AOQ Review 4-18: "Where The Wild Things Are"
Arbitrar Of Quality
threads.
BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
Season Four, Episode 18: "Where The Wild Things Are"
(or "Sex is not a job description")
Writer: Tracey Forbes
Director: David Solomon
Memo to BTVS cast: stop going to frat parties. Seriously.
I'm having a hard time thinking of much that happened in this one.
Late-season filler is more or less my first impression. There was the
House O' Sex, people started flipping out, we find out the evil nun
is responsible... uh, what else happened in this one? References to
"Fear Itself" abound, and the episodes seem to be cut from similar
house-of-horrors cloths. This whole review is basically going to be
random short takes, since that's all I can manage today.
Blah teaser and intro stuff this week. Buffy and Riley fighting
together is okay, and they're continuing with the story of Adam's
growing influence, but I've never liked the scenes that have
characters so caught up with each other that they can't think about
or do anything else. I'm having unpleasant flashbacks to Buffy and
Angel being too busy kissing to save the world or whatever. Now that
our little show is all grown up, such vibes mean constant sex, and
I'm not sure if I buy that. Last episode Buffy and her kinda-new
boyfriend were slowly working through the damage Faith had wrought,
which one would think would be most pronounced with regards to sexual
situations. But then "Superstar" ended with a big makeout session,
and now they can't keep their reproductive organs off each other.
Doesn't really fly from where I'm sitting.
Random quote that I liked: "Yes, thank you, Willow, I did attend
university in the Mesozoic era, I do remember what it's like."
I'm not deeply disturbed or anything, but I think I could've lived
without seeing any extras shuddering in the throes of wall-induced
public orgasms.
Meanwhile, Xander and Anya are taking a break from screwing to fight
until another crisis pops up to nudge them back together. Again.
I'm struck by how much their relationship still seems to be about
lust and not much else, though there're some stronger feelings that
periodically pop up. This is like the third time we've seen them go
through this basic dance. Not unrealistic, given that I've known
some real-life couples who were totally this way: heavy on the sex,
every day a soap opera. And X/A scenes are almost always good for at
least a smile. And Xander being the reasonable one, repeating the kind
of reasonable-sounding advice we saw last episode (and having it
ignored) isn't bad either. But I hope you'll forgive me if I'm
not hugely excited to be watching this story again. Mrs. Quality loved
Anya's "woo-hoo!" which is pretty funny. Xander seems to be
having an easier time hooking himself up than in the old days, although
he did have a little supernatural help.
Spike and Anya don't really get scenes together too often, so they
get to bond a little bit here over their incapacity for evil (the
former is down to basically threatening kids for their lunch money, so
to speak). Their scenes pretty much speak for themselves, and are fun.
Fun is good.
One of the more effective sequences centers around Tara and how she's
targeted. The abrupt, violent way she flips out over physical contact
as "just disgusting" is memorable.
Willow and Xander quickly recognizing a problem situation when they see
it, and Xander's determination in the face of insanity are both solid
bits. Especially when such things give us the gag where the house
ejects Xander, and Spike's "I know I'm not the first choice for
heroics ... and Buffy's tried to kill me more than once... and, I don't
fancy a single one of you at all. But... Actually, all that sounds
pretty convincing. I wonder if _Danger Mouse_ is on."
I've never much cared for "Behind Blue Eyes," but Giles does a
pretty solid rendition. Due to the strange chemistry of humor,
that's a funnier scene than it would've been had he sucked. Anyone
know if Head did his own singing and strumming?
The big reveal of the reason the house is so sexually charged doesn't
do much for me. I think it was meant to be more disturbing. Maybe
it's just desensitization after watching so much BTVS in a relatively
short period of time? Its sounds like it should be a good premise.
Another RQTIL: "Well, that totally adds to my 'old people are
crazy' theorem."
Despite the clear lack of coverage of the trees, there're a few good
visuals in the final setpiece with Xander and Anya. Especially the
thorn through the hand. Nice old-movie music too.
One of the reasons the gang have to take charge of things is that the
hero is nowhere to be found until the others finally burst in on her,
hopefully not while she's about to say any more lines like "never
stop touching me!" I think this is just about the most Buffy-less
episode of _Buffy_ to date; she causes the problem, does nothing to
solve it and is barely on-screen throughout. I'm not entirely clear
whether our two sex fiends are totally under the control of the forces
of the house, or whether they're responsible for setting them off.
The former would make me a little happier, but either way, not my
favorite part of the episode.
I really don't have anything else to say. There were a lot of
character moments, and I smiled a lot, so it can't have been that
bad, right? But the barely-remembering-it thing can't be that good
either.
So...
One-sentence summary: I think I'll stick with the late-season filler
idea.
AOQ rating: Decent
[Season Four so far:
1) "The Freshman" - Good
2) "Living Conditions" - Decent
3) "The Harsh Light Of Day" - Good
4) "Fear Itself" - Decent
5) "Beer Bad" - Weak
6) "Wild At Heart" - Excellent
7) "The Initiative" - Decent
8) "Pangs" - Good
9) "Something Blue" - Good
10) "Hush" - Good
11) "Doomed" - Weak
12) "A New Man" - Decent
13) "The I In Team" - Good
14) "Goodbye Iowa" - Good
15) "This Year's Girl" - Good
16) "Who Are You?" - Good
17) "Superstar" - Decent
18) "Where The Wild Things Are" - Decent]
alphakitten
> I really don't have anything else to say. There were a lot of
> character moments, and I smiled a lot, so it can't have been that
> bad, right?
