I do want to start by saying this book is one persons opinion. This is not Canonical truth and he does lay down a lot of his thoughts and tries to present interview material to match his opinion. I have also not read this book only extracts because I'm not spending £15 on someone's opinion and the reviews reflect that because if they agreed, they loved it and if they didn't, they panned it. There's this thing called the internet, we can get thousands of opinions for free and respond with a healthy debate turning into slurs about the commenter and their mum. So here is my opinion for free until I trick you with a subscription charge.
The bit I'm highlighting to the board is Ambers interview (Or at least the extract part)
"This is the first time I'm talking about this. I had had some issues with somebody on the show, and it had kind of come to a head as I was getting ready to leave. Leaving the show was sad because there are some of the crew and the writers and some of the cast that I just adore, but I had made my peace with that person and the show and I was done: 'I'm leaving everything in a good place. I don't need to come back.' And then all the s–t hit the fan and Joss realized he had messed up. I mean, this is a time when people are, like, sending faxes to that production office, like this was a big, horrible thing, and it was devastating to a lot of people.
And I think it hit Joss that he had made a mistake, that he had been short-sighted. I truly, for all of his faults and for all of the things about him that are frustrating, I don't think he ever meant to hurt the LGBTQ+ community. He just wasn't thinking. I can truly, from the bottom of my heart, say [that] this was nothing intentional This was a thoughtless error. But I didn't want to come back. He really wanted me to come back and we just couldn't come to an agreement on it. And most of that was my schedule. I was gonna miss going to England, not being able to direct The Ghosts of Albion if I had said yes.
I didn't really trust what was going to happen to the character. I think that's something if you've talked to some other cast, people are like 'Yeah, I came back… and then he just did what he wanted. Even though he told me that he wasn't going to kill me in this way, he killed me in that way.' I just didn't feel super trusting of the situation. And I felt like people had already been really hurt by this. And I'm not the writer. I can't decide what's going to happen to this character. I don't have the reins. And so between the schedule, and not really having a hundred percent trust in what was going to happen and some other things, it just didn't work out." Extract source.
Now the bulk of this we already know and the creditability of this interview comes from the fact Amber has been consistent in what she has said from the word go. She is either a terrific liar or genuinely a straight up honest person who doesn't want to deceive people. ( I vote the later, I've not come across anything that has said she isn't lovely, sometimes tipsy but never not lovely.) One source of her explaining her decision There are countless explanations given in panels but I cant be arsed with finding and time stamping them all.
Now if we pair this with a interview given about the recent Joss controversy.
“Buffy was a toxic environment and it starts at the top. [Charisma] is speaking truth and I support her 100%,” Amber Benson tweeted. “There was a lot of damage done during that time and many of us are still processing it twenty plus years later.”
Benson elaborated on this more in our interview. “It starts at the top—and I’m not talking about Sarah, I’m talking about Joss. And it creates the tone of the set. And I worked on shows where the producers are very aware of this, and they work really hard to make everybody feel like they are important and that they have a place in the show. And I think because this was Joss’s first show, there were things that got dropped. I think sometimes it made the set feel tense because people were like, ‘I don’t know that I’m important. Like, I know Sarah is important because she’s the name of the show, but am I important?’ And I think that that made it hard. And I think it puts a lot of pressure on relationships with Sarah and other actors and then other actors with each other. I think there was a lot of tension in that way.”
She continued: “I came in in the fourth season, so all that stuff had already been concretized. And so it was a little bit of navigating and being aware that there were sort of alliances and tensions and some people got on really well and other people were okay...nobody was flat-out fighting or anything, but you could just feel like people weren’t sure of their place. And I think it is the boss’s job to make everybody understand where they are in the hierarchy and how they fit in and that they are necessary, you know? ’Cause if you make everybody feel like they’re a part of it and that they’re necessary and that they’re not worried about their job, then there’s this comfortability. And I think when that wasn’t happening, there was some uncomfortability on-set.” Source
Now the new bits of information we have is that there was issues with somebody and there was a lack feeling important. However referring back to Evan Ross Katz who gave this in a interview about his book:
"Something that Amber says in the book that I think applies to a lot of people is that people like you and I, we love this show, it holds a certain place in our heart. When you have an opportunity to be a part of something like Buffy, that makes people feel something so strong about it you don’t want to tarnish that feeling, you want them to hold on to those memories. Even if in some instances, it comes at a cost to you, the person involved. " Interview source
So I'm not going to openly try and fuel speculation and give a fact less basis for a theory that can be wrong and damage someone's career and reputation. So out of respect for Amber and her understanding of the bigger picture, I'll spoiler tag it hehehe.
Don't read if you want to keep things untarnished. I am playing dot to dot with peoples livelihoods, poor sources and wild speculation. There is no value in my words. This is just a current thing ongoing and feel the KB should get in on this.
Spoiler:
So with all the new bits of information coming out as people feel strong enough to speak out, I think its easy to want to still find blame. As much as I wish this was one long Cluedo game and when we work out the answer the timeline will correct itself and we have the correct end to 'Seeing Red' and a Tara filled series seven (Yes with Tara I acknowledge it as seven and not series-doesn't-exist). Nothing is going to change. its done and we have our own narrative in Pens. Raking up the past isn't changing anything no matter how much we want it to. So instead of name calling and false allegations in response to people finally speaking out (Read the spoiler to find out how stupid that is), lets just appreciate what these amazing people have done. Amber in particular to keep the very thin context of this thread.
over 20 years these actors have kept silent to their troubles and suffering in their work place environment because of the fans (Lots of other factors there, don't take all the credit guys) so we can enjoy a show that has touched us in ways much more meaningful than just some show on the telly. They have kept the jaded past aside for the most part to not taint the memory or connections we have, at their own cost. That's above and beyond. Instead of witch hunting the wrong doers, praise the ones speaking up and the ones who have stood up for us over the years.
Yes I want Tara back more than anything but I salute and thank you Amber for having integrity and understanding when the head honchoes didn't. You have helped preserve one of the most important TV characters in history. Thankyou for protecting her and for protecting us.
To read more please click here and selected the premium Dub subscription service, the quality is lacking but has once been described as "Having an odd way of inspiring people"
I do not deem any links here credible as I haven't looked for the first hand source, all this is the non sensical ramblings of someone with far too much time on their hands who thinks this is reality tv instead of life. you should not believe anything read here and use your own head and credible sources when coming to a decision or more importantly know peoples relationships from 20 years ago is no ones business but theirs and they don't need to reveal anything.
So yeah, there's a book out with interviews with Amber in it. Not Alyson, she cancelled after the Whedon controversy.
