From: owner-stillpt-digest@smoe.org (stillpt-digest) To: stillpt-digest@smoe.org Subject: stillpt-digest V5 #33 Reply-To: stillpt@smoe.org Sender: owner-stillpt-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-stillpt-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk stillpt-digest Wednesday, February 19 2003 Volume 05 : Number 033 Today's Subjects: ----------------- b/get it done ["Donald G. Keller" ] Re: b/get it done [Todd Huff ] Re: b/get it done [Todd Huff ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 18 Feb 2003 23:50:11 -0500 (EST) From: "Donald G. Keller" Subject: b/get it done Twice through the episode, and some notes. Onward across the Deadly Spoiler Space: Very special-effects-heavy episode. Also dialog-heavy. Very good dialog. I missed quite a few lines the first time through. Anybody else feel like the "Previously..." was rather long, and rather less economical than usual? As the episode began, I said, "Ah--Buffy walks through dark place, ominous music plays--they've never done =that= before, ha ha." Then: "Is she dreaming?" Then, when she woke up, excitedly: "Buffy had a dream!" Pretty good one, too, with two significant prophetic bits: Chloe (who must have been conversing with the First at that moment) and the First Slayer saying "it's not enough." Well done. (Unfortunately, I'd read a spoiler, so I knew there was going to be a suicide, and after the dream I knew it was going to be Chloe.) Anya and Spike going out drinking was pretty funny, especially when she called him "Scooter." I didn't remember until just now that we already knew that D'Hoffryn was sending demons to kill Anya (Buffy saved her on an earlier occasion). Wonder how that's going to play out with everything else. Anya had one of the two clever self-referential lines in the episode: "I provide much-needed sarcasm." The other being Buffy's two-part statement that "it usually blows about May" and "we're a little ahead of schedule." Nice to know the writers know what they're doing... Gotta love trying-too-hard Andrew's "Big Board" with its little devil masks for the First... So how many Potentials are on hand now? It looked like 17 (4x4 plus Kennedy) out in the yard. Kennedy enjoying being a drill sergeant was a kick. (Although she has to think now that she had a little to do with Chloe's fate.) Also amusing was Willow's saying Principal Wood was "so much cooler than Snyder." And did you catch the reference to =Bring It On= (the cheerleader movie that soon-to-be-here Eliza Dushku was in)? Had to laugh as well at Buffy and Wood's exchange about Willow almost destroying the world--yep, best not make her crabby. (Or grieve-y.) The whole episode, the tension between Spike and Wood was terrifically done. If I forgot to say it last time, Wood is the other new continuing character (besides Kennedy) who has been brought to the fore and (speaking of the actor now) done an excellent job. Good stuff about him talking to Buffy in her office about her professional opinion, and persuading her to bring him over to Command Central (and, oh by the way, getting him a closer look at Spike). (Do we think either Spike or Buffy suspect the truth?) Spike on having a soul: he's "unique--well, more or less." Gotta love it. The suicide scene was well-handled, the various reactions of the characters, the First's posturing, Buffy's "Dawn--where's that knife?" Which led directly to Buffy's hardass speech; notice which people spoke up against her, and in which order--Kennedy, Xander, Willow. And then the little set-to between Buffy and Spike--which it turned out he needed. Really loved the whole bit with the shadow-casters (which I'm guessing were influenced by Balinese? Javanese? shadow-puppets). Spooky and mythic. Dawn said she was translating from Sumerian, but when we got the glimpse of the book (I slo-mo-ed through it), it wasn't in Sumerian (not cuneiform)--it =appeared= to be Greek, but I couldn't see it all too clearly. (And if it wasn't obvious, the book was translating itself line by line; the key line Dawn wasn't clear on was "they filled her with dark." "Chained her to the earth" was another interesting line, given what transpired after.) Have to admit I laughed at Xander's calling the demon the "exchange student." Also got a giggle out of Kennedy's battle-yell, and Dawn's battle-squeak. And Xander (again) telling Willow it was "spell o'clock." Maybe the funniest line was Willow's "Mighty forces, I suck at Latin!" (There were more one-liners I didn't write down.) And of course there was that swell "Restless" vibe: the desert! the drony music! the cool Joshua tree in the background! Deep magic from the dawn of time! (extraneous Narnia reference). I thought it was interesting that the three wise men (for lack of a better term--Buffy called them "shadow men" at the end) were referring to the black non-water "demony dust" as the "energy of the demon--its spirit--its heart," which accords with the other hints we've had earlier that the Slayer's power is in some way demonic--kind of "demony vaccine," to coin a phrase. So did Buffy make a mistake? She's always resisted the idea of the Slayer's demonic nature, always tried very hard to hold on to her humanity; but it's possible that the fate of the world may have depended on her stubbornness--or so she fears. OK, so I'm confused. Where did Spike go to get his coat? Buffy's basement? Or the school basement? Seemed to be the school; why was Wood there? Did he follow Spike? (Now that I think about it, he was conspicuously absent from Buffy's from before Willow's spell.) I completely