Buffy and Angel Rewatch part 13

3.13 The Zeppo

Whilst this isn't the best Xander centric episode, it was definitely a lot more enjoyable than I remembered. I think the best thing about this episode is they were they interweave the humorous Xander story with the more dramatic impending apocalypse. Few shows would be able to pull off a dramatic storyline alongside a funnyone so skillfully. The change of music really helps with this, a jaunty little tune for Xander's scenes and the usual more dramatic music for the rest of the gangs. Often in this episode with the more dramatic moments sliced in between Xander's scenes, it felt a little like the show was making fun of itself and the dramatic-ness of their apocalypse episodes; for instance with the overly dramatic Buffy and Angel scene cut short by Xander. It was also interesting to see the other side of the apocalypse- what everybody else is doing whilst Buffy is saving the world.
What I like in this episode is Xander's growth- by the end of the episode he's content now to stand back and accept his role as the non-supernatural one in the group all the whilst having a power of his own. Its this role that that he references in that speech to Dawn in season 7's 'Potential' (I think) and its good to see him realise this fact.
Xander's storyline itself however isn't that exciting but in the context of the episode it really works. (7/10)

3.14 Bad Girls

This episode definitely marks the turn in the season and the start of the race towards the finale. Mostly Faith and Buffy centric, this episode is the first solid indication that Faith is a little unhinged mentally and not just a wild child. The actual action of her killing the Mayor's aide isn't so bad as it was quickly done in the heat of the moment, but its more her reaction to the killing which is startling and a little worrying. However that is something that's further addressed in the next episode. In this episode we see very clearly that Faith is a very different Slayer to Buffy, which wilder and less disciplined. She mostly gives a refreshing contrast to the sometimes maudlin Buffy. I did find the speed at which Buffy took on Faith's spontaneous method of slaying a little quick, it's understandable that maybe Wesley's arrival would trigger this somewhat, but there was not that much build up to it happening. Speaking of Wesley's arrival I love his and Giles' interactions, they're very similar, but Giles is obviously a lot more hardened than Wesley. It's hard to hate the new Watcher after watching Angel however, Wes turns into such a different character, that he comes across as just bumbling rather than an arrogant fool on re-watch.
I love the slaying scenes, the stealing, the police escape, and the club scene in this episode. They're all a lot of fun and show a more hedonistic, primal side of Buffy that we don't see that often. There isn't much of the Scoobies, just brief scenes. The Mayor gets a lot more screen time as he gears up for the Ascension. I think this is the first proper mention of the Ascension, and I love the idea of him becoming invincible as it allows the antagonism between him and Buffy to build up a lot more for the final showdown. (9/10)

3.15 Consequences

A brilliant conclusion episode to the events of Bad Girls. Very aptly called Consequences, it looks closely at the perhaps darker side of being a Slayer. As Giles points out, accidents happen in their of work. Just as soldiers and police, who do similar work to the slayers make mistakes, the girls do to and I like that the show addresses this issue.
Faith's descent into being a bad girl really kicks off here and its this side of her character which makes her so loved by fans. Indeed even some of her reasoning to Buffy made sense, that is before she talked to Giles. Its not to say I disagreed totally with Buffy's reasoning (I think that would make me slightly deranged like Faith!). I did find it interesting that Buffy and Faith corroborated on their stories for the police, given that Buffy was feeling so guilty. I guess Buffy didn't want the whole thing to go to the police and for good reason.
Other interesting bits in the episode include Angel's talk with Faith which I loved; they show here why they have such a great dynamic, Mr Trick getting dusted which always surprises me not matter how much I watch the episodes. I guess its just weird seeing the Mayor losing his two closest allys, in successive episode and Willows 'festering' speech. I don't know why but I love that scene, there's just something so funny about Alyson Hannigan's comic timing. (9/10)

3.16 Dopplegangland

I really love this episode and there are many reasons why its considered to be a classic Buffy episode; the sheer fun factor of having two Willows, good Willow, masquerading as the bad one, Giles, Buffy and Xander realising Willow isn't a vamp, Percy (Willow's tutee) obeying her after his encounter with vamp Willow, Wes' girlish screams, the list is just endless! Alyson Hannigan is just great taking the lead in this episode, especially considering she gets double screen time. I really like Buffy as the sidekick/friend character, we got to see the friendship more from Willow's side of things and seeing Buffy be a friend to Willow and supporting her for a change makes Buffy a more likable character. Anya isn't as fun a character as we get in later seasons, and her character changes quite a lot late on, but good here anyway.
The episode is one of the fun and light-hearted episodes of the season and is placed as a nice change of pace right in the middle of the Faith arc. Speaking of, I liked the Faith/Mayor scene- not very much from them, but the break in the overall story arc means we get some nice daddy/daughter development between them.
Really not anything I can criticise in the episode, truly a great and enjoyable episode (10/10)

