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moscow_watcherSummary:
Buffy and Willow fly to a Sephrillian demon to ask him for help. Willow levitates in the air, Buffy clings to her. To distract herself from her fear of flying, Buffy fantasizes about Daniel Craig and Willow fantasizes about Tina Fey.
The lair of the demon has a Tardis-like effect: it looks like a small dilapidated house on the outside and like an enormous cave with a staircase on the inside. It's an unstable reality where "time and logic and everything's just bendy in the brain".
The lair is guarded by a "minder" Robin (guest star Robin Balzer who won her role in a letter contest). She says to the girls cryptic words "the important thing is that you rescue the prince" and the girls enter the lair.
Once there, Willow says other cryptic words "ah, l'esprit d'escolier". In French "l'esprit" means spirit and "escolier" is a weird hydrid of the words "ecolier" - "pupil" and "escalier" - "staircase". (I wonder if it's a clue to some future plot twist or just a misspelling). They follow the route, Buffy fantasizes about two Christian Bales at once, then asks Willow about Kennedy - and then a Sephrillian demon appears. It looks like a sand worm from Dune, with a square board attached to his tail. The board features pictures of what look like masks of Greek theater.
Demon informs them that The Twilight's goal is to terminate all demons and all magic. He also tells them they can't accept "the horrible beauty of total awareness" and shows them... ta-dam! Buffy and her slayer squad robbing the Swiss bank... ta-dam! Willow cheating on Kennedy with a half-woman, half-snake. Interestingly, Buffy tries to lie to Willow even when they see the robbery in progress, but Willow quickly realises: "so the mysterious benefactor bankrolling the slayer army..." Buffy tries to justify her actions "It's all insured! It's a victimless crime! And we totally found a Watto the Nazis hid and sent it to the Tate".
In the next scene Willow asks Robin the minder "Has this happened yet?" (?)
Robin shows them Buffy - cut, bleeding, crying - and tells about "betrayal. The closest, the most unexpected".
Willow tells Buffy that she is already betraying her by not letting Kennedy participate in the Slayer program. She is afraid that she'll die like Tara.
The Sephrillian demon speechifies about the upcoming war and weak humans. Buffy, angry, kills him. The place becomes unstable, the girls get thrown out of the lair, and it blows up. Buffy and Willow go away in a bad mood.
In a parallel story Dawn tells Xander that she hasn't slept with Kenny - she has slept with his roommate Nick.
Analysis:
I like Cliff Richards art. A lot. Finally the characters look like young adults, not like children.
I'm saying that because I desperately want to sound positive. I'm afraid I can't - but I don't want to whine and complain. I remember back in 2002-2003 people whined about later seasons (which I love dearly) and were telling that Buffy has lost it's spirit. And now I'm ready to repeat these words. Do I turn into a grumpy hag?
Anyway I'll try to formulate what's
To me, Buffyverse's most interesting aspects are stories about love and friendship. Buffy\Spike. Willow\Tara. Xander\Anya. These characters went through hell because of love and I was there with them. In seasons 1-7 BtVS was a drama\comedy about relationships with strong metaphorical subtext. Relationships were the stars of the show; conspiracies were supporting players.
I remember back in 2003 I was mostly concerned if Buffy would confess her love for Spike. I also wanted to know if Xander and Anya would make up; if Faith and Buffy would finally overcome their differences.
Right now I'm wondering who's the traitor. I visit DH board and I notice that other fans are also mostly arguing about the identity of the Twilight's source in the castle. It's understandable: his existence is so hyped; it's mentioned in two consecutive issues, we are teased with it again and again. It's interesting and uninvolving at the same time. It's like Lost. I watch the show with interest but all I care about is the conspiracy. Who lives, who dies, who falls for whom - what's the difference?
Long story short, I think that season 8 is made in different genre. It's a political thriller with detective elements. It's a story about a complex conspiracy with a requisite traitor in the middle of supposedly good guys. Conspiracy is the star, characters serve the plot twists. The plot demands Buffy to rob a bank. She robs a bank. Tomorrow the plot will demand Willow to become a movie star. Or a FBI agent. And she will become the next Julia Roberts or a government spy.
