AOQ Review 2-5: "Reptile Boy"
Arbitrar Of Quality
threads.
BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
Season Two, Episode 5: "Reptile Boy"
(or "Did we ever find out why it always has to be snakes, or was Indy
being rhetorical?")
Writer: David Greenwalt
Director: David Greenwalt
So, stop me if you've heard this one bef... oh, fuck it, let's go
straight to my main little thesis here. "Reptile Boy" is
definitely one we've heard before. Buffy and Giles in conflict over
Slayer responsibilities is a retread of "First Date." Buffy
getting pissed with Angel and impulsively turning to other guys has
shades of "When She Was Bad," though it's not an exact clone.
Cordelia acting all shallow and stuff and recruiting one of the
Slaypack to serve her needs is sorta like "Prophecy Girl," and the
image of she and Buffy tied up side-by-side (screaming and struggling,
respectively) was used in "Out Of Mind." Xander's transparent
attempts to follow Buffy around and make sure she doesn't get too
into any other guys is "First Date" in particular and the series in
general; certainly nothing new, anyway. And the central plot in which
a main character gets involved with someone with a supernatural secret
is a plot that hasn't even cooled from last time it was used, in the
show immediately preceding it. I (very) briefly considered getting all
style-over-substance on you and building a review entirely out of
sentences from previous reviews.
Is repetition, in and of itself, a problem? Maybe. I've never been
fond of it when TV shows pad themselves out by having characters learn
the same lessons over and over. At the same time, I am aware that we
flesh-and-blood types don't always get the message until the second,
or third, or tenth time life tries to pound it into us. The problem is
that when a show tries to mirror that, it's like watching a rerun,
which makes no one happy. The obvious compromise would be to spread
the repetition around a little, always dilute it with plenty of new
stuff, so it doesn't accumulate into episodes like RB. And to make
sure your show is good enough that it can survive the occasional
retread and still at least hold the audience's attention. The fact
that _Buffy_ on autopilot is still fairly entertaining serves it well
here... unless an episode actively does something to annoy me,
standard-quality BTVS is pretty much guaranteed at least a
"Decent."
So after that somewhat pretentious introduction, it just comes down to
which of the old parts are better this time around, which are worse,
and which are about the same. There are some of each, but the show as
a whole is about the same as the series has been overall: middling with
a taste of greatness. Time to start listing.
The scenes between Buffy and Angel continue to be tightly written even
when the rest of the show isn't. I really liked the opening
exchange, as Buffy seems convincingly scared by what she's getting
into. We know she'll probably regret unloading on Angel without
warning, and are certain it's a bigger mistake to use it as
motivation to run after college guys, but at the time, it makes sense
to her. It's funny the way people use arbitrary "steps" like
getting coffee to define how serious a relationship is. They're
purely symbolic.
Tom, one of the few "new" things about the episode, does a good job
coming off as a decent guy, and the kind of person Buffy would turn to.
The only real barrier would be the age gap, which is less creepy
considering the other guy our hero is into. I might have made it less
obvious that the frat was evil from the start, but what's nice is
that Tom is kept out of the mix for most of it so that it's not clear
until near the end of the episode how soulless he is. Buffy's
drugged and unconscious, Jonathan seems interested in having his way
with her (an unnerving scene since there're a few guys like that in
every real-life House), and Tom strolls in to put a stop to it...
because she belongs completely to their demon. It's one of the best
moments of the show.
I've known my share of self-absorbed people, but I've never seen
anyone like Cordelia. On a show full of characters who're generally
portrayed realistically in spite of the bizarre universe they live in,
does it really serve our purposes to have a major character who's so
over-the-top? I know I harp on her a lot, and it's because I keep
trying to give the show a chance to make her not worthless. Still not
happening. The only type of person who would respond to being chained
up and sacrificed with a line like "I shouldn't have let you drag
me into this" is pure comic relief, and BTVS has enough humor
intrinsic to what people say that it doesn't need characters whose
"humor" is in what they are.
