How could it be anyone but Wesley? Tragic, yet fascinating, character played by the best actor around, written by the best writers around. Just watching his progress from Season Three of BtVS to his final scene in "Not Fade Away" (which is, by the way, the single best scene of prose/film/whatever that I've ever seen) is like taking an entire course in character development. Wesley's story is an aspiring writer's dream.
I don't know how it happened, but the character I love and sympathize with the most... is Buffy. She wasn't my favorite before; it just crept up on me.
I fell in love with the Bufster from show one. When my son asks me (in mean moments) "Ok mom: Buffy, Xena, or Charlie Chaplin?" I always cry because I loved Xena first and Chaplin has conquered my soul - but I will always, always love the Bufster....
My friends and I once did a "Best Whedon Character" battle, best of 64, March-Madness style...Wesley came out on top, after two hours of one-on-one decisions and high-pitched debating. No one beats that arc.
I don't want to register for another site. It's not easy to choose, especially among all 3 shows. It's probably Spike, but he isn't my favorite for "Angel" (Wesley is), and my favorite for "Firefly" is Kaylee. Spike is what hooked me on Buffy, and then love for the verse just grew.
Yeah- I'm also too lazy to register, but I'd go with Spike so I guess it wouldn't change things anyway. Spike is not just my favorite Whedonverse character, he is probably my favorite character period.
My favorites from each show are as follows. Guys, Spike, Jayne, and Angel, I like my men morally ambiguous. Girls, Faith, Dru and River, all three are kinda crazy, like me.
I'd rather chop off my right arm than choose one over another - it's impossible for me. Once I do something like that, I can never take it back. Sometimes I'm loving on Xander in a Speedo or Xander having a party in his eye, or Buffy swan diving off a platform to save the world, and then the next it's Wes showing compassion for the demon who took over Fred's body, and the day after that it's Giles playing a guitar and singing in a coffee shop, and so on. That said, if the poll were more specific like, "Who is your favorite character with a British dialect ..." No. Still couldn't do it.
yeah, I so didn't register but if I had I wanted voted for the Xand man. He isn't always my favorite. Sometimes its Wesley, sometimes Illyria, sometimes River or Book. There's Buffy then there's Willow and Tara oh and Spike. But I would have voted for Xander cause you can only vote for one and he's Xander. Oh yeah one can never forget Meleka or the real heart of Whedon worlds: little Loo. Where is the love for Loo?
Mal/Buffy/Wesley followed closely by River & Giles. And an honorable mention for Faith who I didn't appreciate in the beginning. And I can't neglect to mention Willow, Kaylee and Fred who were the heart of each of their shows. And I can't neglect Xander, Wash & Jayne who brought the humor and what about Zoe, Anya, Spike, Angel... - ah hell, I love them all!!!
No, no way. I tried breaking it down by show ... and that wasn't good enough. I tried breaking it down by show and then sub-breaking it down into boy/girl categories. Not good enough. I tried then sub-sub-subdividing it into good guys and bad guys (because I don't want to overlook some of my favorite villains and villainesses) and THAT sort of worked but then it just needed ONE more subcategory dividing all of the above categories into arbitrary "main" and "supporting" divisions and ... then it was just too much.
All I really learned from the entire exercise is how much I still miss Jenny Calendar.
[NOTE: I awarded 3 points for each definite vote for one single character, 2 points for a three-way tie (several people voted one character for each show), 1 point for a six-way tie (two people voted for six characters).]
Wow. Nobody's gone for Cordelia!
I can understand that she's not everyones favourite, but nobody??
Me, I like bad boy Spike, the coolest vampire ever, anytime, anyplace, any genre.
Spike and then a bunch of other characters, each depending on what I was thinking about right then...or maybe Buffy after Spike...hmmmm...but definitely Spike first.
Although Spike was the one who drew me into Buffy, it's Buffy herself who has become my favourite character and Spike who has been relegated to second. After that it's Cordelia then Wesley.
I am so incredibly tempted to register so that I can vote for Cordy. I know what people are saying about Wes's arc, and it is amazing, but I think Cordelia's is just a little bit better. From the popular, shallow cheerleader stereotype to a warm, wise, loving woman who goes to her death with dignity and love...yeah, I'd have to vote for Cordy.
All of the characters were wonderful inspirations, each uniquely intriguing. Wesley certainly underwent the hugest transformation, and Alexis pulled off the changes, large and small, superbly well. Ultimately, it's the actors that we respond to. They are the ones who reach out through the TV screen and make that connection to the viewers. I have loved most of the performances on Buffy over the years (less love for Angel overall and I haven't gotten into Firefly). Armin Shimerman was a perfect Snyder, absolutely captivating to watch. Harry Groener was great. The actor who played Quentin Travers. On it goes. But the actor whose performances consistently stirred my emotions, and therefore came closest to approximating the feeling of observing a real-life human being, was Sarah Michelle Gellar as Buffy. When she's onscreen, my eyes are on her -- and not just because the actor herself is beautiful to look at. Sarah's performances made me care about Buffy more than any other character.
