Crucifixes and Holy Water

[Quokka]

Watching a Buffy re-run the other day got me thinking about how crucifixes and holy water have real power against vampires in the show. That kind of indicates that in the buffy universe one religion may be a little more right than the rest .

Anyone know if this was ever touched on in the show?

I know its fairly irrelevant but just out of curiousity I was wondering if an explanation is ever given.

[PTeppic]

Don't know if they went with the religious aspect: their demons aren't satanic, per se, they're more simply of an earlier type of species. I think it's more that TPTB identified the "well known" lore about vampires and decided which ones would work and which ones wouldn't. Off the top of my head, almost everything works: garlic, crosses, holy water/wafer, beheading, wooden stake (through the heart), burning, daylight...

[Highlander II]

Yeah, aside from churches being 'holy ground', I don't think there was much stock put in 'religion' one way or another. I think Joss mostly went with 'general vampire' lore.

Whereas, in The Dresden Files (books), religion and belief are hugely important to how things work.

Just depends on the mythos you're building, I guess. Plus, Joss wasn't so big on 'preaching' to the audience as 'demonstrating by metaphor'.

[Quokka]

That's why I was curious If there was ever a explanation given, you know its believing in the cross not the cross itself or whatever. From memory vampires dont have relections either do they. Its funny I'd consider one of the best things about Buffy was how original it was/is and yet they started out by saying here are all the usual cliches and plot devices for vampires and I want them all in the show.

I suppose its going too far to say it was background but vampire slaying was never really the focus of the focus of the show.

[dustinzgirl]

Explanations for the buffy verse are given, but not until you go next door into angel verse.

There are higher powers of equal light and dark. Symbols--be they satanic, pagan, or christian, or palayan have an amount of strength.

But, that never really comes up in the buffy verse. Joss got more armageddony in the angel verse.

There were other places of holy ground in other dimensions, just not on earth since earth's holy ground is directly related to God, those symbols on earth work. I don't think they work the same in other dimensions.