3 theories about Buffy's resurrection.

[elisi]

Finally getting round to posting this. I've been tweaking for days now, so it feels good to 'get it out there'. Having said that, it doesn't really follow the most logical of paths, since I got an idea half-way through and I thought it'd be fun to keep my stream-of-conciousness as it first unfolded. So please forgive the jumps - I think I've sorted it out by numbering the different theories though. :)

So - did Buffy come back wrong? And why? And why did her resurrection make The First Evil rise? Follow me...

3 theories about Buffy’s resurrection.

First of all, the show never bothered to explain why or how the spell the Scoobies used to resurrect Buffy created an opportunity for The First Evil to rise. All we have is this snippet from ‘Showtime’ (7.11):

BELJOXA’S EYE: “The mystical forces surrounding the Chosen line have been irrevocably altered. Become... unstable. Vulnerable.”

That isn’t a lot to go on. Now the first time Buffy died, she was brought back to life by Xander. But it was a natural way of revival, and Buffy quite simply carried on. Later we found out that her death had triggered the next Slayer, Kendra, to be called. When Kendra was killed, Faith was called. So the line went on as it had before, and - to put it bluntly - now Faith was The Slayer. Essentially ‘destiny’ was done with Buffy after The Master killed her. Any prophecies that there might be would now be Faith’s to fulfil. So now, Buffy is just a Slayer - f.ex. when she dies the second time no new Slayer is called. (I know that is never proven as such, but from the knowledge we are given, I’d say it’s a fact.)

Theory #1

Now when The Scoobies bring Buffy back to life in ‘Bargaining’ they somehow ‘irrevocably change’ the mystical forces around the Slayer line. Here’s the spell (well the bit that Willow says out loud):

“Osiris, keeper of the gate, master of all fate, hear us.
Before time, and after. Before knowing and nothing.
Accept our offering. Know our prayer.
Osiris! Here lies the warrior of the people. Let her cross over.
Osiris, let her cross over! Aah...
[snake]
Osiris, release her!”

Note the phrase ‘warrior of the people’. Now... what if that meant that resurrected Buffy was The Slayer again - that somehow they split the Slayer line, so now it runs through both of the living Slayers. That would be an instability, and a big one.

I’ll come back to that.

First I want to explain where I got the idea - because this isn’t just me making it up (well of course it is - duh! - but I think I have a good foundation!). You see I came across an unused line in the original ‘Chosen’ script. There is a bit of Buffy’s big ‘Are you ready to be strong?’ speech that (for whatever reason) was cut out. Buffy says:

“It's true none of you has the power Faith and I have. I think both of us would have to die for a new Slayer to be called, and we can't even be sure that girl is in this room.”

Both of them! The Slayer line split in two! Joss says so!

So - how did the Scoobies do that? They obviously wanted to make sure they got Buffy the Slayer back, and not just Buffy the Girl. I think this is why they used the line ‘Warrior of the people’ - to make sure they got the Slayer back. But considering the forces they were messing with, it’s not surprising that they got back The Slayer rather than A Slayer. It’s a very fine distinction - and one they probably weren’t even aware of. They just knew they needed her to be full of Slayer-y goodness. But messing with the Slayer power is dangerous ('Restless' anyone?), and also that Spike's chip no longer registered Buffy as human...

So what exactly was that 'molecular sunburn'? We know that a Slayer is a girl infused with 'the essence of the demon’ - in short very near to a vampire - except of course that a Slayer is still alive...

Oh! Big Thought! What if...

Theory #2

Now we know that a vampire is a demon occupying a dead husk. It retains the dead person’s memories and personality (usually anyway), but not that person’s soul - it is replaced with the 'demon soul' (for lack of a better word). It can operate the body it inhabits (move and speak f.ex.) and to some extent be influenced by it (f.ex get drunk or high).

