AOQ Review 4-1: "The Freshman"
Arbitrar Of Quality
threads.
BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
Season Four, Episode 1: "The Freshman"
(or "Taking back Sunday")
Writer: Joss Whedon
Director: Joss Whedon
So UC-Sunnydale doesn't actually seem to be in Sunnydale. What's
the radius of the Hellmouth? Also, so as to get it out of the way -
no college dorm rooms are that nice.
"The Freshman" restarts the show with a new setting and a
thinned-out main cast. (Although I thought Boreanaz put in a brief
cameo during the mistaken identity bit, but maybe it wasn't really
the actor either, since he wasn't credited. And I may enjoy BTVS
even more now if it remains totally Cordelia-free... we'll see plenty
of her as it is, I assume). Season premieres are kinda becoming
typical: Buffy loses her groove, gets the gang back together, gets her
groove back, the end. TF follows that skeleton and is by the numbers
with the plotting. Considering some of the personal crises Buffy's
been through before, this one feels minor league. On the other hand,
it's more grounded in common problems that the average audience
member is more likely to truly understand. What matters in the end is
that the episode is done in a way that's heavy on the humor and the
feel-good heroics, which makes for a pleasantly breezy hour.
We don't really deal with the supernatural part of the show at all
before the midway point. Until then it's a story of a couple of
chicks getting adjusted to the college experience. The dialogue
sparkles here: this particular writer has a flair for Whedon-speak for
some reason. Maybe he should get to do more scripts. Five random
early quotables, and there're plenty more just like them:
1) "Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your personal savior?"
"Um, you know, I meant to, and then I just got really busy."
2) "I've heard about five different issues and I'm angry about each
and every one of them. What'd you get?" "Jell-O shots." "I
didn't get Jell-O shots! I'll trade you for a Take Back the Night."
3) "'Gentleman of leisure?' Is that British for
'unemployed?'"
4) "He said he wasn't coming back until he had driven to all fifty
states." "Did you explain about Hawaii?" "Oh, he seemed so
determined."
5) "If you're looking to coast, I recommend Geology 101. That's
where the football players are."
It's interesting to see that Willow's the one who feels at home
with the social aspects of UC[Sun]D, whereas Buffy feels alone.
Wouldn't have imagined that had I watched only "Welcome To The
Hellmouth."
Through a bunch of contrivances, Buffy keeps running into a TA named
Riley and doing her lust-struck babbling thing. She really has a thing
for older men.
Eddie is one of the few really convincing loser-types we've seen on
this show, and seemed personable enough that had he not been
prominently wearing the proverbial red shirt, I could've gotten
attached to him. "I was worried that something had happened to
you... and of course it has, cuz you're a vampire. I'm sorry."
"I'm not." Well, I am. This leads us into our group of college
slacker vampires, who're good for some entertainment in their scenes
too (I've already seen you folks using the "fact that you're
fat" joke). And although I suspected that even Sunday wouldn't
survive the episode, she had the potential to be a substantial menace.
It's disturbing seeing her so easily and confidently whup on Buffy,
who can't be so totally off her game given that she just staked
Eddie.
Sunday distracts Buffy by criticizing her outfit. And it *works*.
Guess you can't totally take the Guacamole Queen out of the Slayer.
I generally get a kick out of references to previous episodes however
gratuitous they get, but in particular I like the continued mentions of
Mr. Pointy.
Despite knowing how the scene would play out from the moment she
entered Giles' house, I can understand Buffy's disappointment at
finding that Giles isn't always going to be around waiting for her to
need him, especially after pronouncing her Watcher-free last year.
He's not on some higher plane, above enjoying the company of his
ladyfriends and eating cheese that's turned blue. I don't know
what his financial support is, though. On the other hand, the followup
Giles scene at the end is pretty lame. Also, no parent uses their
kid's room for storage space so soon - they leave everything
untouched for at least a week or two.
Is Buffy ever going to learn not to take everything on herself,
excluding the people who want to help "for their own good?" So she
feels alone, and we go back to the Bronze (guess they didn't want to
totally discard all their old sets) where we have the bit mentioned
above. I think that's this episode's only reference of any kind to
her old boyfriend, and works nicely. Then Xander makes his predictable
appearance and predictably regales us with tales of his trip not going
as planned. The scene is still well worth watching, especially for the
end. "You're my hero." [I'm being totally sincere here.] After
a beat, "Okay, sometimes when it's dark and I'm all alone I think,
'What is Buffy wearing?'" [I'm a little uncomfortable with the
serious talk, but I meant it.] "It's a deal. Let's put this
bitch in the ground. What do you say?" [Can we have the old Buffy
back now? I'll be with you.]
>From there, we have some scenes involving Oz's uncanny calmness,
Xander's tangible but limited improvement since the "dating an
umpire" days in nonchalantly keeping the comic-relief characters out
of the loop, and the fight scene at the end. Feel-good stuff here,
like Buffy turning on the Slayer attitude and making use of her other
arm. People who're really hung up on the Chosen One thing might
object to Oz and Xander's coordinated slaying prowess, but I don't
mind nowadays, especially given how long the show's been running.
This Is Really Stupid But I Laughed Anyway moment(s):
- Xander's Dadaist pep talk. [Mrs. Quality, not being the same kind
of geek as me, was totally lost.]
- "Whoa... [dies]"
Oh, and there's a mysterious ending. At first I hoped the black-clad
guys were ninjas, because ninjas are awesome. Anyway, I'm not going
to talk about it until the show feels like explaining itself.
So...
One-sentence summary: We're off to a good re-start.
AOQ rating: Good
[Season Four so far:
1) "The Freshman" - Good]
Xande...@gmail.com
and being disappointed they killed her off so early. You're right
about this following the formula of Buffy re-starting in the first ep
of the season, but somehow they always make it feel like it makes
sense. This one especially does, since she is moving on to college,
has just lost her boyfriend, hasn't seen Giles in months, and, of
course, has also seen some of the members of the Scoobies go off in
other directions. It's nice to see the gang come back together in the
end; almost as nice as it is heartbreaking to see her Class Protector
Award destroyed.
mariposas rand mair fheal greykitten tomys des anges
> with the social aspects of UC[Sun]D, whereas Buffy feels alone.
> Wouldn't have imagined that had I watched only "Welcome To The
> Hellmouth."
most people are supposed to look back to high school
as the best of years of their life
not me
four years of misery
it was in college when youre with people who have chosen to be there
> Oh, and there's a mysterious ending. At first I hoped the black-clad
> guys were ninjas, because ninjas are awesome. Anyway, I'm not going
> to talk about it until the show feels like explaining itself.
exterminators
parts of california have really aggressive gophers
arf meow arf - nsa fodder
al qaeda terrorism nuclear bomb iran taliban big brother
if you meet buddha on the usenet killfile him
One Bit Shy
> A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these review
> threads.
>
>
> BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
> Season Four, Episode 1: "The Freshman"
> (or "Taking back Sunday")
> Writer: Joss Whedon
> Director: Joss Whedon
Cool. You're back. I didn't want to read anymore posts about ticks.
So, is the plan to alternate with Angel? Still close to daily reviews?
> So UC-Sunnydale doesn't actually seem to be in Sunnydale. What's
> the radius of the Hellmouth? Also, so as to get it out of the way -
> no college dorm rooms are that nice.
5 miles away from somewhere. The physical location remains fuzzy to
me, but maybe I missed a detail.
That room is so far from my freshman room that I feel like I lived in a
hovel - which in retrospect may not be that far from the truth.
However, having once visited a Freshman suite at Harvard that was
pretty damned amazing, I'd have to asy that the depiction isn't as
wildly far from possibility as it might seem. Of course, this isn't
Harvard.
> "The Freshman" restarts the show with a new setting and a
> thinned-out main cast. (Although I thought Boreanaz put in a brief
> cameo during the mistaken identity bit, but maybe it wasn't really
> the actor either, since he wasn't credited. And I may enjoy BTVS
> even more now if it remains totally Cordelia-free... we'll see plenty
> of her as it is, I assume). Season premieres are kinda becoming
> typical: Buffy loses her groove, gets the gang back together, gets her
> groove back, the end. TF follows that skeleton and is by the numbers
> with the plotting. Considering some of the personal crises Buffy's
> been through before, this one feels minor league. On the other hand,
> it's more grounded in common problems that the average audience
> member is more likely to truly understand. What matters in the end is
> that the episode is done in a way that's heavy on the humor and the
> feel-good heroics, which makes for a pleasantly breezy hour.
I guess it was necessary to knock her down a notch or two from her
Graduation glory. I would take the breaking of the umbrella as a
statement that her high school success doesn't count for anything here.
But I agree that the loosing her groove thing is minor league this
time compared to the past. S2 she was coping with having died. S3 she
was coping with having killed her lover. This time it's just normal
first day college freshman issues with being overwhelmed by a strange
environment and a bit homesick.
Honest. But kind of mundane.
> We don't really deal with the supernatural part of the show at all
> before the midway point. Until then it's a story of a couple of
> chicks getting adjusted to the college experience. The dialogue
> sparkles here: this particular writer has a flair for Whedon-speak for
> some reason. Maybe he should get to do more scripts. Five random
> early quotables, and there're plenty more just like them:
> 1) "Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your personal savior?"
> "Um, you know, I meant to, and then I just got really busy."
> 2) "I've heard about five different issues and I'm angry about each
> and every one of them. What'd you get?" "Jell-O shots." "I
> didn't get Jell-O shots! I'll trade you for a Take Back the Night."
> 3) "'Gentleman of leisure?' Is that British for
> 'unemployed?'"
> 4) "He said he wasn't coming back until he had driven to all fifty
> states." "Did you explain about Hawaii?" "Oh, he seemed so
> determined."
> 5) "If you're looking to coast, I recommend Geology 101. That's
> where the football players are."
In most respects I thought the show got the feel of a freshman walking
into college pretty good. At least a lot brings up my memories for me.
Like the numerous professors I've seen play the humiliation game in
the first class - some for precisely the same thing that caught Buffy.
The general bewildering bustle. And the weirdness of meeting your
roommate for the first time.
I liked it to a point. (Very much liked Oz's failed attempt to share
Buffy's unease while obviously being utterly at ease.) But it largely
felt like snack food empty calories to me.
> Eddie is one of the few really convincing loser-types we've seen on
> this show, and seemed personable enough that had he not been
> prominently wearing the proverbial red shirt, I could've gotten
> attached to him. "I was worried that something had happened to
> you... and of course it has, cuz you're a vampire. I'm sorry."
> "I'm not." Well, I am.
I liked him too. But if we keep all the good characters, then we're
stuck with crap to kill off. And, um, BTVS kills off a lot.
> This leads us into our group of college
> slacker vampires, who're good for some entertainment in their scenes
> too (I've already seen you folks using the "fact that you're
> fat" joke). And although I suspected that even Sunday wouldn't
> survive the episode, she had the potential to be a substantial menace.
