From: mjchappell@news.eternal-september.org   
      
   On Thu, 7 Nov 2019 17:02:18 -0500,   
   David  wrote:   
   >   
   >  https://screenrant.com/vampire-diaries-buffy-slayer-comparison-better-worse/   
   >   
   >  BY BEN PETTITT –   
   >   
   >  When Buffy The Vampire Slayer first aired in 1997, it took   
   >  television by storm. It was witty and entertaining, and   
   >  succeeded in bringing back science fiction to the early 21st   
   >  century. It also cleared the way for other similar shows like   
   >  The Vampire Diaries, which went on to become a massive hit in   
   >  its own right.   
   >   
   >  Both shows featured a small town with a vampire infestation   
   >  and followed a female protagonist as she battled against the   
   >  forces of darkness. However, there were still some rather   
   >  large differences between the two dramas, with each putting   
   >  their own unique spin on the supernatural. Here are 5 things   
   >  The Vampire Diaries did better (and 5 that Buffy excelled   
   >  at).   
   >   
   >   
   >  10 THE VAMPIRE DIARIES - MORE COMPLEX VAMPIRES   
   >   
   >  Firstly, this isn't to say that Buffy's take on vampires was   
   >  dull. Some of the most interesting characters from that show   
   >  were vampires, for example, Angel and Spike. However, these   
   >  were a minority and most vampires served as a monster of the   
   >  week for the Slayer to defeat with relative ease.   
   >   
   >  In the case of The Vampire Diaries, Damon and Stefan   
   >  Salvatore shared the spotlight with the show's original lead,   
   >  Elena Gilbert. The show focused on the two vampire brothers   
   >  an awful lot because the characters were so compelling. As if   
   >  they weren't enough, the series introduced the Original   
   >  vampires in the third season, fuelling even more drama.   
   >   
   >   
   >  9 BUFFY - LGBTQ+ CHARACTERS   
   >   
   >  The LGBTQ+ community is where The Vampire Diaries   
   >  fails. Whereas its equally popular spinoff The Originals   
   >  features a gay woman in its main cast, The Vampire Diaries   
   >  fails to give any LGBTQ character much chance to shine. For a   
   >  show where almost every person gets off with another, this is   
   >  more than a little disappointing.   
   >   
   >  Buffy, on the other hand, portrayed gay relationships really   
   >  well, which was especially gratifying considering when it   
   >  first aired. In the fourth season, Willow began to develop   
   >  feelings for Tara, a fellow witch. The two soon became   
   >  involved, resulting in one of Buffy's best relationships for   
   >  almost 3 seasons.   
      
   I'm really not sure why giving time to LGBTQ should be rated as   
   a point.  Buffy's clique were pretty much portrayed as outcasts.   
   Willow coming out as gay seemed like something done for shock   
   value that stuck, she spent quite abit of time pining over   
   Xander and Oz.  I recall it got way too much traffic in this   
   group when it happened and I expect that was reflected in other   
   forums as well.   
      
   Elena's group appeared to be fairly popular.  Her core group was   
   Caroline, Matt and Bonnie, iirc.  Unless of course you want to   
   include Stephen and Damon.  That gives us a sample of six   
   individuals.  Contrary to what appears on television these days,   
   statistically, 1 in 6 people do not identify as LGBTQ.  If none   
   of your core group identify as LBGTQ you won't have many stories   
   to tell.   
      
   If you want to argue it's PC, well so is racial diversity.   
      
   >  8 THE VAMPIRE DIARIES - BETTER SPINOFFS   
   >   
   >  After its third season, Buffy was soon joined by its first   
   >  official spinoff focusing on Buffy's vampire ex, Angel. Angel   
   >  was fairly similar to its sister show and it proved to be   
   >  just as popular. It allowed Angel and Cordelia to develop   
   >  further as characters but it did feel a bit like Buffy 2.0.   
   >   
   >  The Vampire Diaries also paved the way for spinoffs, managing   
   >  to spawn The Originals and Legacies. The former focused on   
   >  the Big Bads from Season 3 of its parent show, the Mikaelson   
   >  family. This gave the show a unique perspective, in that the   
   >  protagonists were not always fighting on the right side. It   
   >  also provided further depth for Klaus and Elijah in   
   >  particular.   
      
   I'm not sure when they weren't fighting on the right side.  It   
   may not have been humanity's side, but they weren't exactly   
   human.   
      
   >  7 BUFFY - EVIL VAMPIRES   
   >   
   >  Considering it even has vampires in its name, The Vampire   
   >  Diaries doesn't portray many outright evil vamps. Sure, Damon   
   >  nailed being the main villain initially, but he soon became   
   >  more of an antihero due to his infatuation with Elena. The   
   >  series produced some great villains but none were properly   
   >  bad.   
      
   When Niklaus was introduced he was nasty.  And I'd almost swear   
   that Stephen's ripper was modeled after Angelus.   
      
   >  In contrast, Buffy wasn't going to shy away from making   
   >  vampires absolutely terrifying to watch. As well as the   
   >  surprisingly okay vampire prosthetics, the show also   
   >  introduced the audience to the most evil vampire of all:   
   >  Angelus. Angelus was Angel's soulless alter ego, who had zero   
   >  qualms about killing the people Buffy loved just to watch her   
   >  suffer.   
   >   
   >   
   >  6 THE VAMPIRE DIARIES - DOPPELGÄNGERS   
   >   
   >  Admittedly, Buffy actually handled the concept of   
   >  doppelgängers fairly successfully in its third season. The   
   >  first time doppelgängers were introduced was in "The Wish"   
   >  which involved an alternate reality. The second time was when   
   >  Willow's alternate vampire ego arrived in her reality and   
   >  wreaked havoc.   
   >   
   >  However, Buffy seemed to only use doppelgängers as a handy   
   >  plot device, whereas The Vampire Diaries used them to sustain   
   >  a series-long arc.  Additionally, while seeing an evil Willow   
   >  was fun, watching Katherine, Elena's doppelgänger, was quite   
   >  simply a privilege and not easily forgettable.   
   >   
   >   
   >  5 BUFFY - A BIGGER VARIETY OF THE SUPERNATURAL   
   >   
   >  In all fairness, The Vampire Diaries covered impressive   
   >  ground when it came to the supernatural, featuring, vampires,   
   >  werewolves, witches and hybrids aplenty. However, all the   
   >  main storylines revolved primarily around those four species,   
   >  with other monsters and creatures only getting an occasional   
   >  look in.   
   >   
   >  Since Buffy's format was more of a monster-of-the-week type,   
   >  it allowed for literally hundreds of supernatural entities to   
   >  have their chance to shine.  Half of the main cast was also   
   >  supernatural including a Slayer, a vampire, a witch, a   
   >  vengeance demon and a mystical key in human form.   
   >   
   >   
   >  4 THE VAMPIRE DIARIES - CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT   
   >   
   >  Buffy was one of the most interesting and popular shows on TV   
   >  for almost seven years and it did produce some unforgettable   
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
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