And once more into the fray…(spoilers below)…
Okay…here’s the thing…
At the end of BTVS’s first season, in “Prophecy Girl,” Buffy suffered a crisis of confidence…by the end of act one. But she had her act back together before the end of act three, and kicked butt in act four.
Although she did experience what I can only think of as various forms of Post Traumatic Stress in the season openers of seasons 2 and 3, she pretty much kept her confidence level up there for the duration of those seasons…which may be why many folks feel those are the best seasons. Season 4, her confidence evaporated for the first episode, but she had it back again by the final tag.
Then, faced with the climactic big bad scenario of season 4…she melted down for an episode before getting her act (and group) back together halfway through next episode. Then, season 5: faced with the climactic big bad scenario, she melted down for an entire episode before Willow pulled her out of it. Season 6, she was off her game for…well…season 6, not getting her act together until the last ten minutes of the last episode.
And now, here we are, season 7…and she spends about, what, half a dozen episodes?, slowly becoming distant and unraveling until she melts down with a lack of confidence, before a pep talk pulls her out of it.
Again.
Now I grant you that real life goes in cycles. I’m just as neurotic now as I was years ago. Some things *don’t* change. But BTVS isn’t real life. It’s fiction, and it has dramatic beats, and we’ve been seeing the same dramatic beats five seasons out of seven. And it’s taking LOOOONNNNGER to hit those beats and LOOOONNNNGER to resolve them, even though they’re fundamentally being resolved in the same way. In seven years of doing this, Buffy should be becoming MORE confident, not LESS.
People, including myself, have been complaining about the snail’s-pace pacing. It’s not just the pacing. It’s that we’ve seem these dámņëd beats over and over and over again, and instead of Buffy becoming more efficient and capable, she backslides every time and solves it with increasingly diminishing returns.
Say what you want about “Angel,” but we sure aren’t seeing the same beats every season.
That said:
An improvement over the past few weeks, definitely. Once again, unfortunately, too leisurely pacing. Great ending sequence: Should have been the third act climax. Spending three quarters of the episode to get Buffy to the point where she’s been gotten to repeatedly in the past…it’s too much. And yes, there was prurient interest in seeing everyone else putting the “lay” in “Slayer, but did it advance the plot? At a point where the plot desperately needs advancement? Compare it to season 3 where Willow lost her virginity to Oz toward the end of the season and yet it didn’t seem to slow down the plot at all…as opposed to, Stop everything, there’s some foxy ladies here t’night!
At least, to the best of our knowledge, Andrew didn’t get any, because that would certainly be a sign of the Apocalypse.
And, of course, the capper: The rumors were true. Instead of Excalibur, Buffy is acquiring the weapon that, in the future, will be wielded by Fray. Now c’mon, admit it. Isn’t it fun knowing that about 99% of the Buffy viewership is totally missing out on that because they couldn’t be bothered to read a mere comic book? Then again, considering it’s taking three years for eight issues of a monthly title to come out…
PAD
• 
I thought this episode was just fantastic and one of the best of the season right up to the music montage… some great moments – the Mayor, Faith and Principal Wood, Spike’s words to Buffy, a Python reference; not much action but a good character piece.
But then after that we get:
Buffy going all Matrix-y on us and being able to stand her ground with Caleb when she couldn’t before with no explanation.
The discovery of what appears to be a big shiny deus-axe machina, reminding me of Angel’s fantasy scenario about the sword that would defeat the Beast.
I was expecting that to turn out to be a red herring as the pretty shiny things often do, and the real weapon to be in the old tattered box of Faith’s, but it looks like that’s not the case.
Peter, your comments about the annual ‘meltdown’ episode are right on target. At least she didn’t go catatonic this time. And for the last couple of weeks, I kept saying to myself, ‘It’s not a sword, it’s not a sword,’ but lo and behold, there it is. So Fray readers got a futuristic preview of sorts.
Any thoughts on why Caleb, who basically beat the crap out of just about everybody suddenly became Mr. Fumble-fingers? Either Buffy was wearing a new pair of run-faster, junp-higher Keds, or an explanation is definitely in order. And while I’m on the subject, why didn’t anybody just whip out a gun and shoot Caleb Indiana Jones style at some point? He may be ultra-strong, but somehow I doubt he was bulletproof as well.
And nice to see the mayor again.
Didn’t get to see tonight’s episode, as it was pre-empted in Dallas by a basketball pre-game show. Bummer. At least the Mavs made it to the second round…
But Smallville was quite good, and next week looks REALLY interesting.
My friend and I just about died when we saw that it was the weapon from Fray. What is the weapon called? Ragnarok or something, isn’t it?
Fray is a comic worth waiting for. And Karl Moline is no doubt doing his best to get the last issue finished.
We need a Fray action figure/statue/tv show.
