BUFFY STAKES HER CLAIM; A DAILY NEWS BATTLE ROYAL GIVES SLAYER EDGE OVER XENA.Byline: - Bob McCarthy Is the stake mightier than the sword? Daily News readers were closely split on the issue. Pit teen fighting machine Buffy against the Woman of Steel, Xena, and you've got the Battle of Centuries between TV's two bigger-than-life heroines. In one corner is the thoroughly modern Buffy, who likes to stick with wood. In the other, there's Xena, who is ... well, let's just say she's hardly iron deficient. When our experts couldn't decide which show was clearly the better, we put the two battling babes on a collision course collision course n. A course, as of moving objects or opposing philosophies, that will end in a collision or conflict if left unchanged: two planes on a collision course; dissidents on a collision course with the regime. . We threw down the gauntlet. Buffy or Xena? Who rocks your world? The fact their worlds will never collide didn't seem to matter to the more than 500 faithful fans who jumped into the fray. The e-mails and even the snail mail Mail sent via a country's government-regulated postal system. (messaging) snail mail - (Or "snailmail", "smail" from "US Mail" via "USnail"; "paper mail"). Bits of dead tree sent via the postal service as opposed to electronic mail. came fast and furious, blow for blow, like the imagined showdown between the Slayer and the Warrior Princess The concept of warrior princesses is relatively new in fiction but it became increasingly popular with the feminist movement's successes in female empowerment, gradually pushing the stereotype of a "damsel in distress" to the background. . What clearly divides Buffy's camp from Xena's is the reality issue. While the Buffster's fans can relate to her teen angst - the monsters and kick-boxing skills are another story - Xena's take-charge attitude and compassion have won over her loyalists. In the end, this She-for-All was amazingly close. The tally: 268 for Buffy, 249 for Xena - and one vote for Gabrielle, Xena's sidekick The first popular popup program for DOS PCs, introduced by Borland in 1984. Sidekick included a calculator, notepad, calendar, phone dialer and ASCII table and popularized the concept of a terminate and stay resident (TSR) utility. . So, here is a cross-section of the reasons you love these heroines, starting with Buffy: ``Remember - Buffy is the Chosen One, and Xena is just a princess who vowed to fight evil.'' ``Sure, vampires don't exist, and Buffy can only kill so many of them before it gets a little tired - but the show doesn't just focus on them. ... The show stays fresh because of its constant input of different monsters and problems from fresh angles.'' ``Buffy may not carry a well-decorated sword, but she can turn anything into a lethal weapon.'' ``Let's not Let's Not is a science fiction short story by Isaac Asimov. It was first published in Boston University Graduate Journal in December 1954. It was written for no payment as a favour to the journal, and later appeared in the collection Buy Jupiter. forget Buffy's miniskirts - what the in-style, well-dressed Slayer will wear. Xena's Roman-toga chic, I believe, went out with `Animal House.' '' ``Buffy has plots that actually relate to real life (I mean, doesn't everybody slay slay tr.v. slew , slain , slay·ing, slays 1. To kill violently. 2. past tense and past participle often slayed Slang bad guys for a job?). Just a joke.'' ``BUFFY! BUFFY! BUFFY! BUFFY! BUFFY!'' (We only counted this as one vote, albeit an exuberant one). ``Buffy is the BOMB!'' ``... Buffy has a place to go at night (not the cemetery or Angel's house), but her own house with her loving mother in it. Xena camps out every night.'' Not everyone counts Xena's rugged, outdoor lifestyle as a negative, as her camp made clear. ``Buffy is hardly Xena's equal: healer healer Mainstream medicine A romantic synonym for physician. See Traditional healing. , strategist, warrior, sure-I-can-put-a-new-roof-on-the-inn Mother skills.'' ``I hope you are taking into account the many roles Lucy Lawless Lucy Lawless (born Lucille Frances Ryan on March 29, 1968 in Mount Albert) is a New Zealand actress and singer best known for her role as Xena on the television series from 1995 to 2001. has played besides Xena. She pulls it off with such aplomb a·plomb n. Self-confident assurance; poise. See Synonyms at confidence. [French, from Old French a plomb, perpendicularly : a, according to (from Latin ad-; see that I often will completely forget one person is playing both parts.'' ``You should do a category for best name. Xena (way cool, don't see that many x's, very original); or Buffy (just plain `ick').'' ``Xena can whip a whole army, while Buffy can whip a few vampire butts.'' ``You totally missed the point that the show concentrates on the development of Xena's character and her relationship with Gabrielle. ... and it explores the process of myth creation very effectively.'' ``I love the woman in leather. Give her another point.'' ``XENA, XENA, XENA!'' (Three cheers, one vote.) ``The dynamic between Xena and Gabrielle is what makes the show a cut above the rest. I cannot say the same of Buffy, Willow, Zander zan·der n. pl. zander or zan·ders A common European pikeperch (Stizostedion lucioperca) valued as a food fish. [German, from Low German Sander , etc. Their relationship is as shallow as most high school relationships.'' ``Though Buffy is a good show, lots of action, good stories, etc., XENA ROCKS!'' ``Xena has my vote, hands down! Now if she was running against Wonder Woman ... well?'' What shouldn't be overlooked is their crossover appeal. Some viewers enjoy each on her own merits. ``Xena (Lucy Lawless) is my super hero, but Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar Sarah Michelle Gellar (born April 14, 1977) is an American actress. She is perhaps best known for her role as the fictional character Buffy Summers in the acclaimed television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, for which she received a Golden Globe Award nomination. ) is my role model.'' ``Why must there be a winner? Both Buffy and Xena are the best of their respective genres.'' ``May the best (wo)man win!'' The fact that these two adventuresses don't go head to head on the dial is a giant relief, summed up by this reader: ``Thankfully, I don't have to choose between them when I watch them on TV.'' To which we can only add: Fight on, ladies. We admire your mettle met·tle n. 1. Courage and fortitude; spirit: troops who showed their mettle in combat. 2. Inherent quality of character and temperament. , Buffy, and your metal, Xena. CAPTION(S): Drawing, Chart Drawing: no caption (Buffy and Xena) Chart: YOUR VOTE Buffy - 51.7% Xena x- 48.3% x Includes .2% vote for Gabriel Graphics by Jon Gerung/Daily News |
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