"But she doesn't love me." Riley appreciation!

[gumgnome]

I may be in a bizarro universe all of my own (one without shrimp) but I actually really like Riley and think that he is the perfect partner for Buffy because:
He can actually provide a life for her - they could have kids and the things that Buffy wishes life could give her.
He is the only main Buffy love interest who falls in love with her before he finds out she's the slayer - a big thumbs up from me because it shows how much he cares for the girl inside.
I genuinely believe that Xander's words get through to Buffy in "Into the Woods" and that she earnestly wants Riley to stay and realises just how much she has peripheralised him. That scene breaks my heart every time, more than the sewer talk in "The Prom".
I think the guy gets so much hate from Buffy fans unfairly. He doesn't get many funny lines unlike the rest of the cast, but is always a total rock of support for Buffy.

Favourite moments:
When he's in the car in "The Replacement":
BUFFY: Riley, do you wish-
RILEY: No.
BUFFY: No? You don't even know what I was gonna say.
RILEY: Yes, I do. You wanted to know if I wished you got hit by the ferula-gemina, got split in two.
BUFFY: Well, you have been kind of rankly about the whole slayer gig. Instead of having slayer Buffy, you could have Buffy Buffy.
RILEY: Hey. I *have* Buffy Buffy. Being the slayer's part of who you are. You keep thinking I don't get that, but...
BUFFY: It's just ... I know how ... un-fun it can be. The bad hours, frequent bruising, cranky monsters...
RILEY: Buffy... if you led a perfectly normal life, you wouldn't be half as crazy as you are. I gotta have that. I gotta have it all. I'm talkin' toes, elbows, the whole bad-ice-skating-movie obsession, everything. There's no part of you I'm not in love with.

Awwww!!!!!!!!!! Soo sweet!

"Buffy Vs. Dracula" When Xander tries to get in his way and Riley puts him down, hard. Nobody, just nobody is gonna stop him from getting to Buffy when she's in danger.

Then the ultimate, ultimate Riley moment. Even after he's been dumped, he comes back with no rancour and bitterness (unlike with Angel) and sets Buffy back on her feet at a time when she's at her lowest.

"As You Were":
BUFFY: Well, I'm sure my incredible patheticness softened the blow for you.
RILEY: I don't know what you're talking about.
BUFFY: Riley, please don't patronize-
RILEY: Hey! You want me to say that I liked seeing you in bed with that idiot? Or that blinding orange is your very best color? Or that that ... burger smell is appealing?
BUFFY: (upset) You smelled the smell?
RILEY: Buffy, none of that means anything. It doesn't touch you. You're still the first woman I ever loved ... and the strongest woman I've ever known. And I'm not advertising this to the missus ... but you're still quite the hottie.
BUFFY: You know, it goes away after many bathings.
RILEY: (laughs) This isn't about who's on top. I know how lucky I am right now. I love my work, and I love my wife.
BUFFY: I know. And I kinda love her too.
RILEY: So you're not in the greatest place right now. And maybe I made it worse.
BUFFY: No.
RILEY: Wheel never stops turning, Buffy. You're up, you're down ... it doesn't change what you are. And you are a hell of a woman.
BUFFY: (deep breath) Riley, that night... (Riley just looking at her) I never got the chance ... to tell you ... how sorry I was. About what happened between us.
RILEY: And you never have to.

Amazing! What a guy! How can people hate him?
Am I all alone?

[wenxina]

Apr 17, 2009 7:20:31 GMT -5 gumgnome said:

And you are a hell of a woman.

I just realized that the ultimate Spuffy moment ripped off this line.

For the record... I don't 'ship (what would this 'ship be called? Ruffy?), but I've never hated Riley. I realize that most of the fan hate comes from the Bangels and Spuffiers, and I don't quite understand it. The girl's not done baking... let her finish the baking process before you decide what icing needs to go on the cookies.

[BenTaylor3907]

Apr 17, 2009 8:21:53 GMT -5 wenxina said:

The girl's not done baking... let her finish the baking process before you decide what icing needs to go on the cookies.

I love you Xi. lol.

I hope he turns out to be a double agent in Season 8.
There's hope for him yet.
Come to think about it, I never really "hated" Riley.
He just wasn't my cup of tea.
Go Riley!