Um, yeah! And Buffy was great, too. 🙂
Oh good, the stars are back in alignment. I’m agreeing with PAD again. (Don’t mention the war.) The pace of this episode was far too slow, up until after the last commercial break when, and this is just a theory, Joss shot the writer and finished the episode himself. I don’t think the end was nearly as problematic as Deano suggested above, though. Buffy did much better in combat with Caleb because she radically shifted tactics. In the first two encounters she tried to slug it out with him, like she does with just about everybody these days. She’s gotten a little overconfident, probably because she hasn’t had trouble going toe-to-toe with anyone since Glory. Clearly that wasn’t working here. (First rule of combat with someone who is way the heck stronger than you: Don’t get hit.) Outthinking an opponent can often be a Good Thing. Finding the Skil power axe made sense. For one thing, it vindicated Buffy’s initial instinct that Caleb appeared to be guarding something at the vinyard. This has the added benefit that if any of the Slayerettes survived the explosion, they’ll have to eat a lot of crow. And it makes a perverse sort of sense in a way. If there is something that can hurt you, keep an eye on it. Call this the “Baldrick writing his name on a bullet” theory. Of course, as we may find out next week, this approach has the drawback that if someone does take your weapon away from you, you’re already a convenient target.
Okay, I literally cheered when Buffy started acting like her old-school self again, complete with Angel style maneuvers that show that most of the budget for this episode went into the wirework and stunts. If they had more fights like the one this episode, the entire season would have been a lot more fun.
That having been said, note the pg-13 sex. A lot of it. Boring, although somewhat arou… Ahem… I mean, therapeudic, yes… Heh heh… That’s it…
Cool that Fray’s weapon is brought into continuity. Still, the fight between Buffy and Caleb is one of this season’s few true highlights. Seeing Buffy slightly enjoying her work once again made all the difference. Something in her eyes, in her voice, her stance… THAT’S the Buffy I wanna watch, not uber serious Buffy.
And on one last, long note… ANGEL! WOO! Funloving Buffy’s back. Angel’s back. These last two eps are gonna rock.
I missed it too because of the Mavericks game. 🙁
What about Alias? That cliffhanger was pretty interesting.
A really fine episode. One of the better of the season despite the unneeded coupling.
The done-before (done better) dramatic beats that PAD mentions are my biggest gripes with this season. Xander or Spike’s pep talks ring hollow in that they have been heard before in some fashion. Couldn’t there have been TWO big bad arcs this season with the First’s platform condensed into the last 12 episodes?
Other than the concept of bringing the potential slayers to Buffy there really hasn’t been much new ground at all in this season (people with picture perfect memory may have some quibbles). There has been no new real DRAMA for Buffy. Just her statement that she feels Spike can be a good man…. acknowledging his humanity.
I think I understand that the essence of the Slayer is what needs to be explored to wrap up the series… her relationship with her slaying job, her relationship to evil, and her need of her life and friends… but we really aren’t seeing that.
PAD asked the most important question (statement): shouldn’t she be BETTER at her job, more confident, stronger. “My friends may be gone but there is always the slaying. I got that going for me.”
The ending of this season will probably revolve around three things:
1.) resolution of First/Janice’s statement to Dawn in “Conversations with DP”; “in the end she won’t choose you” (approximate quote)
2.) some “full circle” thread that ties Buffy back to the primordial slayer, the fact that the slayer power is based on evil, and some action tied to Buffy’s statement to Giles about mercy to Spike “you can’t fight evil by doing evil” (approximate quote)
3.) The revelation of Spike’s final role in the shindig and some choice or declaration that will be precipitated out of Buffy (probably linked to the two above items)
I posted a very sketchy outline of my take on a possible finale at: buffyfinale.blogspot.com
I can see what Peter is saying about covering the same beats, and it taking longer, but it does seem like they are TRYING to make the threats (i.e. “big bads”) tougher for her each season.
It’s kind of like, okay, she melted down when facing Adam, say, but The First is MUCH worse that Adam.
That, and there may be an “again?” element to it — a “how many times am I going to have to pull victory out of myself” feeling on her part.
Not that I’m disagreeing 100 percent.
Also, I did think the sex bit came out of nowhere. Especially with Faith and Wood (hee!). Not that Faith’s not impulsive, but she was having a “serious” moment, and ol’ Wood HAD seemed a bit hooked on the Buffster before.
Still, this season has been pretty cool — mostly more fun than last (though Xander and Anya aren’t going anywhere characterwise).
— Nat
Is anyone else wondering whether or not David Boreanez is coming back as Angel. For all we know, he’s going to be the First. We’ve seen the First pretending to be Spike (presumably because he’s dead/undead). Maybe the First is imitating Angel. In the preview, Buffy tries to kiss Angel, and then they cut away. Maybe she goes through him.
I think Buffy’s improved success against Caleb simply came from her knowing what she was getting into this time.
The first time they fought, he took her out with one punch. She had no reason to expect he’d be that strong.
The second time, he still took her by surprise.
This time, she went in, knowing what she was getting into, and took him off guard.
Did anyone else think it a bit out of character for Giles to “stop” the bringers recitation like that, when more information seemed to be forthcoming? I just thought it looked a little too much like he was trying to silence a snitch before he blabbed the whole plan. I’m still not sure Giles is playing for the home team anymore.