Space Cowboy- Firefly lives on

I love Nathan Fillion. I really do. And also now the writers of Castle for this little gem:




I don't watch the show (not sure if it airs in the UK) but after that clip I think I'll put it on my TV shows to watch list :) I do admit I didn't get the cow joke right away (of course referencing Firefly episodes Shindig and Safe)
Here's a trailer from the episode that clip airs in- a real shout out to all the works from the Whedonverse (apart maybe Dollhouse):




Genius.

Buffy and Angel Rewatch part 12

3.09 The Wish

A fan favourite and although this isn't one of my personal faves, this is definitely a fun episode. It's a good twist on the alternate reality idea and the changes that happened in alt-Sunnydale made sense within the show. I very much enjoyed the Master coming back as I thought it gave the episode something extra. Willow and Xander were definitely fun as vamps, though it was definitely a little creepy. The one thing that strikes me about this episode is that Cordy dies in the alt-verse half-way through, which means she never gets to live out her wish. Even though the show isn't about her, its odd for the stimulus for the alt-reality not to be present in the majority of it.
I liked the slow-mo ending to the alternate world as world, with the music it was very emotional especially with all the main characters bar, Giles and Oz dying. It was also interesting to see Angel being staked as its the only time in the show we get to see that! (9/10)

3.10 Amends

When settling down to watch this episode, I was preparing myself for a depressing episode but I forget that to some extent this is actually a very uplifting episode. The ending in particular is full of peace and for once in Sunnydale, peace.
I'm glad that we got an episode to address Angel coming back since its been largely ignored in previous episodes. Though we didn't get any comprehensive answers we definitely got an idea of why he was brought back. In many respects, to me at least, this episode seems to set up the Angel spin-off with Buffy giving Angel a reason to live and fight -'to make amends.' This episode along with Lovers Walk (Spike coming back on his own and Cordy breaking up with Xander) sets up the following season(s) perfectly, which had to happen of course as Angel (the show) was most likely in development when these episodes were being written. It does surprise me how early this all happens as we have yet to reach the halfway point of the season.
As for the episode itself, it was largely Angel centric, which is good as he doesn't get much to do in the rest of the season (apart from a few episodes). The flashbacks were varying in quality (as was the prosthetic make-up!) but Robia La Morte was just excellent as The First Jenny. Speaking of The First, this Big Bad is only touched on here but apart from some slight mythology changes (the whole touching thing) I was pleased to see that much of this mythology was brought back in season 7 which I think brings the show a little more full circle. The only other scenes of note were the Oz/Willow ones in which Oz was just the sweetest. His wish to wait to have sex with Willow mirrored his desire to wait to kiss in season 2; it's scenes like the Barry White 'seduction' scene which make Oz one of my favourite characters. (9/10)

3.11 Gingerbread

This is one of my favourite episodes of the season. It cleverly manages to combine quite a serious subject- mob mentality/ killings- and some of the best comedy moments of the season. My favourite funny moments were definitely towards the end with Buffy's hysterical "Did I get it? Did I get it?" and Oz and Xander's crashing in from the ceiling to save the others. Cordy also had some really funny moments in this episode getting back to her bitchy comedic self.
The concept of mob mentality was a really interesting one to explore, especially in Sunnydale where, as it is noted in the episode, a lot of deaths and mysterious disappearances happen frequently. Given that its almost a little surprising that vigilante mobs haven't formed sooner (or maybe they have were just not that successful). I liked seeing Willows mum for the first and I think last time. Willow and Xander never really had family lives apart from the occasional episode and it added another layer to Willow as a character. The kids were brilliantly creepy as Has and Gretal though I find the fairy tale thing a little hokey, but the rest of the episode is enjoyable enough to ignore that! (9/10)

