season 7 BtVS, episodes 1-6

[avrelia]

I am watching season 7 of BtVS, and I love it all over again. ;)

The many moments and things that make me happy let me forgive the moments that I want to roll my eyes and wonder about crack habits of ME.

I guess most of the fandom sees it another way round. ::shrugs::

There is so much joy and fun in the beginning – the sunny days around, the world is suddenly bursting into the Scoobies life with the new school – we know how claustrophobic it will become later, but for now it is looking outward.

Only – there is always that expectation of something terrible to come – and the knowledge that something terrible will come – and sometimes it makes me think – to what extent it happened to be a self fulfilled prophecy? I mean, the girls (potentials) are dying all over the world, and FE’s plan is in motion, but to what extent this plan is the result of the characters’ actions in s6 and prior and their expectations that something terrible should happen? Or here is my overthinking?

I love how Lessons set up the theme of “Buffy can’t help everyone”, and the procession of FE images ending with Buffy is as cool as ever.

BY is fun (I love Nancy’s – random chick from the outside look at Scoobies and Sunnydale), Spike’s blue shirt is ugly (he is insane and can’t use mirrors), and the church scene is magnificent, and I believe that Buffy first took Spike off the cross, and then ran away. He was in no mood to do it himself.

STSP – my favorite scenes are Anya/Willow. I love them there. Love.
I believe Buffy spent the previous summer renovation the house – because her new room looks different from what it was before (when W/t lived there) But I guess it makes sense.

Another thing – Buffy forgives Willow and Xander forgives Willow. Even if Willow doesn’t deserve to have it that easy. But her friends love her and forgive her. I guess, it is easier for them like this, as well.

Help – I love Amanda. With all her dorkiness, awkwardness, and issues. She was a cool find.

Selfless – I wantched it twice, without commentary and with, and it is great both ways. D.Goddard is a dork, saying that this is his top achievement, and he put everything best there, and I believe him. The episode is so tightly packed with goodness, I laugh, and cry, and get angry, and roll my eyes, and smile happily at the end.

And D.Goddard has a crush on everyone there. But most of all on D’Hoffrin. And, honestly, D’Hoffrin is one of the most impressive villains in BtVS ever.

One of the best things is the flashbacks – the Viking village is gorgeous, and the best thing is the people screaming and running, and tree is falling on the backstage of Aud’s conversation with D’Hoffrin. It is an actual human world, but Aud is already out of it – plus the English speaking.

Russian revolution flashback was supposed to be a renaissance one, but it got changed because of Halfrek – or Cecily – I am not sure about exact thinking of the authors, because Crimean war happened way before 1880, anyway.

As to Russian Revolution itself, they combine three revolutions in one and got all the causes wrong – believe me, I spent too much time memorizing them. ;)

And no, it doesn’t bother me at all. If I want historical accuracy, I read several books on the topic, not watch the TV show about vampires.

Things I love in Him:
1) Buffy-Dawn talk in the beginning
2) Bazooka running
3) Anya’s bank robbing
4) The idea that teenagers are the same, and up to the same troubles as always. It successfully finishes “back to High school” theme, even if we still high school moments later on.

ETA: To the commentary on Selfless, I adored jokes about the Potentials - how they kept tripping on themselves and dying, and how they all (ME) got sick of the phrase "From beneath you..., and they kept using it, even in Spanish ;)

Most of everything else in Him I don’t like much.

Comments

[elisi]

Oh, lovely S7 goodness. :)

And I'm like you - I just ignore the bad stuff and enjoy the good [/Pollyanna].

Must put children to bed and do the last bit of washing up, but I have a most wonderful 'review' of BY to rec... might actually make a post tomorrow and share it with all of my flist. It was that shirt remark that make me remember. Thanks!

[avrelia.livejournal.com]

yeah, and it is not just ignoring the silliness, I notice it all right, it just don't ruin the big picture for me.

I care about the characters, and they are making me happy, even when they are making my annoyed with them. ;)

[aycheb.livejournal.com]

Season 7 love. Yay!

I like Him. I am callous and strange but have a weird attraction for the Dawn humiliation sections. Like the dodgeball scene in The Pack, they’re excruciating to watch but very very real. If it weren’t so long ago I don’t think I could stand it. I also love the excessive use of pop songs to tell the story, totally teen dramaliscious. And I like the songs.

[avrelia.livejournal.com]

I liked Him this time around much more than before - mostly because I got that "it is teh same as ever vibe", but still many scenes make (mostly wiht Buffy under spell) make me uncomfortable as hell.

A Curious Fact: I am probably the only person who evr wrote Buffy/R.J. - a snippet. ;)

[aycheb.livejournal.com]

Buffy/ R.J. the pairing of shame. Can I read it?

I find one thing to love about en-spelled Buffy. S7 doesn’t talk about sex much but her confidence here gave me hope that she’d gotten one good thing out of the S6 relationship with Spike. One of the first things Angelus did to her in Innocence was to elicit the words “Was I not good?” Even with Riley she’s insecure enough to worry that he finds it better with Faith or with the Vamp Ho. Now she knows she’s good.

[elisi]

Oh, that's an interesting thought. Thank you! :)

[avrelia.livejournal.com]

Interesting idea about Buffy. Cool!