So what if... what if the spell that brought Buffy back was similar to a vampiric rising? Only much bigger and more complex (there was blood magic and sacrifice and an urn of Osiris and tests...)? Because it was a very big and ambitious spell: They restored her body back to a functioning level, pulled her soul out of heaven and... maybe... tapped the Slayer power, the essence of the demon, to 'fuel' her - to run the whole thing. So, like Dawn is fully human, but still created out of The Key and her blood can open portals (at the auspicious time), so Buffy (post-resurrection) is fully human, but created out of the Slayer demon essence. And that would throw Spike's chip.

Am I making sense?

Theory #3

Actually what’s just occurred to me is that there might be another explanation. Spike only encountered Buffy after she had died the first time - when she was just ‘a Slayer’. He never met Faith (properly) until after the chip had come out. What if the chip didn’t register The Slayer as human, what with being the direct recipient of the Slayer power? Or something. What would have happened if he’d met and tried to hit Faith in ‘This Year’s Girl’ (pre-body swap)? Would the chip have gone off or not? Maybe... maybe Buffy didn’t come back wrong - maybe she came back right? ETA: This one is obviously a bit confusing - let me try to clarify my jumbled thoughts a little more: When Spike got the chip implanted it was after Buffy died the first time, and hence she was only 'a Slayer' and thus more human (or something), and gave Spike headaches. After her second resurrection she was The Slayer' (again) and therefore registered as 'not-human' to Spike's chip. In any case: many thoughts, few answers.

Theory #1 (cont.)

Anyway, the split in the Slayer line would foreshadow the Chosen spell - or mirror it. If in 'Bargaining' the Slayer line was split in 2 - using the Slayer power to bring Buffy back to life - then in Chosen it was split out into hundreds (or thousands) of potentials. Altering the Slayer lines in a much more fundamental way - changing the rules of the game, rather than moving a piece in the wrong way.

So what about The First? To begin with, this would certainly explain why The First made an attempt at Faith's life - apparently just for the hell of it. If Faith’s death alone could not trigger a new Slayer, then The First had nothing to lose by killing her. Esp since it would have known that she would fight on the side of good if given the chance.

But back to our conundrum that’s never explained. From ‘Showtime’:

BELJOXA'S EYE: The First Evil did not cause the disruption, only seized upon it to extinguish the lives of the chosen forever.
GILES: Then what has caused the disruption? What—what is responsible for letting this happen?
BELJOXA'S EYE: The slayer.
[...]
ANYA: Yeah, I just—I don't understand how Buffy's death mucked up the whole slayer mojo. You know, it's not like she hasn't died before.
GILES: It's not because she died. The Beljoxa's Eye was quite clear about that in its enigmatic way. It's because she lives. Again. Buffy's not responsible for that.

So far so clear. Her resurrection was responsible. And if her resurrection did indeed split the Slayer line in half, then that would have implications for the future - if nothing else than for the number of prophecies concerned with ‘The Slayer’.

We know from AtS ‘Destiny’ that if there are two candidates for a prophecy, then the fabric of reality can begin to unravel, creating a big, gaping tear in the balance of the universe. My guess is that there being Two Slayers would be no different. Well there were no telephones going bananas and no one started bleeding from their eyes, but imbalances can manifest themselves in millions of different ways I should imagine. And Beljoxa’s Eyes says that it’s a Slayer-shaped disruption - the Slayer line is unstable and The First can now extinguish The Chosen forever. How exactly that works is uncertain - but it would seem obvious that The First stepped in through that breach in the universe and made a space for itself, building an army, getting ready to unleash hell - the Slayer might be just one girl, but the magic surrounding her creation was obviously very powerful. With that magic gone awry it’s obvious that something nasty would jump at the opportunity.


I think that’s all. I started going off on a tangent about the Scythe and stuff, but that’s really another topic. With this post I’m basically putting forth three theories - I think #1 is probably correct, #2 and 3 are just wild speculation. To summarise:

1) The resurrection spell split the Slayer line in two, and it was this instability which allowed The First to rise.

2) The Scoobies somehow used the Slayer power to reassemble Buffy, and this was ‘the molecular sunburn’.