His arc has darkness rivaled by that of Wesley. He was exiled from his home plane and estranged from his family. At the end, he is once again alienated from all the people closest to him. He got everything he thought he wanted--fame, power in the entertainment industry, trying to do good in the world--but it all ended up being completely hollow and taking so much out of him. He went from being the carefree pacifist wise man to being a broken shell, asked to kill someone who was helping them out!
Ah, what I would do for the urge to register. Maybe I'll get an umph in the next 4 weeks, 9 hours, 47 mins... or not. But for records sake, I'd have to go with Spike. Oooh, or I would vote for Lorne *hugs her green demon for whom she saw S2 Ats for and got hooked on it* Yeah, I'm unique ;)
It would have to be Giles followed by Wesley followed by Willow. I don't think that Giles had the best character - there were those with better arcs but just on his own... Yep. Definitely my favourite.
I'm such a sucker for this stuff. All I did was spend twenty minutes proving to myself yet again what I've known for years, that Yahoo hates me and makes me change my password every time I log on (very infrequently). Then I did this "Yahoo OpenID thing, which took forever. All to vote for Spike ;-)
Then I find out that I can vote again in four minutes! It's one of those, which makes it totally meaningless. And which also explains Tara being in the lead. I mean, everyone loves Tara, but the favorite character in the entire whedonverse by 200 votes? Some people really need to get lives.
And I really need to stop letting Yahoo run me around in circles.
death is my gift | February 20, 02:43 CET
Madhatter | February 20, 02:43 CET
QuanticoMVP | February 20, 02:53 CET
Caroline | February 20, 02:53 CET
Saje | February 20, 02:55 CET
romanceguru | February 20, 02:59 CET
zillah | February 20, 03:05 CET
patxshand | February 20, 03:06 CET
kishi | February 20, 03:10 CET
Willowy | February 20, 03:17 CET
Buffy- Anya
Angel- Lilah
Firefly- Kaylee
hitnrun017 | February 20, 03:21 CET
Dana5140 | February 20, 03:27 CET
Best character arc for instance is Wesley for me (when it's not Spike ;) but I like Wash better.
Saje | February 20, 03:34 CET
ETA: Added even more names.
[ edited by the Groosalugg on 2008-02-20 00:42 ]
the Groosalugg | February 20, 03:39 CET
Numfar PTB | February 20, 03:40 CET
But yeah, no registery.
swanjun | February 20, 03:43 CET
I'd vote for Tara if I could, tho. I love her as much as my Mary Sue does *snerk.
DaddyCatALSO | February 20, 03:52 CET
[ edited by stellabee on 2008-02-20 00:57 ]
[ edited by stellabee on 2008-02-20 01:01 ]
stellabee | February 20, 03:56 CET
shicks | February 20, 04:00 CET
jlp | February 20, 04:06 CET
maje | February 20, 04:08 CET
JudyKay7 | February 20, 04:08 CET
Smooshed Face Lion | February 20, 04:11 CET
LKW | February 20, 04:24 CET
WillowSlay | February 20, 04:35 CET
Nebula1400 | February 20, 04:47 CET
luvspike | February 20, 04:56 CET
resa | February 20, 05:01 CET
Dorian's Kitten | February 20, 05:38 CET
magnus carnage | February 20, 05:44 CET
Buffyfantic | February 20, 05:48 CET
embers | February 20, 06:02 CET
orphea | February 20, 06:02 CET
no more cookies | February 20, 06:12 CET
Spike's Gal | February 20, 06:24 CET
Tonya J | February 20, 06:31 CET
baxter | February 20, 06:33 CET
crossoverman | February 20, 06:57 CET
(Faith is a very, very close second.)
[ edited by Haunt on 2008-02-20 04:34 ]
Haunt | February 20, 07:33 CET
theMidnighter | February 20, 07:49 CET
EdnaMae | February 20, 08:12 CET
TexLuvsAngel | February 20, 08:16 CET
SoddingNancyTribe | February 20, 09:27 CET
Resolute | February 20, 09:41 CET
BtVS: Willow
Angel: Wesley
Firefly: Zoe
And nope, no registration. Not yours.
Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner | February 20, 09:46 CET
ManEnoughToAdmitIt | February 20, 09:56 CET
Close runners-up:
Wash
Xander
Willow
Mal
Giles
Tara
UnpluggedCrazy | February 20, 10:07 CET
But hands down, my first thought was 'Angel'. So I gotta go with that.
