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From: buffy-owner@xmission.com (buffy Digest)
To: buffy-digest@xmission.com
Subject: buffy Digest V1 #73
Reply-To: buffy@xmission.com
Sender: buffy-owner@xmission.com
Errors-To: buffy-owner@xmission.com
Precedence:
buffy Digest Wednesday, May 14 1997 Volume 01 : Number 073
In this issue:
Re: BUFFY: Buffy:Keeping Things
Re: BUFFY: Nightmares (spoilers)
BUFFY: Fanastizing about next wk's ep (Spoilers)
Re: BUFFY: Buffy:Keeping Things
Re: BUFFY: Nightmares and introduction
Re: BUFFY: Giles w/ Buffy? EWW! (Re:"Nightmares" & daymares)
Re: BUFFY: Giles w/ Buffy? EWW! (Re:"Nightmares" & daymares)
BUFFY: Article - Buffy, Vampire Slayer Pt. 1
BUFFY: Article - Buffy, Vampire Slayer Pt. 2
BUFFY: Review: Girls On Film: Buffy
BUFFY: Can you fill in this quote?
Re: BUFFY: Can you fill in this quote?
Re: BUFFY: Can you fill in this quote?
Re: BUFFY: Giles w/ Buffy? EWW! (Re:"Nightmares" & daymares)
Re: BUFFY: Can you fill in this quote?
BUFFY: Re:Buffy/Giles
Re: BUFFY: Giles w/ Buffy? EWW! (Re:"Nightmares" & daymares)
BUFFY: Giles' Nightmare
Re: BUFFY: Giles' Nightmare
See the end of the digest for information on subscribing to the buffy
or buffy-digest mailing lists and on how to retrieve back issues.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Tue, 13 May 1997 20:36:20 -0700
From: Morningstar@webtv.net (Christina)
Subject: Re: BUFFY: Buffy:Keeping Things
HEY I WANT TO BE THE KEEPER OF SOMETHING...... OF BUFFY'S
WHAT DO I HAVE TO DO????
RIGHT NOW I'M THE KEEPER OF GILES'DREAMS
Christina
http://members.tripod.com/~Zartara/index.html
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 13 May 1997 23:42:02 -0400 (EDT)
From: Onlyamouse@aol.com
Subject: Re: BUFFY: Nightmares (spoilers)
S
P
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'cuz everyone else was doing it... :>
Okay, i'll try not to be redundant and say the same things/share the same
opinions as everyone else on this episode..
But i really have to agree with the person who wasn't overly thrilled by it.
It didn't have any especially memorable lines, wasn't as well done as it
could have been, etc.
Let's start with Billy.... i don't think he's the same boy as the Annointed
One and i think it was rather lousy of them to make that so confusing.
However i was profoundly shocked by this boy.... how do you find someone so
young with such sad looking eyes?
Um... the entire show was worth watching just to see that part with Cordelia
("I don't wanna go! I'm not even IN the chess club!") I applauded and cheered
that part....
For some reason i loved the fact that Xander was lured in by chocolate. I
can't explain why.. but it was probably my second favorite part of the entire
show. And when he knocked the clown out i cheered and applauded again (yay
for Xander!)
Now, the part that i seem to be at odds with almost everyone with is the
Buffy-as-a-vampire scene. The most negative comment i heard about it was that
it was over too quickly, not well developed enough. I thought the entire
section was badly done. I felt almost as if SMG used up all her acting
abilities in her scene with her father that she didn't have enough left to do
the scene as anything better than cliche and predictable and just plain not
well done. Maybe i'm just picky, being a vampy-type person....
Although i did freak out a little bit at the part where Giles' nightmare was
Buffy's death and his failure because all this past week when this list was
making predictions on who's nightmare would be what a few of you had said
that. "i don't believe it, they were right!", etc. into the phone (i always
watch it with someone) to someone who had no idea what i was talking about.
The best nightmare that was NOT predictable was Giles' inability to read.
Perfect for him and yet i did not see it coming.
Well i guess that's about it from THIS mouse.. looking forward to NEXT week's
episode (yay, Angel!)
- -onlyamouse , looking for Syd's Gerald...
(Unoffical, someone offical me!) Keeper of Xander's wit/Angel's dietician!!
..don't hate me because i'm an AOL user ;).. "Give yourself over to absolute
pleasure.."
Goth Code 3.1a---> "http://members.aol.com/onlyamouse/code.htm"
web site pending
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 14 May 1997 00:04:45 -0400 (EDT)
From: Wolfkazzy@aol.com
Subject: BUFFY: Fanastizing about next wk's ep (Spoilers)
S
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I'm so glad that Angel's back this season. Wonder how much air time he gets
on this ep? Anyway based on the previews...I get the feeling that he can
track this "invisible girl" with his vampiric senses...I mean I can see Buffy
saying, "I can't fight something I can't see!" I'm excited because we get a
chance to see what kind of power Angel has because he's a vampire. He can
contribute alot to helping Buffy especially if he has powers that she
doesn't...
