'BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER' Season 1 dvd challenge! (1 Viewer)

[Jay_B!]

yes, I am with Nick on this. Like I stated before, Buffy is not the only show I have on DVD, therefore it's not the only TV-DVD I watch, 1 disc a week more than suffices when you consider that there's like 5 or 6 other shows I'm in the process of watching as well.

 

[Nick Martin]

So sense was made...

Buffy early season 1.

DS9 mid season 6.

only 2 shows, and I struggle with when to watch what.

 

[Wendy_L]

Yes, I understand what you are saying. And Jay, I'm watching several other shows as well.

So, everyone just do what you can and what you want to do. The thread doesn't have to be really structured. The "2 Discs Per Week" is just a guideline so people won't be talking about episodes from S2 before we get there. Got it?

I will be watching 2 discs per week and I will only be commenting on those two discs for the next week.

 

[Ruz-El]

I'm a little ahead, as we are watching these as we can at work. So Wendy's plan is fine. I'm basuically going by episode /story arc (2 parters get one "review", so I'll use Wendy's guide so I'm not posting too far ahead

1.5 : Never Kill A Boy On The First Date 3.5/5

In which our heroine discovers that love hurts.

This is the first episode that seemed like a “Buffy” episode to me. It was also the first one that had Buffy actually doing something interesting character wise. We get a better sense of her coming to terms with her legacy, as well as the cost of that legacy. All the actors were pretty top notch, and the group as a whole finally seemed comfortable and confident in their roles. The episode itself was fun, and there was a lot of serial story advancement. This series is starting to feel like the X-Files to a degree, where they are alternating between Serial and “Monster of the Week” stories. I guess time well only tell if Buffy suffers the same fate of X-Files, where the serial story has so many twists that it pretty much stops making any sense.

 

[Kevin Grey]

Never happens- Buffy has straight up seasonal arcs plotwise so pretty much everything is resolved at the end of each season. Outside of maybe Seasons 2 & 4, the show pretty much could have ended at the finish of each season and would have been pretty satisfying.

 

[Johnny S]

Well if you guys want to go 2 discs per week it's fine with me, but I may not be able to keep up with the pace. I have about a zillion un-watched sets collecting dust right now. But it's no big deal to me.

 

[Nick Martin]

That's how the end of tonight's Everwood series finale felt - like the end of Buffy season 2...Imagine how people would feel if that didn't get renewed at the time, considering how that season finished.

Damnit I'm pissed...

 

[Kevin Grey]

I don't watch Everwood but I really wish that either creators wouldn't leave things hanging at the end of a season if there is any doubt about a show returning or, even better, networks could make their fall scheduling decisions a bit earlier so the cast and crew can have some notice and try and wrap things up. We were pretty lucky that it was the latter with both Angel and Buffy.

 

[Inspector Hammer!]

Are we having fun yet?

Wendy and I were talking last night after our screenings of the next three eps and we were commenting on how this challenge has breathed new life into the series and made it seem fresh again, indeed, this is the best time i've had watching it since it originally aired. It's so cool watching it now and just reminising and looking at it with distant affection.

Wendy even commented that Teachers Pet wasn't as bad as she had remembered, which is an indication that maybe the show get's better with age and eps that you may not have cared for back then, you may appreciate more now.

Never Kill a Boy on the First Date

As was mentioned, this is where Buffy gets her first disappointment and she realizes that her calling as the slayer will prohibit her life to a degree, especially in these crucial first years where she is just learning. Giles, while pushy, is guiding her the best way he knows how and that will make her a stronger slayer, even if it does mean that she'll miss the occasional outing with friends or a date.

And so, we're introduced to the "anointed one", a villain that really doesn't amount to much in the long run and I for one was happy Spike kills the brat just for fun.


Another fun ep that also incorporated the suggested message of responsability at the cost of free time.

The Pack

This is one of my favorites from the first season and could possibly be the very first ep i'd ever seen of the show. Nicholas Brendan showed here that he could become a pretty intense villain as he finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time along with some trouble-makers in the zoo's Hyena house.

