One Man's Journey Into The Buffyverse

El Vez · Post by **El Vez** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 9:48 am

After years of being a casual, catch an episode from time to time kinda guy, I've decided take the Nestea plunge and barrel through every season of Buffy The Vampire Slayer with a little help from Netflix. Yesterday I watched the first four episodes of season one and while the "Teacher's Pet" episode was silly and uneven, I was struck by how immediately addictive these episodes were even though I had been warned in advance about the first season being shakey. I like how Whedon artfully bobbed and weaved his way through a lot of the exposition you always find in every show's earliest episodes and how the whole thing already feels like it has been completely mapped out by its creator much like The Sopranos. Interesting to see Willow as this timid little mouse considering how far Whedon took her in later seasons and it was also a hoot to see Eric "Claire Sucked My Toe" Balfour as the equivalent of the red shirted Star Trek crew member.

Along with the inaugural "Welcome To Hellmouth," the episode I liked best here was "Witch" which was a perfect example of how you can use the conventions of a genre story, an evil witch is casting spells and must be stopped by Buffy, to sneak in some biting social commentary, in this case about how some parents are so intent on living vicariously through their children that it warps them, and still tell an entertaining story in the process. At any rate, thought I'd start this thread so that I can trace my progress as I slog through the head, the tail, the whole damn thing.

Post by **BlueChair** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 10:25 am

Noooooooo!!!!

El Vez · Post by **El Vez** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 10:37 am

Oh c'mon! Do you just not like Sarah Michelle Gellar? Did the original, piece of shit 1992 film leave that bad a taste in your mouth?

Post by **BlueChair** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 10:38 am

Visions of Luke Perry are stuck in my mind

El Vez · Post by **El Vez** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 10:43 am

I understand the negative association but you're really cutting off your nose to spite your uterus here. It's a great show; funny, smart, scary and just damn entertaining.

Post by **BlueChair** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 10:46 am

Okay, okay.. I'm sorry

selfmademug · Post by **selfmademug** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 11:51 am

El Vez wrote:you're really cutting off your nose to spite your uterus here

I was just gonna write *exactly* that. Well, no, I wasn't, but it made me laugh.

I'm a casual Buffy fan-- Tallulah was an addict for a time and used to come to my house to watch Wednesday nights, a great ritual wherein we'd make fun of the dork we called 'Courting' (you'll get to the moment when you know who we mean) and generally bemoan the ass-covering sweaters poor Giles sometimes wore. I think the show is funny and really well put together.

El Vez · Post by **El Vez** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 2:25 pm

And let me just say that Neidermeyer (or "The Maestro" from Seinfeld if you prefer) made for one very, very scary vampire.

miss buenos aires · Post by **miss buenos aires** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 4:14 pm

El Vez wrote:Oh c'mon! Do you just not like Sarah Michelle Gellar? Did the original, piece of shit 1992 film leave that bad a taste in your mouth?

Hey, it was funny! Did you guys miss Paul Reubens taking twenty minutes to die? And some of us like having visions of Luke Perry in our heads! You guys are hard to please.

bobster · Post by **bobster** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 11:06 pm

I sort of understand Bluechair on this. So many pop culture phenoms can prove to be lackluster or worse <cough family guy cough>.

wehitandrun · Post by **wehitandrun** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 6:25 am

Eh, it's typical for the average person to be turned off by the title alone "Buffy The Vampire Slayer" (Gilmore Girls suffers the same fate), but it truly is genius.

pophead2k · Post by **pophead2k** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 3:36 pm

My girlfriend got me into Buffy. We just salvaged four seasons worth of DVDs from very soggy, and very smelly boxes in New Orleans.

bobster · Post by **bobster** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 4:41 pm

Praise be!

Boy With A Problem · Post by **Boy With A Problem** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 5:31 pm

I've made it through the first season and about 4 episodes into the second - I like it, but can only take a little bit at a time - no way could I attempt what El Vez is doing.

I did pick out a Cramps sticker in Xander's locker in a Season One episode.

Masterpiece? · Post by **Masterpiece?** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 7:32 pm

I didn't get into it until I started watching the reruns on FX network. I caught it in the later seasons and got hooked then, so I'm backwards from most fans who think that the show went downhill post-Angel/Cordy/Oz etc.

I bought all 7 seasons on DVD, and I actually prefer watching seasons 4-7. (OK, seasons 4-6, 7 was way erratic)

bobster · Post by **bobster** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 9:24 pm

BWAP isjust about where "Buffy" really started to get good for me. To me, "Buffy" reallys kind of starts with "School Hard" (the first appearance of Spike and Drusilla, probably my all time favortie Buffy villains). BWAP -- the best is definitely yet to come.