Here is the snippet ;) (written for buffyverse1000:

The school counselor was crazy. Probably schizophrenic. But kinda hot. With those huge eyes, green like... something very green. And the floppy blond hair, and the way she balances a pencil on her forehead when she thinks nobody is around… Not as pretty as her sister, sure, but I think I have a thing for older women. Especially older women who want to have sex with me.
When she asked me to stay after classes yesterday for a consulting session, I expected some serious make out session, and was looking forward to it (Did I mention she is hot?), but when she grabbed my... erm... butt and pushed me on a desk, things got unexpectedly serious. She straddled me, and in the next moment I found myself in her not-so-tender caress. She is like an Olympic champion in unzipping jeans. Practice, must be. Another moment, and I was inside her, and she was rocking, and I was all but lost... another moment, and I already... Well, not much to brag about, but who would stay long against this hurricane?

I guess, I should buy her flowers or something.

[aycheb.livejournal.com]

That last line. Kills me. And the rest. Unsettling.

Shiny!

[avrelia.livejournal.com]

Thanks. ;)

I am still embarrassed I wrote it. Kind of llike Dru kissing Giles in Becoming, I was "in the moment"

[skylee.livejournal.com]

I believe that Buffy first took Spike off the cross, and then ran away. He was in no mood to do it himself.

*nods firmly* He certainly wasn't. And I still love the church scene from BY to bits. So powerful. Poor Spike.

I am enjoying S7 more than I did when I first watched it too.

[avrelia.livejournal.com]

Hee! it's all good and fun, even when it is not!

[ascian3.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I don't like Him much, either. It's about the only Buffy ep ever that I really don't love rewatching, because it makes me uncomfortable. Interestingly, the script was pretty funny. I think it just didn't work so well on screen.

And, yeah. Love love love s7. It made me so happy.

[avrelia.livejournal.com]

I agree. there is just something that doesn't work for me on screen, and though I liked more of it now, but it is bit and themes, not a whole episode.

[gobi-rex.livejournal.com]

The Russian Revolution stuff didn't bother me too much. It did inspire me to check some things (for myself), but like you said, that's not what I look for in Buffy. Actually, what bothered me more in that scene were the champaign glasses. I mean, they were using these modern flute-like glasses and I doubt this shape was the prevailing fashion back then. Of course, I maybe completely wrong.

[avrelia.livejournal.com]

I wasn't bothered at all, I was amused that they know about revolution 1905, and thought it was cool. I am less amused with all the people who are bitter for years that in FFL and LMPTM ME got some tiny details of Victorian England wrong. I mean, it was cool once, funny twice, but could they let it go already? with that production value, and the time, and the fact that ME wanted to make a point about a character, and not a visual dissertation, it is ridiculous to dig in the lack historical accuracy with that ardor...

Russian Revolution is way more important. ;)

BTW, Have I told you that I seriously thought that Moscow subway station "1905 Year Street" is called that way because there is always year 1905 there? I still think it would be cool if it were true.

[gobi-rex.livejournal.com]

Have I told you that I seriously thought that Moscow subway station "1905 Year Street" is called that way because there is always year 1905 there? I still think it would be cool if it were true.

Hee! This reminds me of Neil Gaiman's subway tale "Neverwhere". London underground indeed has people and stations stuck in time. According to Gaiman, anyway.

[avrelia.livejournal.com]

I am on a short break from Gaiman now, after finishing Am Gods, but after I read books piling around me, I'll read it, because subway=cool.

I have many crazy tales about Moscow subway, some of which I invented way after high school. For example I had a theory that if the doors open on the side you don't expect it to (which happens quite a lot in certain places), you are in the paralel universe Moscow, so basically by now nobody knows which Moscow is which. the same goes with the empty trains. The red line - the one that go south-west to the University and Luzhniki is always incredibly packed. So when an empty trian comes in rush hour, it is a sure sigh that it is coming from parallel Moscow, sane explanations be damned. there was much more of it. ;)

[gobi-rex.livejournal.com]

Oh boy, I used to be so afraid of those temperamental doors on the other side of the car. Other people would just lean on them and I'd get nervous just from looking at them.

When I was small, I remember watching some kind of an X-file like show (or maybe it was a science show) and there was an episode about a subway train getting stuck in a Mobius Strip. Everybody in the train had backdated newspapers and stopped watches and the train never got anywhere. I think that was the first time I learned about parallel universes.

I used to make up all kinds of weird tales about metro as well. You know those trains that rush by in the opposite direction in some tunnels? I used to think they were going to other kinds of universes. I was kinda afraid of them.

And "Neverwhere" is really pretty cool. You'll never think about subways the same way again.

[avrelia.livejournal.com]

Hee! That’s fun. As if the actual urban legends (giant rats, Moscow underground halls and tunnels) are not enough. ;)

I also remember my theories about weirdness of time underground – as it feels differently comparing to the regular world, and insane ideas about where various doors in the subway tunnels lead, and the ghost stations (like Dubrovka, before it was re-opened), and everything else..

[gobi-rex.livejournal.com]

OMG, I just remembered that station, on the red line, the one that's been closed for years and years. Lenisnkie Gory. It gives me the heebie-jeebies every single time.

[avrelia.livejournal.com]

Not any more - it was opened in 2001, I think. I am so used to it being closed (gooing that direction almost every day for five year (the University), so I didn't regard as anything but annoyingly long strech. It feels more strange now that it is open. ;)