Buffy in Review- The Witch

I brought home a stack of work.  I’m not going to do it, because I’d rather be watching Buffy.

I'd rather be watching Buffy.

We’re on The Witch, the third episode of Season 1.  Granted this is not really a pivotal episode, but for some reason it seems to be referenced a lot.  Is it Buffy in a cheerleading uniform?  Meeting Amy, the character who pops back into our lives every few years?  I am hoping to figure it out on this rewatch. (This is written as a rewatch after having viewed the entire series, so if you aren't through the series and are sensitive to decade old spoilers, beware.)

We begin with a lecture from Giles about Buffy “enslaving [herself] to this cult” of cheerleading.  Personally, I struggle seeing Buffy as a cheerleader.  It’s so yay sports, which isn’t something she seems to care about, be aware of, or anything at all.  Since when did the Scoobies care about school spirit?  I guess that may not be the standard motivation for being on the cheer squad, but it just doesn’t seem like an activity she would care about.  Is that just me? I know the very idea of Buffy is based around the cheerleader type becoming savior of the world.  I don’t know, I could be all wrong on this.  Just thoughts.  

Also at this moment Xander creates some serious awkwardness with his bracelet.  How can Buffy not react to the weirdness of giving her a bracelet that says “Yours Always,”?  That is not an appropriate friend present and should not be accepted.  After viewing the Human Torch (cheerleader suffering from spontaneous combustion), we move into the more familiar setting of the library.  Okay, this is my favorite Giles moment.  His smile about having a “cornucopia” of amazing evil shows his joy in learning of something new.  A true educator.  Willow coins the phrase “The Slayerettes” in this scene, then Xander states his life philosophy, “I laugh in the face of danger, then I hide until it goes away.”   This was always one of my favorite Xander quotes.  Honestly, the line itself isn't true.  More than once in the series Xander fights back, but it’s just such a great line.

The trophy case makes its first appearance in this episode. (And one of its last; it doesn’t pop up much.) This is where we establish Amy’s weirdness factor.  She’s obviously obsessed with her mother.  We know where this is going, but it’s still creepy,  even in hindsight.

Back to the Slayerettes- we pretty much establish this is the episode all about defining Xander’s friendzone status.  According to Willow, he’s a chewed up pen you’re just used to having.  He doesn't react well to this metaphor and offers to drive a railroad spike through his head.  I cannot help but wonder if this line was at all the inspiration for Spike’s name, or at least thought about after naming Spike.  Thanks for the flash-forward moment, Xander!  It’s almost fun watching him try to ask Buffy out and get shot down, or just completely ignored.  They act like kids for such a small portion of the series that it’s fun to watch the honest awkwardness. 

Cordelia gets cursed; mostly for being Cordelia,
a little bit because she was a cheerleader

As we view a cursed Cordelia wreck a car, we learn she’s failed her driver’s license twice.  This is pretty sad, considering Cordelia is pretty much the designated chauffeur for the next couple of years.  You think someone would be more successful than her at the whole driving thing.  Is it supposed to act as a status symbol that Cordelia had a car?  Most high school students can afford something to drive to school.  Regardless of their success in driving,  Willow is successful at something here- she has no issues dealing with the eye of newt to concoct the “witch detecting” spell.  Foreshadowing future skills, Ms. Rosenburg?

I love the twist in this episode. When primes suspect Amy goes home and is obviously in control, not the suffering pressured victim, you know there is something different going on here.  Even in an early, non-pivotal episode, it’s got to be something just a bit different.  Oh, and then there’s the black cat on Buffy’s shirt.  Witchy!  Intrigue at her sleeping ensemble is followed by head shaking at her enthusiastic cheerleading self.  Obviously there is some other kind of problem (evil Amy spell) going on here, but regardless, I prefer sarcastic, bigger picture Buffy.  I’m okay with her cheer phase not lasting all that long.

We end up back with Giles in the library, and he appears to have recognized the spell cast on Buffy fairly easily.  He would, wouldn't he.  I believe The Ripper would recognize a vengeance spell when he saw it.   I do love Giles through all of this.  He showed that he’d leave the library and get his hands dirty when he needed to in order to protect Buffy and get the job done.  Even just a couple of episodes into the series, we believe that he cares about her.   Watching it, I barely detect a difference in his concern and controlled protectiveness in this, merely the third episode, than in the latest episodes when Buffy had practically become a daughter to him.  It shows us that caring for Buffy is just going to become a part of him, from beginning to end.  Thank you Anthony Stewart Head for being such a great actor.  By the way, he is awfully competent here.  I like it.  He does mention it’s his first spell casting, which is going to prove to be a lie.

