#buffy the vampire slayer costumes

[spuffybot]

Hey hi! I saw your post about Buffy being your favorite show and what do you mean "you know what’s happening with certain characters based on the colors they are wearing"? That's SO cool and something I've never noticed despite being such a tv nerd, do you have examples?

Ohhhh my gosh I love this question!!! There are a few characters who come to mind (Buffy & Willow) but I’m gonna talk about Spike because I love to talk about Spike.

So Spike is a character who very much has a uniform and this uniform is linked to his identity. It’s important to note that this is an identity he crafted. Because as we know Spike started out as William, a man who was sensitive and kind and who was unappreciated by his peers. When he became a vampire he wanted to shed that weakness and he uses his hair, accent, and clothing to reinforce the idea that he is a strong, tough, and evil being.

Spikes official uniform is perfectly slicked back bleach blonde hair, a red shirt, dirty black jeans, combat boots and his signature leather duster. This is Spikes armor. It’s how he embodies Spike and leaves William behind. The red shirt is also quite critically linked to his “evil era” as I’ll call it.

Throughout the show there are key moments where Spike deviates from this uniform and it’s always linked to a crises of identity.

The first moment I want to talk about is Spike in the Hawaiian shirt. He’s just been chipped, he’s relying on the Scoobies for survival, the core tenants of his identity (predator, killer, lover of Drusilla, leader of a vampire gang) have all been stripped from him against his will. He looks ridiculous wearing Xanders clothes because we know it’s ridiculous (at this point) for him to just be one of the Scoobies.

This is not unlike Tabula Rasa (which has a deliciously layered theme of loss of identity both literal with memory loss and metaphoric with each of the characters personal lives) where we see Spike once again out of uniform completely and lacking his identity. Now like I said on the surface he has truly lost his identity he has no memory of who he is. But it’s no surprise that he draws the (incorrect) conclusion that he’s a vampire with a soul on a mission of redemption because for the past few months he’s been playacting that role. After Buffy died Spikes entire identity was usurped by the need to live up to her memory. He babysits Dawn. He patrols with the Scoobies. He lives a mundane and neutered life because he thinks it’s what she would have wanted. Except now she’s back. And she’s opening up to him in ways she never has before. And she’s kissed him. And this is simultaneously the most incredible and terrifying thing to ever happen to Spike because it’s all he wants but he knows deep down, it’s not who he is. He has no soul. He has no remorse. He is not good.

Now let’s talk about some less overt examples. Because the wardrobe team does an incredible job of making subtle shifts to Spikes uniform that communicate his emotional arc.

In Crush, we see Spike swap the red shirt for a light blue shirt (blue is going to be a theme!) and lighter pants. By doing this he communicates to Buffy that he’s different than before. He’s lighter and softer. A man she could be interested in. But of course, just like the uniform of Spike is a performance, this too is a performance and one Buffy sees through quickly.

Blue comes back again in Smashed, an episode where once again Spike’s identity comes into play. He has been play acting at being a Scooby but we know that’s not who he really is. Now, suddenly he finds that he can hurt Buffy without activating his chip. All of a sudden he gets a glimpse of his old self and it infuses him with confidence and purpose. The blue shirt in this episode is deep and rich, verging on purple. By wearing this shirt it shows us how deeply conflicted Spike is. The war between his selfish love for Buffy and his feelings of being trapped and controlled by his chip (and his feelings for her) is coming to a head. And of course, by showing his teeth he gives Buffy the push she needs to sleep with him.

Ok so now we get to talk about my FAVORITE season when it comes to Spikes loss of identity and the use of his uniform to depict that: season 7.

When we first see Spike in season 7 something very important is happening: his hair is completely disheveled and curly, with his natural brown roots showing. This is the closest we have ever seen Spikes hair resemble Williams hair and this is important because as we know, Spike now has a soul and so he is closer now to William than he has been in over 100 years.

When Spike finally leaves the basement he is in a bright blue shirt and lacking his signature leather duster. The duster becomes a key plot point in season 7 with the introduction of Robin Wood (considering it was his mother’s jacket and Spike killed her.) Now, Wood is a controversial character but I personally think having Spike have to reckon with the consequences of his past all tied up in the metaphor of identity that is his leather jacket is chefs kiss.

Speaking of the leather jacket, in episode 15, Get It Done we see Spike put the jacket back on for the first time since Seeing Red. This is a moment of reclamation of identity. Souled Spike is listless and guilt ridden. And as the potentials point out, even a demon can kick his ass. When he puts that jacket back on he takes back a piece of who he is and starts on the journey of self discovery that we will see him continue in Angel season 5. Because ultimately it’s not Spike or William but the fusion of the two that make Spike who he is. AND TO BRING IT BACK FULL CIRCLE while Spike reclaims the jacket, he does not bring back the red shirt.

