What makes "Buffy" a gay icon?

Buffy Summers, the blond, vamp-kicking fighter who managed to rise from the dead twice on the beloved 1997–2003 TV series is back slaying again. Sort of. A new comic book series from Dark Horse titled Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8 — with an initial story arc by Buffy creator Joss Whedon — offers the show's devoted cult following a rare opportunity to see what might have been if the show had continued to air. The publication of the new comic book series coincides with the 10-year anniversary of the show's premiere, a milestone that, for Buffy's many gay fanboys, invites reflection on the show's place in the canon of gay-themed TV — and anticipation of where its core characters (gay and straight, living and undead) are headed.

For gay men — always drawn to empowered women with a sense of style (see Xena) — Buffy, as immortalized by Sarah Michelle Gellar, was more than an icon; she was the teenage girl they wish they could have been in high school. Fearlessly navigating the living hell of Sunnydale High, she pulverized demonic bullies with her fists and cliques of mean girls with catty one-liners that packed just as much of a wallop.

"I would say the high school setting accounts in part for the show's appeal to a gay audience — the scene of the trauma, so to speak," said Will McCormack, a writing instructor at New York University. "The show was good at externalizing internal states; when I was in high school, I think I was rather shut down emotionally and was generally perceived as bookish and geeky. The show found a way to ennoble a similar set of characters."

Self-described Buffy addict Steven Lawrence elaborated: "The show made the outsiders the most attractive and appealing characters. The popular students were just snack food for ghouls. They lacked interest or distinction. The outsiders had the power."

Intensifying her sense of herself as an outsider, Buffy's status as a vampire slayer — a secret she had to keep from almost everyone in her life, including her mother for several years — forced her to grapple with an isolating loneliness that could easily be a metaphor for the traumas of the closet, particularly for gay youth. This subtext pretty much became the show's text in the Season 2 finale when Buffy comes out about her secret to her mother.

Her mother's naïve responses, including, " It's because you didn't have a strong father figure, isn't it?" and "Have you ever tried not being a vampire slayer?" are met by a heartbreakingly emotional Buffy.

"No, it doesn't stop," she says. "It never stops. Do you think I chose to be like this? Do you have any idea how lonely it is? "

As Buffy fan Lawrence observed: " The interesting thing about Buffy was she came from an experience of being very popular but then found out something about herself that she felt couldn't be known by others. She came to this new high school carrying that knowledge but managed to build a circle of trusted friends she could confide in. That directly tied into my own experience coming out, and that of many other gay and lesbian people I know."

The Show Comes Out

Like Buffy herself, the show seemed to come out after those high school seasons, more explicitly dealing with gay characters and ushering in a more overt queer sensibility.

Once the gang started college, Buffy's best friend, Willow (Alyson Hannigan), who had previously locked lips with boy crushes Oz (Seth Green) and Xander (Nicholas Brendon), fell in love with Tara (Amber Benson). This was no mere "very special sweeps month" stunt, but a serious, long-term, very loving relationship.

A 2003 AfterEllen.com article observed: "Willow's relationship with Tara was (and still is) the longest-running lesbian relationship on network television (2.5 seasons), and the pair developed a dedicated following among lesbian and bisexual fans who felt overjoyed to finally see aspects of their lives and their relationships reflected back."

Gay boys were no less overjoyed. Lawrence remembered: "What was important about that relationship was seeing a same-gender relationship being represented with such tenderness and passion. As a gay man, I take positive representations where I can get them. Any time a same-gender relationship is portrayed in a positive but very real light benefits us all."

Tara and Willow's relationship was at its most heart-swooningly romantic in the Season 6 episode "Once More With Feeling." Not only did Tara serenade Willow with a beautiful, Shawn Colvin-esque ballad, "I'm Under Your Spell," Willow apparently pleasured Tara in bed so skillfully that Tara literally floated above the bed in ecstasy.

Beyond the hot and heavy (for network TV anyway) same-sex action, that episode might be considered Buffy at its gayest for another reason: It was a singing, dancing, very knowing and very loving treatment of the musical format, with nods to everything from Sondheim to Les Misérables. As Lawrence said, "I'm a gay man … I love a good musical. … Buffy as a musical … it doesn't get better than that."

Just hearing that Buffy was doing a musical was enough to make Norman Cherubino, an avid Broadway theatergoer, watch the show, even though he'd never seen it before. "I loved it," he said. "It showed a true understanding of musicals and was a great way to showcase a lot of different types of music. … Now I listen to the CD all the time and know all the lyrics."