3.12 Helpless

Not a brilliant episode and I think that's mainly because a lot of bad stuff happens in it. Not bad in a good way like eg Angel losing his soul, but just bad as in miserable. Giles betrays Buffy and in return loses his job as Watcher whilst Buffy loses her powers. That said, Giles losing his Watcher job is an interesting road to take as it could've rendered Giles useless for the res of the season, but instead it actually gives him a storyline to play with.
The whole idea behind this episode is probably one of it's biggest problems- its not poor writing on the shows behalf more the ridiculous idea from the Watcher's Council of giving the Slayer a test on her 18th birthday. It's just ridiculous that fighting vamps and demons daily and surviving until her 18th birthday is not enough, the Slayer has to face another test. Its a ludicrous idea but I guess it shows how inept and out of touch the Watcher's Council is. Its even more ridiculous seeing as they seem to be doing very little with Faith who has quite a lot of freedom and has already proven that she's not the most disciplined Slayer they've had. There are some more enjoyable aspects of the episode, I actually liked the Buffy/Angel scenes, they're sickly sweet but not too much so and reference the flashbacks in last season, Cordy defending Buffy and beating up that guy was also a hoot. (6.5/10)

Entourage Season 6 Review

Entourage season 6: This finished recently and it was a mixed season. Whilst being better than 5, it still wasn’t as good as the first 3 seasons. Now I love Entourage- I even have a poster of the show in my room (!) but perhaps it is not a show that has the fundamental ability to go on for multiple episodes as intrinsically it is about 4 guys having fun in LA. There is drama, but maybe not enough to go on for as long as it has.

The season started well, the Drama, Turtle and E moving away from Vince and living their own lives. However this meant that for most of the season Vince had nothing to do except have sex with random girls- literally that’s all we saw him do. Even the stalker storyline turned out to actually involve Turtle and have more significance for his storyline. I did like that Vince didn’t have any movie drama this season as it was the first season this hasn’t happened so it made for a nice change.

I enjoyed Drama’s work storylines for the most part, it did get a bit shaky when he got out of his contract for the new Melrose Place (love that in-joke) but having him get tied to a network exclusively could be interesting for next season.

Turtle probably had the most enjoyable storyline of the season with his relationship with Jamie Lynn (though it ended very sadly) and very promising entry into college to learn how to run a business. I like that he had to go to college to do this and didn’t just his Vince’s Hollywood connections and money to start up a business straight away.

Eric probably had the worst storylines. Professionally I didn’t really like how he closed down his own shop so quickly, but I liked him joining a bigger management firm. His relationships though were ridiculous- constant to and fro-ing between Sloane and the annoying Ashley before finally becoming engaged to Sloane. I’ll forgive it though if E and Sloane stay together though as I think having a wife/fiancé in the mix will really affect the boys and I hope that we get to see the consequences of that next season.

Ari’s storylines were good and bad- the torturing of Lloyd was funny but harsh to watch but I liked the outcome. Wasn’t as sure about how involved he became in Andrew’s affair with the younger agent and how it affected his own life. Felt a bit teenage to me and not in a good way. Still it did provide some good comedic moments.

On the guest star front- the good: David Schwimmer, Jeffery Tambor, Doug Ellin, Melinda Clarke and Dean Cain

the bad: Bono (absolutely cringeworthy and one of the worst and most forced celebrity moments of Entourage)

the slightly awkward: Mark Wahlberg, Tom Brady and Matt Damon (kinda funny but if he wasn’t promoting a worthwhile charity it would’ve been bad)

Overall the season was decent enough and I'll probably like it better on re-watch like I have woth all Entourage seasons. In some ways it was a real return to form, but it was almost like they were trying to hard with storylines and some of them just didn't work. There's a lot of potential for next season though so I'm excited.

TV I'm watching

Glee- the show is still having uneven episodes, the pregnancy storylines are silly and need to go fast, but the musical numbers are still great (apart from the bad dubbing over and autotune). There is definitely sparks of genius in this show and the latest episode ‘Throwdown’ was hilarious, especially die to some great one-liners from Jane Lynch. I liked the voice-over joke as it showed that the show isn’t taking itself too seriously. (its the first sneak peak on this video)



Greek- just when I was contemplating giving this show up for completely losing its quality, ‘The Dork Knight’ comes along and is a pretty decent episode. The boys Comic-Con storyline was the best and I liked Dale’s faith crisis storyline especially as its different from all the other storylines on the show most of which are pretty tired. There also some really funny in-joke lines from Ashley about this being a really long semester (hear hear!) and whether Casey even attends classes anymore. What I liked about the show in the earlier seasons was that whilst the characters engaged in all the usual drama, they still seemed to be doing uni work which kept the show grounded whereas lately it has felt like any other teen drama. Casey and Rebecca are still being really annoying characters in their pursuit to get what they want and the show is definitely suffering from their loss of Frannie as antagonist.

