That’s not to say that Willow’s relationships aren’t important. Rather, just the opposite. They are important. They’re more important than Buffy’s flimsy love life, if you ask me. So why make war over such youthful love? Why become involved in these nasty battles? Why not view the world more clearly? More openly? More acceptance-mindedly (yep, we’re just fishing for words now, aren’t we)?

Well, why don’t we attempt to find out? Let’s get started. To begin, I will ask a question. Why does so much attention get placed upon Willow’s love life? Well, I don’t know the answer specifically, but I do think that it may have something to do with the diversity by which the character chooses her sexual partners. For instance, when the scale goes from retro vampire to lesbian slayer, there’s a great deal of room for controversy and argument. In fact, Willow has been at the center of thousands of fighting words since the day she was first inducted into the show. Some found her presence to be pointless and completely overdone on an “I’m afraid of everything” scale, while others fell madly in love with her from the start...seeing a character they could relate with...or at least told themselves they could relate with.

But, in the end, Willow ended up with Kennedy. After seven years of being swayed one way to the other, Miss Powerful Wicca 2002 came out with a slayer in hand and a goddess reputation to last a lifetime. But what about those past faces she so boldy came to love and eventually let go? What about them?

Join me tonight (or today or this morning, whatever the timeframe may be when you choose to read this article) as I voyage boldly to go where no journalist has dared voyage before. We will unlock the many faces by which Willow has come to pass in her travels as a romantic love bird...and we shall bring new meaning to the saying, “a diamond is forever.” Okay, actually that part about the diamond isn’t true. Well, the quote may be true, but I’m not going to spend anytime analyzing it. I’m pressed for space as it is.

So, let’s dive in. We’ll begin with Mr Retro Vamp 96. Sure, he was only out to feast upon Miss Rosenberg during his initial conception, but you can’t deny that there was most definately some form of physical chemistry going on there between these two as well. After all, before this little encounter Willow was helpless to the tides of eternal let down and rejection. Not that she had ever been actually rejected at this point (that we know of), but fear of rejection could be just as nerve-wracking. (Actually, it’s really not.)

So retro boy gives her a fun, fun time. They go off and hit the cemetery, eventually things fall apart, and Willow finds herself moving on...eyeing the Zeppo himself. Though, before making this fact known, we did have the encounter with the internet demon. Willow and an internet boyfriend came out at the height of the internet’s induction into regular everyday working-class citizen households. And therefore, as far as I’m concerned, should be appraised (or blamed, respectively) for the growing number of dating personals popping up all over the world wide web even today. That’s right. You have Willow to thank for all of that. And now hundreds of working people who don’t have time to hit the pick-up bars can find true romance through the click of a mouse at 2:00 AM in the morning. It’s happening everywhere. Joss bless America...or everywhere, rather. The internet isn’t discriminatory by national creed. And neither are we here at the Weekly Ascension office.

So, the first two boy-toys for Will didn’t go exactly as she might have liked things to run. In fact, it turned out they wanted to kill her rather than make-out with her. Big deal. There was always that doomed-to-fail relationship with Xander to work on. Which, you know, she did...after finding a steady boyfriend by way of Daniel “Oz” Osbourne.

Oz was truly an amazing character, and quite possibly Willow’s best pairing. Arguably making the best couple ever to grace this television show, Seth Green and Alyson Hannigan had chemistry that not only worked, but outdid the competition. So much so, I’d say Oz’s contribution to the show put Willow’s shipping battles on the high road to immortal bickering between fans.

But why did Oz work so well? Not a hard question when you really think about it. He was compatible, made up for traits Willow lacked, completed a part of her character that seemed to fulfill rather than burden, and actually should be attributed to helping her grow out of her shell more than any other romance she’s had to date. He’s the guy who turned out to be the most dependable out of every boyfriend character in the entire show. He’s the one who you would probably least expect to do something to ruin a relationship. He’s also the guy who loved Willow so much he couldn’t stand the thought of sticking around and possibly bringing harm to her. Went all over the world to learn how to control the inner wolf, and eventually did. If that’s not love, then what the hell is?

Perhaps this is partially why the transition from Oz to Tara didn’t exactly move as smoothly as it possibly might have otherwise. The episode “New Moon Rising” was a pivetal moment for Willow, and because of the last five minutes of the program this author lists it as one of the most powerful and high-climaxed episodes to date. A great deal of the episode wasn’t much to brag about, but the ending gave it something that I personally will never forget. It was the beginning of the new Willow. And by “new Willow” I’m not referring to “lesbian Willow” but rather “assertive Willow.” She became a character who started making her own decisions, looking out for herself and becoming more independent-minded. It was a huge step for the character.

