Synopses & Reviews
Few could have predicted the enduring affection inspired by Joss Whedonandrsquo;s television series,
Buffy the Vampire Slayer. With its origins in a script Whedon wrote for a 1992 feature film of the same name, the series far outpaced its source material, gathering a devoted audience that remains loyal to the show more than a decade after it left the airwaves. Heralded for its use of smart, funny, and emotionally resonant narrative; subversive and feminist characterizations; and unique approaches to television as an art form, the show quickly developed its own unique fan community, who built on existing narratives through fan fiction, media manipulation, and performance.
Fan Phenomena: Buffy the Vampire Slayer explores how this continued devotion is internalized, celebrated, and critiqued. Featuring interviews with culture makers, academics, and creators of participatory fandom, the essays here are a window into the more personal and communal aspects of the fan experience. Essays from critical thinkers and scholars address how Buffy inspires the creation of, among other enduring artifacts of fandom, fan fiction, crafting, performance, cosplay, and sing-alongs.
As an accessible yet vigorous examination of a beloved character and her world, Fan Phenomena: Buffy the Vampire Slayer provokes a larger conversation about the relationship between cult properties and fandom, and how their interplay permeates the cultural consciousness, in effect contributing to culture through new narrative, academia, language, and political activism.
Review
"This is a brilliant and compulsively readable exploration of the fandom dynamic in the context of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Fan and scholar Stuller has amassed a fascinating array of essays and interviews by the best and brightest (and wittiest!) who love and study the Slayer."
Review
andquot;Jennifer Stullerandrsquo;s new compilation has once more revised and expanded our sense of what a Buffy volume can be, this time offering us not only fresh insights into the world of the slayer and her life in the minds of fans, but a new graphically enthralling book design as well andndash; a perfect inducement for what Joss Whedon once called andldquo;the revolutionary page-turning process.andquot;andquot;
Review
and#160;andquot;This book is for all the Buffy fans new and old who are asking themselves andquot;where do we go from hereandquot;? Fan Phenomena: Buffy the Vampire Slayer is a celebration, a geek freak out, a fun pontification on what it means to continue to be inspired by this cheeky, kick-ass pop culture icon.andquot;
Review
"Cover to cover, itand#8217;s a solid collection, well rounded, well researched, and written in an accessible tone."
Synopsis
Buffy the Vampire Slayer transcended its cult-comic roots to achieve television success, spawning the spinoff series Angel and an academic movement along the way.
This scholarly treatment takes a multidisciplinary approach to Buffy's fandom, which has expressed itself through fiction, videos, music, art, and other media. Ten essays analyze the sociology and anthropology of the fan community and how it uses the Internet to share its passion.
About the Author
Jennifer K. Stuller is a writer, author, scholar, media critic, and feminist pop culture historian.
Table of Contents
Introduction
and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; and#160;Jennifer K. Stuller
The Best, Worst, Known, and Not-So-Known, Pop Culture Influences on the Buffyverse
and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Jennifer K. Stuller
andldquo;Letandrsquo;s Watch a Girlandrdquo;: Whedon, Buffy, and Fans in Action
and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Tanya R. Cochran
Ficcers and andlsquo;Shippers: A Love Story
and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Mary Kirby-Diaz
Interview andndash; Nikki Stafford: Organizing the Great Buffy Rewatch of 2011
Buffyspeak: The Internal and External Impact of Slayer Slang
and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Liz Medendorp
andldquo;Welcome to the Hellmouthandrdquo;: Harnessing the Power of Fandom in the Classroom
and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Amy Peloff and David Border Giles
Interview andndash; Rhonda Wilcox: The andldquo;Motherandrdquo; of Buffy Studies
Buffy, Dark Romance and Female Horror Fans
and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Lorna Jowett
Seeing Green: Willow and Tara Forever
and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Kristen Julia Anderson
The Art of Buffy Crafts
and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Nikki Faith Fuller
Interview andndash; Clinton McClung: Founder of the touring andldquo;Once More With Feelingandrdquo; interactive event
Buffyverse Fandom as Religion
and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Anthony R. Mills
Interview andndash; Scott Allie: Writer, and Senior Managing Editor at Dark Horse Comics
Unlimited Potentials
and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; David Bushman and Arthur Smith
Contributing Biographies
Image Credits