> It's disturbing seeing her so easily and confidently whup on Buffy,
> who can't be so totally off her game given that she just staked
> Eddie.
I remain of the opinion that attitude has everything to do with Buffy's
skills. It's part of the slayer magic.
> Sunday distracts Buffy by criticizing her outfit. And it *works*.
> Guess you can't totally take the Guacamole Queen out of the Slayer.
I love Buffy, but on the whole, don't think much of how she dresses.
Sunday's right.
> Despite knowing how the scene would play out from the moment she
> entered Giles' house, I can understand Buffy's disappointment at
> finding that Giles isn't always going to be around waiting for her to
> need him, especially after pronouncing her Watcher-free last year.
> He's not on some higher plane, above enjoying the company of his
> ladyfriends and eating cheese that's turned blue. I don't know
> what his financial support is, though. On the other hand, the followup
> Giles scene at the end is pretty lame. Also, no parent uses their
> kid's room for storage space so soon - they leave everything
> untouched for at least a week or two.
Now how does Giles here match up to your memory of S1/S2 Giles courting
Jenny?
You're right that the followup is lame - but I think it's also funny
played that way. On balance, I'm happy with it as is. Gives you the
instant gratification of the joke, while the underlying conflict
remains. What is Giles role now? And where are they left with Giles
first rejecting Buffy, then reconsidering, and then essentially
rejected by Buffy?
> Is Buffy ever going to learn not to take everything on herself,
> excluding the people who want to help "for their own good?" So she
> feels alone, and we go back to the Bronze (guess they didn't want to
> totally discard all their old sets) where we have the bit mentioned
> above. I think that's this episode's only reference of any kind to
> her old boyfriend, and works nicely. Then Xander makes his predictable
> appearance and predictably regales us with tales of his trip not going
> as planned. The scene is still well worth watching, especially for the
> end. "You're my hero." [I'm being totally sincere here.] After
> a beat, "Okay, sometimes when it's dark and I'm all alone I think,
> 'What is Buffy wearing?'" [I'm a little uncomfortable with the
> serious talk, but I meant it.] "It's a deal. Let's put this
> bitch in the ground. What do you say?" [Can we have the old Buffy
> back now? I'll be with you.]
I like this part of the episode. The dadaist pep talk is very funny.
As is the suggestion that Xander did a little male stripping. But
mainly I appreciated the scene for bringing some grounding back to the
show. I didn't really like Buffy constantly walking around feeling out
of place. Made the whole show feel off kilter.
I also like how Xander finally just says it. Buffy's his hero. He
tries to model his decisions based on what he imagines Buffy would do.
The old issues between them had been implicitely settled last season,
but here it's official - as are the settlement terms.
> Oh, and there's a mysterious ending. At first I hoped the black-clad
> guys were ninjas, because ninjas are awesome. Anyway, I'm not going
> to talk about it until the show feels like explaining itself.
Yeah. At this point, all you can do is go, "huh?"
> So...
>
> One-sentence summary: We're off to a good re-start.
>
> AOQ rating: Good
Decent for me. The construction and execution are quite clean, but
there's no there there for me. I remember how thought provoking Anne
was. For me, this is the least interesting Joss episode to date.
(Maybe ever, but I'm not going to look ahead to verify that.)
OBS
MBangel10 (Melissa)
only one in the group either. I'm going to watch this episode tonight
and will comment later.
P.S and way OT: I snagged Pittsburgh tix, so that is 2 for me this
summer. I can't freakin' wait! :)
mariposas rand mair fheal greykitten tomys des anges
Xande...@gmail.com wrote:
damaged
not destroyed
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 1: "The Freshman"
> (or "Taking back Sunday")
> Writer: Joss Whedon
> Director: Joss Whedon
>
> So UC-Sunnydale doesn't actually seem to be in Sunnydale. What's
> the radius of the Hellmouth? Also, so as to get it out of the way -
> no college dorm rooms are that nice.
It's about five miles from their old stomping grounds. (According to
the conversation in the graveyard at the beginning of the episode.)
> The dialogue
> sparkles here: this particular writer has a flair for Whedon-speak for
> some reason. Maybe he should get to do more scripts.
Some of it felt overly forced to me, such as Buffy's reconnaissance/
renaissance mixup. Personally, I don't think it's one of Joss's better
efforts. I think it's among the weakest of the episodes he wrote.
> Eddie is one of the few really convincing loser-types we've seen on
> this show, and seemed personable enough that had he not been
> prominently wearing the proverbial red shirt, I could've gotten
> attached to him. "I was worried that something had happened to
> you... and of course it has, cuz you're a vampire. I'm sorry."
> "I'm not." Well, I am. This leads us into our group of college
> slacker vampires, who're good for some entertainment in their scenes
> too (I've already seen you folks using the "fact that you're
> fat" joke). And although I suspected that even Sunday wouldn't
> survive the episode, she had the potential to be a substantial menace.
> It's disturbing seeing her so easily and confidently whup on Buffy,
> who can't be so totally off her game given that she just staked
> Eddie.
Of course, Eddie was a newbie who hadn't yet learned all those fancy
martial arts moves that vampires inevitably seem to pick up.
> I generally get a kick out of references to previous episodes however
> gratuitous they get, but in particular I like the continued mentions of
> Mr. Pointy.
And Mr. Gordo, and her umbrella.
> >From there, we have some scenes involving Oz's uncanny calmness,
> Xander's tangible but limited improvement since the "dating an
> umpire" days in nonchalantly keeping the comic-relief characters out
> of the loop, and the fight scene at the end. Feel-good stuff here,
> like Buffy turning on the Slayer attitude and making use of her other
> arm. People who're really hung up on the Chosen One thing might
> object to Oz and Xander's coordinated slaying prowess, but I don't
> mind nowadays, especially given how long the show's been running.
And it was a two on one cooperative deal, not one of them taking on the
vamp on their own and whooping its ass.
> This Is Really Stupid But I Laughed Anyway moment(s):
> - Xander's Dadaist pep talk. [Mrs. Quality, not being the same kind
> of geek as me, was totally lost.]
> - "Whoa... [dies]"
>
> Oh, and there's a mysterious ending. At first I hoped the black-clad
> guys were ninjas, because ninjas are awesome. Anyway, I'm not going
> to talk about it until the show feels like explaining itself.
At this point I named them the UCSCS (UCSunnydale Commando Squad.)
--
Quando omni flunkus moritati
Visit the Buffy Body Count at <http://homepage.mac.com/dsample/>
Michael Ikeda
news:1144445307.2...@t31g2000cwb.googlegroups.com:
> A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these
> review threads.
>
>
> BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
> Season Four, Episode 1: "The Freshman"
> (or "Taking back Sunday")
> Writer: Joss Whedon
> Director: Joss Whedon
>
(snipped)
>
> We don't really deal with the supernatural part of the show at
> all before the midway point.
If you don't count that one vampire that emerges from his grave, sees
Buffy's weapons and quietly decides to go elsewhere.
It appears that there is at least ONE intelligent vampire in
Sunnydale...
>Until then it's a story of a
> couple of chicks getting adjusted to the college experience.
> The dialogue sparkles here: this particular writer has a flair
> for Whedon-speak for some reason. Maybe he should get to do
> more scripts. Five random early quotables, and there're plenty
> more just like them: 1) "Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your
> personal savior?" "Um, you know, I meant to, and then I just got
> really busy." 2) "I've heard about five different issues and I'm
> angry about each and every one of them. What'd you get?"
> "Jell-O shots." "I didn't get Jell-O shots! I'll trade you for
> a Take Back the Night." 3) "'Gentleman of leisure?' Is that
> British for 'unemployed?'"
> 4) "He said he wasn't coming back until he had driven to all
> fifty states." "Did you explain about Hawaii?" "Oh, he seemed
> so determined."
> 5) "If you're looking to coast, I recommend Geology 101. That's
> where the football players are."
Then there's Willow's bit about "spurty knowledge" and Oz proclaiming
that "It's all new" even as he seems an outright campus expert...
(snipped)
>
> Eddie is one of the few really convincing loser-types we've seen
> on this show, and seemed personable enough that had he not been
> prominently wearing the proverbial red shirt, I could've gotten
> attached to him. "I was worried that something had happened to
> you... and of course it has, cuz you're a vampire. I'm sorry."
> "I'm not." Well, I am. This leads us into our group of
> college slacker vampires, who're good for some entertainment in
> their scenes too (I've already seen you folks using the "fact
> that you're fat" joke). And although I suspected that even
> Sunday wouldn't survive the episode, she had the potential to be
> a substantial menace. It's disturbing seeing her so easily and
> confidently whup on Buffy, who can't be so totally off her game
> given that she just staked Eddie.
Eddie's just an ordinary newbie vampire. Buffy doesn't generally
need to be anywhere near her usual game to fight one of them.
Sunday's someone much more formidable.
(snipped)
>>From there, we have some scenes involving Oz's uncanny calmness,
> Xander's tangible but limited improvement since the "dating an
> umpire" days in nonchalantly keeping the comic-relief characters
> out of the loop, and the fight scene at the end. Feel-good
> stuff here, like Buffy turning on the Slayer attitude and making
> use of her other arm.
Note to vampires. Getting Buffy angry during a fight is a BIG
mistake...
(snipped)
>
> Oh, and there's a mysterious ending. At first I hoped the
> black-clad guys were ninjas, because ninjas are awesome.
> Anyway, I'm not going to talk about it until the show feels like
> explaining itself.
Maybe Ethan's opened up another costume shop... :)
--
Michael Ikeda mmi...@erols.com
"Telling a statistician not to use sampling is like telling an
astronomer they can't say there is a moon and stars"
Lynne Billard, past president American Statistical Association
Don Sample
> This one especially does, since she is moving on to college,
> has just lost her boyfriend, hasn't seen Giles in months, and, of
> course, has also seen some of the members of the Scoobies go off in
> other directions.
Xander is the only one she hasn't seen for months. She and Giles have
both been in Sunnydale all summer, and have presumably kept in touch.
Don Sample
"One Bit Shy" <ult...@mail.com> wrote:
> Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
> > A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these review
> > threads.
> >
> >
> > BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
> > Season Four, Episode 1: "The Freshman"
> > (or "Taking back Sunday")
> > Writer: Joss Whedon
> > Director: Joss Whedon
>
> Cool. You're back. I didn't want to read anymore posts about ticks.
>
> So, is the plan to alternate with Angel? Still close to daily reviews?
>
>
>
> > So UC-Sunnydale doesn't actually seem to be in Sunnydale. What's
> > the radius of the Hellmouth? Also, so as to get it out of the way -
> > no college dorm rooms are that nice.
>
> 5 miles away from somewhere. The physical location remains fuzzy to
> me, but maybe I missed a detail.
