Buffy 02/18/03 - Get it done (spoilers)

Cafe Society
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It’s Springtime in Sunnydale, and time for our annual apocalypse.

I long to hear that line, preferably spoken by the Peroxided One, but I can see Giles or Xander saying it, too.

After, what, thirteen episodes of the Damsel in Distress, Spike is finally showing some of the “Anybody wants to see who’s got the biggest wrinklies, step right up” fighting 'tude that he had back in S2, only directed toward fighting evil, instead of furthering his own selfish ends.

Wood: Nice coat, where’d you get it

Spike: New York

Oh, and, “I don’t know what your feelings are, mate” strikes match on dead demon “But for me, a tussle like that” as he lights cigarette, then gameface melts away to human face “is good for the soul.” was the best line of the episode.

And I liked Buffy’s speech. TFEvilBuffy was a lot more fun to watch than Good Buffy, and PissedOffBuffy shows more strentgh than TryingToBeInspirationalBuffy. It’s about time she lit a fire under some asses, including Spike’s.

Oh, and I loved the teaser.

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What are you, stupid? Wood clearly says “It was meant to be passed down to you, but I couldn’t part with it.” Next time, pay attention before you open your mouth, dickweed.
[sub]Just re-watched the tape, I liked it so much, and caught this line. Oops.[/sub]

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Miller just because you agree to something doesn’t mean you know the whole of it. Also I think anyone even someone who “agreed” would kind of struggle to avoid being altered so fundementally. Then again it doesn’t really bother me if Slayerhood was forced upon the First One it just isn’t required based on what we’ve seen.

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Oh, I think we’re about to get some things that will change our opinion of the “Higher Powers” and the “Powers that Be” on both Angel and Buffy. I strongly suspect that they are not as great and as well meaning as we have been led to believe, and that our characters are the only really good people taking a stand. This seems obvious: it’s a theme as old as either show itself, from the Watcher’s Council to the stupid Oracles. The true, human/half human good guys rise to the occasion. The all powerful perfect goody goodies are too vain and idiotic to fight evil. So don’t be so quick to spew tears over the Powers that Be not choosing slayers. It’s always been a dirty, messy, human world in Jossverse, and it always will be.

Whether you like Buffy’s little speech about Chole or not: it was a great dramatic moment. It wasn’t what you were expecting. And it takes her character further in the direction its been heading. She’s pissed. This is an army. They can’t afford to be weak, to bend and waffle in the face of evil. The whole world is resting on their shoulders. As Buffy has had to learn herself many times: it isn’t always about her. Sometimes, it’s about the mission.

Personally, I think Robin Wood is falling a little flat in the “meshing into the Buffyverse” thing. He still seems like an awkward guest star, not a principal (in the casting sense of the word). They want him to be smart and snarky, and he doesn’t quite pull it off. His “nice coat” was definately a step in the right direction though.

I too would like to know what that ending was all about. Is that the future… or is it what Buffy is going to have to face? If it’s what she has to face, I’m betting only super-duper magic can ultimately face it down. It’s going to have to have something to do with nixing vampires as a whole, rather than just taking them all on, hand to hand.

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Should have bought Fray, where it’s explicitly stated that that’s what happened.

**

Presumably the WC thought that Spike had it. And who’s to say Buffy is the first Slayer to open the box?

**

Since she didn’t speak any for most of a year. She’s rusty.

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OK episode, several things fell flat for me. The major one was Buffy’s speach, which seemed disjointed, ineffectual, and out-of-character. The first two I can forgive since the character is upset and out of ideas, but the last one is just silly. Chloe was vulnerable to the First because she was feeling lost, confused, and week, and Buffy just compounded that. Getting Spike riled up is good, but this is right after she talked about him being a “good man if we let him”?! Conflicting messages here. She’s always come off as a very week leader, IMO.

I have absolutely no problem with the Slayer origin story. It is arbitrary and somewhat cruel, but, hey, that’s life as a Slayer. The origin should reflect that, young girls are chosed against their wills, have no say in their life path, and always die young. Fits the rest of the show just fine.

It felt like Spike has an inkling of who Wood is, his “New York” line seemed kind of in-your-face. He’s going to have to stand up for himself and defend that he’s a changed man, convince Wood that he’s not the same vamp who killed his mother. That could be the redemption of Spike. I also liked his line about being unique, sort of.

Kennedy is a lost cause. She can’t act very well, is given lousy lines to say anyways, and her relationship with Willow is all over the place. Meaningless drivel going on right now, I’d suspect she’s the next SIT to fall prey to the Frist, but that would be rather predictable.

The final scene reminded me of LOTR: TT, massing Orcs. Time to get the Troll God hammer.

And Spike putting on the duster (you knew it had to come back, didn’t you?) reminded me of an old Bloom Country cartoon where Steve Dallas, after being turned into a wimp by having his brain transmorgified by aliens, returns to his former self by putting on his sunglassed. “He’s Back!” “He’s bad.”

