Why Didn't the Scooby Gang Treat Faith Better in Buffy the Vampire Slayer?

In Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the behavior of the Scooby Gang towards Faith can be attributed to several factors, including their initial experiences with her, her personality, and broader themes of trust and redemption in the series.

Initial Impressions

When Faith first arrives in Sunnydale, she is portrayed as a wild and rebellious Slayer, contrasting sharply with Buffy's more responsible demeanor. The gang is initially intrigued by her but quickly becomes wary of her unpredictable behavior. Her initial actions, including her torture and abuse, make her an immediate outcast among her peers.

Trust Issues

Faith's past and her subsequent choices create a significant trust gap. Her willingness to embrace the darker aspects of her Slayer abilities, particularly in Season 3, causes tension. For example, in Buffy’s Leadership, Buffy, as the leader of the Scooby Gang, feels a sense of responsibility for Faith. However, Buffy’s struggles with her own identity and the burden of being the Slayer cause her to be more judgmental. Instead of trying to understand Faith's struggles, Buffy often sees her as a threat or a rival.

Faith's Choices

Faith's decisions, especially her turn to the dark side in Season 4, further alienate her from the group. The gang is deeply affected by the consequences of her actions, which makes it difficult for them to empathize with her. This is reflected in their reluctance to support her and trust her once more.

Redemption Arc

Faith's character arc is one of the series' most complex themes. The gang's eventual acceptance of her in Season 7 reflects a broader theme of redemption and forgiveness. Their initial treatment of Faith can be seen as a reflection of their fears and insecurities about her potential for darkness, which ultimately evolves as they witness her struggle for redemption.

In summary, the Scooby Gang's treatment of Faith is influenced by their experiences, trust issues, and the overarching themes of the show, including the complexities of good versus evil and the potential for redemption. Despite her challenging behavior and decisions, Faith's potential for change and ultimate redemption is a significant factor in her relationship with the Scooby Gang.

Faith as a Character

Faith is one of the best well-developed characters within the series. Lots of this has to do with the way Faith had little to no qualms about torturing, beating, attacking, killing, declining mutilating, and doing other pretty vile things to other people for personal enjoyment or amusement. She was also more loose and promiscuous than the others, putting them in greater risks and deadly zones, situations, circumstances, environments, and surroundings.

In later seasons, she redeems herself pretty well, showing genuine remorse, regret, shame, and guilt. She had a wonderfully uted redemption arc with Angel, and did him a solid return favor by helping him with his internal conflict with Angelus.

The Graphic Novels or Comic Books go into even more depth of how far Faith has come. She is still a wildcard badass but is more tamed and secured, which adds to her story and character development in the broader context of the series.