I don't say that Buffy can't rob a bank. Or that Willow can't be a movie star. But I need a motivation. If, say, Buffy did it in a desperate situation to save somebody's life, I'd cheer such plot twist. I love moral dilemmas. But this is not the case. Obviously she did it just because "it's only money". Or maybe she did it for a valid reason but we'll find about it in 5 years when emotionally it won't matter anymore.
I wonder why Joss has switched to another genre. Has he decided that the audience won't be able to care about the relationships of comic characters the way they cared when they were played by actors? Did he find the comic format more suitable for the story about global human\demon stand-off rather than for a more intimate story about relationships? Hard to say.
About the issue 10 per se. The word "unnecessary" comes to mind, and, although I try to chase it away, it refuses to go. What happens to season 8 reminds me the situation with Harry Potter saga. Each new volume was thicker and more extensive than the previous one. I couldn't finish it. I only read the spoilers that has leaked online a week before the publication date of the last book and that was enough. I think that right now Joss is in danger of following in Rowling's footsteps and becoming self-indulgent. He writes just because he likes to write. For example, it takes him four pages to tell that Dawn has slept with one character we never met instead of the other character we never met. And - what? Nothing.
At least now we know why Buffy hasn't exposed general Voll's activities to the American goverment. Because she's also a criminal.
Or not. Current issue is so ambiguous it's really baffling. Willow's question to Robin - "Has this happened yet?" - indicates that even Buffy's mentioning the details of the robbery may be a fluke of unstable reality. What Buffy and Willow saw could be truth or lie. It has either happened or will happen or won't happen. Looks like the goal of the issue is to stir up fans and make them paranoid.
Or maybe Joss just drags it out to make more money.
Or maybe he has a big plan for the whole season.
Questions, questions...
-- Is the Sephrillian demon with Greek masks on his tail the metaphor or art? If that's the case there is a definite echo of Once More With Feeling, where demon Sweet was also the metaphor of art (in his case, singing and dancing) that made people say dangerous truths and get burned by them.
-- Is Robin a good or a bad guy? There is the mention that Robin Balzer relates to Drusilla who is her "fantasy icon" in the letter column. Hmmm...
-- Is Buffy with two Christian Bales a parody on her relationship with her vampires? Bale-the-sweet-charmer from Little Women could be the parody on Spike\William and Bale-the-dragonslayer from Reign of Fire could be a parody on Angel.
-- Is it amorphous "now" or very concrete summer of 2007? Casino Royale premiered in November 2006 and it's summer outside...
Bottom line: I'm not sure I'll go on writing reviews on BtVS. Anyway I'll go on reading them. And I'll definitely continue to read and rec fanfiction, though.
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(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 08:11 pm (UTC)I don't say that Buffy can't rob a bank. Or that Willow can't be a movie star. But I need a motivation. If, say, Buffy did it in a desperate situation to save somebody's life, I'd cheer such plot twist. I love moral dilemmas. But this is not the case. Obviously she did it just because "it's only money". Or maybe she did it for a valid reason but we'll find about it in 5 years when emotionally it won't matter anymore.
*applauds* Nail, meet head. It's the same thing as with the execution of Ethan; a lot of fans wanted to see Giles' reaction to that - we never did, and if we ever do it will be so late we'll have forgotten about it. His death (or temporary blowing-off-of-head until Joss decides he never died after all because he needs him for the plot) was shocking, but with no follow-up, it feels... like we're being cheated. The storytelling version of the black-cat-jumps-out-from-behind-the-door scare in a crappy horror movie; it makes you jump, but once you see there's nothing behind it, you forget it.
The word "unnecessary" comes to mind
I don't agree completely with this, though. It's quite possible that this is the issue where we're supposed to get hit by the clue-by-four that says "Buffy is going dark/evil/bad/corrupt/what have you". Which is something that needs to be built up slowly. I just wish it were built up better, that's all. That said, sure, much of it is teaser and he has given himself an easy out with the unstable reality thing should he wish to not follow up on either of the revelations here... I can't help feeling like he's trying to do "Restless" meeting "Conversations With Dead People", but once again: it requires the emotional connect to work, to be more than just four images on a flat screen.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 08:11 pm (UTC)It's probably a misspelling beacause "esprit d'escalier" actually means something in French!
That or Willow has studied old French when "écolier" was still "escolier".
Oh Escolier est aussi le nom d'un poisson, c'est le Gempylus serpens !
