Buffy the Vampire Slayer star Alyson Hannigan weighed in on the ongoing "who's the better love interest for Buffy Summers" argument with a third option: shipping Buffy and Willow.
Hannigan, who played Buffy's friend and ally Willow Rosenberg since Season 1, pitched the hypothetical queer pairing on Twitter, writing "Actually Buffy should have dated Willow." This presents a contrast to the traditional debate in the Buffy fandom over the title character's love triangle with vampires Angel and Spike, as well as occasional hints of flirtation with fellow Slayer Faith and the forgettable college relationship with Riley.
Hannigan's comments come shortly after Georgia political activist and former gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams broke down her thoughts on the Buffy/Angel/Spike romance subtext. "To be fair, Angel was the right boyfriend for Buffy coming into her power. Spike was the right man to be with as she became the power," Abrams tweeted, leaning more towards Spike as her favored match but noting that both men reflected different points in Buffy's character arc. Her analysis was widely praised by not only Buffy fans, but also Buffy creator Joss Whedon and lead actress Sarah Michelle Gellar.
Though Buffy only dated men during the show's seven season run, the Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 8 comic storyline explored her sexuality further through a brief relationship with a younger Slayer, Satsu. Willow, by comparison, openly dated Oz (Seth Green) from Seasons 2 to Season 4, fellow witch Tara (Amber Benson) from Season 4 to Season 6, and potential Slayer Kennedy (Iyari Limon) in Season 7.
The Willow/Tara relationship specifically was groundbreaking for its open portrayal of a queer relationship on television from a main cast member but, due to network censorship of the era, the two weren't able to kiss onscreen for a full season until the Season 5 episode "The Body".
Created by Joss Whedon, Buffy the Vampire Slayer stars Sarah Michelle Gellar, David Boreanaz, James Marsters, Charisma Carpenter, Alyson Hannigan, Nicholas Brendon and Anthony Stewart Head. All seasons are available to stream now on Hulu.
Source: Twitter