I admit I came in late in this season having seen the mantis ep but missing
the Pack then seeing Angel ep...since that ep I haven't missed one.
Just what kind of powers do the vampires on Buffy have besides the obvious in
strength which Buffy shares cuz she's the Slayer. Do they have hypnotizing
power? I can see when Buffy needed to leave a school play at night and Angel
steps in the way of the principal and makes the principal believe that Buffy
should leave....
This preview shows Angel saying something about sensing something "big" and
shows him coming into a room as if he's following his "vampiric" senses
instead of ordinary sight senses....so that's a new power ??
Wolfkazzy
Keeper of Angel's Soul
"I can walk like a man, but I'm not one."--Angel
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 13 May 1997 21:51:50 -0700 (PDT)
From: TechZero <j30lee@ucsd.edu>
Subject: Re: BUFFY: Buffy:Keeping Things
While we're on the subject of keeping things. I would like to be the keeper
of her crucifix that she always wears around her neck, that is if it's not
taking. Mail me to inform me if it is/isn't. Thanks.
~John=20
j30lee@ucsd.edu
http://sdcc17.ucsd.edu/~j30lee/
http://sdcc17.ucsd.edu/~j30lee/buffy.html <--My BtVS Page
"It is with true love as it is with ghosts;
everyone talks about it, but few have seen it."
--Fran=E7ois de La Rochefoucauld
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 13 May 1997 23:50:21 -0500 (CDT)
From: "Grace M. Lee" <glee3@shrike.depaul.edu>
Subject: Re: BUFFY: Nightmares and introduction
> From: Onlyamouse@aol.com
>
> I wrote:
> << 2) I loved Xander for his sardonic, self-deprecating wit. Now I love
> Xander for his body. >>
>
> ::posessively:: hey watch it, that's MY wit you're talking about there (well
> i never did get it offically approved, anyone?)
> I just like that boy more and more each epsiode.. and i'm usually not like
> that.
Hey there, Onlyamouse. I reiterate: "This fandom really has everything
staked out!" Crazy wild! Anyhow, I'll toss you for Xander :)
Action!Grace tosses Onlyamouse back to slam against the wall. Unlike the
agility of the Slayer, Buffy, Action!Grace uses her 500 pounds of
lumbering dead weight to muffle Onlyamouse.
"Share?" Action!Grace asks.
Claws in, please! ;)
I liked that boy the first time I heard his voice. I think I even like
him better than I like Angel. I mean, Angel appeared in a dream I had
last year. Well, it wasn't him exactly. He was blonder and more
deceptive. Gotta love those dreams about vampires.
But Xander... I don't think that I've seen a lead character quite like him
in a long time... wait a minute... the fog is clearing. He sort of
reminds me of... Bruce Willis' character in "Moonlighting"! Except not
quite so vulgar, and less confident in an endearing sort of way. And
Xander has a better "evil glare" thing going for him. And he is even more
of a slacker. OK. Maybe not.
glee
- ------
Xander: I laugh in the face of danger... then I run away and hide.
- Buffy, the Vampire Slayer
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 13 May 1997 22:00:52 -0700 (MST)
From: jenifer@goodnet.com (Jennifer Weeks)
Subject: Re: BUFFY: Giles w/ Buffy? EWW! (Re:"Nightmares" & daymares)
But most fanfic writers stay away from serious taboos
>unless they're trying to write parodies. Incest almost never appears, nor
>does beastiality, and May/December relationships like Buffy/Giles are rare.
May/December?!! Since when is Giles in his dotage? You make it sound like
he's seventy or something. Giles is still quite virile and Buffy's not
exactly the innocent some people seem to think.
>It would be a pretty serious stretch to write that relationship believably
>anyway; Giles is far too proper and dedicated to his duty as a Watcher to
>get romantically involved with Buffy. And Buffy thinks Giles is *ancient*.
I've always found that somewhat absurd. Sixteen year olds don't usually
think of near-forty men as ancient, yet Buffy embraces this cliche.
Somewhat disappointing.
>
>Not to mention that it would be statutory rape in most jurisdictions...
Well, yes, but the last time I looked slaying just about anything, breaking
into warehouses, and many of the other things Buffy does are also illegal.
Furthermore, even Angel's apparent age (I mean, like, how old he looks)
would still be statutory rape!
Jennifer
*****************************************************************
Jennifer Weeks, GASPer, clipper of Giles' fingernails
"Wickedness is a myth invented by the good to explain the curious
attractiveness of others."
Oscar Wilde
*****************************************************************
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 13 May 1997 22:42:01 -0700
From: jen@rio.com
Subject: Re: BUFFY: Giles w/ Buffy? EWW! (Re:"Nightmares" & daymares)
At 10:00 PM 5/13/97 -0700, thus sprake Jennifer Weeks:
>>does beastiality, and May/December relationships like Buffy/Giles are rare.