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 08:19 pm (UTC)YES.
I really like this review - you've taken all my grievances and expressed them in a much more rational manner than I was managing in my head.
That thing with Buffy robbing the bank annoys me not only because it lacks motivation, but because of the idea that even when she's doing it she's supposedly callous enough to be distracted by the sparkly diamond. If the main justification behind it is Slayerly pragmatism, you'd think she'd be a bit more Slayerly in going about it.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 08:32 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 08:35 pm (UTC)Long story short, I think that season 8 is made in different genre.
*nods a lot* I watched the show because of Buffy. Lived her pain and her happiness (heck Becoming was so angsty I stopped watching for a whole year!). But with every issue of the comic I've felt that the Buffy I was reading about was more of a stranger, and now I can't recognise her at all. (Seriously - when I first saw the panel with the bank robbery I thought it must be Rome!Buffy...) Right now I'm not even sure I'll keep reading, I'm that fed up. If it was a fic I'd have stopped reading *ages* ago.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 08:43 pm (UTC)Not seeing the exoneration here, sorry...
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 08:47 pm (UTC)Well, I thought it meant "spirit of the stairway", and what it is, is a French term for AFTER an important event has occurred, when you think of all the really great things you should have said/done while it was happening. But I see someone says that it is spelled incorrectly, so it can't be that. Huh.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 08:47 pm (UTC)Whuich is a shame; but the fandom survived people deciding they didn't like and wouldn't watch seasons 6 and 7, so it should survive people likewise turning away from season 8. I still think it's a pity, though.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 08:53 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 09:04 pm (UTC)*curtseys*
It's the same thing as with the execution of Ethan; a lot of fans wanted to see Giles' reaction to that - we never did, and if we ever do it will be so late we'll have forgotten about it. His death (or temporary blowing-off-of-head until Joss decides he never died after all because he needs him for the plot) was shocking, but with no follow-up, it feels... like we're being cheated.
I agree. I try to acquit Joss by theorizing that he wants to give people a lot of room for interpretation but I feel that interpretations turn into fanwank when we don't see characters in the crucial moments of their lives.
Ironically, it was Joss who wrote: The big moments are gonna come. You can't help that. It's what you do afterwards that counts. That's when you find out who you are.
I wonder if Joss doesn't mention Ethan because he prepares a surprise or because he has completely forgotten about him...
It's quite possible that this is the issue where we're supposed to get hit by the clue-by-four that says "Buffy is going dark/evil/bad/corrupt/what have you". Which is something that needs to be built up slowly. I just wish it were built up better, that's all.
You know, I'm so puzzled by Buffy the Bank Robber I just don't know what to think. It looks ridiculous. I had to reread the panel several times to be sure that I'm understanding it correctly.
That said, sure, much of it is teaser and he has given himself an easy out with the unstable reality thing should he wish to not follow up on either of the revelations here...
Yes - Willow's phrase "Has this happened yet?" obviously serves as a (possible) loophole.
it requires the emotional connect to work, to be more than just four images on a flat screen.
Paradoxically, the only character I felt emotional connection with was the nameless slayer in The Chain. Her story made me cry. Why I felt for the new character but don't feel for the characters I love on the show - I don't know.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 09:06 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 09:11 pm (UTC)No argument there. As symptoms of going bad go, it's not exactly the most subtle and morally confusing one, is it? Though I can't help thinking that it's a deliberate callback to the Trio... of course, exactly WHY it would be a callback to the Trio is difficult to tell without a lot of fanwanking. I don't want to gues at what caused character development to happen; I want to see character development happening.
Paradoxically, the only character I felt emotional connection with was the nameless slayer in The Chain.
Glad I'm not the only one. I thought this issue was the most interesting one yet, for what it might potentially be setting up, but it's all left-brain stuff; analyse, interpret, draw parallels, go "hmmm... that's interesting." When the story can't create an emotional connect, it'll never be the same thing. I feel like I'm reading a summary rather than watching the show.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 09:12 pm (UTC)Something like "рôte mal venu", je croix. (Mon francais est trés rouillé.) I hope we'll find out when trade paperback will be published: if they'll change "a" pour "o" then we'll be sure it was a misspelling.
That or Willow has studied old French when "écolier" was still "escolier".