missed the first time through (but I guess we were supposed to) that when the remaining Shadow Man touched Buffy's face and said "As you wish" (or words to that effect) in answer to Buffy's "Tell me something I don't know" that that's when she had the vision of the Turok-Han army. (Some wag on another list said that what he showed her was "a preview of =The Return of the King=." A similar thought occurred to me.) Lastly, for now, Kennedy and Willow. Kennedy has been very frank about her distrust (maybe disdain is better) for magic (that "Kumbaya" comment was very pointed--but see Buffy's "Hokey Pokey"). Now she's gotten a taste of it--and seems Willow was right when she said Kennedy wouldn't want to see Big Bad Willow. Not so cool. A very interesting development. In sum: another very enjoyable episode, and I think a number of things have been at least inched forward a bit. And only another week until the next. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 18 Feb 2003 21:32:10 -0800 (PST) From: Todd Huff Subject: Re: b/get it done - --- "Donald G. Keller" wrote: > Twice through the episode, and some notes. Onward > across the Deadly > Spoiler Space: > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Anybody else feel like the "Previously..." was > rather long, and rather > less economical than usual? Yes indeed. I wonder if the episode was just running a bit short, or they were filling in people who hadn't watched in a while. > > Pretty good one, too, with two significant prophetic > bits: Chloe (who must > have been conversing with the First at that moment) > and the First Slayer > saying "it's not enough." Well done. I was a little surprised she didn't do a walkabout right after she woke up. > Anya and Spike going out drinking was pretty funny, > especially when she > called him "Scooter." I didn't remember until just > now that we already > knew that D'Hoffryn was sending demons to kill Anya > (Buffy saved her on an > earlier occasion). Wonder how that's going to play > out with everything > else. I've been pondering this myself. Willow could probably summon him again, and Buffy would figure out some way to kill him before he teleported. Perhaps they'll threaten him to get more info on the First? > Gotta love trying-too-hard Andrew's "Big Board" with > its little devil > masks for the First... And Buffy later referred to him as "the brains of the outfit" or something similar. He'd have blushed to hear that. > > Also amusing was Willow's saying Principal Wood was > "so much cooler than > Snyder." And did you catch the reference to =Bring > It On= (the cheerleader > movie that soon-to-be-here Eliza Dushku was in)? Sure made me snigger. > The whole episode, the tension between Spike and > Wood was terrifically > done. If I forgot to say it last time, Wood is the > other new continuing > character (besides Kennedy) who has been brought to > the fore and (speaking > of the actor now) done an excellent job. Good stuff > about him talking to > Buffy in her office about her professional opinion, > and persuading her to > bring him over to Command Central (and, oh by the > way, getting him a > closer look at Spike). (Do we think either Spike or > Buffy suspect the > truth?) What truth? > > Spike on having a soul: he's "unique--well, more or > less." Gotta love it. Less, at the moment. :P > Have to admit I laughed at Xander's calling the > demon the "exchange > student." Also got a giggle out of Kennedy's > battle-yell, and Dawn's > battle-squeak. And Xander (again) telling Willow it > was "spell o'clock." > Maybe the funniest line was Willow's "Mighty forces, > I suck at > Latin!" (There were more one-liners I didn't write > down.) And that was when she took charge, like Buffy was hoping. She's not afraid of her power anymore, or at least is more willing to use it. > > And of course there was that swell "Restless" vibe: > the desert! the drony > music! the cool Joshua tree in the background! Deep > magic from the dawn > of time! (extraneous Narnia reference). I thought it > was interesting that > the three wise men (for lack of a better term--Buffy > called them "shadow > men" at the end) were referring to the black > non-water "demony dust" as > the "energy of the demon--its spirit--its heart," > which accords with the > other hints we've had earlier that the Slayer's > power is in some way > demonic--kind of "demony vaccine," to coin a phrase. And brings back the discussion between Buffy and Adam-as-human in "Restless" as well. > > So did Buffy make a mistake? She's always resisted > the idea of the > Slayer's demonic nature, always tried very hard to > hold on to her > humanity; but it's possible that the fate of the > world may have depended > on her stubbornness--or so she fears. She's got to go with her gut instinct, and she sensed that what was going on was wrong. I think it will prove to be the correct choice, although either would have it's own consequences. > > OK, so I'm confused. Where did Spike go to get his > coat? Buffy's basement? > Or the school basement? Seemed to be the school; why > was Wood there? Did > he follow Spike? (Now that I think about it, he was > conspicuously absent > from Buffy's from before Willow's spell.) I think it was the school, and Wood might have been either following him or just catching up on work. > > I completely missed the first time through (but I > guess we were supposed > to) that when the remaining Shadow Man touched > Buffy's face and said "As > you wish" (or words to that effect) in answer to > Buffy's "Tell me > something I don't