The Aesthetics of Culture in Buffy the Vampire Slayer by Matthew Pateman

Author:Matthew Pateman
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers
Published: 2014-10-10T00:00:00+00:00

BUFFY: It’s carbon dated. Trust me, only someone living underground for ten years would think that was still the look [1.1].

The humor here and its specific object of vampire fashion connects to other episodes where the undead’s dress sense is the motor for the comedy. Angel’s particular brand of attire is lovingly mocked in a self-conscious moment in “Lie to Me” (2.7) when he berates the vampire wanna-bes for having no idea about vampiric lifestyles or dress codes at which point a young aspirant dressed exactly like Angel walks past. This episode also introduces us to Chantarelle whose desire to become one of the “Old Ones” is somewhat dampened by her confrontation with Spike and his gang. Chantarelle disappears seemingly for good, until Buffy, who has run away, finds her again, now called Lily, and helps rescue her. This episode (“Anne” [3.1]) sees both Lily/Chantarelle and Buffy, who has called herself Anne, striving to discover their identities. The fact the Buffy is now called Anne Summers cannot but provide a culturally specific smirk from British viewers who will be aware that her attempt to redefine herself through naming has meant that she now occupies a nominal space shared with a famous chain of high street adult stores. Buffy succeeds in reestablishing a semblance of self and returns home and Lily, who now calls herself Anne, then appears in Angel as a worker with young runaways (“Blood Money” [AtS 2.12]). The emphasis on names and naming central to this little circuit leads us straight back, once again, to Willow’s dream. However, the clothes aspect still provides other links. Angel’s particular brand of sartorial elegance causes a jealous Riley to grimly recognize the general level of allure that the soul-cursed vampire exudes in “The Yoko Factor” (4.19). Believing Angel to have been turned evil again and, therefore, believing further that Angel and Buffy have slept together, Riley is relieved but surprised to discover that this is not the case:

RILEY: Seriously? That’s a good day? Well, there you go. Even when he’s good, he’s all “Mr. Billowy-Coat, King-of-Pain,” and girls really... [4.19].

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