Pop Culture AHC: Buffy the Vampire Slayer PoDs

[krinsbez]

What follows are a list of seven things (with the occasional "bonus"), one per season that were planned for the TV show Buffy the Vampire Slayer, that went differently for various reasons. The challenge, is to extrapolate how each of them would have affected the course of the series. Please note that each of these constitutes a seperate TL, rather than being cumulative.

1. The character of Angel was planned to be a one-off; what if they'd stuck with that? BONUS: Nathan Fillion auditioned for the part; what if he'd gotten it?

2: The character of the Anointed One was supposed to be one of the primary villains of Season 2; however, between the conclusion of filming on Season One and beginning of filming for Season 2, the child actor playing him experienced a growth spurt. Since this conflicted with vampiric immortality, the decision was made to kill him off, for which reason the Spike character was invented. but what if instead of killing the Anointed One off, they'd used his strange and poorly defined powers to explain away his aging and/or replacement by a different child actor?

3: The episode "Bad Girls" was supposed to have ended with Buffy discovering that Faith had hung herself and died; however, since everyone liked the character, this was changed. But what if it hadn't?

4: Oz's affair with Veruca was supposed to be a season-long arc. However, when Seth Green decided to leave the show in favor of a movie career, the arc was compressed considerably. But what if he had decided to stick around instead?

5: The character of Dawn was originally supposed to be a little girl. What if they'd stuck with that instead of making her a teenager?

6: The leader of the Trio was supposed to be Tucker Wells, who had appeared in the Prom episode back in season 3. However, the actor ws unavailable, and so the character of Andrew, Tucker's more benign younger brother, was invented and Warren became the group's extremely misogynistic leader. But what if the actor had been available?

7: Amber Bensons, who had played Tara, refused to come back to the show to play the First, nto wanting to play a bad bad guy. What if she had?

 

[BigWillyG]

5: The character of Dawn was originally supposed to be a little girl. What if they'd stuck with that instead of making her a teenager?

Depending on who they got to play Dawn that could backfire badly and be another "annoying little girl" on TV. As it was a lot of fans found Dawn an annoying character until her story started being told about being the key and they gave her character development beyond whiny teenage girl.

 

[Tyr]

Though I grew to like Dawn, taking Buffy back to its USHS routes and all that, having her as a kid would make a lot more sense.

It is interesting to think how differently shows could have went...
WI- they had left Willow as the chubby unattractive girl she was meant to be?

 

[Derek Jackson]

More episodes with buffy bott whilst buffy was dead would have been interesting

 

[Corbell Mark IV]

...

1. The character of Angel was planned to be a one-off; what if they'd stuck with that? BONUS: Nathan Fillion auditioned for the part; what if he'd gotten it?

When would this have happened, at the end of season one? I think this would have really hurt the series. THe doomed love affair was great, although he might have hung around a little to long.

Might have been interesting to see what additional doomed love affairs she had.

3: The episode "Bad Girls" was supposed to have ended with Buffy discovering that Faith had hung herself and died; however, since everyone liked the character, this was changed. But what if it hadn't?

Well, did they have any idea who the replacement slayer would be? Would be interesting if Buffy outlived a couple of slayers. I always thought it would have been interesting to learn that Buffy was extremely long lived for a Slayer.

And suicide would have ugly. On a already pretty dark show.

4: Oz's affair with Veruca was supposed to be a season-long arc. However, when Seth Green decided to leave the show in favor of a movie career, the arc was compressed considerably. But what if he had decided to stick around instead?

Now this would have been interesting. First of all, Oz/Seth Green rocked. Both as a character and as an actor. I assume that we would have learned more about werewolf society. Veruca was also very good.

5: The character of Dawn was originally supposed to be a little girl. What if they'd stuck with that instead of making her a teenager?

Ug. Good dodge. NO little children.

7: Amber Bensons, who had played Tara, refused to come back to the show to play the First, nto wanting to play a bad bad guy. What if she had?

