Today we witness hundreds of great TV shows that it's almost
impossible to grasp them all. The actors, the critics and the public
have proved that the form of a TV show can very often outbid the popularity of Hollywood movies. Recently there's been a mild vampire hysteria in pop culture, which made many people recall why watching Buffy was more than a guilty pleasure.
A classic is classic not because it conforms to certain structural rules, or fits certain definitions...It is classic because of a certain eternal and irrepressible freshness.
We will not discuss here how the myth of vampire creatures has developed through the pop culture, but long before Twilight there's been a
not so successful horror movie, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The best thing that came out of this movie is the TV show with the same title.
And we should be thankful for that.
You might be a fan of the show, you might have seen some of it,
or you simply roll your eyes when you hear its title.
First thing: It's not about vampires. I mean, it is in
a literal sense. But putting it in Sci-fi
genre or any specific genre would be considered ignorant and lazy. The show equally carries the elements of drama, thriller, horror and sitcom. The fictional side of it is never arbitrary or unfounded, talking about parallel universes and mystical forces just to begin with.
The creator of this brave new world, Joss Whedon, is a perfectionist and a visionary. Nothing in the show seems to appear or happen for no reason. Even the number of the seasons, 7, is traditionally known to be the perfect magical number.
Always succeeding to overcome the predictability and clichés, in fact, Whedon makes fun of the clichés, but he never makes fun of human ideals, presenting us all the modern demons this world never ceases to surprise us with. His humanist approach and brilliant mind is what makes this show one of the most original works of the TV production ever. And from wherever he drew his inspiration (popular culture, literature, art, music, theology, science, etc.) he proudly made a reference.
So yes, the director, the writers and the cast have together clearly created a classic. In addition to all of the above, the soundtrack made the show memorable too, placing the plot into a particular time and a particular generation.
As far as I am concerned, the first episode of Buffy was the beginning of my career. It was the first time I told a story from start to finish the way I wanted.
-Joss Whedon
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Buffy: Does it ever get easy?
Giles: You mean
life?
Buffy: Yeah.
Does it get easy?
Giles: What do
you want me to say?
Buffy: Lie to
me.
Giles:
Yes, it’s terribly simple.The good
guys are
always stalwart and true, the bad guys are
easily distinguished by their pointy horns or black hats,
and, uh, we always defeat them and save the day. No one
ever dies, and everybody lives happily ever after.
Buffy: Liar.
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The main character, Buffy, is a young girl who proves to be a true fighter. From the start we have this strong feminist aspect of the show before feminism was even cool. The first season from today's perspective may seem unoriginal or naive, but don't let the outdated production fool you-it's the sweet
beginning of everything. The characters are still a little shy, the plot and the dialogues
are just getting warmer, wait until you get surprised for the first
time and then get use to that feeling. Already back then, the show predicted an
age of cyber world's contradictions, and don't even get us started on bullying issues, parent pressure and all
that high-school drama. The 90's fashion? Still relevant.
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Giles:
A vampire in love with a Slayer...it's rather poetic...in a maudlin sort of way.
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If you dislike the show after you have finished watching second
season, then this is not a show for you. Now you pretty much get what this is all about. The second season has introduced some key characters to
the show, and this is where the show has proven to be a promising classic. It even
mocks its own topic-the vampires, but never close to becoming a self-parody.
The relationships between the characters get more complex, the
plot starts to revolve around intimate topics such as love, trust, maturing, coming up with some killer conclusions. Sarah Michelle Prinze's performance
has been so painfully good that at this moment you realise there's no way turning back to life B.B.
(before Buffy).
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Mr. Platt: Well, tell
me more about this guy. The Bad Ending Guy.
Buffy: He was my
first...I loved him, and then he...
Mr. Platt: ...changed.
Buffy: Yeah.
Mr. Platt: He got mean.
Buffy: Yes.
Mr.Platt: And you didn't stop loving him. Look, lots of people
lose themselves in love. It's no shame. They write songs about it. The hitch
is, you can't stay lost. Sooner or later, you have to get back to yourself.
Buffy: And if you can't?
Mr.Platt: If you can't...Well, love becomes your master, and
you're just its dog.
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Angelus: Spike, my boy, you really don't get it. Do you? You tried to kill
her, but you couldn't. Look at you. You're a wreck. She's stronger
than any Slayer you've ever faced. Force won't get it done. You gotta work from the inside. To kill this girl...you have to love her.
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The season three continues the brilliance of the former
season. The drama, the action, the surprises, the possibilities of the crazy
and the impossible. Another appearance of the key character underlines
the third season, kudos to Eliza Dushku. Director questions the sympathy
spectators have for the characters. It's about the hard challenges and right moral choices in love and friendship. More than any other season, this one
dramatically points out the political and
the corrupted side of the world we live in. But the director`s approval of
forgiveness and belief in a better humanity never fails. The last episode
symbolically closes one big chapter of the whole show, as of the life of characters as
well, making them feel relieved for surviving their own adolescence.
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Faith: When are you gonna learn, B? It doesn't matter what kind of vibe you get off a person. 'Cause nine times out of ten, the face they're showing you is not the real one.
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Angel: Look, I'm
weak. I've never been anything else. It's not the demon in me that needs
killing, Buffy. It's the man.
Buffy: You're weak. Everybody is. Everybody
fails. Maybe this evil did bring you back, but if it did, it's because it needs
you. And that means that you can hurt it. Angel, you have the power to do real
good, to make amends. But if you die now, then all that you ever were was a
monster.
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Angel: You still my girl?
Buffy: Always.
