Amy Barksdale

Amy Barksdale is the youngest sister of Helen Morgendorffer and has often appeared in Daria fanfic as a support giver for Daria Morgendorffer. Her role and appearances in various fanfics are many times greater than her appearances in the series (three total).

Occupation
One issue with which a number of fanfic writers wrestled was Amy's occupation. What exactly did she do? Kara Wild (in the Driven Wild Universe) suggested that she was an art appraiser, an idea that was adopted by other writers. The Abruptly Amy parody brought forth the intriguing notion that Amy was secretly a spy, which was also taken up elsewhere (e.g., The Angst Guy's "Prayers for a SAINT"). Peter Guerin's fanfics portrayed her as an intrepid reporter, while in Richard Lobinske portrayed her as a college professor in Falling Into College and as a magazine writer in Misery's End. Show creator Glenn Eichler offered his own suggestions (see "External Links").

Saint Amy
The most common stereotype, particularly in fanfics written just after Season Two in the TV series, is "Saint Amy." Amy Barksdale developed a special relationship with Daria in "I Don't and "Through a Lens Darkly," offering her advice and moral support. In certain ways she appeared to be a grown-up version of Daria herself (see their mirrored images in "I Don't"). This has been taken to the extreme in fanfiction, leading to situations in which Amy rides in like the cavalry to rescue Daria from bad situations.

Trivia
In "Aunt Nauseam," Amy tries and fails to make peace between her sisters, prompting Daria to remark, "So, then, after Aunt Amy arrived to save the day and within three minutes had totally regressed into the same pre-school encounter group as her sisters...." The notion that Amy could "save the day" was not inherent in the episodes where she appeared; in "I Don't," she and Daria just bonded, while in "Through a Lens Darkly," she advised Daria to get contact lenses (which Daria ultimately discarded). Therefore, where did the writer of "Aunt Nauseam" get the notion that Amy could "save the day"? Possibly from Daria fanfiction.