More Willow/Tara angst? Could have some value...

 

[krinsbez]

When would this have happened, at the end of season one?

I have no idea, nor do I have any clue how the character would've been portrayed; I've been looking but haven't found anything.

 

[King of the Uzbeks]

What follows are a list of seven things (with the occasional "bonus"), one per season that were planned for the TV show Buffy the Vampire Slayer, that went differently for various reasons. The challenge, is to extrapolate how each of them would have affected the course of the series. Please note that each of these constitutes a seperate TL, rather than being cumulative.

1. The character of Angel was planned to be a one-off; what if they'd stuck with that? BONUS: Nathan Fillion auditioned for the part; what if he'd gotten it?

Ahhh…… Angel unlike many fans I don't like him the "Toutured Soul" thing gets old fast but, I liked Angelus a lot, however I haven't seen the "Angel" show so I can't say he did'nt do well there. I think Xander would have had a better chance with Buffy. But when has Wheadon made things easy? I think a new boy would enter the scene, perhaps oblivious to the supernatural events around him and Buffy trying to keep it that way.

2: The character of the Anointed One was supposed to be one of the primary villains of Season 2; however, between the conclusion of filming on Season One and beginning of filming for Season 2, the child actor playing him experienced a growth spurt. Since this conflicted with vampiric immortality, the decision was made to kill him off, for which reason the Spike character was invented. but what if instead of killing the Anointed One off, they'd used his strange and poorly defined powers to explain away his aging and/or replacement by a different child actor?

I don't think it would have come across well, with The Master gone the order doesn't have the same evilness to it. The Anointed One had powers yes, but he was inexperienced, him as the Big Bad would likely come across as too lucky, and not much of a planner

3: The episode "Bad Girls" was supposed to have ended with Buffy discovering that Faith had hung herself and died; however, since everyone liked the character, this was changed. But what if it hadn't?

The Mayor wouldn't have such a great co-villian, and you wouldn't see his caring side. A new slayer woud come along most likely. Butterflies ensue.

4: Oz's affair with Veruca was supposed to be a season-long arc. However, when Seth Green decided to leave the show in favor of a movie career, the arc was compressed considerably. But what if he had decided to stick around instead?

More complex Tara situation for sure, but same result the cheating was just to big to ignore OR Tara becomes a minor scooby with no romance with Willow and Oz/Williow survives, Oz's reaction to Adam would be interesting.

5: The character of Dawn was originally supposed to be a little girl. What if they'd stuck with that instead of making her a teenager?

Less teenage drama, more little girl stuff, interesting Glory scenario.

6: The leader of the Trio was supposed to be Tucker Wells, who had appeared in the Prom episode back in season 3. However, the actor ws unavailable, and so the character of Andrew, Tucker's more benign younger brother, was invented and Warren became the group's extremely misogynistic leader. But what if the actor had been available?

First off you just killed my favorite character Andrew :Mad: the Trio gets taken more seriously from the start since the Scoobies know what Tucker can do.

7: Amber Bensons, who had played Tara, refused to come back to the show to play the First, nto wanting to play a bad bad guy. What if she had?

Willow has more trouble with Kennedy, and more Trouble with The First.


So thats my 2 cents. BTW my sig's a Andrew quote from Season 7

 

[Heavy]

1. The character of Angel was planned to be a one-off; what if they'd stuck with that? BONUS: Nathan Fillion auditioned for the part; what if he'd gotten it?

Well, casting Nathan Fillion as Angel would have had repercussions for Firefly at the very least.

I think Nathan Fillion's a better actor than David Boreanaz (not that David Boreanaz is particularly bad or anything) and I think he could've been good in the role.

3: The episode "Bad Girls" was supposed to have ended with Buffy discovering that Faith had hung herself and died; however, since everyone liked the character, this was changed. But what if it hadn't?

