"Faith, you don't get it. You killed a man."
"No, you don't get it. I don't care."
Though she's never a full-time cast member, Faith has, I think, the best character arc of the series. Initially rebellious, she turns truly dangerous after being let down - yet again - by an authority figure. Her journey from where she is now (refusing to accept the consequences of her actions), through her later appearances on both BUFFY and ANGEL, to where she ends up in "Chosen" (having fully accepted and understood her role as a "hot chick with superpowers") is truly compelling. And I think it's fair to say that, given the anti-hero trend on many notable TV series in the decade since BUFFY went off the air, Faith seems like a more current character. If BUFFY debuted today, you can be sure the network would want Joss and the writers to have Buffy be more like Faith. That might be an interesting series, but I prefer Faith as a foil to Buffy, as the cautionary tale of someone with Buffy's great power without Buffy's great responsibility.
It's not that I prefer Faith to Buffy (Buffy herself is, I think, the great hero of modern popular culture), it's just that Faith struggles with her darkness more than Buffy does with hers. Thinking about the differences between Buffy and Faith reminds me of the importance of Willow, Xander, and (especially) Giles in Buffy's growth.
And I'll state yet again: I know that Joss didn't have the seven full seasons of BUFFY planned out, and that there's still plenty of room for spontaneity and unexpected character developments as the characters (and writers and actors) evolve. But looking back at it now, it's a remarkably consistent universe he and Marti and the the rest of the writers ended up creating.
"Bad Girls" and "Consequences" kick off the final arc of season 3: on one level it's about Mayor Wilkins' evil plan, but on another level it's a battle for Faith's soul. In "Bad Girls", Faith accidentally kills Deputy Mayor Allan Finch, and it's a genuinely upsetting moment as we (and Buffy and Faith) watch the life drain from his eyes. Finch isn't exactly innocent, but he is still human, and that's a distinction I love the show for making. Giles also acknowledges the murky waters: "The Slayer is on the front line of a nightly war. Now, it's tragic, but accidents have happened." (And I think back to his line to Quentin in "Helpless": "You're waging a war. She's fighting it. There is a difference.")
By the end of "Consequences", Faith has killed Mr. Trick, has been captured by the new Watcher Wesley Wyndam-Price (speaking of characters with interesting arcs), almost came clean to Angel, and appears to ally herself with Mayor Wilkins. Faith might finally get what she needs - an authority figure she can depend on. Too bad he's a bad guy.
Oh yeah, and this week also brought "The Zeppo", the infamous Xander-centric episode where the rest of the Scoobies stop an apocalypse without him. I'm not a fan. Though he does manage to stop the school from blowing up, having the episode point out how useless Xander is just points out how useless Xander is. Buffy is the Slayer, and Willow is in the process of becoming a powerful witch, but Xander mostly just provides comic banter. (To borrow a phrase, he brings piss to a shit fight.)
Xander ends up sleeping with Faith in "The Zeppo", which leads to one of the series' most heartbreaking moments: Willow crying in the bathroom in "Consequences". We've had a handful of underwhelming Xander episodes: "The Pack", "Go Fish", and now "The Zeppo". Only "Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered" really worked - so at least we know that Xander can actually carry an episode.
"The Zeppo": C
"Bad Girls": A
"Consequences": A
No comments:
Post a Comment