I like this episode because of the way it mixes humor, teen angst and sheer brutality. It serves as a pretty accurate metaphor for high school as zoo, a place where you either run with the pack or be devoured by it, indeed, the dogde ball scene brought back some bad memories for me, a game where the jocks get to victimize the weak in plain site of authority with impunity.

But I digress.

It's also one of the more disturbing episodes because of the demise of the schools beloved mascot and also of principal Flootie...YIKES! To answer an earlier post, the pig's cage being torn up was done for dramatic effect I think, to show us that no human being did this but rather a pack of wild animals.

I'm just glad that Xander was busy with Buffy while the others were having their way with principal Flootie!
Conveniant? Maybe, but that would have been something that Xander would have never been able to get over lol.

Luckily, though, Xander comes out of it okay...or does he?

Angel

Now, here we go, this is the first ep where we see what this show is capable of in terms of drama and heartfelt storytelling. If we saw the seeds of tragic romance planted in Welcome to the Hellmouth between Buffy and Angel, we see them blossom here. I've always felt that the scenes between Buffy and Angel were some of the strongest of the entire series and that their's was one of the most doomed romance stories in tv history.

I had forgotten that we do discover the truth about Angel's situation in this episode, but I don't think neither Buffy nor Angel could have forseen the terrible implications that will play such a large part in their story...they'll find out. Although, having lavished much praise here, I would have to agree that seeing Darla wield such a "mortal" weapon as a gun, let alone two, was a bit strange, but I think she knew that if she couldn't hurt Buffy herself in hand-to-hand, bullets could probably do the job. I know that if I were a vampire, I would try and kill the slayer by any means necessary.

Outstanding episode, the first true watermark episode of the series IMO.

This is a blast so far!

 

[Nick Martin]

With the exception of Darla, and only because of her fragmented existence, looking back at these early episodes and knowing what these characters will evolve into is pretty astonishing.

The Angel of this episode was someone you could never see as a puppet, or even a father, or a humorous member of his own extended family like on his own series
but seeing the evolution makes it all fit together, makes sense.

 

[Wendy_L]

Never Kill a Boy on the First Date

I love this episode. It's so much fun plus it has some classic lines.

Giles: Alright, I-I'll just jump in my time machine, go back to the twelfth century and ask the vampires to postpone their ancient prophecy for a few days while you take in dinner and a show.
Buffy: Okay, at this point you're abusing sarcasm.

Buffy: Well, in that case I won't wear my button that says, 'I'm the Slayer, ask me how!'

Also, we start to see the attraction that Angel has for Buffy by the look in his eyes. You could cut it with a knife!

The Pack

This is one of those episodes that I didn't care for the first time around but watching it last night I don't understand why I didn't like it. It's a really good episode. Maybe I was put off by the killing of the pig (off screen). I'm a HUGE animal lover and I hate it whenever an animal gets hurt or killed. But since I went into the episode already knowing about that part I could watch it with new eyes and see an episode where Xander shows what a creepy character he can be in the right circumstance. And I know this might be wrong but if you take away the pig eating and serial rapist aspect he was actually kind of sexy.

Angel

*sigh* I love this episode. I'm such a sucker for romantic scenes and people kissing. Especially good kisses and I always thought Buffy and Angel did some of the best kissing on any TV show I've ever seen. Great episode and one of my all-time favorites. It's definitely in my Top 10.

 

[Scott-S]

I Robot -- You. Jane:

This is one of the episodes that I didn’t like the first time around. But now, after watching for about the 3rd time I am starting to appreciate some of the aspects of it.

It introduced us to Jenny Calendar. I find her really sexy, but I digress. I wonder where she wears the corkscrew earing? One negative thing about her in this episode was her use of the word “cool”. It just seems weird. I guess they were trying to make her “hip”, but it didn’t work.

I am confused a bit about what I saw on Buffy’s record that Malcolm pulled up. It listed her as a Senior. Graduation isn’t until the end of season 3 so I assumed that she would be a Sophomore. Aren’t the seasons going in sync with real time?

