Visits to my site peaked in May 2003, with the BtVS series finale and the publicity surrounding it. Visits then went steadily down until they perked up again in October 2003, when Spike returned on AtS. Visits then proceeded to go steadily down once again, which suggests to me that AtS began losing Spike fans almost right away. Though it could just mean that they went to another site that archives more Spuffy. ;)

The extreme decrease in site visits (I'm getting about 70% as many visits now as I got in May 2003) is probably due to several factors:

1. General decrease of interest in Buffy fandom when the series ended.

2. Summer lull -- even those people who returned for Angel in fall were likely to lose interest over the summer.

3. I stopped archiving most works in progress, which used to bring in the most visitors. (I stopped mostly because I couldn't keep track of them all, and a lot of them took directions halfway-through that didn't work well for my site, so I figured it's best to wait until a story is finished even if it does mean many fewer site visitors.)

4. I started archiving more slash. I got a lot of complaints over this. Stupid homophobia.

5. I started archiving less Spike/Buffy. Most Spike fic readers mostly read Spike/Buffy.

I do still archive S/B regularly, btw, just not as often as I used to, and the S/B I archive tends to be angsty rather than fluffy. This is because
- fewer people are writing good S/B; a lot of writers have just moved on
- I'm not interested in S/B and don't read it for enjoyment; I'll only read it if I respect the writer or if someone actively submits it to my site
- Warning: Spuffy bitching. Stop reading now if it will upset you. Just my personal opinion, etc. I absolutely do not buy that post-S6 Buffy could possibly have loved, cared about, or valued Spike on his own terms without vast amounts of therapy and personal-growth. All canonical evidence indicates that he was simply a useful thing to her and that she was pathologically incapable of recognizing the value of anyone but herself or someone who does something for her. She might have missed his constant boot-licking post-"Chosen," but she sure as hell didn't miss him, and I'm certain she's not mourning him. I get really sick of the sappy fluffy Buffy-as-Mary-Sue, crying her eyes out missing her twu wuv Spike, wish-fulfillment Spuffy. (Even though I'll still, very occasionally, archive it if it's written very well otherwise.)

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I want to respond to your comment about post Season Seven Buffy. I saw her as loving Spike, but not in a sappy way. I think she has loved Spike all through Season Six and Season Seven, but she couldn’t get past the fact that he started out as a vampire enemy. She loved him in spite of that, but she was not willing to indulge the love and instead maintained a constant state of denial even to herself. She still found it unseemly for her to be in love with a vampire. I know you can now say, what about Angel? But the fact remains that she met Angel and fell in love with him when he was an ally and not evil. Perhaps if Angelus had surfaced before she fell in love with him, then things would have been different.

I agree that she heartlessly used Spike in Season Six. She was emotionlly broken. But I would say that she still loved him but just would not admit it to herself. She alluded to this in Season Seven, when she asked Willow, “Does everyone think I’m still in love with Spike?”

The other thing that kept her so distant in Season Seven was taking her role as Slayer and savior of the world so very seriously. Serious to the point of dullness I must add. She was particularly lacking the grace under pressure that she exhibited in earlier seasons. And she was constantly inconsiderate and selfish, but my take is that she was trying to keep her focus on the war with the First. Love could wait. As the season ending neared she was mellowing, because she knew this might be their final days together.

I agree that the sappy fluffy love was not there and never could be.

I would agree that she could use some therapy to help her demonstrate and acknowledge her love. A problem that has been a continuing theme throughout the series.

I am not trying to change your mind or attitude. We all see the same show but interpret it differently. I think the fact that we do see it in so many different ways, proves how layered and complex and entertaining the show was.

I admire you and your Website. I always enjoy reading your insightful posts, even when they run counter to my own thinking.

Thanks. :)

I definitely think that different people can (validly) interpret the show in different ways. Though I think that's more because of the differences in individual people than it is because of the quality of the show.

I think that in later seasons ME ceased to tell a story with any kind of conviction, and instead played a sort of political game based more on pleasing fan factions and merchandisers and network executives.

They did a whole lot to basically keep Buffy/Spike and Buffy/Angel as viable couples -- keeping as much hope alive for each while trying not to offend fans of the other.

So in the end, you can interpret a lot of it however the hell you want, because there's really no "truth" there, just a bunch of political manipulation designed to make fans with totally different POVs feel like they got what they wanted out of it. You can interpret S7 as Buffy moving on from Spike, Buffy loving or using or being indifferent to Spike, Spike moving on from Buffy, Spike utterly devoted to Buffy, Spike knowing Buffy loved him, Spike knowing Buffy didn't love him, Buffy loving Angel, Buffy being totally over Angel, etc. There's canonical support for all of these; it just depends on what you wanted to see.

That said, what I saw was Buffy the heartless, cruel, pathetic, selfish, melodramatic, narcissistic, self-righteous, cowardly, abusive, delusional monster with a gigantic martyr-complex and an overdeveloped sense of self-importance. I think she needs vast amounts of therapy to teach her to recognize the value of individual people regardless of what they can do for her -- I don't think she's been capable of that for years.

I definitely think that different people can (validly) interpret the show in different ways. Though I think that's more because of the differences in individual people than it is because of the quality of the show.

Definitely. What else could explain the people who think that Buffy tainted herself by consorting with Spike at all.

So in the end, you can interpret a lot of it however the hell you want, because there's really no "truth" there, just a bunch of political manipulation designed to make fans with totally different POVs feel like they got what they wanted out of it.

Too true, and this is the reason for my ultimate disappointment with Season Seven.

That said, what I saw was Buffy the heartless, cruel, pathetic, selfish, melodramatic, narcissistic, self-righteous, cowardly, abusive, delusional monster with a gigantic martyr-complex and an overdeveloped sense of self-importance.

Huh. Sometimes I almost get the feeling you don't like Buffy.

LOL. I wonder where you'd get such a thing?

That said, what I saw was Buffy the heartless, cruel, pathetic, selfish, melodramatic, narcissistic, self-righteous, cowardly, abusive, delusional monster with a gigantic martyr-complex and an overdeveloped sense of self-importance.

Awwww, this is just pure poetry to my ears and balm to my soul. We few, we happy few, on that bitch Buffy wagon.

Awwww, this is just pure poetry to my ears and balm to my soul. We few, we happy few, on that bitch Buffy wagon.

Heee. Yes, exactly. I get the same way when you bitch about Buffy, too. :)

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