Buffy's Resurrection, I've always wondered...

[buffyfan21]

Ok, so I'm currently watching season 6 again for the millionth time, and these are some things I've always wondered...

First of all, Why did it never occur to the scooby gang that Buffy being a good person would've went to a heavenly dimension? They just automatically assumed that Buffy was in a hell dimension like Angel was, suffering unbearable torment. I guess it's like Willow said, they were selfish and didn't want to know. They just wanted their friend back.

Secondly, When Buffy comes back and finds out she is running out of money, (I believe this was first brought up in 'Flooded') why is it that Willow and Tara never offered to get jobs and help out too? I mean, they were living there after all. The only thing I can think of is that both Willow and Tara were busy w/ school at the time and weren't able to work, and since Buffy wasn't in school she had to be doing something so she got a job. So, since Tara and Willow never had jobs that we know of, we can assume that Buffy struggled to pay all the bills on her own. Though she did get some help from Giles that lasted a while. Obviously the Doublemeat couldn't have paid more than minimum wage. Also, we can assume that Willow and Tara probably got financial aid to help pay for school, couldn't they have helped Buffy out with some of that money? And Xander had a job, why couldn't he have helped Buffy out? Even though he was not living there. I dunno... I like to think they helped her out off screen, but at times it sure didn't seem like they were....

I know, I've thought way too much about this. But seriously, has anybody else ever wondered these things or am I alone here? It's just something that's always kinda bugged me...

Thoughts?

[dane5by5]

I think the reason they thought Buffy would be in a Hell dimension was because it was a mystical death. It was similar to Angel's in that it involved closing a mystical portal to another dimension. They wouldn't want to take the risk of leaving Buffy suffering when they could do something about it. It seems natural that they would want her back, so I completely understand Willow and the gang in that situation. They really did need her. The world needed her, with Faith in jail. It's much easier to identify mistakes in retrospect.

With the money issue, we never found out if Tara and Willow were contributing finacially to the household, I wouldn't be surprised if Tara did the grocery shopping and Willow helped with the bills.

[BennyTheKey]

Like dane5by5 said, it was a mystical death which is why they thought Buffy would be in a evil dimension, plus they wanted their friend back like you said.

I always wondered about the money issues, because who was looking after the house when Buffy was dead?,

Also the money from the magic box could have gone to Buffy so I dont know why the money issues were made, maybe because series 6 was all about Buffy standing on her own two feet,

[commandercool]

I've always gotten the impression that Heaven and Hell in the Buffyverse were actual locations that you have to get to through portals and stuff rather than a reward system where you go to one or the other automatically when you die. Buffy fell into a portal, and it was never clear to them where it went. And they just assumed the worst since all they ever heard about were dimensions full of demons (I can't remember a time when someone even mentioned a "heaven dimension" before she died).

[buffyfan21]

Good points guys. I agree with you both about it being a mystical death just like Angel's was. So I guess it would stand to reason that the gang would think that Buffy suffered the same fate that Angel did.

And I completely understand why the scooby's wanted their best friend back. I agree that they needed her and that the world needed her as well. I am so glad that they brought her back, but at the same time it is really sad because Buffy had to go through all that heartache and misery, and she had already suffered so much prior to her death, with losing her mom and everything, etc.

And I agree that season 6 was really about emphasizing Buffy's aloneness and having her stand on her own two feet. It is really painful to watch sometimes though, but I guess that's the whole point of season 6. Everybody is struggling to stand on their own and grow up and in the process they are all making some bad choices. It may be painful to watch at times, but it is also I think, very true to life, and something that we all have to go through and experience. Season 6 tends to get a bad rap sometimes, but that's really something I have always admired about the series, it's ability to be a mirror reflecting real life, even though it is largely a fantasy show. Heck, most of the strictly reality based shows seen on TV today can't even do that with much accuracy, in my opinion. Buffy really is something special.

But anyways, I digress...

I was watching 'Afterlife' earlier and that whole scene at the end between Buffy and Spike where she tells him she was in heaven just makes me bawl every time. No matter how many times I have seen it. Another thing I've always wondered about is did Buffy see her mom in heaven? I know in the Buffyverse there are a gazillion heavenly dimensions, but I like to think that they did see each other.

Poor Buffy. Seems like she never catches a break. Guess that's the life of the Chosen One, weight of the world thrust upon her shoulders. I tell ya, Buffy is really someone to be admired. I don't know if I could handle everything she has had to deal with, with even half as much grace. But it's like Spike says, Buffy has ties to the world, family, friends, etc. That's what makes her different than other slayers, that's what allows her to get through everything she has to face.