3) Making Buffy The Slayer again was what confused Spike’s chip.


So there you go - three theories for the price of none! What do you think?

Comments

[petzipellepingo.livejournal.com]

Hmmm... I really like Theory#1 a lot, the other two I'm going to have to think about. I'll get back to you. Goes off to puzzle it out in my own head.

[elisi]

I'm very proud of #1. The other two really are just wild speculation. :)

[timeofchange.livejournal.com]

Theory #1 makes a lot of sense.

[elisi]

Thank you - I love it when my thoughts make sense. (Even if they're just borrowed from Joss...)

[jamalov29.livejournal.com]

I like theory -1 and I agree with some elements in theory -2 , especially when you write : Buffy (post-resurrection) is fully human, but created out of the Slayer demon essence. And that would throw Spike's chip.
I think it's a good explanation of why Spike's chip didn't work anymore .

[elisi]

I think Theory 1 is good. As for #2... I'm still trying to work out exactly how that would work.

[sp23.livejournal.com]

Theory #1 has possibilities. I just wish Joss would have been a little more explicit in canon about what, exactly, the resurrection spell did to give The First Evil the opportunity to build his army and attempt to retake Earth for demonkind. If Joss actually wanted to imply that when Buffy returned from being really, most sincerely dead she once again had the power to call a new Slayer upon her death, I wished he'd said it up front.

However, that certainly *could* be the answer. With both Buffy and Faith able to call Slayers upon their deaths, there would permanently be two active Slayers in the world at all times. And that may be enough of an imbalance in the mystical teeter-totter that governs this dimension to give The First Evil a toe-hold for his invasion plans.

I'll be honest and say I never liked the idea of Buffy and Faith sharing out their power to the Potentials. I understood that desperate times call for desperate measures, and they were to be Mankind's last bastion against the ravening hoards of Turok-Han, but I always thought that it had to have big consequences. I explored my beliefs of what those consequences could be in my story The Last Champion.

Anyway, the fact that ME never actually explained just exactly *what* Buffy's resurrection had to do with The First Evil's Big-Plan-'O-Doom is another reason why I think S7 missed its mark of being a great season.

[elisi]

I just wish Joss would have been a little more explicit in canon about what, exactly, the resurrection spell did to give The First Evil the opportunity...
Don't we all... *g* But then that is Joss all over - he's hopeless at stuff like that - and he knows it:

"I don't know from science, I don't know -I never took any science; I don't know how things work, I can barely tie my shoes - but I understand emotions. So if we can get past that by going, 'well these things happen when you're on a Hellmouth' , um, then we can get to what's important."
Joss Whedon, 'BtVS - Television with a Bite'

With both Buffy and Faith able to call Slayers upon their deaths
Ah, but that's not what I'm saying - I'm saying they would BOTH have to die before another Slayer was called. Or maybe another Slayer wouldn't be called because the line was divided? Hmmm, possibilities.

I'll be honest and say I never liked the idea of Buffy and Faith sharing out their power to the Potentials.
Now if you're coming from a strict story POV I can see why, but looking at the show metaphorically it strikes me as the only possible ending. (stoney321 has written a very interesting post that sums up most of my thoughts: Buffy season 7 - REAL female empowerment.)

More explanations would have been good - but considering that the characters never really worked it out, then maybe ME just restricted itself too much? *shrug* I'm not too bothered, really, since I never watched Buffy for the logic - to me, the emotions are more important too! :)

[allthatjazmyne.livejournal.com]

I think Theory #1 is really interesting, and makes a lot of sense.

But I love Theory #3. That's a train I can jump right on board, and I honestly think that theory #2 goes right along with it. "The Demon Essence" that powers The Slayer would certainly make her slightly more than human, and would account for the extra strength, the ability to recognize demons by something other than just their out-of-date fashion, the ability to just hop right on over the school gate, etc. Perhaps when Buffy drowned, the Essence left her and went to Faith, but left behind some strengths and abilities that Buffy was able to use along with her training for the next four years. Then when they brought her back, they returned the Essence to her, which split it, and backs up Theory 1.