I imagine it would have had a pretty big impact on the end of the season, because part of the reason Buffy is able to beat Mayor Wilkins is by taking advantage of his one good characteristic (his paternal affection for Faith, which is genuine).

I wonder what sort of effect it might have had on Wesley, though.

6: The leader of the Trio was supposed to be Tucker Wells, who had appeared in the Prom episode back in season 3. However, the actor ws unavailable, and so the character of Andrew, Tucker's more benign younger brother, was invented and Warren became the group's extremely misogynistic leader. But what if the actor had been available?

In that scenario, I imagine Jonathan would've ended up in the same position as Andrew in season seven, assuming the plot continued on a broadly similar trajectory, since "I Was Made To Love You" established Warren as kind of an asshole even before he went into full-on villain mode (whereas Jonathan was more sympathetic).

 

[Garrison]

7: Amber Bensons, who had played Tara, refused to come back to the show to play the First, nto wanting to play a bad bad guy. What if she had?

Not a chance; she refused because it was a not very subtle two-fingered gesture to the Willow-Tara fans who didn't take kindly to the end of Season 6.

 

[mattep74]

Not a chance; she refused because it was a not very subtle two-fingered gesture to the Willow-Tara fans who didn't take kindly to the end of Season 6.

I see that someone else than me actually reads the FAQ at IMDB

Allowing Dawn to be a small kid makes Buffy even more protective than OTL. It will also have another buttefly to the show as IMDB FAQ of Buffy shows

Does Dawn's arrival change anything else?

EditHistoryDelete


In 'Buffy vs Dracula' it's clear that Joyce is unaware that Tara and Willow are lesbian lovers, the pair sharing a look of amusement when Joyce remarks to them that she feels like giving up on men altogether. However in 'The Real Me' when writing in her diary Dawn recalls an incident where she remarks to Joyce that she'd like to do some of the stuff that Willow and Tara do (meaning spells) after which Joyce 'Got real quiet and told me to go upstairs'. It seems that due to Dawn's arrival Joyce is now aware of something which she wasn't before so there may be other changes to the world

 

[phx1138]

Angel was planned to be a one-off; what if they'd stuck with that?

This would hurt the show immensely. That continuing relationship was really interesting, quite aside the "turning evil". And it kills the spinoff, which I liked a lot.

Nathan Fillion auditioned for the part; what if he'd gotten it?

That would be good, except it means David Boreanaz doesn't get it. I wouldn't want that. Not to say Nathan isn't good (& being Canadian is a plus), but... Also, would this impact "Firefly"? (That, I wouldn't miss.)

"Bad Girls" was supposed to have ended with Buffy discovering that Faith had hung herself and died; however, since everyone liked the character, this was changed. But what if it hadn't?

I liked Faith enormously. And I hated how they treated her, myself.

The character of Dawn was originally supposed to be a little girl. What if they'd stuck with that instead of making her a teenager?

How to make the show worse & worse. This would have been as bad as the sucky season with "The Trio".

Besides which, why didn't they do then what they did at the end anyhow? Buffy's been a rulebreaker from the premiere; why doesn't she "cheat" instead of sacrifice herself?

Do any of these, you've got half a chance of killing the show entirely.

And for the Willow/Tara relationship, that "gay now" crap bugged the hell out of me. It's not like you just "change sides" after a breakup...except in Hollywood.

 

[Garrison]

I see that someone else than me actually reads the FAQ at IMDB

Actually I was a fully fledged member of 'The Kitten, The Witches, and The Really Bad Wardrobe' forum at the time it was all going down, that's when I started my 'Reailty Check' stories. Whedon and co. were apparently quite miffed to say the least at the reaction to killing off Tara.

 

[Garrison]

That would be good, except it means David Boreanaz doesn't get it. I wouldn't want that. Not to say Nathan isn't good (& being Canadian is a plus), but... Also, would this impact "Firefly"? (That, I wouldn't miss.)

And I thought I was the only one who didn't like that show!