Er, wrong. :)
~Angel
mariposas rand mair fheal greykitten tomys des anges
> Late-season filler is more or less my first impression. There was the
it was filmed at the same time as i will remember you
so it was intended to be gellar lite
so she could concentrate on her role on angel
> I've never much cared for "Behind Blue Eyes," but Giles does a
> pretty solid rendition. Due to the strange chemistry of humor,
> that's a funnier scene than it would've been had he sucked. Anyone
> know if Head did his own singing and strumming?
its his singing whether recorded then or earlier
ash has done musicals in merrie olde englande
like dr frank n furter of rocky horror picture show
arf meow arf - nsa fodder
al qaeda terrorism nuclear bomb iran taliban big brother
if you meet buddha on the usenet killfile him
Horace LaBadie
"Arbitrar Of Quality" <tsm...@wildmail.com> wrote:
>
> I've never much cared for "Behind Blue Eyes," but Giles does a
> pretty solid rendition. Due to the strange chemistry of humor,
> that's a funnier scene than it would've been had he sucked. Anyone
> know if Head did his own singing and strumming?
Yes.
In the UK he played Frank-N-Furter. But he's better known as Murray
Head's little brother.
HWL
Apteryx
news:1148016369....@g10g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...
>A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these review
> threads.
>
>
> BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
> Season Four, Episode 18: "Where The Wild Things Are"
> (or "Sex is not a job description")
> Writer: Tracey Forbes
> Director: David Solomon
>
> Memo to BTVS cast: stop going to frat parties. Seriously.
>
> I'm having a hard time thinking of much that happened in this one.
> Late-season filler is more or less my first impression. There was the
> House O' Sex, people started flipping out, we find out the evil nun
> is responsible... uh, what else happened in this one? References to
> "Fear Itself" abound, and the episodes seem to be cut from similar
> house-of-horrors cloths. This whole review is basically going to be
> random short takes, since that's all I can manage today.
Much like the episode itself in fact. The only reason to watch this is for
the series of little skits performed by the characters (which may have
something to do with a story of some kind, but since they are so much better
than that story, the less said about that the better).
> Random quote that I liked: "Yes, thank you, Willow, I did attend
> university in the Mesozoic era, I do remember what it's like."
My favourite early moment is Willow comparing Adam to Martin Luther King for
"bringing the races together" and then putting on apologetic-face after
getting a look from Giles.
> not hugely excited to be watching this story again. Mrs. Quality loved
> Anya's "woo-hoo!" which is pretty funny.
Yep
> Spike and Anya don't really get scenes together too often, so they
> get to bond a little bit here over their incapacity for evil (the
> former is down to basically threatening kids for their lunch money, so
> to speak). Their scenes pretty much speak for themselves, and are fun.
> Fun is good.
I think he's got it. By George, I think he's got it.
> Willow and Xander quickly recognizing a problem situation when they see
> it, and Xander's determination in the face of insanity are both solid
> bits. Especially when such things give us the gag where the house
> ejects Xander, and Spike's "I know I'm not the first choice for
> heroics ... and Buffy's tried to kill me more than once... and, I don't
> fancy a single one of you at all. But... Actually, all that sounds
> pretty convincing. I wonder if _Danger Mouse_ is on."
Still evil.
> I've never much cared for "Behind Blue Eyes," but Giles does a
> pretty solid rendition. Due to the strange chemistry of humor,
> that's a funnier scene than it would've been had he sucked. Anyone
> know if Head did his own singing and strumming?
Apparently. A pretty talented guy.
>
> I really don't have anything else to say. There were a lot of
> character moments, and I smiled a lot, so it can't have been that
> bad, right? But the barely-remembering-it thing can't be that good
> either.
>
>
> So...
>
> One-sentence summary: I think I'll stick with the late-season filler
> idea.
>
> AOQ rating: Decent
Not so long ago this was my least favourite episode in season 4, and one of
my 10 worst of the series. But like Beer Bad (and for much the same reasons)
it has been rising in my ratings of late, so that now I would agree with
Decent. The trick is to forget the A story, and just focus on the fun. A
series of random skits aren't enough to get this episode to make this
episode as good as Beer Bad (which is Decent, but very close to Good), but
they are enough to get it into Decent territory. It has rocketed up the
ratings to be my 111th favourite BtVS episode, 19th best in Season 4.
--
Apteryx
Don Sample
"Arbitrar Of Quality" <tsm...@wildmail.com> wrote:
> A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these review
> threads.
>
>
> BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
> Season Four, Episode 18: "Where The Wild Things Are"
> (or "Sex is not a job description")
> I'm not deeply disturbed or anything, but I think I could've lived
> without seeing any extras shuddering in the throes of wall-induced
> public orgasms.
Did you notice that the guy who was so impressed with the French word
for "car" was one of Buffy's beer drinking buddies from 'Beer Bad'?
> Spike and Anya don't really get scenes together too often, so they
> get to bond a little bit here over their incapacity for evil (the
> former is down to basically threatening kids for their lunch money, so
> to speak). Their scenes pretty much speak for themselves, and are fun.
> Fun is good.
Spike and Anya almost always work well when they get put together.
> I've never much cared for "Behind Blue Eyes," but Giles does a
> pretty solid rendition. Due to the strange chemistry of humor,
> that's a funnier scene than it would've been had he sucked. Anyone
> know if Head did his own singing and strumming?
Yes. Tony Head has a background in musical theatre. He even played
Frank-n-ferter in the London production of Rocky Horror Show.
>
> The big reveal of the reason the house is so sexually charged doesn't
> do much for me. I think it was meant to be more disturbing. Maybe
> it's just desensitization after watching so much BTVS in a relatively
> short period of time? Its sounds like it should be a good premise.