Flashforward- Watched the first 3 episodes of this highly anticipated show and its pretty good, however there are major flaws. As some reviews have pointed out, this show doesn’t have the time or budget to truly capture the global effects of this disaster, which is pretty problematic as this show is about a global events. Though I am pleased they are showing other places other than America as American shows don’t usually do this. The thing that is bothers me the most is that even though the blackout must’ve killed and injured millions, the main characters seem to be going about their lives as usual. A doctor and investigator for the FBI charged with finding out why the blackout happened still have time to go home every night to tuck their daughter into bed, make her breakfast in the morning and both turn up at a parent- teacher meeting. Children are still going to school and ladies are lunching and despite marshal law being instated and some evidence of destruction, there seems to be very little consequence of the blackout with people concentrating on the flashforwards. Surely an event like this would cause widespread panic and emergency service would be rushed off their feet and law enforcement and the government would be working round the clock to be in store law and order and to find out what happened. Instead everyone seems quite relaxed about the here and now.
Despite these flaws the overall premise is enough to keep me interested at least for a few more episodes.

Modern Family- I managed to catch the first episode of this and even though the premise isn’t the greatest and most original, the pilot episode was actually laugh out loud. I like that the families are all related; they had to be connected in some way for the show to work and this is way better than some tenuous ‘they’re all neighbours’ link or something. Here’s my favourite bit from the pilot episode:



I think I’ll carry on watching this one. I’m actually watching way too much TV than I can manage but half an hour shows are great as it they are entertaining and don’t take too long to watch!

Brand New Look/URL, Buffy/Angel episode order

Change of Name/URL/Layout and Look

Just a note I’ve changed the URL of this blog to natstvblog.blogspot.com so that the URL now matches the name of the blog. I would have done this earlier if I realised you could actually do this!! If you have this blog bookmarked you will need to re-bookmark it under its URL. Sorry for any inconvenience I just thought that in the long run this would be easier!

I’ve also changed the look of this blog- in hindsight I probably shouldn’t have changed both at once but its done now! I wanted a wider layout, but let me know what you think, feedback would be appreciated.

Buffy and Angel Episode Order

I’m fast approaching the end of rewatching season 3 of Buffy and whilst originally I was just going to watch the episodes of Angel and Buffy alternately with some slight adjustment for seasons 4 and 7 respectively, a little research showed me that this was not the best way to do this. I have found two lists for watching the show so that the chronology of the episodes is kept in order. One list is designed for minimum disc switching (thanks to Buffyfest for this one) and the other meant to be more chronological (thanks to SSJConan at KryptonSite and Wikipedia for this one).

Here’s a little sample of both using the end of seasons 4/1(starting for both with This Year’s Girl for both so there may be episode on one list that may not appear on the other):

Minimum disc switching:

B - This Year's Girl (1 of 2)
B - Who Are You? (2 of 2)
A -Five by Five (1 of 2)
A -Sanctuary (2 of 2)
B - Superstar
B - Where the Wild Things
B - New Moon Rising
B - The Yoko Factor
A -War Zone
A -Blind Date
B - Primeval
B - Restless
A -To Shanshu in LA

Concurrent episode list:

B; "This Year's Girl"
B; "Who Are You"
A; "The Prodigal"
A; "The Ring"
B; "Superstar"
A; "Eternity"
B; "Where the Wild Things Are
B; "New Moon Rising"
A; "Five by Five"
A; "Sanctuary"
B; "The Yoko Factor"
B; "Primeval"
A; "War Zone"
A; "Blind Date"
B; "Restless"
A; "To Shanshu in L.A."

So which list do you think I should follow? I don’t mind disc switching since I watch one episode at a time anyway, with only 2 parter episodes being ones I watch quite closely together. Originally I was going to go with the second list but now I’m not sure. Both lists are the same on all the major cross-overs apart from maybe Faith’s 4-parter at the end of seasons 4 and 1.