Where things in Sunnydale are is something that they were always fuzzy
about. How far was it from Buffy's house to the school? Where did
Xander, Willow and Giles live, relative to one another? Where was the
downtown, or any of the dozen cemeteries?
> That room is so far from my freshman room that I feel like I lived in a
> hovel - which in retrospect may not be that far from the truth.
>
> However, having once visited a Freshman suite at Harvard that was
> pretty damned amazing, I'd have to asy that the depiction isn't as
> wildly far from possibility as it might seem. Of course, this isn't
> Harvard.
Property values in Sunnydale are a lot lower, so they don't need to pack
the students into dorms as tightly to keep the costs down.
Xande...@gmail.com
She and Giles have
both been in Sunnydale all summer, and have presumably kept in touch.
>From the way she and Giles act towards each other, it certainly seems
like she hasn't seen him since around graduation. It's also likely she
hasn't seen Angel or Cordelia since then.
Don Sample
Michael Ikeda <mmi...@erols.com> wrote:
> "Arbitrar Of Quality" <tsm...@wildmail.com> wrote in
> news:1144445307.2...@t31g2000cwb.googlegroups.com:
>
> > A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these
> > review threads.
> >
> >
> > BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
> > Season Four, Episode 1: "The Freshman"
> > (or "Taking back Sunday")
> > Writer: Joss Whedon
> > Director: Joss Whedon
> >
>
> (snipped)
>
> >
> > We don't really deal with the supernatural part of the show at
> > all before the midway point.
>
> If you don't count that one vampire that emerges from his grave, sees
> Buffy's weapons and quietly decides to go elsewhere.
>
> It appears that there is at least ONE intelligent vampire in
> Sunnydale...
Depends. If he was really smart, he would have cleared out of town
entirely, so there would very quickly be no intelligent vampires in
Sunnydale again.
One Bit Shy
news:dsample-336643...@news.giganews.com...
LOL That's a good rationale for a lot of stuff I think.
OBS
Mike Zeares
One Bit Shy wrote:
> Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
>
>
> > the radius of the Hellmouth? Also, so as to get it out of the way -
> > no college dorm rooms are that nice.
>
> 5 miles away from somewhere. The physical location remains fuzzy to
> me, but maybe I missed a detail.
>
> That room is so far from my freshman room that I feel like I lived in a
> hovel - which in retrospect may not be that far from the truth.
There's a thread on televisionwithoutpity.com's forums on the influence
of tv, i.e. things that tv led you to do, or believe. Judging by how
often it's been mentioned there, apparently a lot of poor, unsuspecting
freshmen have been fooled by the massive size of tv dorm rooms and have
been left sometimes literally in tears when they've seen the closet
they'll actually be living in. The fact that television sets have to
be big enough to fit a camera rig into doesn't seem to ever occur to
anyone.
-- Mike Zeares
Don Sample
Xande...@gmail.com wrote:
She's acting weird with Giles because she's just found him with a
strange girl in his apartment. The way she just barged in is something
that indicates that she goes over to his place a lot. We never saw her
do anything like that in the previous couple of years. Every time we've
seen her go to Giles' place in the past, she's knocked on his door.
Apteryx
news:1144445307.2...@t31g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...
>A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these review
> threads.
>
> early quotables, and there're plenty more just like them:
> 1) "Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your personal savior?"
> "Um, you know, I meant to, and then I just got really busy."
> 2) "I've heard about five different issues and I'm angry about each
> and every one of them. What'd you get?" "Jell-O shots." "I
> didn't get Jell-O shots! I'll trade you for a Take Back the Night."
> 3) "'Gentleman of leisure?' Is that British for
> 'unemployed?'"
> 4) "He said he wasn't coming back until he had driven to all fifty
> states." "Did you explain about Hawaii?" "Oh, he seemed so
> determined."
> 5) "If you're looking to coast, I recommend Geology 101. That's
> where the football players are."
The usual abundance of great lines from a Whedon episode. Hopeless to try to
list them all, but I'll add a couple of my favourites:
"Does this sweater make me look fat?
No, the fact that you're fat makes you look fat. The sweater just makes you
look purple"
And:
Willow: How can you be so calm?
Oz: Long, arduous hours of practice.
> It's interesting to see that Willow's the one who feels at home
> with the social aspects of UC[Sun]D, whereas Buffy feels alone.
> Wouldn't have imagined that had I watched only "Welcome To The
> Hellmouth."
A fish out of water finds some water. While Buffy is disorientated by her
orientation week.
> fat" joke). And although I suspected that even Sunday wouldn't
> survive the episode, she had the potential to be a substantial menace.
> It's disturbing seeing her so easily and confidently whup on Buffy,
> who can't be so totally off her game given that she just staked
> Eddie.
I think we are meant to suppose that Buffy is off her game because she is
struggling to find her feet in college. Sunday is the big vampire on campus,
but she isn't portrayed as a Master-type vampire that could give Buffy a run
for her money even on a good day (and of course in the end she is reasonably
easily disposed of). Vampires generally seem to get stronger as they get
older, and Sunday doesn't seem to be that old (although maybe its just that
only the stronger vampires survive till they get older).
>
> Despite knowing how the scene would play out from the moment she
> entered Giles' house, I can understand Buffy's disappointment at
> finding that Giles isn't always going to be around waiting for her to
> need him, especially after pronouncing her Watcher-free last year.
> He's not on some higher plane, above enjoying the company of his
> ladyfriends and eating cheese that's turned blue. I don't know
> what his financial support is, though. On the other hand, the followup
> Giles scene at the end is pretty lame. Also, no parent uses their
> kid's room for storage space so soon - they leave everything
> untouched for at least a week or two.
I thought Joyce using the room for storage space was plausible enough in
itself, given the in story explanation re the exhibition at her gallery. But
her lack of guilt at doing so when Buffy unexpectedly returns is a bit off.
> her old boyfriend, and works nicely. Then Xander makes his predictable
> appearance and predictably regales us with tales of his trip not going
> as planned. The scene is still well worth watching, especially for the
> end. "You're my hero." [I'm being totally sincere here.] After
> a beat, "Okay, sometimes when it's dark and I'm all alone I think,
> 'What is Buffy wearing?'" [I'm a little uncomfortable with the
> serious talk, but I meant it.] "It's a deal. Let's put this
> bitch in the ground. What do you say?" [Can we have the old Buffy
> back now? I'll be with you.]
Yep. Buffy was lost, but Xander finds her.
>
> One-sentence summary: We're off to a good re-start.
>
> AOQ rating: Good
Good for me too. I rate it as the 32nd best BtVS episode, 8th best in Season
4
--
Apteryx
Mike Zeares
Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
> A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these review
> threads.
>
>
> BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
> Season Four, Episode 1: "The Freshman"
> (or "Taking back Sunday")
> Writer: Joss Whedon
> Director: Joss Whedon
Good to have you back. Not that there was absolutely nothing worth
reading in your absence.
"The Freshman" isn't the greatest Joss Whedon ep. Or even BtVS ep.
It's main purpose is to set up the new situation, and it does that
adequately. It has a lot of good lines, and a villain who was
memorable enough that most reviews of the series mention disappointment
at her early exit. But there's not really a lot to say about it.
> Despite knowing how the scene would play out from the moment she
> entered Giles' house, I can understand Buffy's disappointment at
> finding that Giles isn't always going to be around waiting for her to
> need him, especially after pronouncing her Watcher-free last year.
> He's not on some higher plane, above enjoying the company of his
> ladyfriends and eating cheese that's turned blue. I don't know
> what his financial support is, though.
There was a lot of speculation about that. A popular idea was that
he's a published author, and gets royalties. Or maybe he just had a
family fortune and invested well.
> So...
>
> One-sentence summary: We're off to a good re-start.
>
> AOQ rating: Good
I concur.
-- Mike Zeares
Don Sample
"Apteryx" <apt...@extra.co.nz> wrote:
> "Arbitrar Of Quality" <tsm...@wildmail.com> wrote in message
> news:1144445307.2...@t31g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...
> >A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these review
> > threads.
> >
> > Also, no parent uses their
> > kid's room for storage space so soon - they leave everything
> > untouched for at least a week or two.
>
> I thought Joyce using the room for storage space was plausible enough in
> itself, given the in story explanation re the exhibition at her gallery. But
> her lack of guilt at doing so when Buffy unexpectedly returns is a bit off.
Why should she feel guilty? Buffy had moved out, and wasn't expected to
return for a while. (At least not until she had accumulated some dirty
laundry, and didn't have enough quarters to use the machines in the
dorms.)
Don Sample
"Mike Zeares" <mze...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> There was a lot of speculation about that. A popular idea was that
> he's a published author, and gets royalties. Or maybe he just had a
> family fortune and invested well.
>
He writes bodice rippers under a pseudonym.
Apteryx
I'm not saying she has done anything wrong. AoQ noted that most parents
wouldn't use their kids rooms for storage so quickly. I pointed out she had
a special reason for doing so. But when confronted by her only child wanting
to return and use the room again, I think guilt would be a fairly normal
response (or "feeling guilted" if we want to make the distinction about
having that feeling when one hasn't done anything ethicly wrong but has done
something which turns out unexpectedly to impact badly on a loved one)
--
Apteryx
Mel
Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
> A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these review
> threads.
>
>
> BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
> Season Four, Episode 1: "The Freshman"
> (or "Taking back Sunday")
> Writer: Joss Whedon
> Director: Joss Whedon
>
Noooo....I'm not ready yet!
Mel
chr...@removethistoreply.gwu.edu
> A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these review
> threads.
>
>
> BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
> Season Four, Episode 1: "The Freshman"
> (or "Taking back Sunday")
> Writer: Joss Whedon
> Director: Joss Whedon
> So UC-Sunnydale doesn't actually seem to be in Sunnydale. What's
> the radius of the Hellmouth?
Others have already noted Willow's comment that it's five miles away from
their old stomping grounds. I don't know how far away the Hellmouth's
influence can be felt, but as for Sunnydale's city limits, I'm sure they
extend well out into the country in at least some directions. (I was once
at the University of Richmond, and it proved to be way out in the suburbs
and not at all in the cityish part of the city of Richmond.)
> thinned-out main cast. (Although I thought Boreanaz put in a brief
> cameo during the mistaken identity bit, but maybe it wasn't really
> the actor either, since he wasn't credited.
It was indeed a different actor. BTW, have you watched the first ep of
Angel yet?
> 5) "If you're looking to coast, I recommend Geology 101. That's
> where the football players are."
Ah, yes, Rocks for Jocks. Does every school have it? (And does any
school actually offer the proverbial basketweaving class?)
> Through a bunch of contrivances, Buffy keeps running into a TA named
> Riley and doing her lust-struck babbling thing. She really has a thing
> for older men.
