Love Burns
Feb. 13th, 2009 02:01 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
deird_ljThis started out as a meta about Spike, love, and how often he uses “fire” in love-related stuff.
Then it turned into a meta about fire and love in the Buffyverse.
Then I started searching episode transcripts, looking for fire metaphors… and decided I’d probably better include actual fires as well.
Then I realised that lots of those fires were actually caused by explosions.
…and then I got carried away.
So. This is a meta about fires, explosions, smoking, flamethrowers, fire-related names, firemen, exploding body parts, and love-and-fire metaphors in the Buffyverse.
*looks exhausted*
“I don’t like this. Look, fire. Fire is rarely a sign of imminent safety.”
And to begin with, a poll! Please take it, and answer with your opinions only. For heaven’s sake, don’t try to actually figure out the answers. It takes ages.
[Poll #1348452]
Fear not – I’ll give you the answers shortly.
And now, for lots and lots of writing…
(This was all figured out by searching transcripts of each episode for the words “fire”, “flame/flaming”, “smoke/smoking”, “burn”, “spark”, and “explode/explosion”. I’m pretty sure I got them all.)
“ ‘Cordelia, homeroom was fun. Too bad it burnt to the ground.’ What? ‘Hey, how ‘bout that giant snake.’ ‘Dear Cordelia, thanks for the flaming arrows.’ Flaming arrows?”
There’s a lot more fire in the show than I was expecting.
It is, of course, a very action-y show, so naturally things blow up and burn down a lot, but there’s still a lot.
People burn down school buildings, set fire to vampires, throw fireballs, burn photos, walk past trashcan fires on the street, fantasise about being firemen, burn carpets, jackets, and bedspreads, breathe fire, burn people at the stake, and read Latin in front of books (that’s always going to lead to trouble).
“There’s no cure but the fire.”
Sunnydale buildings to get burnt down include the school science building, a church, Spike’s factory, Xander’s neighbours’ house, a place where vampires are paid to bite people, and the Magic Box.
Then there’s Hemery High’s gym, a petrol station, a barn, a gypsy camp, a villa, and a shop selling material on conspiracy theories. Oh, and half of L.A.
“Aw, it was easy. Started a fire in the prison laundry room. Rode out in the garbage truck.”
Most Sunnydale fires are started by Buffy. Angel, however, is the king of standing around and watching as someone else causes the fires. He’s been present for 9 different buildings burning down.
Angel gets even more impressive if you include the explosions he’s witnessed: a grand total of 17. (He’s also caused more explosions than anyone else: 4, but one was only a fuse-box.)
“It makes whatever problems we have seem insignificant in comparison. I mean, the entire universe explodes.”
Collectively, the Scooby Gang have blown up a mall (using a rocket launcher), a cabin in the woods, 2 crypts, bits of the Magic Box, a microwave, a cemetery, parts of the Initiative, and of course, the high school.
The Fang Gang, on the other hand, are responsible for a sports store, a storage facility for spare body parts, an innocence-holding nest egg, a whole bunch of Las Vegas lightbulbs, the elevator in the Hyperion, a memory-holding mystical cube, and a mineshaft.
Big bads also make a habit of trying to blow up our heroes: with the Watchers Council, a car, a squad of Potentials, an Italian bag, Willow, Angel Investigations, a submarine, and Lorne’s club coming under fire.
Not to mention Illyria, and Angel’s bedroom – which blew up on their own.
“That, my friends, is the smell of sweet, sweet, victory.” “Also, burning cotton-poly blend.”
Not content with destroying every building they get within reach of, the good guys also make a habit of setting fire to random objects – such as Ms Calendar’s computer, the Glove of Myhnegon, RJ’s jacket, Dawn’s diaries, secret Nazi documents, two bodies, and the Shroud of Rahmon.
Plus, you know, actual fires in fireplaces.
“Also, any time something comes in with runes on it, I’m supposed to tell Angel immediately... and not try and read the runes myself... ‘cause that can cause a fire.”
And on top of all the intentional destruction, there’s plenty of the accidental variety – including Willow’s bedspread, one of Giles’ books, and a map of Sunnydale…
Really, our favourite evil-fighting teams are complete pyromaniacs. Which I never really noticed before now.
“What? You mean my skin and muscle burning away from the bone? Organs exploding in my chest? Eyeballs melting in their sockets? No. No memory at all. Thanks for asking.”
Vampires, of course, are highly flammable – which leads to lots of fun opportunities to set people on fire. Hooray!
Not including Spike and Angel, a total of 12 vamps have gone up in flame… plus one nest.
Additionally, 3 demons have been set on fire by Buffy, another one (Halfrek) was burned by D’Hoffryn, a cheerleader got flamey hands courtesy of Amy’s mother, a random shopper was burned from the inside out by the Judge, MOO tried to set Buffy, Willow, and Amy on fire, Anya made a guy spontaneously combust (off-screen, but still) and started the Russian revolution – which included at least one man running on fire through the banquet hall, Willow set Warren’s body on fire, Dawn tried to set the Bringers on fire, Cordelia tried to set James on fire, Jhiera and her girls set pretty much everyone on fire, Wolfram & Hart set an employee on fire, Jasmine burned while trying to find Fred, Darla shot flaming arrows at Holtz’s compatriots, fake-vision guy burned Cordelia, Fred threw flaming coals into Sahjahn’s face, Doyle died heroically on fire (as did Spike), and Angel set Darla and Drusilla on fire – although they didn’t actually die.
