![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
yourlibrarianyourlibrarianthenewbuzwuzzyourlibrarian![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
sparrow2000.livejournal.competzipellepingo.livejournal.com![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif){kind=small}
angearia.molly_may.stormwreath.deird1.shipperxpetzipellepingo.livejournal.com
petzipellepingo.livejournal.comrahirah dissects Buffy's love life in fictional format.elisi.selenak.the_royal_anna.sylva_rerum, with help from elisi.thenewbuzwuzzyourlibrariansparrow2000.livejournal.comthenewbuzwuzzyourlibrarianthenewbuzwuzzyourlibrarianyourlibrarianyourlibrarianyourlibrarianpetzipellepingo.livejournal.commasqthephlsphr and 1 from superplin over at Coffee Makers, in no particular order :yourlibrarianpetzipellepingo.livejournal.comhannahforlove.deird1.itsnotmymind.molly_may.itsnotmymind.petzipellepingothedeadlyhook.theohara.aycheb.jonesiexxx.stir_of_echoes.selenak.petzipellepingo.livejournal.comjames_translate.molly_may.rahirah.st_salieri.bookishwench.petzipellepingo.livejournal.comthe_royal_anna, in no particular order :feliciacraft.livejournal.comthenewbuzwuzz: Blackout Spuffy poetry made from shooting scripts. Such creativity!dragonyphoenix.livejournal.competzipellepingo.livejournal.competzipellepingo.livejournal.competzipellepingo.livejournal.competzipellepingo.livejournal.competzipellepingo.livejournal.comendenilusciousxander.livejournal.comreremouse: Xander/Larry. What I'd pay to see the conclusion to this one? The Xander voice is perfection. The whole atmosphere is funny and witty and crazy. Xander and Larry in their most boy high school romance glory. endenirbfvid.livejournal.comkwritten. Deep multi-chaptered analysis of several Buffy characters through "Insiders vs. Outsiders" scope. Consists of: 1: The heroic outsider, 2: Dawn and outsider knowledge andpetzipellepingo.livejournal.comrbfvid.livejournal.comgillo. Despite the title, it's “Lies My Parents Told Me” meta, and it's brilliant.red-satin-doll.livejournal.comkwritten This link takes you to "part 4" (really 5 parts including the introduction), which in turn has links to all the previous entries in the series. I don't know if this is the very first meta ever written about Dawn, but it's the first one I've come across; which is astonishing when you consider her importance and impact to BtVS. Winner of Best Meta in round 10 of the No Rest for the Wicked Awards, and deservedly so.shapinglightlostboy_lj, The Monomythology of Buffy. Buffy on Campbell's 'classic' hero's journey, all explained in pretty pictures. Brilliant!endenishapinglightbeer_good_foamy. Meta that I don't think has been recced yet, but even if it has, can't be recced often enough IMO (which also applies to BGF's masterful Buffy, the Vampire Slayer vs Buffy the Vampire Slayer).petzipellepingo.livejournal.comlostboy_lj.deird1.gillo.rpowell.gabrielleabelle.red-satin-doll.livejournal.comangearia If there is anyone in the fandom, including myself, who loves Buffy Anne Summers and expresses that love more tenderly and thoughtfully than Emmie does, I haven't met them yet. (Granted, I've only been in this fandom less than a year, but still...) How often do you come across a meditation, more prose poem than essay, on Buffy's feelings for Spike that begins with a poem from Pablo Neruda? I love you in this way because I don't know any other way of loving.angearia Because I couldn't choose. I call this Emmie's definite statement on Buffy's love for Spike, her declaration in Chosen, and the "evolving state of her heart" over seven+ seasons. So many choice sentences and phrases that sing to my soul: Buffy shows Spike all the ways she loves in Season 7 and it culminates with her verbal declaration in "Chosen", that final barrier to her fully opening her heart again, that damaged, battered organ that's been too afraid to love ever since her father left her, ever since Angel traumatized her in Innocence and the back half of Season 2 and the more in Season 3norwie2010 The journey of one Rupert Giles, how he is tested, challenged and changed by the women of Sunnydale, especially Buffy, Willow and Jenny, and how he tries to navigate the evolution "from tamer" under a patriarchial structure, "to tutor, to guide", the man who in the end steps back to support the narrative of the female heros. And if that sounds dry, never fear; norwie enlivens academic concepts with a witty style as dry as a three-olive martini. local_max A direct response to norwie's meta, going deeper into the themes of power and gender, on the shifting relationships of Giles and all the women on the show, including Faith and Anya, most especially Willow; also touches briefly on the parallels between Xander and Spike in the later seasons.lostboy_ljI couldn't decide between all of his metas in 2012; "Buffyverse Monsters, Part 2" is worth reading just for his meticulous analysis of Buffy's conversation with Holden Webster in CWDP (yes, I just cheated and slipped in a 6th. Shhh...) But this is one of the most interesting and provocative takes on the final scene between Buffy and Spike, hence the title; lush romanticism contrasted with post-modern referentiality and a nod to Star Wars. Worth it just for the utterly gorgeous screencaps of SMG's face during that scene and every shift in her expression. I just wanna bask....red-satin-doll.livejournal.comWhen I posted my first list of "top 5" meta for the year I already knew I would do a second list, because there were too many good meta from the year to limit to just five. What I hadn't known or planned on was how neatly the two lists would fall into groupings. Where the first concerned itself with issues within the Buffyverse itself; this second set combines analysis and history with personal meditations and observations. My response to BtVS was on first watch and continues to be a combination of emotion and intellect I haven't experienced with anything else in pop culture; and essays that reflect this complicated response and bridge the two not only touch a chord in me, they demonstrate why the story of a Slayer and her friends still matters.