At least this one's in his twenties, not his two-hundreds. Too bad he
seems to notice Willow more than Buffy, eh?
> I generally get a kick out of references to previous episodes however
> gratuitous they get, but in particular I like the continued mentions of
> Mr. Pointy.
I usually enjoy this too, but my favorite is Mr. Gordo.
> He's not on some higher plane, above enjoying the company of his
> ladyfriends and eating cheese that's turned blue. I don't know
> what his financial support is, though.
Presumably he saved up a lot while he was pulling down two salaries, as
Watcher and librarian. (And he hasn't been wasting any money on fancy
clothes or a flashy car.)
> Is Buffy ever going to learn not to take everything on herself,
> excluding the people who want to help "for their own good?"
In this case, I think she avoided Willow and Oz not for their own good,
but because she felt depressed and even ashamed that she was struggling so
hard while they were doing so well. Being with them would just been too
painful at that moment. She was able to open up to Xander later because
he was someone outside of the college environment, so he didn't make her
feel like a failure by comparison. (Also because he noticed something was
wrong and drew her out, while Willow was too excited by being at college
to be that perceptive.)
> her old boyfriend, and works nicely. Then Xander makes his predictable
> appearance and predictably regales us with tales of his trip not going
> as planned. The scene is still well worth watching, especially for the
> end. "You're my hero."
One of my favorite Xander moments of all time. Great (and very
Xanderesque) delivery, and as you note, it tells us a lot about how Buffy
and Xander's relationship has developed.
Going back to the dadaist part, how about his sudden segue from Empire
Strikes Back to Scarface? Did he give up on Yoda and start quoting Tony
Montana as a joke, only to realize belatedly that Buffy wouldn't be
amused? Or was the shift in quotes purely accidental? I lean towards the
former, but maybe I'm going too easy on Xander.
> arm. People who're really hung up on the Chosen One thing might
> object to Oz and Xander's coordinated slaying prowess, but I don't
> mind nowadays, especially given how long the show's been running.
Not all vamps are equal, in either strength or skill. We've seen that
Angel, Spike and Luke (from WTTH/The Harvest) are unusually powerful.
Maybe the one Xander and Oz dusted was one of the weaker ones. Still
stronger than X and O, no doubt, but not enough to take both of them on at
once.
Some other favorite lines:
"I just know this year is going to be super-fun!" (while unrolling the
Celine Dion poster)
"Because you're old, very very old, and it's gross."
"Well, I knew you guys were starting the whole college adventure and I
didn't want to, you know, help you move."
"How can you be so calm?" "Long, arduous hours of practice."
Two dull anecdotes about The Freshman and foreign countries:
In 2001-2002, I spent a lot of mostly frustrating hours trying to download
old Buffy episodes using Kazaa and Limewire. (I didn't have cable then,
so no FX reruns, and the DVDs were still in the future.) I did manage to
get a copy of The Freshman that had broadcast in the Netherlands,
subtitled in Dutch. When Buffy asks if they have a course on The Modern
Blurb, "blurb" was rendered as "Flaptext." This word just struck me as
hilarious for some reason. Flaptext. Heh.
And in the summer of 2003, I visited a friend of mine who was staying in
Portugal. This is a person who rarely watches TV and absolutely hates
anything that might be classified as fantasy, SF or horror. (So of course
I frequently regale her with the doings of Buffy and her friends.) One
night, while at the home of one of her Portuguese friends, we happened
upon a late-night rerun of Buffy, A Cacadora dos Vampiros. (The second C
has a cedilla and is pronounced like an S.) It happened to be The
Freshman. We came in just as Xander started his Dadaist pep talk, so
after a few seconds my friend pronounced it dumb and stopped watching just
before the best part, with the "You're my hero" line. Very frustrating.
Then her attention wandered back in time for the final fight, whereupon
she said "Oh, I see why you like this show -- it's all about hot chicks
fighting." I tried to reassure her that wasn't the *only* reason, but she
wasn't entirely convinced. Oh, well.
Finally, I have to agree that The Freshman isn't one of the best
Joss-penned episodes ... but even the worst of Joss's episodes is still
pretty damn good.
--Chris
______________________________________________________________________
chrisg [at] gwu.edu On the Internet, nobody knows I'm a dog.
Rowan Hawthorn
> A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these review
> threads.
>
>
> BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
> Season Four, Episode 1: "The Freshman"
> (or "Taking back Sunday")
> Writer: Joss Whedon
> Director: Joss Whedon
> 5) "If you're looking to coast, I recommend Geology 101. That's
> where the football players are."
I actually think I had that sumbitch for an instructor in one of *my*
college classes...
>
> It's interesting to see that Willow's the one who feels at home
> with the social aspects of UC[Sun]D, whereas Buffy feels alone.
> Wouldn't have imagined that had I watched only "Welcome To The
> Hellmouth."
Willow is finally in her element. Probably means she's going to die of
some horrible ancient malady next week. Damn.
> Eddie is one of the few really convincing loser-types we've seen on
> this show, and seemed personable enough that had he not been
> prominently wearing the proverbial red shirt, I could've gotten
> attached to him. "I was worried that something had happened to
> you... and of course it has, cuz you're a vampire. I'm sorry."
> "I'm not." Well, I am. This leads us into our group of college
> slacker vampires, who're good for some entertainment in their scenes
> too (I've already seen you folks using the "fact that you're
> fat" joke).
Yeah, sorry about that. At least I didn't reference the episode and
character...
> Is Buffy ever going to learn not to take everything on herself,
> excluding the people who want to help "for their own good?"
Probably not. Or maybe. One of those...
--
Rowan Hawthorn
"Occasionally, I'm callous and strange." - Willow Rosenberg, "Buffy the
Vampire Slayer"
Rowan Hawthorn
>AOQ said:
>>Oh, and there's a mysterious ending. At first I hoped the black-clad
>>guys were ninjas, because ninjas are awesome. Anyway, I'm not going
>>to talk about it until the show feels like explaining itself.
>
>
> exterminators
> parts of california have really aggressive gophers
ROFLMAO!!
Rowan Hawthorn
> In article <1144448940....@g10g2000cwb.googlegroups.com>,
> "One Bit Shy" <ult...@mail.com> wrote:
>
>
>>Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
>>
>>>A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these review
>>>threads.
>>>
>>>
>>>BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
>>>Season Four, Episode 1: "The Freshman"
>>>(or "Taking back Sunday")
>>>Writer: Joss Whedon
>>>Director: Joss Whedon
>>
>>Cool. You're back. I didn't want to read anymore posts about ticks.
>>
>>So, is the plan to alternate with Angel? Still close to daily reviews?
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>>So UC-Sunnydale doesn't actually seem to be in Sunnydale. What's
>>>the radius of the Hellmouth? Also, so as to get it out of the way -
>>>no college dorm rooms are that nice.
>>
>>5 miles away from somewhere. The physical location remains fuzzy to
>>me, but maybe I missed a detail.
>
>
> Where things in Sunnydale are is something that they were always fuzzy
> about. How far was it from Buffy's house to the school? Where did
> Xander, Willow and Giles live, relative to one another?
I always assumed that Willow and Xander lived fairly close, maybe on the
same block, if not next door. But that was just my impression, there
wasn't anything really specific that I can recall.
Rowan Hawthorn
> Arbitrar Of Quality <tsm...@wildmail.com> wrote:
>
>>A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these review
>>threads.
>>
>
> Portugal. This is a person who rarely watches TV and absolutely hates
> anything that might be classified as fantasy, SF or horror. (So of course
> I frequently regale her with the doings of Buffy and her friends.) One
> night, while at the home of one of her Portuguese friends, we happened
> upon a late-night rerun of Buffy, A Cacadora dos Vampiros. (The second C
> has a cedilla and is pronounced like an S.) It happened to be The
> Freshman. We came in just as Xander started his Dadaist pep talk, so
> after a few seconds my friend pronounced it dumb and stopped watching just
> before the best part, with the "You're my hero" line. Very frustrating.
> Then her attention wandered back in time for the final fight, whereupon
> she said "Oh, I see why you like this show -- it's all about hot chicks
> fighting." I tried to reassure her that wasn't the *only* reason, but she
> wasn't entirely convinced. Oh, well.
It's amazing the number of people who know all about what the show is
all about, despite having never watched it, innit?
Mohamel
I feel the same way almost everytime I check into a hotel room. Those TV
/movies hotel bedroom are usually so huge .
mo
Don Sample
chr...@removethistoreply.gwu.edu wrote:
> Arbitrar Of Quality <tsm...@wildmail.com> wrote:
> > thinned-out main cast. (Although I thought Boreanaz put in a brief
> > cameo during the mistaken identity bit, but maybe it wasn't really
> > the actor either, since he wasn't credited.
>
> It was indeed a different actor. BTW, have you watched the first ep of
> Angel yet?
I have always suspected that they used DB for the first glimpse she had
of him from behind. There's a cut before you see the other actor turn
to show his face. For something like that, where you don't even see the
actor's face, there wouldn't necessarily have been a credit given to him.
KenM47
>A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these review
>threads.
>
>
>BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
>Season Four, Episode 1: "The Freshman"
>(or "Taking back Sunday")
>Writer: Joss Whedon
>Director: Joss Whedon
>
Yes, forgot how much fun the teaser was here with B and W chatting
while a smart one crawls out and runs away.
"Yes, first there’s the painful ’nowning’ process."
Too bad about Sunday. Too bad there wasn't more room on the plate. She
could have been fun for a few episodes.
So, Angel S1E1 "City of ..."?
Ken (Brooklyn)
KenM47
>In article <123e34g...@corp.supernews.com>,
> chr...@removethistoreply.gwu.edu wrote:
>
>> Arbitrar Of Quality <tsm...@wildmail.com> wrote:
>
>> > thinned-out main cast. (Although I thought Boreanaz put in a brief
>> > cameo during the mistaken identity bit, but maybe it wasn't really
>> > the actor either, since he wasn't credited.
>>
>> It was indeed a different actor. BTW, have you watched the first ep of
>> Angel yet?
>
>I have always suspected that they used DB for the first glimpse she had
>of him from behind. There's a cut before you see the other actor turn
>to show his face. For something like that, where you don't even see the
>actor's face, there wouldn't necessarily have been a credit given to him.
Good chance IMO.
Ken (Brooklyn)
eli...@gmail.com
Don't have much to say really - it's a nice episode, but doesn't really
stand out that much...
I love Buffy and Xander's conversation, though - he might not have any
special powers, but he's there for her as a friend.
>It's interesting to see that Willow's the one who feels at home
>with the social aspects of UC[Sun]D, whereas Buffy feels alone.
>Wouldn't have imagined that had I watched only "Welcome To The
>Hellmouth."
