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Post by Emmie on Oct 6, 2010 23:06:25 GMT -5
Yeah, this was a good issue. If Scott wrote the bulk of it, he did a great job. I don't think it's about Scott writing the bulk of it. From what I understand, Joss and he were working very closely on this together. It sounds like a true collaboration. This is Joss + Scott and the partnership is really, really good. Also, Scott "hating" Spike is so beyond silly. I think Scott really gets Spike actually. He doesn't idolize Spike, but he understands and appreciates Spike. And that means he can write a great Spike. Personally, I feel that the way Lynch overidentifies with Spike leads to him misunderstanding Spike's character, especially when it comes to Spike's relationship with Angel. I wanted to give a shoutout to Mary for her letter posted in the lettercol. You were very eloquent and expressed your viewpoint wonderfully. I loved the quotes you used and it was pure pleasure to read a Spuffy fan being so awesome.
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Post by Emmie on Oct 6, 2010 20:57:01 GMT -5
This issue kicked monumental ass. Loved all the character moments. Loved the dialogue. Loved Spike's "My hero" line.
It's definitely one of the best issues of the season.
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Post by Emmie on Oct 4, 2010 19:39:43 GMT -5
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Post by Emmie on Sept 27, 2010 5:38:51 GMT -5
Not rough enough? Um, Ripper. Also, Giles putting Ben out of business. Also, Giles being badass mage at the end of Season 6. Not sweet enough? I really don't even see how to respond to that as Giles is ridiculously sweet. (It kinda seems like you don't like Giles all that much...?) It's fine if you don't like the pairing. The best part about that is that this story has shippy subtext that you can take or leave. Simple fact is that Giles and Faith are extremely close now in the comics. But that's just according to Joss. People can take or leave the comics as they wish, also.
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Post by Emmie on Sept 26, 2010 15:51:23 GMT -5
Thanks so much, drusillacakes! I'm glad you enjoyed it. I pretty much wrote this as Faith & Giles, with some Faith/Giles subtext there for anyone who wishes to see it. I do think they've become very important to each other through the events in No Future For You. Glad the shippiness didn't get in the way of enjoying the story.
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Post by Emmie on Sept 24, 2010 2:04:59 GMT -5
Title: Solid Through Summary: "It's all flipped backwards and turned sideways." Pairing: Faith/Giles Timeline: Set during Retreat Part I | #26 but really only vague spoilers for Faith and Giles' arc in No Future For You. Rating: PG-13 (for language) Word Count: 1150 Author's Note: For snickfic on her birthday! Happy birthday! I hope you enjoy my Faith/Giles offering and that you don't mind the first person POV. For some reason, Faith demanded it. Unbeta'd so all mistakes are my own. I can’t take the not talking. Nah, that’s not it. I’m good with the not talking. Giles and me, we don’t do the talking thing. Don’t need to. I’ll come back from a rough night and he’ll be sitting in his chair, reading a musty old book, glass of scotch in his hand. The good stuff. He always drinks the good stuff. Expensive as hell, too. Me, I don’t go for the good stuff. I like how the cheap shit burns on the way down. Besides, his brand doesn’t come with a built-in stop sign and, well, I got carried away that one time, gulped down a whole bottle before I knew what hit me. It ain’t right drinking something that smooth. How’m I supposed to slow down when it feels that good? Anyways, I’ll come in and crash on the couch. He’ll look at me out of the corner of his eye, then take a sip of that smooth, acting like I’m not even there and I’ll just smirk at him, toss my feet on the coffee table and lean back into the cushions. He’ll go back to reading, but he’ll get this look like he’s about to smile and the corner of his mouth will twitch. He’ll hold it back ‘cause he knows I’m watching, waiting for him to break—he doesn’t, he never does, just keeps on reading. And that’s it. No words necessary. I’m home means I had a good night, staked a few vamps, went crazy wild on some demons. End of story. No fuss. No anxious looks. He knows I can handle myself and I’m here, aren’t I? Means I did good. Better than good. Great. Like always. He knows I’m gonna kick ass just like I know he’s got all the answers in his books. And hey, if they’re not in his books, then he knows it ‘cause he’s lived it. Like me. Just the way it is. So we’re good with the quiet most days. Most nights, too. But now? It’s all flipped backwards and turned sideways. We used to not talk ‘cause we didn’t need to. Now we don’t talk ‘cause we can’t. I hate it here. The walls feel like they’re closing in. I’m gonna lose it. Any minute now. ‘Cause the not talking… it’s not the worst part. The not moving? I just fucking can’t. Can’t be quiet as a mouse and we gotta be quiet like that. Can’t move or they’ll hear us. I’m the Slayer and… I’m a Slayer. I don’t hide. I hunt. I don’t