know" that that's when she had the > vision of the > Turok-Han army. (Some wag on another list said that > what he showed her was > "a preview of =The Return of the King=." A similar > thought occurred to > me.) And the exchange demon looked like a Uruk-hai. What Buffy asked for was knowledge rather than power, and that's what she finally got. . Yahoo! Shopping - Send Flowers for Valentine's Day http://shopping.yahoo.com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 18 Feb 2003 21:32:10 -0800 (PST) From: Todd Huff Subject: Re: b/get it done - --- "Donald G. Keller" wrote: > Twice through the episode, and some notes. Onward > across the Deadly > Spoiler Space: > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Anybody else feel like the "Previously..." was > rather long, and rather > less economical than usual? Yes indeed. I wonder if the episode was just running a bit short, or they were filling in people who hadn't watched in a while. > > Pretty good one, too, with two significant prophetic > bits: Chloe (who must > have been conversing with the First at that moment) > and the First Slayer > saying "it's not enough." Well done. I was a little surprised she didn't do a walkabout right after she woke up. > Anya and Spike going out drinking was pretty funny, > especially when she > called him "Scooter." I didn't remember until just > now that we already > knew that D'Hoffryn was sending demons to kill Anya > (Buffy saved her on an > earlier occasion). Wonder how that's going to play > out with everything > else. I've been pondering this myself. Willow could probably summon him again, and Buffy would figure out some way to kill him before he teleported. Perhaps they'll threaten him to get more info on the First? > Gotta love trying-too-hard Andrew's "Big Board" with > its little devil > masks for the First... And Buffy later referred to him as "the brains of the outfit" or something similar. He'd have blushed to hear that. > > Also amusing was Willow's saying Principal Wood was > "so much cooler than > Snyder." And did you catch the reference to =Bring > It On= (the cheerleader > movie that soon-to-be-here Eliza Dushku was in)? Sure made me snigger. > The whole episode, the tension between Spike and > Wood was terrifically > done. If I forgot to say it last time, Wood is the > other new continuing > character (besides Kennedy) who has been brought to > the fore and (speaking > of the actor now) done an excellent job. Good stuff > about him talking to > Buffy in her office about her professional opinion, > and persuading her to > bring him over to Command Central (and, oh by the > way, getting him a > closer look at Spike). (Do we think either Spike or > Buffy suspect the > truth?) What truth? > > Spike on having a soul: he's "unique--well, more or > less." Gotta love it. Less, at the moment. :P > Have to admit I laughed at Xander's calling the > demon the "exchange > student." Also got a giggle out of Kennedy's > battle-yell, and Dawn's > battle-squeak. And Xander (again) telling Willow it > was "spell o'clock." > Maybe the funniest line was Willow's "Mighty forces, > I suck at > Latin!" (There were more one-liners I didn't write > down.) And that was when she took charge, like Buffy was hoping. She's not afraid of her power anymore, or at least is more willing to use it. > > And of course there was that swell "Restless" vibe: > the desert! the drony > music! the cool Joshua tree in the background! Deep > magic from the dawn > of time! (extraneous Narnia reference). I thought it > was interesting that > the three wise men (for lack of a better term--Buffy > called them "shadow > men" at the end) were referring to the black > non-water "demony dust" as > the "energy of the demon--its spirit--its heart," > which accords with the > other hints we've had earlier that the Slayer's > power is in some way > demonic--kind of "demony vaccine," to coin a phrase. And brings back the discussion between Buffy and Adam-as-human in "Restless" as well. > > So did Buffy make a mistake? She's always resisted > the idea of the > Slayer's demonic nature, always tried very hard to > hold on to her > humanity; but it's possible that the fate of the > world may have depended > on her stubbornness--or so she fears. She's got to go with her gut instinct, and she sensed that what was going on was wrong. I think it will prove to be the correct choice, although either would have it's own consequences. > > OK, so I'm confused. Where did Spike go to get his > coat? Buffy's basement? > Or the school basement? Seemed to be the school; why > was Wood there? Did > he follow Spike? (Now that I think about it, he was > conspicuously absent > from Buffy's from before Willow's spell.) I think it was the school, and Wood might have been either following him or just catching up on work. > > I completely missed the first time through (but I > guess we were supposed > to) that when the remaining Shadow Man touched > Buffy's face and said "As > you wish" (or words to that effect) in answer to > Buffy's "Tell me > something I don't know" that that's when she had the > vision of the > Turok-Han army. (Some wag on another list said that > what he showed her was > "a preview of =The Return of the King=." A similar > thought occurred to > me.) And the exchange demon looked like a Uruk-hai. What Buffy asked for was knowledge rather than power, and that's what she finally got. . Yahoo! Shopping - Send Flowers for Valentine's Day http://shopping.yahoo.com ------------------------------ End of stillpt-digest V5 #33 ****************************