This is partly due to the fact that knowledge is much more celebrated
at University (like that episode of The Simpsons where Lisa became a
gymnast a be-friended some college girls - if you've seen that one?)
and also because of the character's development. The same goes for
Buffy really. This continues through the later seasons - they never
remain static.
omnie
> Like the numerous professors I've seen play the humiliation game in
> the first class
Wait, people actually do that? Because this is one of the main things
that bugged me about the show's depiction of college. I've taken a
good number of college classes, and I've never ever seen or heard of a
professor being cruel to a student like that. It would have been more
likely in high school, but in college it's a whole different
atmosphere, and the professors are actually friendly, almost more like
peers than authority figures. That part of the show always felt off to
me. Do I just go to a weird university or something?
Michael Ikeda
news:WJGdnWO1hdO...@giganews.com:
> Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
>> A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these
>> review threads.
>>
>>
>> It's interesting to see that Willow's the one who feels at home
>> with the social aspects of UC[Sun]D, whereas Buffy feels alone.
>> Wouldn't have imagined that had I watched only "Welcome To The
>> Hellmouth."
>
> Willow is finally in her element. Probably means she's going to
> die of some horrible ancient malady next week. Damn.
>
Rowan, Rowan, Rowan. You're not supposed to be spoiling AOQ...
BTR1701
"omnie" <omn...@gmail.com> wrote:
You should try going to law school. They've raised classroom humiliation
to an art form.
Stephen Tempest
>This is partly due to the fact that knowledge is much more celebrated
>at University
Not just any kind of knowledge, either. It's big, spurty, penetrating
knowledge. :)
Stephen
vague disclaimer
"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 1: "The Freshman"
> (or "Taking back Sunday")
> Writer: Joss Whedon
> Director: Joss Whedon
>
<snip>
Welcome back fella. I was just about to start tapping my feet and
looking at my watch.
Not much to add except how much I loved the two student protests where
was have *no idea at all* what they are protesting about.
Also in one of the DVD features JW pointed out that the episode was shot
at Buffy's [lack of] height so that everything seemed so much larger.
> AOQ rating: Good
>
> [Season Four so far:
> 1) "The Freshman" - Good]
--
A vague disclaimer is nobody's friend
KenM47
It's been a long time, but I recall obnoxious professors in college.
Ken (Brooklyn)
vague disclaimer
"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 1: "The Freshman"
> (or "Taking back Sunday")
> Writer: Joss Whedon
> Director: Joss Whedon
Oh, one little thing: did you notice the silent phone call?
vague disclaimer
Don Sample <dsa...@synapse.net> wrote:
>
> > Eddie is one of the few really convincing loser-types we've seen on
> > this show, and seemed personable enough that had he not been
> > prominently wearing the proverbial red shirt, I could've gotten
> > attached to him. "I was worried that something had happened to
> > you... and of course it has, cuz you're a vampire. I'm sorry."
> > "I'm not." Well, I am. This leads us into our group of college
> > slacker vampires, who're good for some entertainment in their scenes
> > too (I've already seen you folks using the "fact that you're
> > fat" joke). And although I suspected that even Sunday wouldn't
> > survive the episode, she had the potential to be a substantial menace.
> > It's disturbing seeing her so easily and confidently whup on Buffy,
> > who can't be so totally off her game given that she just staked
> > Eddie.
>
> Of course, Eddie was a newbie who hadn't yet learned all those fancy
> martial arts moves that vampires inevitably seem to pick up.
>
Jvyy gung or gur arj "gur snpg gung lbh'er sng..."?
vague disclaimer
Don Sample <dsa...@synapse.net> wrote:
> In article <1144448940....@g10g2000cwb.googlegroups.com>,
> "One Bit Shy" <ult...@mail.com> wrote:
>
> > Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
> > > A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these review
> > > threads.
> > >
> > >
> > > BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
> > > Season Four, Episode 1: "The Freshman"
> > > (or "Taking back Sunday")
> > > Writer: Joss Whedon
> > > Director: Joss Whedon
> >
> > Cool. You're back. I didn't want to read anymore posts about ticks.
> >
> > So, is the plan to alternate with Angel? Still close to daily reviews?
> >
> >
> >
> > > So UC-Sunnydale doesn't actually seem to be in Sunnydale. What's
> > > the radius of the Hellmouth? Also, so as to get it out of the way -
> > > no college dorm rooms are that nice.
> >
> > 5 miles away from somewhere. The physical location remains fuzzy to
> > me, but maybe I missed a detail.
>
> Where things in Sunnydale are is something that they were always fuzzy
> about. How far was it from Buffy's house to the school? Where did
> Xander, Willow and Giles live, relative to one another? Where was the
> downtown, or any of the dozen cemeteries?
And where - where dammit! - where the Docks?
jil...@hotmail.com
to end up competing with Oz for Willow's interest. Heh
I felt so much for Buffy. I hate it when teachers attack.
We are reminded again, there are no innocent vampires, there are only
vampires who haven't had a chance to kill yet.
Arbitrar Of Quality
> In article <1144454253.7...@e56g2000cwe.googlegroups.com>,
> "Mike Zeares" <mze...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> > There was a lot of speculation about that. A popular idea was that
> > he's a published author, and gets royalties. Or maybe he just had a
> > family fortune and invested well.
> >
>
> He writes bodice rippers under a pseudonym.
AMUSE'D
-AOQ
Arbitrar Of Quality
> Oh, one little thing: did you notice the silent phone call?
It existed. Well, seriously, the whole point is that it doesn't
register much, so even the fact that they don't explain what's up with
it doesn't matter since the viewer stopped thinking about it. But it
embeds itself in the brain where one can be reminded of it, so then
it's a nice surprise when, well, you know.
-AOQ
Horace LaBadie
I took a literature course in which the Prof was only slightly less
nasty in suggesting that a student had no business in his class -- and
this was mid-term, when it was almost impossible for a student to get
permission to leave a course. Apparently her essay work was so appalling
by his standards that he felt it necessary to make it clear in public
that she was wasting his time.
HWL
chr...@removethistoreply.gwu.edu
> Don Sample wrote:
> Xander is the only one she hasn't seen for months.
> She and Giles have
> both been in Sunnydale all summer, and have presumably kept in touch.
>
>>From the way she and Giles act towards each other, it certainly seems
> like she hasn't seen him since around graduation.
Well, she had no idea Olivia was coming, which argues that she hasn't seen
much of Giles. If they had been meeting daily, the way they did in high
school, he surely would have said something like "I'll be unavailable for
a few days next week -- friend coming to visit." He's too responsible to
spring that on her if he knows she's expecting him to be available. And
Giles does say that Buffy needs to take care of herself more. But on the
other hand, they don't act as if this was their first meeting in months,
either. Giles doesn't seem surprised to see her, neither asks how the
other's summer was, etc. Also, Buffy mentions having a slay-heavy summer,
and while she could have done that entirely without Giles, that would just
seem ... wrong. The answer must be that Giles and Buffy kept in touch
over the summer, but only occasionally. I imagine something like two or
three crises that required Giles' help, and a couple of meetings or phone
calls a month outside of that.
> It's also likely she hasn't seen Angel or Cordelia since then.
She definitely hasn't seen Angel. The scene where he walks away at the
end of GD2 was clearly intended to be the last time they saw each other.
As for Cordelia, va gur Natry cerzvrer rcvfbqr, vg frrzf pyrne gung
Pbeqryvn unf nyernql orra yvivat va YN sbe ng yrnfg n zbagu be gjb. Fur
zvtug unir frra Ohssl naq sevraqf fubegyl nsgre tenqhngvba, ohg cebonoyl
zbirq bhg bs Fhaalqnyr rneyl va gur fhzzre.
Qbrf NbD xabj gung uvf orybirq Pbeqryvn vf n erthyne pnfg zrzore ba Natry?
chr...@removethistoreply.gwu.edu
>
> I have always suspected that they used DB for the first glimpse she had
> of him from behind. There's a cut before you see the other actor turn
> to show his face. For something like that, where you don't even see the
> actor's face, there wouldn't necessarily have been a credit given to him.
Hmm! Interesting idea. I wouldn't put it past ME, those scamps.
chr...@removethistoreply.gwu.edu
It seemed a little too extreme to me too. In four years of undergrad and
three years of grad school, I've certainly seen some arrogant, unfriendly
and unpleasant professors. I've also seen professors lose their temper
and bitch out a student. But that was usually because the student
provoked them by genuine misbehavior, like coming to class ridiculously
late, failing to do an assignment, reading a newspaper during lecture,
etc. I've *never* seen a professor cold-bloodedly humiliate a student for
as little reason as Prof. Riegert did Buffy.
But then again, I never went to law school.
The Prof. Reigert scene really upset me when I first saw it, both because
the professor seemed a little over the top and because I could all too
easily imagine myself in Buffy's place. Since then, I've mostly
fast-forwarded over that part. Over time the scene grew in my memory
until I thought the professor had been furiously bellowing at Buffy the
whole time she made her way out of the classroom. (Xvaq bs yvxr gur snyfr
zrzbevrf bs gubfr sbyxf jub guvax Qnja fuevrxrq "Trg bhg! Trg bhg!" va
rirel rcvfbqr bs frnfbaf 5 naq 6.) Upon re-watching the other day, I
realized that the professor didn't shout so much, and that he wasn't
actually angry at all. He was very deliberately and cold-bloodedly
humiliating Buffy, either to intimidate the other students or just for
fun. Which makes it a more interesting scene, but I won't squirm any less
the next time I see it.
One Bit Shy
news:1144493795.3...@j33g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
It's been a few years since I was in college (I won't say how many <g>), but
incidents like that weren't unusual at my school. Not typical, mind you.
Most professors were considerably more considerate. But plenty frequent
enough for me to immediately recognize the truth of this depiction. The
particular flashpoint over late additions to the class list I saw happen
several times virtually identical to what was shown in this episode. For
some reason, some professors have a real burr up their butt about dealing
with first day registration chaos. Though I really think it's intended as a
device to establish classroom control.
OBS
drifter
> When I first saw this episode, I thought just maybe that TA was going
> to end up competing with Oz for Willow's interest. Heh
>
> I felt so much for Buffy. I hate it when teachers attack.
"When Teachers Attack." That was on Fox, right?
--
Kel
"I reject your reality, and substitute my own."
Terry
news:1afe32p5fpscdqkp5...@4ax.com:
> So, Angel S1E1 "City of ..."?
Puh-leeeze?
I'm so enjoying this trip down memory lane. Even if I'm not very posty, I
read most of the comments. I wanna "watch" Angel with you, too!
Terry
mariposas rand mair fheal greykitten tomys des anges
> realized that the professor didn't shout so much, and that he wasn't
> actually angry at all. He was very deliberately and cold-bloodedly
> humiliating Buffy, either to intimidate the other students or just for
> fun. Which makes it a more interesting scene, but I won't squirm any less
> the next time I see it.
unfortunately freshmen dont realize that instructors like that
have nothing to teach them
arf meow arf - nsa fodder
al qaeda terrorism nuclear bomb iran taliban big brother
if you meet buddha on the usenet killfile him
eli...@gmail.com
nice to see more of her, but I think she's very much a representation
of Buffy's fears and as such has to be killed by the end of the episode!