Sidebar- We see a lot of the inside school gym in this episode.  Do we see it again?  I remember prom, but I’m struggling to come up with another scene in the gym.  Oh, and I remember gym class in Phases (the werewolf episode).  I remember way more locker room than gym.  I'll be keeping an eye out as we proceed.  

Amy's recovered from her curse of
wanting to be a cheerleader.

My favorite Buffy is always quippy, strong Buffy, and she doesn’t let me down in this climactic scene.  She “feels better” after her little death curse is lifted, and she takes care of the situation.  I definitely prefer Buffy to be of the attitude Amy, the real Amy, has at the end of the episode.  She “will really miss the intellectual thrill of spelling words with [her] arms,” and I appreciate her sarcastic look at cheering.  Forgive me any avid cheerleaders out there, it’s just not my thing.  Most cheerleaders that I've actually known or had in school have been very nice people.  Most of them are not the type to become avid Joss Whedon fans, however.  I'm sure there are exceptions.

As far as conclusions, this episode's is a long standing favorite of mine.  I would never remember Catherine being trapped in the cheer-leading trophy if Oz didn't mention it’s eyes were following him later in the series.  As small as that connection is, it’s one of my favorites.  Joss, and all the other amazing Buffy writers, never forgets the details.  It’s one thing that makes the series so special. 

It follows you with its eyes!

Stay Shiny!

Kristin

Buffy in Review- The Harvest

As a note to anyone reading this, the below review is written as a “re-watch” review and is chock full of spoilers from throughout the entire series.   I want to take a look at the beginning with the end in mind, so reader should be aware.   This is the conclusion of the two-part premiere, so click here to read the review of Welcome to the Hellmouth.

Picking up where we left off last week, I hear the voice overview explaining the Chosen One.  I’ve always known that the first season that is done by someone other than Giles.    I inexplicably want to know whose voice that is.  Light research did not produce an answer.  Eventually I may take the time to figure this one out.  

Within seconds the danger from Luke is over.  He burns his hand on the cross, demonstrating a specific way to defend against a vampire.  I love that Buffy is wearing the necklace she got earlier in the evening from Angel. It’s kind of like the first time Angel helps with a rescue.  (I don’t like the idea of Angel being Buffy’s rescuer in any physical sense, but he can “help.”) 

Outside of the crypt, Buffy steps in to save Willow and manages to help out Xander as well.   Jesse is lost to them at this point.  Panic does not seem to set in enough for them here. If my best friend were taken by demons I would be seriously screaming in panic.  I suppose this is why Willow & Xander get to be scoobies, and not me.  I’ll work on it, I promise! 

Giles & His Globe

Giles and his globe.  This is back-story that establishes the lore of the show.  “The old ones” roamed the earth.  The last demon to leave our reality fed off a human, and the human was infected with the demon’s soul.  The soul of a demon inhabits a vampire, not the human soul.  Everyone watching knows that this is a major part of Buffy mythology, but I’ve never paid such close attention to the soul reference before.  I love how Joss establishes everything so early on!  

I like how we go straight into the Master at this point.  Info gets thrown in very smoothly here, in a different, elevated dialogue.  The dialogue of the vampires definitely creates that contrast between them and the teenagers.  Joss uses language so deliberately throughout his story telling, and this is case in point.  The Master says that he’s been waiting three score years.  That would be sixty years. (Thank you Lincoln for assuring that I know how much a “score” actually is.)  He doesn’t just come right out and say sixty, that’s too easy.  Also, he doesn’t say ‘church,’ he says “house of worship.”  He reads as old and dry as he looks.   The Master keeps mentioning his ascension, and I keep imagining him as a giant snake…

Willow does demonstrate a bit of panic here, which I approve of.  She then gets over it and demonstrates her tech geek awesomeness.  Giles takes a moment to be “a bit British,” and refers to the computer as a “dread machine.”  I’m thinking this is a "grown-up" librarian thing, not a British thing.  I happen to be a fan of a very scientifically advanced British show.