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The beginning of the season four and this whole new chapter
is optimistic and light hearted.Very soon, the hidden
fears and doubts characters have will come to the surface. The eternal
confusion of those years where you have to define your life, learn to
assimilate in a new surroundings and preserve your integrity. Talking about college, jobs, new relationships, old relationships. And even today there hasn't been a show that has brought up the subject of
sexuality in such a delightful
way. James Marsters` kick ass performance gives to this season undeniably refreshing note. There's a constant battle between ''the old'' and "the new ideas''. The show gets a whole
new vibe with the scientific perspective of fighting ''the big bad'', with the conclusion
that no technology could compete with the human soul. And no matter how powerful you are, you're powerless without friends. The end of the show announces in a David Lynch
way all that there`s yet to come.
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Spike: The point is, they were once a real powerful group.
It's not a stretch to say they ruled the world. And when they broke up everyone
blamed Yoko, but the fact is the group split itself apart, she just happened to
be there. And you know how it is with kids. They go off to college, they grow
apart. Way of the world.
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In season five, the cast has been refreshed and you are yet to learn
to appreciate these new faces. The director is questioning reality, or
illusion of a settled life, settled relationships, settled home. He brings up true
meaning of family. The season deals with the
feeling of loss, the subject of death, with more direct approach
than ever, and this might be emotionally one of the most
mature seasons of the show so far. On the other side, it's full of crazy twists, witty
ideas and breathtaking performances. This is where the final condemnation of the
misogynistic society and the overuse of technology happens to be. The character
of Spike has again proven to be one of the wisest choices from the director and
the writers, not only for this season, but for the show in general. Season five
closes with thoughts of pure, unselfish love, which will stay the
director`s favourite quest until the very end of the show.
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Spike:You're not friends. You'll never be friends. You'll be in love till it
kills you both. You'll fight, and you'll shag, and you'll hate each other till
it makes you quiver, but you'll never be friends. Love isn't brains, children,
it's blood...blood screaming inside you to work its will. I may be
love's bitch, but at least I'm man enough to admit it.
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Spirit Guide:You are full of love, you love with all your soul.
It's brighter than the fire... blinding... that's why you pull away from it.
Buffy: I'm full of love? I'm not losing it?
Spirit Guide:Only if you reject it. Love is
pain, and the Slayer forges strength from pain. Love... give... forgive. Risk
the pain, it is your nature. Love will bring you to your gift.
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The season 6 continues to intrigue the public emotionally
with its presentation of life's struggles, keeping its warm and entertaining
character. Since the huge demands have been put on the role of Buffy so far, now
the inner fights of the other characters come into the limelight.
Psychologically, season six deals with depression, addiction, anxiety, feelings of isolation. Sociologically, it condemns the rigid, bureaucratic system, as well as the restricted scholar system. Philosophically, it deals
with our perception of the world, our role and people in it. This season might
be one of the most challenging seasons of the show for many reasons. It was a
brave attempt to bring the whole world of Buffy to the ground and it succeeded
at its best.
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Buffy: I touch the fire, and it freezes me
I
look into it, and it's black
Why
can't I feel?
My
skin should crack and peel
I
want the fire back.
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Buffy: You must be so disappointed in me.
Rupert Giles: No. No, no, I'm not.
Buffy: But this is all my fault.
Rupert Giles: No. I don't believe it is. Do you
want me to wag my finger at you and tell you that you acted rashly? You did.
A-and I can. I know that you loved him. And... he... has proven more than once
that he loved you. You couldn't have known what would happen. The coming months
a-are gonna - are gonna be hard...I-I suspect on all of us, but... if it's
guilt you're looking for, Buffy, I'm-I'm not your man. All you will get from me
is-is my support. And my respect.
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The final season is about the healing the old wounds, which
is exactly what the characters needed. Some of the most touching scenes happen to be
in the last season. Its about going to the core of their problems and the evil,
in a literal sense of the word. You know those shows when they simply end and
nothing is really explained, you just end up wondering why you spent all of
your time watching all those episodes? This is not one of those shows.
The moral of
the show is about overcoming personal issues in order to fight for a better world. It's about choosing to be strong and realising what kind of power we have within us. But there's never too much of moralization in the show . That's
because the director never takes himself too seriously, he doesn't let his vision become pretentious. All of his characters, and I mean all of them, are
primarily humans: they mock, they judge, they overestimate and underestimate
themselves all the time. And what's the most likeable thing in them is that, no matter what happens, they stay together. I guess that puts Buffy into Sci-fi genre these days.
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Spike: You listen to me. I've been alive a bit longer than you, and dead a lot longer than that. I've seen things you couldn't imagine, and done things I prefer you didn't. Don't exactly have a reputation for being a thinker. I follow my blood...which doesn't exactly rush in the direction of my brain. So I make a lot of mistakes. A lot of wrong bloody calls. A hundred-plus years, and there's only one thing I've ever been sure of. You. Hey, look at me. I'm not asking you for anything. When I say I love you, it's not because I want you, or because I can't have you. It has nothing to do with me. I love what you are. What you do. How you try. I've seen your kindness, and your strength. I've seen the best and the worst of you, and I understand, with perfect clarity, exactly what you are. You're a hell of a woman. You're the One, Buffy.
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Anya: And they have no
purpose that unites them, so they just drift around, blundering through life
until they die, which they-they know is coming, yet every single one
of them is surprised when it happens to them. They're incapable of thinking
about what they want beyond the moment. They kill each other, which
is clearly insane... and yet here's the thing. When it's something
that really matters, they fight. I mean, they're lame morons for
fighting, but they do! They never... they never quit. So I guess I'll keep
fighting too.
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Whistler: Bottom line is,
even if you see them coming, you're not ready for the big moments. No one asks
for their life to change, not really. But it does. So, what are we, helpless?
Puppets? Nah. 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.
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A.B.
Love, Invitation to Inspiration