Or her modern French turned into old French because or the unstable reality! :))))
(Really, the story becomes more and more campy with every issue)
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 09:13 pm (UTC)I honestly can't understand why anyone should care why she's a giant by this time and I had trouble caring in the first place (and I like Dawn).
I don't know. I guess I'm just glad that if this is what Joss would have done in the show if he'd had the money, I'm glad he never had the money.
'Course, it is a very different medium, but while that might explain the difference in tone - the changing of BtVS from being like a soap opera (Joss's own words) to being more like a James Bond film with vampires and magic - it doesn't explain the emotional discontinuity.
So far, only Willow's revelations about Kennedy in this issue come across as through-story from the show to me, and I have no idea what's up with Buffy.
We'll see next issue, I suppose. Maybe there'll be some payoff.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 09:13 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 09:29 pm (UTC)My problem with the scene is that I can't feel its mood. I don't understand if I should laugh it off or feel indignation.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 09:37 pm (UTC)I can't shake off the impression that Joss goes for the deliberate emotional shock to change the audience' attitude to the show. When I told my friends who used to watch Buffy that she's a bank robber now, they haven't believed me. I checked the issue 10 thread on Russian Diaries community: people mostly wonder "what is Joss smoking nowadays".
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 09:49 pm (UTC)I don't feel Willow-idolizing here. Willow in the embrace of the snake-woman was creepy and dark.
But A agree about the character destruction; I feel disoriented.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 10:00 pm (UTC)*blushes* Thanks!
I watched the show because of Buffy. Lived her pain and her happiness
Same here.
But with every issue of the comic I've felt that the Buffy I was reading about was more of a stranger, and now I can't recognise her at all.
I was ready to see Buffy unhappy, dealing with a lot of problems and having conflicts with other characters - because it's pain and conflicts that move the story forwards and make us care. But Buffy the Bank Robber is too much for me.
(Seriously - when I first saw the panel with the bank robbery I thought it must be Rome!Buffy...)
When *I* first saw that panel I decided something happened with my English and I can't translate the lines correctly! :)
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 10:01 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 10:02 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 10:13 pm (UTC)I thought the idiom means something like "feeling like an uninvited guest" (my French is very rusty) - so thanks you for your explanation.
But I see someone says that it is spelled incorrectly, so it can't be that.
Or... it can. If it's just a misspelling. Maybe the publishers will fix it in the trade paperback, like they did with Willow's eye color in The Long Way Home. :)
You know I'm happy you're still interested in BtVS and, at the same time, sorry that I can't say: "Join the discussion of this great season 8". I try to like it, but... *le sigh*
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 10:28 pm (UTC)I've got the same impression.
And a lot of people saying "Oh my God yes, it's all falling into place now and the story line just got ten times deeper and more interesting."
God bless them. I visit Dark Horse forums and I know that people argue a lot about the conspiracy and Buffy's future strategy and the identity of the traitor - but I'm afraid it's not my cup of tea. I'm trying to figure out if I'm disappointed because of Spike's absence and try to justify my disappointment by looking for flaws. :)
I'll try to keep on reading, though.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 10:29 pm (UTC)The French have this phrase, l'esprit d'escalier. Literally, it translates as "the spirit of the staircase" but what it actually means is "the things you think of to say after it’s already too late and you’re on your way out."
So it's just a minor misspell, probably a typo.
:) I will never, NEVER, NOT be interested in BtVS. Granted, SPN fandom has become an engrossing distraction from BtVS fandom, but I could never abandon BtVS all together :) I don't 100% agree that the comics totally suck, but my excitement did seriously wane after issue #7 or so. This issue felt slow to me, of course, and some of it did feel out of character for Buffy and Willow, BUT, I was happy to see a return of Anywhere But Here, and a reaffirmation of the Buffy/Willow friendship. However, it did drag out a lot longer than necessary. And I don't buy Willow ever not choosing to fight by Buffy's side. Not as canon. But I'll accept a little less than my usual show standards when it comes to the comics. I allow them to get away with more, because it's up to you what you wanna take as canon.
I really, REALLY loved the first five issues. A LOT.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 10:31 pm (UTC)Angelus (minus the emaciation)
Bale from Batman a screwed up yet hot superhero
Um... Riley? :)
Hee! When you perceive it as pure camp it becomes real fun!