Yeah, I’m a geek and I have never really watched the Buffy series. Sorry. I saw the movie back in the day and liked it then. I also saw an episode or two the series throughout the series run, but never watched in regularly. I did see the famous episode Hush and it was awesome … those guys were creepy as Hell!
So, they have the entire 7 season run on Netflix and I am on Season 2, about 4 episodes in. I do like it, but I’m waiting for it to get really good. By that I mean, the first season seemed dated and the jokes were hit and miss. It seemed like Xander, whom I like, was the go to guy for witty remarks, but they seemed kind of forced and not always witty. I’ve heard that this was an issue that many reviewers noted when the show first started, so I’m not upset. I intend to see it through all the way because I’m a Whedon fan and I know it will only get better.
So what about you guys? Fond Buffy memories? Please hide spoilers if necessary.
Oh don’t get me wrong, I do like it, I just think that I would have liked season 1 more, when it was originally on in '97. Watching it now, it just doesn’t hold up as well. I’m going to be watching the next few episodes in season 2 tonight, which will include Oz’s debut. I’m looking forward to his character as I’ve always liked werewolves more than vamps and I’m a fan of Seth Green, so yeah, looking forward to it.
It’s just about to get good. I think that series peaks from the middle of season 2 to the end of season 3. There are good scattered episodes elsewhere, but you’re headed into the peak. Oz is a big part of that, incidentally. He’s one of my favorite parts of that whole show, and is much better comic relief than Xander.
The first season is not so good. Xander in particular will get much better. He’s a whiny “nice guy” for way too long; he may actually have the best character growth arc of any of them, looking at the series as a whole.
Buffy is great, though I’ve always been more partial to Angel. Honestly, if you’re still with it after the first season and the opening of season two, it’s really only going to get better (Well, until a certain point, at least). I feel like it may suffer a bit of ‘Seinfeld’ syndrome, though. A large part of what made it great was the mix of episodic and season long plot arcs, something that has now been incorporated into the DNA of just about all TV dramas these days. Whether it still holds up as well as I remember is something I cannot objectively judge.
As a booster of Angel, if you’re still with Buffy by the end of season three I would recommend giving it a look. It performed the surprising feat of taking three characters I rather disliked on their parent show and making them all great in a spinoff.
I think Buffy might suffer from “the Casablanca problem”. It was influential enough that it’s style (in Buffy’s case I mean mostly its style of dialogue) was copied so much that someone who goes to the original source will feel it is old hat and a bunch of cliches. The fact that it was the source might not matter.
That said, it is a really good show and worth sticking with.
Yeah, there’s something to that. When Buffy came out, compared to what passed for fantasy TV back then, it was practically Breaking Bad. Now, compared to what they’re doing with fantasy TV today, it looks a lot more like Hercules: The Legendary Journeys.
Yeah, prior to my viewing on Netflix, I had actually seen more episodes of Angel than I had of Buffy, but that was more of a timing issue. My wife at the time was kind of watching** Angel** during its run and I caught a few episodes with her. Neither one of us were watching** Buffy** that much.
Now, I’m single and I decided to see what I was missing with Buffy. Thank you Netflix!
I think the general consensus among Buffy fans is that season 1 is mostly forgettable… so if you got through that with a decent amount of enthusiasm left you have nowhere to go but up.
Please keep us updated, so we can experience it all vicariously!
Part of the trick I realised around middle of Season 3 of Buffy, is that Buffy isn’t really very likeable. She’s very self centred, catty, not particularly funny and just there to jump about. Xander providing the laughs at that point, though Spike seems to take this role a fair bit later.
Willow was good fun, but I’ve stalled mid Season 5, and it kind of annoys me that Willow’s “acting like a lesbian” thing is basically “speaking in that low husky voice”.
Giles changes over time too, and is entertaining. Cordelia is almost a bugs bunny cartoon character at first, seems to grow later in the season.
Watched 3 more episodes last night (not a pro Netflix binger yet), one of which was Oz’s debut in the Incan Mummy episode. I couldn’t help but notice how freaking cute Willow was in the eskimo outfit at the dance. I always thought she was cute anyway, but damn, that episode - awesome.
Love this exchange between Willow and Xander. She’s looking cute and sad because Xander is at the dance pining over the Incan Princess and ignoring Willows feelings for him.
Xander - Have you seen Ampata?
Willow shrugs, but its hard to tell because the coat is so thick and stiff.
Xander - What was that?
Willow - I shrugged.
Xander - I see … maybe next time just say “shrug.”
Xander walks away and Willow sadly watches him leave.
Willow - Sigh
Loved it.
One thing I am kind of wondering is level of awareness that the authorities and average citizens seem to NOT have when it comes to the crazy stuff going on in Sunnydale. Kids getting murdered at school fairly often, demonic creatures sprouting up - yet you hardly ever see any kind of large reaction from the police and the students are back at school the next day like its a common occurrence.
Just seems weird to me, but then again, it’s just a TV show.
This is hinted at all throughout the series, but I don’t think they really mention that people do kinda notice and just filter it out for their own sanity until around the end of season 3. (That in and of itself isn’t really a plot point, so don’t worry)
At the very least, everyone sort of instinctively knows that Sunnydale is 1 weird and 2 has an unusually high mortality rate.
Yeah, I did notice a couple episodes ago after Spike and his vamps had attacked the school during Parent Teacher Night, when the cops came later they asked the principal if they wanted to use their usual story for the press that it was gang members on PCP. He told them yes, because they couldn’t tell everyone the truth.
So yeah, they do seem to be hinting at such things.
For people unsure of Buffy, I’ve said watch Normal Again, season 6 episode 17. If you like that, you’ll like the show. If you don’t like it, you probably won’t.
And you can skip ahead to it and it doesn’t really spoil that much (Obviously there are a couple of characters in it that are introduced during the course of the show, but it’s not a huge problem within that episode as I recall.)
Well, somebody who’s made it past Season 1 & into Season 2 isn’t “unsure” of Buffy. So there’s no need to skip ahead. In fact, that would be a bad idea.
When going through the show again, one will know what episodes to skip.