It's hard to believe that I actually disliked the show when it was first shown in 1997. It bugged me that the vampires were so weak. One stab with a broken chair leg and they were gone! I gave up watching after a few episodes and didn't pick it up again till the middle of the second season. Then I finally got it. The show isn't about vampires, it's about Buffy and her problems fitting in at school (or college) while battling to save the world. In retrospect the seasons I liked most were the ones while she was still at school. When she went to college it seemed like everyone around her was secretly a demon or a demon-slayer. Apart from the innocent victims, of course, whose numbers were deplenished week by week.
This is definitely more about Buffy and her problems than about the vampires themselves. If you watched the original movie (with Luke Perry, Paul Reubens and Rutger Hauer and Kristy Swanson) you will see it's the same thing. It's about her and how she 'deals'.
ReplyDeleteI can barely remember the film. I only watched it once, more than 10 years ago. I just remember I didn't like it much at the time. But then again, I didn't like the tv series much when I first watchd it either.
ReplyDeleteThis tv series rocked, and in my opinion, still rocks. Unlike Beauty and the Beast which for me is spoiled by the very 80s look and which I guess would then mean that the directing etc. was more formulaic, even including the revolutionary 3rd season, Buffy does not seem dated to me even 13 years later. It doesn't take itself seriously (like B&B did) yet it very effectively deals with the whole matter of internal demons and demons of everyday life, for which the vampires etc. are allegories.
ReplyDeleteMy nephew started watching it just a few years ago and has the entire series, plus Angel, on DVD, and loves it. I think Whedon is a true genius when it comes to directing and thinking outside normal perspectives. And so another recommendation, if you haven't seen it: Dr. Horrible's Sing A Long Blog.
"Buffy" is timeless. I can't really say which season I liked most. Usually the one I'm currently watching. I found that the seventh season drooped. Those trainee slayers got on my nerves. But apart from that, I expect that "Buffy" will remain popular for many many years to come.
ReplyDeleteI agree about the 7th season. It didn't really work for me. It became very epic - which changed the whole tenor of the show. Still, that in no way detracts from the rest of the series for me.
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