#riley finn

[layer-of-slayers]

Buffy the Vampire Slayer as tumblr text posts 28/?

#Buffy the Vampire Slayer #BtVS #text post meme #op #Faith #Faith Lehane #Fuffy #Faith/Buffy #Buffy #Buffy Summers #Angel #Rupert Giles #Giles #Riley #Riley Finn #Spike #Spuffy #Spike/Buffy #i think i'm funny

[thepunkmuppet]

Buffyverse Characters - First and Last Appearances

↳ The Scooby Gang | Angel Investigations

#btvs #buffy the vampire slayer #angel the series #ats #buffyverse #buffy summers #xander harris #willow rosenberg #rupert giles #jenny calendar #btvs spike #daniel oz osbourne #faith lehane #anya jenkins #riley finn #tara maclay #dawn summers #btvs edit #btvs gifs #gif #gifs #gifset #my gifs

[breezybeej]

The problem with Riley Finn is that he's so bland but the three episodes before he goes away are like.

He was actually becoming someone interesting for a little bit. A real freak who lurks in shadows and does weird shit like get recreational suck jobs from vampires. Who has custom plastic stakes that look exactly like wood so he can non-fatally poke vampires. Who is self aware enough to assess his own problem but too stupid to like. actually do anything about it.

But instead of going farther down that path, he

GOES TO BELIZE TO PROTECT CHRISTIAN MISSIONARIES FROM NATIVE ISLANDERS PRACTICING THEIR OWN RELIGION

#btvs #riley finn #god he just waltzes into spike's crypt and gives him the plastic poke and it's so funny #Riley you were becoming enough of a loser to hang with the rest of the cast mut then you turned into an imperialist again

[irate-iguana]

Buffy Barbie memes, part 1:

Thanks to @gallopinggallifreyans for helping me with these!

#btvs #buffy the vampire slayer #buffyverse #barbie #barbie movie #btvs spoilers #buffy summers #willow rosenberg #xander harris #anya jenkins #cordelia chase #riley finn #spike #angel #rupert giles #original post #meme dump

[bestepisode]

Vote on more episodes here!

See the full list of round 5 polls here.

Hush: When everyone in Sunnydale loses their voice, the Scooby Gang must silently solve the mystery of the monsters who stole their ability to speak. The Gift: As Glory prepares Dawn for a bloodletting ritual that will open a portal to another dimension, Buffy and her friends prepare for battle.

#buffy the vampire slayer #btvs #btvs best episode #btvsr5 #buffy summers #willow rosenberg #tara maclay #xander harris #rupert giles #riley finn #dawn summers #glory btvs #glorificus #spike btvs

[clarkgriffon]

The Worst of the Worst: IMDB’s 10 Worst Ranked Episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (insp.)

#btvsedit #buffythevampireslayeredit #btvs #buffy the vampire slayer #creations #buffy summers #willow rosenberg #xander harris #rupert giles #riley finn #dailybtvs #buffysource #top10bottom10 #things this list says to me is #1) buffy episodes are a serve because i love most of these #2) imdb ratings are once again whack because a lot of these episodes should not be bottom 10. just say you hate camp and go #go fish? camp. doublemeat palace? camp. i robot? camp. #beer bad is ironically camp but deservedly no. 1 on the bad list for being propoganda #tbh i think wtwta is the only episode on this list i actually don't like #ALSO. seeing red was rated so much higher than i thought yall. it's not even near btm 10. :l #and how is not a single s7 ep here. my bottom 10 would be all s7

[lilatara]

imagine if the BtVS writers had just...let us ever be mad at Riley.

For writers who so clearly understood an audience's desire to root for an underdog, they never seemed to understand that they needed to give us an outlet for our frustration with Riley in order to "forgive" him.

Of all the worst problems with how Riley is written as a character, these are two moments in As You Were that always boil it down for me.

After having a year to reflect on everything that DIDN'T work in Into the Woods, apparently the writers' takeaway was that BUFFY needed to apologize. Chasing a helicopter wasn't QUITE humbling enough, I guess. She needs to say sorry to the guy who left her and got married within a year...because clearly SHE was the only one not fully committed to their relationship. Sure.