So, Spike and his chip? He met many Slayers in his time, but he never met The Slayer while he had the chip in. If there was a palpable difference, he never would have had any reason to pay attention to it, until resurrected Buffy, who had at least half of the Essence.

And maybe dividing the Essence of the Slayer didn't weaken it, but instead made it stronger. A stronger Demon entity might have given The First a stronger connection to this world, do to its connection to the First Slayer.

Now I'm just voicing random thoughts as they come, and maybe I should mull over them a bit.

[elisi]

Squee! I made people think! I love making people think. :)

Especially love this:

And maybe dividing the Essence of the Slayer didn't weaken it, but instead made it stronger. A stronger Demon entity might have given The First a stronger connection to this world, do to its connection to the First Slayer.

That is *fascinating* and - oh! It ties in with this post by spacedoutlooney I think. Maybe... I'll have to think about it! *g*

[azdak.livejournal.com]

Great theory! The quote fom Chosen is especially intriguing - but if Buffy and Faith both had to die for the next Slayer to be called, wouldn't that mean that one the power had been shared amongst the Potentials, all of them would have to die for the next Slayer to be called? Rather a bugger for future generations...

I also really like the idea that Spike being able to hit Buffy was an anomaly all along, because The Slayer doesn't count as entirely human (although I have to say that I think logically we ought to have seen a decrease in the amount of Slayer power available to Buffy when she was just A Slayer and the chip was triggereable by her - and the First Slayer seems to accept her as The Slayer in Intervention etc etc)

[speakr2customrs.livejournal.com]

Great theory! The quote fom Chosen is especially intriguing - but if Buffy and Faith both had to die for the next Slayer to be called, wouldn't that mean that one the power had been shared amongst the Potentials, all of them would have to die for the next Slayer to be called? Rather a bugger for future generations...

That fits with the Fray comic in which there have been no Slayers for centuries - in fact my hypothesis is that Willow has mortgaged the future by Calling all the Potentials, and there will be no more Slayers for a number of generations equal to the number of Called potentials.

[calturner.livejournal.com]

Theory #1 sounds good to me. Wonderful post! :)

[elisi]

Yay! Thank you! I'm very pleased with #1. :)

[http://users.livejournal.com/_a_s_h_l_e_e_/]

I'm here courtesy of [Bad username or site: @ livejournal.com] - Very interesting theories! You obviously put a lot of thought into this (I particularly like theory #1). Although I'm not sure if I read theory #3 right. I remember him hitting Buffy in Something Blue (he hits her and yells "Ow" and she hits him and he yells it again). And also the almost biting that hurt him in Out of my Mind, but I probably just read the theory wrong - I just woke up, I'm a little groggy :-)

It would've been nice if Joss had decided to elaborate on what was going through his mind with the whole thing, but speculation is always fun too. I just wish he hadn't give us so many things to speculate on Lol!

[spikeylover.livejournal.com]

Actually, in theory three, after Buffy died the FIRST time, she wasn't the true slayer. Kendra then Faith were. When Willow did the spell, then both she and Faith were the true slayers.

We found in the episode about the Shadow man that they did put a demon essence into the original slayer..

Anyway, this is interesting. I like all the theories and see how they could all be possible.

[fishsanwitt]

I have to mull on this :) Great post and I'm putting it in my memories!

[elisi]

I approve very much of mulling! :)

[frenchani.livejournal.com]

I do think that the disruption in a the Slayer line was meant to foreshadow Buffy's choice in "Chosen", or rather to counterpoint it.

The problem is that the FE already appeared in "Amends"...because of Angel! The FE is a convenient plot device for several storylines, and it works as long as you don't expect it to be a mastermind villian with real strategy (how many plotholes in seaosn 7 otherwise!)but a simple metaphor.

So as I consider it a Vice character (you never came back btw!) I can't really subscribe to your theories.