But I really, really loved both Darla and Faith's arcs. And Wes's. And Cordy's. And...
missb | February 20, 10:23 CET
And then my two favorite witches, but don't make me choose which one's which. It's a tie. Deal with it.
And then my sweet Xander.
Jayne and Mal.
Lorne.
Angel.
But not in any particular order. Rupert, Willow & Tara, Xander. And then the others are all in some kind of weird tie. Which....I'll be in my bunk.
ShadowQuest | February 20, 10:32 CET
Firefly Flanatic | February 20, 10:34 CET
Joss
Tim
Marti
Jane
Drew
The other Drew
Doug
David
Simon | February 20, 11:23 CET
Hmmmmmmmmm.
No, no way. I tried breaking it down by show ... and that wasn't good enough. I tried breaking it down by show and then sub-breaking it down into boy/girl categories. Not good enough. I tried then sub-sub-subdividing it into good guys and bad guys (because I don't want to overlook some of my favorite villains and villainesses) and THAT sort of worked but then it just needed ONE more subcategory dividing all of the above categories into arbitrary "main" and "supporting" divisions and ... then it was just too much.
All I really learned from the entire exercise is how much I still miss Jenny Calendar.
Ghalev | February 20, 12:39 CET
SmileTime | February 20, 12:41 CET
FollowMal | February 20, 14:33 CET
[NOTE: I awarded 3 points for each definite vote for one single character, 2 points for a three-way tie (several people voted one character for each show), 1 point for a six-way tie (two people voted for six characters).]
Which gives us these result as of this posting...
CHARACTER - POINTS AWARDED
Wes – 27
Buffy – 24
Angel – 16
Spike – 16
Giles – 15
Willow – 14
Mal – 13
Anya – 5
River – 5
Kaylee – 5
Fred – 4
Jayne – 4
Xander – 3
Wash – 3
Tara – 3
Riley – 3
Zoe – 3
Lilah – 2
Faith – 1
(To be fair, someone else snuck in with a vote for Mal as I posted this, so the edit is to add three more points for the Captain...)
[ edited by crossoverman on 2008-02-20 11:38 ]
crossoverman | February 20, 14:33 CET
I can understand that she's not everyones favourite, but nobody??
Me, I like bad boy Spike, the coolest vampire ever, anytime, anyplace, any genre.
Mild Mike | February 20, 16:43 CET
newcj | February 20, 16:50 CET
Glad to see Tara so far up though. She was a good person.
redeem147 | February 20, 16:59 CET
Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner | February 20, 17:14 CET
Rowan Hawthorn | February 20, 17:21 CET
Leaf | February 20, 18:24 CET
Tonya J | February 20, 19:55 CET
zohrael | February 20, 20:00 CET
Sunfire | February 20, 20:10 CET
micro | February 20, 20:43 CET
Then Mal, then Buffy, then Spike.
But truthfully, I love just about everybody.
Lirazel | February 20, 20:48 CET
1starbuckstown | February 20, 21:31 CET
Wow. Nobody's gone for Cordelia!
I put Giles first, but Cordelia is definitely in my top 5. Giles, Xander, Cordelia, Anya, Lorne.
Caroline | February 20, 21:49 CET
His arc has darkness rivaled by that of Wesley. He was exiled from his home plane and estranged from his family. At the end, he is once again alienated from all the people closest to him. He got everything he thought he wanted--fame, power in the entertainment industry, trying to do good in the world--but it all ended up being completely hollow and taking so much out of him. He went from being the carefree pacifist wise man to being a broken shell, asked to kill someone who was helping them out!
Damn. Joss Whedon's characters have rough lives.
rufustfyrfly | February 20, 21:50 CET
Wesley, Cordy, and Doyle, too, are tempting; I suppose Spike because he actively sought redemption, rather than finding it.
Lorne and Fred are so tragic.
"Not good, but OK." Get out of my mind, Mel.
htom | February 20, 22:17 CET
Dana5140 | February 20, 22:27 CET
Also, I didn't know Andrew's surname was Wells.
fangless | February 20, 22:43 CET
[ edited by Mirage on 2008-02-20 21:10 ]
Mirage | February 21, 00:09 CET
cmbackshane | February 21, 01:35 CET
nutterbudgie | February 21, 01:47 CET
Capt. Logic | February 21, 02:59 CET
Lioness | February 21, 06:13 CET
Then I find out that I can vote again in four minutes! It's one of those, which makes it totally meaningless. And which also explains Tara being in the lead. I mean, everyone loves Tara, but the favorite character in the entire whedonverse by 200 votes? Some people really need to get lives.
And I really need to stop letting Yahoo run me around in circles.
Shey | February 21, 14:36 CET