And then there were all the people who danced themselves to death during the singing debacle. Don’t forget them.
Like I said – pyromaniacs.
“Can everyone just notice how much fire I’m not on?”
Angel and Spike, of course, are fairly well known for not catching fire.
While they’ve both been burnt at least once (Angel in In The Dark, for example), they also spend a lot of time running around under blankets, using necro-tempered glass, and travelling to alternate non-burny dimensions.
They seem to enjoy this.
“If we had a flame-thrower we could set the table on fire. Draw a little more attention to us.”
More sophisticated fire-causing techniques are always welcome. The Scooby-and-Fang Gangs include several fans of the flame-thrower.
These have been used by Wes, Fred, Faith, Warren, the Class of 99, and Gunn. Anya also suggested using one for protection.
The prize for Greatest Flame-Thrower enthusiasm goes to Gunn – who suggests using one 3 times… and also uses one on Angel.
“Nobody...replaces... the toner!”
There are also a number of fire-related accessories, just waiting to be put to good use by a hero in a jam.
Joyce favours the fire-axe (as do a whole lot of vampires, and a psychotic Wolfram & Hart employee).
But while that and other objects such as fire escapes, fire engines, fire exits, and fire alarms get used for all sorts of things, it’s the fire extinguisher that gets the most chances to shine. 8 fire extinguishers have been used as weapons, as places to hide security passes, and as… well… ways for putting out fires.
Extra credit goes to Fred, for rigging up a way to get a fire extinguisher to smack Wesley in the face.
“Let’s see. Stuff only you and me know. Okay! On my seventh birthday ... I wanted a toy fire truck, and I didn't get it, and you were real nice about it, and then the house next door burnt down, and then real fire trucks came, and for years I thought you set the fire for me. And if you did, you can tell me.”
Our heroes being such fire lovers, it’s not a surprise they’re also big fans of firemen.
Xander, in particular, not only wanted to have a toy fire truck, but also wanted to be a fireman – and sometimes pretends to be one while having sex with Anya…
And then, of course, there’s this:
“I walk. I talk. I shop, I sneeze. I’m going to be a fireman when the floods roll back.”
I’m still not sure exactly what it means. But it counts.
Moving on…
“You go through the door and are confronted by Trogdor the Burninator.”
I just thought I’d take this opportunity to point out that there are characters called “Stewart Burns”, “Reggie Sparks”, and “Melissa Burns”, a mention of “Smokey Robinson and the Miracles”, and a book by “Frances Hodgson Burnett”.
Just in case you were wondering.
“There are things I will not tolerate: students loitering on campus after school, horrible murders with hearts being removed. And also smoking.”
And now for a public service announcement: SMOKING IS EVIL.
No, really.
Buffyverse smokers include:
- Sheila (rebel schoolgirl extraordinaire)
- Harmony (“I am a villain, Spike, helloooo.”)
- Angel (while evil)
- Collins (just before shooting machine guns at Buffy and Faith)
- Sahjahn (while waiting for Holtz to reawaken)
- a woman at Fred’s hotel (also a Jasmine follower)
- the CEO of Italian Wolfram & Hart (no further comment needed)
- several members of the Circle of the Black Thorn (shortly to be killed by Lindsey)
The only nice guys who are allowed to smoke are formerly-evil ones – like Faith and Spike.
If you should happen to be a good guy wanting a cigarette, the best thing to do is get really depressed. Just like:
- Chris Epps’ mum
- Doyle (pre-AtS)
- Angel (in the 50s)
- Lorne (when his life starts going badly)
- Justine
- Number 5
Or, alternatively, you could be completely immature, like Giles on a candy-high.
“No. I… Dawn, I just thought you were in danger… of smoking.”
Should you happen to disregard these stern rules, you will suffer the consequences. These range from being incredibly scared and traumatised (like Carlos from Lessons), to being beaten up (like Laura from Nightmares) to being horribly slaughtered (like Uncle Enyos from Innocence or the guidance counsellor from Beauty and the Beasts).
The only other smoker to appear on the show is Andrew. Which should really tell you all you need to know.
“Easy. We burn the house to the ground and collect the insurance. Plus, fire? Pretty.”
Being the pyromaniacs they are, the characters really aren’t shy about suggesting fire as the ultimate solution.
They’ve suggested burning lipstick, a dressing gown, some disgusting photos, some dead demons, and a client’s home… among others.
“Um, perhaps this might change your mind. You help us, and the slayer won’t kill your clientele and burn your establishment to the ground.”
They’re also up for making fire-themed threats. All the time.
And no – this isn’t just the bad guys talking. In total, 4 villains have threatened people with fire (Olaf, Razor, the Shark demon, and Emil, if you’re curious).
The good guys, though?
Let’s see…
“If you hurt my sister at all… touch her… you’re going to wake up on fire.”
Dawn threatened Spike, Willow threatened Buffy, Spike threatened Buffy and Drusilla, Andrew threatened Xander, Dawn, and Anya, Faith threatened Wesley, Giles threatened a demon (for a change), Wesley threatened a cyborg, and Angel threatened Wolfram & Hart.
Granted, several of them were temporarily evil at the time, but still.
