Over the last few months I have been doing a rewatch of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and as it is Pride, I've been thinking a lot about Willow and Tara. Having just begun season five of the show their relationship is really starting to take more of a spotlight. I've always loved the character development in Buffy, and although season four isn't my favourite season, it has some of my favourite moments. The introduction of Tara, and the start of her and Willow's relationship, leading up to Willow coming out to Buffy always get me. The way that Willow coming out was written was so nuanced and delicate, and Buffy's reaction to her best friend's news was so supportive and loving that it was just perfect. It could have been exploitative and gratuitous, but the understated, emotional approach was just what was needed for audiences all over the world, and they kept that up for the duration of Willow and Tara's relationship, never stepping into gay stereotypes that are so often seen in film and television.
What Joss Whedon, Marti Noxon, and the cast and crew had to fight against just to get this relationship portrayed on television is astonishing, especially considering it was in the twenty first century. I'm so glad they fought for this though, because Willow and Tara's relationship was not only something that was needed on prime time television, it was so beautifully written that it is still my favourite relationship in Buffy, and it still breaks my heart every time.
I feel that what Buffy the Vampire Slayer did by pushing for the relationship between Willow and Tara, paved the way for more LGBTQ+ representation in television today, with shows like The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. I've read articles talking about the fact that Willow and Tara's relationship was toxic, and this is true, especially when the show covered the topic of addiction with Willow's use of magic. But that is another thing that I believe is good about it. Most of the relationships in buffy are toxic, or become toxic, (as is the way in a television drama) and Willow and Tara were treated no differently. Their relationship wasn't fetishized into a 'hot lesbian couple', it was treated as a normal relationship on the show, and that adds to the importance of it.
For this reason, and many, many others, Buffy the Vampire Slayer is still my favourite show ever to be aired on television.
HAPPY PRIDE EVERYONE.
