High School Buffy, or post-High School Buffy; that is the question.

POSTED BY: chrisisall
UPDATED: Tuesday, May 18, 2010 17:16
VIEWED: 6596
PAGE 1 of 3

1 2 3 NEXT PAGE

CHRISISALL

Monday, March 22, 2010 12:26 AM

Personally, I enjoyed he post-High School adventures a whole lot more- they had a scope that exceeded the simplistic insular bad-boy romance with Angel & the ensuing problems.
Sure, the Mayor was a fantastic Big Bad, and Faith was a superb foil, but still, I felt the series really bloomed after she graduated.

Thoughts?

The laughing Chrisisall

"I only do it to to remind you that I'm right and that deep down, you know I'm right, you want me to be right, you need me to be right." - The Imperial Hero Strikes Back, 2010

THESOMNAMBULIST

Monday, March 22, 2010 12:43 AM

Dang it I have to hit the hay! And a juicy Buffy question aswell!!! Bugger. I'll have to get back to you Chris. But the short answer is
HIGH SCHOOL BUFFY.

I shall elaborate further whence I am free from my slumber.

Laters Big 'C'

THESOMNAMBULIST

Monday, March 22, 2010 8:41 PM

Ok back now...

To elaborate. I'm fond of the 'high school Buffy' because of the way the writers used the high school as a metaphor for what Buffy was going through and indeed, high school kids in general - y'know the idea that when you're in high school it feels like hell, and you think your teachers are demons and they secretly want to kill you etc, etc. Having Buffy blow the school up in the end is inspired! I feel the writers really tapped into something deeper and richer with that. More so than they ever could after High School. (Having Buffy came back to work in the high school in season seven, slightly betrays all that actually - now I think of it... Hmmm)

I'd conceed that the later seasons probably had the better episodes (Hush, Restless, Jonothan, Once More with Feeling, Chosen) but the seasonal arc's weren't as strong.

The season three Arc is so brilliantly realised, that there is simply not an episode out of place.

Over to you bud....?

CHRISISALL

Monday, March 22, 2010 8:47 PM

Season 3 is clearly the best of the best overall, but I like individual eps that shine better- Conversations With Dead People or Chosen trump most of season 3 for me, except maybe The Wish...
But arc-wise, yeah, 3 is topps.

The laughing Chrisisall

"I only do it to to remind you that I'm right and that deep down, you know I'm right, you want me to be right, you need me to be right." - The Imperial Hero Strikes Back, 2010

ZEEK

Monday, March 22, 2010 9:26 PM

I'm going with High School Buffy. It just seemed like they had the formula down in High School. She had the demon world to deal with, getting through classes, socializing, and dealing with her mom. So, many places to go with the story. She had a big Peter Parker vibe going. She could never get her life firing on all cylinders at once. She constantly had to give up on what she wanted to focus on the responsibility that came with her power.

When she became an adult a lot of those burdens dropped away or became more forced. OK she needs a job, but no one wants to sit there watching her at a job. OK she socializes, but she doesn't have the mean Cordy group to deal with. She doesn't really have peers to protect in the same way. It's just makes the stories more forced IMO.

Season 2 and 3 were great IMO.

Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:
Conversations With Dead People

Conversations With Dead People is such a bitter sweet episode for me. I really wanted a payoff on Joyce's ghost message. I wanted to see some Dawn vs Buffy issues. At best it was really Joyce and sending Dawn away with Xander was the payoff (lame). At worst it got completely dropped and made the episode lose a lot of it's punch.

CHRISISALL

Monday, March 22, 2010 9:43 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Zeek:

Season 2 and 3 were great IMO.

Seasons 2 & 3 were the eye-popping seasons. The OMG seasons.
But as a real old guy (as lettuce goes), I have to like the responsibility eps better. The shagging of Spike & its' fallout. The fall of the First.

The laughing Chrisisall

"I only do it to to remind you that I'm right and that deep down, you know I'm right, you want me to be right, you need me to be right." - The Imperial Hero Strikes Back, 2010

LWAVES

Thursday, March 25, 2010 12:34 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:
Quote:
Originally posted by Zeek:

Season 2 and 3 were great IMO.