And as for Cordelia gushing over Angel, shouldn't the vampire thing
bother her? Or if she doesn't know, why not? The supernatural would
seem to be a good way of keeping her out of the way while the potential
lovebirds work out their issues. Except that Xander would still be
getting in the way, apparently. I really thought they'd finally
gotten the character down, so it was quite disappointing to see Season
One Xander again in this episode. Would it kill him to be a little
less obvious? (Especially given the lack of success that this routine
has had in getting Buffy to not like other guys?)
While we're on Xander, I'm sure there's a subset of the audience
who loved the hazing sequence. I'm generally a little squeamish
about seeing likeable (well, likeable when written properly) characters
being humiliated. No real strong feelings either way, though. Just
like the frat party as a whole, it plays less like a natural part of
the episode and more like someone doesn't like fratboys and felt like
using the episode to vent. [On a baser note, I believe this is the
first use of spanking in BTVS. That's only relevant because it's
something of a fetish of mine, but pairing it with cross-dressing
doesn't do it for me.]
Two other highlights worth mentioning: Willow's mostly in the
background, but she has a couple of the show's best moments - the
snide references to Sunnydale's death toll are one. And her big
scene yelling at Giles and Angel is nice: not so much for the actual
yelling, but the way she immediately follows it up with something like
"okay, this isn't making me feel any better, so let's talk about
what to do next." Ever the practical one. The other highlight is
the last Watcher/Slayer exchange; not too many wasted words (I'm
always a fan of that), and not much pretense that everything is
perfect. Their fundamental disagreement about responsibility vs.
having a life hasn't been solved, and they'll almost certainly come
into conflict over it again. All that the events of RB will teach them
is to be a little more understanding, for a little while...
Anything else to mention... the snake at the end is blatantly
mechanical. Nothing else to say, except that it's worth reiterating
the statement that certain moments of RB are just good enough to make
me frustrated that this show isn't better than it is, overall. The
potential is there, but I want results!
So...
One-sentence summary: Recycled parts with a minor tune-up.
AOQ rating: Decent
[Season Two so far:
1) "When She Was Bad" - Good
2) "Some Assembly Required" - Weak
3) "School Hard" - Decent
4) "Inca Mummy Girl" - Good
5) "Reptile Boy" - Decent]
Arbitrar Of Quality
> Buffy's
> drugged and unconscious, Jonathan seems interested in having his way
> with her
Richard, I think. Whatever.
-AOQ
Mike Zeares
show. Another reviewer at the time summed up the first 5 eps thusly:
"Good, blah, good, blah, blah." That was pretty much how I saw it. I
liked RB more than IMG, but that's not saying much. Like most early
eps, it had a lot of good lines that became much loved over time (I
think my favorite is Willow's "Hey, Buffy snake basement now!"). But
the main plot just wasn't that interesting to me. Also, the metaphor
of "high school girls go to frat parties and get in trouble" seemed a
little heavy-handed, in the sense that Buffy didn't have anything
mystical happen to her, she was literally roofied, which really happens
all the time. So it wasn't even a metaphor at that point. Ok, most
girls who are roofied aren't fed to big snake demons, but still.
Question: did you find Buffy's statement, "When you kiss me I want to
die," to be really, really creepy?
Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
>
> I've known my share of self-absorbed people, but I've never seen
> anyone like Cordelia. On a show full of characters who're generally
> portrayed realistically in spite of the bizarre universe they live in,
> does it really serve our purposes to have a major character who's so
> over-the-top? [snip]
Cordelia's function at this point is strictly to take the piss out of
the other characters. Her self-absorbtion is on the level of a running
gag. If you don't find the gag funny, I can see how she could be
really annoying. I, on the other hand, have a list of favorite
Cordyisms.
Back in S2, I thought it was interesting that she was spending more and
more time with the gang, to the point of practically being an
auxilliary member. And none of the gang challenged her on it, they
just quietly accepted her. Depsite technically hating her. I thought
(and still think) that it made sense. She's experienced all these
weird things, and is in the know about Buffy. She can't talk to anyone
else about it, so she's drawn to the Slayer and her group despite
herself. And it happened rather gradually, a little more each episode.