>
> Another RQTIL: "Well, that totally adds to my 'old people are
> crazy' theorem."
But Mrs. Landingham was such a sweet tough old broad.
--
Quando omni flunkus moritati
Visit the Buffy Body Count at <http://homepage.mac.com/dsample/>
Mike Zeares
Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
>
> I've never much cared for "Behind Blue Eyes," but Giles does a
> pretty solid rendition. Due to the strange chemistry of humor,
> that's a funnier scene than it would've been had he sucked. Anyone
> know if Head did his own singing and strumming?
I believe having Giles sing was Tony's idea. I loved the gang's
reactions. Aly mabye went a few clicks too far with her jaw drop, but
the whole scene was played rather broadly.
> The big reveal of the reason the house is so sexually charged doesn't
> do much for me. I think it was meant to be more disturbing. Maybe
> it's just desensitization after watching so much BTVS in a relatively
> short period of time? Its sounds like it should be a good premise.
I think we got the word on this ep's plot a few weeks prior from the
nascent spoiler sources. There was widespread disbelief that it could
possibly be real. Then we got the actual previews for it, and its
reality could no longer be denied. I think it came out better than
people had feared, but I still could have done without it.
> I really don't have anything else to say. There were a lot of
> character moments, and I smiled a lot, so it can't have been that
> bad, right? But the barely-remembering-it thing can't be that good
> either.
Yeah. If you skip past most of the A plot, it's a lot of fun. But
then, as you say, that means it can't really be good as a whole. But
the good parts are really good. It's a confounding episode. There
should be a "good parts" version.
-- Mike Zeares (at least there weren't any scenes about packing and
unpacking)
Rowan Hawthorn
> A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these review
> threads.
>
>
> BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
> Season Four, Episode 18: "Where The Wild Things Are"
> (or "Sex is not a job description")
> Writer: Tracey Forbes
> Director: David Solomon
>
>
> character moments, and I smiled a lot, so it can't have been that
> bad, right? But the barely-remembering-it thing can't be that good
> either.
>
>
> So...
>
> One-sentence summary: I think I'll stick with the late-season filler
> idea.
>
> AOQ rating: Decent
>
That's about my take on it, too. I don't *hate* it, but the little
character moments are the best parts.
--
Rowan Hawthorn
"Occasionally, I'm callous and strange." - Willow Rosenberg, "Buffy the
Vampire Slayer"
Arbitrar Of Quality
Mike Zeares wrote:
> Yeah. If you skip past most of the A plot, it's a lot of fun. But
> then, as you say, that means it can't really be good as a whole. But
> the good parts are really good. It's a confounding episode. There
> should be a "good parts" version.
>
> -- Mike Zeares (at least there weren't any scenes about packing and
> unpacking)
While you were typing that post, you slipped from sorta to mostly cool.
-AOQ
~that's one of my favorite books in the world, and nobody's ever read
it (they've just seen the movie)~
Bill Reid
Arbitrar Of Quality <tsm...@wildmail.com> wrote in message
news:1148016369....@g10g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...
>
> BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
> Season Four, Episode 18: "Where The Wild Things Are"
> (or "Sex is not a job description")
> Writer: Tracey Forbes
> Director: David Solomon
>
Thanks for listening.
---
William Ernest Reid
Vanya6724
Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
> Especially when such things give us the gag where the house
> ejects Xander, and Spike's "I know I'm not the first choice for
> heroics ... and Buffy's tried to kill me more than once... and, I don't
> fancy a single one of you at all. But... Actually, all that sounds
> pretty convincing. I wonder if _Danger Mouse_ is on."
That's a new interpretation. I've always heard the line as "I wonder if
Asian House is open...", which seems to be how most people quote it in
transcripts. Arguably your interpretation makes more sense for Spike
since he's not really the social type. Anyone have a definitive ruling
on what Spike actually says?
jil...@hotmail.com
were having sex normally, and then relative nearness to the Hellmouth
kicked in and *boom* Buffy and Riley were caught in a feedback loop.
eli...@gmail.com
apparently at the time, the WB executives wouldn't allow WIllow and
Tara to share even the tiniest little chaste kiss on-screen, so in
retaliation Joss came up with the Buffy/Riley sex-fest. And the
audience had to suffer as a concequence.
mariposas rand mair fheal greykitten tomys des anges
"jil...@hotmail.com" <jil...@hotmail.com> wrote:
the girl does have stamina
Don Sample
"Vanya6724" <vanya...@pochta.ru> wrote:
The script has "Think Asian House is still open?"
Arbitrar Of Quality
Bill Reid wrote:
> I would just like to say I thought this episode sucked.
>
> Thanks for listening.
Not an uncommon opinion.
-AOQ
Rowan Hawthorn
Another reason to throw rocks at the suits...
Arbitrar Of Quality
mariposas rand mair fheal greykitten tomys des anges wrote:
> > I'm having a hard time thinking of much that happened in this one.
> > Late-season filler is more or less my first impression. There was the
>
> it was filmed at the same time as i will remember you
> so it was intended to be gellar lite
> so she could concentrate on her role on angel
What a whack-ass filming schedule.
-AOQ
Arbitrar Of Quality
Don Sample wrote:
> In article <1148052724.3...@y43g2000cwc.googlegroups.com>,
> "Vanya6724" <vanya...@pochta.ru> wrote:
>
> > Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
> > > Especially when such things give us the gag where the house
> > > ejects Xander, and Spike's "I know I'm not the first choice for
> > > heroics ... and Buffy's tried to kill me more than once... and, I don't
> > > fancy a single one of you at all. But... Actually, all that sounds
> > > pretty convincing. I wonder if _Danger Mouse_ is on."
