic but hey, wouldn’t Joss and co. have had to do the same to make sure it all fits together. I’m just having a bit of fun speculating.
The first four times I’ve watched TGIQ, I always assumed that Spike had not contacted Buffy up to this point. However, watching it this weekend and perhaps assisted by some knowledge of a certain spoiler concerning the comic I was struck by the fact that nowhere in the episode does it ever actually say that there has been no contact between Spike and Buffy. It doesn’t say there has either… but I think the ambiguity is telling – surely if Spike was about to confront her with the truth of his resurrection he’d make a comment or observation of some sort – after all this is Spike we’re talking about [something along the lines of, The Immortal? That wanker! Stuff him! Wait till she finds out I’m alive…].
In the episode Damaged, Spike assures Andrew that he will take care of telling Buffy about his return himself. I think we know enough about this character to suggest that he would have followed through with this. Hate to say it, but I think it happened conveniently off-screen probably just after ‘You’re Welcome’.
OK,
Now we get to two possibilities:
Spike called Buffy, told her he was alive and got one of two reactions:
A) She was happy to hear from him
Or
B) She was not happy to hear from him.
If it was possibility B then that explains the events of TGIQ quite adequately. But, if it was possibility A then the episode becomes funny on a whole new level. Go with me now…
Back to those two possibilities:
So, why would Buffy not be happy to hear from Spike? Maybe things might be a little awkward over the whole ‘I love you No you don’t’ thing but since when have Buffy and Spike stopped communicating because of awkwardness (come on, the guy chained her up to declare his love, built a sex robot that looked exactly like her, and lets not forget various season six activities…enough said). Maybe she would be pissed off with his lack of communication after returning from life in the amulet but Buffy would have to be completely unsympathetic and selfish not to accept his ghostyness as a valid excuse. Not to mention the fact that it would be extremely two-faced of her to reject the idea that he needed a little time to come to terms with what has happened and to decide what to do with himself when it took her damn near a year to adjust to the fact that she’d been returned from the dead! So in short, I can’t see any reason that Buffy would not be happy to hear from Spike. (If you’ve got other ideas I’m open to suggestions)
Reverse question, why would Buffy be happy to hear from Spike? Well, obviously he was dead and now he’s not (well technically…), and anyway, who’s not happy to hear from someone who’s returned from the dead! They were good friends, close friends who may or may not have been in love. Of course she’s going to be happy to hear from him! He was her right hand man, her strongest ally, her sounding board, her confidant. Dare I say,her best friend. In my mind there’s no question, she would certainly be happy to hear from him (again, other opinions, share away).
Right…. So in my assumption Buffy and Spike have talked sometime between Andrew’s visit to LA and the trip to Rome with Angel and she has been happy to hear from him. This brings us to two more possibilities - when they talked either:
c) She lied to him
Or
d) She told him the truth
Why would Buffy Lie to Spike? Well, she wouldn’t unless it was a lie by omission or for reasons of their personal safety but on the whole, I think Buffy would tell him exactly what had been going on since the destruction of Sunnydale. This would mean that she has told him the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth including the fact that she is.....
SPOILER WARNING - the rest of this post has reference to information known about the comic so don't read if you don't want to know .........................................................................
....a wanted terrorist and has body doubles in various locations, one of whom is dating the immortal.
The season 7 relationship was founded on trust and to have her lie to him now would be a huge lapse in her character
Which brings me back to TGIQ and reading it on a whole new level with the possibility that Spike knows they are chasing a figment the entire time. A few things support this reading including:
• That Spike, at first, displays no interest in going to Italy to retrieve the demon head, despite the fact that Andrew had previously told him that Buffy was in Rome. Surely he’d be champing at the bit to get to the continent to see her? But he’s not remotely interested because he knows she is not there!
• That he only says he’ll go when Angel says he is going. Yes, this could be just another example of the highly competitive nature of Angel and Spike’s relationship but it could also mean that Spike needed to go on the trip to run interference so that Angel wouldn’t betray the truth if he found out it was not the real Buffy. After all, it was Angel in whom Buffy and team had lost faith in not Spike
• Spike is the one who keeps them on track of the demon head recovery, suggesting the possibility that his mind is not clouded by thoughts of ‘Buffy’ and the immortal.
• Both the boys are pathetic in this episode but Angel beats Spike in the pathetic stakes hands down suggesting that Spike’s pathetic-ness is more of an act (yeah, yeah - I know this last reason is a long bow….)
I know I’m looking at this particular episode with hindsight and formulating my own theories as to how they’ll re-introduce the topic of Spike into the comic but hey, wouldn’t Joss and co. have had to do the same to make sure it all fits together. I’m just having a bit of fun speculating.