Basically, when it comes to Oz, there are two things I will remember most. The first was his ability to forgive Willow after seeing her and Xander taking part in an affair. The second thing I will remember is his emotional farewell...especially for a guy who expressed so little on the external side. Both instances showed a love for Willow that I have yet to see in any other character to come on the program. And now that the show is over, of course, it seems “never” is truly “never.” But hey, there’s always the likelihood of guest spots on Angel. We’ll just have to wait and see.

We moved on from Oz and went forward to Tara. During Season Four, Willow began embracing her bisexuality and began feeling more comfortable with herself...enough so to express her inner feelings toward the woman of her dreams...Tara. And yes, I said bisexuality. Sorry, but after watching “New Moon Rising” it’s hard to believe Willow is completely one way or the other regarding sexual orientation. Also, small hints of this are given in the episode “Doppelgangland” (surprisingly the episode that also gave the first hints of her being a lesbian) ... smaller hints in the episode “Him” were also given as well. Argue away, but you’ll never convince me after watching those.

Tara had an important role in Willow’s life and also had an important role in Willow’s continuing development as a main cast character. She helped Will become more comfortable with herself, helped complete yet another void in her life that beforehand had gone missing. And though in the beginning Tara seemed to be going nowhere as far as plot development or character development were concerned, Season Five gave to us a chance to see Tara come into the story full-fledged as a series regular.

Tara and Willow’s relationship became a lovely picture, the scene in “Shadow” where the two are laying up on the rooftop stands out in my mind as one of the most memorable...though I don’t necessarily know why. And it became deadly obvious of the void Tara completed in Willow during the pains her character went through during Season Six. I’m honestly not completely sure or aware whether or not Willow and Tara ever did truly come to ammends in the end regarding one another and tehir relationship, even though it seems on the surface they did. Whether Tara ever actually fully forgave Will for what had transpired seems a little undeveloped...and it became immortalized as undeveloped as soon as Tara was shot through the chest.

Willow’s pain transpired into her most lowest of lows yet. Her short days of evil became the era by which she would be judged for the rest of her days. The acts she committed during that time frame will never be forgotten, especially by her. Her character will deal with the ramifications of such for the rest of her life. A sad but true fact to be inducted into the life of everyone’s favorite mousy high-schooler.

When Willow did eventually see the light of good again, Kennedy was soon to show up and add yet another, even newer, flavor to the picture that is Rosenberg’s life. Not a lot of people out there saw her purpose or her point for being in the story, but if they looked harder they might have seen a purpose beyond simply giving Willow another romantic interest. I’ve said once before that Kennedy and Willow during Season Seven had far better chemistry than Willow and Tara in Season Four. I still stand by that statement, especially after seeing the way the series ended. But what was Kennedy’s point in being there in the first place? What did she give to the show (or more importantly, Willow) that was seemingly needing development before her induction?

The one thing that stands out in my mind about Kennedy is how she helped Willow in the coping process. And she did. Though appearing “fast” or “naive” to many fans, Kennedy was a central point in Willow’s life...someone who loved her, cared about her, and kept her “grounded.” An interesting combination of mix between Oz and Tara traits. It seems obvious to me why things developed between them so quickly. Though many others are still scratching their heads in confusion.

I think Willow’s usage of love has adapted since the days of being picked up by a retro vamp at the Bronze. No longer is love simply a thing to do to fit it. It’s not something you trash or throw away or fall right into with no sense of direction. And even though love is both all and none of those things, love for Willow has become a point of simply being loved and sending love. Finally she has hit that climax. With Kennedy, Willow did become grounded. With Oz, Willow did become self-driven. And with Tara, Willow did become more individualized. She did mature into a completely new person with help from all three of these characters. And looking at how she has adapted since her days of being a sophomore in high-shool, it is truly a fascinating tale that is Willow Rosenberg’s life. So why fight over who was better when? How can anyone deny any of the countless contributions any of these characters have made?

All of these romances had their purpose, and they also had their contributions to make. Today, Willow would not be the woman she is had she not had each and every one of them in her life. And in our modern world, Willow has come to terms with herself...has received a newfound purpose and a newfound drive...and has become a character who I can truly say I have grown to love and respect.

Here’s cheers to you, Mrs Rosenberg.
Whedon loves you more than you will know.