PAD’s nailed it again in regard to the “been here, emoted this” problem and the pacing, two major flaws that have been with the show to greater and lesser degrees since Season 5, having first taken root in Season 4. You can trace these things out across the arc of any given season, over the arcs of most episdoes (as with tonight’s), or, for maximum frustration, over the arc of the last three or four seasons.
In addition to these large scale structural problems, tonight’s episode (which was better than last week’s–though that’s dámņìņg with faint praise) continued the ground-level problems of plot. A few head-scratchers for the gallery:
1) Still no specific explanation for why Sunnydale residents are leaving. Far as I’m aware, the First, Caleb, and the Bringers (and, btw, should they be called “Bingers”? I thought they were officialy “Harbingers”?) have done pretty much nothing in public, or at least nothing on a scale that would freak out the average Sunnydale resident to the extent he’d leave town. These are folks who’ve hung around during a biker-vampire invasion, a snowstorm-eclipse, a town-wide Cone of Silence, Satanic churches popping up during earthquakes, a giant snake at an explosive graduation ceremony, and (oh, the horror, the horror)….a musical.
Motivation much? I’m missing something, or the writers are–it’s pointless. (As is the electricity going out. Electrical grids don’t work that way, but that’s easy enough to ignore.)
2) Two episodes to go and I’ve still got the sense that the First’s abilities are determined entirely according the even or odd numbered pages of the screenplay. It can see or sense all the night before battle nookie in the Summers shack, but allows Caleb to be surprised by Buffy’s entrance to the vineyard? (Earlier in the season, It knew that a gun had been brought to the house, but didn’t know where it was?) Hard to be scared of something when it alternates between seeming like it’s a pushover and it’s idiotic. Why haven’t a batallion of Bringers been dispatched with high explosives to casa Slayer? Unless the First is not as evil as it seems, and is setting Caleb up for a fall, there’s a lot of ‘splainin to do. (Prepare for massive info-dump next episode anyway: if the finale is to have any dramatic pacing whatsoever, a lot of information needs to get put out next week.)
Oh, and as to how Buffy was suddenly able to deal with Caleb this week? Simple: she wasn’t trying to get a shot at him at all this time out. In their previous major encounter at the vineyard, she went in for close combat and got nailed every time. This time, she was just there to stay out of his way– we been shown he’s incredibly strong, not that he’s incredibly fast, necessarily. And, unlike both of their last encounters, he wasn’t expecting her this time around (for some reason)– he was off his game.
(But, yeah: somebody should have had the bright idea of just bringing that gun and pulling a Dr. Jones on him. Even if he is some sort of unique male receptacle for the Slayer/First power, he probably ain’t bulletproof.)
3) Once again, if the Slayerettes don’t have super-strength, they’re doing an awfully good imitation of 15-19 year old girls with super-strength (and agility, reflexes, etc.). Since the house has hardly been portrayed as the Slayer Boot Camp it could have/should have been (more like the Whiny Sleepover from Hëll, actually…), there’s no way they’re holding their own as well as they’ve been without some kind of powers– they’ve only been training for a few weeks, at most, and not all that rigorously. We know the average Bringer can’t be a total pushover, either, since they’ve A) given Buffy, Faith, Spike, and Wood various moments of difficulty in battle, B) managed to kill a whole bunch of other Slayerettes around the world. Either those girls didn’t have the moxie and our girls do for some reason (paging Connor McCloud?), or there’s more poor writing going on. I’ll buy one or two of them being scrappy, but there’s zero indication that any of them came from a background like, say, Kendra’s, that would have prepared them for all this. (Btw, again: are they all orphans? Just what the hëll has been told to their parents? Many –most– of them are minors.)
Ah, well. Good to see Buffy (or Faith) is going to get to play out Arthurian phallic power fantasies, and yeah, sometimes being a comic geek helps–any Fray reader who didn’t spot this axe coming last week should turn in her Avengers ID card, Legion flight ring, or what have you.
Alrighty, time to end the ramble with predictions:
1) Giles is still up to something. He ended that interview awfully quickly.
2) Wood’s trying to play someone— not even sure he knows who (Buffy or Faith), or for what– but I don’t think it’s going to work out the way he hopes.
3) Not so sure that’s actually going to be Angel next week. He’s the original Dead Boy, after all, and there’s no better way to mess with Buffy’s head at this point than show up pretending to be him–since showing up as Joyce would be too obvious. Hope I’m wrong– I’d like to see some kind of resolution for the two characters–but given that Angel‘s fate is still up in the air, it gives the writers a way to have “him” in the final episodes without the problems having him in the final episodes could cause that show’s dramatic arc if it continues next year.
4) Knowing Joss’ love for broad(axe) metaphors in the series, that weapon’s got to be used to cleave something, sunder some relationship or dynamic– perhaps whatever link has been hinted at between the First and the source of the Slayer power, bewteen demonic planes and our own (that, too, would jibe with Fray, but would create problems for Angel, potentially). Wouldn’t be at all surprised to find out that the First and the First Slayer need a kind of divorce for all of this to go away.
