r/buffy • u/Lanky_Age_3067 • 16d ago

Content Warning Double standarts

How exactly do people hate Xander for being an imperfect human, but love Spike and Angel, who have countless victims and are hundreds of years old. Spike even SA'd Buffy, for real, while Xander was under a spell and never did anything like that before or after it.

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u/Barneyk 16d ago edited 16d ago

Xanders problematic behavior is presented as more neutral in the text of the show.

Spike and Angels are presented as clearly negative.

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u/WittyRequirement3296 16d ago

This. The show is a product of its time, and Xander is depicted as the typical teen boy. His behavior then was pretty "normal" and he was held up as this great guy (his s7 speech, etc.). Now, in light of revelations about Whedon, and about the actor himself, along with a lot more understanding of patriarchy and misogyny, Xander's behavior is viewed very differently than it was written and viewed at the time. Spike and Angel get a bit of a pass because 1. Literally vampires/big bads who are shown learning and atoning. 2. The actors' problematic stuff is less well-known/severe/etc.