>May/December?!! Since when is Giles in his dotage? You make it sound like
>he's seventy or something. Giles is still quite virile and Buffy's not
>exactly the innocent some people seem to think.
Now, now, calm down. May/December is a term used to describe any
relationship where there's a large difference in age. I'd say Giles is about
twenty-five years Buffy's senior, possibly thirty, but certainly no less
than twenty. A romance between a twenty-year-old and a forty-five-year old
would still be May/December, because no one uses the term "May/September".
I'm not insulting Giles' virility. (However, I don't see that taking a
teenager to his bed would say anything positive about Giles' virility; it
seems to be the case that older men who enjoy romance with girls much
younger than they are, are not so much virile as insecure.)
As for Buffy's innocence -- there's more than one way to be innocent. In
terms of relationships, I'd say yes, Buffy's quite innocent.
>> And Buffy thinks Giles is *ancient*.
>I've always found that somewhat absurd. Sixteen year olds don't usually
>think of near-forty men as ancient, yet Buffy embraces this cliche.
>Somewhat disappointing.
Two points:
1) It's the way Buffy is. Other teenage girls might feel differently, but we
were discussing how easy or difficult it would be to plausibly write a
Buffy/Giles romance.
2) A person's perception of someone else's age (in terms of suitability for
romance) is as much a matter of psychology as it is of chronology. Giles is
mentoring Buffy; he's the keeper of many old musty books whose company he
prefers to that of people, seemingly; and as Ms. Callender says, Giles in
many ways seems to be stuck in the Middle Ages. Whether or not Buffy would
consider a romance with a man twenty-five years her elder might be
debatable, but *Giles* is clearly an old fuddy-duddy in her eyes, no fun at
all, totally out of touch, and out of the question as a romance.
>>Not to mention that it would be statutory rape in most jurisdictions...
>
>Well, yes, but the last time I looked slaying just about anything, breaking
>into warehouses, and many of the other things Buffy does are also illegal.
*Buffy* might not have a problem with the legality, but Giles would.
Remember his concern over Willow's hacking? "Didn't see it, Couldn't have
stopped you..."
Besides, I don't think you can make an argument that because Buffy breaks
laws while hunting vampires and demons means she'd happily break *any* law.
She wouldn't murder someone (with a soul), or rob someone for her personal
gain.
>Furthermore, even Angel's apparent age (I mean, like, how old he looks)
>would still be statutory rape!
Like I said, if you can get past the part about him being a vampire,
anything else is trivial...besides, as I said, there's psychology involved.
Angel's old, but he doesn't act his age (so to speak.) Giles does. Angel
also has no status as a mentor in Buffy's eyes.
I'd find the psychological barriers to a Buffy/Giles romance much more
difficult to cross convincingly in a piece of fan fiction than the physical
"barrier" of age difference, which as you say isn't a true barrier.
- -- Maytree
- ---------------------------------------------------------------
Jennifer Hawthorne
jen@rio.com
jennifer.hawthorne@sierra.com
- ---------------------------------------------------------------
How do you get a dozen violists to play in tune?
a) Shoot 11 of them.
b) Shoot all of them.
c) Who the hell wants a dozen violists?
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 13 May 1997 22:38:17 -0700
From: "Sonja Marie" <whtrose@eskimo.com>
Subject: BUFFY: Article - Buffy, Vampire Slayer Pt. 1
Hi all,
I finally finished typing this, WHOO HOO! Talk about pain! My hands
hurt! I hope you appreciate this! :D
This appeared in the July issue of "Femme Fatales":
Buffy, Vampire Slayer Pt. 1
Sarah Michelle Gellar is the Heroine Who Battles Monsters
and Teen Angst.
By Dale Kutzera
(no permission was granted to me type or post this article, no
copyright infringement intended, I have no money, please don't sue
me! :D )
Casting the title role of Buffy The Vampire Slayer, the TV producers
chronicled a wish list: an actress who could project a penchant fro
drama, demonstrate a flair for comedy and wield an aptitude for
vampire ass-whupping. They needed a youthful Thespian who could
squeeze into constrictive cheerleader togs, but externalize a
meaner, more assertive attitude than the vacuous, eye-candy Kristi
Swanson in the 1992 theatrical film. Well, they got their wish; her
name is Sarah Michelle Gellar.
"There was no second place," said executive producer Joss Whedon.
"We read tons of people and several were staggeringly untalented.
Buffy is a touch part. It is a character actress in the part of a
leading lady. This girl has to look the part of the blonde bimbo who
dies in reel two, and yet she's not that. Buffy is a very loopy,
very funny, very strange person - kind of eccentric. Sarah has all
those qualities and you don't them in a beautiful, young girl very
often. She gave us a reading that was letter perfect and then said,
"By the way, it doesn't say this on my resume but I did take Tae Kwan
Do for four year, and I'm a brown belt. Is that good?" No, perfect.