5) They just cuddled all night, which means that Spike’s going to do his best impersonation of Buffy at the close of Season 5 in the series finale, giving Spike/Buffy fans the teary, romantic send-off that logically follows from the just cuddling thing. It’s funny how the show wasn’t written this much for high school girls when it was about high school girls. 🙂
Ouch. Okay– that last bit was outta line…. 🙂
If Fray is being brought more closely into continuity, what does that say about what’s going to happen to Buffy? Didn’t the series hint at her fate?
Randall asks:
If Fray is being brought more closely into continuity, what does that say about what’s going to happen to Buffy? Didn’t the series hint at her fate?
It does, but it does so unreliably and imprecisely. The most relevant hints are in issue 3, as Urkonn gives Melaka Fray the history of the Slayer lineage as he knows it. Here’s the dialogue:
Melaka: “Why don’t you tell me what happened to the last one?”
Urkonn: “Because I don’t know. It was some hundreds of years ago, in the twenty-first century. What we know is this–there was a battle. A Slayer, possibly with some mystical allies, faced an apocalyptic army of demons. And when it was done… They were all gone. All demons, all magicks, banished from this earthly dimension.”
MF: “And the Slayer? Did she…?”
U: “I do not know if she lived. But, the demons being gone, she was the last to be called. The line continued–there were girls with the power, but they were never called, never trained.”
The art that accompanies Urkonn’s despcription of the battle shows a girl in silouhette wielding a stake and the axe–could be Buffy, could be Faith, could be some Slayer after them. The monsters she’s facing look like some of them could be Ubervamps, but there are a lot of other nasty things running around–big, big, nasty things–that most definitely are not Ubervamps. One disturbing final shot show’s a woman’s hand (presumably the Slayer’s, but not necessarily) appearing to vanish through a portal with some tentacle-thingy wrapped around it. Of course, in our context, that could well be Faith or Buffy, and Urkonn makes no mention of there being two Slayers at this battle– a singular fact you’d have thought would have survived above all others through the ages, so this may well not be our girl(s).
Urkonn’s an unreliable narrator at this point on at least two levels, as well: 1) he doesn’t have all the facts, so we’re only getting his interpretation of what he does know, 2) He’s trying to convince Melaka of her destiny, so he might well be altering aspects of the story.
The description he gives could well be our gang–Spike, Angel, Willow, and even Anya and Andrew would count as “mystical allies,” to say nothing of the Slayerettes–but it might not be. If it is, and he’s telling the whole truth, then the idea of demons leaving our world raises some serious problems for Angel, if it has a next season.
And, of course: Fray’s not officially considered in-canon by Mutant Enemy anyway, whatever resonances there may be bewteen the show and the series.
Buffy seems to be only as good as she is confident. When she fought Caleb before, she didn’t know what she was getting into, and was probably worried more about the girls than herself. This time around, she went into the situation with a specific mission and real knowledge of the enemy. She really seems to work best alone.
Here’s a question: Why did Faith go through with that plan after the First confronted her? Wasn’t that a clue that the First knew what she was gonna do and set up a trap? Buffy had the right idea with that Uber-vamp, planning everything telepathically or whatever.
And did anyone else care to notice that this is the triumphant first appearance of Xander’s eye-patch?
Spike and the Mayor are great. Everyone else is so bummed out or so out of character that it doesn’t really matter what happens.
FRAY is still one of the best comic books I have ever read. (I’m still in shock that #7 is finally out.)
Kennedy licking Willow’s neck, especially with the tounge ring, was just disgusting.
Not because it was lesbian sex (…as a 21-year-old male, I quite enjoy watching lesbian sex.. but, seriously) but because it was so dámņëd gratuitous and _creepy_. The Kennedy-Willow sex scene left me with the same feeling as when Spike tried to rape Buffy.
Posted by PAD
Now c’mon, admit it. Isn’t it fun knowing that about 99% of the Buffy viewership is totally missing out on that because they couldn’t be bothered to read a mere comic book?
Geez Peter, you make it sound like it was offered to us and we refused to touch it. I don’t see how I “couldn’t be bothered” with it if I didn’t know about it.
Not everyone who watches Buffy reads comics.
Well, this was a humdrum episode in my eyes. The ending was cool, but by then I was too worn out from dreariness. I mean, Faith and the principal getting together was only done because this was the big “having sex” episode.
I mean, there are slayers there left and right who’s only purpose is to just sit there and look at the person that is not them talking.
Nathan Fillion was wasted spending the episode doing the same thing he did the last half of last episode: Standing around and talking to the first and basically not doing anything.
Most of the sense of humor that has made Buffy what it is, is gone. All the good little plot twists that went against normal television rules are gone.
I have been faithful to Buffy since year two, but I hope that there is no sequel planned for a few years, so the Mutant Enemy juices can refill.
