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Buffy ep by ep; rewatch and reviews

Surely a girl as attractive as Buffy could get a better job than waitress in LA?

When does it say she's in LA? I've seen this episode a few times and I've always missed that. I know Anne/Lilly later meets Angel in LA but she could have moved on again.
 
I'm pretty sure it was stated it took place in LA.

As for the Hunga Munga, the "Buffy Power" shot of her weilding it is one of my favorite images from the series. I even used it as an avatar on another board:
hungamunga.jpg
 
It's definitely the best "power shot." What's funny is the last two aren't actually Buffy. They're Buffy Bot and The First. :lol:
 
It's definitely the best "power shot." What's funny is the last two aren't actually Buffy. They're Buffy Bot and The First. :lol:

Yeah I noticed that too

Dead Man's Party

The Good;
Cordy's outfit, Buffy's homecoming. Joyce's friend Pat. Jonathon. The attack of the undead, another Sunnydale High cheerleader seemingly amongst them. Giles's 'Americans' line and his hotwiring the car. Oz's party definitions. 'Ripper' threatening Snyder

The Bad;
Before Giles arrives the house is full of zombies, after he gets there they all disappear? Also would Joyce really choose to hang that horrible mask in the bedroom, even if it is art?

Best line;
Oz; "And a hootenany. Well that's chock full of hoot. With just a little bit of nanny" (How effortlessly cool is Seth Green in this scene?)

Wheldon Cliches;
Character death; So long Pat, we hardly knew you. But at least the actress goes on to be Earl's mum in 'My Name is Earl'
Shot;
Tied up; none although when Xander says he's tied up tomorrow Cordy says 'You wish'??????
Knocked out;
Women good/men bad;
Kinky dinky; Buffy is aghast that Joyce wants her to go to private school where she'll have to wear a schoolgirl's uniform. Well it worked for Britney. Cordy says that Xander turned her on with the whole 'Nighthawk' vamphunter look (she also seemed to like him in his army gear in Halloween) Her party dress has to be seen to be believed. Also see 'Tied Up'
Calling Captain Subtext; this time it's Oz and Cordy who end up in the closet together

Questions and observations;
So where is Dawn in all of this? Snyder advises Buffy to get a job in fast food which she eventually does. The confrontation between Joyce and Buffy is really long overdue and Joyce really does have a point. Willow is studying to be witch. Jonathon gets in on the demon fighting for the first time as do Joyce and Devon. After this it's business as usual and we're glad to get back to the status quo in Sunnydale. Joyce's tipple is schnapps and she has a book club (which she later attends in season 5). She also skis to judge by the weapons Oz and Cordy use in the closet. Xander calls himself Nighthawk on patrol, they seem to be pretty good at the vamp staking, having killed at least 6. I'd love to see if they handled any other supernatural threats during the summer. The Mayor is mentioned again and the first appearance of the Expresso Pump. Cordy refers to Buffy as a freak but she'll later become one herself on Angel. Presumably the Watcher's Council used their influence to help get Buffy back in school (see also Checkpoint). Willow is still practicing witchcraft and growing more proficient.
6/10, good but not brilliant
 
Kinky dinky; Buffy is aghast that Joyce wants her to go to private school where she'll have to wear a schoolgirl's uniform.

This bit of the episode always reminds me of Welcome to the Hellmouth (I think), where Angel remarks on Darla's attire, and she replies that she's wearing the Catholic schoolgirl get up because he's mooning after a schoolgirl.
 
Best line;
Oz; "And a hootenany. Well that's chock full of hoot. With just a little bit of nanny" (How effortlessly cool is Seth Green in this scene?)

That's a very quotable one indeed. There's also some neat dialogue from before the credits:

"Joyce: It cheers up the room.
Buffy: (looking at the mask) It's angry at the room, Mom. It wants the room to suffer."

and

"Buffy: I'd like to find Willow and Xander.
Joyce: Will you be slaying?
Buffy: Only if they give me lip.".
 
But I'm not going to go back through 268 reviews and change Wheldon to Whedon, it would wear out the L key on my computer

That's fine, but you're still doing it.

I realize it's probably a copy/paste, but take the minimal effort required to fix it going forward, please.
 
Best line;
Oz; "And a hootenany. Well that's chock full of hoot. With just a little bit of nanny" (How effortlessly cool is Seth Green in this scene?)

That's a very quotable one indeed. There's also some neat dialogue from before the credits:

"Joyce: It cheers up the room.
Buffy: (looking at the mask) It's angry at the room, Mom. It wants the room to suffer."

and

"Buffy: I'd like to find Willow and Xander.
Joyce: Will you be slaying?
Buffy: Only if they give me lip.".

Seth Green's effortlessly cool in just about every Buffy scene he's in. :cool:

There's some other funny lines in Dead Mans Party, too. I cracked up laughing the first time I heard Giles say something along the lines of " 'Do you like my mask? It raises the dead?' Americans!":lol:
 
I always did think Joyce and Giles should have had more than that one hook up after Joyce found out about her being the Slayer. I mean, Buffy would have been a bit icked by it all, but heh it would have been funny with Joyce getting some action.
 