I have to give the writers credit for mentioning a lot of the perils of the Internet back before it became such a big thing. I don’t think that in 1997 the full ramifications of the Internet were even thought about. Like the idea of sexual predators online etc.

I had to chuckle at Buffy worrying about how Malcolm might be “old”. How old is Angel. LOL

 

[Nick Martin]

Jenny Calendar.

 

[Scott-S]

oops.... thanks. She gets me so dizzy... LOL

 

[Nick Martin]

I say, let these things slide a bit.
It's season 1 and it was made in its entirety before the first ever aired, and with no idea if a second season would even be possible.

Continuity goof here, an awkward line there...why hold it against such a cute little show?

I don't ever recall using the internet for anything back in 1997 while in 10th grade...these guys were way ahead of me.

 

[Ruz-El]

Here's more of my reviews:

1.6 : The Pack 4/5
In which Zander proves that a dogs bark IS worse than it’s bite.

This is the first great episode for me. It’s a monster of the week, that despite having one of the worse acted parts I’ve seen in a show (zoo keeper guy), still doesn’t diminish the over all episode. Zander gets lots to do here, and the episode really pays off for it. Phil informs me that I should remember that Zander wasn’t a professional actor when he got this role, which makes it all the more impressive to see him here. I’m going to come right out and say it: Nicholas Brandon should of gotten all of Ben Afflecks movie roles in the past 6 years, as I’m sure he could of made all of Bens movies better.
Willow is no slouch either, I don’t think I’ve seen a more genuinely hurt person on TV before than after her exchange with Zander. It wasn’t make up effects heavy, so the 1st season cheapness didn’t subtract. A solid episode.

1.7 : Angel 3/5
In which our heroine stakes out her love.

This is the 1st episode to have Angel come out of the shadows and become a more integral player in the group. Unfortunately, and not to make Nicholas freak out, I don’t care for Angel at his time. He comes off as a brooding James Dean wanna be, whose main purpose is to give teenage girls the hot pants. Oh don’t get me wrong, he has a hot shit back story and everything, he’s just not coming off well. I’m sure this well all change, as we all know that Angel gets his own show, but it is still a bad first impression.

There was some concern from a fellow watcher that the child/adult aspect was bother some in the Buffy /Angel romance. One should remember that Vampires aren't human, they are demons which makes them more beastial so a romance with one... uh...never mind.

1.8 : I Robot... You Jane 2.5/5
In which our heroine fights a power ranger.

This is a show that completely wallows in its teen series roots. The first half plays like an episode of Degrassi with a message about the dangers of internet predators, and finishes off with a villain that wouldn’t be out of place on Power Rangers. It does have its moments, mainly the introduction of the “Techno-Pagan” computer teacher (who’s name escapes me), but the best part was the end. I know such a statement sounds like something smug that Gene Shalitt would say, but it is true. The last 2 minutes of this show with Buffy and Zander cheering up Willow has more character development to the serial nature of the show and foreshadowing than the entire 40 odd minutes preceding it, and is my early favorite as a “Best Moment” for this season. It’s the only reason I gave this a 2.5 instead of a 2.

 

[Wendy_L]

How old do you think Angel was when he got turned? I was figuring around 20. Which isn't all that uncommon for a 20 y/o guy to date a 16 y/o girl. It happens all the time.

 

[Scott-S]

I guess what is bothering me about this is to me, David B looks about 25, and Sarah was 16 or 17. I can get over this, but I was just pointing out that it seemed wierd that:

Even when buffy's mom finds out she slept with him, she didn't instantly call the police.

 

[Nick Martin]

Too add to your sense of yuckiness, the infamous birthday episode, titled "Surprise", was her 16th birthday, Making her 15 in Season 1.

Say it with me now, "EEEEEEWWWWWW!!!!!!!"

 

[Inspector Hammer!]

Nicholas, Buffy never celebrated a birthday in season 1,which indicates that her birthday had already passed, so she was 16 in season 1.

She turned 17 in 'Surprise'.