Xander has his first moment of feeling at a loss when Willow gets her research list, Buffy’s off hunting Jesse, and he is left “standing.”  Buffy ventures back to the tomb of attack now that it’s daylight, and Angel steps out of the shadows. It’s a little strange to see him moving around in the light of day.  It’s not until later in the season where vamps start being around a lot during the day.  Again, I’m wondering what people thought of him before he was “out” as a vamp.  He just embodies the talk, dark, and handsome vampire to me.  Anyway, I very much enjoy their exchange here.  He admits to being afraid and encourages Buffy not to go into the tunnels.  It’s like he wants to help and hasn’t figured out how yet, which works so well with what we find out about how he ended up in Sunnydale in the first place.

Meet Harmony

My favorite part of the computer scene is getting to see Harmony.  I didn’t realize she was there that early on.  We also get reminded of how horrid a human being Cordelia is, then have a happy moment when Willow makes her life a bit worse before cutting back to the sewers.  Xander follows Buffy down into the abyss and introduces her to Jesse with the awesome like “It’s okay, Buffy’s a superhero.”  Thank you Joss for that.  The term ‘superhero’ makes you think of these amazing classic heroes like Batman and Superman, and Buffy is equally as awesome.  Also, at the end of their little adventure Xander pulls Buffy out, so he proves helpful, just as he always does.

The Master has his creepy moment with his minions, then we move to the Scooby Gang and hear the “Hellmouth” referred to for the first time.  After their pow-wow moment, they have the iconic exit move from the library.  It’s fun to see it in context.

Exiting the library.
Entering a cult obsession.

These scenes with Buffy’s mom are so much more interesting in retrospect.  I see Whedon spelling out the parellels to real life as Joyce tells Buffy that she knows the world will end if Buffy can’t go out with her friends.  “Everything feels like life or death when you’re a sixteen year old girl.” We all can relate to Buffy, because even though we’re not saving the world when we’re solving a crisis in our own lives, we feel like we are.  Buffy lives out the horror and the chaos in life through physical demons, and it’s cathartic for me to watch.

The Bronze is under attack!  What a shock! Why do people keep coming to the Bronze?  Surely they understand it’s a death trap.  I do like that this scene brings the serious bad out of the underground and ancient crypts, and into the contemporary “real” life.  Buffy escapes from her house to save the world and steps in just in time to save Cordelia and show off her amazingness to the entire Bronze.  You’d think that afterward people would remember that they had a superhero in their midst.  Xander (almost accidently) takes out Jesse, which I really feel should be a lot more traumatizing than it is. 

Not Angel at his most useful.

Who do you think this is warning?

Angel steps out of the shadows as the last vamp leaves, with the comment, “She did it.  I’ll be damned.”  Where was he during this fight?  Seriously, he can’t lend a hand? Thank goodness he helped her out with the necklace, but honestly it's his only redeeming quality this episode, and I don't remember him existing in the next two.  He might, but I don't really remember him.  Anyway, I do love that as he moves away from the door we see behind him the sign “WATCH YOUR STEP.”  Ah, foreshadowing.  But who do we think it’s warning?

The world is doomed.

The ending of the episode is one of my favorite moments in the hour.  Xander’s last line at the Bronze was the phrase “Nothing’s going to be same,”  before cutting straight to a completely normal looking school day.  Giles points out that the trio may be up against other things than just vampires, which Buffy, Xander, & Willow take very seriously.  Or not. They just sort of blow off before wandering away with pointless banter.  I can see the series finale right in front of me as Giles admits that “The Earth is doomed.”  It’s an awesome moment and I can’t believe that I haven’t watched it in so long.  If you can’t imagine it this moment, go to hulu or netflix and watch it now, because it’s just great. (I did a quick look on Youtube for a clip, but I wasn't successful.)

Coming soon- I’ll be reviewing Witch next week.  It may not be a landmark episode on the Buffy timeline, but it was an episode that I always remembered.  I’m pretty excited about rewatching it, so it ought to fun.

Stay Shiny!

Kristin

Buffy in Review- Welcome to the Hellmouth

For Whedonverse Thursdays I’m going to offer a closer look at significant episodes throughout the series.  Yes, this could take a while.   Yes, I may skip over a few.  I plan to mention most episodes, while being in-depth with my reviews from the perspective of a well versed fan on a rewatch.  Here goes the walk-through.