I think it's all about the potential. There's potential for good and potential for evil. Buffy's resurrection caused a chain reaction of bad stuff in season 6, the potential for evil was high and Willow killing bambi was the first evil actions (because BAMBI damnit!)of many. Buffy was not responsible indeed but her coming back was the source of all that evil, so yes she caused it. And she was wrong. As I said once, Buffy in season 6 is metaphorically a vampire, she went to a similar awakening, and having been resurrected from her remains she's an animated corpse, so Spike's chip registered her as "like him" aka wrong. It's interesting because Spike then knew being like him meant "being wrong". He was so close to be ensouled!

In season 7 they have not all worked their issues out...yet. The potential for evil from Willow, Spike, Faith, Buffy herself was still high.

But with the Potentials of season 7 there was potential for good too, hence the counterpoint. The scene in which Buffy and Faith seem to bond, showed that now Buffy was ready to share her power. They could be two at last (until then Buffy has never really accepted the other Slayer)...so they could be many. It was no longer a split, a disruption of the line, but a diffusion.

Everything in her journey led her to season 7, and to this point. Even Dawn. With Dawn, Buffy learnt to not be the only child anymore,to share, and she learnt to take care of a younger girl...exactly what she did in season 7.

[sp23.livejournal.com]

Yes, I like this theory better, and it certainly explains the last two seasons with a coherency missing from the actual show. :) I'm going to print this off and mull over it some more.

[ringthebells]

Hm, those sound pretty sensible to me!

[elisi]

I'm glad you think so. :)

[sevedra.livejournal.com]

I really really agree with all three theories. They make PERFECT sense. I will have to watch season 7 again, with these in mind, and pay attention to the differences and how they mesh with your thoughts. Excellent, really :)

[elisi]

Now that's a compliment! :) I'd also recommend looking through the essays (and other posts) here:
http://www.livejournal.com/tools/memories.bml?user=lateseasonlove

Some absolutely excellent stuff - esp look at the ones re. The First Evil, since that is a frequent stumbling block. :)

[zanthinegirl.livejournal.com]

You do realize that you've just given me a good excuse to re-watch Buffy? Really I'll have to re-watch all 7 seasons to see just how accurate your theories are... And what's a garden, or that garage re-organization when viewed with the daunting prospect of 150 hours of Buffy? I'll have to watch all the commentaries, etc to make sure...

:D

Very interesting speculation!

[elisi]

You do realize that you've just given me a good excuse to re-watch Buffy?
Hee! I'm happy to be of service. :) And just wait - my next post will be all speculation and no point!

[gillo]

Fascinating. Of course at one level it was only the phlebotinin ME needed for the story arcs. But the splitting ofthe Slayer line makes a lot of sense - and also explains why the multiplication of Slayerhood is capable of confronting and destroying the First - insofar as it does and it isn't only Spike who does that. If that were the case it makes the whole magic axe mojo irrelevant, so I prefer to believe that the multiplication of Slayers unbalanced reality against the Firs to the point where he was defeated, but it took Spike to destroy the unleashed minions and close the Hellmouth.

[elisi]

I read your reply - went to make myself a cup of tea... and whoa! More thoughts!

I love your idea of it being the Slayer mojo that does The First in ("You beat them back - it's for me to do the clean-up!") and that made me think of the point when Buffy gets run through and falls. Then when The First starts to taunt her she suddenly gains new strenght and seems almost re-born (and The First looks worried...). [see icon] Also all the Slayers fight back better than before. Now some people have said that maybe she died - and what if she did? Just for a second or two? (Like Principal Robin...) Then I rememebered Faith being near-death in 'Orpheus' and suddenly getting up. Did both of them die, however briefly? And did that tip the scales, after Buffy's death?

OMG now I'm waffling complete nonsense... I need to go to bed soon I think!