[wenxina]

Whoa... when I wrote that, I had no idea how dirty that could sound...

[Emmie]

A truly dirty mind needs to be censored at all times...just goes to show you how dirrrrrty you really are, Xi.


...I'm so sad Dollhouse isn't on tonight. ::cries::

[XanderHarris]

I really like him. Despite the fact that he had some exaggerated issues concerning Buffy being stronger than him, I think he was just a sweet and sincere character who decided to do what's right and keep Buffy.

He had his moments and is annoying occasionally, but in the end I am happy he was a part of the show.

And I would've liked to see him in "The Gift".

[deathisyourgift]

I may be in a bizarro universe all of my own (one without shrimp) but I actually really like Riley and think that he is the perfect partner for Buffy

OMGZ yes I love Riley, for the SAME reasons! He is the only man of Buffy's past relationships who would be able to give her a working relationship. Unfortunately, Buffy's ego got in the way, but if they got back together now, I think Buffy would be ready for Riley. Not that she should, I think she deserves someone new, but I wish it was Riley lol.

It's funny cuz at first when I watched the show I didn't like Riley. I thought he was whiny and silly. But now he's one of my favorite characters and definitely my favorite Buffy boyfriend. Also Marc Blucas is super attractive..like SUPER SUPER attractive in unnatural ways.

And of course, now when I watch S4+5 at home my mom scoffs at me when I whimsically say "I wish Riley was my boyfriend...." hahaha

[Emmie]

Apr 23, 2009 0:36:49 GMT -5 deathisyourgift said:

He is the only man of Buffy's past relationships who would be able to give her a working relationship. Unfortunately, Buffy's ego got in the way, but if they got back together now, I think Buffy would be ready for Riley.

Edited out because I realized this really wasn't in the spirit of the thread, but if anyone does want to read its under the spoiler tags.

SPOILER: Click to show

Buh? Buffy's ego didn't get in the way, or if it did then Riley's raging insecurities got in the way just as much. He needed her to lean on him and act weak and needy for him to feel validated because he had lost his own mission without the Initiative and couldn't find another validation besides being "the mission's boyfriend". That's Riley's fault - it's complete BS that Buffy pushed Riley towards those vampires to get suckjobs. I just find it ridiculous to say that Buffy was in the wrong and to blame for losing Riley.

I've always wondered if Riley had even thought about the danger he was putting himself in and Buffy too. He could have easily been turned and imagine how Buffy would have reacted to a vamp!Riley.

Buffy definitely has some emotional problems in pulling away from people but it's Riley's fault that he reacted like an idiot and went out to get bitten by vampires. I never understood how he got so easily forgiven by everyone but Buffy on the show for that. Xander just steamrolled over it and went on to his "rah rah" go after him, he's the one speech. *eye roll*

I actually do enjoy Riley's character, I just have issues with the way Buffy's get blamed for their break-up when he's just as responsible.

[gumgnome]

Hurrah! Thanks deathisyourgift!

Emmie - I don't think you need to spoiler what you wrote - it seems completely in keeping with the nature of this thread i.e. praise or good criticism of Riley.
I agree that you can't blame Buffy for Riley running off to his two-bit vampire troll, but she has definitely pushed him away by that point. I think that he has made his mind up that being the mission's boyfriend would be satisfactory if that means being with Buffy, and it's not until she cuts him off and he is nothing that he can't handle it. He's given up everything he knows for her and she discards him.
I don't think the forgiveness is out of character for the Scoobies though - i'd say it was analagous to forgiving Buffy for hiding Angel in S3, or for sleeping with Spike in S6. They tend to be a forgiving bunch who can see the big picture and the pain that their friends must be going through.

