Reading the Vampire Slayer: An Unofficial Critical Companion to Buffy and Angel - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1860647626 ISBN 13: 9781860647628

Publisher: Barbara Ward & Associates, 2001

Synopsis

Joss Whedon's Buffy the Vampire Slayer is one of the most original and popular television programmes of the last decade. It develops inventive variations on stock horror material partly for thrills, partly as eloquent metaphors for the anxieties of contemporary American teenagers, but does a lot more - varying its tone from surrealism to moments of intense romanticism. Reding the Vampire Slayer is a book of critical appreciations, which examines a variety of the complex ways in which Buffy and its spin-off series Angel have won the hearts of its target audience and the minds of intellectual commentators. The book also provides a short episode guide to all five seasons of Buffy and the first two seasons of Angel, as well as assessment, based on interview material, of the contributions of the shows' principal writers.

About this title

Review

Reading the Vampire Slayer is a very accessible collection of essays, edited by Amazon.co.uk contributor and respected SF and Fantasy reviewer Roz Kaveney, which analyses the first five seasons of the TV show "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and the first two seasons of "Angel". Kaveney's opening article sketches out the territory, providing an insightful introduction to the themes and structures of the two shows. The essays that follow consider a wide range of issues, but a common theme is the complexity and inventiveness of the shows, with their deconstruction of patriarchal authority and highlighting of the ambiguous nature of evil. Variously, the authors consider how Buffy subverts the "male gaze", the ways in which the shows challenge such concepts as established authority and traditional ways of learning and knowing, the use of humour, how the landscape of Southern California plays its part, and how fans have become actively involved in the writing of slash-fan fiction (which pairs characters such as Xander/Spike in sexual relationships). It's an eclectic mix, with some essays more obviously academic than others, but on the whole the style, which includes bibliographies for further reading, means this book should interest both students of cultural and media studies and more general readers. And it's a lot of fun to read, providing many thoughtful insights into two shows that have proved popular television can be both thought provoking and deeply moving. --Elizabeth Sourbut

Review

.,."very thoughtful essays...accessible and intriguing..." -- "Booklist" ..."very thoughtful essays...accessible and intriguing..." -- "Booklist"

Edition details

• Publisher: Barbara Ward & Associates
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 1860647626
• ISBN 13: 9781860647628
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 288
• Editor: Kaveney Roz