MBangel10 (Melissa)
> A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these review
> threads.
>
>
> BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
> Season Four, Episode 1: "The Freshman"
> (or "Taking back Sunday")
> Writer: Joss Whedon
> Director: Joss Whedon
>
> the radius of the Hellmouth? Also, so as to get it out of the way -
> no college dorm rooms are that nice.
>
> thinned-out main cast. (Although I thought Boreanaz put in a brief
> cameo during the mistaken identity bit, but maybe it wasn't really
> even more now if it remains totally Cordelia-free... we'll see plenty
> of her as it is, I assume). Season premieres are kinda becoming
> typical: Buffy loses her groove, gets the gang back together, gets her
> groove back, the end. TF follows that skeleton and is by the numbers
> with the plotting. Considering some of the personal crises Buffy's
> been through before, this one feels minor league. On the other hand,
> it's more grounded in common problems that the average audience
> member is more likely to truly understand. What matters in the end is
> that the episode is done in a way that's heavy on the humor and the
> feel-good heroics, which makes for a pleasantly breezy hour.
>
> We don't really deal with the supernatural part of the show at all
> before the midway point. Until then it's a story of a couple of
> chicks getting adjusted to the college experience. The dialogue
> sparkles here: this particular writer has a flair for Whedon-speak for
> some reason. Maybe he should get to do more scripts. Five random
> early quotables, and there're plenty more just like them:
> 1) "Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your personal savior?"
> "Um, you know, I meant to, and then I just got really busy."
> 2) "I've heard about five different issues and I'm angry about each
> and every one of them. What'd you get?" "Jell-O shots." "I
> didn't get Jell-O shots! I'll trade you for a Take Back the Night."
> 3) "'Gentleman of leisure?' Is that British for
> 'unemployed?'"
> 4) "He said he wasn't coming back until he had driven to all fifty
> states." "Did you explain about Hawaii?" "Oh, he seemed so
> determined."
> 5) "If you're looking to coast, I recommend Geology 101. That's
> where the football players are."
The quote that still cracks me up is, "I"ll answer that with a headbutt"
>
> It's interesting to see that Willow's the one who feels at home
> with the social aspects of UC[Sun]D, whereas Buffy feels alone.
> Wouldn't have imagined that had I watched only "Welcome To The
> Hellmouth."
>
> Through a bunch of contrivances, Buffy keeps running into a TA named
> Riley and doing her lust-struck babbling thing. She really has a thing
> for older men.
>
> Eddie is one of the few really convincing loser-types we've seen on
> this show, and seemed personable enough that had he not been
> prominently wearing the proverbial red shirt, I could've gotten
> attached to him. "I was worried that something had happened to
> you... and of course it has, cuz you're a vampire. I'm sorry."
> "I'm not." Well, I am. This leads us into our group of college
> slacker vampires, who're good for some entertainment in their scenes
> too (I've already seen you folks using the "fact that you're
> fat" joke). And although I suspected that even Sunday wouldn't
> survive the episode, she had the potential to be a substantial menace.
> It's disturbing seeing her so easily and confidently whup on Buffy,
> who can't be so totally off her game given that she just staked
> Eddie.
Well, at that point Sunday had been around as a vampire for at least 18
years so she wasn't exactly a fledgling.
>
> Sunday distracts Buffy by criticizing her outfit. And it *works*.
> Guess you can't totally take the Guacamole Queen out of the Slayer.
>
> I generally get a kick out of references to previous episodes however
> gratuitous they get, but in particular I like the continued mentions of
> Mr. Pointy.
>
> Despite knowing how the scene would play out from the moment she
> entered Giles' house, I can understand Buffy's disappointment at
> finding that Giles isn't always going to be around waiting for her to
> need him, especially after pronouncing her Watcher-free last year.
> He's not on some higher plane, above enjoying the company of his
> ladyfriends and eating cheese that's turned blue. I don't know
> what his financial support is, though. On the other hand, the followup
> Giles scene at the end is pretty lame. Also, no parent uses their
> kid's room for storage space so soon - they leave everything
> untouched for at least a week or two.
Well, my parents moved the summer after high school graduation so when I
started college my new bedroom was pretty much used for storage for at
least the first month I was away.
>
> Is Buffy ever going to learn not to take everything on herself,
> excluding the people who want to help "for their own good?" So she
> feels alone, and we go back to the Bronze (guess they didn't want to
> totally discard all their old sets) where we have the bit mentioned
> above. I think that's this episode's only reference of any kind to
> her old boyfriend, and works nicely. Then Xander makes his predictable
> appearance and predictably regales us with tales of his trip not going
> as planned. The scene is still well worth watching, especially for the
> end. "You're my hero." [I'm being totally sincere here.] After
> a beat, "Okay, sometimes when it's dark and I'm all alone I think,
> 'What is Buffy wearing?'" [I'm a little uncomfortable with the
> serious talk, but I meant it.] "It's a deal. Let's put this
> bitch in the ground. What do you say?" [Can we have the old Buffy
> back now? I'll be with you.]
This was a great Buffy and Xander moment. It was another reinforcement
that Buffy truly does need her friends.
>
>>From there, we have some scenes involving Oz's uncanny calmness,
> Xander's tangible but limited improvement since the "dating an
> umpire" days in nonchalantly keeping the comic-relief characters out
> of the loop, and the fight scene at the end. Feel-good stuff here,
> like Buffy turning on the Slayer attitude and making use of her other
> arm. People who're really hung up on the Chosen One thing might
> object to Oz and Xander's coordinated slaying prowess, but I don't
> mind nowadays, especially given how long the show's been running.
>
> This Is Really Stupid But I Laughed Anyway moment(s):
> - Xander's Dadaist pep talk. [Mrs. Quality, not being the same kind
> of geek as me, was totally lost.]
> - "Whoa... [dies]"
The amazing last words of a surfer vampire as a dusts... heh.
>
> Oh, and there's a mysterious ending. At first I hoped the black-clad
> guys were ninjas, because ninjas are awesome. Anyway, I'm not going
> to talk about it until the show feels like explaining itself.
>
>
> So...
>
> One-sentence summary: We're off to a good re-start.
Rowan Hawthorn
> One Bit Shy wrote:
>
>>Like the numerous professors I've seen play the humiliation game in
>>the first class
>
>
> Wait, people actually do that?
Yes. While most of my college professors were much better than my
elementary/high school teachers, there are people who live for the
chance to belittle others. For a few, I suspect it's because they never
got the fame, recognition, or success that they felt was due them, so
they have to find other ways to make themselves feel superior. The rest
are just assholes...
--
Rowan Hawthorn
"Occasionally, I'm callous and strange." - Willow Rosenberg, "Buffy the
Vampire Slayer"
Rowan Hawthorn
> Rowan Hawthorn <rowan_h...@hotmail.com> wrote in
> news:WJGdnWO1hdO...@giganews.com:
>
>
>>Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
>>
>>>A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these
>>>review threads.
>>>
>
>
>
>>>It's interesting to see that Willow's the one who feels at home
>>>with the social aspects of UC[Sun]D, whereas Buffy feels alone.
>>>Wouldn't have imagined that had I watched only "Welcome To The
>>>Hellmouth."
>>
>>Willow is finally in her element. Probably means she's going to
>>die of some horrible ancient malady next week. Damn.
>>
>
>
> Rowan, Rowan, Rowan. You're not supposed to be spoiling AOQ...
>
> :)
>
Oops... ;-)
Don Sample
chr...@removethistoreply.gwu.edu wrote:
> Xande...@gmail.com wrote:
> > Don Sample wrote:
> > Xander is the only one she hasn't seen for months.
> > She and Giles have
> > both been in Sunnydale all summer, and have presumably kept in touch.
> >
> >>From the way she and Giles act towards each other, it certainly seems
> > like she hasn't seen him since around graduation.
>
> Well, she had no idea Olivia was coming, which argues that she hasn't seen
> much of Giles. If they had been meeting daily, the way they did in high
> school, he surely would have said something like "I'll be unavailable for
> a few days next week -- friend coming to visit." He's too responsible to
> spring that on her if he knows she's expecting him to be available.
I had the impression that Olivia didn't really give Giles much advance
warning that she was coming: "Couldn't pass through sunny Cal without
looking up ol' Ripper." She was in the neighbourhood, and decided to
look him up.
--
Quando omni flunkus moritati
Visit the Buffy Body Count at <http://homepage.mac.com/dsample/>
Kevin
One Bit Shy wrote:
> It's been a few years since I was in college (I won't say how many <g>), but
I've seen some obnoxious professors too, but the first time I watched
that scene, it felt so bizarre to me that I actually thought it was a
dream sequence! I kept waiting for Buffy to wake up from her
nightmare, but it just moved on to the next scene, and so on... "Huh.
I guess it's not a dream." I was thrown.
When Joss has hellish memories from his youth, he lets us know!
--Kevin
hopelessly devoted
omnie wrote:
> One Bit Shy wrote:
> > Like the numerous professors I've seen play the humiliation game in
> > the first class
>
> that bugged me about the show's depiction of college. I've taken a
> good number of college classes, and I've never ever seen or heard of a
> professor being cruel to a student like that. It would have been more
> likely in high school, but in college it's a whole different
> atmosphere, and the professors are actually friendly, almost more like
> peers than authority figures. That part of the show always felt off to
> me. Do I just go to a weird university or something?
I'll get to my review in a minute.
I had a high school teacher with a Tardy Policy that involved spanking
for the girl and a punch in the chest for the boys. The one time I was
late, I reminded him that MY MOTHER felt it would be considered a
felony for him to touch me. He never laid a hand on me.
hopelessly devoted
Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
> BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
> Season Four, Episode 1: "The Freshman"
Very funny opening. Finally get to see a vamp with half a brain. "Is
this guy ever gonna wake up?" Seems like B was off her game at the
mere thought of college.
> So UC-Sunnydale doesn't actually seem to be in Sunnydale. What's
> the radius of the Hellmouth? Also, so as to get it out of the way -
> no college dorm rooms are that nice.
I actually got a chance to attend college while still enrolled in High
School so I would have to agree with you on the dorm rooms on a
University Level. And while going to College early should have made my
first "real" year a breeze, I decided to attend college out of state
which left me in the exact same position of "WTF am I doing here?" Of
course the accommodations were off campus and I actually got to stay in
an apartment .......w/ 4 other girls. More later....
> It's interesting to see that Willow's the one who feels at home
> with the social aspects of UC[Sun]D, whereas Buffy feels alone.
