I don't understand the level of negativity in some of these other reviews towards Buffy as a series in general. But I agree about two things.
1. Buffy season 7, at least up to this point, is terrible. Season 6 was shaky but ultimately redeemed. And I wasn't crazy about the execution of the military Frankenstein arc in season 4, particularly with the largely one note soldier boyfriend who miraculously made David Boreanaz come edgy and exotic in contrast (though I like both actors, just the characters seemed to have been designed to never threaten Buffy's spotlight which is understandable). Season 5's "big bad" was pretty great. that season competes with Faith heavy season 3 as the series' best....after that all the best stuff ended up on Angel.
2. Help is an utterly sickening episode. A total anomaly in the series, and almost a prototype for everything n high school that made me cringe back in the day. I mean, really. the guest star goes to Buffy with a problem she could hardly get any more melodramatic about building up, then says, oh, nothing, forget it. I can't tell you. Less a cry for help and more like a plea for attention. there's a difference. the episode seems to have been written by somebody who wore band aids for affect and confuses that with people who really struggled with things in their teen years beyond boredom and not being as popular as they'd like.
I'm all for episodes that stand on their own. But this doesn't. And it seemed to think it was speaking to "issues." At the end the gang sit around at home sharing a cry and Dawn implores to know the meaning of it all. the girl died of a heart malfunction. She knows Spike's and Buffy's thoughts intimately but can't tell her parents are hiding something from her? And oh yeah, the way Buffy barges in on the father accusing him of beating his daughter because he has a booze issue, to which the daughter is like thanks for trying (still not helping the Scoobies and they still jump through her hoops). What? I've never felt this series had its own head so far its own ass before. Baffling.
I'd like to rent the DVDs if there are any commentaries here. I feel like I want an explanation for the level of badness achieved here. ha-ha.
I really dig the show in general. And I was mourning being so close to the end. But now suddenly I'm thinking Whedon did himself and everybody a favor by ending this thing when he did.
1. Buffy season 7, at least up to this point, is terrible. Season 6 was shaky but ultimately redeemed. And I wasn't crazy about the execution of the military Frankenstein arc in season 4, particularly with the largely one note soldier boyfriend who miraculously made David Boreanaz come edgy and exotic in contrast (though I like both actors, just the characters seemed to have been designed to never threaten Buffy's spotlight which is understandable). Season 5's "big bad" was pretty great. that season competes with Faith heavy season 3 as the series' best....after that all the best stuff ended up on Angel.
2. Help is an utterly sickening episode. A total anomaly in the series, and almost a prototype for everything n high school that made me cringe back in the day. I mean, really. the guest star goes to Buffy with a problem she could hardly get any more melodramatic about building up, then says, oh, nothing, forget it. I can't tell you. Less a cry for help and more like a plea for attention. there's a difference. the episode seems to have been written by somebody who wore band aids for affect and confuses that with people who really struggled with things in their teen years beyond boredom and not being as popular as they'd like.
I'm all for episodes that stand on their own. But this doesn't. And it seemed to think it was speaking to "issues." At the end the gang sit around at home sharing a cry and Dawn implores to know the meaning of it all. the girl died of a heart malfunction. She knows Spike's and Buffy's thoughts intimately but can't tell her parents are hiding something from her? And oh yeah, the way Buffy barges in on the father accusing him of beating his daughter because he has a booze issue, to which the daughter is like thanks for trying (still not helping the Scoobies and they still jump through her hoops). What? I've never felt this series had its own head so far its own ass before. Baffling.
I'd like to rent the DVDs if there are any commentaries here. I feel like I want an explanation for the level of badness achieved here. ha-ha.
I really dig the show in general. And I was mourning being so close to the end. But now suddenly I'm thinking Whedon did himself and everybody a favor by ending this thing when he did.