He, otoh? Has nothing to apologize for.

Now, bear in mind, at this point, we in the audience have watched Buffy lose her mom, sacrifice her own life, struggle through a legit resurrection, but the writers still want us to care that it hurt Riley's feelings that Buffy cried more over Angel than him.

AYW should've been Riley's redemption. He should've shown up apologetic, sheepish, and frankly, if we were meant to get on his side, a little loser-ish. But the writers seemed incapable of getting that you can't make us like a character by just repeatedly telling us he's faultless. They already let him leave once, with Xander lecturing Buffy and us that we had failed to appreciate the best guy we were ever going to have a shot with. But no one was buying. So how to drive it home this time? Have him show up literally "intense, fit, and more handsome than ever", now with new scar! Just like that other guy we know you're into!

Buffy won't just run after him this time. She'll swoon, she'll pine, she'll be filled with jealousy. She'll be a loser in a bad outfit. She'll smell. She'll be less effective and knowledgeable than the super couple. She'll be caught in a humiliating, intimate situation. And how shocking that this somehow still did not make Riley a fan favorite. Who ever could've predicted? Other than everyone who had already seen it not work in ITW, that is.

#btvs #buffy the vampire slayer #buffy summers #riley finn #buffy

[mycatismyfriend]

Buffy the Vampire Slayer | 4x22 "Restless"

#btvs #buffy #buffy the vampire slayer #dailybtvs #btvsedit #buffysource #slayerdaily #buffy summers #btvs 4x22 #mine #mygifs #Riley Finn #Adam #Adam btvs

[lopeirce]

@lgbtqcreators creator bingo + overlay/poster design -> Buffy the Vampire Slayer + This Is War

#buffy the vampire slayer #btvs #buffysource #userlgbtq #buffy summers #angel #faith lehane #rupert giles #anya jenkins #dawn summers #willow rosenberg #tara maclay #spike #william the bloody #xander harris #riley finn #scooby gang #mine #gifs #*

[dreamsuvivor]

Riley boy… if you can’t handle dating a bad bitch, don’t date the baddest of them

#btvs #riley finn #buffy the vampire slayer #buffy summers #anti riley finn #spike #spike btvs #spuffy #angel btvs

[oncemorewithqueering-tv]

best buffy ship--poll:

okay so I was NOT expecting anyone to vote on my spike version of this, so...

here we are again.

#btvs #buffy #buffy the vampire slayer #btvs polls #buffy summers #buffyverse #spike btvs #angel buffy #riley finn #faith lehane #xander harris #willow rosenberg #rupert giles #tara maclay #cordelia chase #daniel oz osbourne #bangel #buffy x angel #spuffy #spike x buffy #briley #riley x buffy #fuffy #faith x buffy #bander #xander x buffy #wuffy #willow x buffy #guffy #giles x buffy

[finalgirl1984]

I think it would have been funny if Riley genuinely was just a normal likable guy. Maybe he accidently ended up in the initiative's frat, and at first they think he's somehow connected but he's just so nice that the guys just decided to keep him around. They tell Walsh they're going to try to recruit him at some point but don't. Once the gang finds out about the initiative everybody is immediately suspicious of him but he doesn't know what's going on. He seems to always just stumble right out of sight of some supernatural stuff like mr magoo.

#btvs #buffy the vampire slayer #riley finn

[hersterical]

Literally one of my all time favorite interactions in btvs is in season four when Professor Wells is all like

“Riley has the highest kill count in the entire initiative and has been responsible for the execution of 12 subterrestrials.”

And Wells and Riley both look so freaking proud and smug and are fully expecting Buffy to just be blown away but then she’s just like

“Oh yeah, it’s been a slow week for me as well. I’m only at about 15 vamp dustings but there’s a nest I was planning on hitting tomorrow if you want in.”

#I know that’s not how the scene actually went #but that’s how I remember it happening #buffy the vampire slayer #buffy summers #riley finn #potentially anti riley finn #if any riley fans see this and get offended let me know and I’ll fix the tags #btvs

[gh-0-stcup]

Riley failed because the writers didn't understand the archetype they were trying to convey and their audience.