First scene of BTVS, featuring Darla

Of course we’ll be beginning with the premiere, Welcome to the Hellmouth.  It begins with Darla walking into the abandoned school, acting unsure, until her somewhat threatening companion suddenly turns into dinner.  Of course on this rewatch we know it’s Darla, and it’s been a while since I’ve seen the school girl outfit.  It’s kind of fun to see her and try to imagine her helpless. 

The first moments with Buffy are spent in her dreams.  Before we ever meet her, we see that inside her head are dark and frightening images.  This contrasts with the rest of the room and a cheerful Joyce, but our first encounter with Buffy is actually with her unconscious, and that’s a dark scary place.  Also, as a rewatcher we know that those images are from her future, so we’re also seeing that her dreams can be prophetic.

The influx of the 90s wardrobe is immediate upon arrival at school, but it’s not the focus.  I guess I don’t find it all that distracting.  What was way more distracting was Xander on a skateboard.  I’m okay with how that did not last.  The unique Buffy-esque dialogue also hit hard and fast, with such classic quotes & phrases as “The library. Where the books live,” from Willow explaining to Xander where he could find a math book, and Xander’s questioning of Jesse “What’s the sitch?”    

Jesse, played by Eric Balfour

Ah, Jesse.  So rarely to be heard about in the later years.  It’s hard to believe in the three musketeers of Willow, Xander, & Jesse when in the many times the Xander/Willow younger days are discussed, no one ever mentions him.  Also, they are just not broken up very long about the tragic death of their lifelong friend.

Principal Flutie is then impressed by Buffy’s history- enough to tape it back together.  The memory of Flutie fades in the wake of Snyder’s dominant personality.

Oh, Xander’s first line to Buffy- “Can I have you?”  I love that. Of course, the answer is ‘sorry but no,’ to the eternal sadness of a few hopeful fans.  I was never personally a big believer that Xander was somewhere Buffy needed to go.  Xander is too real and grounded for Buffy.   This is a conversation for another post.

Xander then picks up the stake that fell out of Buffy’s bag.  If she’s so moved on, as evidenced when she reacts to Giles, why is she carrying weapons?  So we’ve met Xander, now onto Cordelia.

(9:40) Okay, Cordy’s coolness test?  Did they seriously love James Spader?  Apparently he needs to call Buffy.  I wasn’t even sure who that was, so here you go.  And seriously, who is John Tesh?  Buffy, who’s seen real demons, is calling him the devil.  I read his Wikipedia article, but that didn’t really solve it for me.   Is this even the right guy?  Is it just me? I was watching this in the 6^th grade, so I took it for granted when I didn’t know these people, but I still have no idea. 

The book the Slayer needs immediately, but never again.

(12:10)Marking through introduction of other main characters, we can check off Giles with Buffy’s visit to the library.  I love how Giles throws that Vampyr book down in front of Buffy without even saying who he is.   Exactly why did he believe that she needed that particular book?  Is it the handbook mentioned by Kendra later? Do we see it again? I plan to be on the lookout, because apparently the Slayer was coming to Sunnydale and the first thing she would want would be that exact book! 

Onto our first dead body.  Okay, why do we never see the girls in the locker room again?  We could have missed out on Aphrodesia (sp?) being the best vapid Sunnydale student turned demon ever! (Sorry Harmony.) And that other girl can scream.  We hear in the next scene or name is Ora (sp?).

Meeting Willow, where we learn that the library gives Buffy “the wiggins.”  I totally picked up that word in middle school.  Things wigged me out and gave me the wiggins all the time.   Buffy, upon seeing the dead body, runs to Giles and declares that she doesn’t care. 

I completely love this scene.  Listening to Buffy, I realize that Sarah Michelle Gellar already had a fully developed Buffy down pat.  Anthony Stewart Head is there as Giles, too.  The music is just a bit corny, and it might be my personal sense of nostalgia, but by this point I am fully invested.  I understand Buffy’s plight as a normal girl, and despite not having seen her do anything yet, I believe in her strength.  I believe that she could take on some vamps and hold her own.  Of course, Xander overhears about her slayage at this point.

Our first view real of the vampires is the ritualistic Master and his minions.  It’s very different and detached from reality.  I like it more a bit later in the series when the big bads can blend a little better into day to day life, and you can relate a little more to them.

