Sistas doing it for themselves

e-Mo Magazine takes a minute to recognise some of the girls who have created great stories, helped to shape characters we know and love, given us hundreds of classic moments – and have done all of this without concern for getting the credit.

MARTI  NOXON

Over the course of her career, Marti Noxon would develop an enviable CV, writing and producing for such diverse shows as ‘Grey’s Anatomy’, ‘Brothers and Sisters’ and ‘Point Pleasant’. 

She would also have a formative role in the development of the excellent ‘Prison Break’ series for Fox– although it is through her association with a certain former Californian cheer-leader / saviour of the world that Noxon would leave her own unique stamp on televisions history……

Fans of Buffy the Vampire Slayer are a passionate bunch – articulate, funny, and often times possessing a wickedly stylish fashion sense.  They also agree on many things; Sarah Michelle Geller is small enough to fit in your coat pocket; Giles should have a serious case of post-concussion syndrome considering the number of times he has been knocked unconscious; James Masters’ cheek-bones are sharp enough to cut glass. 

But no matter how civil things start out, it is pretty much inevitable that by the end of the evening there will be two camps, standing on opposite sides of the room, each looking sideways at former friends, whispering explanations to their neighbour as to why the other side is clearly nuts.

In the red corner there are the fans that will argue until they are blue in the face that the first half of Buffy’s seven year run were superior.  The School Library, Cordelia, Oz……  A scary Spike, that Angelis fellow.  Compared to the oppressive atmosphere of the later seasons, they argue, the stories were lighter, delightfully inventive stand-alone stories balancing out the brooding brilliance of the arc plots.

The blue corner rolls their eyes, patiently explaining to their poor deluded opponents that the later seasons are all killer and no filler – why break up the series into chunks when you can focus on brilliantly written, character-based melodrama? Watching girls kick-ass in fantastic action sequences without losing any emotional depth is surely better than (admittedly excellent) candy-floss, right?

They glare at those fools in the red corner, words forming in their minds : Anya, The Magic Box, Willow & Tara……  A sarcastic Spike, a glowing key called Dawn. The latter seasons are dark, sure, but they reflect the complexity of adult life, just as the earlier seasons had a care-free swagger reflecting youth.

And for many of those fans ‘in the know’, those last few seasons have the finger-prints of one woman all over them – and those sticky, mutant digits belong to Marti Noxon.

Noxon joined the Buffy team as a story editor during the show’s second season in 1997, her talent catching the eye of the network executives, and particularly the show’s creator & show-runner, Joss Whedon. 

Over the next few years she worked her way up the ladder – becoming a co-producer, supervising producer and co-executive producer. 

Her tireless work-ethic, sense of humour, and skill at writing strong – yet feminine – women resulted in Whedon leaning on her more and more as BTVS (the show and the character) evolved.  After having a key role developing the sister / mother / daughter dynamic between Buffy and her golden-glowing-ball-of-energy sister Dawn, Noxon was promoted to co-show-runner in 2001 – she had as much influence over seasons six and seven as anybody, Whedon included.

Now, anyone who knows anything about Mr Whedon knows that in addition to being a brilliant writer & director (some would say a creative genius), he is a man who, in addition to providing journalists with a near-constant stream of self-depreciating jokes, constantly bemoans his lack of sleep.

It’s not like he doesn’t bring it on himself, though : in addition to occasionally consulting as a Hollywood script-doctor, and working on various comic-book projects (including the critically acclaimed “Astonishing X-Men”, and the ‘Slayer of the Future’ “Fray” series), Joss Whedon wasn’t content with producing just the one world-class TV show……

“Angel” soon followed, followed a couple of years later by the ace, much-missed “Firefly”.  Despite his heroic attempts to go months at a time without sleeping, there are only so many hours in the day, and someone needed to step-up to the plate.  And that someone was Marti Noxon. 

She had the pedigree, having written some of the very best episodes in Buffy’s formative years – episodes such as “What’s My Line” (parts one & two), “The Wish” and “The Prom” – and was a key member of the producing staff.  And so, here she was, trusted by big boss Joss, to shepherd Buffy into her new role as a working-stiff, a mother-figure to Dawn, and a hard-as nails army general.  And that’s not to mention having to recover from that whole ‘being torn out of heaven’ thing.

Under Noxon’s stewardship, season 6 took on a pessimistic edge, brought on by Buffy’s emotional crisis, Willow’s descent into darkness, and the death of a much-loved character.  To say that the season sparked debate amongst fans and critics is like saying Buffy has a ‘bit of a thing’ for pale guys who like leather and have no pulse – a massive understatement. 

The criticisms ranged from the valid (the show missed having a ‘big bad’ – the trio were hardly terrifying, were they?) to the backwards-looking (remember when Xander used to be funny / Spike used to be scary?) to the frankly baffling (that killing off Tara was “gay-bashing”).

However, many fans took the opposite view, revelling in how the characters – and The Slayer in particular – grew and developed in an entirely natural and believable way, shedding the optimism and simple good vs. evil dynamic of their youth, the pressures of adulthood, and the scars of battle taking their toll.

There was a perverse brilliance in Buffy’s relationship with Spike (plus all that completely gratuitous shirt off goodness for us girls), as there was in the baby-steps that edged Willow to the dark-side – who would have thought, when Willow and Tara first hooked-up in season 4, that it would feel so true to Willow’s character that a mere 18 months later she would violate her lovers mind and steal her memories?   

And there is nothing more to be written about the brilliant “Once More, With Feeling”.  The episode speaks for itself.

Season 7 was a different beast entirely.  Menacing and Foreboding, ‘The First Evil’ felt like a different kind of threat entirely. Noxon lead a creative team that achieved what many would have thought impossible – making Buffy vulnerable and feminine, at the same time as reminding the audience that she was not someone to be messed with – this chick was the hardest person on the faced of the planet. 

A critical smash, the season saw Buffy growing to realise that, despite the formidable help of her friends & the rag-tag bunch of potential Slayers she had trained into and army, she was – perhaps more than ever – alone.

It is in the brilliance of the final shot of the last ever episode of BTVS that Noxon’s legacy, and Buffy’s too, can be felt.  The camera gradually draws  closer to The Slayer, her sweat and blood at testament to all that she has achieved. 

It is over. 

Her eyes a flicker emotion. 

“What are you going to do now…… ?”

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