“So she wished her husband’s head would explode, which was great except we were standing three feet from him at the time. What a mess.”
Going back to explosions for a second, there’s actually quite a bit of explosion-related metaphor.
Most of it concerning people’s body parts exploding.
While Anya’s the only one who’s actually done any head-exploding, it’s also talked about more figuratively by:
- Xander (his respond to too much talk of self-tanning lotion)
- Buffy (her mum, upon finding out how Buffy went on the SATs)
- Anya (Harmony, caused by having original thoughts)
- Willow (after spending the night talking to Oz)
- Dawn (as what she’d like to do to a classmate)
- Willow (as a potential possibility of a dangerous spell)
- Buffy (re Spike’s head and the non-working chip)
- Spike (re the chip)
Other body parts that are mentioned in the context of explosions include:
- Spike’s organs (while turning into a pillar of fire)
- Fred’s stomach (from too much food)
- Fred’s brain (in revenge for rejecting Jasmine’s love)
- Xander’s eyes (the hopeful wish of Anya)
- Xander’s penis (also courtesy of Anya)
- Anya and Xander (whole, as a respond to stress – according to Dawn)
- a stressed student (also whole… and that one actually happened)
- Fred (from too much fun)
- Angel (from stress over Darla)
…just take a moment to picture all of that.
“Earthquake, fire, blood. Be heedful of the signs, human, and trouble the Loa no more.”
Despite the rampant pyromania, fire is actually kind of seen as a bad thing.
From “burning in Tarkna”, to “burning the demon out of your living flesh”, to “flames under my feet”, to “eternal fire and brimstone”, the idea of stuff burning is frequently presented in a less-than-fun light.
Actually, there are quite a few more than that. But I’m not going to type them all out in full.
Except for this one:
“Flames wouldn’t be eternal… if they actually consumed anything. But it means something that you tried.”
…which nicely leads us into our next topic. Metaphor.
“That girl’s on fire!” “Enough of the hyperbole!”
Fire metaphors run rampant through this show.
Let’s start with some average, ordinary, everyday sayings, shall we?
“Oh, Buffy, I don't think so. Frying pan, fire?”
“If you’re gonna play with fire…”
“Been there. Tried that. Not unlike smothering a forest fire with napalm, as I recall.”
“No more fuel on the fire.”
“…if your head was on fire.”
“The burnout factor is, like, nothing.”
“At this rate, you’re going to burn out. And up.”
“Think of it as trial by fire. A quest.”
“You’re on fire, Cordelia!”
“We’ll stay here and keep the home fires burning.”
“Warmer… warmer… you’re smoking hot.”
“Evil geniuses live for that playing-with-fire stuff.”
“How do you fire it up?”
“You want to fight fire with fire. Make sure the government and the other savages learn about Jasmine’s love.”
“The smoking thermos!”
“The whole thing could explode in our faces.”
…quite a lot of those, really.
“Faithfulness and devotion, things born of fire and roof were his...”
There’s also, for instance, Buffy letting her birthday candle burn.
Or Fred being “consumed in the fires of resurrection”.
Or the events of Not Fade Away being referred to as “the fireworks”.
And Faith’s nickname of “firecracker”, Willow being “a firebrand”, and the sheer number of people referred to as “Sparky”.
“You feel it, right? How the anger gives you fire? A Slayer needs that.”
Fire is frequently used when discussing emotions.
Especially anger, frustration (twice), passion, rage, and just plain feeling. (See, for instance, the song “Walk Through The Fire”.)
There’s also mention of a “buried spark of decency”, a “spark of humanity”, and Wesley’s observation that there are things that “will burn right through us. Truths we couldn’t bear.”
“Well, now, you girls are just burning with righteousness, aren’t you? Problem is, you think you’re blazing like suns, when really you’re burning like matchsticks in the face of the darkness.”
It’s a favourite metaphor-of-choice for Caleb.
From “cleansing fire” to “the fire that makes people kill and hate”, he often uses it to discuss The First. (See also: Andrew’s illustration of The First, which features flames.)
He also calls Buffy “the most aflame with that most precious invention of mankind – the notion of goodness”.
Apparently, good and evil share equally in this whole flaminess thing. According to Caleb, anyway.
“She just left. She didn’t even care enough to cut off my head or set me on fire. I mean, is that too much to ask? You know? Some little sign that she cared?”
And now…
“Well, yeah. I’m a spitfire in the bedroom.”
Finally…
“No candles? Well, I brought one. It’s extra flamey.”
The reason I started this whole essay in the first place.
Love and fire metaphors.
“Hey, speaking of ‘wow’ potential, there’s Oz over there. What are we thinking, any sparkage?”
In particular, this one right here:
“Trust is for old marrieds, Buffy. Great love is wild and passionate and dangerous. It burns and consumes.”
And really, it was worth the essay. Because these metaphors are everywhere.
“Well, she said that you were a... h-hunk of burning... something or other. So, whadaya think of that?”
Seriously! Everywhere!
“Half of me is just ... on fire, going crazy if I'm not touching her. The other half ... is so still and peaceful ... just perfectly content. Just knows: this is the one.”
From Cordelia burning photos, to Riley blowing up a crypt, fire keeps cropping up as relationships hit the rocks.
“Well, you know – love. It’s a fire.” “You’ve been there?” “It burns you. Alive. Down to the bone. And then it turns the bone to ash...”