Wow, guess I kinda went off on a tangent there hu? What can I say, I love to talk about Buffy, (obviously) lol

[BennyTheKey]

lol everyone here loves to talk about Buffy

I think thats one of the reasons i wasnt to keen on season 6, however I loved the finale with evil willow, but it was all to serious and no offense to spuffy lovers but i dont think this should have happened, but thats a whole different topic

[buffyfan21]

May 13, 2008 13:04:07 GMT -5 BennyTheKey said:

I loved the finale with evil willow

I loved the finale also. I thought the last 3 episodes of the season were great.

[buffyfan21]

May 13, 2008 12:18:53 GMT -5 commandercool said:

I've always gotten the impression that Heaven and Hell in the Buffyverse were actual locations that you have to get to through portals and stuff rather than a reward system where you go to one or the other automatically when you die. Buffy fell into a portal, and it was never clear to them where it went. And they just assumed the worst since all they ever heard about were dimensions full of demons (I can't remember a time when someone even mentioned a "heaven dimension" before she died).

Good point. I don't recall that heavenly dimension were brought up before that time either.

[Emmie]

Hell has always been clearly defined and referenced...lots of hell dimensions in the Buffyverse. But a heavenly dimension is only referenced by Buffy's afterlife experience and even then she's not certain it was heaven, only that she was happy.

I think the only difference we can make between the two experiences is that Angel physically went to hell while Buffy's soul spiritually went to "heaven".

Its a depressing reality - thousands of certain hells but only one possible heaven.

[wenxina]

Well... they've got to make it so that your chances of accidentally stumbling into heaven are close enough to nil.
Can't have riff-raff falling in with the angels now, can we?

[nadir]

Not to change the subject too much here, but why is it that Season 6 gets put down so often (I won't say it gets hated on but... well, you all know what I mean).
Personally, I thought it was a very strong season. I even liked the idea of bringing the Big Bad down to a much lower level. Like in Normal Again, when the doc talks about how her world is crumbling so much even her enemies are dulled. I thought, thematically/symbolically, the whole thing worked really well.
I mean yes, Giles left, Tara died, Xan left Anya, Spike turned out to be a rapist, etc., etc.
It's just... what turned me on to the show was how it managed to resonate. It captured genuine humanity so well. And it only makes sense to truly explore the darker sides of living (not evil or malice, but more depression, addiction, hopelessness, etc.). To that end, to me anyway, Season 6 was a deeply honest portrayal of "life's not fair." And that's pretty hard to come by.

Thoughts?

[buffyfan21]

May 13, 2008 20:35:18 GMT -5 nadir said:

what turned me on to the show was how it managed to resonate. It captured genuine humanity so well. And it only makes sense to truly explore the darker sides of living (not evil or malice, but more depression, addiction, hopelessness, etc.). To that end, to me anyway, Season 6 was a deeply honest portrayal of "life's not fair." And that's pretty hard to come by.

Thoughts?

I completely agree with this.

As I said in my earlier post.

"It may be painful to watch at times, but it is also I think, very true to life, and something that we all have to go through and experience. Season 6 tends to get a bad rap sometimes, but that's really something I have always admired about the series, it's ability to be a mirror reflecting real life, even though it is largely a fantasy show. Heck, most of the strictly reality based shows seen on TV today can't even do that with much accuracy, in my opinion. Buffy really is something special."

[Emmie]

I think a huge part of what troubles me about season 6 is that watching it can be depressing. And like SMG and Joss have said before, Buffy "lost the hero" aspect, lost what made her strong. The season is about tearing down the characters til they hit rock bottom and eventually rise up. Its the tragic dark season. And I love tragedy, but its different watching a tragic play that lasts 3 hours versus an entire Buffy season of tragedy.

In some ways I felt like the thematic landscape of the season undercut the power of the comedic balance. People will point to the trio being funny but...hey, not a huge fan of the trio, at all. And I hate Warren.

Depression, addiction and hopelessness are all themes worthy of exploration, but it made for very heavy viewing. I've always identified most with Buffy's character, so her losing herself was tough to watch.

[nadir]

May 13, 2008 22:18:30 GMT -5 Emmie said:

Depression, addiction and hopelessness are all themes worthy of exploration, but it made for very heavy viewing. I've always identified most with Buffy's character, so her losing herself was tough to watch.