Oh and here's a link to part 11 of my rewatch, as I posted this blog very quickly after I posted that one

Buffy and Angel Rewatch part 11

3.05 Homecoming

Another average episode. It's notable really for two things- the first appearance of the Mayor (one of my favourite villains so I enjoyed this bit) and the start of the Willow/Xander affair (which I don't like). In a way I understand why Xander and Willow had to get together, Willows long-time love of Xander was never properly addressed between the two of them and this storyline brings some closure to that story thread. However, since I'm a fan of the Willow/Oz and Xander/Cordy relationships I don't really enjoy the two of them getting together, even though thankfully it is brief and over in just a disc of my DVD watching.
I think what really brings this episode down for me, is Buffy's whining about wanting something normal. I'm really not a fan of her doing that so often and whilst I am somewhat sympathetic towards her desires for a normal life, as lets face it, we all want what we don't have, her whining is often grating. However the competition elements of this episode were fun, I love the idea of Slayerfest, its pretty funny and like the Mayor, I love the title. The Homecoming Queen title is less entertaining but gives some good lighthearted moments for the show, the ending is especially funny. (6.5/10)

3.06 Band Candy

A personal favourite of mine I must confess, this is easily one of the most fun Buffy episodes of the entire show. Whilst the sacrificing babies to a demon wasn't the most original or exciting reasons for the story, I loved seeing the Sunnydale adults act like children. Snyder was hilarious as the geeky teenage boy, but my favourite was definitely Giles as his teenage alter-ego Ripper. His and Joyce's little romance was hilarious to watch, I like that they were the too-cool-for-school, lawbreaking teen couple. It was really fun to watch both characters out of their usual parental boxes and it made for some classic moments. Ethan Rayne is also back for this episode which adds to the fun factor, and we also get to see the Mayor do some actual evil for the first time instead of just talk about it. The main dampener on this episode for me was the Willow and Xander stuff which I'm still really not liking. (9/10)

3.07 Revelations

A decent enough episode, the idea of a rogue Watcher is a neat one especially since we'll get a rogue Slayer soon. Gwendoline Post, does a good job of fooling the Scoobies in this episode in her quest for power. The final climactic scene is very enjoyable with the Slayer's first fight and the lightning power.
The discovery of Angel is probably more important within in the episode. The Angel and Buffy stuff is very angsty in this episode and quite boring. I love that Xander is the first one to discover Angel is alive (apart from Buffy obviously) as it makes for some great drama; his and Giles anger is completely justified and its surprising that they relent so quickly, by then end of the episode. Faith is oddly more offended by Buffy's lies, she really takes it personally, which considering she's had no dealings with Angel before and is relatively new to Buffy's life she doesn't really have a right to. Still as a plot point it brings her sense of betrayal and only-rely-on-myself attitude to the fore. (7.5/10)

3.08 Lovers Walk

This is easily my favourite Spike episode. James Marsters is at his best here, feisty, fighting and funny. I think Spike is generally best when he doesn't care, he's not as fun when he's in love whether it be with Drusilla or Buffy. Its undoubtedly this performance that helped convince the writers he should be brought back for season 4.
He definitely helped to bring a comedic presence to the episode, which otherwise was quite a tragic episode, with Oz and Cordy finding out about Willow and Xander. I've said in the last few episode reviews that I don't really like that particular storyline but it comes to a head here in a sensational manner. Cordy's near death and telling Xander to leave her alone was heartbreaking and really well done. Its a shame that the relationship ended so early in the season, relegating Cordy back to part-time Scooby status- luckily Joss had the foresight to bring her to the forefront in Angel.
The Buffy/Angel stuff was less entertaining, though I loved the angle Spike shone onto their relationship. I did like Buffy contemplating her future away from Sunnydale- though it annoyed me that her only reason for staying was Angel, who if they wanted, could also move with her, because its not like he has much holding him to Sunnydale apart from Buffy! (8.5/10)

Buffy and Angel Rewatch part 10 (BtVS Season 3)

Onto season 3 now! Season 3 is one of my favourite seasons; its the last of the high school years (generally considered the best Buffy years) and the first one I watched properly. However that said, I enjoyed season's 1 and 2 so much more this time round so it will probably be a close race!

3.01 Anne

At first I wasn't really looking forward to this episode but I don't really know why since this was a really good episode. The stuff with Buffy was pretty tough to watch- full of despair and loneliness. The theme of the homelessness is well covered in this episode and the supernatural aspect of the episode worked well alongside it. The Lily/Anne story was touching- even more so considering how she turns out in just two years time on Angel; you could say she was one of the few happy endings in the Buffy-verse. One thing I would've liked to have found out more about was what the kids were working towards- there didn't seem to be much rhyme nor reason to it, some explanation would've helped.
Back in Sunnydale, most of the exploits from the Scoobies are lighthearted. Its fun watching the teens fight vampires in their own way. Contrast this to the season 6 premiere and its a different ballgame. I liked Willow's hopefulness at getting Buffy back, Xander/Cordy's reunion and even though getting Oz back at school was a little contrived, I'll ignore it as I love Oz and am happy to have him around! The most heartfelt scene from Sunnydale was easily between Giles and Joyce; it's hard not too feel either of their pain. Joyce's anger at Giles is understandable, as its very hard realising that someone you love had a whole life you didn't know about. I felt bad for Giles though, his stiff upper lift didn't really allow him to say anything but its fairly obvious from his wild goose chases that he's very much anguished. (8.5/10)

