Auteurism: the 'Whedonverse'

Auteurism refers to the creative characteristics which define a film maker's work. Director, screenwriter and producer Joss Whedon is a prime example of an artist who's work can be identified by a number of traits. From his breakthrough hit television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer, right through to smaller ventures such as Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, Whedon persistently displays the following five elements:


1. STRONG FEMALE CHARACTERS: as seen in Buffy, Firefly, Serenity and Dollhouse. Whedon notably created the character of Buffy to contradict the role of the young, blonde female who was so used to being quickly killed off in your typical teenage slasher movie. In Firefly and Serenity, River is a more skilled fighter than any other crew member; and Dollhouse's Echo has strength and power that her creators can only dream of.

2. ACTORS: Joss is constantly using the same actors and actresses in his work. Most apparant are Nathan Fillion, who appeared in Buffy, Firefly and Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog; and Eliza Dushku, who was first seen in Buffy and Angel before being given the lead role in Dollhouse.

3. REDEMPTIVE VILLAINS: Although most of his creations are based around plots which usually will include a villain, many of these characters end up changing their ways in the end. A prime example of this would be 'The Operative' from Serenity, a man who had no qualms about declaring he would happily murder children, but eventually saw the error of his ways. Another character is Spike, a vampire with a soul. Unlike his rival Angel, who had his soul returned to him as a result of a gypsy curse, Spike went through hell and back himself to regain his soul and win Buffy's love.

4. POP CULTURE: Popular culture references are rife in the Whedonverse. A season four episode of Buffy titled 'The Yoko Factor' referred to the possibility that Yoko Ono was the contributing factor to the split of the Beatles, a theme which tied in with this episode. In another, Spike says to Angel: "You were my sire man, you were my Yoda."

5. MUSIC!: Whedon clearly displays a passion for musicals, having composed the Emmy nominated Buffy episode 'Once More With Feeling', as well as the three part mini-series Dr. Horrible. Most recently, he directed an episode of hit musical show Glee (which his episode, by the way, starred Neil Patrick Harris - ie. Dr. Horrible).