My entries for Round 1 of btvsats20in20, plus extras: (The not really-real) Buffy Summers

[red_satin_doll]

ETA: bangel_4e notified me that my original entries for NS+Mono and Artists Choice 1 were not qualified so I've switched them out. Let me know what you think.

My first-ever 20in20 entries for Round 1 of btvsats20in20 were inspired by the Jo Chen's Cover art for "The Chain"; so I decided to claim Buffy Summers as my subject (no surprise) but with a twist: the "not really-real" versions that populate the Buffyverse: impersonators, dopplegangers, alt universe versions; Buffy reimagined in her own and in other people's dreams.

All icons made by me in ipiccy and Photobucket. Many thanks to bangel_4e and spikesredqueen for their patient and tireless hand-holding.





    Teasers

10 Themes
Strong	Favorite Moment	NS+Monochrome	Comics	Blending
Earth Tones	Provided Texture	Ex.Close Crop	Smile	Focused
5 Category |BLACK AND WHITE
Cat 1	Cat 2	Cat 3	Cat 4	Cat 5
5 Artist's Choice
AC 1	AC 2	AC 3	AC 4	AC 5

Alts and extras to be posted separately.

WANT? TAKE, HAVE, ENJOY! - But give proper credit always!
DO NOT alter, claim as your own or repost to other websites without my permission.
If you snag an icon, letting me know is always appreciated. Feedback feeds the savage fan artist.

Comments

[kikimay]

Sarah has the greatest profile and a lot of that is due to her peculiar nose.

The Chain it's totally the best issue ever, I couldn't agree more. I don't read the comics anymore, I started season 8 and then get bored after "Retreat, Part II" but I'm so grateful I got to read The Chain, it just fixes everything about the Ats ep. "The Girl in Question". ^^

I totally agree. Best issue ever. I was so hopeful when I read it. It really seemed the anticipation of something incredibly good. And then they fucked up. Ugh.

[endeni]

/And then they fucked up. Ugh./ - LOL, I'm not the only one who doesn't particularly care for the latter Buffy comics issues then...
Still, "The Chain" is totally my post-Chosen headcanon. *g*

[kikimay]

Totally not the only one! You should read some of mine and people in my f-list rants about the comics. XD

I still read them, because I'm THAT curious that I would read something I don't particularly like just to know, but I noticed lately that I always forget the comics day (Which I never did during S9. I was very eager to read the new issues) I'm getting uninterest and it's sad, because I still love Buffyverse so much and it's a pity that the canon is becoming boring.

Still, "The Chain" is totally my post-Chosen headcanon. *g*

I completely agree. The Chain really is really about Buffy's importance in the narrative.

[endeni]

/about Buffy's importance in the narrative/ - Well, it was her narrative in the first place, wasn't it?
Anyway, off to read some of you rants, then. ;)
Oh, e adesso che ci penso, red-satin-doll mi ha accennato al fatto che anche tu sei italiana, giusto? *waves*

[kikimay]

Sì, sono italiana anch'io! Piacere di conoscerti! *stringe la mano virtualmente* Fai pure un giro nel mio LJ se ti fa piacere. E btw, la tua icona di Illyria kicks ass. Adoro Illyria. <3

I think that the comics forgot that it was Buffy's narrative and that's the most important error.

[endeni]

Illyria è la mia preferita! - OK no, a essere sinceri il mio preferito è Wesley, ma Illyria è tipo la mia seconda preferita! :D :D

[kikimay]

Wesley è fantastico. <3 Se dovessi scegliere due personaggi di AtS direi, però, il testone di Angel come personaggio maschile (Sì, gli voglio bene) e Illyria. Illyria è il personaggio che avrei voluto vedere di più. Amy Acker è stata perfetta nel passare da Fred (Che onestamente non mi diceva granché) a Illyria. Lei è fighissima.

[endeni]

/Illyria è il personaggio che avrei voluto vedere di più./ - Si, assolutamente d'accordo, questo è uno dei pochi rimpianti che ho per il finale di Ats. Per fortuna che ci sono le fanfics.
Oh Amy Acker è un'attrice fantastica! L'hai vista in "Person of Interest"? Fa un personaggio tostissimo e fuori di testa. Ed è stata grande anche nel "Much Ado About Nothing" del signor Whedon. ;)

[kikimay]

Amy l'ho vista in Dollhouse ed è stata magnifica. La sua Saunders è diventata uno dei miei personaggi preferiti in assoluto dello show. Person of Interest non l'ho mai visto, ma ne ho sentito parlare bene. Much Ado l'ho visto e, anche lì, lei è stata veramente brava (Ma anche Alexis!)