BTW, it’s better than “24” which has for some reason turned into a show called Locking People In Rooms While Doing Something Wrong.
“The Kennedy-Willow sex scene left me with the same feeling as when Spike tried to rape Buffy.”
I was creeped out the second that Kennedy said something to the effect of “You can trust me.” That’s TV-speak for “I am SO evil.” If Kennedy turns out to be evil, that might mean that the sex scene was intended to creep you out.
Even if not, I wish they could have dragooned Amber Benson into that scene as the First. Simply having Tara, for two seconds, peering down sadly at a freaked-out Willow, then disappearing, would have been purely evil, and in character for the First.
I have to totally agree with Erik. I have been a faithful watcher of Buffy from the first episode and… I never thought I’d be saying this.. but it all just seems so tired, so “under”-done and over done at the same time… I am actually *GLAD* it is going to be over. And not be to be a jerk or anything… but read SMG’s interview in the latest “Seventeen” magazine… It’s unreal how disconnected she seems from the rest of her castmates…and I think the personal strains are finally showing through in the work. SMG didn’t even show up for the show’s final wrap party! (And I don’t believe that she had to rush off to do “Scooby Doo Too” so quickly– the excuse where publicity person is using– that she couldn’t attend the event!) So, farewell to all involved… I just hope that Joss pulls something *MAJOR* out of his hat for the finale (which I know he is more than capable of)!
Okay.
Giles does seem to be up to something.
The sex stuff was so unnecessary.
And I agree with most of what Peter said about the pacing (of the episode and of the season).
But you gotta love the MATRIX homage. Hah, they even cribbed the music a little!
I’ll be short.
Basically liked most of the episode, just hoped they tried not to include so much unnecessary stuff in it.
I had a moment of “OUch” even though I already kwew from SPoilers that the Scythe (as far as I’m concerned it’s just caleed as that) was the one that Urkonn gave to Mel em Fray #6. The blade it’s really gorgeous, specially in real life, it was actually a really cool moment. Now, I have to wait another week until my Fray #7 arrives, hate living outside US at this times, at least with the episodes I can download them, reading scanned comics on the computer it’s not really the same thing.
I really see PAD’s pojnt here, not that I agree completely, but it’s kind of really traceable.
Just hope the pacing doesn’t slow down again in the next episode, specially because it second to last.
Johny
I agree with the comments concerning Giles unusual behavior (ie. slicing the throat of the bringer while information was still forthcomming) and even if it wasn’t Giles is not in the habit of killing without cause (I do remember Ben – but he had a better reason then).
In addition did you notice how he encouraged Faith. “Good Job” or whatever. When he first saw she was back he didn’t even want to talk to her (understandable for the old Giles – but quite the change in just 3 episodes) even if it was just a few words.
Rembember when he almost died earlier in the season, then we all were wondering why he was never shown touching anything and this went on for a while and then in one episode the gang jumped on him and found he was quite solid. Well we all though it was poor writing and quite misleading – but what if it was intentional, what if something happened to him after he fought the bringer in england. His explantion to the gang seemed kind of easy anyway.
I was thinking this not that long ago after he sent Wood to kill Spike. Why would Anthony S. Head let his character take so much abuse – he’s not really being used except as a mat for buffy’s shoes. Never was like that in previous seasons. I think we are in for a shocking final battle between Buffy and her original mentor.
If Kennedy turns out to be evil, that might mean that the sex scene was intended to creep you out.
I’m actually hoping she turns out to be evil, because I hate this character so…freakin’ much…just so much hate, and… [puts a hand over his eye] Must. Hold. Blood. In.
Overall, this episode was an improvement…but it should have happened eight episodes ago.
I’m one who actually enjoyed season 6. This season, I’ve been much more impressed with Angel than Buffy. Why?
In Buffy we’re TOLD there’s an apocalypse going on. Except for the first Ubervamp and the more recent Caleb actions…just what has the First done than talk? At least one improvement is that we know why they haven’t blown up the house, yet…Caleb is the only one with the demolitions skills…and apparently he drove his truck back from London.
Buffy has become detached and out of it because… I don’t know. She basically got depressed. The deaths of the girls is one thing…but she’s used things like that as ammunition before.
…and most importantly, the supporting characters have dwindled to almost non-existence. I wanted to see more of Xander and Anya working things our or not. I wanted to see Willow dealing with her loss. We finally got some of that in this episode…admittedly in sequences most folks found prurient.
Maybe it hasn’t actually been this way, but it seems like we’ve had half a dozen episodes of “Girls moping around the house, Buffy makes speech, Buffy fights something and reassures the girls.”
Thinking it over…barring some episodes for character support or general arc (resolving Spike’s past and introducing Caleb and Faith)…this episode should have closely followed the killing of the first Ubervamp. Buffy had been depressed, girls had been mopey, Buffy made speech, girls got motivated…
…and then Buffy got depressed and girls got mopey.
The last half of this season has just been treading water for the most part.