> >
> >
> > That's a new interpretation. I've always heard the line as "I wonder if
> > Asian House is open...", which seems to be how most people quote it in
> > transcripts. Arguably your interpretation makes more sense for Spike
> > since he's not really the social type. Anyone have a definitive ruling
> > on what Spike actually says?
>
> The script has "Think Asian House is still open?"
Aw. That sucks. I like the idea of Spike sitting in his crypt
watching cartoons (British ones, of course). Though I don't recall
anyone saying whether or not he ever got his telly replaced.
-AOQ
eli...@gmail.com
vmac...@yahoo.com
heroics ... and Buffy's tried to kill me more than once... and, I don't
fancy a single one of you at all. But... Actually, all that sounds
Thank you for the transcript - I always thought he muttered 'I wonder
if the asian house is open?', as a bowl of pho would be preferable to
heroics. Danger Mouse - cool show.
This was probably my favorite moment - that and Giles' pulling an "oh,
crap" take seeing the gang, and not missing a beat.
VMacek
Daniel Damouth
[...]
> but I've never liked the scenes that have
> characters so caught up with each other that they can't think about
> or do anything else. I'm having unpleasant flashbacks to Buffy and
> Angel being too busy kissing to save the world or whatever. Now that
> our little show is all grown up, such vibes mean constant sex, and
> I'm not sure if I buy that. Last episode Buffy and her kinda-new
> boyfriend were slowly working through the damage Faith had wrought,
> which one would think would be most pronounced with regards to sexual
> situations. But then "Superstar" ended with a big makeout session,
> and now they can't keep their reproductive organs off each other.
> Doesn't really fly from where I'm sitting.
The house was so sexually charged or something.
-DD
Don Sample
I doubt if it was time off for IWRY. IWRY had already been aired by the
time they got around to filming this episode.
drifter
> In article <1148052724.3...@y43g2000cwc.googlegroups.com>,
> "Vanya6724" <vanya...@pochta.ru> wrote:
>
>> Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
>>> Especially when such things give us the gag where the house
>>> ejects Xander, and Spike's "I know I'm not the first choice for
>>> heroics ... and Buffy's tried to kill me more than once... and, I
>>> don't fancy a single one of you at all. But... Actually, all that
>>> sounds pretty convincing. I wonder if _Danger Mouse_ is on."
>>
>>
>> That's a new interpretation. I've always heard the line as "I wonder
>> if Asian House is open...", which seems to be how most people quote
>> it in transcripts. Arguably your interpretation makes more sense
>> for Spike since he's not really the social type. Anyone have a
>> definitive ruling on what Spike actually says?
>
> The script has "Think Asian House is still open?"
Actually, the Buffy vs. Angel transcript page
http://www.buffy-vs-angel.com/guide.shtml
uses the Danger Mouse quote. What script site
did you use?
--
Kel
"I reject your reality, and substitute my own."
Mel
Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
Put me in the nobody camp...I've read it.
Mel
Rowan Hawthorn
I have an HTML copy of the shooting script (identified as "February 23,
2000 (Goldenrod)",) and it also has "Asian House," which is what I've
always heard it as, too.
One Bit Shy
news:1148016369....@g10g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...
> I'm having a hard time thinking of much that happened in this one.
> Late-season filler is more or less my first impression. There was the
> House O' Sex, people started flipping out, we find out the evil nun
> is responsible...
I don't think she was a nun. She did get a medal though.
> uh, what else happened in this one?
Xander and Anya save the day. I guess because they were being so chaste.
> Blah teaser and intro stuff this week. Buffy and Riley fighting
> together is okay, and they're continuing with the story of Adam's
> growing influence, but I've never liked the scenes that have
> characters so caught up with each other that they can't think about
> or do anything else. I'm having unpleasant flashbacks to Buffy and
> Angel being too busy kissing to save the world or whatever.
I rather liked Buffy lowering her crossbow so she could smile at her man and
let him be all, well, manly.
"Okay, you get Fang, I'll get Horny." Yeah, it's cheap. But I laughed
anyway, and it does serve to sort of set the theme.
> Now that
> our little show is all grown up, such vibes mean constant sex, and
> I'm not sure if I buy that.
I'm not terribly excited by it's use as the basis of this episode, but it
seems to me that this would be about the right time in their developing
reltionship for them to be a bit sex obsessed.
> Last episode Buffy and her kinda-new
> boyfriend were slowly working through the damage Faith had wrought,
> which one would think would be most pronounced with regards to sexual
> situations. But then "Superstar" ended with a big makeout session,
> and now they can't keep their reproductive organs off each other.
> Doesn't really fly from where I'm sitting.
Superstar was intended to pretty much settle the Faith issue - the biggest
part of which was getting past the sex issue. Jonathan's little talks with
both of them were quite effective.
> I'm not deeply disturbed or anything, but I think I could've lived
> without seeing any extras shuddering in the throes of wall-induced
> public orgasms.
Hmmm. I rather liked most of the random spook events. (Not so much Spike
getting strapped.) I thought the wall thing was oddly evocative - effective
at drawing the audience into the atmosphere. The girl was kind of cute too.
> Meanwhile, Xander and Anya are taking a break from screwing to fight
> until another crisis pops up to nudge them back together.
Did you notice the ice cream truck's creepy music?
> Again.
> I'm struck by how much their relationship still seems to be about
> lust and not much else, though there're some stronger feelings that
> periodically pop up. This is like the third time we've seen them go
> through this basic dance.