Fair enough.
To that degree, then, I could see the season getting merit, but not garnering too many repeat viewings. heh

[buffyfan21]

May 13, 2008 22:18:30 GMT -5 Emmie said:

, Buffy "lost the hero" aspect, lost what made her strong. The season is about tearing down the characters til they hit rock bottom and eventually rise up.

I think that's the whole point though, at least for me anyway. Buffy didn't feel like a hero, she felt like she had lost everything, and she felt very much alone. (And after all she had been through who could blame her). She was stripped of everything. And yet at the end she managed to come back from it all. I think this is a very powerful message that shows you CAN be strong enough to bounce back (super strength or not). Buffy did manage to overcome these things and get back to herself. And she managed to come back stronger than ever before! For someone who has faced all that Buffy has over the years, for me it is a rather inspiring feat.

I think that this season for Buffy was really about her inner strength and her inner demons. She had to call up all of her inner strength, (not physical) in order to be able to come back from the darkest place she had ever been and reclaim herself.

[Wyndam]

One thing that annoys me about Season 6 is that the episodes are just boring. A lot of times I have to catch myself because I will start to nod off during a lot of the episodes. Besides OMWF, Tabula Rasa, and the Dark Willow episodes, none of the other episodes really stand out for me; especially the earlier ones.

That doesn't mean I don't like Season 6. I love every single season of Buffy, just in different degrees.

[buffyfan21]

I just finished watching 'Tabula Rasa' and it is definitely one of the best eps of S6, imo. The episode is hilarious, but the ending is really sad. The part where Buffy gets all of her memories back and all she can do is just lay there on the ground b/c it is all so debilitating for her. I imagine that every memory just came flooding back to her, and she had to re-live everything all over again. Dying in PG, Angel going evil and then having to kill him, finding out that her sister wasn't really her sister, finding out her mom was sick and then losing her, and then finally losing herself and then remembering that she was in heaven. Poor Buffster.

This ep does an exceptional job at mixing the unbelievably funny, with the heart breakingly sad.

It is also very sad when Tara leaves the house and Dawn runs away refusing to hug her bye or acknowledge that she is leaving. I think this was especially hard for Dawn b/c both Willow and Tara were mother figures to Dawn. So, I think it was kinda like her parents splitting up in a way. I do feel bad for Willow in this ep as well, but I also think that she deserved it after lying to Tara and everyone else. Willow could not/did not want to see that what she was doing was wrong and very self destructive to herself and her loved ones. Tara leaving was the wake-up call that Willow needed, which allowed her to hit rock bottom.

It is also sad that Giles leaves in this ep. But again, I can understand where his coming from in regards to Buffy. He feels that she is relying too much on him and needs to stand on her own. At the same time, I can understand Buffy's feelings after all she had been through of needing her father figure there, basically the only parent she has left.

[Emmie]

I can appreciate Giles' leaving for the motivation behind it. He wants Buffy to stop using him as a crutch. It reminds me of 'Tough Love' when Buffy asks him to be the dad to Dawn and he refuses and has to push her out the door. But did he ever just sit down and talk to her? Besides the whole not letting people go with her to confront Sweet. Its still always seemed too harsh for me that he planned to leave one episode after Buffy confesses she was in heaven.

His retreat back to England seems a bit OOC when you consider that they just got over another spell that Willow did that exploded in their faces. His anger over Willow doing Buffy's resurrection should have surfaced during the episode, I think. Instead he still gets on the plan home. If anyone could predict what was happening to Willow, its him. I don't think Tara was up to the challenge of reining Willow in.

[Wyndam]

I understand why Joss and co. wanted Giles to leave (plus Tony had moved back to England and physically couldn't be on the show much anymore); because Season 6 wouldn't have happened the way it did with him around. I agree with Emmie though that it was very OOC for Giles to leave. He just never should have done it, and his decision to leave has always left a bad taste in my mouth.

[ded1]

May 14, 2008 9:25:36 GMT -5 Wyndam said:

One thing that annoys me about Season 6 is that the episodes are just boring. A lot of times I have to catch myself because I will start to nod off during a lot of the episodes. Besides OMWF, Tabula Rasa, and the Dark Willow episodes, none of the other episodes really stand out for me; especially the earlier ones.

That doesn't mean I don't like Season 6. I love every single season of Buffy, just in different degrees.

I agree completely with your comment with the execption of loving every single season because I honestly,really didn't like season 7