A Wild Buffy Reboot Appeared!

BUFFY: A RETROSPECTIVE (When remakes go too far)

For me, and many others, hours of our young lives and beyond were spent staring fondly at Sarah Michelle Gellar delivering some karate – flavoured justice to the evil undead, supported by a wise cracking cast of witches, Watchers and peroxide blonde vampires. The show was new, it was original, and for a lot of adolescents, the show was the first introduction to some of the darker themes of life we’d yet to experience. When news recently surfaced about a reboot of the series in film format that didn’t involve Buffy’s beloved creator Joss Whedon, fans were in uproar – myself included.

Buffy, though stereotypically nineties from its original cinematic debut in, well, the nineties, evolved into a landmark cult series, with heartbreaking narrative, definitely sarcastic humour, and a liberal dose of pop – culture references. When the series began it had a lot of stigma to rid itself of, thanks to 20^th Century Fox’s severe mutilation of Whedon’s original screenplay. It was catastrophically misinterpreted by the director, who saw it as a comedy, perhaps a spoof, of how culture at the time saw vampires. It went from a brooding, dark piece to a broad comedy about horror movie clichés.

Fortunately, the character was given another chance, this time in series format. Seven series, one spin-off and several examples of merchandise, it came to an end with a glorious finale that gave Buffy the farewell she deserved. The ending was suitable, and while it was sad to see the show come to an end, it was acceptable.

The reason it holds such a deep place in the hearts of its fans is because it was an exploration through costumed metaphors of teenage anxiety. Much like every horror film made since the 1990’s, Buffy was made for teenagers. We could identify with the changes the characters faced, the relationships they screwed up, and the demons they fought – even if Buffy’s battles were more external than those of most teenagers.

Speaking bluntly, rebooting it is much like digging up a grave, forcing the corpse into a dress, slathering it with makeup and expecting it to pass off as a supermodel – though it just might have the same amount of bones on display, it’s just not the genuine article. Even if Whedon was playing a part in the reboot, it’d still feel wrong, when its original audience said their goodbyes to the character so long ago.

Unless it turns out to be the second coming of horror cinema, I won’t go and see the new film. Not through any self-righteous protest or boycott, simply because I said goodbye to the show and its characters so long ago. The time to make a movie from the franchise was at the end of Angel’s last series and abrupt cancellation, rather than almost eight years after the closing of the original series.

I only hope that the remake will do Whedon’s creation justice out of his hands, and maybe it’ll hold as dear a part of the younger’s heart as the original did mine. If anything it has the potential to revive interest in the original series, and that’s a positive in my opinion. In conclusion, the remake is a small tragedy, but nothing to fret over. After all, it can’t do anything to alter the memory of the original series in the minds of those who love it.