No really! It does! Like the science building burning down as Darryl Epps loses his dream woman, or Buffy setting fire to the place where Riley betrayed her, or James pushing the vampire who told him about Elizabeth’s death out into the sun, or “Burns” being the surname of two people with serious romantic issues, or the café burning up around Parker…
“You are full of love. You love with all of your soul. It’s brighter than the fire... blinding. That’s why you pull away from it.”
But it’s also used when things are going really well.
Like Wes and Fred in front of the roaring fire of… burning bugs…, or when Buffy and Riley have so much sex the fireplace explodes, or Cordelia and Angel getting together in the Indiana Jones caves (okay, in a dream, but still), or Cordelia and Connor getting together while fire is raining from the sky.
“Hello, Buffy. It's Spike. I didn't burn up like you thought. How are things?”
Want to impress Cordelia? Mention fighting “flame beasts”.
Kill the woman Giles loves? He’ll burn down your factory.
Want to flirt with someone? Bring firemen into the conversation, and then tell him he’s so much sexier.
“Ken and Barbie had it easy. They never had to come to places like this. But you’ve got to try. I mean, what if she was here and you missed her because you were – I don’t know – too burned out to still believe? - You know what I mean?”
Someone sleeps with your ex-girlfriend? Blow up his crypt.
Want to have a fun and romantic date? Burn a villa to the ground.
Want to sleep with someone? Test – seriously! – test to see if you literally cause sparks when you touch them.
“I wanted to give you what you deserve. And I got it. They put the spark in me… and now all it does is burn.”
Not to mention a great way to devastate someone. Vamp someone they love, and make them watch their child burn.
“If he has to get to the hospital at noon on the sunniest day of the year, he’ll get there even if I don’t.”
And then there’s Jhiera. A woman whose entire purpose in the storyline is to burn people to cinders because her sexuality-focused neck ridges are producing so much energy.
“Or maybe you two just don't have the fire we had.” “That's enough!”
Then there’s the fact that Darla thinks burning someone with a cross is an awesome way to prove you love them.
And Angel thinks that plunging your hands into holy water is a great way to prove you love Darla back.
…but that’s not the right kind of burning, really. Is it?
How about…
Angel burning every single picture he’s got of Darla in an incinerator, while dramatically tragic music plays in the background?
Or their intense need to continually have sex in front of burning fireplaces?
“Which reminds me. Next birthday, you think we could skip the two-hundred and fifty odd candles on the cake and the inevitable fire marshal and just go with a little song?” “I've never known anyone like you.”
Love spells involve huge amounts of fire.
So does the spell Willow uses to get revenge on Oz.
“It burns, huh? But you can't admit it, so you trump up some charge about me being back on the juice.”
What does Harmony do when Spike dumps her? She burns his stuff.
Whereas Buffy skips the possession-burning and goes straight for the rocket launcher.
“See, what I think, you got burned with Angel, then Riley shows up.”
Want to seduce your boyfriend? I’d suggest dim lights, sexy music, and a roaring fire.
“Angel's old flame from way back.”
Or want to get your boyfriend back from your arch-enemy? Go with flaming arrows.
“But we… we still spark! I get jealous of you, you get jealous of me. You still love me.”
Aside from all the “sparkage” quotes I keep throwing in, there’s also the fact that Illyria, when accessing the “fragments” of memory left from Fred, has sparks going between her fingers.
That’s the only time she does.
“People shouldn’t have to preface casual sex with ‘just so you know, I’ll never grow any older with you.’ It takes the fire out of it.”
Then there’s Buffy and Spike. From threatening to burn her alive for not loving him back, to burning during the chapel scene, to the flamey hands in Chosen… and going back a bit earlier to where Buffy is keeping Spike’s lighter in her pocket, it just keeps coming.
“And there's sparkage?”
Then there’s some implied Buffy/Faith – in a scene which starts with a vamp nest burning down, and ends with some of the sexiest dancing known to mankind.
Or, for that matter, Angel’s insanely innuendo-heavy speech to Spike the first time they meet, accompanied by a hand burning in the sun.
“It's what? Bells ringing, fireworks, a dulcet choir of pretty little birdies? Come on, Buffy. It's not like I've never been there before.”
And then there’s the gypsy camp, burning in the background as all of Darla’s dreams with Angel collapse into ruins.
Or Wesley trying to burn Lilah’s contract, as the one last thing he can do for her.
…did I mention that these are everywhere?
“It's not enough for him to take her. She must want to be taken. She must ... burn for him.”
For the record, the count stands at 8 specific fire-love metaphors for the Angel/Darla relationship, beating Buffy/Spike (7), Buffy/Angel (5), Buffy/Riley (5), and Wes/Fred (5).
Plus 44 more for everyone else.
“But I can't help thinking — isn't that where the fire comes from? Can a nice, safe relationship be that intense? I know it's nuts, but.. part of me believes that real love and passion have to go hand in hand with pain and fighting.”
…and that’s all I have to say.
Then it turned into a meta about fire and love in the Buffyverse.
Then I started searching episode transcripts, looking for fire metaphors… and decided I’d probably better include actual fires as well.
Then I realised that lots of those fires were actually caused by explosions.
…and then I got carried away.