Gellar, a 2-year-veteran of All My Children (she played Susan Lucci's
daughter) still found the auditioning routine to be grueling. Slim
and compact, with sympathetic eyes and auburn hair, she recalled the
process with a voice that maintains perfect diction, even when
speaking at ninety-miles-an-hour: "My manager spoke to the Warner
Bros. network and they mentioned they had this Buffy show. He
thought it would be a great opportunity to use my Tae Kwan Do, and
to do comedy and drama. I probably had eleven auditions and four
tests. It was the most awful experience of my life, but I was so
driven. I had read the script and hear about Joss Whedon and how
wonderful he was. I went to the audition the week he was Oscar
nominated for his Toy Story screenplay. I thought, `I'm going to
have this role.' He tells me I nailed it, but I still went through
eleven auditions."
The series' executive producers applied some key changes to the
Buffy character. She's smarter than her big screen incarnation;
she's also stronger and no longer the stereotypical Valley Girl.
"when you so something week after week," said executive producer Gale
Berman, "you have to love this person and believe in them --
certainly in a part even as unbelievable as this. The name `Buffy'
doesn't have the value it used to. We don't do the Valley Girl joke.
This is an empowered young woman and there are no empowered young
women on TV. That separates us from the other high school shows.
This girl gets the job done, and I think all kinds of young women
will really relate to that."
"This is very different from the movie," Gellar concurred. "What we
did was take the concept of the movie of this 16-year-old girl who
is popular and has a perfect life, but there is something missing and
she feels the kind of 16-year-old aching that everyone felt in their
adolescence; Am I an adult? Am I a child? And, suddenly, she has
to save the world. Now she is an outcast. She doesn't fit in. She
doesn't know if she wants to be a cheerleader or fight vampires, and
that is what makes her interesting and believable. Buffy is a
person who is lost, who doesn't know where she belongs - and you feel
for her."
Gellar can relate to every woman's "awkward phase" in junior high
school. "That was my time to feel that I didn't know where I fit
in. I tried to be jock. I tried to be cool. And I couldn't find my
place. I think that is what Willow, Xander and Buffy are all going
through. That's what makes them such wonderful friends -- they are
helping each other get through this time."
It was during Gellar's "jock" tenure that she studied Tae Kwan Do.
She was also a competitive figure skater for four years and has
enrolled in kick boxing, street fighting and gymnastic training to
prepare for the series' action sequences. Each episode typically
includes a major fight scene, which may stretch into two 18-hours
days of rehearsed choreography, and two or three minor fight
sequences. "I've never done any street fighting before," explained
Gellar. "Tae Kwan Do is really an art form. I never actually used
it in combat. The very first time I had to break a broom over some
guy's head, I was shaking and crying. I didn't want to do it. I had
never hit anyone before. Now it's like, "Yeah, give me the broom.
Let me hit somebody!"
According Whedon, the balance of bloodsuckers and ballistics is
problematic because "action and horror are actually more antithetical
than comedy and horror. Horror is so much about not being in control
of your environment and, in a way, comedy is the same thing --
whereas Buffy, as an action heroine, takes control of her
environment. So it's difficult to maintain that balance, but what
is fun about the show is we don't know, from scene to scene, which
way it's going to go. A scene that starts out very dramatic could
end up very funny."
(Continued in part 2!)
Till next time
Sonja Marie - The White Rose @--'->-- http://www.eskimo.com/~whtrose/sonja.html
Co-Pres. of the JFIFC - http://www.eskimo.com/~whtrose/fahey.html
Paul Wylie Fan Pages - http://www.eskimo.com/~whtrose/pwylie/pwylie.html
Owner of the Jeff Fahey Mailing List & The Paul Wylie Mailing List
Pres. of Giles Appreciation Society Panters -GASP!- Keeper of Giles' Coats&Ties
ASH Appreciation Society Member - Watch Buffy: the Vampire Slayer - Series!
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 13 May 1997 22:38:18 -0700
From: "Sonja Marie" <whtrose@eskimo.com>
Subject: BUFFY: Article - Buffy, Vampire Slayer Pt. 2
This appeared in the July issue of "Femme Fatales":
Buffy, Vampire Slayer Pt. 2
Sarah Michelle Gellar is the Heroine Who Battles Monsters
and Teen Angst.
By Dale Kutzera
Each Buffy episode requires an 8-day shooting schedule; the more
generic locales include a high school in Torrance, California, and a
cemetery in downtown Los Angeles. Most of the work, however, is
officiated within an unpretentious Santa Monica warehouse filled to
capacity with Steve Hardie's production designs. "Our sets are
unbelievable," said Gellar. "In September, Joss and I went through
the sets together for the time and I cried because they are so
beautiful. You get the feeling, `This is real?'"
