Xander

[Kana]

Oh it's riduculous to say he wasn't pefect, hello, welcome to the Verse. All the characters have strengths and weaknesses. I think the point is that Xander's faults are more identifiable with the 'average' man.

[Forsaken]

I love Xander. For all the reasons listed but also because more then being the human one he was me. If I had been in the Scoobies I would have been closer to Xander then any other character so I identify with him (and the show). To use one of Joss' words Xander resonates with me. And I think with alot of you out there. Let's face it alot of the people who watched this show come from where Xander comes from. Geeks rule!

[shred]

So in the season 2 thread, some of us were discussing about how much (or how little) Xander changed after season 2. Some said that Xander didn't really change/grew up much in that season but I disagree. Though there wasn't a big life changing situation that he was in (like Buffy was in), I thought the events of season 2 made him grow up. It was quite evident in season 3.

So does anyone disagree? For that matter, in which season do you think Xander changed and grew up as a character the most (it can be for the good or for the bad)?

[Glenn]

I don't know about this. I think Xander's development was much slower than the rest of the characters. He had a similar attitude towards things in season 3 as he did in season 2. Such as the two Buffy vs Xander showdowns we saw regarding Angel. The fact he told Buffy that Willow's message was "kick his ass" as well shows that he still hadn't really grown up.

I never really saw him as a character with a whole lot of development prospects. Nothing seemed to really change him. We dont really know what he was like before Jessie died so we cant really say whether that incident changed him greatly. Being possessed and nearly killed and rejected by Buffy still really didnt have that much of an effect. Even when he actually got a girlfriend he was still pretty much the same, even cheating on his girlfriend in season 3 which i don't see as such a great development.

It wasn't until season 5 and his speech to Buffy regarding a departing Riley and then his little talk with Anya straight after that i thought "Holy Wow!!" Xander has really matured and progressed from that high school character.

He even matured faster than Willow, who rather than blossoming like Xander seemed to regress emotionally and became much less mature than Xander during seasons 5 and 6. And even then it took her killing a guy and trying to destroy the world and then dealing with the consequences to become mature rather than a natural progression like Xander. Which is why i much prefer his character to Willows and many others.

[Forsaken]

I think Xander changed a great deal throughout the course of the show. One of the big things of course was that he became more self-assured and less cocky (yes, they're different and usually opposite). The Zeppo was one of the major turning points, I think because maybe he realized that just taking a stand against injustice means he'd already won. Then in the replacement he discovered that he really could be an adult and it allowed him to be more mature. Mind you even at the end of season 7 traces of those old self doubts are apparant. Paticularly after he lost his eye. I guess being human means there's some part of you that never really grows up.

[shred]

I don't think he became more self-assured though. Yes, he grew up but I don't think he had enough confidence in himself. Look at season 6. He was so doubtful of himself that he didn't go through the wedding with Anya. And then when Willow turned evil, he kept beating himself up for not being able to do anything to stop his best friend. He probably got a lot of confidence after he saved the world in season 6 though.

I think he always would have that little bit of self doubt throughout the series and it could be because he's the only human one among 'super' humans.