I realize that this isn’t the GILES THE WATCHER SHOW; or WILLOW THE WICCA, but sweet zombie Gandhi, give the two of them something to do! Giles’ battle against Willow at the end of last season showed just how COOL and effective he can be. I hope he is somehow a pawn of The First, that would explain a lot. And Willow, com’on– even with the constant fear of “Evil Willow” in the back of her mind, she STILL should be doing much more than she is.
That’s the only complaint I have about this season.
without going in to specifics, a lot of people are going to be disapointed at the end of this season of Buffy.
Everyone is saying there has to be a lot of explaining about why person A did this, or how come situation B happened when it shouldn’t have.
There will be no explanations forthcoming, the final two episodes chug along to their end, and nothing much is explained.
I have watched Buffy for four years now, went back and watched the original episodes, so don’t think I’m a Buffy basher. The only thing that you realize by the end of the season is that the writers are forcing characters to do things they would never do just for the sake of the story.
Bad writing is all you get as an explanation.
God, I soooo wish Joss would of taken over the season after Firefly got axed. (Another show I miss:(
However as is, I’m glad Buffy is ending this season before it gets to the point where I stopped watching it all together. As is, I’m just watching it out of habit. If it would have come back I probably would have stopped.
I so wish the show could have gone out with a bang season, instead of fading away with a whimper.
Any chance that the Angel apperance is actually “The First”?
Re: Peter’s comments
I think that the whole of Buffy is about how hard life is and how it doesn’t get easier but harder. Buffy has time and again faced a more difficult menance and time and again she is tested. It’s getting harder for her to convince herself that this is a world worth saving, because the longer it goes the more evil she sees and the more bad she experiences.
At least, that’s what I think Whedon and Co. are trying to convey. It works for me, but I can see how it doesn’t work for everyone.
I’m also from Dallas and I stayed up to see the show after the Mav’s game. I wanted to scream at the TV when the Post game show went long. Buffy didn’t start till 11:15pm and I didn’t want to wait till the next day to see the show so I stayed up. I’m sleepy this morning.
I’ve not watched Buffy before this season. I’ve watched Season’s 1 – 3 on DVD and will buy the rest of the series as it comes out. At the start of this season, I had only seen season’s 1 and 2. I have many holes in my Buffy knowledge but I’m so glad I’ve taken the ride of watching this season as it happens. For all the problems the show has had in pacing and character development, it’s been a fun ride. Looking forward to the next two weeks.
At least, to the best of our knowledge, Andrew didn’t get any, because that would certainly be a sign of the Apocalypse.
Still…I can’t help but wonder *where* Andrew and Dawn were during the big love-in.
Or maybe I should be wondering more about Andrew and Giles…
(What the hëll, everyone’s out of character anyway!)
GH
For a really fun way to celebrate the end of the show, check out the June 2003 issue of FHM. “The Girls of Buffy” tribute has both some very nice photos and good articles. (Anyone know why there are no pics of the Drusilla actress?)
My biggest complaint: Their “Top 10 Buffy Moments” only focused on Buffy’s character. Wouldn’t a Top 10 for Willow be just as cool? Vampire Willow, Willow and Oz hook up, Willow and Anya hook up, bag of knives, bored now, “I think I’m kinda gay”…
And I defy any bi- or heterosexual male, or gay or bisexual female, to peruse the pictorial of Charisma Carpenter and not buy this issue immediately! Yow!!!
Fray’s weapon….precious….
For those of you who don’t read comics and haven’t read Fray doesn’t something like this hint at what kind of storytelling you might be missing? Moments like those come regularly. Say, for instance, when Kara showed up in Supergirl. It’s one of those “what? nah..huh? wait… can’t be… what??…WOW..I can’t wait until next issue..”
I was bursting with excitement when I saw the weapon. It was a moment on par with “Luke, I am your father” for impact. It was SOOO cool to have the two stories connect in that small way.
Was the pacing slow? Yes. Could it have been done better? Probably, but not by me. I’ve enjoyed this season less than others but I still love the show. Although, because of the more ensemble nature of Angel I think I enjoy that one more. I can’t wait for tonight. It should be great.
Tobin
-tpl
Huh. I’ve been reading Fray and the fact that the weapon Buffy found went right over my head. That might have been the time when some clueless person CALLED me while the show was on.
And for everyone wondering whether or not Angel would be making an appearance. Hasn’t it been announced in Entertainment Weekly, TV Guide, newspapers and the like that he would be in the last two episodes? Why is there still any question about it? Just wondering.
Fazhoul
I know I’m probably the only one who had a huge smile during this scene but Spike hitting Faith was the highlight of the episode.
Though admittedly Eliza Dushku’s atrocious acting has improved since she originally appeared on Buffy, her character is still nails-on-chalkboard annoying. I guess it’s her inability to speak in complete sentences without using slang. That and she reminds me of the saggy eyed dog of MGM’s cartoons, Droopy.
The episode was both pleasing and displeasing almost simultaneously.
Slayerettes and gang arguing, displeasing.
Buffy barging into strange man’s house, pleasing.