Riley's the all-American boy next door. His character model was so pervasive in other media because it's wholesome, simple, and nostalgic. Calling back to a nebulous time when people were nice, helpful, and virtuous. (Actually a rose tinted view of a nonexistent past - it calls back to the viewers childhood when everything felt that way.)

The most important thing with this character model is the feelings it evokes in the audience. The character must come across to the audience as

A moral paragon

Safe

The problem is that this type of character also has deep associations with heteronormativity, sexism, and racism. They have been used numerous times in media to help uphold and propogate these ideas.

But BTVS' very premise stands in direct opposition to the American values this character model tends to embody. It's more likely that this archetype will evoke the exact opposite feelings it's supposed to in fans of BTVS. They're more likely to have been victimized in their lives by the messaging imbeded into it.

It could have worked extremely well had the writers considered what would evoke the same feelings with their own audience.

Take one of Riley's early scenes - punching Parker for his comments about freshman girls and toilet seats. It's mentioned after that Riley does not take issue with his friends talking about women in "worse" ways. He reacted the way he did because he's got a crush on Buffy.

Imo, this is the moment the character failed. If you want to sell a character like Riley as a love interest to audience like BTVS', you must ensure the line between chivalry and chauvinism is never crossed. Once it is, that character's virtuousness will forever come across as a facade. A way to have control and possession over women under the guise of protecting their honour.

A minor adjustment to this one scene would help reframe Riley's motivations. He doesn't take kindly to men speaking that way about women, but it is odd for him to react violently.

In this version, he's someone who respects women in general but has more rash reaction than normal because his crush on Buffy is shaking him up. It also suggests he's not a man who's typically quick to violence.

Another important scene is when Riley finds Buffy outside at night and insists on walking her home. She puts up a fight, commenting on the sexism of assuming boys can take care of themselves but girls need to be walked home. Riley's response is that yes, this is absolutely what he believes.

Now, Riley is a trained soldier who knows there's very serious danger lurking around at night and does not know that Buffy is anything other than a tiny civilian. It's understandable that he would insist upon protecting her. The issue is entirely with how the dialogue is framed.

A better answer to Buffy's question would be "You shouldn't have to." Set him up as a man who understands many women can protect themselves, but believes his role is ensuring they never have to.

It shifts these gender roles from "woman weak, man strong" to Riley's sense of honour. Focuses on how he derives meaning from protecting civilians and those he cares about. Helps shed light on the mentality that led him to becoming a soldier and suggests that being a soldier is tied to his sense of identity and personal values.

It also more firmly shifts being a soldier from a day job to a duty for Riley. It gives him a connection with Buffy, who also believes it is her responsibility to use her strength to protect people.

Just two very simple shifts in dialogue and Riley's a much better character. Amazing how they got it so wrong without even understanding what mistakes they made.

#i had a very long and better organized rough copy in my drafts #but part of it got nuked by my phone deciding to update tumblr WHILE I WAS WRITING #and now i'm tipsy and i've been sitting on these thoughts for days so i want other ppl to see it #coherency be damned #i'll probably add to/adjust this tomorrow or sometime this week #riley finn #btvs #btvs s4

[comradesummers]

don't really care for the buffy/riley storyline but i do find it really funny re: my theory that buffy is lowkey a leftist icon, that their relationship is consistently presented in direct opposition to like american militarism. this patriotic soldier boy spends a month with buffy and her friends and suddenly he's defecting from the army, punching a general and calling himself "an anarchist" (truly one of the most unintentionally funny moments in the entire show). then the moment he leaves her he rejoins the military and goes to do colonialism in south america (yes i know they're technically hunting demons or whatever but it's still the us military, i mean come on). basically, the storyline is a lot more entertaining if you interpret it as the tale of comrade buffy trying to radicalize her boyfriend only for him to cheat on her and confirm that he was a bootlicker all along.

#buffy summers #riley finn #btvs #buffy the vampire slayer

[buffysummers]

Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003)

#btvsedit #usergina #dailybuffysummers #buffysource #chewieblog #throwbackblr #dailyhangover #userstream #dailyflicks #filmtv #btvs #buffy the vampire slayer #buffy summers #buffysummersedit #btvs season four #*gif #riley finn #maggie walsh #1k