tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913356479406165601.post3199450111781556774..comments2024-01-15T02:19:13.716-08:00Comments on Fragments Of My Imagination: Bring on the NightMark Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16661801011668244109noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913356479406165601.post-15067430330152815222013-01-14T23:42:44.501-08:002013-01-14T23:42:44.501-08:00SPOILERS FOR S7 & 8, cont'd
The idea of e...SPOILERS FOR S7 & 8, cont'd<br /><br />The idea of exploring feminist backlash is an interesting one and a lot could be done with it. A huge part of Buffy's decision at the end of S7 was to endow these girls with a power/gift/responsibility that they hadn't asked for. Granted, it was latent in them by being Potentials, but they might have gone through all their lives as Potentials with no real calling had Buffy (and Willow) not acted as they did. There's an awesome parallel there with Buffy of S1 ("Giles, I'm only 16. I don't wanna die.") And I guess a lot could have been done with Buffy confronting herself over that decision, being confronted by the other Slayers, etc.<br /><br />I wouldn't be one to suggest alternative plotlines or narrative arcs, but I guess I'd like to have seen the backlash handled on a more personal (and, frankly, less whacky) level than on the global "we must stop this army of women" level that they went for, which forced Buffy (the character) into the box of having to rehash all that leadership stuff.<br /><br />I've heard S9 gets smaller again, but I haven't gone down that road yet. Maybe when it's all out and I can read it in a big weekend bender . . .aaronhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09511776738005115468noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913356479406165601.post-50162445190634909312013-01-14T14:32:22.406-08:002013-01-14T14:32:22.406-08:00Sorry, I deleted Aeryl's comment because it ne...Sorry, I deleted Aeryl's comment because it needed a spoiler tag. Here it is with one:<br /><br />SPOILERS FOR S7 and 8<br /><br />The season would have been better off if it had taken the time to explain WHY things ended up that way.<br /><br />Like maybe Buffy, after so long as the sole Slayer, checked out of the decision making until after the choice had been made to maintain the army and put Buffy at the head of it, and she felt no choice but to lead. <br /><br />Anything that would have shown why Buffy didn't grow as the show showed she had. <br /><br />Of course without these characters growing as we'd like them to, there would be no story. What would the conflict have been, had Buffy disbanded the Slayer army and set up small squads of one to two Slayers with one Watcher between patrolling major cities all over the world? <br /><br />I think Season 8 works really well, if you look at it as the Show=Feminist Empowerment, and the Comics=Feminist Backlash, but to tell that story, the empowerment can't be all hunky dory. Mark Fieldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16661801011668244109noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913356479406165601.post-71181713746970408962013-01-14T13:57:23.363-08:002013-01-14T13:57:23.363-08:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Aerylhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10442074043571201717noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913356479406165601.post-40202056469425299752013-01-14T12:26:42.246-08:002013-01-14T12:26:42.246-08:00Agreed on all counts.Agreed on all counts.Mark Fieldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16661801011668244109noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913356479406165601.post-29169614819426490232013-01-14T12:24:54.501-08:002013-01-14T12:24:54.501-08:00COMIC SPOILERS Cont'd,
That was actually one ...COMIC SPOILERS Cont'd,<br /><br />That was actually one of the big problems I had with the S8 comics. The TV show spent so much time (and did such a good job) of leading Buffy up to that realization about sharing and, without hammering the point too much, providing an alternative to patriarchal norms. Then the comic sort of went back to the old, "I'm with you, but I'm alone" theme. The season had other, bigger problems, to be sure, but that one disappointed me more than most.aaronhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09511776738005115468noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913356479406165601.post-32885335580037735502013-01-14T09:21:33.210-08:002013-01-14T09:21:33.210-08:00Re your spoiler point: yes, exactly.Re your spoiler point: yes, exactly.Mark Fieldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16661801011668244109noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913356479406165601.post-90856868613955093722013-01-14T08:59:33.638-08:002013-01-14T08:59:33.638-08:00I never quibbled with Buffy's line of thought ...I never quibbled with Buffy's line of thought over the order of Slayerhood, even though you are right it goes through Faith now. Regardless of whether it makes sense for Buffy to center herself, The First'd take Faith out before Buffy to make sure no new Slayer was Chosen before killing Buffy, ending the Slayer line for good.<br /><br />Buffy's speech is chilling and poignant, but wow it really does set the stage for all of the stuff that goes wrong this season(and beyond).<br /><br />COMIC SPOILERS<br /><br />Buffy's fault in Season 8 is that, even though she shared her power, she never disbanded the army. She maintained the role of General, even though it was isolating, which of course, leads to the troubles of that season. To me, her sharing the power was to represent dismantling <br />the patriarchy, and that by keeping the militaristic stance of the Slayers was more of a "using the masters tools" thing, where she kept a hierarchy in the Slayers, instead of a sisterhood. <br />Aerylhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10442074043571201717noreply@blogger.com