"Some Willow [Rosenberg]-y Thoughts, Part 1" by local_max The brief self-assessment at the beginning of this essay, followed by his usual incisive examination of Willow's arc, nearly breaks my heart; in describing himself, it feels as though he is describing me on my behalf because I lack the courage to do so. And as always, his examination of Ms Rosenberg sets me back on my heels to reconsider everything I thought I knew about her.
"Moar Buffy Meta for Mid Season 6" by coracle33 Her (I am assuming gender, with apologies) analysis of Willow and Buffy's shared addiction arc - the misdirect both characters make from from the real sources of their problems onto their addictive habits - and why it works for her is very much against the grain of general fan opinion regarding that storyline. She argues persuasively for it nonetheless, and as another member of fandom who struggles with depression, she reminds me all over again just why S6 strikes struck a deep emotional and intellectual chord in me. She's only written two posts, both about S6, on her LJ, but I hope for more in 2013.
"In Which I Ramble On" by rahirah A sharp, incisive meta about interpersonal fandom dynamics, factional divisions and the toxic results of hanging onto our own "principles" to the exclusion of respecting one another, by one of the most respected voices in this fandom. Can’t we all just get along? The cherry on top: one of my favorite descriptions of Buffy Anne Summers, bar none.
"Being a Buffy Fan on the Internet 1998 - 2012" by shadowkat67 . A personal response and historical timeline of nearly every major development in this fandom from the beginning: the near-simultaneous birth of BtVS and the explosion of fandom on the internet; the sites were fans congregated, celebrated and fought; every major controversy, faction and war. Recommended for cultural historians, long-time fans nostalgic for the "good old days" - or not; and newbies like myself who had no idea what they'd gotten themselves into and are trying to avoid the landmines.
"Untitled (Ruminations on Writing Fanfiction, Personal Expression, and Depression)" by angearia This one hit me hard because I see myself in every word of it. A very personal meditation about writing in fandom, and finding small spaces of release and relief in letting the words flow on the page; the unfair stereotypes of the people who are unemployed and/or work very hard in crushing "menial" jobs just to get by; and how unemployment and depression combine to strangle creativity. Like Buffy, Emmie is full of love - and courage. Simply admitting that one is un- or underemployed (i.e. poor), or depressed, is terrifying in a world interprets both states as personal failures and moral sins. (ETA: I didn't realize when I posted that this meta is friendslocked. Post is now unlocked.)
red_satin_dolllostboy_lj may be my "if you only read one meta from 2012" choice. Why Buffy and Spike's relationship in S6 is not directly analogous to abusive relationships in RL, using "Smashed" as it's focal point.beer_good_foamy. Most post-modernist thinky-thoughts; how the show's title represents the central problem of the narrative for it's titular protagonist, and how Buffy resolves her dilemma in "Chosen".local_max . What I hope to be the first of several Willow-centric essays from someone who has plumbed the depths of Willow's character more thoroughly and compassionately than any fan I know of.itsnotmymind . Draws parallels between Warren, Faith and Spike, how they mirror, intertwine and intersect thematically and within the story itself, and what they represent re: Buffy's psychology. Wonderfully complex.mcjulie . One of the few essays I've seen in these parts about one of the Buffyverse's most memorable characters. (While I'm here, I'll note that mcjulie has also taken on the awesome task of continuing the "Episode Polls" and discussion where gabrielleabelle left off, starting with S5's "Tough Love". Especially recommended is her poll and meta commentary on "The Gift".)red-satin-doll.livejournal.comlostboy_lj may be my "if you only read one meta from 2012" choice. Why Buffy and Spike's relationship in S6 is not directly analogous to abusive relationships in RL, using "Smashed" as it's focal point.beer_good_foamy. Most post-modernist thinky-thoughts; how the show's title represents the central problem of the narrative for it's titular protagonist, and how Buffy resolves her dilemma in "Chosen".local_max. What I hope to be the first of several Willow-centric essays from someone who has plumbed the depths of Willow's character more thoroughly and compassionately than any fan I know of.itsnotmymind. Draws parallels between Warren, Faith and Spike, how they mirror, intertwine and intersect thematically and within the story itself, and what they represent re: Buffy's psychology. Wonderfully complex.mcjulie. One of the few essays I've seen in these parts about one of the Buffyverse's most memorable characters. (While I'm here, I'll note that mcjulie has also taken on the awesome task of continuing the "Episode Polls" and discussion where gabrielleabelle left off, starting with S5's "Tough Love". Especially recommended is her poll and meta commentary on "The Gift".)
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}