E' una tristezza che abbiano cancellato AtS proprio quando era entrata in scena Illyria. Ho sempre pensato che ci fossero delle potenzialità straordinarie per il personaggio.

(Dovrei trovarmi un'iconcina per Illyria, a questo punto)

[endeni]

Sisì, Alexis pure, ovviamente. (Poi è sempre un piacere rivederlo sul mio schermo dopo tanto tempo!) E Nathan Fillion è stato uno spasso!
Dollhouse l'ho visto per metà perché non mi convinceva la premessa ma nulla da dire, gli attori erano bravi. ;)

[kikimay]

Dollhouse ha delle grandi pecche, ma il personaggio di Amy è fantastico e lei è davvero brava. Tutto sommato mi è piaciuto. (E sono nella minoranza, ma l'ho preferito a Firefly)

(Toh! Iconcina di Illyria)

[endeni]

Caaarina Illyria!

I have to rant I HAVE FEELINGS

[red-satin-doll.livejournal.com]

Well, it was her narrative in the first place, wasn't it?

This needs to emblazoned somewhere in big bold letters and repeated as often as possible, thank you. This is just a big pet peeve with me - not just with the comics but fandom as well. We have so few narratives with female protagonists - with female heros - and yet culturally we can't help but take it away from her and "give it back" the the Menz where it "properly belongs". Sorry not sorry but NO.

And bad enough that it happens in fandom but for the creator of the character to do that, or allow it to happen in canon? I am NOT DOWN WITH THAT.

Re: I have to rant I HAVE FEELINGS

[endeni]

This made me think of all the times I came across some Buffy fusion AU in which the male protagonist is/becomes a Slayer and I'm like, no, a world of no. To me a Slayer is by definition female. It's one of the quintessential characteristic of the role, the whole narrative arc would be irremediably changed otherwise.

Re: I have to rant I HAVE FEELINGS

[red-satin-doll.livejournal.com]

This made me think of all the times I came across some Buffy fusion AU in which the male protagonist is/becomes a Slayer and I'm like, no, a world of no. To me a Slayer is by definition female. It's one of the quintessential characteristic of the role, the whole narrative arc would be irremediably changed otherwise.

I haven't come across this in fanfic myself but that's largely why the "Billy the Vampire Slayer" storyline in the comics made me queasy. I KNEW the minute I heard about it that it that he would be gay. I'm sorry, but being "gay" as a man does not = less masculine/more feminine by default. So it's insulting (stereotyping disguised as ":diversity") and it makes NO sense in canon whatsoever.

Re: I have to rant I HAVE FEELINGS

[kikimay]

This makes me think about all those fics in which Angel or Spike are "the hero" and Buffy is the villain or the evil and deviated slayer, take your pick, and all I can think is YOU'RE DOING IT WRONG.

(Which, okay: everybody writes and reads his own stories. De gustibus non disputandum est and everything. But once in a while we have a female hero who isn't your traditional female hero, who is multifaced and complex like a man and who is the center of the narrative. Why with the patriarchal shit even here?)

Re: I have to rant I HAVE FEELINGS

[red-satin-doll.livejournal.com]

and all I can think is YOU'RE DOING IT WRONG.

PREACH IT LIKE YOU FEEL IT.

who is multifaced and complex like a man and who is the center of the narrative.

Why is this still a radical concept? protagonist comma the. Check it out.

I'm especially taken aback when I see self-proclaimed "feminist" writers write fics in which Spike is the hero and Buffy is a damsel.

One thing I love about Orphan black - there is no way anyone can say Sarah Manning isn't the protagonist or that so and so male character is. (the minute I see that happen I'm going to lose my shit, big time.)

FYI your Illyria icon is freakin' scary. As it probably should be. Is that an illustration from the comics?

Re: I have to rant I HAVE FEELINGS

[endeni]

/who is multifaced and complex like a man and who is the center of the narrative./ - Well it's true that fanworks give you the fun option to explore the side characters for once, which is especially interesting to do in fandoms where there's a (white) male lead and a female and/or POC side character. If you're doing it by somehow diminishing Buffy's role you're doing it wrong... *shakes head*
/Spike is the hero and Buffy is a damsel./ - Urgh, that's one of the reason I don't read Spuffy actually... Though never fear, the "Spikeid" you recommended me is still very much on my to-read list (it looks so original and interesting), I've just been consumed by Marvel fandom lately! :D
/there is no way anyone can say Sarah Manning isn't the protagonist/ - Yay, Orphan Black is just awesome! ;)

Re: I have to rant I HAVE FEELINGS

[kikimay]

Personally I appreciate Angel or Spike centric fics (And Spangel XD) and I also understand the need to explore these characters. I also wrote only about them. It's just that I dislike when their stories are all about reforming the Whedonverse (As Angel the big hero and Buffy the evil Slayer or so) Why can't we have Buffy as the hero?