Faith being awkwardly in charge, displeasing.
Spike hitting Faith repeatedly, pleasing.
Faith hitting Spike repeatedly, displeasing.
Andrew, pleasing.
Buffy whining, displeasing.
Buffy kicking ášš, pleasing.
Sex scenes, displeasing.
Faith falling into a trap with annoying slayerettes, extraordinarily pleasing.
Everyone’s been wondering why Buffy held her ground better with Caleb this week than in previous weeks. Simple: she got smart, and changed her tactics to work to her strengths and Caleb’s weaknesses.
In the past, she tried to attack him head-on, and it’s been VERY well established that he’s just too dámņ invulnerable for that. But he’s big and slow and clumsy compared to Buffy– she’s fast and agile and small enough to duck and dodge him. Plus, Caleb not being the most stable or level-headed individual (appearances to the contrary), Buffy was able to take the offensive psychologically, taunting and rattling Caleb, which just made him get careless and sloppy.
And man, did I get a kick out of those Matrix-y metal-chiming noises on the soundtrack as Buffy went all Trinity. (=
Sure, there were character problems.
Sure, there were pacing problems.
But come on… surely the set dressers/lighting folk could’ve done a better job of blacking out the Summers House windows. The daylight outside during the alleged blackouts was significantly brighter than the candles scene after scene.
Okay, the Caleb thing: Buffy wasn’t trying to defeat Caleb, just stay out of his way long enough to locate the Secret Weapon. She knew she’d be in trouble if he hit her, so she came up with a simple strategy: Don’t get hit. It’s sort of a twist on Spike’s fight with Buffy back in season five. His chip wouldn’t let him hurt her, so he came up with fighting tactics that didn’t involve touching Buffy.
Buffy’s crisis of confidence, for me, hit different emotional notes than in earlier seasons. Up till now, when she was fighting a Big Bad, she basically did everything right. Her plans were mostly on target, her fighting skills were fine; it was just that the Big Bad was really, really strong. This season, Buffy messed up. She misjudged the group dynamic, acted more arrogant than she had to, and came up with a lousy battle plan. Her judgment was off, and when she recognized that, it threw her into shock, and depression.
The interesting–and encouraging–thing is, Buffy turned out to be pretty much right all along. The weapon was just where she said it was, and she managed to get her hands on it, while the other slayers walked into a trap. Buffy just had to change tactics a little.
About that trap: The sequence with the bomb was really exciting while I was watching it, but…I dunno. It makes Caleb seem kind of unoriginal. We had all this suspense. Caleb and the First came up with a really clever plan. They had to predict that Buffy would want to go to the vineyard, that the Scooby Gang would abandon her, and that Faith would interrogate a Bringer. Then they had to set up a dummy weapons site and lead the slayers-in-training there. And the big payoff of all this is: a plot device we’ve seen in countless action movies. There’s even a clock with a big, red digital timer.
Now. The big bomb is a perfectly sound idea. It may even kill off a lot of the slayers-in-training. (I may cheer loudly.) It’s just not that satisfying, dramatically speaking. It’s like the gun issue. Buffy would be very smart to buy a nice handgun and blow her enemies away (the non-vampire ones, at least). But which would you rather watch, Buffy doing flying kicks and scampering up walls, or Buffy pulling a trigger a few times?
I’ve probably gone on too long already, but I have to comment on the lesbian sex scene. Does anyone else think this is Joss’ reaction to all those years on the WB, when he had to get special dispensation any time he wanted Willow and Tara to kiss? UPN has no “Standards and Practices” department, so he can get away with a lot more. I think he wanted to really pull out the stops before the show goes off the air. Unfortunately, that means that Kennedy got a lot of air time. But on the positive side, she didn’t talk much during all the neck-licking.
–Daniel M.
Fazhoul asks:
And for everyone wondering whether or not Angel would be making an appearance. Hasn’t it been announced in Entertainment Weekly, TV Guide, newspapers and the like that he would be in the last two episodes? Why is there still any question about it? Just wondering.
No one’s wondering whether David Boreanaz, the actor who plays Angel, is going to be on the next two episdoes of Buffy–it’s clear he will be.
What we’re wondering is whether he’ll be playing Angel or The First posing as Angel. The First has the ability to appear as dead people. Angel’s a vampire, so he’s dead, and appearing as him would be a good way to mess around with Buffy.
Hope that helps.
An interesting viewpoint on the latest Buffy and S7 in general: http://www.scoopme.com/tv/articles/default.asp?article_id=104640
I just had to add one other thing: How irritating were the jerky “NYPD Blue” camera movements in the first 3 or so scenes of last night’s episode? I kept waiting for Andy Sipowicz to show, rough Caleb up and drag his sorry, Southern Baptist stereo-typed butt down to the 15th Precinct.
Okay, when did “Buffy” switch to the Spice Channel? Just wondering…
Unfortunately, most of this episode was the sort of television I could watch while doing the dishes. But I was squealing like a child at a certain cameo: “Mayor! Mayor! We miss you!”