3.02 Dead Man's Party

I wasn't a fan of this episode the first time round, but I enjoyed it a lot more this time. I still wasn't a fan of the zombies but otherwise this was an enjoyable episode. I think the others had believable reactions to Buffy leaving and not calling, but I would have liked to see her explain about killing Angel as that adds a lot more strength to her argument. The argument at the party was a good way of venting their feelings, reminds me of the argument in season 7 that kicks Buffy out of the house. I'm glad that Xander stood up to Buffy, he's often the one without any supernatural powers to employ but he's usually the most realistic and upfront one, saying stuff that others won't. Also I loved Giles threatening Snyder at the end- that along with hot-wiring his car shows his bad ass side that we rarely get to see. (8/10)

3.03 Faith, Hope and Trick

Love this episode's title, simple but effective. As for the episode itself, it was decent enough, a good and thorough introduction to Faith, though I wasn't entirely convinced by the dead Watcher storyline, which came off a little superficial. Otherwise this episode was good at showing Faith as the fun loving girl. I think one of the reasons why fans like Faith so much is what was shown here- her complete love of slaying and her calling. Unlike Buffy being a vampire Slayer is something she wants to do. Now admittedly if Buffy was like this all the time, there would be no drama and no show, but it's a refreshing view on slaying.
Also in the episode there was the introduction of Mr Trick, who proved to be way more interesting than the Kakistos vampire Faith faced her; and the introduction of Scott Hope, who, if I'm honest is a little too stalkerish in his pursuit of Buffy- especially with giving the friendship ring, I mean her barely knows her!!
I mentioned in the review for the previous episode that I would have liked to see Buffy explain about killing Angel and I had obviously completely forgotten that she does so in this episode, her confession cleverly extracted by Giles. I thought this was a really good idea on Giles part and worked well in the episode. One thing though- if Giles is good enough to be the Watcher to the then only active Slayer, why isn't he good enough to be asked on this retreat. This is something that had always confused me about the Watcher's Council. They send slightly inept Watchers (Wes) and ones who they don't seem to value that much (Giles) to be the Watcher's of the Slayers when the main role of the Watcher's Council is too watch over the Slayer- apart from that they don't have a huge amount of purpose apart of research. But you'd think they'd send their best people to mentor the Slayers wouldn't you??
I digress, but I should probably comment of the final moments of the episode where Angel is resurrected- the scene prior was very poignant and would've actually been a nice ending to Angel's character, but in the grander scheme of things its good they brought him back. (8/10)

3.04 Beauty and The Beasts

Really not my favourite episode. It wasn't bad or anything, but something about this episode just didn't click.
I liked the Hellmouth take on domestic violence, it was a sad tale but with that story, Angel returning and Oz being possible killer, there was just too much going on and al though the story-lines all came together, it felt a little bit forced and like nothing really meshed. There were some good scenes- Buffy with the guidance counsellor the first time round, and Willow fainting at the morgue, but there were some bad ones as well such as the massive leap from - people are dying to its Debbie's boyfriend who's doing the killing and Angel coming to save Buffy which was way too cheesy, though even I have to admit Buffy crying whilst Angel hugged her, was very emotional. I also didn't like that Buffy didn't tell Giles about Angel coming back, it's similar to what happens in season 4 when she doesn't tell him about the Initiative and even in spite of Giles' history with Angel he deserves to know. (6/10)

Huh News of the Week

Huh! Surprising news of the week:

It's only just October and ABC have renewed 3 of its new comedy shows, Modern Family, Cougar Town and The Middle. The pilots of the latter didn't get the best reviews so early renewals are a little surprising but still its good to see some comedy shows get some love.

NBC has oddly cancelled Southland before its even aired. I don't watch the show so I'm no expert bit it seems a bit pointless not to even give the show a chance. According to this article from Nikki Finke, it's due to Ben Silverman's crappy programming and development- you'd think then, they'd give a show that seemed to be doing okay critically and commercially a shot.

