Late Season Love

This is the character study of Anya. I believe it has a place in this community because it started for me with the realization that Anya did in fact had a well-realized character arc in season 7, and an interesting and meaningful character story throughout the series (also the moderator told me I can do it). Anya’s story was uniquely hers, yet relevant to the series themes and mirroring Buffy’s story – What does it mean to be a human?

I wrote it more than a year ago and posted it in my Lj where you might have seen it long ago. This is slightly edited version.

I was tired of Anya being presented as an innocent victim of Scoobies abuse. Yes, they weren’t especially nice to her. But was she nice? Let’s not forget that she was a murderous demon, who probably caused more death and destruction than Spike and Angel together: after all, any vampire can only kill one victim at the time, whereas a vengeance demon don’t have this kind of limitation. A well-developed wish can empty a country.

Anya’s story seems to pretty consistent – even it its most frustrating parts. Most of her quirks are not attributed to her demon powers, but to her personality – that stays the same throughout the ages.

I think it is worth remembering that Anya was a dangerous demon who for the most time didn’t feel bad about causing death to humans for the duration of twelve centuries, and it will do her character, and her development more justice than white-washing. She doesn’t deserve the white-washing, she doesn’t deserve our pity. She could hold her own, she had a powerful character arc, and I love her a lot.


( Anya: the meaning of being human )

Here it is - in no way a comprehensive study, of course.