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I was kinda distracted during the black smoke part. Would someone please explain for me the origin story, what that smoke was, and why Buffy refused it.

And what exactly is Willow’s situation now regarding magic. Is she afraid of it? Afraid she cannot fully control it?

Don’t like how Kennedy has developed. And Anya was unable to identify anything she adds other than “sarcasm.” She forgot that kissable midrift.

Disappointed that Wood whipped out nothing tougher than shuriken.

Spike rocks.

“This funnel cake is kicking my ass!”

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A real off and on episode.

Buffy’s speech was good in intent- as everything she said was true, but conversely if I have to listen to one more damn speech. . .

Kennedy is the worst Buffy character ever. Horrible actress combined with a horrible role and a complete lack of chemistry with any of the other cast.

Dawn is now the mini-Giles. At least she has a role. Andrew as comic relief is ok, I guess. But what happened to the scientific genius or whatever he was before?

The “Orcs” did seem like a direct to video version of LOTR.

The Wood vs Spike thing has all the spark of a broken BIC lighter. I hope they resolve it soon. What was with the coat bit-- it seemed so forced. A bit of pandering to the shippers?

Also the hole cave scene was a big letdown for a nice set up-- I had the “that’s it” sort of reaction. After last week’s Angel and Buffy this was a disappointment. The Reigh of Error which is UPN Buffy continues. Maybe they should shut it down.

Sigh- 5.5 out of 10. Still I will be watching next week with high hopes.

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Where was Giles this week? Didn’t see him.

Also, Kennedy just pissed me off something fierce. Too bad, I was really starting to like her. I’m hoping she buys it at the end.

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Andrew was never a scientific genius. Warren was the closest thing to a scientific genius in the Evil Geek Trio; Andrew just had a talent for summoning demons. Which makes him almost completely useless to the Scoobies, of course; hence, funnel cake.

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I thought it was demons, but he did tinker with the other stuff. His knowledge of demons should be useful though. Then again, funnel cake is quite tasty.

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No, as a matter of fact, none of the “shippers” I know ever wanted to see the duster again. Why would you think the “shippers” give a flying fuck about the duster? The ones I know though Spike rejected everything the duster represented and was very happy about that…now that he’s “embraced the dark side” so to speak, at Buffy’s urging when she rejected her own, they aren’t very happy.

The Wood/Spike thing will be resolved before May.

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I found it interesting that Xander was the only one allowed to question Buffy. Meaning he’s the only one that Buffy didn’t berate about not being useful. And he directly called into question her leadership abilities.

I kept hoping either she would a) wisen up on how to lead effectively (delegate responsibility, set goals and tasks) or b) realize that being the Slayer and having all the superpowers does not automatically make you the best leader and pass on the title to someone else. Either Giles or Xander would fit the role. Giles with his years of experience or Xander being a supervisor and all. Of course both of those wouldn’t fit into the girl power message of the show.

Buffy, however, started to become a better leader with her speech by being the bad guy in the group. Get them focused on you and ignore the problems around them. Even if they hate you, they need to perform for you. Encouraging them might have been better for morale, but the focus of the group had been on surviving long enough for Buffy to win. She can’t do it by herself though, and needs the others to start pulling their weight.

Though I think Xander could give her some pointers, I’m sure he’s been to several weekend training seminars with the boring lectures on being an effective leader, getting the most out of your employees, the importance to TPS reports, etc.

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I though the visual aspect of the shadow play was absolutely stunning. I loved how the different elements started to interact, and the moving shadows gave that whole scene a great eerie feeling. “They chained her to the earth.” Great line, and actually delivered quite well by Dawn >gasp<.
Unfortunately, the rest of the episode was hit-or-miss. Kennedy dying would be good. Wood’s a chump, and I don’t trust him at all. And Spike, who keeps me watching, seemed off to me this episode. Almost like a caricature of himself.

I’m glad they cleared up where Chloe went to, but where was she in the two or three episodes where she wasn’t around and not even mentioned? And I liked the teaser for next week too. It looks like Andrew’s going to be a main player, so maybe they’ll do something to change his status from annoying whipping boy to mildly accepted hanger-on. ::fingers crossed::

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Hello, all. Long time lurker, first time poster.

