1) A castle full of women and nobody's getting laid? Believable? Not really.

Let's face it. Andrew might make it as gay as the day is long; That or he's got an affinity for his life size Princess Leia blow up doll. Xander isn't an option to 90% of the women, especially Buffy.

Who's left?

2) I'm not saying that its the norm, but lots of women do kinda experiment. Much more so than guys. Ask a woman if she's at the very least kissed one of her friends, even on a dare. There's a fair chance she might say yes. Ask a guy. Now, get an ice pack for that black eye. =)

3) Being a slayer means being in an all girls club. There's something very Amazon about it. Guys aren't really a part of the equation much.

4) Buffy's at a turning point in her life (again). She's no longer the one and only slayer. She's one of many. She's lost that connection to the outside world. If only for one night, to feel connected and wanted is probably better than feeling alone.

4) "Gay for a Day" or "Gay All the Way"? ... Its interesting. If this had been Faith, people might not have been bitching as much. Faith is very much the outsider. I'm really surprised she didn't bang that crazy Brit Slayer from a few issues back.

To see Buffy do something so _personally_ impulsive, outside of battle, is new. Its not out of character so much as it's an exploration of who she is, who she wants to be, and who people expect her to be.

5) Let's face it. This is NOT the "shock value" thing Buffy's ever done. Some might call banging Spike dumb and gimmicky, but there was some sense even to that - kinda like why a cutter does the whole razor thing.

Buffy has a long history of doing dumb things in her personal life. Spike was only the tip of it.

This will definitely come back to bite her in the ass. Nothing worse than a jilted lover. Well, a jilted lover with superhuman strength probably IS worse. Yeah. That's gonna turn out well. Buffy may have just created a new baddie.

Whedon may not have written this issue/episode, but he is still at the helm. He definitely wouldn't let the writers do anything with the characters that he wouldn't have agreed with or thought of himself somewhere down the line.

Some of you might not agree with this little plot twist, but it IS a part of her character now. It's not like it fucked up Willow's character. If anything, it probably added a whole new level. The fact that Buffy would even consider doing the mattress mambo with a chick for even one night is a huge insight into her character.

Suppose you're Buffy. Your mom's dead. Your town got eaten up buy the mouth of What once made you unique is gone. Hell. You haven't even gotten laid in 12-24 months, even longer for an actual relationship.

It's no wonder why Buffy's so confused. She's a college dropout with no job, no legally obtained money, no prospects beyond the next battle, no relationship, no mentor, etc..

Buffy is kinda in a fucked place up right now. Her latest conquest is a symptom and not the problem.

Great issue. Felt a little short on story advancement, but it was rich in character stuff.

This interview's more detailed and offers some insight in the whole comparison between the show and the comic, in terms of production.

About the 'gay' thing, frankly I'm not surprised. There's been plenty of buildup with the whole cinnamon lipstick thing, Buffy complaining about not getting laid and having no outlet, and the fact that at this point she's open-minded. Joss chalks it up to 'youthful experimentation,' though he doesn't use the word 'bi' which is curious (but not bi-curious). I always thought it would be a better idea to make Willow bi and not negate her past relationships with Oz and Xander, that Tara was someone that she happened to fall in love with, but I guess the networks weren't ready for that kind of subtlety. I think it was important for the show to establish that Willow and Tara's relationship wasn't exploitative ratings-grabbing (evidenced by their first onscreen kiss being decidedly unsexy, as it was a comfort kiss in the middle of mourning the sudden death of Buffy's mother). But with Buffy, the situation is different. And yeah, that was so 'in my face.' And by that, I mean I was holding the comic up to my face to read it. I always love when homophobe idiots say that homosexuality is ok as long as it's not 'in their face.' So keep gaying it up out there, but keep the closet door closed. Remember, it's all part of the Hollywood agenda to turn us gay. Because showing a healthy gay couple (not that I'm referring to Buffy's sitch here) interact as lovers (you know, like in life) is 'in your face' and must be part of an agenda to 'desensitize us.' Like it's bloody violence or something. Anyone who starts out a post with 'if a person wants to be gay' I have no problem calling a jackass. Good thing you did 'forget Byron,' because, guess what? Byron liked the boys AND the ladies.

#6-9 Brian K. Vaughan

#10-11 Joss Whedon

#12-15 Drew Goddard

#16-19 Joss Whedon

#20 Jeph Loeb

#21-30 A combination of Jane Espenson, Doug Petrie, Drew Greenberg, Jim Krueger and one other TBD (DeKnight, please!!)

#31-35 Brad Meltzer (four or all five issues TBD)

#36-40 Joss Whedon

also, no love for Goddard's work on Angel??? his work on Angel was far better than anything he did on Alias seasons 4 or 5. not that i hold him responsible: that show was doomed after season 3.

HOW 'BOUT THAT SUPER BOWL! TOUGH, MANLY GAME THAT IS! GOTTA BE A MAN AND TOUGH AND HETERO AND STUFF...

Enjoying the continuation of the Buffyverse. Angel has been awesome. I love seeing how they brought Wes back My God what a season 6 this would have made.

Someone clue me in on this Y:The Last Man.