Surely a girl as attractive as Buffy could get a better job than waitress in LA? (Xander later wonders the same as he wants to know if Buffy met 'any nice pimps on her travels'?) 'Pretty Woman'? Belle du jour? Weren't Hooters or Spearmint |Rhino hiring? She's in LA, what about Playboy? (or would that mean Xander would be certain to spot her?). Ok I'm not entirely serious but honestly when did you ever see a girl as pretty as Buffy working as a waitress except in TV/Movies?

Restaurants in LA are filled to the brim with girls as pretty as Buffy waiting on tables. It's the job of choice for 90% of the wanna be actresses that stream into the city on a regular basis.
 
Ctrl-F Replace

Tried it, didn't work on my computer

Faith, Hope and Trick

The Good;
Faith. Need I really say any more?
Faith dancing and fighting is great but also the scenes where we get to see her terrified, more vulnerable side. Love the scenes where Buffy is being single-white-femaled by Faith which she takes with suprising good humour. And Angel's back, yay!
Love Joyce sticking it to Snyder and the uncoupling scene at Buffy's picnic.

The Bad;
The idea of Mr Trick being able to order children online as food is just too horrible for words

Best line; Mr Trick "Admittedly not a haven for the bruthas, strictly of the Caucasion persuasion here in the Dale" just beating Xander's wonderful "People say kids don't learn anything at High School. well I learnt, I learnt to be afraid!"

Wheldon Cliches;
Character death;
Shot;
Tied up; no but presumably Faith was handcuffed when she was arrested
Knocked out;
Women good/men bad;
Kinky dinky; Now that Faith is on the scene I expect to have a great deal more to write in this column. She starts off with naked slaying and alligator wrestling and saying Slaying makes you 'hungry and horny' (of course in Get It Done we discover why Slayers have these sort of feelings). And of course, the writers find an excuse for nude Angel too. According to Willow Buffy has a thing she does with her mouth that 'boys like'. Hmmmmm? Xander calls Buffy a slut. Buffy's fondling of the letter opener is reminiscent of her stroking the crystal in 'Helpless'. Cordy refers to Faith as 'Slut-o-rama' but also suggests that she dress up as a Slayer and put a stake to Xander's throat, a sex game he seems keen on.
Calling Captain Subtext; Faith obviously hungers for both a mother and father figure, commenting on Giles' 'youth and beauty' and obviously enamoured of Joyce, saying she's really cool (something I suspect Buffy and Dawn would also think but never say). Joyce says she likes Faith and Buffy describes Joyce as the 'best mom ever'. Faith's line about her 'Dead mother hitting harder than that' is loaded with not so hidden meaning. Faith has not only never knew her dad but lost her mother and also her female Watcher making her pretty desperate for some maternal/paternal love. So I pronounce this Jaith and Gaith. She also starts putting the moves on Scott Hope, the beginning of a long tradition of stealing Buffy's boyfriends (Buffy is still touchy when Faith mentions Angel). BUT even Buffy describes Faith as 'personable' the beginning of the biggest subtext in the series. Joyce actually refers to marching in the 'Slayer pride parade' again likening being the Slayer to being gay.

Questions and observations;
The introduction of Mr Trick and Faith, the series just never looking back from this point. Kakistos seems to not be killable with a regular stake. Like The Master he seems to be so old that he's devolving into a Turok-Han. Martha Stewart is mentioned as she is later revealed by Anya to be a witch. Giles' subtle efforts to get Buffy to reveal the truth about what happened to Angel (another point against Normal Again, Buffy never knows about this). There are no leprechauns in the Buffyverse but judging by DB's attempts at an Irish accent and Charmed's efforts in that direction we should be grateful. Faith's dead Watcher was female, the first we've heard about. I know some people think that she was killed during Faith's Cruciamentum which we'll later see in Helpless but that happens when a Slayer turns 18 and Faith is younger than Buffy who is 17 (Buffy refers to Faith as her little sister, at least until Dawn comes along). Giles loves to kayak. Couldn't the Watcher's Council pay for Faith to have a better apartment? Or couldn't she live with Giles or Buffy and Joyce (Dawn's room isn't being used yet). Mr Trick is right, not many visible ethnic minorities in Sunnydale but I've been to Santa Barbara which it's apparently based on and it's a pretty accurate representation. Giles warns Willow for the first time about abuse of magic. You can make fire from ice and it doesn't take magic. Presumably Khakisto's scar doesn't heal because Faith inflicted it with some form of enchanted weapon, like Spike's with the Chinise Slayer. Joyce comments on Buffy being an only child and learns for the first time that Buffy died. You wonder what Dawn makes of Faith? She resents her when they first meet in season 7 but what's her attitude on season 3?

Why no commentaries on all these brilliant episodes? Crap like Reptile Boy gets them but not classics like this? Please Joss, if you need a few million dollars to finance your next project just sit down with the cast and do some commentaries for Buffy; Special Edition DVDs, we'd all buy them.