When Kennedy walked down the alley, I was cheering loudly. “Yes! Die, Kennedy, die! Come on, Caleb!” Drat. Here’s hoping the bomb gets her and all the Slayerettes.
Since I was unaware of the comic series, I didn’t understand the significance of the axe, except that it is likely to end up in Caleb a la troll-hammer vs. Glory. But hey, anything that shuts him up is tops in my book, even if it took a Matrix-ripoff fight sequence to get to it. They could have directed that fight scene with Buffy trying to avoid him and hitting the stuff around him to hurt him without the Matrix video.
Finally, I still enjoyed James Marsters’ ability to sell Spike’s continuing devotion, with or without soul. Looking forward to some serious Angel/Spike bickering next week. Now THAT was fun.
1) Still no specific explanation for why Sunnydale residents are leaving. Far as I’m aware, the First, Caleb, and the Bringers (and, btw, should they be called “Bingers”? I thought they were officialy “Harbingers”?) have done pretty much nothing in public, or at least nothing on a scale that would freak out the average Sunnydale resident to the extent he’d leave town.
It’s striking me more as a writing necessity. That is to say, the writers are making it happen because it’s required from an endgame point of view. There really is no intrinsic reason that the residents would bail. On the other hand, what if the writers are planning to have…I dunno…Sunnydale go kaboom. If there’s an earth shattering kaboom and a couple thousand residents are toast, that kind of takes the shine off the victory (presume the kaboom represents a victory, as it did when Buffy blew up the gym in her old school and, in season three, blew up the entire school.) But if the only people left in the town are combatants and the town gets nuked, viewers don’t have the corpses of all the Sunnydale citizens on their minds.
PAD
I observed:
1) Still no specific explanation for why Sunnydale residents are leaving. Far as I’m aware, the First, Caleb, and the Bringers (and, btw, should they be called “Bingers”? I thought they were officialy “Harbingers”?) have done pretty much nothing in public, or at least nothing on a scale that would freak out the average Sunnydale resident to the extent he’d leave town.
PAD replied:
It’s striking me more as a writing necessity. That is to say, the writers are making it happen because it’s required from an endgame point of view. There really is no intrinsic reason that the residents would bail.
That’s what I’ve assumed, too. That is, this element’s been thrown in because it contributes to the overall apocalyptic and series finale atmospheres at work. I’m cool with that; it’s a necessity, as you say, for the endgame thematics.
But it hasn’t been given an in-story reason, and it’s therefore more distracting than effective–especially since we’ve seen previous coulda been-endgames that didn’t produce such reactions. I wish they’d give us a “handwave” at least, by having Willow or Anya say that intense psychic dread is flooding the town, forcing people to flee without knowing why. They seemed to come close to that last week, but it veered off into the weaker idea that everyone is just acting “Hellmouthy” (which seems to mean either flee or get really agressive), but with no followup explanation as to how all the lead characters have avoided being affected if that’s what’s going on.
It’s a relatively minor thing, sure, but it’s the minor things the show used to do so well on so many levels, so it stands out.
If there is, indeed, supposed to be an earth-shattering kaboom coming (and ain’t there always supposed to be one…?), I doubt they’re relcutant to offend us with dead Sunnydaleians though, whether seen or implied: this is the show, after all, that showed innocent bystanders bursting into flame because Xander wanted folks to get their groove back, and never offered the slightest rebuke. From as far back as the Happy-Hyena Meal Principal, Mutant Enemy hasn’t demonstrated much concern with our potential concern for collateral damage, as it were. 🙂
Ah, well– at least they’re still clever enough to have given us what has to be prime-time’s first Sophoclean-themed sex scene last night between Faith and Wood. Who’s your daddy? Oh, Mama…..
I just had to add one other thing: How irritating were the jerky “NYPD Blue” camera movements in the first 3 or so scenes of last night’s episode? I kept waiting for Andy Sipowicz to show, rough Caleb up and drag his sorry, Southern Baptist stereo-typed butt down to the 15th Precinct.
LMAO!!!! I’m a huge Blue fan and noticed the camera work immediately too! What can I say-it works to build tension. I just don’t notice it on Blue anymore-I expect it!
Today at http://www.comicscontinuum.com, they have the logline for Buffy’s finale, titled Chosen. And there are pictures.
Thankfully, Joss is writing & directing the finale. Hopefully, that will end it on a high note.
Bobby
Bobby Nash
Writer @ Large
When I saw the weapon that Melaka uses in Fray, I lost it. That is quite possibly one of the coolest moments in TV for me. I mean really guys, we got honest continuity straight from a comic. Not this re-start X-Men, Spiderman, plastic nippled Batman or S-throwing Superman. This was one story directly and perfectly linking to another. How freaking cool is that? Wow. No, the season hasn’t been perfect but I have plenty of faith to optimistically see it to the end.
I have a question.
It seems I missed the part where Faith said where she and the Slayerettes were going to look for the weapons. Did they go to the school or the vinyard?