Buffy The Vampire Slayer was an important part of my life in the fact that, when I first started dating my girlfriend (now wife) we would always spend our Friday evenings together watching the Buffy and Angel double bill. This lasted for 7 seasons of Buffy and we both loved the show.
We recently heard that Warner Bros was planning to reboot the show for a new generation and that they were looking to cast an African-American actress in the lead role. This caused quite the backlash in the geek community as countless voices spoke out against a reboot of the beloved TV show.
The complaints ranged from Buffy simply not needing any kind of reboot at all, to complaints that if it was rebooted, they should use a blonde white actress. The reason for this (at least from my perspective) has nothing to do with racism as a casual observer may expect, but more that fans understood the irony creator Joss Whedon was going for in casting against type and turning the horror cliché on its head. After all, the character of the Slayer becomes the boogeyman for all the monsters in the show.
Now the new showrunner for this Buffy reboot has responded to some of the criticism aimed at her as yet still theoretical show. Here is what Monica Owusu-Breen, writer, executive producer and showrunner of the planned reboot of Buffy The Vampire Slayer said on Twitter.
— monicaowusubreen (@monicabreen) July 26, 2018
What I find interesting here is the vague suggestion that rather than a reboot, that this may be connected to Buffy The Vampire Slayer in more of a sequel capacity. I actually personally feel less of a collective groan about the idea of an actual sequel. I always felt the series could have continued in many ways after it was ended, but without Joss Whedon, perhaps not?
In saying all that, the Buffy universe did carry on in the comic book world, and fans may not be happy with a continuation of the story that does not match the canon of the comics. If they could devise a story that carried on with a new Slayer and had some serious connections to what came before, I’d give it a chance, but I’m still not convinced.
What do you think of Owusu-Breen’s comments? Are you excited or reviled at the thought of a Buffy reboot? Sound off in the comments below.
Don’t forget to share this post on your Facebook wall and with your Twitter followers! Just hit the buttons on the top of this page.
SOURCE: Monica Owusu-Breen (via Twitter)
