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Post by midwesternwatcher on Apr 11, 2010 12:44:25 GMT -5
I'm not sure what would make a relationship "better," but the ones I was happiest to see ...
Giles/Olivia Buffy/Satsu
Did anybody else mention either of these?
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Post by midwesternwatcher on Apr 11, 2010 12:34:51 GMT -5
I don't think Xander ever says that his first experience was with Faith, but he was awkward enough about it, I'm inclined to think that it was.
Assuming that Xander and Cordelia were both virgins when they started dating, it's quite possible that they never went all the way. My feeling has always been that they never did, and both were still virgins at the end of the relationship.
Cordelia's first confirmed sexual experience was with Warren Christopher (do I remember the name right?) in "Expecting," Angel, season 1. It ends in disaster, as sexual encounters in the Buffyverse usually do.
This is an unanswered question, perhaps good material for fanfic.
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Post by midwesternwatcher on Apr 9, 2010 13:00:01 GMT -5
I'm hoping to start a podcast in the next few months, to be called "Buffy Thoughts," about issues in the Buffyverse. You sound like a thoughtful person, with definite views, different from mine, but that's no matter. Would you like my podcast to include your views? Look in the members list, you'll see my email.
I do think there's something about Willow you're not facing squarely. She is invested in her relationships in a way and to a degree that is not rational, not natural, not sane. When Tara died, she mourned. That was natural. She committed murder. That was not. Remember, we don't condone private vengeance in this culture. And she threatened suicide ("ending the world" is a metaphor). Xander saved her by telling her he loved her. Remember that these fictional characters have real-life counterparts. The "real life" Xander would wind up saving the "real life" Willow five or six times. I've seen it happen!
If I met a Willow type in real life, and I had a chance to make friends with her, I'd be tempted, but I'd keep my distance.
Here's a question. Why does Willow prefer Tara to Oz? We can pass over the matter of what kind of body she prefers. On a personality-emotional level, what does Tara do for Willow that Oz doesn't?
Hope to hear from you.
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Post by midwesternwatcher on Apr 8, 2010 22:29:26 GMT -5
I will think about what's been said and reply in more detail later. For now, I'd like to ask a question.
If you don't want to say that Willow is "codependent," what would you say about her?
How would you describe her issues?
Thanks.
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Post by midwesternwatcher on Apr 7, 2010 20:41:32 GMT -5
Here's a link you might want to look at: www.codependents.org/tools4recovery/patterns.phpMaybe I'm not using the right word. Codependency seems to be a vague concept. I'm rewatching season 4 now. In "Something Blue," Xander complains of Willow's "poor me" talk. "We're all tired of it," says Buffy. In "Doomed," she meets Percy, and is devastated when she overhears him call her a "nerd." She definitely has self-esteem issues. But the big theme is her tendency to become dependent on relationships with others, and to lose it completely when a relationship fails--Oz, then Buffy, then Tara. I appreciate that she has strong feelings, but this is beyond nature. Hey, I love her too! But she's a very troubled young woman. BTW, I claimed Holden Webster, how do I find out if I "got him?" And I should put up a graphic like yours. It won't be Satsu.
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Post by midwesternwatcher on Apr 7, 2010 20:26:42 GMT -5
I'd be glad to "get a watcher," I hope that'll help me contribute to the site and get more out of it too. Thanks!
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Post by midwesternwatcher on Apr 6, 2010 22:18:04 GMT -5
I just finished "Doomed," season 4 episode, uh, 10? Buffy and Riley reveal their secrets. The opening scene is almost the only time in the whole series when we get a good look at SMG and see how little she is. I think her body double must be a head taller. What a great episode! I think season 4 has more than its share of great episodes, too bad the overall story arc (Adam) wasn't the best.
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Post by midwesternwatcher on Apr 6, 2010 21:59:56 GMT -5
It seems to me that all the characters of BtVS that we get to know at all well, including Buffy, will display a bit of codependent behavior now and then, but some more than others.
I feel that Willow has a pronounced codependent streak. When it comes forward, it can be a danger to herself and others.
I'd like to hear other views.
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Post by midwesternwatcher on Apr 6, 2010 21:55:25 GMT -5
I gather that these rewatchings went by the wayside? If it's still going on, I'd like to participate. If not, is there a way to get it started again?
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Post by midwesternwatcher on Apr 6, 2010 19:47:34 GMT -5
According to the semi-canonical novel "Go Ask Malice," Faith learned this phrase from her father when she visited him in prison. Faith grew up believing that her father was deceased, but through her first Watcher, Diana Dormer, she learned that he was serving 25-to-life for the murder of a police officer. You'll find the story of her meeting with her father starting on p. 186.
Midwestern Watcher
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Post by midwesternwatcher on Mar 14, 2010 21:26:11 GMT -5
To continue my last post ... I finished that story by Mel Odom, "Ch'ing Shih," It's one of the better stories in this series, and it serves to illustrate how to Slayer legend might play out against a different cultural and economic background. Of course, it was written by an American. I do not know what a Chinese writer would've done with this story.
Odom introduces a new kind of monster called a "draumach." I don't know where he got that word, or exactly what a "draumach" is. It seems to be a disembodied specter, a form of light, that can't attack but can see things that humans and vampires can't. It was very useful to the vampire Fang Chou in gathering intelligence on his enemies, including the Slayer Xiao Qin.
As far as I can tell from his biography, Mel Odom does not know the Chinese language. It happens I do; I worked as a freelance translator for four years, and I do much of my reading in Chinese. I confess I can't make sense out of the syllables "ch'ing shih." There are many possibilities for the characters, but none of them seems an obvious choice.
It seems to be the name of a monster. The Chinese do have monsters (in fact they are very smug about their monsters, they think their monsters are much better than ours), but I don't know of one by that name. If you ask any Chinese what's the word for "vampire," s/he will say "xi xue gui," which means "ghost that sucks blood." It's an expression they invented to translate our word.
Still a pretty good story.
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Post by midwesternwatcher on Mar 14, 2010 20:56:48 GMT -5
You say I can request a Watcher? If I have ideas on how I can contribute to (or enjoy) the site more, I'd be grateful.
I'm interested in discussing some EU material, especially the Buffy novels. I'd also like to know how you guys feel about fanfic. I don't write it (at least not yet) but I've read some fanfic that I really enjoy and I'd like to recommend if I could.
And what about BBTL?
I guess I don't need to "sign" my posts, that's automatic?
Thanks! MW
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Post by midwesternwatcher on Mar 13, 2010 21:16:33 GMT -5
I'm reading vol. 3 right now. "Code of the Samurai" by Nancy Holder is OK, more action than character development. I'm generally lukewarm of Nancy Holder, but India Cohen is an interesting character.
I'm in the middle of Ch'ang Shih by Mel Odom. Pretty good so far, I'll say more later. His vampires are more monstrous, less human than the vamps on the TV series.
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Post by midwesternwatcher on Mar 13, 2010 20:51:28 GMT -5
I'd like to claim Holden Webster. I hope this is the right place to do it.
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