333 images (or so)

Not quite a librarian—that would be Giles—but she did pretty much live in the library.  And one time, at band camp, she magically absorbed all the text from every book on the shelves.

Willow “everyone’s getting spanked but me” Rosenberg is a sub, but her evil alter ego is definitely a domme.  She even gets in a little bondage with her victims, though in Joss Whedon’s stories, who doesn’t?

And she’s Allyson Hannigan.  So there’s that.

But there’s more.  Willow was one of the first adamantly Jewish characters on television, who didn’t suddenly become a Christian for the Christmas special.  And she and Tara were the first lesbian couple on television, bar none.  Both of them were portrayed as being shy and insecure and gradually becoming self-confident….it was pretty inspiring stuff.

But again we have the issue where superheroes have regular powers, but superheroines have disability powers: in Willow’s case, her power was treated as an addiction that made her evil.  Some folks have argued that this is evidence of Joss Whedon’s shocking sexism, which I think is kind of silly: I think Angel’s and Mal’s (male) power is treated with similar ambivalence, and Topher’s “power” is basically a tragedy on par with Victor Frankenstein.

Still, the pattern is important.  I note, for instance, that most female fetish models are asked to bottom at least on some occasions, while most male fetish models only top. [Insert lots of boring theory].

The point is: Willow Rosenberg: hot.