Recent scholarship has paid attention to how Buffy acknowledges its fans (Larbalestier, in Wilcox and Lavery 2002). One audience it has not yet discussed, however, is Goth subculture. This paper will explore the shifting representations of Goth within Buffy, suggesting that the series both defensively pre-empts criticism that it is a 'Goth' show while simultaneously exploiting Goth iconography in several of its most popular characters.

Buffy has always had an ambivalent relationship with Goth subculture; on the one hand, it frequently jokes at the expense of those who dress according to vampire stereotype, as in 'Lie To Me' (Season 2) or 'Buffy vs. Dracula' (Season 5); on the other, it repeatedly presents Goth fashion as connoting glamour, sex and power, as in the costumes of Spike and Drusilla (Season 2) and Evil Willow (Season 3). Through dress, a distinction is made between the authenticity of the 'genuine' vampires and the superficiality of the wannabes which echoes that frequently made by subcultures themselves.

As the series becomes more morally complex, the deployment of Goth style also becomes more emotionally charged. Willow's embrace of black magic (Season 6) initiates a kind of Goth power dressing. Goth is used here as a sartorial code that indexes madness, evil and obsession. Ultimately, however, Goth style always indicates a highly 'visible' evil, usually recuperated for the audience through wit, charm or longstanding sympathy (as with Willow). Finally, Buffy manages to have its cake and eat it, resisting the 'teenage Gothic' niche, while influencing a whole new generation of teenage Goth fans.