I remember the Hush dust up - which was actually about commitment beyond
sex. That's some time ago now. What was the other one? In the Harsh Light
of Day? That was pretty much the start of their relationship this year.
(There really wasn't a relationship in S3 beyond Anya's yearnings.)
In any case, all three are connected - if for no other reason than being the
story of this couple's developing relationship - a couple with a -erm-
peculiar way of relating. But they're not repeats. They're mainly Anya
driven (or I should say instigated). First Anya's need for a relationship.
Then her need for a commitment. Then her fear of losing the relationship.
While their undoubted love of sex (to a deliberately comical level) provides
a pervasive background to them, I would submit that all 3 of these events
are identifying something more than lust.
Indeed, this story for them is specifically intended to inform them that
their connection really does go beyond sex. That's the point of them not
having sex, and Anya panicking about it, and then their coming together in a
shared deed that's not sex. I don't think this is one of the more
brilliantly portrayed messages of the sort, but it seems rather pointed none
the less.
> Not unrealistic, given that I've known
> some real-life couples who were totally this way: heavy on the sex,
> every day a soap opera. And X/A scenes are almost always good for at
> least a smile. And Xander being the reasonable one, repeating the kind
> of reasonable-sounding advice we saw last episode (and having it
> ignored) isn't bad either. But I hope you'll forgive me if I'm
> not hugely excited to be watching this story again.
Again, note that there is no sex between them this episode. It's not the
same.
Anya's personal story is forever deeply infused with the peculiarity of her
situation. 1000+ years as vengeance demon suddenly thrust into human form
again, completely unprepared for all the human feelings surgin through her
and appallingly ignorant of how one handles them. Getting all worked up
about one night without sex certainly seems silly - and really is. Xander
knows it is. But it's not really the sex that concerns Anya. She's scared
of breaking up. Of losing Xander. She thinks such a silly thing can do it
because that's all she knows through 1000 years of experience. Responding
to breakups was her life - and she knew them as caused by anything and
everything. She can't get over that easily.
That's her fear. It's matched by a corresponding desire. Which isn't lust.
Oh, she has plenty of lust. And that confuses herself too as to where
motivation lies. But she doesn't really need Xander just for lust.
I tried to point out a couple times previously how devoted Anya had become.
How she would sit and watch Xander rather than the action around them and
smile at his jokes to others and how obsessively concerned with his safety
she gets. She's simply head over heels in love with him. In large part
this is probably because Xander is the one helping her learn how to live as
a human. In essence, he's being her teacher. Which he does with gentle
care. Nobody else does that. In a sense he's the whole of her life and she
utterly depends on it.
All of which has a profound impact on Xander too. This has been kind of a
tough year for Xander. Can't keep a job. Often disconnected with his old
friends. From the old gang, the one he actually hangs out with now is
Giles - not the pairing one would naturally assume. (Seems to drive Giles
batty sometimes too.) And Anya has not been easy.
But with Anya he's special. The wise one. A role he must look at with a
sense of disbelief sometimes, but I think also a sense of responsibility.
'Cause he matters to someone's life in a way he never has before. Certainly
not with Cordelia, even though genuine fondness did occur there. Anya is
making Xander grow. Just look at his patience
If you look closely, you've already seen a lot of indications from both of
them of the influence of their relationship besides lust. Don't
underestimate their story. There's a lot of comedy - great comedy - and
lust - and something more. I would submit that it's already the most
developed of the three couples stories currently being depicted.
> Mrs. Quality loved
> Anya's "woo-hoo!" which is pretty funny.
I commend Mrs. Quality for her fine taste.
> Spike and Anya don't really get scenes together too often, so they
> get to bond a little bit here over their incapacity for evil (the
> former is down to basically threatening kids for their lunch money, so
> to speak). Their scenes pretty much speak for themselves, and are fun.
> Fun is good.
Yes it is. They work nicely together, though it should also be pointed out
that they really do have a lot in common.
> One of the more effective sequences centers around Tara and how she's
> targeted. The abrupt, violent way she flips out over physical contact
> as "just disgusting" is memorable.
Made me jump. And the fear on Willow's face - being rejected again. Gut
punch.
> I've never much cared for "Behind Blue Eyes," but Giles does a
> pretty solid rendition. Due to the strange chemistry of humor,
> that's a funnier scene than it would've been had he sucked. Anyone
> know if Head did his own singing and strumming?
Now I like Behind Blue Eyes quite a bit, but when I first saw this I hated
Giles singing it. It's taken some time, but I've become accustomed to his
singing style and like it ok now.
> The big reveal of the reason the house is so sexually charged doesn't
> do much for me. I think it was meant to be more disturbing. Maybe
> it's just desensitization after watching so much BTVS in a relatively
> short period of time? Its sounds like it should be a good premise.
Whenever this show gets into the morality of sex, I think it stumbles.
> One of the reasons the gang have to take charge of things is that the
> hero is nowhere to be found until the others finally burst in on her,
> hopefully not while she's about to say any more lines like "never
> stop touching me!" I think this is just about the most Buffy-less
> episode of _Buffy_ to date; she causes the problem, does nothing to
> solve it and is barely on-screen throughout. I'm not entirely clear
> whether our two sex fiends are totally under the control of the forces
> of the house, or whether they're responsible for setting them off.
> The former would make me a little happier, but either way, not my
> favorite part of the episode.