One other interesting thing about season 7 is that Spike is no longer as wiry and muscular as he was in season 6. Now, James Marsters has said that this was deliberate on his part because he was tired of being naked on the show and figured if he stopped working out (he has also said that he created his season 6 body deliberately upon being told he would be naked all the time) then they would stop making him take his shirt off. And while this is obviously not a deliberate choice on the part of the show, I do think it’s interesting that Spike becomes less angular and sharp after he gets his soul. He releases some of the hardness that defined him emotionally and physically. Which ties in nicely to this overarching theme of identity crises. It also hints at a certain level of toxicity on set if one of your lead actors feels the need to take drastic measures to protect themselves but that’s a whole different essay.

I hope this answers the question and I would loooove to hear what other people think about this. I know I didn’t touch on every Spike moment but I wanted to highlight ones I feel are critical parts of his narrative.

[buffysummers]

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Alphabet ↳ N ✫ Nineties

[recycledmoviecostumes]

Halloween conjures images of ghosts, monsters, and, of course, vampires!

This enchanting pink gown first graced the screen when Sarah Michelle Gellar donned it as Buffy Summers in the Halloween episode of 𝑩𝒖𝒇𝒇𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑽𝒂𝒎𝒑𝒊𝒓𝒆 𝑺𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒓 in 1997.

Little did we know, this bewitching dress would rise from the shadows again, making an appearance on an uncredited extra in the 2008 episode of 𝑯𝒐𝒘 𝑰 𝑴𝒆𝒕 𝒀𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝑴𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 titled 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑮𝒐𝒂𝒕.

For more recycled costumes, visit our website: bit.ly/StuGeo025

[bunnythevampireslayer]

drusilla outfits bc she's an icon

[buffyangelscreens]

[loseremzo]

Buffy Halloween costume. (more people knew who I was then I thought)

[koriand3r]

Willow | Spike - Clothing

“Why are you still in costume?” “Okay, still having to explain wherein this is just my outfit.”

[reusedtvseriescostumes]

This 1930s/1940s Pearl Off White Lace Nightgown Boudoir Lingerie Dress is worn two times in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, First worn on Juliet Landau as Drusilla in What's My Line?: Part 2 (1997) and later worn on Sarah Michelle Gellar as Buffy Summers in Surprise (1998)

[emilyscastlevania]

Need a perfume that makes me smell like I just got bitten by a vampire inside a cathedral.

[emperorundying]

spike btvs for halloween

[theoverlookedoneedits1997]

Out of Mind, Out of Sight Fashion Part Two

Buffy’s ‘look out’ outfit: 9/10

Amazing. I love this mauve colour of the top and the brown leather is very cute. I wish it was a little less wrinkled looking. Her make up is stellar as well.

Angel’s ’overrated pleasure’ outfit: 7/10

I definetly perfer the button down to the tank top. The collar is a bit over the top though.

Xander’s ‘have a nice summer’ outfit: 6/10

It's not terrible but I also wouldn't really call it an outfit. It just feels like he threw on clothes, which works for his character.

Willow’s ’have a great summer’ outfit: 7/10

I think this is cute. I don't like the solid tights. But I like the dress and the zip-up is and pigtails are so adorable. I like the jewelry too.

Buffy’s ‘thundering looney’ outfit: 9/10

I didn't always like this outfit, mainly because of the scarf. But it's grown on me and I now think it is kinda cute for the look. I top is super cute (how is she not getting dress-coded?) and the pants work well. And the sunglasses are nice.

Cordelia’s ‘me me me’ outfit: 8/10

The dress is very sweet and the headband brings it all together. I think it's interesting because this outfit gives off sweet and innocent vibes with the all-over yellow and the Shirley Temple curls. Meanwhile, she is being targeted because she's mean and a bully and when the scoobies learn that Cordelia is being targeted, none of them question why because they all agree that she's hateable. So what does her outfit mean? Does it show that Cordelia is fake and pretends to be nice and charming when it suits her (like when she wants to be spring fling queen) or does it reveal a side of her that she keeps hidden, a side that's more vulnerable and caring (like when she shows empathy for Marci's loneliness)? I think it could be both. I think that the person she pretends to be might be closer to the person she is deep down, or at least, the person she could be.

Angel’s ’same old thing’ outfit: 5/10

-_-

[buffysummers]

Buffy Summers + animal print 🐅🦓🦒🐆

[bunnythevampireslayer]

THIS OUTFIT!!!!

[buffyangelscreens]

[alexprime]

Finally made my bustle cage (lobster tail) for my Victorian Loki cosplay! It ended up being a bit bigger than I thought, so I may have to make my costume more 1880s rather than 1870s! I used the 'Truly Victorian 163' pattern, which was super easy to make! Although, I somehow sewed the wrong edges of the back to each other and had to seam rip out five rows of bias tape and all the hems to redo it. I only cried a little! 🙃