Agree. Wrong on so many levels. First time I saw the offending episode, as events unfolded I just kept repeating over and over "no, no, no, no". Anyone know whose idea this particular storyline was?
On season 4 of Buffy...should I be watching Angel?
- Thread starter JirinPanthosa
- Start date
I actually really liked most of season 4. It was creepy, suspenseful and pushed the envelope of good taste in exactly the way good horror stories should. For me, it was the mediocre payoff and the poorly thought out logic of plot at the end of the season that I found really disappointing.
By THAT time Cordelia had become my favorite supporting character of either series so I was very disappointed that that was the "end" for her.
I agree Angel season 4 is the least watchable (compared with season 1, which at least has cheese appeal). Season 5 is the best. Such a shame they couldn't continue that setting for another season.
Buffy season 7 is probably the weakest. Towards the end it feels like the writers are running out of steam as they head for the finish line. I like a lot of season 6. The musical ep for me is the low point. Of the early seasons, I think season 2 is overlooked; it was very consistent with no bad episodes.
You don't need to watch the two series together, but if you want to, sure, why not.
Buffy season 7 is probably the weakest. Towards the end it feels like the writers are running out of steam as they head for the finish line. I like a lot of season 6. The musical ep for me is the low point. Of the early seasons, I think season 2 is overlooked; it was very consistent with no bad episodes.
You don't need to watch the two series together, but if you want to, sure, why not.
I've never understood the objections to the Cordelia story arc in ANGEL Season 4, and personally quite enjoy that season overall, in spite of some disconnect between it and BtVS Season 7 vis a vis Willow's characterization during her guest spot in Orpheus.
As far as favorite seasons go, my personal rankings are as follows:
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
S6
S5/S3 (tie)
S2/S4 (tie)
S1
S7
ANGEL
S2
S5/S4 (tie)
S3
S1
As far as favorite seasons go, my personal rankings are as follows:
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
S6
S5/S3 (tie)
S2/S4 (tie)
S1
S7
ANGEL
S2
S5/S4 (tie)
S3
S1
Me neither. It's one of the best episodes.
And a lot of the singing...
And when possible, they assigned the songs accordingly, like giving Amber Benson this whole love song to sing in her glorious voice while Alyson Hannigan had maybe two or three sung lines in the whole episode.
OMWF is my favourite Buffy episode. Yes Amber and Tony definitely had the best voices (love their overlapping duet!) but I applaud everyone else that wasn't a singer for trying. Walk Through The Fire is my favourite because it more than any other, was about the heart of the show. Buffy is the Slayer, most would think doomed to be alone and yet she has this group of friends who are always there to help.
The Body was beautifully done.
The Body was beautifully done.
For all the praise that Once More with Feeling does rightfully receive, it's by no means the strongest episode of Season 6 (IMO, that honor goes to Villains) or even of the series as a whole (an honor that, IMO, goes to The Gift).
The main reason I like "Once More With Feeling" is because it's actually important. Musical episodes tend to be rather gimmicky. They're fun diversion, but they don't often have much substance to them.
"Once More with Feeling" somehow manages to be a musical episode that actually drives the story forward in very significant ways.
You'll get no argument from me. OMWF does definitely deserve the praise and acclaim it gets (for all of the reasons you just mentioned, and more besides); I just happen to think Villains is the best episode of S6 as a whole.
Amber and Tony were singled out above as having standout performances in OMWF, but, for me, it's Sarah Michelle Gellar who 'steals the show' (especially in Something to Sing About).
"The Body" was one of the most brilliantly written and directed episodes in TV history. Unfortunately, it premiered around the one year anniversary of my wife's mother's death after a horrible months-long illness. Needless to say, it affected her badly, and also needless to say, she won't ever be watching it again.
Sarah was damn brave for taking front-and-center in a musical, knowing that singing wasn't one of her gifts. She done good. Though it took her a while to figure out if she was going to pronounce her Rs while singing.
"Walk Thru the Fire" is, IMHO, every bit as good as any show-stopping tune ever. I'm fairly sure Joss used "Tonight/Quintet" from West Side Story as his inspiration, and as far as I'm concerned, he nailed it. And those fire trucks!
Xena's musical episode "The Bitter Suite" did the same -- it was really, really important to the arc. Xena was pretty good at giving real importance to the weird gimmicky episodes, like the one that was inexplicably presented as a TV documentary taking place in antiquity before TV existed. It totally blew apart the fourth wall and didn't seem like it belonged in the show's reality (insofar as it had one), but it advanced some major story and character threads and couldn't not be part of the ongoing narrative. (Although there was another Xena musical episode that was just a disposable comedy scored with covers of pop songs -- that one didn't work well at all.)
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