Well, the repressed energy has always been there. So in that sense Buffy
didn't cause it. But, evidently, slayer sex has the necessary oomph to
achieve poltergasm and set the evil free. From then on, Buffy and Riley are
under the influence of magic. When exactly the influence begins isn't
clear. But it's certainly before the party. It may even been subtly at
play back at the start and be the explanation for their sex to the exclusion
of all else attitude that you complained about at the start.
> I really don't have anything else to say. There were a lot of
> character moments, and I smiled a lot, so it can't have been that
> bad, right? But the barely-remembering-it thing can't be that good
> either.
>
>
> So...
>
> One-sentence summary: I think I'll stick with the late-season filler
> idea.
>
> AOQ rating: Decent
I had the Xander/Anya thing to say, but really, your review is mostly on
target. I'd rate it as a Decent. It's largely filler for me too. But the
rest of the season is not.
OBS
Arbitrar Of Quality
> Superstar was intended to pretty much settle the Faith issue - the biggest
> part of which was getting past the sex issue. Jonathan's little talks with
> both of them were quite effective.
Another reason that despite its fun moments, I have my problems with
"Superstar."
And given how many words i included, I feel obligated to at least say
that the stuff about Anya is interesting, and I'll be thinking about it
even if I don't really ahve anyhting to say at the moment.
-AOQ
One Bit Shy
> One Bit Shy wrote:
>
>> Superstar was intended to pretty much settle the Faith issue - the
>> biggest
>> part of which was getting past the sex issue. Jonathan's little talks
>> with
>> both of them were quite effective.
>
> Another reason that despite its fun moments, I have my problems with
> "Superstar."
Why? The Faith thing was pretty big at the moment, but how big could it
really be over time? It's not like either could seriously consider Faith
desirable beyond the sex. Jonathan, I think, correctly sussed out that
Buffy needed to forgive Riley and Riley needed to express his feelings for
Buffy. They both got it, and the solution didn't require much in the way of
words. Which is doubly good, because the physical intimacy in itself
overwhelms Faith's memory. I don't see a need for the issue to drag on.
Or do you just not like it reduced/dumbed down to the dance?
> And given how many words i included, I feel obligated to at least say
> that the stuff about Anya is interesting, and I'll be thinking about it
> even if I don't really ahve anyhting to say at the moment.
That's ok. It wasn't one of my better explanations. (And largely filler
for a generally not noteworthy episode.) At some later point I'll probably
want to explore Anya's story again. For now, just hear that there is nuance
to find in their relationship.
OBS
Mike Zeares
It's one of mine too. On my "never sell" list (even though it could be
easily replaced. It's the principle of the thing). There seems to be
quite a number of online Buffy fans who have read it. I've seen many
references to the book, not just the movie.
The movie led me to the book, of course. I'm not cool enough to have
found the book first.
-- Mike Zeares
Arbitrar Of Quality
One Bit Shy wrote:
> "Arbitrar Of Quality" <tsm...@wildmail.com> wrote in message
> news:1148097630....@j55g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
> > One Bit Shy wrote:
> >
> >> Superstar was intended to pretty much settle the Faith issue - the
> >> biggest
> >> part of which was getting past the sex issue. Jonathan's little talks
> >> with
> >> both of them were quite effective.
> >
> > Another reason that despite its fun moments, I have my problems with
> > "Superstar."
>
> Why? The Faith thing was pretty big at the moment, but how big could it
> really be over time? It's not like either could seriously consider Faith
> desirable beyond the sex. Jonathan, I think, correctly sussed out that
> Buffy needed to forgive Riley and Riley needed to express his feelings for
> Buffy. They both got it, and the solution didn't require much in the way of
> words. Which is doubly good, because the physical intimacy in itself
> overwhelms Faith's memory. I don't see a need for the issue to drag on.
Perhaps, but I just don't see them jumping back into things like that.
I feel like most people would have to rediscover their conmfort zone,
and I'm having a hard time letting go of that idea. That wouldn't
involve too many words, and in fact doesn't even have to be on screen,
just let some time pass. Wait a few episodes, or if you're running out
of season, make WTWTA clearly take place a few weeks after SS.
> Or do you just not like it reduced/dumbed down to the dance?
I guess, although even with the dumbed down catharsis, the dance itself
was pretty damn funny. I think it's the combination that bothers me.
I can handle "Superstar" being the resolution of the Faith issue, and I
can handle the sex parts of WTWTA... wait, the B/R stuff would suck
anyway. But seeing them so close together is offputting.
-AOQ
(Harmony) Watcher
"drifter" <ne...@home.net> wrote in message
news:7gtbg.148$gc6...@fe06.lga...
shooting scripts he has in his possession. Those things aren't cheap, are
there?
==Harmony Watcher==
(Harmony) Watcher
"Vanya6724" <vanya...@pochta.ru> wrote in message
news:1148052724.3...@y43g2000cwc.googlegroups.com...
Could it be this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dangermouse ?
==Harmony Watcher==
Daniel Damouth
news:1148099263....@y43g2000cwc.googlegroups.com:
But you're cool enough not to mention the name of either the book or
the movie. Your secret cabal rules.
-Dan Damouth
Arbitrar Of Quality
Not that cool, given that I'm going to try to enroll new members.
Everyone who has not done so: READ _The Princess Bride_ by William
Goldman [insert S. Morgenstern joke here] as soon as possible. And
watch it too, if you want.
-AOQ
Don Sample
"Mike Zeares" <mze...@yahoo.com> wrote:
I discovered the book back in 1980. Spider Robinson put together an
anthology of "great stories that hardly anyone has read," called "The
Best of all Possible Worlds." He picked half a dozen or so of his
favourite stories, that he felt were under-appreciated, and had the
authors of those stories pick their own favourite unknown stories by
other authors. He had stories by Niven, Heinlein, Sturgeon and others,
and he included the fight between Inigo and the Man in Black on top of
the Cliffs of Insanity from "The Princess Bride," so naturally I went
right out and bought the book so I could read the rest of the story.
