Dracula-Then and Now (spoilerish)

[Dorian's Kitten]

So I found an interesting essay on Buffy vs. Dracula. Which you can find here.

Anyway that and the preview pages for the next issue of the comic (seen here,) have me thinking about Buffy and The Dark Prince.

In Buffy vs Dracula we see that Dracula has been made almost obsolete by Buffy. (The character, the mythology-take it as you will.) Buffy's vampires are stripped of all the mystery and power given Dracula-they're just people; bad people with a blood addiction yes-but not so much mystical and supernatural. I'm not saying that that element is completely gone, but it very much downplayed. Buffy tore down the traditional vampire.

Then she tore down the traditional slayer. First she refused to play by the rules and then she literally erased them.

In the season five opener there is an attention paid to the similarities between the two characters of Buffy and Dracula (Darkness, loneliness). These qualities are certainly still there in both, but now they have something else in common; now they are both relics of an earlier age. Dracula is the last of the old style vamps and Buffy is the last Chosen One.

I guess my question is: Do you all think that Dracula is being brought into the comics in order to bring light to the fact that Buffy made herself a bit obsolete?

We've already seen that even though she is surrounded by other slayers, Buffy has been keeping to herself. Whether it is the result of having been the slayer (lone slayer) or it is simply her own personality, Buffy is having a hard time adjusting to the world she created. Is Buffy...Dracula?

[KingofCretins]

Other than the frankly preposterous remark about Dracula being a potential "love interest" (frickin' slashcrack -- Xander was brainwashed and kept as a prisoner and slave. I'm honestly amazed at what people are willing to overlook in the hopes of squeeing over completely OOC, retconning slash), I thought that was a very good analysis of Dracula's relevance to Buffy's story both then and now.

I still think that will have a more prominent purpose Dracula will have to serve, apart from (hopefully) Xander putting an end to the buttmonkeydom of his past and (probably) Buffy gaining some perspective about her 'relevance'. I think he's going to be there to tie up what Joss has been slowly building with including all these fairy tale elements -- the unification of the ideas of the supernatural and fantasy elements of the Buffyverse in opposition of Twilight's agenda. It will cement Twilight as the essential, vital enemy of this era of the Buffyverse.

[sueworld]

frickin' slashcrack

Aww, you say that as if it's a bad thing. Xanders always been a bit of a demon magnet hasn't he.

[ThePoet's<3]

Well it's certainly an very good parallel between the "Original Vampire" who was the source of all Vampires present day (Spike/Angel/etc.) and the "Original Slayer" who is the source of all the new Slayerettes.

But it's actually like a combining of the two - old and new - that must fight against the bigger evil which is Twilight. For there to be a Slayer there must be vampires, demons, witches, ghosts and other supernatural things that go bump in the night. Twilight is actually a threat to them both. He/It wants to destroy all demons and evil which will result in the destruction of the Slayer and for what she stands.

Both Dracula and Buffy are indeed representative of the Old Guard and its possible extinction.

[vampmogs]

I don't think we know how much Buffy wants to be the slayer yet, or really what she thinks of the legacy. It's hard to get a sense of where exactly she's at. We know "a whole lot of the time" she wishes she hadn't been chosen to fight vamps. We know that her issues of loosing her powers in 'Helpless' were because she "knows what goes bump in the night." So really, her main issues with wanting to be the slayer stem from her ability to survive and exist in a world where she's fully aware of the horrible dangers. Yet, we also know she has grown a certain sense of pride in slayerhood. In 'No Future For You' she calls it a "gift" to Gigi, a gift Gigi abused. And we also get a sense of how strongly she feels for the other slayers, as she angrily screams at Gigi "other slayers!" after the realisation Gigi killed a slayer on her estate. So it's hard to get a sense of wether or not Buffy wants it to all end, wether or not she'd happily throw being a slayer away if the demons went with away with the legacy.

It's hard for me to decide wether or not she has a problem with Twilight wanting to destroy magic because she likes being a slayer and feels it's a positive part of her now, or just because his method for ridding the world of magic includes having to kill her and the other slayers in the process. If Twilight offered a way to end magic, including all the slayers, and the demons, without hurting any of the slayers or innocent humans, can we honestly say with ease Buffy wouldn't say no?

[redrevo]

It's hard for me to decide wether or not she has a problem with Twilight wanting to destroy magic because she likes being a slayer and feels it's a positive part of her now, or just because his method for ridding the world of magic includes having to kill her and the other slayers in the process. If Twilight offered a way to end magic, including all the slayers, and the demons, without hurting any of the slayers or innocent humans, can we honestly say with ease Buffy wouldn't say no?

I think this is part of her arc for the season, in that she forgets what she's fighting for (the rest of humanity) and acquires the "slayers-only attitude" similar to Faith's in season 3. We know that she has no problem going to war with humanity at this point (TLWH), and the "master race" comment may have been a bit over the top but that's where Buffy's focus is now: the slayers. Buffy is on a pedestal as their queen, and now IMO she thinks she has the responsibility to defend them against all comers, including to the point of taking from the people she was originally trying to save.

[vampmogs]

I agree, I think you're right.

Buffy's been isolated up in that castle for a while now, and when you get told the entire world's against you, your going to start being over protective of the people who aren't and overly aggressive to the people who are. It's human nature, there's def a motherly vibe there. Or, as they've already introduced through season 8 a queen like vibe.