Seasons 2 & 3 were the eye-popping seasons. The OMG seasons.
But as a real old guy (as lettuce goes), I have to like the responsibility eps better. The shagging of Spike & its' fallout. The fall of the First.

The laughing Chrisisall

"I only do it to to remind you that I'm right and that deep down, you know I'm right, you want me to be right, you need me to be right." - The Imperial Hero Strikes Back, 2010

This is a good question and a tough one for me to answer. It's easier to pick fave seasons or episodes than groups of seasons.

Most of the points already made about season arcs, big bads, individual episodes etc are all valied and I can agree with them.

For me the first three seasons was more about Buffy accepting who she really was and that whatever life outside of this she could have it would never be normal, she could never escape her slayer destiny.
Then by seasons 4+5 she had accepted her destiny but the show placed her out of her normal comfort zone (for lack of a better term) but still kept her within the school system. The ultimate realisation that if her death saved people then it was worth it, it's part of what being a slayer means.
Then 6+7 put her completely out of place. She had her destiny still but now had to fight to just want to stay alive, both literally and with real world issues. These overall had a much darker tone. None of the gang was in a good place and they were effectively fighting themselves for who they were.

So I'm going to stand on the fence and say that both High School and post High School Buffy were great either as a group of seasons or because of the sum of their parts. With maybe a slight lean towards High School Buffy.

"I don't believe in suicide, but if you'd like to try it it might cheer me up to watch."

AURAPTOR

Saturday, March 27, 2010 11:35 PM

HS

Things got a bit weird w/ the military base under Sunnyville and such.

Summer Glau can simply walk into Mordor

Bones: "Don't 'rawr' her!"
Booth: "What? she'rawred' me first."

KWICKO

Wednesday, March 31, 2010 3:34 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by lwaves:
Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:
Quote:
Originally posted by Zeek:

Season 2 and 3 were great IMO.

Seasons 2 & 3 were the eye-popping seasons. The OMG seasons.
But as a real old guy (as lettuce goes), I have to like the responsibility eps better. The shagging of Spike & its' fallout. The fall of the First.

The laughing Chrisisall

"I only do it to to remind you that I'm right and that deep down, you know I'm right, you want me to be right, you need me to be right." - The Imperial Hero Strikes Back, 2010

This is a good question and a tough one for me to answer. It's easier to pick fave seasons or episodes than groups of seasons.

Most of the points already made about season arcs, big bads, individual episodes etc are all valied and I can agree with them.

For me the first three seasons was more about Buffy accepting who she really was and that whatever life outside of this she could have it would never be normal, she could never escape her slayer destiny.
Then by seasons 4+5 she had accepted her destiny but the show placed her out of her normal comfort zone (for lack of a better term) but still kept her within the school system. The ultimate realisation that if her death saved people then it was worth it, it's part of what being a slayer means.
Then 6+7 put her completely out of place. She had her destiny still but now had to fight to just want to stay alive, both literally and with real world issues. These overall had a much darker tone. None of the gang was in a good place and they were effectively fighting themselves for who they were.

So I'm going to stand on the fence and say that both High School and post High School Buffy were great either as a group of seasons or because of the sum of their parts. With maybe a slight lean towards High School Buffy.

"I don't believe in suicide, but if you'd like to try it it might cheer me up to watch."

Wow. You summed up my feelings perfectly.

"I supported Bush in 2000 and 2004 and intellegence [sic] had very little to do with that decision." - Hero, Real World Event Discussions

GINOBIFFARONI

Wednesday, March 31, 2010 4:23 AM

My favorite clips

Giles singing one of my favorite songs

How appropriate...

one of the best eps... best finale that didn't happen

I love the part where Giles kills the bad guy

" She wouldn't do this, even knowing the cost... She is a hero

She is not like us " then he smothers the guy to death

brilliant scene

1 2 3 NEXT PAGE