Arbitrar Of Quality
> I discovered the book back in 1980. Spider Robinson put together an
> anthology of "great stories that hardly anyone has read," called "The
> Best of all Possible Worlds." He picked half a dozen or so of his
> favourite stories, that he felt were under-appreciated, and had the
> authors of those stories pick their own favourite unknown stories by
> other authors. He had stories by Niven, Heinlein, Sturgeon and others,
> and he included the fight between Inigo and the Man in Black on top of
> the Cliffs of Insanity from "The Princess Bride," so naturally I went
> right out and bought the book so I could read the rest of the story.
I have to track down that collection, then.
-AOQ
One Bit Shy
Ever read Goldman's Adventures in the Screen Trade? One of the more
entertaining behind the Hollywood scenes books I think.
I liked the book The Princess Bride way better than the film. Largely
because I couldn't handle Wally Shawn in it - who I usually like. But also
because the book is just more exciting. (On the other hand, I usually have
trouble with movies when I've read the book first. It works better for me
to do it the other way around.)
I've heard Goldman speak too. In that context at least he was a pretty self
effacing guy.
OBS
Don Sample
"One Bit Shy" <O...@nomail.sorry> wrote:
> "Arbitrar Of Quality" <tsm...@wildmail.com> wrote in message
> news:1148174778.9...@i40g2000cwc.googlegroups.com...
> > Don Sample wrote:
> >
> >> I discovered the book back in 1980. Spider Robinson put together an
> >> anthology of "great stories that hardly anyone has read," called "The
> >> Best of all Possible Worlds." He picked half a dozen or so of his
> >> favourite stories, that he felt were under-appreciated, and had the
> >> authors of those stories pick their own favourite unknown stories by
> >> other authors. He had stories by Niven, Heinlein, Sturgeon and others,
> >> and he included the fight between Inigo and the Man in Black on top of
> >> the Cliffs of Insanity from "The Princess Bride," so naturally I went
> >> right out and bought the book so I could read the rest of the story.
> >
> > I have to track down that collection, then.
> >
> > -AOQ
>
> Ever read Goldman's Adventures in the Screen Trade? One of the more
> entertaining behind the Hollywood scenes books I think.
>
> I liked the book The Princess Bride way better than the film. Largely
> because I couldn't handle Wally Shawn in it - who I usually like.
I thought Wallace Shawn was *perfect* for Vizzini. The way he said
"inconceivable!" matched the voice I heard in my head when I read the
book perfectly.
(And bringing this back around to Buffy, when I looked him up in IMDB
just now to make sure I was spelling his name right, I noticed that he's
in "Southland Tales" with SMG.)
One Bit Shy
news:dsample-7CE92B...@news.giganews.com...
> In article <126vks9...@news.supernews.com>,
> "One Bit Shy" <O...@nomail.sorry> wrote:
>
>> "Arbitrar Of Quality" <tsm...@wildmail.com> wrote in message
>> news:1148174778.9...@i40g2000cwc.googlegroups.com...
>> > Don Sample wrote:
>> >
>> >> I discovered the book back in 1980. Spider Robinson put together an
>> >> anthology of "great stories that hardly anyone has read," called "The
>> >> Best of all Possible Worlds." He picked half a dozen or so of his
>> >> favourite stories, that he felt were under-appreciated, and had the
>> >> authors of those stories pick their own favourite unknown stories by
>> >> other authors. He had stories by Niven, Heinlein, Sturgeon and
>> >> others,
>> >> and he included the fight between Inigo and the Man in Black on top of
>> >> the Cliffs of Insanity from "The Princess Bride," so naturally I went
>> >> right out and bought the book so I could read the rest of the story.
>> >
>> > I have to track down that collection, then.
>> >
>> > -AOQ
>>
>> Ever read Goldman's Adventures in the Screen Trade? One of the more
>> entertaining behind the Hollywood scenes books I think.
>>
>> I liked the book The Princess Bride way better than the film. Largely
>> because I couldn't handle Wally Shawn in it - who I usually like.
>
> I thought Wallace Shawn was *perfect* for Vizzini. The way he said
> "inconceivable!" matched the voice I heard in my head when I read the
> book perfectly.
I'm sure it's me. He's a very popular part of the movie - and his peculiar
talents do find places in it. But it didn't work for me. I guess I just
heard a different voice when reading the book.
> (And bringing this back around to Buffy, when I looked him up in IMDB
> just now to make sure I was spelling his name right, I noticed that he's
> in "Southland Tales" with SMG.)
No kidding? I hadn't seen that. Curious cast. I notice that Bai Ling is
in it too.
I just read my first review of it from Cannes. Not terribly favorable.
Though not terribly down either. Shell-shocked was the operative
description of how the reviewer felt. Which may be appropriate for the type
of film it's supposed to be.
Kind of long. I think it's something like a 2:40 running time. So I
suspect there's some major editing yet to come before broad release.
OBS
George W Harris
wrote:
:> Now that
:> our little show is all grown up, such vibes mean constant sex, and
:> I'm not sure if I buy that.
:
:I'm not terribly excited by it's use as the basis of this episode, but it
:seems to me that this would be about the right time in their developing
:reltionship for them to be a bit sex obsessed.
It also helps to remember that Riley is the first
person Buffy has had sex with more than once.
Throwing herself into it is not unexpected.