> Wouldn't have imagined that had I watched only "Welcome To The
> Hellmouth."
It was great that Willow finally feels comfortable somewhere.
> Through a bunch of contrivances, Buffy keeps running into a TA named
> Riley and doing her lust-struck babbling thing. She really has a thing
> for older men.
Actually B and W keep running into Mr. TA. On First Viewing: I think
that he and W look very nice together and Oz better watch out.
> Eddie is one of the few really convincing loser-types we've seen on
> this show, and seemed personable enough that had he not been
> prominently wearing the proverbial red shirt, I could've gotten
> attached to him.
I thought he and B ....... well for the short time that he was alive
anyway.....
"I was worried that something had happened to
> you... and of course it has, cuz you're a vampire. I'm sorry."
> "I'm not." Well, I am. This leads us into our group of college
> slacker vampires, who're good for some entertainment in their scenes
> too (I've already seen you folks using the "fact that you're
> fat" joke). And although I suspected that even Sunday wouldn't
> survive the episode, she had the potential to be a substantial menace.
> It's disturbing seeing her so easily and confidently whup on Buffy,
> who can't be so totally off her game given that she just staked
> Eddie.
>
> Sunday distracts Buffy by criticizing her outfit. And it *works*.
> Guess you can't totally take the Guacamole Queen out of the Slayer.
Well, same height, same dress size, and Sunday (in that outfit) telling
B that her outfit sucked..........Now that's guts!
> I generally get a kick out of references to previous episodes however
> gratuitous they get, but in particular I like the continued mentions of
> Mr. Pointy.
>
> Despite knowing how the scene would play out from the moment she
> entered Giles' house, I can understand Buffy's disappointment at
> finding that Giles isn't always going to be around waiting for her to
> need him, especially after pronouncing her Watcher-free last year.
> He's not on some higher plane, above enjoying the company of his
> ladyfriends and eating cheese that's turned blue.
What I really like about G is the fact that (as well as developing
right along with everyone elses), in a lot of ways his arc is already
developed. We get to see certain aspects of G, not as they happen but
in retrospect. It becomes a nice touch of surprise, and a moment of
"Ahhhh!"
Plus: "'Cause you're very, very old, and it's gross"
I don't know
> what his financial support is, though. On the other hand, the followup
> Giles scene at the end is pretty lame.
On First Viewing: Very well said. More later.....
Also, no parent uses their
> kid's room for storage space so soon - they leave everything
> untouched for at least a week or two.
I don't know about that. My mother and godfather started talking about
me moving at when I was 17. "We'll have your bags backed for you.
Happy Birthday. Get Out! Love you, too... Bye Bye" It went on for
about 2 hours. It was hilarious and they weren't REALLY
serious...........
> Is Buffy ever going to learn not to take everything on herself,
> excluding the people who want to help "for their own good?" So she
> feels alone, and we go back to the Bronze (guess they didn't want to
> totally discard all their old sets) where we have the bit mentioned
> above. I think that's this episode's only reference of any kind to
> her old boyfriend, and works nicely. Then Xander makes his predictable
> appearance and predictably regales us with tales of his trip not going
> as planned. The scene is still well worth watching, especially for the
> end. "You're my hero." [I'm being totally sincere here.] After
> a beat, "Okay, sometimes when it's dark and I'm all alone I think,
> 'What is Buffy wearing?'" [I'm a little uncomfortable with the
> serious talk, but I meant it.] "It's a deal. Let's put this
> bitch in the ground. What do you say?" [Can we have the old Buffy
> back now? I'll be with you.]
Very nice to see X finally understanding and being able to finally come
to terms with his role in B's life. He really does shine in that
scene. And yes, I would LOVE to hear the rest of that story.
> >From there, we have some scenes involving Oz's uncanny calmness,
> Xander's tangible but limited improvement since the "dating an
> umpire" days in nonchalantly keeping the comic-relief characters out
> of the loop, and the fight scene at the end. Feel-good stuff here,
> like Buffy turning on the Slayer attitude and making use of her other
> arm. People who're really hung up on the Chosen One thing might
> object to Oz and Xander's coordinated slaying prowess, but I don't
> mind nowadays, especially given how long the show's been running.
>
> This Is Really Stupid But I Laughed Anyway moment(s):
> - Xander's Dadaist pep talk. [Mrs. Quality, not being the same kind
> of geek as me, was totally lost.]
> - "Whoa... [dies]"
>
> Oh, and there's a mysterious ending. At first I hoped the black-clad
> guys were ninjas, because ninjas are awesome. Anyway, I'm not going
> to talk about it until the show feels like explaining itself.
Not much more to say about this ep, but I've been waiting years to tell
this story and I can't think of a better time.
Went to a specialized college at the time and one of the instructors
gave a mid-term (or final exam, I can't remember which) which began
......
"A Technician is sitting behind the desk at 2am waiting for customer
service calls. It was a slow night and he was feeling sleepy so he
decided to try and keep himself awake.
So he began to sing:
OHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
I'VE GOT CLAP
AND THE BLUE BALLS TOO
THE CLAP DON'T HURT
BUT THE BLUE BALLS DO
Just then the phone rang.............."
I've had the strangest teachers! Overall a GOOD ep that brings back
fond memories.
Don Sample
"hopelessly devoted" <cry...@cinstall.com> wrote:
> Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
>
> > BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
> > Season Four, Episode 1: "The Freshman"
> >
> > Despite knowing how the scene would play out from the moment she
> > entered Giles' house, I can understand Buffy's disappointment at
> > finding that Giles isn't always going to be around waiting for her to
> > need him, especially after pronouncing her Watcher-free last year.
> > He's not on some higher plane, above enjoying the company of his
> > ladyfriends and eating cheese that's turned blue.
>
> What I really like about G is the fact that (as well as developing
> right along with everyone elses), in a lot of ways his arc is already
> developed. We get to see certain aspects of G, not as they happen but
> in retrospect. It becomes a nice touch of surprise, and a moment of
> "Ahhhh!"
>
> Plus: "'Cause you're very, very old, and it's gross"
And the unsaid "And the last person you had sex with was my mother!"
One Bit Shy
news:1144527635....@t31g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...
Yeah, he does do that doesn't he?
Well, I haven't seen anything quite like Maggie Walsh's entrance though. I
think that may have been invented from scratch.
OBS
Arbitrar Of Quality
> I had a high school teacher with a Tardy Policy that involved spanking
> for the girl and a punch in the chest for the boys. The one time I was
> late, I reminded him that MY MOTHER felt it would be considered a
> felony for him to touch me. He never laid a hand on me.
Don't they have School Boards or something to try to ensure that people
like that don't get a chance to teach?
-AOQ
Arbitrar Of Quality
> Well, my parents moved the summer after high school graduation so when I
> started college my new bedroom was pretty much used for storage for at
> least the first month I was away.
Hmmm. I guess if you hadn't had time to fully "move in" and make the
room yours, it's a little different. But I'd still expect that it
wouldn't be full of boxes within two days.
-AOQ
Arbitrar Of Quality
> Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
>
> this guy ever gonna wake up?"
Eh. People keep mentioning that joke, but it didn't do much for me.
> Actually B and W keep running into Mr. TA. On First Viewing: I think
> that he and W look very nice together and Oz better watch out.
Seriously? I don't see anything more than a TA/interested-student
there vibe. Buffy seems to eb the only one in the scene who's thinking
in romantic terms, at least to me.
-AOQ
BTR1701
Again, go to law school. Maggie Walsh's introductory speech was almost
verbatim what I got from my first-year Contracts professor.
Rowan Hawthorn
Problem is, School Boards are, often as not, politicized to the point
where they don't much care *what* the teachers do - unless the
complaining parents are campaign contributors or part of the local "elite".
KenM47
hopelessly devoted
You would think........
He had a very interesting class. Part math part sex education. I
don't know if he was ever brought before the board.
Opus the Penguin
> I remain of the opinion that attitude has everything to do with
> Buffy's skills. It's part of the slayer magic.
I'd agree, except I'd amend that to: It's part of HER slayer magic. In
addition to being a slayer with family and friends, attitude is
something new that she brings to the role.
--
Opus the Penguin
The best darn penguin in all of Usenet
Opus the Penguin
> I liked it to a point. (Very much liked Oz's failed attempt to
> share Buffy's unease while obviously being utterly at ease.) But
> it largely felt like snack food empty calories to me.
Mmmmmmm. Empty calories.
Opus the Penguin
> Presumably he saved up a lot while he was pulling down two
> salaries, as Watcher and librarian. (And he hasn't been wasting
> any money on fancy clothes or a flashy car.)
Lrg. Jr'yy frr gur synful pne yngre guvf frnfba. Naq vs gung fbzoereb
ur'f jrnevat ng Unyybjrra vfa'g snapl, V qba'g xabj gur zrnavat bs gur
jbeq.
Opus the Penguin
Lrnu, ohg jul pbhyqa'g Wblpr hfr Qnja'f ebbz vafgrnq? Vg'f rzcgl naq
nyy.
Don Sample
Opus the Penguin <opusthepen...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Arbitrar Of Quality (tsm...@wildmail.com) wrote:
>
> > MBangel10 (Melissa) wrote:
> >
> >> Well, my parents moved the summer after high school graduation so
> >> when I started college my new bedroom was pretty much used for
> >> storage for at least the first month I was away.
> >
> > Hmmm. I guess if you hadn't had time to fully "move in" and make
> > the room yours, it's a little different. But I'd still expect
> > that it wouldn't be full of boxes within two days.
> >
>
> Lrnu, ohg jul pbhyqa'g Wblpr hfr Qnja'f ebbz vafgrnq? Vg'f rzcgl naq
> nyy.
Npghnyyl, vg'f nyernql shyy bs whax. Jr frr gung jura Ohssl qbrf gur
"Chyy onpx gur phegnva" fcryy. Gur ebbz nygreangrf orgjrra Qnja'f
orqebbz, naq n ebbz jvgu n ohapu bs whax va vg.
Opus the Penguin
> I don't know about that. My mother and godfather started talking
> about me moving at when I was 17. "We'll have your bags backed
> for you. Happy Birthday. Get Out! Love you, too... Bye Bye" It
> went on for about 2 hours. It was hilarious and they weren't
> REALLY serious...........
Heh. Reminds me of the Simpsons episode where Marge is trying to remind
Homer he told the kids they could go to summer camp.
Marge: Homer, you do remember your promise to the children?
Homer: Sure do! When you're 18, you're out the door!
We say this to our children often.
Rowan Hawthorn
> (chr...@removethistoreply.gwu.edu) wrote:
>
>
>>Presumably he saved up a lot while he was pulling down two
>>salaries, as Watcher and librarian. (And he hasn't been wasting
>>any money on fancy clothes or a flashy car.)