I think that was a very effective way of getting her more involved in
the show.
> And as for Cordelia gushing over Angel, shouldn't the vampire thing
> bother her? Or if she doesn't know, why not?
She doesn't know at this point. No one has told her, and she hasn't
seen him go "Grrr." As for why Buffy wouldn't have told her in order to
scare her off Angel, I think Buffy was thinking of Angel as a guy,
rather than as a vampire.
> Two other highlights worth mentioning: Willow's mostly in the
> background, but she has a couple of the show's best moments - the
> snide references to Sunnydale's death toll are one. And her big
> scene yelling at Giles and Angel is nice: not so much for the actual
> yelling, but the way she immediately follows it up with something like
> "okay, this isn't making me feel any better, so let's talk about
> what to do next."
"Ok, I don't feel better and we have to help Buffy." Great scene.
See also my favorite quote above, another instance of her getting the
guys back on task.
I have a petty criticism. This was the second ep that had the
characters charging down the stairs (the other being "Teacher's Pet."
There's no way to film that that doesn't look a bit silly. "Here we
come to save the day -- hold on [stepstepstepstepstepstepstepstep] ok,
here we are!"
-- Mike Zeares
Don Sample
"Arbitrar Of Quality" <tsm...@wildmail.com> wrote:
> And as for Cordelia gushing over Angel, shouldn't the vampire thing
> bother her? Or if she doesn't know, why not?
At this point, no one has pointed it out to her, and Angel has never
done anything vampiry in her presence.
> While we're on Xander, I'm sure there's a subset of the audience
> who loved the hazing sequence. I'm generally a little squeamish
> about seeing likeable (well, likeable when written properly) characters
> being humiliated.
On the positive side, it does lead to Xander getting his own back at the
Hulk.
> Anything else to mention... the snake at the end is blatantly
> mechanical.
There was actually an actor under all that snake makeup (Robin Atkin
Downes <http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0235960/>) and at one point he was
supposed to have lines. But they had some sort of accident during
filming, and had to rewrite the end to do less with him, in order to
make their schedule. (The snake was actually supposed to survive, and
come back in a future episode.)
Right. Jonathan was the short guy bringing Cordy her cupcake, and a
cinnamon, chocolate, half caf, non-fat cappuccino at the Bronze at the
end. He forgot the extra foam.
He was also the guy who Ampata almost sucked dry at the Cultural
Exchange Dance in 'Inca Mummy Girl.'
--
Quando omni flunkus moritati
Visit the Buffy Body Count at <http://homepage.mac.com/dsample/>
William George Ferguson
wrote:
>A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these review
>threads.
>
>
>BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
>Season Two, Episode 5: "Reptile Boy"
>(or "Did we ever find out why it always has to be snakes, or was Indy
>being rhetorical?")
>Writer: David Greenwalt
>Director: David Greenwalt
This is one of the ones I was waiting to see what you would make of (as
was Inca Mummy Girl).
>
>So after that somewhat pretentious introduction, it just comes down to
>which of the old parts are better this time around, which are worse,
>and which are about the same. There are some of each, but the show as
>a whole is about the same as the series has been overall: middling with
>a taste of greatness. Time to start listing.
>
>The scenes between Buffy and Angel continue to be tightly written even
>when the rest of the show isn't. I really liked the opening
>exchange, as Buffy seems convincingly scared by what she's getting
>into. We know she'll probably regret unloading on Angel without
>warning, and are certain it's a bigger mistake to use it as
>motivation to run after college guys, but at the time, it makes sense
>to her. It's funny the way people use arbitrary "steps" like
>getting coffee to define how serious a relationship is. They're
>purely symbolic.
One thing to keep in mind, in many if not most episodes of the series, and
in pretty much all the episodes of the first three seasons, Joss Whedon is
an uncredited co-writer, when he isn't the credited writer. A couple of
the staff writers have commented that they would be complimented (at
conventions and such) on some piece of scintillating dialogue in one of
'their' episodes, and answer that, well, actually, Joss wrote that.