So. This is a meta about fires, explosions, smoking, flamethrowers, fire-related names, firemen, exploding body parts, and love-and-fire metaphors in the Buffyverse.
*looks exhausted*
“I don’t like this. Look, fire. Fire is rarely a sign of imminent safety.”
And to begin with, a poll! Please take it, and answer with your opinions only. For heaven’s sake, don’t try to actually figure out the answers. It takes ages.
[Poll #1348452]
Fear not – I’ll give you the answers shortly.
And now, for lots and lots of writing…
(This was all figured out by searching transcripts of each episode for the words “fire”, “flame/flaming”, “smoke/smoking”, “burn”, “spark”, and “explode/explosion”. I’m pretty sure I got them all.)
“ ‘Cordelia, homeroom was fun. Too bad it burnt to the ground.’ What? ‘Hey, how ‘bout that giant snake.’ ‘Dear Cordelia, thanks for the flaming arrows.’ Flaming arrows?”
There’s a lot more fire in the show than I was expecting.
It is, of course, a very action-y show, so naturally things blow up and burn down a lot, but there’s still a lot.
People burn down school buildings, set fire to vampires, throw fireballs, burn photos, walk past trashcan fires on the street, fantasise about being firemen, burn carpets, jackets, and bedspreads, breathe fire, burn people at the stake, and read Latin in front of books (that’s always going to lead to trouble).
“There’s no cure but the fire.”
Sunnydale buildings to get burnt down include the school science building, a church, Spike’s factory, Xander’s neighbours’ house, a place where vampires are paid to bite people, and the Magic Box.
Then there’s Hemery High’s gym, a petrol station, a barn, a gypsy camp, a villa, and a shop selling material on conspiracy theories. Oh, and half of L.A.
“Aw, it was easy. Started a fire in the prison laundry room. Rode out in the garbage truck.”
Most Sunnydale fires are started by Buffy. Angel, however, is the king of standing around and watching as someone else causes the fires. He’s been present for 9 different buildings burning down.
Angel gets even more impressive if you include the explosions he’s witnessed: a grand total of 17. (He’s also caused more explosions than anyone else: 4, but one was only a fuse-box.)
“It makes whatever problems we have seem insignificant in comparison. I mean, the entire universe explodes.”
Collectively, the Scooby Gang have blown up a mall (using a rocket launcher), a cabin in the woods, 2 crypts, bits of the Magic Box, a microwave, a cemetery, parts of the Initiative, and of course, the high school.
The Fang Gang, on the other hand, are responsible for a sports store, a storage facility for spare body parts, an innocence-holding nest egg, a whole bunch of Las Vegas lightbulbs, the elevator in the Hyperion, a memory-holding mystical cube, and a mineshaft.
Big bads also make a habit of trying to blow up our heroes: with the Watchers Council, a car, a squad of Potentials, an Italian bag, Willow, Angel Investigations, a submarine, and Lorne’s club coming under fire.
Not to mention Illyria, and Angel’s bedroom – which blew up on their own.
“That, my friends, is the smell of sweet, sweet, victory.” “Also, burning cotton-poly blend.”
Not content with destroying every building they get within reach of, the good guys also make a habit of setting fire to random objects – such as Ms Calendar’s computer, the Glove of Myhnegon, RJ’s jacket, Dawn’s diaries, secret Nazi documents, two bodies, and the Shroud of Rahmon.
Plus, you know, actual fires in fireplaces.
“Also, any time something comes in with runes on it, I’m supposed to tell Angel immediately... and not try and read the runes myself... ‘cause that can cause a fire.”
And on top of all the intentional destruction, there’s plenty of the accidental variety – including Willow’s bedspread, one of Giles’ books, and a map of Sunnydale…
Really, our favourite evil-fighting teams are complete pyromaniacs. Which I never really noticed before now.
“What? You mean my skin and muscle burning away from the bone? Organs exploding in my chest? Eyeballs melting in their sockets? No. No memory at all. Thanks for asking.”
Vampires, of course, are highly flammable – which leads to lots of fun opportunities to set people on fire. Hooray!
Not including Spike and Angel, a total of 12 vamps have gone up in flame… plus one nest.
Additionally, 3 demons have been set on fire by Buffy, another one (Halfrek) was burned by D’Hoffryn, a cheerleader got flamey hands courtesy of Amy’s mother, a random shopper was burned from the inside out by the Judge, MOO tried to set Buffy, Willow, and Amy on fire, Anya made a guy spontaneously combust (off-screen, but still) and started the Russian revolution – which included at least one man running on fire through the banquet hall, Willow set Warren’s body on fire, Dawn tried to set the Bringers on fire, Cordelia tried to set James on fire, Jhiera and her girls set pretty much everyone on fire, Wolfram & Hart set an employee on fire, Jasmine burned while trying to find Fred, Darla shot flaming arrows at Holtz’s compatriots, fake-vision guy burned Cordelia, Fred threw flaming coals into Sahjahn’s face, Doyle died heroically on fire (as did Spike), and Angel set Darla and Drusilla on fire – although they didn’t actually die.
And then there were all the people who danced themselves to death during the singing debacle. Don’t forget them.
Like I said – pyromaniacs.
“Can everyone just notice how much fire I’m not on?”
Angel and Spike, of course, are fairly well known for not catching fire.
