Warning: Spoilers for The Vampire Slayer #11The most recent Buffy the Vampire Slayer comics have seemingly confirmed that Faith is bisexual, a theory that has been prevalent among fans for years. Dating as far back as her debut in the third season of the show, there have been hints in the narrative that Faith is bisexual. Most prominently, fans often read moments between Faith and Buffy as sexual tension in which the former seemed to express a crush or even unrequited love toward the latter.
The Vampire Slayer #11 by Sarah Gailey and Hannah Templer is the first piece of Buffy fiction to canonize Faith's bisexuality. As Willow continues to sink deeper and deeper into the depths of darkness while practicing the dark arts, Faith tries her best to talk some sense into her. However, when she confronts Willow as the witch levitates in the air, Faith is a little nervous about the ordeal. It's not because Dark Willow's new form is intimidating, but because she's distracted by the fact that "this dark, scary version of Willow is wicked hot."
Buffy Comics Re-Contextualize The Show's View of Sexuality
There was never any full-blown confirmation about the Slayer's sexuality on the show, as Faith never overtly expressed such interest in Buffy. Whatever feelings Faith did or didn't have for Buffy could only ever be inferred through subtle nuances and implied sexual tension, leaving plenty up for interpretation and only for interpretation. Meanwhile, Faith only ever engages in sexual or romantic relationships with men, like with Xander Harris and Robin Wood. Faith never explicitly expresses interest in any women. In addition to finally confirming Faith's bisexuality, this moment in The Vampire Slayer also finally validates theories regarding Faith's feelings toward Buffy both in the show and in other comic book spinoffs. Whether it's re-reading their interactions in previous comics (including those even in this series) or rewatching the television series, it adds a new level of complexity to Faith's actions for and against Buffy to consider that everything she does is in the name of unrequited love.
It's also oddly fitting that Faith's reveal comes due, in part, to Willow, who up until now was the only confirmed LGBTQ+ member of Buffy the Vampire Slayer's Scooby Gang. Despite previous relationships with boys, Willow identifies as a lesbian. Buffy creator Joss Whedon in 2020 went on record to Metro UK to say that the reason he opted to write Willow as gay instead of bisexual was because of the way society viewed sexuality at the time while the show was on the air. "It [was] like, “OK, you can’t make Willow bi, you can’t say this is a phase, because that’s what people do to deny their existence," Whedon told Metro UK. "So, if I did it now, I’d be like yes she can be bi. Because some people are! But back then it was like, no…we’re not ready for that."
This is the beauty of spinoff comics like The Vampire Slayer being able to re-contextualize classic things about the original series. Society wasn't ready for a bisexual character to exist in the Buffyverse, or pop culture period, which would explain why neither Willow nor Faith were ever explicitly confirmed as such. Now, for the same reason why Xander Harris can be reshaped as queer in the same series, Faith can now be confirmed to be bisexual in Buffy the Vampire Slayer years after the show merely implied it.
The Vampire Slayer #11 is available now from Marvel Comics.