From everything I've read. Joss's fingerprints are all over every
Buffy/Angel scene in the first two seasons.
[snip comments on Tom. I'll just say that the bad guys that aren't just
'bwahaha' are much more fun than one-note evil evil things]
Oh, and, as you corrected, the less high-minded frat boy is Richard.
Jonathan is the very short (shorter than Buffy) guy that is getting Cordy
her drink at the end of the episode. You also saw him almost get eaten by
Ampata in Inca Mummy Girl. He's one of the more identifiable background
characters. This is something that has already started happening by this
point, and will continue, background characters that appear over and over
as the same character in different episodes. Some of them get names, some
of them don't (there's one who has already appeared in some school scenes
and will appear in others that the writers just call 'the Chinese guy', he
never was given a name and never had lines, but you would see him in the
background in school scenes). What they do is provide depth and
continuity to the background. You don't have a show where you get the
main actors surrounded by an entirely different group of people each
episode, it helps make Sunnydale, and particularly Sunnydale High, feel
more 'real'.
>I've known my share of self-absorbed people, but I've never seen
>anyone like Cordelia. On a show full of characters who're generally
>portrayed realistically in spite of the bizarre universe they live in,
>does it really serve our purposes to have a major character who's so
>over-the-top? I know I harp on her a lot, and it's because I keep
>trying to give the show a chance to make her not worthless. Still not
>happening. The only type of person who would respond to being chained
>up and sacrificed with a line like "I shouldn't have let you drag
>me into this" is pure comic relief, and BTVS has enough humor
>intrinsic to what people say that it doesn't need characters whose
>"humor" is in what they are.
Cordy fills several roles on Buffy. One of them is unquestionably comic
relief. Another is to be the anti-Buffy. As Buffy has said, she used to
'be' Cordy. Also, she's the person who gets to say the things that others
won't, since she has no governor on her tongue.
>And as for Cordelia gushing over Angel, shouldn't the vampire thing
>bother her?
As others point out, she doesn't know at this point. She just hasn't
interacted with Angel all that much, he's just this mysterious, and hot,
guy who ignores her and talks to Buffy (that's sort of like waving a cape
in front of a bull).
>Or if she doesn't know, why not? The supernatural would
>seem to be a good way of keeping her out of the way while the potential
>lovebirds work out their issues.
I don't think it even occurs to Buffy that Cordy is a threat there, and
rightfully so. From what we've seen to this point, Cordy not only can't
get to first base with Angel, she can't even get the bat on the ball. It
really annoys her.
>While we're on Xander, I'm sure there's a subset of the audience
>who loved the hazing sequence.
If you find any, let me know and we can take them out back and work them
over.
>Two other highlights worth mentioning: Willow's mostly in the
>background, but she has a couple of the show's best moments - the
>snide references to Sunnydale's death toll are one. And her big
>scene yelling at Giles and Angel is nice: not so much for the actual
>yelling, but the way she immediately follows it up with something like
>"okay, this isn't making me feel any better, so let's talk about
>what to do next." Ever the practical one.
Although even she can be distracted by inconsequentialities ("How do you
shave?")
>The other highlight is
>the last Watcher/Slayer exchange; not too many wasted words (I'm
>always a fan of that), and not much pretense that everything is
>perfect. Their fundamental disagreement about responsibility vs.
>having a life hasn't been solved, and they'll almost certainly come
>into conflict over it again. All that the events of RB will teach them
>is to be a little more understanding, for a little while...
Refer back to Buffy and Joyce at the end of SAR
Buffy: "About how long till this wears off and you start ragging on me
again
Joyce: "Oh, at least a week and a half."
So Buffy knows enough not to expect miracles.
>Anything else to mention... the snake at the end is blatantly
>mechanical.
Strangely enough, there was actually a guy inside Machida (exactly how
lame is it that I know the name of the snake demon when I haven't watched
the ep in a few years (knowing Willow's dialogue isn't a sign of lameness,
just good taste)).