And, Masterpiece, I have some sympathy with your position. I got started more or less in Season 4 and it was "Hush" that really nailed it for me, so I was a bit perplexed at all the people who claimed it started going down hill right then -- and Season 5 is just dandy, IMO. Still, having watched them all now, Season 2 and 3 are probably the most consistently fun and have the best villians.

verbal gymnastics · Post by **verbal gymnastics** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 3:59 am

pophead2k wrote:My girlfriend got me into Buffy.

I had a dream about getting into Buffy...

tallulah · Post by **tallulah** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 12:21 pm

bobster wrote: Still, having watched them all now, Season 2 and 3 are probably the most consistently fun and have the best villians.

Seasons two and three are the best, I agree. And Spike and Drucilla really added a lot to the show. I remember reading something about how as actors they (with David Whatshisname who played Angel) always tried to put a sexy undercurrent to things, and it is kind of funny when it is the three of them playing off each other. I think my fave episodes are the whole Angel arc (which I won't spoil - but ooo, it's good) and The Wish where you see how things would be if Buffy never came to town.

El Vez · Post by **El Vez** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 12:57 pm

tallulah wrote:
bobster wrote: Still, having watched them all now, Season 2 and 3 are probably the most consistently fun and have the best villians.
Seasons two and three are the best, I agree. And Spike and Drucilla really added a lot to the show. I remember reading something about how as actors they (with David Whatshisname who played Angel) always tried to put a sexy undercurrent to things, and it is kind of funny when it is the three of them playing off each other. I think my fave episodes are the whole Angel arc (which I won't spoil - but ooo, it's good) and The Wish where you see how things would be if Buffy never came to town.

Funny you should mention The Wish. FX airs Buffy reruns at the butt crack of dawn and I often catch parts of those episodes while I'm getting read for work and they showed The Wish last week and, even though I only saw half of it, it was so damn good that it finally pushed me to say "Let's Do This!" and plow through the whole series. That shot of Buffy sinking out of the frame while Giles slams the MacGuffin (missed what it was 'cause I was in and out of the tv room) on the table stuck with me and then when it cut to the Scoobies all laughing and hanging out and we see what horrible tragedy was just averted in the nick of time, I just thought it was profound and beautifully done.

Boy With A Problem · Post by **Boy With A Problem** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 1:17 pm

El Vez wrote

Yesterday I watched the first four episodes of season one

I picture you watching this from inside an RV parked in the infield at Talledega this weekend. Am I wrong?

El Vez · Post by **El Vez** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 1:18 pm

Boy With A Problem wrote:El Vez wrote

Yesterday I watched the first four episodes of season one
I picture you watching this from inside an RV parked in the infield at Talledega this weekend. Am I wrong?

Don't forget my trophy for Runningback of The Year which I carry with me everywhere I go!

bobster · Post by **bobster** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 3:10 pm

As good as "The Wish" is, in some ways the follow-up episode, "Doppelgangland" is even more fun. (Sort an example of alternative history playing the first time as tragedy and the second time as farce). It's definitely a highlight for us Alyson Hannigan fans.

Masterpiece? · Post by **Masterpiece?** » Wed Oct 12, 2005 12:08 am

Anyone in the SF/CA area might find this worth a look:

'Buffy' Musical Lives Again
Tuesday, October 11 02:12 PM

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) "Once More, with Feeling," the musical episode of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," is being brought back to life once more. Ten more times, actually.

A San Francisco arts group called CounterPulse is mounting a live stage production of the musical episode, which first aired on UPN in November 2001, for a brief run from Oct. 20-23 and again on Halloween Eve, Oct. 30. The group is playing two shows per night, and three of the performances are already sold out.

"It is no coincidence that this show will be around Halloween," the CounterPulse web site says.

"Once More, with Feeling," which was written (songs included) and directed by "Buffy" creator Joss Whedon, finds Buffy and the Scoobies inexplicably breaking into song, Broadway-style, and at the same time revealing secrets about themselves. They eventually discover that a musical demon, accidentally summoned to Sunnydale, is behind the mischief.

The episode earned an Emmy nomination for music direction.

The stage production will feature a live band performing with the actors and dancers. CounterPulse says "costumes are encouraged"; ticket information is at CounterPulse.org.

verbal gymnastics · Post by **verbal gymnastics** » Wed Oct 12, 2005 4:01 am

My friend has the complete series of Buffy although she has only watched the first three. I'm sorely tempted to join the gang (well, El Vez anyway)and start from scratch.

Otis Westinghouse · Post by **Otis Westinghouse** » Wed Oct 12, 2005 5:38 pm

Buffy the what?