While they’ve both been burnt at least once (Angel in In The Dark, for example), they also spend a lot of time running around under blankets, using necro-tempered glass, and travelling to alternate non-burny dimensions.
They seem to enjoy this.
“If we had a flame-thrower we could set the table on fire. Draw a little more attention to us.”
More sophisticated fire-causing techniques are always welcome. The Scooby-and-Fang Gangs include several fans of the flame-thrower.
These have been used by Wes, Fred, Faith, Warren, the Class of 99, and Gunn. Anya also suggested using one for protection.
The prize for Greatest Flame-Thrower enthusiasm goes to Gunn – who suggests using one 3 times… and also uses one on Angel.
“Nobody...replaces... the toner!”
There are also a number of fire-related accessories, just waiting to be put to good use by a hero in a jam.
Joyce favours the fire-axe (as do a whole lot of vampires, and a psychotic Wolfram & Hart employee).
But while that and other objects such as fire escapes, fire engines, fire exits, and fire alarms get used for all sorts of things, it’s the fire extinguisher that gets the most chances to shine. 8 fire extinguishers have been used as weapons, as places to hide security passes, and as… well… ways for putting out fires.
Extra credit goes to Fred, for rigging up a way to get a fire extinguisher to smack Wesley in the face.
“Let’s see. Stuff only you and me know. Okay! On my seventh birthday ... I wanted a toy fire truck, and I didn't get it, and you were real nice about it, and then the house next door burnt down, and then real fire trucks came, and for years I thought you set the fire for me. And if you did, you can tell me.”
Our heroes being such fire lovers, it’s not a surprise they’re also big fans of firemen.
Xander, in particular, not only wanted to have a toy fire truck, but also wanted to be a fireman – and sometimes pretends to be one while having sex with Anya…
And then, of course, there’s this:
“I walk. I talk. I shop, I sneeze. I’m going to be a fireman when the floods roll back.”
I’m still not sure exactly what it means. But it counts.
Moving on…
“You go through the door and are confronted by Trogdor the Burninator.”
I just thought I’d take this opportunity to point out that there are characters called “Stewart Burns”, “Reggie Sparks”, and “Melissa Burns”, a mention of “Smokey Robinson and the Miracles”, and a book by “Frances Hodgson Burnett”.
Just in case you were wondering.
“There are things I will not tolerate: students loitering on campus after school, horrible murders with hearts being removed. And also smoking.”
And now for a public service announcement: SMOKING IS EVIL.
No, really.
Buffyverse smokers include:
- Sheila (rebel schoolgirl extraordinaire)
- Harmony (“I am a villain, Spike, helloooo.”)
- Angel (while evil)
- Collins (just before shooting machine guns at Buffy and Faith)
- Sahjahn (while waiting for Holtz to reawaken)
- a woman at Fred’s hotel (also a Jasmine follower)
- the CEO of Italian Wolfram & Hart (no further comment needed)
- several members of the Circle of the Black Thorn (shortly to be killed by Lindsey)
The only nice guys who are allowed to smoke are formerly-evil ones – like Faith and Spike.
If you should happen to be a good guy wanting a cigarette, the best thing to do is get really depressed. Just like:
- Chris Epps’ mum
- Doyle (pre-AtS)
- Angel (in the 50s)
- Lorne (when his life starts going badly)
- Justine
- Number 5
Or, alternatively, you could be completely immature, like Giles on a candy-high.
“No. I… Dawn, I just thought you were in danger… of smoking.”
Should you happen to disregard these stern rules, you will suffer the consequences. These range from being incredibly scared and traumatised (like Carlos from Lessons), to being beaten up (like Laura from Nightmares) to being horribly slaughtered (like Uncle Enyos from Innocence or the guidance counsellor from Beauty and the Beasts).
The only other smoker to appear on the show is Andrew. Which should really tell you all you need to know.
“Easy. We burn the house to the ground and collect the insurance. Plus, fire? Pretty.”
Being the pyromaniacs they are, the characters really aren’t shy about suggesting fire as the ultimate solution.
They’ve suggested burning lipstick, a dressing gown, some disgusting photos, some dead demons, and a client’s home… among others.
“Um, perhaps this might change your mind. You help us, and the slayer won’t kill your clientele and burn your establishment to the ground.”
They’re also up for making fire-themed threats. All the time.
And no – this isn’t just the bad guys talking. In total, 4 villains have threatened people with fire (Olaf, Razor, the Shark demon, and Emil, if you’re curious).
The good guys, though?
Let’s see…
“If you hurt my sister at all… touch her… you’re going to wake up on fire.”
Dawn threatened Spike, Willow threatened Buffy, Spike threatened Buffy and Drusilla, Andrew threatened Xander, Dawn, and Anya, Faith threatened Wesley, Giles threatened a demon (for a change), Wesley threatened a cyborg, and Angel threatened Wolfram & Hart.
Granted, several of them were temporarily evil at the time, but still.
“So she wished her husband’s head would explode, which was great except we were standing three feet from him at the time. What a mess.”
Going back to explosions for a second, there’s actually quite a bit of explosion-related metaphor.
Most of it concerning people’s body parts exploding.