Gellar hopes high schoolers will relate to her heroine: "Buffy has
an amazing spirit, and I hope that is never broken. She always finds
something positive there is always something good even with all the
evil she is surrounded by. She's happy and she'll work through it.
Although she has problems at times, she has this wonderful,
unbridled spirit and I hope this never gets lost. I would just like
to see her cope with life and the situation she has been dealt in the
most positive way possible."
Back in 1992, the feature length film, directed by Fran Rubel Kuzui,
debuted to a moderate box office gross but turned into a sleeper at
video counters. Making the transition to TV, the Warner Bros.
network approved an initial commitment of 13 episodes. Ironically,
five years ago, Berman read the movie script and "thought it would
make a great TV show. Then the movie came out; it was not a huge
success, and the idea for a TV series went away. When the video came
out and did really well, however I called Fran [Kuzui] and we thought
we would do a series for syndication, not thinking that Joss would
have the time in his schedule. But we called his agent and asked
Joss and he said, `Yeah, this what I really want to do.'"
Described by Whedon as a "high school horror show,"the pilot depicts
Buffy's enrollment in Sunnydale High with is conveniently located on
the cusp of Hell Mouth, a mystical portal to wherever it is that
vampires, werewolves and other forces of darkness call home. Guided
by "Watcher," Giles (Anthony Stewart Head), and aided by awkward
buddy Xander (Nicholas Brendon) and shy computer hacker Willow
(Alyson Hannigan), Buffy embarks on what's been short-handled as a
"mix between Beverly Hill 98201 and The X-Files."
Whedon wrote the feature-length Buffy while functioning as story
editor on Roseanne. Sitcoms are his family's legacy. Whedon's
grandfather had written teleplays for the likes of Mayberry R.F.D,
and the Dick Van Dyke Show; his father's track record includes Alice
and Benson, among others. The younger Whedon's skill with deft
dialogue earned him a opportunity to rewrite Speed and an Oscar
nomination for Toy Story; he recently polished Alien IV's screenplay.
But with big shots like Steven Spielberg and James Cameron angling
for his work, why did Whedon opt for a sitcom? "It turns out that
being a screenwriter in Hollywood is not all it's cracked up to be.
People blow their noses on you. I can feel the difference. When I
go to the set of Alien, people are very nice, but I'm standing in the
corner watching them be very nice. When I'm making this show, I'm
telling these stories. I've never had that feeling before. Not only
am I telling them, but I'm telling one every eight days. I've been
putting other things off, because this is the most unbelievable
amount of work." Whedon, in fact, is directing the series' 13th
episode. "Joss is always on the set," said Gellar. "He's there to
get it right. It's his vision and we're his followers. He's the
main focus that keeps us together."
Both Whedon and Berman feel it's critical to maintain likable,
identifiable characters, though this series walks a narrow line
between realism and fantasy, humor and campiness. "Think of it as
childhood miseries or adolescent nightmares coming into reality,"
said Berman. "That is the metaphor for the series. Every kid's
difficulties are expressed. The episode about a praying mantis,
camouflaged a beautiful substitute teacher, is about boys'
virginity. This mantis only goes for virgins, so all these guys who
have been running around the school putting their manhood out there
are virgins. They are all after this beautiful teacher, who turns out
to be a this horrible bug. It's about entering manhood and what this
is really about. It's fantastic to tell those stories in a different
way."
"The horror and monster attacks have to come from the characters,
from their relationships and fears," added Whedon. "It has to be the
fact that they are funny, intelligent, normal people responding to
the fact that this teacher is a praying mantis."
Whedon has also conceptualized "The Master", a vampiric supervillain
who's sheltered in an ancient church, long ago swallowed by an
earthquake, that's nestled beneath the high school. The demon
plagues Buffy's dreams and dispatches hellish emissaries to expedite
his own escape.
"There is a suspension of disbelief that is necessary," continued
Whedon. "Our characters understand that there is a Hell Mouth, and
a vampire slayer, and these things really happen; but the rest of the
school just sort of takes it for granted that this is a strange
place to be. It's like people living in the world with Superman.
They take it for granted."
Should Buffy prove to be a hit for Warner Brothers, it may anchor an
additional evening of programming for the network in late 1997.
Whedon would be perfectly content to "put off" feature assignments
if he's afforded further exploration of the genre: "I think the best
stuff happens when human relationships are twisted and extend into
horror a monster show up. That's where the stuff is really scary,
when it is somebody's parent or friend that is turning into a
monster. It brings up issues that are very real.
"The thing that scares me the most is people."
The End!