>Nothing else to say, except that it's worth reiterating
>the statement that certain moments of RB are just good enough to make
>me frustrated that this show isn't better than it is, overall. The
>potential is there, but I want results!
Collectively these episodes (it's not really spoiing anything to tell
there will be others) are referred to as MotWs (Monster of the Week
episodes).
>So...
>
>One-sentence summary: Recycled parts with a minor tune-up.
>
>AOQ rating: Decent
>
>[Season Two so far:
>1) "When She Was Bad" - Good
>2) "Some Assembly Required" - Weak
>3) "School Hard" - Decent
>4) "Inca Mummy Girl" - Good
>5) "Reptile Boy" - Decent]
Thus far in season 2, there have been two 'arc' episodes and 3 MotW
episodes. Onward to the end of October.
--
HERBERT
1996 - 1997
Beloved Mascot
Delightful Meal
He fed the Pack
A little
kenm47
Plus a real life cautionary tale (which is what seems to rile up many)
I believe this one is hated generally by larger numbers than those that
hate IMG. IMO, not a bad episode. Moved things along. More chatracter
growth even if teenagers do seem to repeat behaviors. After all, it's
still a variation on the theme of Buffy trying to have a "normal" life
- I don't see how that gets resolved once nad never to be revisited.
IMO, the writers are called upon to come up with a situation were
Buffy's ability to be hero is compromised. Drugged at a college frat
party, since a real life danger for young girls, worked.
And of course, there's the Willow moments. The friendship between the
two just grows and grows.
Ken (Brooklyn)
kenm47
girls who are roofied aren't fed to big snake demons, but still."
Mike, Dr. Freud would like to explain a few things to you. :-)
Ken (Brooklyn)
kenm47
and
rightfully so. From what we've seen to this point, Cordy not only
can't
get to first base with Angel, she can't even get the bat on the ball.
It
really annoys her."
I believe this was also thus used to sell the Angel/Buffy fated true
love theme, since the presumption was if Cordy threw herself at you you
would be out of your mind to not catch that.
There is a reason her license plate is "QUEEN C" (and smart of Xander
to note that after the party was "over.")
Ken (Brooklyn)
kenm47
you
shave?") "
I find it amazing that a little bit of business like that, a total
throwaway, could contribute so much to the general versimilitude of the
show, helps a lot on the willing suspension of disbelief factor.
Reminds me of the throwaway bits in the original Star Wars (e.g.,
background creatures seen for a few seconds and never seen again kind
of thing).
Ken (Brooklyn)
Mike Zeares
I was speaking in the literal sense, of course. :-) But yeah, I kind
of saw that after I posted it.
I prefer the metaphors that are a bit more subtle, more about stresses
and problems, rather than about blatant dangers like "drinking at frat
parties is bad!" or "meeting men on the interent can be dangerous!"
There's a "duh" factor to messages like that. Or maybe there isn't, if
you're young enough. I was never clear on who this show was being
aimed at.
I'm probably not making much sense. That's why I never really posted
formal reviews.
-- Mike Zeares
Espen Schjønberg
> Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
>
>
>>And as for Cordelia gushing over Angel, shouldn't the vampire thing
>>bother her? Or if she doesn't know, why not?
>
>
> She doesn't know at this point.
I count this as a spoiler. I wouldn't have told. Now, that AOQ is
supposedely a bit ahead, but isn't that a spoiler? I think it is a spoiler.
Anyhow, the the episode: As is the case for so many S2 eps, I think this
one survives better than expected, whic is good.
It does annoy me the see Buff lose consciousness though.
But personally, it annoys me that the frat-boys choose someone as
relatively rich as CC here. Wouldn't they pick poor girls, without any
possible connections?
Also, she has a car with her. Should it just be parked there? I feel
like they should pick poor girls, and invite them so close to the party
no one knows where the girls went. So the plan must be a bit stupid.
--
Espen
kenm47
like they should pick poor girls, and invite them so close to the party
no one knows where the girls went. So the plan must be a bit stupid"
Their prior success is such that there's no need to worry about those
details. They just never ran into a Slayer before.
