Well, I certainly can see why people do it. Hell, my first reaction was to compare it (unfavorably) to Buffy.
The same basic structure is there (good vamp/bad vamp fighting over the same girl) - then again, you could say that about nearly every vampire show ever, lol. But I do think TVD is closer than, say, True Blood, partly because TVD has characters that are just as layered and complex and flawed as BtVS does. When you're dealing with similar themes and archetypes - the self-sacrificing heroine, the good vamp with a dark side, the bad vamp who's love's bitch - then it obviously invites comparisons.
But any comparison inevitably simplifies the subjects. No, Damon and Spike are not the same exact character. They have a lot of similarities, sure, but saying they're the same doesn't do either of them justice. It ignores what makes Damon Damon and what makes Spike Spike. And I think when people have those expectations (like, why isn't Damon's path to redemption as straightforward as Spike's?), they're setting themselves up for disappointment. Sooo... I get why you dislike them so much.
Hahaha, I apparently had a lot of ~feelings on this issue. Basically, I think it's a valid method of analysis, but also a pretty lazy one?
Question: Since we're talking comparisons, who would win in a fight, Alaric or Wesley?
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
carisma_sensei
no subject
Date: Oct. 23rd, 2011 11:25 pm (UTC)The same basic structure is there (good vamp/bad vamp fighting over the same girl) - then again, you could say that about nearly every vampire show ever, lol. But I do think TVD is closer than, say, True Blood, partly because TVD has characters that are just as layered and complex and flawed as BtVS does. When you're dealing with similar themes and archetypes - the self-sacrificing heroine, the good vamp with a dark side, the bad vamp who's love's bitch - then it obviously invites comparisons.
But any comparison inevitably simplifies the subjects. No, Damon and Spike are not the same exact character. They have a lot of similarities, sure, but saying they're the same doesn't do either of them justice. It ignores what makes Damon Damon and what makes Spike Spike. And I think when people have those expectations (like, why isn't Damon's path to redemption as straightforward as Spike's?), they're setting themselves up for disappointment. Sooo... I get why you dislike them so much.
Hahaha, I apparently had a lot of ~feelings on this issue. Basically, I think it's a valid method of analysis, but also a pretty lazy one?
Question: Since we're talking comparisons, who would win in a fight, Alaric or Wesley?