Angel, played by David Boreanez

(24:30) Oh, Angel.  He seems so young here. I watch Bones, so he is 16 years younger in this moment.  I have spent more than half my life in love with this guy.   I ADORE that their first moment is Buffy taking him out.  She holds the power from minute one.  I also love that his first comment to her is sarcastic.  His shirt is disturbingly shiny here.  What is it made out of?  He is pretty hot, though.  Surprise.  I do enjoy this scene- just a taste.  He doesn’t have the ancient feel of the Master and crew or the Vampyr tome of Giles, or the same vibe as the ultra-trendy high school hallways. He stands out against that backdrop, offering something different and intriguing.   We see the necklace he gives her at this moment.  It definitely shows that Angel wants to keep her safe, even if she found him “annoying” and “really didn’t like him.”  (Twilight note- proper response to lurking stalkers.)

Giles being a creeper

Entering the Bronze.  I’ll analyze the Bronze itself another time.  Are there many bars that let in fifteen year olds in reality?  I love seeing Giles just lurking in the upper levels, concerned because Buffy “didn’t hone” (32:00).

The Master and Luke are not all that interesting to me.  I mean, it’s interesting that the Master doesn’t ever look normal, but I don’t love him. It’s so much better when you love the bad guy. 

We’ve reached the crisis moment.  Willow and a snacked upon Jesse are at dragged into a crypt, and we have a corny moment when Darla transforms “to feed!”  I like how Darla contrasts her soft and hard so much in her human and vamp forms.  She seems so sweet human form, and so hard when she asks Buffy “Who the hell are you?”  (38:00). This all leads to our first dusting.  I love this whole easy clean-up method set up by Joss.  I remember when I saw the movie later and I could not figure out why the dead vamps were still lying around.  Wouldn’t people notice?  It’s so much easier to believe that the people of Sunnydale live in ignorant bliss when the vamps can be gotten rid of with so little trail.

I enjoy that Buffy has a past, though.  I like a stronger Buffy who already knows what’s up.  I know Joss would have done a wonderful job, but I’m glad I don’t have to wait to see a Buffy who can take on the Vessel.   She’s already got an understanding of what’s being asked of her, and we already feel her pain at the life she’s lost. 

We’re going to breaking at this, with Buffy losing her battle with Luke in a typical horror story growl. We’ll pick up next Thursday with a detailed review of The Harvest. 

Favorite Characters in the Whedonverse: Anya

For Whedonverse Thursdays, I've decided to do some character studies on my favorite characters from the Whedonverse. Plot makes a story work, but it's the characters that keep you coming back to the show/book/series. Whedon (and the amazing writers he finds) know characters - they know how to make us love a character and then question that love and then love him/her again. In like 2 minutes. It's kinda awesome. 

My first character is from Buffy: The Vampire Slayer - Anya. 

From the moment we first met Anya in "The Wish" in Season 3, I knew we had a character I would like. She changed a little from this first episode; most notably, she wasn't a demon for much longer, but she was always very amusing. I think her history and her fresh perspective on the world as a human were always interesting. 

Anya: I can just hear you in private. "I dislike that Anya. She's newly human, and strangely literal". 
Willow: What? I don't say that. No one says that. No one talks that way.

Anya and Xander - so cute!

Her relationship with Xander is important - Xander had gone for girls that were not equal to him: Buffy would never be able to care about him the way he would need it, Cordelia would always want to seem above him, but Anya - she needed Xander. Sometimes, his role was simply to tell her how to act, but he was able to see past her oddness and love her for herself. I, for one, hated the fact that they didn't end up happy together. It was the right decision for the show, but a little part of me really wanted them together forever. 

Anya was the queen of quirks - from loving money to fearing bunnies, she always had some weird idea or feeling. She always said exactly what was on her mind, which made her the kind of person you could admire. Of course, she was also the kind of person that would make you look at her sideways. (So, I guess I can relate to her pretty well then.) 

But Whedon's characters have depth; Anya, while hilarious and abrupt, was affected emotionally by the things that happened to her and those around her. Since these emotions were so new to her and often confused her, she was, at times, the most relateable. When Buffy's mother died, her reaction and questioning is something a lot of people go through, but would never want to talk about. Her ability to say what she is thinking and feeling, allows an outlet for her emotions and allows the viewer to relate to her more than some of the other characters. 