Barack Obama wins the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize- hmmm, I like Obama, but he's not even been in power a year and whilst he has done a lot for peace, mostly he's just mopping up the mess from the last presidency and therefore doing his job. Surely there's someone more deserving- or maybe there's not which lets face it is a little depressing.

Sad news Stephen Gately passed away this morning. Really shocking and sad since he was only 33. No news of what happened yet. I liked Boyzone back in the day and my sister was a big fan. RIP.



The Booby Scare- FunnyOrDie

This is a pretty funny and socially aware video starring Alyson Hannigan, Emily Deschanel, Jaime King and some some singers (I think) about checking for breast cancer. Its a good line-up of stars and sends out a funny and positive message:

THE BOOBY SCARE Featuring Alyson Hannigan, Emily Deschanel, Kat McPhee, Minka Kelly and Jaime King - watch more funny videos

Buffy and Angel Rewatch part 9

2.21 Becoming Part 1

What an amazing episode. This is a much praised episode and deservedly so. Although there isn't much present day action (most of this is saved I think for the next episode) there is so much good stuff to watch. Scooby gang wise, its good to see Kendra back and its a shame she doesn't make it past this episode; as side by side slayers Buffy and Kendra got on for the most part so its sad that she's killed so cruelly by Dru. I definitely found myself tearing up a little when Buffy found Kendra at the end of the episode.
This episode is also poignant for the fact that is the first time Willow does magic. Considering her problems with magic in season 6 its ironic that Giles tells her that she could be "opening a door she can't close" (or words to that effect). Its hard to believe sometimes that her journey with magic started so early in the show.
The rest of the episode mostly focused on Angel. It's the first true Fang Gang mythology episode (apart from some stuff we got in the School Hard) and the flashbacks are a joy to watch especially Angel's siring. (good to see Darla back) The Whistler character was a brilliant idea on Joss' part; it's little wonder that Joss basically takes this episode as a template for the Angel pilot/show. Joss quite rightly saw the potential in Angel's character and the events of this episode as the basis for an entire show. However I'm not quite there in the rewatch just yet!
It was also fun seeing Buffy pre Sunnydale and pre Slayer. In a way its quite rewarding that the show didn't start from this point (they could've easily forgotten the movie in the timeline) as Buffy finding out she was a Slayer would've made for a logical pilot episode. I think it was a lot more interesting to see her already a trained Slayer, but it was cool to see her first dusting in this episode. (10/10)

2.22 Becoming Part 2

Another sensational episode. Before watching this episode this time round, I wasn't convinced it would be as good as it was. I remembered the main points, the its the little things in this episode and not just the ending that make it so good. There are so many highlights from Joyce finally finding out about Buffy, her reaction to it, the emotional Jenny/Giles scene followed by a funny Dru/Giles make out scene, Willow channeling some dark powers in the spell, and Spike and Buffy working together (one of my favourite moments and the first time I think we see the Spike we know and love later- a more cocky, less in love with Dru, Spike). The ending was of course hugely tragic. I've seen this episode a few times and as a standalone episode, when Buffy has to kill Angel after having his soul restored, is not nearly as powerful as if you watch the episode in context, with the last 2 seasons preceding it. Its a real Greek tragedy moment and even though I'm not a Buffy/Angel shipper, its an incredibly emotional moment. (10/10)

Season 2 Overall


Many people often say that this is their favourite Buffy season and its not hard to see why as it contains some of the shows best episodes. Personally whilst I found it to be a brilliant season and a lot better than the first, overall it was quite uneven. There were some really good episodes especially in the second half of the season, however even these were interspersed with some distinctly average episodes. However the quality of the best episodes is often enough to make you forget about these lesser episodes. I should point out as well its not just the dramatic episodes in the season that standout but some of the more comedic ones as well such as Pangs and Halloween (though admittedly I'm not sure how lighthearted Pangs really is!)
There are many highlights when it comes to this season; Spike and Drusilla making their entrance, Oz coming into the cast, Cordy and Jenny becoming more ingratiated into the Scoobies, and Angelus making his debut. I loved that each of the Scoobies developed relationships in this season, it was nice to see them all find some sort of happiness even if for most it was short lived. As I've said throughout the episode reviews I'm not a Buffy/Angel fan but even though in the particular episodes they can be annoying, overall the relationship does serve its purpose and delivers impressive drama for the show. This show is definitely superior to other vamp franchises when it comes to tragic human/vamp love stories!

