One of the most commonly known elements of Buffy lore and context is that the monsters were stand-ins for the emotional terrors we all deal with, especially in adolescence.

If the first two episodes were about establishing the over-arching mythology of the show, very vampire-heavy, the two episodes I watched this past week were about saying, but wait, there’s more!

Another of my favorite shows from the 90s was The X-Files, so it’s probably not coincidence that it, too, was a Mythology + Monsters show. Conversely, 21st Century serialized storytelling (i.e. TV series) leaned into going all mythology all the time…Lost was probably the flashy progenitor (although Losties would argue that there were some red herring monsters involved too…can you say polar bear?). Today we have shows like Severance, Paradise, Pluribus, etc. Shows that are made for watching then re-watching, for the Internet and fan theorizing.

We also have a disaggregated media business model that allows shows to be successful with audiences that wouldn’t crack the Top 50 ratings in the 90s. (When Buffy premiered it was a flagship offering from a new network, the WB. The WB was focused on ‘da youths. Its ratings today would be top 10. Back then, not even close.) Shows that revel in their niche-ness. Not to mention shows with far fewer episodes per “season” typically.

But back in the 90s you had a couple dozen episodes every single year to fill and to flesh out your narrative arc.

Monsters as metaphors wasn’t invented by 90s TV, of course. Godzilla famously represented the catastrophe of nuclear war. (There’s a reason you find yourself rooting for the monster.) And if you’ve read any analysis of Grimm’s fairy tales, you know how those tales were not so different from Buffy…preparing children for the tough road of adulthood. Disney movies out there killing parents every single time seem to agree that’s a worthy goal.

We’re seeing a resurgence of the genre as we speak…Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein and Maggie Gyllenhaal’s The Bride being two recent examples, but TV is also in on this action, with shows like Monarchs.

Speaking of Frankenstein, I read it last year for the first time. Author Mary Shelley’s life was filled with monsters…the monster inside of depression and the monsters outside of social rejection and isolation, the death of her children, and more. She channeled all of the above and more into this early horror novel.

I found Frankenstein a difficult read because Dr Frankenstein is such an irresponsible and cravenly jerk. The novel is worth reading for the Monster’s monologue alone, however…a heartrending, articulate, surprisingly timely musing on what makes one human, what isolation and loneliness does to someone, how it feels to be created only to be abandoned or abused, and how technological exploration may not always be an objective good if it’s not guided by principle. Hmm, what does that make you think of?

Frankly, we can consume recent writings and documentaries about the male “loneliness epidemic” or we can read the above mentioned Monster’s monologue and get the gist. The existential conflict today seems to come from answering the question about how to cure this epidemic, namely what comes first? Stop acting like a monster? Or stop being treated like one?

Monster as metaphor is a famous element of Buffy. What’s less discussed is how being a monster is not, in and of itself, a cause for the Buffy gang’s immediate rejection, dismissal, or decision to eliminate. Empathy is a driving force behind the decision-making on what to do about monsters. Sometimes the monster is driven by curses, by abuse or abandonment, by forces beyond their control. Sometimes the monster can be brought back, can be re-integrated, can be forgiven in the last moment, even if they must be dispatched. Sometimes the monster can be inspired to fight for its version of humanity. It’s a beautiful, but clear-eyed, vision of redemption. Some monsters become friends. Some monsters can be managed.

But yeah, some monsters get staked, beheaded, melted, blown up, or brought into the light to burn 😬

I thought I could publish this newsletter from the middle of the ocean, but the maritime Internet was not up to the task. Week before last, I watched Season 1, episodes 3 (Witch live recap) and 2 (Teacher’s Pet live recap)…which were shown on March 17 and March 24, 1997 respectively.

The “monster” in E3 was a mom-witch who used black magic to try to deliver her own glory days through her unwilling and unenthused daughter. The real monster was the pressure of a parent asking their child to make up for what was lacking in their own life. Not helicopter parenting, more like chain saw parenting…hey, I will mow down everything in the way between you and what I want for you, my child, leaving destruction and degraded social acceptance in my wake. Why aren’t you more grateful? This is one of many examples of how smarts and empathy get Buffy as far as her super strength. She figures out before anyone what’s really happening; she uses a bit of basic photonic physics to defeat the monster, and she also figures out how to give their classmate Amy a path back from the aftermath. (Watch out for Amy, she’s one of my favorite characters who is only in a handful of episodes, but used to awesome effect.)

The “monster” in E4 was, well, a shapeshifting preying mantis 😬 I mean, you don’t get to type that phrase all that often in life. This episode is definitely a case where it hit one way before I learned its creator was so problematic. It’s full of many gendered tropes about high school boys. It also sets up the triangle that Xander definitely wants to be with Buffy, while Willow definitely wants to be with Xander, while Buffy remains clueless on that, instead intrigued by Angel.

The core #BuffyLifeLesson in Episode 3 is that learning from your past is different from living in the past. IOW, you can love the fun and even possibly glory you had when you were younger...just don't LOVE the fun and even possibly glory you had when you were younger.

The core #BuffyLifeLesson in Episode 4 is that young men can fall victim to predators too. I mean, this is true. A surprising percentage of boys and young men suffer sexual harassment and abuse. Not as high as women by any stretch, but notable and under-discussed. And if it is discussed, it’s often talked about as though boys are happy about it if it happens. The narratives are pretty gross. It’s just kind of ironic that the creator of this series wanted, very early on, to establish that boys/men can be victims (as both are in this episode) and women can be predators. #ThingsThatMakeYouGoHmmmm

More Season 1 recapping of course. And still interested to hear which topic you might like to hear about next?

Now, what about you? Have you found yourself watching Buffy again lately? Do you remember these episodes? Do you like monster movies? Have you read Frankenstein…did you want to slap Dr Frankenstein too? Tell me everything.

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