Anya: Are they gonna cut the body open? 
Willow: Oh my God! Would you just... stop talking? Just... shut your mouth. Please. 
Anya: What am I doing? 
Willow: How can you act like that? 
Anya: Am I supposed to be changing my clothes a lot? I mean, is that the helpful thing to do? 
Xander: Guys... 
Willow: The way you behave... 
Anya: Nobody will tell me. 
Willow: Because it's not okay for you to be asking these things. 
Anya: But I don't understand. 
[begins to cry] 

During her confusion in "The Body." 

Anya: I don't understand how this all happens. How we go through this. I mean, I knew her, and then she's- There's just a body, and I don't understand why she just can't get back in it and not be dead anymore. It's stupid. It's mortal and stupid. And-and Xander's crying and not talking, and-and I was having fruit punch, and I thought, well, Joyce will never have any more fruit punch ever, and she'll never have eggs, or yawn or brush her hair, not ever, and no one will explain to me why. 

She's an awesome character and always amused me greatly in my watching of Buffy. She may not have been the most important member of the Scooby gang, but I always enjoy a good Anya line.

DFTBA!

Jana 

Five Reasons to Love Buffy tVS

It has been decided that Thursdays will be set aside to impart thoughts related to the incredible universe of work that has been created by Joss Whedon.  I plan to go into a lot of detail about what makes the Whedonverse amazing, but most of it will begin and end with Buffy, with a smattering of other amazing things mixed in.   For a start, here are five main reasons why I, a "grown-up" can adore the same show now that I lived for in the 7th grade.  (All of which will be revisited someday soon for futher analysis.)

Reasons I Love Buffy the Vampire Slayer

I laugh in the face of danger,
then I hide until it goes away.

Xander- Xander has no special powers.  He isn’t going to take down powerful demons or cast spells.  The thing of it all, is that Xander is at the heart of the BTVS family.  You can’t overcome the bad without something to smile about. Xander is the everyman on the show, and he shows us that what we do matters.  We may be surrounded by cannibalistic hyenas, possessed mummies, or praying mantis ladies, but we can survive.  We might even be able to be hilarious while doing it. 

The Body- This is an episode where reality happens.  It's not really this particular episode that makes the top five, it's that this episode embodies what makes Buffy amazing- how Buffy is the most real television show.  In a world filled with death and apocalypse, it doesn’t count until it happens in front of you.  Then what?  Whedon, in his miraculous way, asks us to confront the reality of the deaths we watch on the screen each week.  Death, unlike the vampires and demons, is a monster in our world, and we can’t stake it.  We have to deal with it. And it sucks. 

Anya: Joyce will never have any more fruit punch, ever, and she'll never have eggs, or yawn or brush her hair, not ever, and no one will explain to me why.

Angel: You still my girl?
Buffy: Always.

Buffy & Angel- She’s cookie dough and she’s not done yet, but if she ever is, Angel’s her guy.  That’s how it works.  That doesn’t mean he’s the best guy, or the perfect guy, just that he’s hers.  They love each other. That doesn’t make everything okay.  That doesn’t mean they’ll live happily ever after.  Just that they love each other.   I was watching their relationship when I was thirteen, and I learned from them that it’s not always going to work out, but that's life, and it doesn’t make the love less real. 

 I don't want to be this good-looking and athletic.
We all have crosses to bear.

Spike- Who doesn't love Spike? He’s amazing from start to finish.  I just heard James Marsters speak at Dragon Con, and I believe his awesomeness trickled into Spike.  He makes a wonderful, unique baddie, and his character is always that of a lover.  Each step in his life is about who or what he loves, even as a monster.  That makes it so easy to love him.  It’s the heart on the sleeve effect, and it’s universal.  It helps that he is quippy, sexy, and intense.  Again, who doesn’t love Spike?

Buffy-  Buffy is so complicated.  She was just a cheerleader, then she became the savior of the world.  She wants to do the right thing, but sometimes the cost is so very high, and people come to expect so much from her.  You may not love her the most, or think she’s the funniest, and I believe few people choose her as their favorite character.  The thing is, she’s the most real and the most inspiring of them all.  Life sucks, but you have to deal with it.  Buffy models how and shows us by example how to fight back and how to deal.

Angelus: No weapons... no friends... no hope.
Take that all away and what's left?

Buffy: Me.

That's what dragged me into the world of Joss Whedon, and I've never really left. 

Stay Shiny!

Kristin