Till next time
Sonja Marie - The White Rose @--'->-- http://www.eskimo.com/~whtrose/sonja.html
Co-Pres. of the JFIFC - http://www.eskimo.com/~whtrose/fahey.html
Paul Wylie Fan Pages - http://www.eskimo.com/~whtrose/pwylie/pwylie.html
Owner of the Jeff Fahey Mailing List & The Paul Wylie Mailing List
Pres. of Giles Appreciation Society Panters -GASP!- Keeper of Giles' Coats&Ties
ASH Appreciation Society Member - Watch Buffy: the Vampire Slayer - Series!
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 13 May 1997 23:38:25 -0700 (PDT)
From: Sonja Marie <whtrose@eskimo.com>
Subject: BUFFY: Review: Girls On Film: Buffy
Hi all,
Found this at:
http://www.girlsonfilm.com/more/tv/buffy.html
"Buffy the Vampire Slayer"
Ah, Lise, the happy medium does exist. I have found it in Buffy, the
ass-kicking, ghoul-slaying cool chick of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer".
Starring Sarah Michelle Gellar, the show is based on the film of the same
name that tanked at the box office back in 1992. I think the TV series is
quite a bit better than the film, although I did like the film, too.
The new series is on the WB Network, but shockingly, it has a slick look
and high production value--not something I associate with a fledgling
network with a dancing frog as its spokesmodel. The show opens with glossy
credits taken right out of SEVEN and then goes into the day-to-day
machinations of a not-so-normal high school.
Our Buffy is a teenager who was kicked out of her former high school for
burning down the gym. She and her mom then relocate to Sunnydale, CA,
where Buffy discovers that she is a slayer, meaning that she's the only
one of her entire generation who has the power to see and annihilate
vampires. Apparently, Sunnydale is the mouth of hell and therefore all
sorts of bad stuff happens there.
The series premiere was a two-hour introduction to the stock characters;
aside from Buffy, there is Mr. Giles, the school librarian who instructs
Buffy in the art of slaying, and two friends that Buffy makes early on
when she saves their lives. That episode piqued my interest, but I wasn't
sold until I caught a couple of others, and then I really got into the
"Buffy The Vampire Slayer" groove.
The best episode involved a crazed mother who was desperate for her
daughter to make the cheerleading squad. In this one, Buffy's attempt to
make the squad herself is sidelined because she is too busy trying to
figure out why all her other teammates are getting rare diseases and being
struck by freak accidents. I enjoyed this episode because it's where we
realize Buffy isn't just going to pretend to be normal and try to fit in,
but will actually "be herself," which for an adolescent is as brave an
idea as scaling Mount Everest barefoot. The nice thing is that the show
gets that point across with so little cheese that Buffy's rebellious
outsider stance isn't contrived the way "Daria"'s seemed to be to Lise.
A later episode had the meanest clique in the high school get a weird hex
cast on them by an evil hyena (I know, I know--but it's better than it
sounds). The part that cracked me up was that the clique acted exactly the
same before the spell was cast as they did afterwards; the only difference
was that they ate raw flesh when under the spell. They were just like the
mean kids everywhere--snotty and beautiful and completely without heart.
And when the spell was magically broken by Buffy and Mr. Giles, the kids
went back to being wretched just like before--there was no mystical life
lesson that changed them forever.
Buffy also gets to utter some sassy lines, e.g. "Live in the now, you look
like DeBarge," or "Pepper spray's so passe." Obviously it is tiring to
watch a movie or show where the throws out these hokey lines like "Hasta
la vista, baby," but with Buffy and her friends, it's just normal
teen-speak rather than a pathetic attempt at character development. The
whole idea of a show for girls that's a smart black comedy on network
television is charming to me. Hopefully, it will make it past its maiden
season.
Sonja Marie - The White Rose @--'->-- http://www.eskimo.com/~whtrose/sonja.html
Co-Pres. of the Jeff Fahey IFC - http://www.eskimo.com/~whtrose/fahey.html
Paul Wylie Fan Pages - http://www.eskimo.com/~whtrose/pwylie/pwylie.html
Owner of the Jeff Fahey Mailing List & The Paul Wylie Mailing List
Pres. of Giles Appreciation Society Panters -GASP!- Keeper of Giles' Coats&Ties
ASH Appreciation Society Member - Watch Buffy: the Vampire Slayer - Series!
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 13 May 1997 23:49:09 -0700
From: jen@rio.com
Subject: BUFFY: Can you fill in this quote?
I'm updating my signature quotes file with my favorite Buffyisms (thanks to
Maureen for all her hard work transcribing!) and I want to fill in a quote I
can't quite hear on my tape. If anyone could fill in the missing words I'd
be *most* grateful!
It's right at the end of the pilot:
- --------
Buffy: Well, I got to look on the bright side. Maybe I can still get kicked
out of school.
Xander: Oh, yeah, that's a plan. [Mumble mumble] schools aren't on Hell Mouths.
- ----------
So what's the [mumble mumble] really say? Anyone know?
