From: daviderl31@yahoo.com   
      
   https://screenrant.com/buffy-the-vampire-slayer-joyce-best-worst   
   mom-comparison/   
      
   Joyce wasn't exactly a perfect mother in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but she's   
   had her fair share of shining moments   
      
   BY AMELIA BRANTLEY   
   MAR 25, 2020   
      
   Joyce Summers on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, seems to be one of the most   
   controversial parents in all of television. While she is praised for some of   
   her parenting, she’s also criticized for being too lenient with a daughter   
   who is clearly showing signs of mental illness. Not only does Joyce not know   
   that Buffy is the vampire slayer, she doesn’t even know that vampires and   
   other things that go bump-in-the-night are real!   
      
   So when Buffy acts out and does things like burn down her school gym, it   
   seems as though Joyce is ignoring clear signs of trouble or the   
   supernatural. But on the other hand, she is supportive and loving and always   
   seems to have Buffy’s best interests at heart. There seems to be a constant   
   debate when it comes to Joyce’s parenting. With all of that said and done,   
   here are five times when Joyce was a bad mother and five times she was   
   actually better than some would give her credit for.   
      
      
   10   
   SHE WAS A GREAT MOM: She’s A Single Mom   
      
   Joyce is a single mom who does her absolute best under difficult   
   circumstances. She clearly didn’t have very much support from Buffy’s   
   father, given how absent he is in Buffy’s life. That, and mother/daughter   
   relationships are really hard, especially with a teenage and daughter and   
   especially if the vampire-slaying teenage daughter in question appears to be   
   troubled.   
      
   Trying to support a family and raise a child on your own is unimaginably   
   challenging, but Joyce really does give it her best efforts and deserves a   
   lot of credit for that.   
      
      
   9   
   SHE WAS NOT A GREAT MOM: She’s Oblivious   
      
   From the very beginning, Joyce seems to downplay all of the very bizarre   
   things that happen to and around Buffy. In the very first episode that shows   
   Buffy’s first day at Sunnydale High School, Joyce gives Buffy a quick pep   
   talk and tries to give her sound advice. Instead she tells Buffy "Try not to   
   burn anything down.”   
      
   It seems as though she almost brushes off how serious something like that is   
   and makes a joke of it. She is also frequently heard through the series   
   asking, “What’s going on?," never really seeming to figure things out   
   despite how obvious and blatant they get.   
      
      
   8   
   SHE WAS A GREAT MOM: All Of Season 5   
      
   There are a lot of fan theories surrounding Joyce’s character in Season 5.   
   Joyce is a lot more present later on in the series and most theories point   
   to the fact that Dawn is now in the picture.   
      
   With two daughters to take care of, Joyce seems to be a much more active and   
   available parent, showing genuine concern for both of her children. It seems   
   as though the addition of Dawn in the Summers' household changed a lot of   
   things. Not just in the demon world because Dawn after all is the key, but   
   in the Summers’ world as well.   
      
      
   7   
   SHE WAS NOT A GREAT MOM: She Kicks Buffy Out   
      
   One of the worst things Joyce ever does comes at the end of Season 2. Here,   
   Buffy is about to fight Angel to the death to save the world, but Joyce is   
   not letting her leave the house. Buffy comes clean to her mother and tells   
   her everything, but her mother won’t listen and tries to ground her   
   daughter.   
      
   Buffy disobeys her mother and on her way out the door, Joyce tells Buffy,   
   “If you leave this house, don’t even think about coming back.” Buffy   
   respects her mother’s wishes and once she kills Angel, she runs away from   
   Sunnydale.   
      
      
   6   
   SHE WAS A GREAT MOM: She Gets Buffy Back   
      
   As if to make up for the previous entry, Buffy does eventually return to   
   Sunnydale and her mom welcomes her back with open arms. Her mom is anxious   
   to have things return back to normal and wants to trust Buffy again.   
      
   She keeps an open line of dialogue between her and her daughter, even when   
   it comes to Buffy’s slaying. She also fights really hard to get Buffy back   
   into school when she comes back to Sunnydale and seems to have a hopeful   
   outlook for Buffy’s entire situation, despite their current circumstances.   
      
      
   5   
   SHE WAS NOT A GREAT MOM: She's Too Overprotective   
      
   A pretty constant theme throughout the first two seasons, before Joyce finds   
   out that Buffy is the slayer, is how many times she gets in the way of Buffy   
   and her slayer duties.   
      
   Buffy is constantly having to sneak out and around her mom in order to save   
   the world from the latest evil thing. Joyce is just trying to protect her   
   teenage daughter, and it’s not really her fault that she doesn’t know who   
   her daughter really is. Still, she also doesn’t make an effort to really   
   examine everything going on in Buffy’s life.   
      
      
   4   
   SHE WAS A GREAT MOM: She Protects Buffy No Matter What   
      
   Even though Joyce has no idea just how much trouble and danger her daughter   
   is typically in, she does everything she can think of to protect her. Joyce   
   seems to have very healthy and normal boundaries for her teenager and if   
   Buffy were just a normal teenager, Joyce’s house rules would probably work   
   really well.   
      
   She doesn’t expect too much from her daughter, but definitely wants the best   
   for her and will do what she has to do to ensure her daughter’s happiness   
   and safety. She does these without ever knowing that so much of what happens   
   to Buffy (and what she does to save the world) are incredibly dangerous and   
   out of her control.   
      
      
   3   
   SHE WAS NOT A GREAT MOM: Dating Ted   
      
   One of the things Joss Whedon does brilliantly is use mythological creatures   
   and demons to draw parallels to the real life issues a lot of teenagers   
   face. One of those issues is pointed out in a Season 2 episode “Ted."   
      
   Buffy’s mom starts dating and falls for a guy that rubs Buffy the wrong way.   
   Ted’s '50s-era way of thinking and speaking plus his threats to “give Buffy   
   a slapping” don’t seem to deter Joyce from her new love interest. After   
   some   
   investigating, the Scooby gang learns about Ted’s dark past and eventually   
   discover he is not a man, but a robot. Joyce clearly doesn’t have great   
   taste in men.   
      
       [in Joyce's defense - she was lonely, and Ted seemed to give her the   
   support and companionship she missed, wanted and needed]   
      
      
   2   
   SHE WAS A GREAT MOM: She Loves Buffy’s Friends   
      
   Joyce makes an honest effort to bond with all of the people in Buffy’s life.   
   She takes an interest in all of her friends and treats Xander and Willow as   
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
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