Dori:
Buffy is an integral part of Spike's redemption, I'm convinced.
I don't think he realizes this yet, though. And he's going to
be mightily pissed off when he does; he's not really happy with
all these changes. Which, you know, is one of the things I love
about the storyline. Spike is changing in spite of himself. Love
is carving him out from the inside into a new shape, and he's
never going to be able to go back to his old shape and have it
be comfortable
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Jerry:
The ironic thing about their relationship as it now stands
is that what makes Spike the Bad Boyfriend is not the 'fact' that
he's a soulless, evil thing. It's that that is the only role Buffy
will let him play. I thought the exchange where Buffy asks him
if he thought they were going to sit around reading the paper
was particularly telling - Spike hoped that they could suddenly
be like a regular couple, and that's the last thing Buffy is ready
for
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LA Ward:
Buffy's confusion and emotional upset are coloring her
perceptions. She lashes out at Spike. Spike gets hurt and lashes
out. What's not working in the relationship is the fear. If Buffy
can get passed her fear then (hopefully) a better pattern could
form. Buffy is scared right now. She has to learn to accept herself
before she accepts Spike. And I think for Spike to truly evolve
much further than he has, he's going to at least need some positive
reinforcement and a little acceptance. He's done a darn good job
making it this far essentially on his own, but he needs some sense
of belonging and connection to others to evolve much further.
He needs acceptance. He needs something to lose. As long as he
basically has nothing and isn't acknowledged, it's hard to find
motivation to change or to maintain the changes he has enacted
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Rowan:
I suspect what the writers will eventually reveal is that
the Slayers and vampires *do* share lineage. They evolved from
the same cosmic stuff.
One day, some of the cosmic stuff went out of balance when it
decided to consciously chose to emphasize dark over light...hence,
what some refer to as evil. This stuff became demonic. In order
to maintain the overall cosmic stability, Slayers arose as warriors
of light to fight the demons. The fight is eternal as long as
the conditions that created the original imbalance exist. Until
the demons can be incorporate back into their proper cosmic spot,
the battle rages. It's like a stopgap that keeps the current state
going, since the original state is no longer possible.
So the Buffy and Spike relationship on some metaphysical level
represents an attempt to balance those opposing forces. Their
first relationship as mortal enemies replicated the cosmic battle.
However, the transition to lovers poses some very interesting
questions. Spike's effect on Buffy appears to be to help her become
more accepting of her darker nature and to use that as a strength,
not a weakness. Buffy called herself 'kind of righteous' in her
old incarnation. If she is to continue to exist, she perhaps needs
to learn how to bend or she will inevitably break. She needs graying
up.
Spike, on the other hand, is becoming more comfortable with
the light. Buffy's effect on Spike is to influence him away from
patterns of alienation and into patterns of community. Spike tends
to bend a little too much. He needs some guidelines, standards,
and principles.
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Leslie:
I feel very optimistic about the role Spike and Buffy can
play in helping move each other along the path to becoming more
whole - integration and evolution - which I believe naturally
supports redemption. Whatever garbage we see deposited by one
or the other of them along the way, the clear and sparkling inner
reality always seems to poke its head through. They make sense
together, as equals eventually, and I'm more engaged in their
story now than ever
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Christy:
I am obviously for redemption, but as we have said redemption
varies for different people. I don't want to see Spike become
human or get a soul. I want him to struggle everyday with the
decision of whether to be good or bad that day. I want him to
stay very much in the gray. I am looking for a Spike like the
one in 100 Years of Solitude. He was still very much
a jerk, because face it, Spike is a jerk (and we love him for
it), but he was fighting the good fight. He didn't mind using
methods others may find distasteful, because the ultimate outcome
was good. I like reading about hugs and puppies Spike every once
and a while, but I don't really buy it. He has to maintain his
edge, or he won't be Spike anymore.
I also feel his relationship with Buffy will be the motivator
he needs to change. No one can change all alone with no support.
I know some people argue that he will not be reformed until he
is doing good because it is the right thing to do, instead of
what Buffy would want him to do. I however disagree. How many
of us actually do good because it is the right thing to do? I
know I don't very often. Usually, I am doing good because I am
afraid of what will happen if I get caught doing bad, or someone
I love wants me to do it, or it will get me more money, or more
friends. Rarely is it because it is the right thing to do. So
doing good for love, to me, is perfectly acceptable
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TMZ:
If ME does go down this path, I see Spike as a major part
of Buffys life in her regaining her humanity. After all,
he reeks of it. Spike is no longer beneath her because they are
essentially the same. He understands her. He's been where she's
been - from clawing out of her coffin to her lack of emotions
("I died so many years ago" -OMWF), and I believe he's
going to be the one guiding her, the one to show her both the
light and dark intertwined in her, that her the measure of a person
is determined by his actions, and not nature.
In the words of William Ernest Henley--
"I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul."
Ironic how the bad boy, the one that everybody says is wrong,
could essentially be the right one for the Slayer
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Lisa:
And we must remember, above all else, that Spike is a vampire
- without a soul. He will say and do things that aren't appropriate
for us human folk, but never doubt that there's a reason for his
nastiness. It could be reverse psychology or even he's just pissed,
but there's always a reason. He loves Buffy, and right now she's
the one that's abusing him. And maybe he's just reacting to the
situation. It's not in him not to do anything. Right now, their
relationship isn't pretty, but why should it be? Buffy is not
in a good place right now, and she's the one that sets the tone
of their relationship. And she's the one that has the power. She's
physically stronger and ultimately knows that Spike knows that
as well. That, along with his aired feelings for her, leaves her
in the position to be the dominant one
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NY!Michelle:
Every time Evil!Spike makes an appearance in my mind, there
is another image that pops in and erases all the badness.... and
that image is in the Vampire's lair/warehouse scene in Crush when
Buffy is about to storm out and Spike runs ahead of her to open
the door for her. "What is this?" she asked. "Oh,
I wasn't thinking," he said. THAT is the Spike I think of.
Without even thinking, his instinct is to be a gentleman. To me,
that is the essence of Spike at his core, without all his "issues",
damage and window dressing. So, no matter how the writers try
to pull me down the path of mistrust and doubt, Spike opens the
door for me every time.
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