- -- Maytree
- ---------------------------------------------------------------
Jennifer Hawthorne
jen@rio.com
jennifer.hawthorne@sierra.com
- ---------------------------------------------------------------
When a painting doesn't go well, the artist can keep on painting and
cover it up. When a musician's not at his best, the notes he plays
float off on the air and he can forget about them. When I'm off my
form, the garbage I've written just sits there on the page and
thumbs its nose at me.
- -- Lawrence Block on being a writer
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 13 May 1997 23:52:45 -0700 (PDT)
From: Sonja Marie <whtrose@eskimo.com>
Subject: Re: BUFFY: Can you fill in this quote?
The quote is actually the following (I believe):
Giles: We may, in fact, stand between the earth and it's total
destruction.
Buffy: Well, I got to look on the bright side - maybe I can still get
kicked out of school.
Willow: Maybe you could blow something up. They're really strict about
that.
Buffy: I was thinking of a more subtle approach. You know, like excessive
not studying.
Giles: The earth is doomed.
On Tue, 13 May 1997 jen@rio.com wrote:
> I'm updating my signature quotes file with my favorite Buffyisms (thanks to
> Maureen for all her hard work transcribing!) and I want to fill in a quote I
> can't quite hear on my tape. If anyone could fill in the missing words I'd
> be *most* grateful!
> It's right at the end of the pilot:
> Buffy: Well, I got to look on the bright side. Maybe I can still get kicked
> out of school.
>
> Xander: Oh, yeah, that's a plan. [Mumble mumble] schools aren't on Hell Mouths.
> So what's the [mumble mumble] really say? Anyone know?
> -- Maytree
Sonja Marie - The White Rose @--'->-- http://www.eskimo.com/~whtrose/sonja.html
Co-Pres. of the Jeff Fahey IFC - http://www.eskimo.com/~whtrose/fahey.html
Paul Wylie Fan Pages - http://www.eskimo.com/~whtrose/pwylie/pwylie.html
Owner of the Jeff Fahey Mailing List & The Paul Wylie Mailing List
Pres. of Giles Appreciation Society Panters -GASP!- Keeper of Giles' Coats&Ties
ASH Appreciation Society Member - Watch Buffy: the Vampire Slayer - Series!
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 14 May 1997 00:03:52 -0700
From: "Alex Cook" <biohaz@alz.com>
Subject: Re: BUFFY: Can you fill in this quote?
Actually it goes..
> Giles: We may, in fact, stand between the earth and it's total
> destruction.
> Buffy: Well, I got to look on the bright side - maybe I can still get
> kicked out of school.
Xander: Yeah, not all schools are on a Hellmouth
> Willow: Maybe you could blow something up. They're really strict about
> that.
> Buffy: I was thinking of a more subtle approach. You know, like
excessive
> not studying.
> Giles: The earth is doomed.
>
> On Tue, 13 May 1997 jen@rio.com wrote:
> > I'm updating my signature quotes file with my favorite Buffyisms
(thanks to
> > Maureen for all her hard work transcribing!) and I want to fill in a
quote I
> > can't quite hear on my tape. If anyone could fill in the missing words
I'd
> > be *most* grateful!
> > It's right at the end of the pilot:
> > Buffy: Well, I got to look on the bright side. Maybe I can still get
kicked
> > out of school.
> >
> > Xander: Oh, yeah, that's a plan. [Mumble mumble] schools aren't on Hell
Mouths.
> > So what's the [mumble mumble] really say? Anyone know?
> > -- Maytree
>
> Sonja Marie - The White Rose @--'->--
http://www.eskimo.com/~whtrose/sonja.html
> Co-Pres. of the Jeff Fahey IFC -
http://www.eskimo.com/~whtrose/fahey.html
> Paul Wylie Fan Pages - http://www.eskimo.com/~whtrose/pwylie/pwylie.html
> Owner of the Jeff Fahey Mailing List & The Paul Wylie Mailing List
> Pres. of Giles Appreciation Society Panters -GASP!- Keeper of Giles'
Coats&Ties
> ASH Appreciation Society Member - Watch Buffy: the Vampire Slayer -
Series!
- -ALEX
Keeper of Pike's Motorcycle
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 14 May 1997 03:12:45 -0400 (EDT)
From: Iocaste@aol.com
Subject: Re: BUFFY: Giles w/ Buffy? EWW! (Re:"Nightmares" & daymares)
Hi, all. Just wanted to register in as one of the people who is, I admit,
somewhat tickled by the idea of a Giles/Buffy pairing.
I don't expect to see them together, and in real life if two such people got
together it would probably indicate the presence of one or more neuroses, but
hey, I still think it would be kind of cute ....
