Yeah I have no idea what Joss was ever talking about there because Xander seems like the furthest thing from a role model to me, but more the writers portraying a very typical teenage boy. Which is fine in itself, but don't then try and tell me that he's extra special and a role model
And yeah I think that Xander totally identified with Riley and seized on that relationship as Buffy finally dating the right guy who 'comes along once in a lifetime', 'is holding nothing back' etc, when really how would Xander know anything about their relationship? The only reason he even knew about Riley's doubts about Buffy's feelings were because the guy flat out told him, and even then he was clearly surprised and taken-aback at hearing that, so where did he get off acting like the great insightful know it all in ITW!
I also thought it was telling that he reacted quite strongly to Buffy saying that she saw Riley as dependable, and he's all 'what is he State Farm'. I think that Xander saw himself as that dependable guy that Buffy should have chosen, and he never got over her dating Angel for as long as she did.
It's funny because out of context I could kind of like the friendship moment between Xander and Buffy in IWMTLY when Buffy is beating herself up about being self-involved with guys and Xander very sweetly says that 'What! I don't think you're like that', but then it's like isn't that exactly what you did tell her in your speech in ITW about how she should run after Riley and make it up to him, without having any idea of the circumstances behind why Buffy was so mad with Riley??? So that IWMTLY scene of Xander acting just shocked at Buffy blaming herself for messing up with guys never made any sense to me at all when clearly Buffy was feeling so bad about how things ended with Riley partly because her friend did make it seem like it was all her fault. Even in Triangle he's lying in bed with Anya and talking about what a disaster all of Buffy's relationships are, and how sooner or later you have to wonder who is really at fault. And that's when 19 year old Buffy had had a whole two relationships of hers not work out...
ETA And I agree that we can't say for sure how Xander would have reacted to Cordelia throwing himself at him under the spell, possibly he would have rationalised responding to her advances, but mostly the episode gave me the feeling that all he was focused on was revenge and shaming Cordelia
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
rosecarmine
(no subject)
Date: 2013-07-29 09:32 pm (UTC)And yeah I think that Xander totally identified with Riley and seized on that relationship as Buffy finally dating the right guy who 'comes along once in a lifetime', 'is holding nothing back' etc, when really how would Xander know anything about their relationship? The only reason he even knew about Riley's doubts about Buffy's feelings were because the guy flat out told him, and even then he was clearly surprised and taken-aback at hearing that, so where did he get off acting like the great insightful know it all in ITW!
I also thought it was telling that he reacted quite strongly to Buffy saying that she saw Riley as dependable, and he's all 'what is he State Farm'. I think that Xander saw himself as that dependable guy that Buffy should have chosen, and he never got over her dating Angel for as long as she did.
It's funny because out of context I could kind of like the friendship moment between Xander and Buffy in IWMTLY when Buffy is beating herself up about being self-involved with guys and Xander very sweetly says that 'What! I don't think you're like that', but then it's like isn't that exactly what you did tell her in your speech in ITW about how she should run after Riley and make it up to him, without having any idea of the circumstances behind why Buffy was so mad with Riley??? So that IWMTLY scene of Xander acting just shocked at Buffy blaming herself for messing up with guys never made any sense to me at all when clearly Buffy was feeling so bad about how things ended with Riley partly because her friend did make it seem like it was all her fault. Even in Triangle he's lying in bed with Anya and talking about what a disaster all of Buffy's relationships are, and how sooner or later you have to wonder who is really at fault. And that's when 19 year old Buffy had had a whole two relationships of hers not work out...
ETA And I agree that we can't say for sure how Xander would have reacted to Cordelia throwing himself at him under the spell, possibly he would have rationalised responding to her advances, but mostly the episode gave me the feeling that all he was focused on was revenge and shaming Cordelia