There are many Spuffy fanfics who deal with these characters exceptionally well. Unfortunately there are also Spuffy (but general het fanfics) who put the characters in "tradional" roles: Spike the hero and Buffy the damsel. But, you know, it's all about searching good authors (And in my f-list there are many)

FYI your Illyria icon is freakin' scary. As it probably should be. Is that an illustration from the comics?

I think so. I can't really say from what comic, but I loved it because is kinda scary. Illyria is a scary character.

Re: I have to rant I HAVE FEELINGS

[endeni]

Oh I love them too! (And Wesley fics!) What I meant to say it's just that you don't have to put Buffy down to do that, do you? ;) (ETA: Well, unless you're doing a purposely AU thing in which the bad guys are the heroes of their own story I guess, which is always interesting to see in fanworks.)
And I totally get that the "tradional" roles are often the problem. *nods*
Yesss, Illyria is like a demon terminator, what's not to love? ♥

Re: I have to rant I HAVE FEELINGS

[kikimay]

(I meant to read a meta of your about Illyria, but I can't find it and, as always, I don't have much time. Did you read about Illyria like Terminator queen Elizabeth? I would love to see that XD)

Personally I like male-centric stories. I watched True Detective, which is VERY male-centric. At the same time I like complex and interesting female characters like Buffy. I appreciate Angel, Spike, Wesley fics but I don't see the point of putting Buffy down or put the blame just on her to let the male character shine. (As for example, fics who put all the blame for the wrongness in S6 on Buffy's shoulders) To me they are: OOC, because so often Buffy plays the evil witch role and she's not like that, patriarchal as shit, because they take all the Buffyverse premises and subvert them. What do you have with a subversion of a subversion? Simple: traditional male and female roles. What a revolution.

Re: I have to rant I HAVE FEELINGS

[endeni]

Well, some time ago I linked here at red-satin-doll's journal the meta Illyria: Queen Elizabeth meets The Terminator by paratti, were you talking about that? It's so awesome!
/What do you have with a subversion of a subversion?/ - Yes, my point exactly! *nods*

Re: I have to rant I HAVE FEELINGS

[red-satin-doll.livejournal.com]

I don't see the point of putting Buffy down or put the blame just on her to let the male character shine. (As for example, fics who put all the blame for the wrongness in S6 on Buffy's shoulders)

*nods* A little nuance would be ever so much appreciated, thank you. You do see the same thing with SG vs Spike or Angel or whatnot fics. One side is entirely bad and wrong, the other noble and good.

And after three years of it in the comics "Bad Buffy! No biscuit! Shame on you for trying to save the lives of all those girls who were being hunted down and slaughtered one by one!" I'm convinced that they are not meant as a parody of fanfiction tropes. They're just bad fanfiction themselves.

What do you have with a subversion of a subversion? Simple: traditional male and female roles. What a revolution.

YESSSSSSSS. THIS NEEDS TO BE SAID. OFTEN.

Re: I have to rant I HAVE FEELINGS

[red-satin-doll.livejournal.com]

Well, unless you're doing a purposely AU thing in which the bad guys are the heroes of their own story I guess

But we already have a trope/tradition for that in western storytelling: the anti-hero. (Which has become a meaningless term at this point anyway.)

I'm not at home right now so I don't have the link to Foz Meadows' brilliant meta on Orphan Black and the female anti-hero (which explores this trope in terms of gender and briefly mentions Buffy and Spike in the context.) brilliant, and should be required reading.

Re: I have to rant I HAVE FEELINGS

[red-satin-doll.livejournal.com]

Why can't we have Buffy as the hero?

Because the template for that - for her - doesn't exist, it isn't ingrained in our consciousness in western culture for thousands of years. We're having to create it afresh, in a manner of speaking.

And I think infinitewhale had a point about Buffy being the character in the horror movies who was meant to die, to be punished - the bitch. That's true of Cordy as well.

But, you know, it's all about searching good authors (And in my f-list there are many)

*nods* I'm really selective about who I read because it's not just entertainment it's a matter of trust and safety for me as a Buffy fan. there are writers who treat both characters with respect - and this is also true of Bangel writers and Buffy/Giles writers - any pairing really. IT CAN BE DONE.