>
>
> Lrg. Jr'yy frr gur synful pne yngre guvf frnfba. Naq vs gung fbzoereb
> ur'f jrnevat ng Unyybjrra vfa'g snapl, V qba'g xabj gur zrnavat bs gur
> jbeq.
>
Jryy, V jbhyq'ir tbar jvgu "gnpxl," ohg gung'f whfg zr...
Apteryx
news:dsample-99F36F...@news.giganews.com...
> In article <Xns979FF1C0572ADop...@127.0.0.1>,
> Opus the Penguin <opusthepen...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Arbitrar Of Quality (tsm...@wildmail.com) wrote:
>>
>> > MBangel10 (Melissa) wrote:
>> >
>> >> Well, my parents moved the summer after high school graduation so
>> >> when I started college my new bedroom was pretty much used for
>> >> storage for at least the first month I was away.
>> >
>> > Hmmm. I guess if you hadn't had time to fully "move in" and make
>> > the room yours, it's a little different. But I'd still expect
>> > that it wouldn't be full of boxes within two days.
>> >
>>
>> Lrnu, ohg jul pbhyqa'g Wblpr hfr Qnja'f ebbz vafgrnq? Vg'f rzcgl naq
>> nyy.
>
> Npghnyyl, vg'f nyernql shyy bs whax. Jr frr gung jura Ohssl qbrf gur
> "Chyy onpx gur phegnva" fcryy. Gur ebbz nygreangrf orgjrra Qnja'f
> orqebbz, naq n ebbz jvgu n ohapu bs whax va vg.
Fb gur zbaxf abg bayl fcnjarq n Fhaalqnyr Phpxbb ba gur Fhzzref, gurl nyfb
boyvgrengrq Wblpr'f whax ebbz? Tvira Wblpr ehaf n tnyyrel, jub xabjf jung
nagvdhrf be neg jbexf fur zvtug unir orra grzcbenevyl fgbevat gurer? Vs gung
Beqre bs Zbaxf fheivirq Tybel'f nggnpxf, be nal bs gurve cebcregl qvq, gura
znlor nyy Ohssl arrqrq gb unir qbar sbe zbarl va Frnfba 6 jnf gb fhr gurz
sbe jvyshyy qrfgehpgvba bs cebcregl.
--
Apteryx
George W Harris
<opusthepen...@gmail.com> wrote:
Your 18th birthday, we're changing the locks.
--
/bud...@nirvana.net/h:k
George W. Harris For actual email address, replace each 'u' with an 'i'
George W Harris
<opusthepen...@gmail.com> wrote:
:(chr...@removethistoreply.gwu.edu) wrote:
:
:> Presumably he saved up a lot while he was pulling down two
:> salaries, as Watcher and librarian. (And he hasn't been wasting
:> any money on fancy clothes or a flashy car.)
:
:Lrg. Jr'yy frr gur synful pne yngre guvf frnfba.
V qba'g guvax jr frr gur gjb-qbbe genzc hagvy "Erny Zr".
:--
:Opus the Penguin
:The best darn penguin in all of Usenet
--
"The truths of mathematics describe a bright and clear universe,
exquisite and beautiful in its structure, in comparison with
which the physical world is turbid and confused."
-Eulogy for G.H.Hardy
William George Ferguson
<opusthepen...@gmail.com> wrote:
>One Bit Shy (ult...@mail.com) wrote:
>
>> I remain of the opinion that attitude has everything to do with
>> Buffy's skills. It's part of the slayer magic.
>
>I'd agree, except I'd amend that to: It's part of HER slayer magic. In
>addition to being a slayer with family and friends, attitude is
>something new that she brings to the role.
Well, look at the centextual usage of 'attitude' in the popular language of
ny lifetime, I can only say considering Kendra and Faith, you might want to
rethink that conclusion.
"Now I see why you died." "Did anyone explain to you what 'secret
identity' means?"
(not even gonna bother demonstrating with Faith, among her various weapons
were attitude, attitude, and, well, attitude)
--
HERBERT
1996 - 1997
Beloved Mascot
Delightful Meal
He fed the Pack
A little
mariposas rand mair fheal greykitten tomys des anges
in wesley mode
thats one weapon repeated three times
arf meow arf - nsa fodder
al qaeda terrorism nuclear bomb iran taliban big brother
if you meet buddha on the usenet killfile him
rrh...@acme.com
mariposas rand mair fheal greykitten tomys des anges wrote:
> > It's interesting to see that Willow's the one who feels at home
> > with the social aspects of UC[Sun]D, whereas Buffy feels alone.
> > Wouldn't have imagined that had I watched only "Welcome To The
> > Hellmouth."
>
> as the best of years of their life
> not me
> four years of misery
> it was in college when youre with people who have chosen to be there
Or at least, if you go to a largish university, the pool of potential
friends to chose from is much larger. As far as I could tell, most of
my fellow students were there because they wanted job training, binge
drinking, or mating, or because they couldn't think of any better way
to spend the next few years. But there is inevitably a residue of
students there to, for example, get an education. And once you find
the circle you want to hang with, what does it matter if others are
drinking till they puke? The other difference is that high school by
its nature tends to force unlike people together. The jocks tend to
torment the geeks because they tend to end up in the same room
together. At college the tendency is for people to find their niche
physically as well as socially, minimizing conflict. At least that was
my experience.
Richard R. Hershberger
Stephen Tempest
>(not even gonna bother demonstrating with Faith, among her various weapons
>were attitude, attitude, and, well, attitude)
And a fanatical dedication to, um, attitude. ?
Stephen
Jeff Jacoby
> In article <dsample-336643...@news.giganews.com>,
> Don Sample <dsa...@synapse.net> wrote:
>
>> In article <1144448940....@g10g2000cwb.googlegroups.com>,>> > > A reminder: Please avoid spoilers for later episodes in these review
>> > > threads.
>> > >
>> > >
>> > > BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
>> > > Season Four, Episode 1: "The Freshman"
>> > > Writer: Joss Whedon
>> > > Director: Joss Whedon
>> >
>> > Cool. You're back. I didn't want to read anymore posts about ticks.
>> >
>> > So, is the plan to alternate with Angel? Still close to daily reviews?
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > > So UC-Sunnydale doesn't actually seem to be in Sunnydale. What's
>> > > the radius of the Hellmouth? Also, so as to get it out of the way -
>> > > no college dorm rooms are that nice.
>> >
>> > me, but maybe I missed a detail.
>>
>> Where things in Sunnydale are is something that they were always fuzzy
>> about. How far was it from Buffy's house to the school? Where did
>> Xander, Willow and Giles live, relative to one another? Where was the
>> downtown, or any of the dozen cemeteries?
>
> And where - where dammit! - where the Docks?
Next to the international airport, silly.
Jeff
Jeff Jacoby
> One Bit Shy wrote:
>> Like the numerous professors I've seen play the humiliation game in
>> the first class
>
> Wait, people actually do that? Because this is one of the main things
> that bugged me about the show's depiction of college. I've taken a
> good number of college classes, and I've never ever seen or heard of a
> professor being cruel to a student like that. It would have been more
> likely in high school, but in college it's a whole different
> atmosphere, and the professors are actually friendly, almost more like
> peers than authority figures. That part of the show always felt off to
> me. Do I just go to a weird university or something?
No. I've spent 10 years in school, split between two schools,
and never once ran into a professor like that, nor has my
wife.
Maybe the proximity of the hellmouth has that effect?
Jeff
Arbitrar Of Quality
Among her weaponry are such diverse elements as attitude, attitude....
-AOQ
~someone who knows the bit by heart should probably take over~
Terry
news:eq6l325i7hh7i46hs...@4ax.com:
I'll come back in.
Among our weapons are....
Opus the Penguin
> Or at least, if you go to a largish university, the pool of
> potential friends to chose from is much larger. As far as I could
> tell, most of my fellow students were there because they wanted
> job training, binge drinking, or mating, or because they couldn't
> think of any better way to spend the next few years. But there is
> inevitably a residue of students there to, for example, get an
> education. And once you find the circle you want to hang with,
> what does it matter if others are drinking till they puke? The
> other difference is that high school by its nature tends to force
> unlike people together. The jocks tend to torment the geeks
> because they tend to end up in the same room together. At college
> the tendency is for people to find their niche physically as well
> as socially, minimizing conflict. At least that was my
> experience.
Shut up, Four-eyes.
James Craine
rrh...@acme.com wrote:
And no University has a monopoly. We do have a choice. If
there exists a University as badly run as Hellmouth High it
will not last long. (And any remaining bullies are adults
and will be prosecuted as such.)
James Craine
omnie wrote:
> One Bit Shy wrote:
>
>>Like the numerous professors I've seen play the humiliation game in
>>the first class
>
>
> Wait, people actually do that? Because this is one of the main things
> that bugged me about the show's depiction of college. I've taken a
> good number of college classes, and I've never ever seen or heard of a
> professor being cruel to a student like that. It would have been more
> likely in high school, but in college it's a whole different
> atmosphere, and the professors are actually friendly, almost more like
> peers than authority figures. That part of the show always felt off to
> me. Do I just go to a weird university or something?
>
My experience agrees with yours. I have attended 3
Universities and none of the professors were cruel. One of
them was sometimes sharp with some students sometimes. But
not generally mean or cruel.
James Craine
Rowan Hawthorn wrote:
> omnie wrote:
>
>> One Bit Shy wrote:
>>
>>> Like the numerous professors I've seen play the humiliation game in
>>> the first class
>>
>>
>>
>> Wait, people actually do that?
>
>
> Yes. While most of my college professors were much better than my
> elementary/high school teachers, there are people who live for the
> chance to belittle others. For a few, I suspect it's because they never
> got the fame, recognition, or success that they felt was due them, so
> they have to find other ways to make themselves feel superior. The rest
> are just assholes...
>
The meanest teachers I ever had were in elementary school.
They would repeatedly do thing that were intended to
embarrass their students. I still remember a girl in 1st or
2nd grade who had to finish some little speech in front of
the class before she would be allowed to go to the bathroom,
and she urinated in front of the whole class. These were not
nice teachers.
James Craine
Arbitrar Of Quality wrote:
> hopelessly devoted wrote:
>
>
>>I had a high school teacher with a Tardy Policy that involved spanking
>>for the girl and a punch in the chest for the boys. The one time I was
>>late, I reminded him that MY MOTHER felt it would be considered a
>>felony for him to touch me. He never laid a hand on me.
>
>
> Don't they have School Boards or something to try to ensure that people
> like that don't get a chance to teach?
>
> -AOQ
>
They also have unions to protect them.
James Craine
chr...@removethistoreply.gwu.edu wrote:
>
> Finally, I have to agree that The Freshman isn't one of the best
> Joss-penned episodes ... but even the worst of Joss's episodes is still
> pretty damn good.
>
>
I thought Sunday was a great character though. I wish she
had had an arc.