Ken (Brooklyn)
John Briggs
> On 06.02.2006 07:24, Mike Zeares wrote:
>> Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
>
>>> And as for Cordelia gushing over Angel, shouldn't the vampire thing
>>> bother her? Or if she doesn't know, why not?
>>
>> She doesn't know at this point.
>
> I count this as a spoiler. I wouldn't have told. Now, that AOQ is
> supposedely a bit ahead, but isn't that a spoiler? I think it is a
> spoiler.
No, it isn't a spoiler - "She doesn't know at this point" is literally
correct, and doesn't automatically imply that she does know at some point in
the future. However, your post, by stating that it is a spoiler, does imply
that, and is therefore a spoiler :-)
--
John Briggs
kenm47
Hear, Hear!
<Couldn't wait - I jumped ahead - very curious what will be the
reaction to the next one>
Ken (Brooklyn)
rrh...@acme.com
kenm47 wrote:
> Note: Another homage to horror movies like The Lair of the White Worm.
> Plus a real life cautionary tale (which is what seems to rile up many)
This is one of my least favorite episodes in S2. Mr. Quality has
identified many of the reasons. Not only does it have a 'more of the
same' aspect to it, the things it is repeating are the things I don't
particularly care for. I also don't particularly care for the homage
episodes, probably since I never got the horror films receiving the
homage: my problem, admittedly. The real-life cautionary tale part
doesn't rile me, but there is a certain unsubtlety in the frat boys
worshiping a giant snake that emerges to take women.
> I believe this one is hated generally by larger numbers than those that
> hate IMG. IMO, not a bad episode. Moved things along. More chatracter
> growth even if teenagers do seem to repeat behaviors. After all, it's
> still a variation on the theme of Buffy trying to have a "normal" life
> - I don't see how that gets resolved once nad never to be revisited.
I can't speak for others, of course, but 'hated' would be far too
strong for me. How about 'don't particularly care for'? I may or may
not watch it when it hits the top of the queue. Had Mr. Quality rated
it as 'weak' I wouldn't have argued.
Richard R. Hershberger
vague disclaimer
"Mike Zeares" <mze...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> But
> the main plot just wasn't that interesting to me. Also, the metaphor
> of "high school girls go to frat parties and get in trouble" seemed a
> little heavy-handed, in the sense that Buffy didn't have anything
> mystical happen to her, she was literally roofied, which really happens
> all the time. So it wasn't even a metaphor at that point.
Well you got there in the end :). A metaphor <> cautionary tale.
Sometimes people get a bit carried away with the whole metaphor thing.
Things are, occasionally, what they are: a hip-supernatural riff on a
standard horror/ teen slasher cliche. No more, no less.
--
A vague disclaimer is nobody's friend
Don Sample
Espen Schjønberg <ess...@excite.com> wrote:
> On 06.02.2006 07:24, Mike Zeares wrote:
> > Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
>
> >
> >
> >>And as for Cordelia gushing over Angel, shouldn't the vampire thing
> >>bother her? Or if she doesn't know, why not?
> >
> >
> > She doesn't know at this point.
>
> I count this as a spoiler. I wouldn't have told. Now, that AOQ is
> supposedely a bit ahead, but isn't that a spoiler? I think it is a spoiler.
Back during the first run, I was asking "Doesn't Cordy know that Angel's
a vampire?" after SAR, when she was hanging off his arm after he rescued
her from the hand.
> Anyhow, the the episode: As is the case for so many S2 eps, I think this
> one survives better than expected, whic is good.
>
> It does annoy me the see Buff lose consciousness though.
>
> But personally, it annoys me that the frat-boys choose someone as
> relatively rich as CC here. Wouldn't they pick poor girls, without any
> possible connections?
>
> Also, she has a car with her. Should it just be parked there? I feel
> like they should pick poor girls, and invite them so close to the party
> no one knows where the girls went. So the plan must be a bit stupid.