I don't, however, see Giles as a substitute father and I really hope the show
doesn't take him in that direction. He's older than she is, absolutely, but
so far we've never really seen Buffy relate to him like a father. I mean,
she treats him more like he's a slightly goofy pal. And though he does have
authority over her, he doesn't seem terribly parental to me either. This is
the charm of their relationship, IMHO: they have an interesting, unusual
friendship -- unexpected because of the differences in ages.
Ann
iocaste@aol.com
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 14 May 1997 00:30:09 -0700
From: jen@rio.com
Subject: Re: BUFFY: Can you fill in this quote?
At 11:52 PM 5/13/97 -0700, thus sprake Sonja Marie:
>The quote is actually the following (I believe):
>
>Giles: We may, in fact, stand between the earth and it's total
>destruction.
>Buffy: Well, I got to look on the bright side - maybe I can still get
>kicked out of school.
No, there's a line by Xander right in here. I just finished watching the
scene about twenty times trying to hear the whole line without luck :(
>Willow: Maybe you could blow something up. They're really strict about
>that.
>Buffy: I was thinking of a more subtle approach. You know, like excessive
>not studying.
>Giles: The earth is doomed.
- -- Maytree
- ---------------------------------------------------------------
Jennifer Hawthorne
jen@rio.com
jennifer.hawthorne@sierra.com
- ---------------------------------------------------------------
Morden: "Hello Vir."
Vir: 'I... I'm sorry I can't talk. I have things
to do.'
Morden: "Well, apparently so. Anything I can
do to help?"
Vir: 'Umm... short of dying? No, can't think
of a thing."
- - "Babylon 5: Interludes and Examinations"
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 14 May 1997 05:18:04 -0500
From: sharonruth@webtv.net (Sharon Jacobs)
Subject: BUFFY: Re:Buffy/Giles
I personally wouldn't like to see such a romance on the show. It would
be too kinky. Too many problems would come from it. But I wouldn't
mind seeing tastefully written fan stories. That's the good thing about
fan fiction, you can do anything you want and there are no consequences.
Like freaked out mothers or the police.
shaorn
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 14 May 1997 03:56:02 -0700
From: Terrie <dgstrike@sprynet.com>
Subject: Re: BUFFY: Giles w/ Buffy? EWW! (Re:"Nightmares" & daymares)
On Tue, 13 May 1997, Laertes@webtv.net wrote:
>Does anyone else see Giles as a surragate
>father in Buffy's life and Buffy subconsiously
>using Giles as a surragate father.
Definately. I think in some ways that Giles is closer to Buffy then her parents
will ever be. She has a better relationship with him then most teens do with
their parents. She can't tell her parents she's the Slayer. And, really, could
you see Buffy talking to her mom about the fact that she has nightmares about
things like being buried alive. Giles can comfort her, while her mom would
probably suggest therapy.
- -Terrie
Keeper of Angel's Fridge
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 14 May 1997 07:10:00 -0400 (EDT)
From: DangerMom@aol.com
Subject: BUFFY: Giles' Nightmare
OK....maybe I missed something, and maybe someone already posted about
this...BUT:
If he couldn't read, how did Giles read Buffy's headstone in the cemetery
nightmare???
I'll have to go back and watch the scene...did he guess, did one of the
others read it to him, or what?
In confusion,
DangerMom
Keeper of the Gold Blend
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 14 May 1997 07:32:00 -0400
From: Tom Simpson <thomas@xenafan.com>
Subject: Re: BUFFY: Giles' Nightmare
At 07:10 AM 5/14/97 -0400, you wrote:
>OK....maybe I missed something, and maybe someone already posted about
>this...BUT:
>
>If he couldn't read, how did Giles read Buffy's headstone in the cemetery
>nightmare???
What seemed to happen is once they realized it was a nightmare, they were
able to confront it and conquer it. Take for example Xander and the killer
clown: when the clown first arrived Xander was completely frightened of
it. The clown's attacks were more accurate, and Xander was more powerless.
When Xander decided to confront the source of his fear, he easily stopped
the clown with a right hook.
Giles realized what was happening when talking with the Slayerettes in the
library. Once he realized it was a nightmare, he probably was able to
realter reality internally so he could read again. The nightmare had lost
its effectiveness, and he was able to recall several situations where these
circumstances had occured, and presumably the way to counter it.
This didn't stop him from interpreting Buffy's death as another nightmare.
While it was true that he had nightmares on the subject, the nightmare was
technically still Buffy's. He merely interpreted it as being his nightmare
as well.
So in retrospect, he probably was able to read immediately after he
realized it was a nightmare. His nightmare was the fear of losing
knowledge, being lost in the stacks, being unable to read, being unable to
help. Once he learned from Xander and Willow what had happened, he
immediately recalled knowledge that could help the group, and recovering
that knowledge is what freed him from his nightmare.
Tom
http://www.electrolite.com/buffy
http://xenafan.com/tom <-- see the Tom
------------------------------
End of buffy Digest V1 #73
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