--
"If you take cranberries and stew them like applesauce, they taste more like
prunes than rhubarb does" -Groucho Marx
George W. Harris For actual email address, replace each 'u' with an 'i'
KenM47
>On Fri, 19 May 2006 21:15:03 -0400, "One Bit Shy" <O...@nomail.sorry>
>wrote:
>
>:> Now that
>:> our little show is all grown up, such vibes mean constant sex, and
>:> I'm not sure if I buy that.
>:
>:I'm not terribly excited by it's use as the basis of this episode, but it
>:seems to me that this would be about the right time in their developing
>:reltionship for them to be a bit sex obsessed.
>
> It also helps to remember that Riley is the first
>person Buffy has had sex with more than once.
>Throwing herself into it is not unexpected.
OK, they like each other, but we're IMO we're expected to get that the
first hot tryst triggered the repressed vibes which then fed on and
fed to the couplings.
Ken (Brooklyn)
jil...@hotmail.com
Opus the Penguin
There is only one web page out there that googles up to
"danger mouse" "asian house" Spike
The page is in Italian. It says:
Spike alla fine del suo monologo nomina un
locale: "Danger Mouse" che nei sottotitoli
diventa "Asian House", in realtą non ci
capisce molto perchč Spike se ne va e
l'audio viene sfumato..
Fortunately, we have Babelfish to translate that:
Spike to the end of its monologo nomination a
premises: "Danger Mouse" that in the subtitles
them becomes "Asian House", in truth does not
understand a lot to us why Spike if it goes
some and the audio comes vanished.
I hope that clears everything up.
--
Opus the Penguin
That joke never gets old
peachy ashie passion
ditto!!!
peachy ashie passion
peachy ashie passion
ROFL - thank you SO much for the clearing up.!
Rowan Hawthorn
Umm... sure. You been smokin' Bill's hairballs again???
Don Sample
It's long out of print, but there are several people selling used copies
through Amazon:
<http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0441054838/104-9832261-8094315>
peachy ashie passion
Don, that was very thoughtful of you.!
rrh...@acme.com
Horace LaBadie wrote:
> In article <1148016369....@g10g2000cwb.googlegroups.com>,
> "Arbitrar Of Quality" <tsm...@wildmail.com> wrote:
>
> >
> > I've never much cared for "Behind Blue Eyes," but Giles does a
> > pretty solid rendition. Due to the strange chemistry of humor,
> > that's a funnier scene than it would've been had he sucked. Anyone
> > know if Head did his own singing and strumming?
>
>
> In the UK he played Frank-N-Furter. But he's better known as Murray
> Head's little brother.
>
> HWL
And, since apparently no one else has mentioned it, he has an album:
aka
It's interesting. I don't think it is actually good, but I've never
quite made up my mind on that. He brought Amber Benson, Alyson
Hannigan, and James Marsters in for various tracks. But musically
there is nothing "Buffy" about it. It definitely is not a "if you like
the music on Buffy you will like this!" type of album.
Richard R. HErshberger
Arbitrar Of Quality
peachy ashie passion wrote:
> Opus the Penguin wrote:
>
> >
> > There is only one web page out there that googles up to
> >
> > "danger mouse" "asian house" Spike
> >
> > The page is in Italian. It says:
> >
> > Spike alla fine del suo monologo nomina un
> > locale: "Danger Mouse" che nei sottotitoli
> > capisce molto perchè Spike se ne va e
> > l'audio viene sfumato..
> >
> > Fortunately, we have Babelfish to translate that:
> >
> > Spike to the end of its monologo nomination a
> > premises: "Danger Mouse" that in the subtitles
> > them becomes "Asian House", in truth does not
> > understand a lot to us why Spike if it goes
> > some and the audio comes vanished.
> >
> > I hope that clears everything up.
> >
> ROFL - thank you SO much for the clearing up.!
Seconded the amusement... but it actually makes enough sense that I
understand it. The subtitles have "Asian House," so despite a lot of
people hearing "Danger Mouse" (which is much funnier), that's our
answer.
-AOQ
Mike Zeares
Daniel Damouth wrote:
>
> But you're cool enough not to mention the name of either the book or
> the movie. Your secret cabal rules.
There Is No Cabal.
-- MZ
Horace LaBadie
"One Bit Shy" <O...@nomail.sorry> wrote:
> I liked the book The Princess Bride way better than the film. Largely
> because I couldn't handle Wally Shawn in it - who I usually like. But also
> because the book is just more exciting. (On the other hand, I usually have
> trouble with movies when I've read the book first. It works better for me
> to do it the other way around.)
Goldman participated in the casting, and has described being taken
immediately with Shawn. Shawn arrived at the auditions, stuck his head
inside the doorway, saw the crowd of actors waiting, said "Oh, my," and
walked away. That was enough to have him called back on the spot.
The screenplay that Goldman wrote had much more than the final movie,
because it was too long, and they had only $16 million for the entire
production. They cut the Zoo of Death for reasons of length.
HWL
Vanya6724
Opus the Penguin wrote:
>
> The page is in Italian. It says:
>
> Spike alla fine del suo monologo nomina un
> locale: "Danger Mouse" che nei sottotitoli
> diventa "Asian House", in realtà non ci
> capisce molto perchè Spike se ne va e
> l'audio viene sfumato..
As an Italian-American, maybe I can do a better job than Babelfish:
"At the end of his monologue Spike names a place, 'Danger Mouse', that
in the subtitles becomes 'Asian House.' In reality it is hard to
understand because Spike is walking way and the audio becomes
muffled."
Not exactly definitive.