While Anya’s the only one who’s actually done any head-exploding, it’s also talked about more figuratively by:
- Xander (his respond to too much talk of self-tanning lotion)
- Buffy (her mum, upon finding out how Buffy went on the SATs)
- Anya (Harmony, caused by having original thoughts)
- Willow (after spending the night talking to Oz)
- Dawn (as what she’d like to do to a classmate)
- Willow (as a potential possibility of a dangerous spell)
- Buffy (re Spike’s head and the non-working chip)
- Spike (re the chip)
Other body parts that are mentioned in the context of explosions include:
- Spike’s organs (while turning into a pillar of fire)
- Fred’s stomach (from too much food)
- Fred’s brain (in revenge for rejecting Jasmine’s love)
- Xander’s eyes (the hopeful wish of Anya)
- Xander’s penis (also courtesy of Anya)
- Anya and Xander (whole, as a respond to stress – according to Dawn)
- a stressed student (also whole… and that one actually happened)
- Fred (from too much fun)
- Angel (from stress over Darla)
…just take a moment to picture all of that.
“Earthquake, fire, blood. Be heedful of the signs, human, and trouble the Loa no more.”
Despite the rampant pyromania, fire is actually kind of seen as a bad thing.
From “burning in Tarkna”, to “burning the demon out of your living flesh”, to “flames under my feet”, to “eternal fire and brimstone”, the idea of stuff burning is frequently presented in a less-than-fun light.
Actually, there are quite a few more than that. But I’m not going to type them all out in full.
Except for this one:
“Flames wouldn’t be eternal… if they actually consumed anything. But it means something that you tried.”
…which nicely leads us into our next topic. Metaphor.
“That girl’s on fire!” “Enough of the hyperbole!”
Fire metaphors run rampant through this show.
Let’s start with some average, ordinary, everyday sayings, shall we?
“Oh, Buffy, I don't think so. Frying pan, fire?”
“If you’re gonna play with fire…”
“Been there. Tried that. Not unlike smothering a forest fire with napalm, as I recall.”
“No more fuel on the fire.”
“…if your head was on fire.”
“The burnout factor is, like, nothing.”
“At this rate, you’re going to burn out. And up.”
“Think of it as trial by fire. A quest.”
“You’re on fire, Cordelia!”
“We’ll stay here and keep the home fires burning.”
“Warmer… warmer… you’re smoking hot.”
“Evil geniuses live for that playing-with-fire stuff.”
“How do you fire it up?”
“You want to fight fire with fire. Make sure the government and the other savages learn about Jasmine’s love.”
“The smoking thermos!”
“The whole thing could explode in our faces.”
…quite a lot of those, really.
“Faithfulness and devotion, things born of fire and roof were his...”
There’s also, for instance, Buffy letting her birthday candle burn.
Or Fred being “consumed in the fires of resurrection”.
Or the events of Not Fade Away being referred to as “the fireworks”.
And Faith’s nickname of “firecracker”, Willow being “a firebrand”, and the sheer number of people referred to as “Sparky”.
“You feel it, right? How the anger gives you fire? A Slayer needs that.”
Fire is frequently used when discussing emotions.
Especially anger, frustration (twice), passion, rage, and just plain feeling. (See, for instance, the song “Walk Through The Fire”.)
There’s also mention of a “buried spark of decency”, a “spark of humanity”, and Wesley’s observation that there are things that “will burn right through us. Truths we couldn’t bear.”
“Well, now, you girls are just burning with righteousness, aren’t you? Problem is, you think you’re blazing like suns, when really you’re burning like matchsticks in the face of the darkness.”
It’s a favourite metaphor-of-choice for Caleb.
From “cleansing fire” to “the fire that makes people kill and hate”, he often uses it to discuss The First. (See also: Andrew’s illustration of The First, which features flames.)
He also calls Buffy “the most aflame with that most precious invention of mankind – the notion of goodness”.
Apparently, good and evil share equally in this whole flaminess thing. According to Caleb, anyway.
“She just left. She didn’t even care enough to cut off my head or set me on fire. I mean, is that too much to ask? You know? Some little sign that she cared?”
And now…
“Well, yeah. I’m a spitfire in the bedroom.”
Finally…
“No candles? Well, I brought one. It’s extra flamey.”
The reason I started this whole essay in the first place.
Love and fire metaphors.
“Hey, speaking of ‘wow’ potential, there’s Oz over there. What are we thinking, any sparkage?”
In particular, this one right here:
“Trust is for old marrieds, Buffy. Great love is wild and passionate and dangerous. It burns and consumes.”
And really, it was worth the essay. Because these metaphors are everywhere.
“Well, she said that you were a... h-hunk of burning... something or other. So, whadaya think of that?”
Seriously! Everywhere!
“Half of me is just ... on fire, going crazy if I'm not touching her. The other half ... is so still and peaceful ... just perfectly content. Just knows: this is the one.”
From Cordelia burning photos, to Riley blowing up a crypt, fire keeps cropping up as relationships hit the rocks.
“Well, you know – love. It’s a fire.” “You’ve been there?” “It burns you. Alive. Down to the bone. And then it turns the bone to ash...”
No really! It does! Like the science building burning down as Darryl Epps loses his dream woman, or Buffy setting fire to the place where Riley betrayed her, or James pushing the vampire who told him about Elizabeth’s death out into the sun, or “Burns” being the surname of two people with serious romantic issues, or the café burning up around Parker…
“You are full of love. You love with all of your soul. It’s brighter than the fire... blinding. That’s why you pull away from it.”
