Analysis of the Progression of the Representation of Female Protagonists in the Sci-Fi/Fantasy TV Shows Orphan Black and Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Girl Power, Appropriated “Masculinity” in Conjunction with Femininity, Empowered Sexuality, and the Heterosexual Script

Abstract

Buffy Summers goes from urban Los Angeles to Sunnydale, California after she is expelled from her previous high school on the grounds of an assortment of Slayer-related incidents. Chosen as the Slayer, Buffy is fated to fight against the forces of darkness, although this responsibility is not always conducive to leading the life of an average teenage girl. Upon moving to Sunnydale, Buffy quickly learns that Sunnydale High School sits directly above a “Hellmouth,” a hub for demon activity. Specifically, the entrance to the Hellmouth is located directly beneath the Sunnydale High School library, home to a curious collection of occult literature and Rupert Giles, the librarian, who Buffy soon discovers is her Watcher. Buffy befriends Xander Harris, a dorky boy who is often teased for his sense of style and lack of stereotypically masculine qualities, and Willow Rosenberg, a shy and awkward computer geek who spurs Buffy to accept her duties as the Slayer. Cordelia, the typical soap bitch of Sunnydale High School, often finds herself entangled with the “Scooby Gang’s” affairs, as the trio are aptly labeled (Jowett 30)