I'm Not Hopeful About This Guest Appearance

I haven't seen Angel & Faith's June issue, but I've had concerns ever since Willow showed up on the last page of May's issue. It's not that I'm worried Gage will do something horrible to the character. No, I'm more concerned he'll have her say or do something that will really piss me off. Namely, that she'll engage in what seems to be the Core Scoobs favorite pasttime: looking down their noses at everyone else.

It's something they love to do to Faith, and I can't imagine Angel killing Giles' has left them kindly disposed towards him. Of course, it isn't as though Willow has a leg to stand on in that regard, not after Season 6, but hell, that's never stopped them before. Season 6 was nothing but Xander, Willow, and Buffy holding everyone else to standards they failed to meet themselves. Seriously, Xander summoned a demon that made people dance until they spontaneously combusted. He's responsible for more deaths in that episode than Faith ever has been. Does anyone ostracize Xander for that? No, and I'm sorry but he ought to know better by then. He's messed with magic before, seen Willow use it rashly, seen the aftereffects of Giles' ill-spent magic use. He can't use the "didn't know better" excuse, can he?

I have started to wonder if everyone in the Buffyverse knows Xander is too mentally deficient to be held responsible for his actions, but no one bothered to tell the audience. If I'm supposed to cut him that sort of slack, it'd be nice to know.

I don't mind so much if characters let their friends (and themselves) slide on things, since it isn't atypical behavior. I give people who have proven trustworthy in the past more leeway than people who haven't. It's the fact that no one else ever calls them on that behavior that irritates. It creates a disconnect between what I see - a person behaving in an unacceptable fashion - and what the writers and characters are trying to tell me I'm seeing, a person justified in acting the way they do. Which is not a pleasant reading/viewing experience, especially if I'm awaiting comeuppance.