Just some thoughts here. I don’t think the Slayer origin story is meant to be taken literally. Or at least what happened to Buffy is not to be taken as the origin. My interpretation of what happened to Buffy is more of a test rather than what really happened as the origin. Sort of like Solomon, you can have power, or you can have knowledge. Chose to be less human, chose to be degraded and invaded, and you can have power. However you are leaving yourself open to the corruption that comes with power. Rather, Buffy chose knowledge. She chose not to be weak and accept the blackness and subsequent corruption from it. The PTB made this a test for her. At the begining of the season when Buffy was training Dawn, she said it was about power. At the end of the episode the Buffy!TFE told Spike it was also about power. The TFE is all about power, and so was Buffy. She is learning otherwise now. The power that she was going on about earlier being used to dig graves can be compared to the Dark Side of the Force(sorry to leap into Andrew-mode, but I think the metaphor works), but she passed the test and is coming back to the Light Side. Since the Buffyverse is frequently grey in terms of morality and good/evil, the overarching metaphor is to keep to a middle ground in your actions. Covet too much power, you become corrupted and evil. Covet too much knowledge, you become too consumed with your own hubris and can’t save yourself like The Watchers Council. Buffy was getting too much towards the side of power and thus corruption. Swinging back the other way will ultimately help defeat the corruption of The First. Evil, and thus The First, will always be around, but it can be tempered with knowledge.

As for the Slayer origins, there is nothing that precludes the PTB from having their role as well. There was evil in the land, the shamans prayed for relief and The Powers answered. They came down and imbued a girl with their power. They certainly don’t look human, after all look at Cordy’s “friend”, so the story got passed along as a demon came to give the Slayers power. And there just might be some demon attributes as a result. Cordy had to take demon essence in order to survive the visions. Just because there is demon, doesn’t mean there is something bad in the Slayer. It’s just a way for her to survive. I think that since there is a repeated message of returning to humanity, ala Angel and Spike, Buffy is going to give up this demon side of her to seal the Hellmouth, or give it Faith to augment her powers, or even one of the Slayerettes. Either way, Buffy is going to return to being fully human. And perhaps Angel will too and Buffy is going to have to choose between him and Spike. Just WAGs. The part about being “chained to the earth” is sort of a lament. The Slayer has a duty to protect the earth, she cannot dream, she cannot be raised up to the PTB like Cordy, and she must subsequently be buried in the earth. It’s a heavy burden, and she’s chained to it. Ultimately Buffy is going to break those chains and live a normal, happy life.

And off topic sort of for a moment. Anybody else notice that at the end of the intro’s for the last two seasons, that it wasn’t really Buffy? At the end of season six as the last chord of the theme music plays, there is the shot of Buffy in black looking tough and threatening Glory from the previous season. But it really wasn’t Buffy, rather the Buffybot. At the end of this season, in the same place, there is Buffy in black with her arms crossed with a smirk on her face. But it really isn’t Buffy, rather Buffy!The First. Probably nothing deep or hidden in that, just something I notice.

Wow, that was long and rambling. I now return you to your regularly scheduled postings.

  • bishamon
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Quick Hijack

This might fall under the “uh…D’uh!” category, but The Gaspode, are you a “spy” for AICN? I was wondering because I happened to be looking on the site today and I saw this:

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is played by Lalaine who also plays the best friend Miranda in LIZZIE MCGUIRE.

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The coat bit was tacked on- who was it for then? Demons tearing up town- better detour to the basement to get my “back when I wasn’t a Nancy Boy” coat.

Also, I assume there is a wide variety of Spike shippers you haven’t talked with?

Additionally, I don’t really agree with your take on the impact of the coat in light of his comments about being “good for the soul”. Buffy/Willow/Anya/Zander/Angel have fought and killed without “embracing the dark side”, well oops Willow did actually.

Sometimes a coat is just a coat. The end to the helpless damsel in distress Spike is a welcome development (crappy Wood plot-line aside). That was a demon he killed to help protect the city and bring back Buffy. Not much of an embracement of the dark side there.

Buffy was right- he was holding back. The duster represented a heavy handed symbol of his determination to fight as hard with a soul as without. And, IMHO, a gift to those who watch for JM’s break away clothes. Buffy also layed into Willow and Anya as well. As far as rejecting her dark side- she just ripped into the whole group, including the big two.

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Wasn’t the duster originally Nikki’s? Or am I just making up stuff to add symmetry to the tension with Wood?

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Yeah, the coat was Nikki’s.

Some people still like to look at BtVS on a metaphorical level, as ham-fisted as it’s been lately, and see Spike leaving the duster behind when we went to get the soul as more of a plot device. They are uncomfortable with the notion that Spike would, at Buffy’s urging, don the “skin” of his kill again. It’s true she also laid into Willow–the only reason Will was “holding back” was because she was scared the first would work through her when she tried magic. And did anybody else notice that she went raven-haired when she opened the portal? I’m uncomfortable with both Spike and Willow being told to reachinto the dark for their power while Buffy rejects the dark aspect of her power.
The only reason they reintroduced the coat was for the Wood/Spike situation. And the fans at the dozen or so groups I read don’t hate the duster itself…just what it represents at the moment. As a matter of fact (the following is a MAJOR SPOILER. Read at your own risk.)

When Spike beats the shit out of Wood, he reclaims the coat…and this time it’s not a bad thing because Spike has worked through his “issues” and this time when he puts the coat on, he means it. It’s not a costume anymore.

And I think I have a pretty good feel for what the “Spuffy” community wants out of Spike…pandering to Buffy’s desires again is not it.