But it’s also used when things are going really well.
Like Wes and Fred in front of the roaring fire of… burning bugs…, or when Buffy and Riley have so much sex the fireplace explodes, or Cordelia and Angel getting together in the Indiana Jones caves (okay, in a dream, but still), or Cordelia and Connor getting together while fire is raining from the sky.
“Hello, Buffy. It's Spike. I didn't burn up like you thought. How are things?”
Want to impress Cordelia? Mention fighting “flame beasts”.
Kill the woman Giles loves? He’ll burn down your factory.
Want to flirt with someone? Bring firemen into the conversation, and then tell him he’s so much sexier.
“Ken and Barbie had it easy. They never had to come to places like this. But you’ve got to try. I mean, what if she was here and you missed her because you were – I don’t know – too burned out to still believe? - You know what I mean?”
Someone sleeps with your ex-girlfriend? Blow up his crypt.
Want to have a fun and romantic date? Burn a villa to the ground.
Want to sleep with someone? Test – seriously! – test to see if you literally cause sparks when you touch them.
“I wanted to give you what you deserve. And I got it. They put the spark in me… and now all it does is burn.”
Not to mention a great way to devastate someone. Vamp someone they love, and make them watch their child burn.
“If he has to get to the hospital at noon on the sunniest day of the year, he’ll get there even if I don’t.”
And then there’s Jhiera. A woman whose entire purpose in the storyline is to burn people to cinders because her sexuality-focused neck ridges are producing so much energy.
“Or maybe you two just don't have the fire we had.” “That's enough!”
Then there’s the fact that Darla thinks burning someone with a cross is an awesome way to prove you love them.
And Angel thinks that plunging your hands into holy water is a great way to prove you love Darla back.
…but that’s not the right kind of burning, really. Is it?
How about…
Angel burning every single picture he’s got of Darla in an incinerator, while dramatically tragic music plays in the background?
Or their intense need to continually have sex in front of burning fireplaces?
“Which reminds me. Next birthday, you think we could skip the two-hundred and fifty odd candles on the cake and the inevitable fire marshal and just go with a little song?” “I've never known anyone like you.”
Love spells involve huge amounts of fire.
So does the spell Willow uses to get revenge on Oz.
“It burns, huh? But you can't admit it, so you trump up some charge about me being back on the juice.”
What does Harmony do when Spike dumps her? She burns his stuff.
Whereas Buffy skips the possession-burning and goes straight for the rocket launcher.
“See, what I think, you got burned with Angel, then Riley shows up.”
Want to seduce your boyfriend? I’d suggest dim lights, sexy music, and a roaring fire.
“Angel's old flame from way back.”
Or want to get your boyfriend back from your arch-enemy? Go with flaming arrows.
“But we… we still spark! I get jealous of you, you get jealous of me. You still love me.”
Aside from all the “sparkage” quotes I keep throwing in, there’s also the fact that Illyria, when accessing the “fragments” of memory left from Fred, has sparks going between her fingers.
That’s the only time she does.
“People shouldn’t have to preface casual sex with ‘just so you know, I’ll never grow any older with you.’ It takes the fire out of it.”
Then there’s Buffy and Spike. From threatening to burn her alive for not loving him back, to burning during the chapel scene, to the flamey hands in Chosen… and going back a bit earlier to where Buffy is keeping Spike’s lighter in her pocket, it just keeps coming.
“And there's sparkage?”
Then there’s some implied Buffy/Faith – in a scene which starts with a vamp nest burning down, and ends with some of the sexiest dancing known to mankind.
Or, for that matter, Angel’s insanely innuendo-heavy speech to Spike the first time they meet, accompanied by a hand burning in the sun.
“It's what? Bells ringing, fireworks, a dulcet choir of pretty little birdies? Come on, Buffy. It's not like I've never been there before.”
And then there’s the gypsy camp, burning in the background as all of Darla’s dreams with Angel collapse into ruins.
Or Wesley trying to burn Lilah’s contract, as the one last thing he can do for her.
…did I mention that these are everywhere?
“It's not enough for him to take her. She must want to be taken. She must ... burn for him.”
For the record, the count stands at 8 specific fire-love metaphors for the Angel/Darla relationship, beating Buffy/Spike (7), Buffy/Angel (5), Buffy/Riley (5), and Wes/Fred (5).
Plus 44 more for everyone else.
“But I can't help thinking — isn't that where the fire comes from? Can a nice, safe relationship be that intense? I know it's nuts, but.. part of me believes that real love and passion have to go hand in hand with pain and fighting.”
…and that’s all I have to say.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2009-02-13 03:45 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-02-13 04:30 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-02-13 04:16 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-02-13 04:30 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-02-13 10:11 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-02-15 03:29 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-02-13 01:21 pm (UTC)Talk about attention to detail! Fire away!
no subject
Date: 2009-02-15 03:30 am (UTC)It's just far too much fun not to keep researching once you've started...
no subject
Date: 2009-02-14 01:55 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-02-15 03:30 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-02-14 08:27 pm (UTC)Number-y things like these make my heart happy.
Also, I like the point you brought up, in general, about the fire metaphors coming left and right. I hadn't ever really thought of that before.
Although, you did miss, "Fire bad, tree pretty."
no subject
Date: 2009-02-15 03:31 am (UTC)