And for the Willow/Tara relationship, that "gay now" crap bugged the hell out of me. It's not like you just "change sides" after a breakup...except in Hollywood.

You clearly forgot this exchange from Doppegangland:

Willow: It's horrible. That's me as a vampire? I'm so evil, and skanky... and I think I'm kinda gay.



Buffy: Willow, just remember, a vampire's personality has nothing to do with the person it was.



Angel: Well, actually...


[pauses as Willow and Buffy look at him]



Angel: That's a good point.

Basically if Willow had been any deeper in the closet she would have been in Narnia.

 

[phx1138]

And I thought I was the only one who didn't like that show!

I don't get the appeal. Nor, oddly, of Fillion in the role, tho I think he's perfect as Castle.

Basically if Willow had been any deeper in the closet she would have been in Narnia.

So her sleeping with a male werewolf is "in the closet"? I'd call that "bisexual", at the very minimum.

It was that abrupt flip that bothered me, not gay or otherwise, the suggestion she just "turned", like changing her hair color. Would anybody accept a gay character saying, "Hey! Straight now!"

 

[Garrison]

I don't get the appeal. Nor, oddly, of Fillion in the role, tho I think he's perfect as Castle.

So her sleeping with a male werewolf is "in the closet"? I'd call that "bisexual", at the very minimum.

It was that abrupt flip that bothered me, not gay or otherwise, the suggestion she just "turned", like changing her hair color. Would anybody accept a gay character saying, "Hey! Straight now!"

Like I say I was later with the 'Kitten' board which had a lot of lesbian members; they seemed to find the scenario pretty plausible so I'm happy to take the word of the experts.

Anyway as to PODs. Couple of Season 6 ones:

A) They pursue the 'power corrupts' angle with Willow that they were setting up in the initial episodes and avoid the truly terrible drug analogy. Amy still comes back but nudges Willow into using ever bigger more dangerous spells until she causes a real disaster.

B) In Wrecked instead of having Willow tearfully apologetic she remains in denial and carries on in her downward spiral. She kills the troika by accident while stopping one of their stupid plans and goes off the rails.

Both of which avoid the 'dead lesbian' cliché. As I say Whedon and co. apparently got very upset about that accusation...

 

[Heavy]

I actually liked season six a lot, though I certainly appreciate what a lot of people hated about it and why. That being said, the "magic as a drugs metaphor" was rather crap, wasn't it?

 

[kung Zog]

Glad to see so many Buffy fans

I actually liked season six a lot, though I certainly appreciate what a lot of people hated about it and why. That being said, the "magic as a drugs metaphor" was rather crap, wasn't it?

it really was. especially because the season before, heck even in Once more with feeling, magic was a sex metaphor. The change in symbolism gives a bad taste when viewed together with the Willow/Tara relationship.

Regarding the POD's. Anointed one would work really well I think, but only together with a Spike and Angel plot. Keep the anointed one going, introduce Spike and create conflict within the bad camp. Later Angelus comes and side with the Anointed one out of pure spite. Preferably Angelus would then trick the Anointed one. For example it could be done in the Calander episode. Buffy is informed about the anointed one, falls for the trap, kills him but at the same time we see the inevitable death of Calander at the hands of Angelus at the school.

Regarding killing of Angel in S1, not a good idea. We need an emotional continuation over the season bridge, for example Angel and the Anointed one.

 

[mattep74]

How about the actors of Xander and Andrew(only survivor of the trio) changing places?

 

[phx1138]

Want to do something really nuts? Cast Nick Brendan as a 1-shot Angel, James Marsters as Xander, & Boreanaz as Spike.

 

[mattep74]

Want to do something really nuts? Cast Nick Brendan as a 1-shot Angel, James Marsters as Xander, & Boreanaz as Spike.

Xander was supposed to be the same age as Buffy. James Marsters is born 1962, Brendon 1971, Sarah Michelle Gellar 1977. I dont think Marsters could act teenager in 1997