[quietpoet.livejournal.com]

theory #1 definitely makes sense to me. I think that your reasoning is very sound. And the other theory makes sense for Spike's chip, too. It could have been an all-or-nothing kind of response mechanism in the chip, and buffy's newly re-imbued part-demon status might have confused it enough so that it didn't get set off.

May I friend you?

[elisi]

I love it when I make sense! Or rather when what makes sense *to me* also makes sense to other people - it's not always a guarantee! ;)

May I friend you?
Squee! Of course! :) Just be warned at I write a lot and comment seldom... but I always reply to comments. And I'll be certain to friend you back!

[copykween.livejournal.com]

Ohhh, these are all very good theories! Especially #1 and #3. I have my own theory about #2, but your spin on it makes a ton of sense, as well.


I have a huge stockpile of theories on (other) various subjects in the Buffyverse which I'm hoarding for now, but I just think it's amazing what we can come up with if we can tear our eyes away from the sexy-ness that is Spike for long enough to actually think about it lol. Canon gives us SO MUCH to play with! :)

[elisi]

Now I want to hear your theory about #2! :)

I just think it's amazing what we can come up with
Isn't it just? I love theories, they can add yet another dimension to what we saw! (Not that there's anything wrong with just admiring Spike...)

[ex-just-kumi863.livejournal.com]

I always thought the First Evil's goal with killing off the potentials, then Faith, and finally Buffy was the equivalent of a firebreak. By burning a line, (or killing the potentials) the fire (current Slayers) can be forced to die out extinguishing the entire mess for the First Evil.

I have my own theories about your #1 and Buffy wounded at Helm's Deep...er I mean the hellmouth. What if Willow screwed p and Buffy can't get back to heaven, or just can't die anymore? It's fanwank, but hey, she ended up getting shish-kabobed and still gets back up to fight and defeat the Sauron's... er the First's hoard.

[elisi]

the equivalent of a firebreak.
Oh I love that analogy! Thank you. And yes - that also struck me as the obvious way of understanding it.

And your theory about Buffy is very interesting... and btw did you read the original script for Chosen? It's just your choice of imagery that rings a bell!*g*

[spikespetslayer.livejournal.com]

Excellent theories, all three...although to enhance and broaden the statement made in the #2 theory, the Slayer essence, being of demonic origin and fused with the girl, might have actually meant that Buffy was of demonic origin herself after her resurrection--thereby creating the pain-loving and violent person that she became in season 6. If they split the Slayer's power in two to infuse both Buffy and Faith (instead of Faith being The Slayer), then wouldn't they have somehow weakened both of them? Unless Buffy's portion was pure Slayer, therefore pure demon--

Just a thought...

[elisi]

Oooh interesting thought! Although maybe the extra strength came from the sacrifice and stuff that Willow performed... 'cause killing Bambi has got to be big mojo!

[molly_may]

Nothing new to add, but I love your #1 theory. I think it's perfectly plausible and slips right into canon.

[elisi]

Thank you. :) I love it when theories do that.

[http://users.livejournal.com/woman_of_/]

Hi, just throwing in my tuppance worth!

Theory #1 would make more sense of the constant repitition of Buffy having to die for a new slayer to be called during season 7. That didn't make any sense if Buffy was still the same from season 5 "The Gift", when no new slayer was called. At that time Faith would be the Chosen One, and she would have to die to call forth a new slayer. It was in inconsistancy, which your theory adresses. Well thought out.

[elisi]

Theory #1 would make more sense of the constant repitition of Buffy having to die for a new slayer to be called during season 7.
Oh that's what I thought too! Actually I think the theory might have been what they were working with 'behind the scenes' and then it just got cut out of the final edit because of time restraints. *pouts* Hmmm, I wonder if there are any dailies for Chosen...

