There’s a lot of controversy surrounding Joss Whedon and his feminist credentials. Is he a feminist icon, or a horrid misogynistic racist masquerading as an ally? It’s usually safe to say the answer is probably somewhere in the middle, but I have a slightly more specific response.

When we talk about whether someone deserves a feminist cookie, what we’re asking is not so much whether they did a good thing or are a nice person as whether or not they deserve … READ MORE

I initiated this series back in August, (see intro here) but the real world got in the way of my ability to continue it. The comments were packed with good examples of this kind of character, many from shows I haven’t watched, and which actually included very few of the ones I was going to highlight.

I both love Buffy, the Vampire Slayer and fully admit that the show had serious shortcomings from a feminist perspective. While it was far from … READ MORE

Recently a friend of mine mentioned that she was watching Buffy and Angel on DVD, and liking Angel better. I remembered that I had quit watching Angel in disgust sometime during the first season, but couldn’t recall exactly why. Then I remembered: they screwed Cordelia up, bigtime.

I loved Cordelia on Buffy. She was such a self-serving, nasty piece of work, and I got grief from a whole lot like her in junior high. And by the … READ MORE