The mother of Buffy, Joyce is divorced from her daughter's father, Hank, though
she still uses his name. She moved herself and her daughter to Sunnydale
when Buffy was kicked out of Hemery High for burning down the school gym.
She hoped they could make a new start and, recognizing her own neglect of
parental duties, made a conscious choice to improve their relationship.
Naturally, the course of parenting never runs smooth, and no matter how
many books Joyce read, she could not come to understand her daughter. Buffy
started out well enough in Sunnydale, but soon got into mischief again.
Just when Joyce thought she had Buffy figured out, her daughter would
come out with a comment like, "I love you, Mom." Joyce just doesn't get her.
Things got worse when she discovered Buffy had slept with a 'college student'
called Angel who proceeded to stalk her. Buffy hadn't even told Joyce she was
dating him, and she didn't know what to do. Everything would become clear,
however, when Joyce Summers learned that her daughter was the Slayer.
Buffy slays vampires. That's what she does. Joyce couldn't understand this, and
kicked Buffy out of the house in a moment of heat. Regretting it later, she
worried greatly about her daughter, and was relieved to see her come home.
She still has trouble with the Slayer thing, but she's coming around.
Joyce has had trouble living an ordinary life. She runs an art gallery, but this leaves her little time to herself, and since she is often needed to meet with teachers and principal about Buffy's behavior even this little time is often squandered. She has been influenced by love spells, and been infected by a bezoar, as well as carrying on a serious relationship with a robotic serial killer. Of course, she has no idea these things are happening, but she certainly has not had a normal life.
Although in times past her parenting skills have lacked finesse, Joyce has become 'SuperMom'. Her love and care for Buffy are always evident, even if she occasionally says something rash by mistake. She shares her feelings with Buffy, and is obviously frustrated with Buffy's lack of ability to do the same. They do spend a lot of time together, especially watching videos. In fact, her love for her daughter Dawn is great enough that she easily accepts the fact that Dawn is not really her daughter. This does not faze Joyce, who has seen so much.
The strength of her personality is easily seen in the bravery Joyce showed when faced with cancerous tumors eating at her brain. Her thoughts were almost entirely for her daughters, and their well-being. Truly, Joyce is a remarkable woman.
Joyce met her ex-husband Hank at her high school prom. She had no date, Hank did, but they ended up together by the end of the night. Sadly, they grew apart later and divorced, but the two have an amicable relationship now.
Buffy could do a lot worse than having Joyce Summers for a Mom.
Kristine Sutherland plays Joyce. Kristine is married to Mad About You's cousin Ira, John Pankow, and the two have a daughter together. She grew up in New York, only moving to LA relatively recently. She has a great respect for both the character she plays and the show Joyce inhabits.
Sutherland is still very much in touch with the teenager she used to be, and relates very well to all the characters on the show. In this respect, she differs from Joyce, but both she and her character share characteristics like intelligence and compassion. I am sure she is just as good a mother as Joyce Summers is.
Is it just a coincidence that her name (Sutherland) is the same as one of the movie's actors (Donald Sutherland)?
Joyce played next-door neighbor Mae Thompson in the movie Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. She appeared in a California Dreams episode called "Daddy's Girl" as Ariel, a woman Tiffany's father was dating. Kristine also had a role in the film Legal Eagles.
Links?:
The closest thing to a Joyce/Kristine site I could find was
Buffy Cross & Stake Bio