And thank you. :)

[shakatany.livejournal.com]

The three theories each have valid points. ME was fuzzy in its logic as to the rules governing the incorporeal First Evil which I never liked as an antagonist because evil will never be completely vanquished (short of the Rapture and all that but that's another mythology).
Jeffrey Bell once said that 8000 Slayers were made. Was the demonic energy used up? Will more Slayers be created or will they die out through attrition (I ask this because in the comic book "Fre"y I believe the Slayers were unknown until she became one [never read the comics and I'm going by hearsay])? Did FE lose the battle but win the war? Darn money problems that is preventing any further movie/series set in the BtVSverse *grumbles*

Shakatany

[elisi]

Thank you. :) Other people have mentioned the Fray comics which I have never read - in any case there seems to be as many theories as there are fans. *g*

And I just read the other day that Joss is definitely going to write several comic books, dealing with 'what happened after'. Which isn't as good as a movie of course, but better than nothing. *is eternal optimist*

[lmbossy.livejournal.com]

Theory 1 definitely makes sense, although as Joss left the line you found out, he may have decided against it (or left it as an exercise for the reader viewer).
However like the idea that without us realising Buffy was potentially not The Slayer since the end of Season 1, and was excused from the propehcy, but kept saving the world because she could ...
I went off to search the dialogue DB for any reference about The Slayer in prophecy since the Master, where it turned out to be Buffy, and couldn't find anything - the only propehcy like thing I can find are the Slayer dreams. Although being A Slayer rather than The Slayer doesn't neccesaryily mean you lose the dreams - the dreams I remember either involved The First Slayer (who actually hacked into Buffy's (and others) dreams), Faith (who as The Slayer may have actually been the dreamer, and inherited the First Slayer skill of hacking in), and dreams/nightmares about Angel, The Master, etc. which can be explained by teh badness she went through. So no evidence either way ;)
Anyway if you can point out where I'm completely wrong, please do :)

[elisi]

Oooh I love your thoughts!! :)

And I'm so glad you looked up the prophecy thing - I didn't have the time and relied on memory. *g* And I think you're pretty much completely right - I figure the only difference between 'a Slayer' and 'The Slayer' relates to calling a new Slayer upon death and fulfilling prophecies.

Thank you so much for such an excellent comment. :)

[ladylavinia.livejournal.com]

"ME was fuzzy in its logic as to the rules governing the incorporeal First Evil which I never liked as an antagonist because evil will never be completely vanquished (short of the Rapture and all that but that's another mythology)."


No . . . ME wasn't fuzzy. The First Evil was simply the spirit of evil itself. It was the negative and destructive traits of all sentient beings. That is why the First Evil was able undermine most of the characters.

[elisi]

I think you might enjoy this essay very much. :)

[thedeadlyhook.livejournal.com]

Okay, I'm taking theory #1 as a given. That totally works for me with canon.

When Spike got the chip implanted it was after Buffy died the first time, and hence she was only 'a Slayer' and thus more human (or something), and gave Spike headaches. After her second resurrection she was The Slayer' (again) and therefore registered as 'not-human' to Spike's chip. In any case: many thoughts, few answers.

Ooooohhhh....

It does make one wonder about the timing of the chip going wonky, too - at that point, Spike was already ensouled, not likely to attack the Potentials anyway, but... was it possible that he'd have been able to attack them, even if fully empowered as Slayers, if The First's brainwashing had worked? And was that the whole point of The First tormenting him, to unleash him against Buffy's army? (I tend to love theories that make The First seem more like it had plans that anticipated almost anything Our Heroes might do - the husband and I actually started a big fic epic about that, Bad Trip, continued in Bad Eurotrip. Unfinished as yet, sadly.)

[elisi]

Glad you like #1 - I was very pleased with that one. :)

And your thoughts about Slayers is very interesting - that's great angle. Re. The First Evil did you ever read my essay:
Epiphany! I think I understand The First Evil!
I rather like TFE now. :)

Will check out your fics when I have some time (as in - not now! I really shouldn't be here right now, but I figured that 2 minutes would be OK...). See you later!

[kseenaa.livejournal.com]

I think it was very intresting and thought-provoking. Thank you. :-) *takes a bow*

[elisi]

Thank you for reading! I'm glad you found it interesting. :)