[deathisyourgift]

Emmie, When I first watched the series as it was airing, I hated the way Riley kept dealing with Buffy's strength in such a needy way. I thought he was whiny and undeserving of Buffy. That was when I was about 13, now that I am 22 (and I only mention age because my view of relationships has greatly changed over the years), I feel like Riley's feelings were misjudged my first time through watching. He was being a bit whiny, yes, but for good cause. He wasn't upset that Buffy wasn't crying on his shoulder, he was upset that she wouldn't share her weaknesses with him like he did with her. He wanted reciprocity, a mutual availability to be vulnerable. Riley has on more than one occasion proven to be quite a sensitive guy, and he needed this deep connection. Buffy at this point was emotionally stunted. Joyce had just died and Buffy had to suck up her pain and move on and be the strong one for her family. She wasn't available for Riley like he was for her. Was this her fault? No, there is no blame in dealing with grief in your own way, therefore I do not think that the breakup was Buffy's 'fault'. But I do feel that she was being short-sighted as a result of her ego kicking in as a defense mechanism to deal with Joyce's death and the new burden of taking care of Dawn. She has often been called selfish, which I disagree with, but being the Slayer, Buffy has to be strong, and Riley wanted to be the one place for her to be vulnerable, just like she was his place for vulnerability.

So in response to your reply Emmie, which was a relevant and interesting debate position, I hold firm by my opinion that Buffy's ego got in the way. Both characters have tons of fault in this breakup, but when Riley gave the ultimatum--a last-ditch effort to save the relationship--Buffy's pride is what made her turn away from him. It took Xander's awesome pep-talk to make her realize that Riley was worth fighting for, and Xander has often be referred to as 'the eyes/heart' of the Scoobies, the one who sees what is right in front of the others when they can't see it.


To finish up, I'll just post that Riley is awesome, cuz hey, this is the Riley Appreciation Thread lol

[Mathieu]

Riley is the most under-rated character on Buffy.

[menomegirl]

Riley Finn is my favorite character from Btvs. I adored him and never understood why so many disliked the character. He was exactly the boyfriend that Buffy needed after all the trauma of her relationship with Angel. He fell for *her*, just her, not for who she was.

deathisyourgift-Riley actually left Sunnydale before Joyce died. As far as he knew, she was safely recovering from her surgery.

[deathisyourgift]

true, thanks for that, so I'll edit and say that Buffy was dealing with Joyce's condition lol


PS- I STILL LOVE RILEY FINN!!!

[Daphne_Moon]

I can't say that I always liked Riley as when you're watching the episodes the first time round you're really just watching the story rather than the development of each individual character. But when I re-watched the episodes as a whole on DVD I was totally drawn into Riley. He's such a sweetie! I mean he's the perfect mix of normalcy whilst still having the macho that allows him to be on a (n almost?) equal footing with Buffy. I don't think she could ever be with someone who couldn't hold up in a fight. She does undoubtedly need someone strong, but she also needs someone who can offer her some semblance of a normal life for her and Riley is that person!

I think Xander hit the nail on the head when he said "You've been treating Riley like the rebound guy but he's the one who comes along once in a lifetime". She was too busy still getting over Angel, fighting Evil and then dealing with her Mother's illness to be able to have some calm her-time where she'd be able to step back and see what she truly had with Riley.

And I do really think the Riley hate comes from the Spuffies and the Bangels, but since I love each relationship in the Buffydom (Except Olivia/Giles, Bleh!) I don't have that kind of prejudice against Riley. I think he was perfect for Buffy at that time when they got together in season 4 and he could have been perfect for her way past season 5 if the situation and their lives had been different. Buffy is doomed always to miss the moment I think- she missed out on the memorie of Angel being human, she missed out on a chance with a great, loving and normal relationship with Riley, and she missed out on being able to express her feelings to Spike until the very, VERY end.

But yes, I like Riley. And while people don't think he has many fun moments I think he has a lot of amusing scenes, particular the ones with Xander. Xander tends to be a bad influence and causes Riley to have immature moments such as the little scrum-fight they had in.....Family.

Plus as others have said- Marc Blucas is hot, man!

[cliclir]

Wow. I'm not sure if it's just cause I've been looking in all the wrong places, but RILEY LOVE! Actual Riley Love!!!

This guy totally doesn't get the love he deserves from the fans.

People have said he's selfish and needy and I don't know what else but I reallly don't see that as much as a lot of people say. Sure, he did some wrong things, but that's what makes him human. We all do wrong things from time to time.

Riley is Awesome. Completely. And so many people have given out all his good traits and stuff, and the fact that he was the only person to give Buffy emotional strength in season 6. And his few lines in Restless always give me giggles!

So yeah...