10/10
 
<TITLE>

The Good;

The Bad;

Best line;

Whedon Cliches;
Character death;
Shot;
Tied up;
Knocked out;
Women good/men bad;
Kinky dinky;
Calling Captain Subtext;

Questions and observations;

<RATING

Here, I fixed your template so you'll no longer misspell the damn name.
 
It's been interesting watching season 3 this time around and seeing what a bone of contention Angel is between Faith and Buffy. Faith starts off by being intrigued by Buffy's relationship with Angel ("What about you? You boned the undead") and it just goes down hill from there on.
 
<TITLE>

The Good;

The Bad;

Best line;

Whedon Cliches;
Character death;
Shot;
Tied up;
Knocked out;
Women good/men bad;
Kinky dinky;
Calling Captain Subtext;

Questions and observations;

<RATING

Here, I fixed your template so you'll no longer misspell the damn name.

Thanks for the effort but I've already finished my reviews:(

Beauty and the Beasts;

The Good;
Faith dancing, Buffy hunting and capturing Angel, Buffy's scenes with the counsellor, Willow's concern for Oz.

The Bad;
Pete's makeup is pretty stupid looking, I think the writers probably had more in mind a Bruce Banner halfway through his Hulk transformation rather than the rather daft way he is portrayed

Best line;
Oz; (mid fight with Pete, seeing the moon rise) " Times up. Rules change!" Great line, very similar to Roddy McDowell's exchange with his vampire foe in Fright Night as he sees the sun rise "Daylight Mr Dandridge, you're out of time"

Wheldon Cliches;
Character death; Platt becomes the 7th member of the SDH faculty to die in 3 years. Lord knows how many SDH students have died, I think Hellmouthcentral.com did a survey once, I'll look it up
Shot; yep, Oz again and Giles
Tied up; Angel. In case you're wondering the chains Buffy uses aren't her own, she knocks Dru's dolls off the chest they're contained in.
Knocked out; Oz, Giles and Angel whilst Willow faints. Buffy tells Faith to knock herself out but not literally.
Women good/men bad; the entire episode, about as close as Buffy ever becomes to being truly misandrist (the rumoured original title was 'All men are beasts'). Whilst Pete is obviously the villain here you have to blame Debbie to some degree, she knows what's going on and doesn't do anything to stop it, even though people are dying. Whilst it's worthy to tackle spousal abuse you do feel slightly bashed over the head by the not so subtle point. Faith says "All men are beasts" which seems a little unfair. She also refers to Manimal which again seems weird for a 17 year old in 1998 to refer to a tv show that lasted exactly 8 eps in 1983 (thank you IMDB). Again, something a bunch of 30 year old scriptwriters might be big fans off.
Kinky dinky; Naked Angel in chains. Ok, miraculously Angel seems to have acquired himself a pair of trousers despite his feral nature, keeping his dignity, like the Hulk. Willow says she's seen Oz 'half-monty', as Xander says, which half? Xander has seen Oz 'full-monty', presumably in the school showers but who knows? He seems very panicky explaining the use of his term 'handling'. Faith refers to the 'good lowdown tickle'. When Oz refers to two students 'fooling around' Faith automatically assumes 'They were screwing', shows how her mind works! Jerk Pete calls Debbie a whore as an insult.
Calling Captain Subtext; Buffy is horrified at the idea of a girls school with uniforms and 'no boys' but I think that would make a good series in itself. Scott asks if Barbie ever wonders why Ken doesn't come around any more now he's got an earring. No wonder she always dumped him for Action Man. He also says that you never really know what's going on inside someone. Hmmmm?

Questions and observations;
Mr Platt smokes, probably the last time we'll ever see that in a teen show. Willow's reading from 'Call of the Wild' is interesting when you compare it to what Verucca says later. It could also apply to the Slayer's nature when we later see what Faith and Buffy get up to and what the first Slayer is like and why she's like that. What happens to Oz's clothes when he transforms whilst fighting Pete? Sunnydale High's marching jazz band is mentioned which Amanda is part of in season 7. Platt's remarks about being love's dog are interesting in comparison with Spike referring to being 'Love's Bitca' in Lover's Walk. Faith refers to going crazy and 'Get out of jail free' which she one day will do both. Will offers Buffy a jelly doughnut which we will see again in The Zeppo. Will actually saves Faith here. Cordy is missing for most of the ep.
It's a good enough ep but it's not terrific
6/10
 
I really like Beauty and the Beasts. I know it can be a controversial episode, but I think I might like it because of that. It has a pressurised, claustrophobic atmosphere that I think evokes the secrecy and emotions of domestic violence.

I was amused that Willow uses a Scooby Doo lunch box to take the samples in the morgue. Is this the episode where Willow gets WereOz's attention by pulling his tail? That amused me no end. :lol:

It amused me that Angel gets a pair of trousers early in the episode and a pair of shoes later but still no shirt.
 
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