It may be a requirement of the sacrifice. Machida wouldn't want random
girls picked off the street. Disposing of the car after the ritual is
over is no problem.
kenm47
strong for me. How about 'don't particularly care for'? I may or may
not watch it when it hits the top of the queue. Had Mr. Quality rated
it as 'weak' I wouldn't have argued."
I get that, but again it just does not really bother me. I think in
part it was to show us further group dynamics, more evidence of the
growing B/A romance, Willow's vicarious thrills and support for same
and growing friendship and concern for Buffy, further proof that this
is a Slayer with friends that try to help watch her back (as opposed to
very other prior Slayer we briefly learned about), more proof of
Xander's willingness to face danger for Buffy, and the humor of Cordy
throwing herself at totally oblivious to her charms Angel. And then
Cordy's decision to go with boys her own age, even if Jonathan is a tad
too much of a swing in the other direction.
Me? I never liked the snooty frat boys when I was in college. I always
knew something was up with them seeming so blessed. Just couldn't put
my finger on it then.
Ken (Brooklyn)
George W Harris
<wmgf...@newsguy.com> wrote:
:This is something that has already started happening by this
:point, and will continue, background characters that appear over and over
:as the same character in different episodes. Some of them get names, some
:of them don't (there's one who has already appeared in some school scenes
:and will appear in others that the writers just call 'the Chinese guy', he
:never was given a name and never had lines, but you would see him in the
:background in school scenes).
'Asian Dan', actually, as mentioned in the
commentary of a S4 episode.
--
"Intelligence is too complex to capture in a single number." -Alfred Binet
George W. Harris For actual email address, replace each 'u' with an 'i'
Don Sample
"kenm47" <ken...@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
A ROT-13 comment on the founding of Delta Zeta Kappa:
V unir bsgra gubhtug gung bar bs gur sbhaqvat zrzoref bs gung sengreavgl
jnf Evpuneq Jvyxvaf V.
kenm47
That works for me.
Ken (Brooklyn)
Apteryx
news:1139200608....@g14g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
> One-sentence summary: Recycled parts with a minor tune-up.
>
> AOQ rating: Decent
Not an episode I've ever seen turn up in anyone's Top 10. In fact, no real
harm done by skipping it. But it does have further development of the
Buffy/Angel realtionship, and especially further chaffing by Buffy against
the chains of her Slayer responsibilities. For a Buffy fan group, there is
often too little credit given to SMG, but here, I'd say that it is she who
turns what as written could have been a total disaster into somehting at
least not as bad as it could have been by making us feel for her
predicament. I'd call it Good, but it rates so low amongst the ranks of the
Good that I wouln't quarrel with "Decent". Certainly some here would call it
worse than that.
Overall, my 90th favourite BtVS episode, and 17th best in Season 2.
--
Apteryx
Arbitrar Of Quality
> Espen Schjønberg wrote:
> > I count this as a spoiler. I wouldn't have told. Now, that AOQ is
> > supposedely a bit ahead, but isn't that a spoiler? I think it is a
> > spoiler.
>
> No, it isn't a spoiler - "She doesn't know at this point" is literally
> correct, and doesn't automatically imply that she does know at some point in
> the future. However, your post, by stating that it is a spoiler, does imply
> that, and is therefore a spoiler :-)
Correct. Albeit an extremely minor one, made completely moot by the
fact that the review-writing is done well ahead of the posting so I've
seen quite a bit after RB...
-AOQ
Wes <3254716>
Am I the only one who saw this as a social metaphor rather than a
sexual one?
-The rich getting richer at the expense of others-
Males sacrificing females is an old story but it seems as much social
as sexual since it stems from the patriarchal world.
I have just never equated EVERY snake as a phallic symbol even though
they've been around since before Eve's little frolic in the garden.
Wes
"Her lover? I thought that was her chiropractor."
KenM47
Of course you're right. I was kidding around. There was both.
Ken (Brooklyn)
KenM47
See. Now you've just encouraged them to put in spoilers. Be careful!