As for the Big Bads, this year we were treated to 3 vamps, with a different one leading the front against Buffy at different points in the season which kept it interesting. Also since all of these vamps actually survive and appear in later seasons (okay Angel technically doesn't survive the finale but since he's resurrected I won't count it) the climactic battle is a little odd as looking back retrospectively Buffy doesn't actually defeat any of them. However as evil goes they are all pretty powerful and make their impact on the show more than felt, with the deaths of Kendra and Jenny.

Overall I really enjoyed this season and found myself continually wanting to watch the next episode (apart from a few episodes which I would have been ok not re-watching). During the second season, the show definitely begun to find its feet and settle in a lot more with the arc story-telling. No sophomore slump for Buffy!! (8.5/10)

Buffy and Angel Rewatch part 8

2.17 Passion

After watching this episode it's easy to see why this is regarded as one of the best episodes of Buffy. A truly emotional episode we won't see another one this upsetting in the Buffy-verse until Hero in Angel's season 1 or in Buffy itself The Body in season 5, both bringing with it a death like in this episode. The most upsetting moment for me personally was not Jenny's death. I imagine on first viewing this was more of a shock factor- sometimes it still is surprising that the death actually happens; that snap of the neck and realising she has gone. However I found the scenes where Willow and Buffy find out and where Giles breaks down are the most upsetting moments. Seeing our characters deal with the grief is heartbreaking, making it not just about the loss of the character but seeing our favourite characters having to deal with something awful. The episode starts off strong with Angel's haunting dialogue and continues so, mixing horror with drama and even comedy. (Willow's conversation with Giles at Buffy's springs to mind as an example) It's episode like this that make Buffy a truly classic show. Many shows when doing a big episode like this fail to mix in some comedy but Passion does this effortlessly.
A couple of things to note: Giles apartment/house is pretty much the same as in season 4. It's nice continuity but had they wanted there was plenty of room to change this set as it would be perfectly understandable for Giles to move after having this tragedy unfold in his home. Also after Jenny, Giles never really has another proper love interest, though there are a few here and there. It is perhaps a tribute to Jenny that he never had another relationship on the show. My first perfectly scored episode (10/10)

2.18 Killed By Death

I'm not a big fan of this episode. In seems to lack the beginning middle and end structure, jumping in very quickly with Buffy being sick. Although this could've been a good thing, it didn't really work somehow. I thought the link to Buffy's past- the demon had killed her cousin was very tenuous and not really needed at all. Re-watching the episode I liked the idea that Giles posited that Buffy could be trying to make up a tangible demon to fight, instead of facing her own fears. These issue kind of gets addressed later in the show, but perhaps this was too early an episode for Buffy to be dealing with an abstract demon. I did like not knowing who the demon was and the idea that it could've been a real human- the security guard or doctor, but I'm glad in a way that they didn't go down this route. I guess it was always going to be hard to follow the events of the previous episode, but all in all this was a bit of a disappointing episode (5.5/10)

2.19 I Only Have Eyes For You

Another one of my favourite episodes. For me this is one of the more simple but powerful episodes of Buffy, there is some exposition but the idea of a poltergeist is pretty simple so doesn't need a huge amount of explaining, plus Buffy doesn't actually fight anything in this episode (apart from some brief defence early in the episode). Its a hugely painful, but emotional episode about love and I adored the way in played out in couples again and again. The premise that James (the poltergeist) was trying again and again to find a happy ending for this tragic story was brilliant and very well ties in with Buffy's own situation. The resolution of the story was in hindsight a foreshadowing for the season 2 finale and Angel's resurrection in season 3 where he forgives her for having to kill him.
Seeing the Hellmouth at its most supernatural was also neat, but I loved the revelation that Snyder knew about the Hellmouth. It's never really discussed why or how, but its explains his hatred for children- I guess he's not really a teacher of any kind, just someone who knows how to manage these supernatural situations.
I also liked that Jenny was not forgotten in the episode and Spike's revelation that he could walk, which sets up nicely for the finale. Apart from some ropey special effects this was an excellent episode (9.5/10)

2.20 Go Fish

A fairly standard episode, which is a bit of a shame considering its placement in the season (so late and in between some really good episodes), however it is a decent episode. I liked the concept of the boys actually being the monsters rather than being pursued by them, though we didn't get a full explanation as to what the coach was drugging the boys with. The episode touched on high school athletes getting preferential treatment, but in true Sunnydale style, it wasn't the usual football or basketball teams due to their "high mortality rate" as Willow pointed out! (7.5/10)