Ken (Brooklyn)
Daniel Damouth
news:1139234819.3...@o13g2000cwo.googlegroups.com:
> Subject: Re: AOQ Review 2-5: "Reptile Boy"
> From: "kenm47" <ken...@ix.netcom.com>
> Newsgroups: alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer
>
> "Although even she can be distracted by inconsequentialities ("How
> do you
> shave?") "
>
> I find it amazing that a little bit of business like that, a total
> throwaway, could contribute so much to the general versimilitude
> of the show, helps a lot on the willing suspension of disbelief
> factor.
It's a concrete detail proving the fantasy premise.
I like this particular scene as an early indicator of Willow's ability
to multitask. She was listening to what they were saying. She was
also paying attention to something else entirely. I'm sure there is no
need for us to mention what later episode this makes us think of.
-Dan Damouth
Daniel Damouth
@g47g2000cwa.googlegroups.com:
> "A ROT-13 comment on the founding of Delta Zeta Kappa:"
>
> That works for me.
Makes sense.
-Dan
Daniel Damouth
particularly relate to the plot of the episode they're in. That's why
I still have some trouble remembering which character-building scene is
in which episode, and also why even the lesser episodes have wonderful
moments. Perhaps the best example is "Reptile Boy", which starts out
with possibly the the greatest character scene ever: the 3 best friends
watching a Bollywood movie without subtitles on their broadcast-only
TV, Will eating pretzels and sipping a juice box while Buffy braids her
hair. There's a bunch of wonderful dialogue ending with "So, how does
the water buffalo fit in again?"
And then there's the exchange that still affects me to this day. In a
graveyard, Buffy is trying to broach the issue of a date with Angel,
but he warns her that what they're doing might have consequences. It's
not a fairy tale. When he kisses her, she doesn't wake up from a deep
sleep and live happily ever after. To this she answers "no, when you
kiss me I wanna die", and runs off. This injects a darkness that still
haunts me. I don't fully understand it. But it's an insight into
Buffy's troubled soul.
Cordelia is delivering verbal stings to Xander, apparently without
noticing that she's talking with him in the corridor in full view of
other people. Progress of a sort.
Willow shows another notch of assertiveness when she sticks up for
Buffy in that fantastic scene where she tells off Giles and Angel for
their treatment of her.
The stupid frat story with the lizard demon is lame. The theme of
Buffy rebelling against her responsibilities is repetitious. And,
tragically, the lizard itself was a terrible special effect. But to
focus on the ostensible main parts is to seriously miss out on the
goodness of the show.
-Dan Damouth
kenm47
but he warns her that what they're doing might have consequences. It's
not a fairy tale. When he kisses her, she doesn't wake up from a deep
sleep and live happily ever after. To this she answers "no, when you
kiss me I wanna die", and runs off. This injects a darkness that still
haunts me. I don't fully understand it. But it's an insight into
Buffy's troubled soul."
The exchange is IMO not so mysterious. He's dead after all. She's
saying she wants to be like/with him in death. Something of a classic
notion of "true" lovers wanting to not outlive the other. Of course, in
most situations the dead one isn't standing and chatting with or
kissing the living one.
"Die" (orgasm being "la petite mort" in French) also has sexual
connotations which may or may not be being implied here. I think it's
nothing more here than a romantic notion with resonances because we're
talking about The Slayer and a dead husk occupied by a vampire AND a
human soul she happens to be in love with.
I agree completely with all the points about character-building scenes.
BUT, and again I guess I'm in a minority, I did not find the frat story
lame, themes about Buffy may be repetitious but that's a necessary in
the show and for any new viewers tuning in (sometimes one has to
remember what actually was going on and that there were certain
business concerns) aside from weekly viewers who might need a little
reminder (we weren't necessarily putting everything under a microscope
then - well, I wasn't), and for a show not on the big networks I found
the non-CGI fx quite acceptable (but then I was a ST:TOS original
viewer and fan). Not everything can be the best of a season, but even
if this one is considered the worst of the season it only means the
rest were that much better.
Ken (Brooklyn)