fucking hide and I stopped running a long time ago. Damn. You’d think I’d be good at this: eight months stuck in a hospital bed, three years locked up in the poke. I should be a fucking Zen master, all the practice I’ve got not moving. I’m mad skilled at letting the world pass me by. But even when I was outta the game, I wasn’t wasting time. Body’s gotta heal, right? And prison was just more of the same. I was… Angel’d say I was atoning. B would say I was getting what I deserved. Felt more like I was finally keeping the world safe (from me). So I had purpose. It’s wrong though. The way this feels. We’re hiding and running at the same time and I know it’s wrong. It ain’t right so it’s gotta be wrong. Gotta be another way. A way out. I gotta get out of this bunker. I can’t fucking stay here. We gotta get out. Giles and me, we had a plan. We were gonna help make it better. Make it so nobody else got lost. I can’t hide. I gotta be out there. I gotta be out there in case... In case. I can’t. I can’t not. I ca— “Faith?” Giles whispers, and my eyes snap open. He’s crouching in front of me, looking concerned, actually looking worried and I know that’s not good. I shake my head. I don’t even try to talk ‘cause if I opened my mouth, I’d scream. All that’s left in me is loud. I can turn it off or turn it on—there’s no happy go-fuckin'-lucky middle. Giles reaches for me and I can’t help but flinch, not ‘cause it’s him—I’m flinching from the way my chest moves every time I breathe. It’s not him. It’s me. My pulse is shaking the life outta me, breakneck speed here I come. I’m freaking. I’m freaked. Losing it. I’m losing it. ‘Cause if I’m not moving forward, I can’t keep myself from falling back. Fuck, I’m shaking. I can’t stop shaking. His hand lands on my knee and I fight to keep from pulling away. I don’t wanna be touched. It’s bad enough he can see me shaking. I don’t want him to feel it. He settles down next to me, leans back against the concrete wall, then he gives my knee a squeeze and my mouth pops open like a fish, like he just flipped a switch and it’s all gonna come out. I don’t scream. Guess it means I finally caught a break. Maybe I’m not destined to get us killed. Maybe he’s not gonna die ‘cause he’s sitting beside me. Maybe we’re gonna make it. “It will be all right,” he whispers, so soft that I barely hear him, but the words shoot through me, settle warm in my gut, and I wonder how he can do that. Talk so low. Small sips, right? I don’t remember moving, but my hand is wrapped around his wrist, pressing his palm hard against my knee, like his touch is my lifeline, and I’m pushing my forehead against his shoulder. My eyes are squeezed shut and I can feel the easy rhythm of his breathing. Slow, slow, slow it down, girl. Easy rider. “Might I suggest we seek other lodgings in the morning? The amenities here leave much to be desired. The lack of a minibar alone is criminal.” I laugh, no sound though ‘cause my throat’s locked shut, but I’m puffing out gusts of air against his arm. My grip eases on his wrist, but I don’t let go. Can’t. Don’t want to. Same difference. “Ah, that’s much better.” I can tell he’s smiling. Don’t know how, but I know he is. It’s how he sounds when he’s smiling. Goosebumps shoot down my arms and I can feel my cheeks tingling. And I’m smiling, too. Guess I like it when he smiles. Breathing gets easier and my heart stops jumping, then I’m rubbing my forehead against his shoulder. ‘Cause I can. ‘Cause I want to. My hand lets go of his wrist and slides down till our palms are touching and I slip my fingers in between his. Faith the Vampire Slayer holding hands with Giles the Watcher. Quick, somebody take a picture. It’ll last longer. Or maybe not. Feels pretty solid to me. ~*~*~ Tell me what you think. I love feedback. ♥
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Post by Emmie on Sept 20, 2010 22:08:51 GMT -5
+ Buffy's just coming out of the shower. She's got a happy smile on her face--yay! Spike reclining on the bed, the unmade bed. Perfectly comfortable and intimate with each other. What happened before this scene? What led to Buffy being in Spike's room and using his shower? Iiiiinteresting. + I love the intimacy of Buffy and Spike's interaction. She finishes his sentences and teases him for his lame demonstrations while he calls her out and holds her accountable. Also, check out that look of guilt on Buffy's face when Spike accuses her of banging out a universe--her eyes shift away because she can't look at him, her forehead furrows. That is GUILT (eta as Paul also notes! and beautifully portrayed!). Buffy is back to wearing her sarape of guilt. Of course, she tries to justify it a split second later, but who doesn't try to do that to escape a crippling guilt? Spike smacks it down and she's forced to accept that yes, she is still responsible. + I'm not so much loving the way Spike gives exposition. Blah blah vampire slayer emergency blah. The exposition is the weakest part of this preview. (Also, the awkward transition from Buffy and Spike to Dawn and Xander--meaning there's probably more pages here in between these two scenes.) + Love the Dawn and Xander interaction also. Dawn is scared, Xander comforts her and then tells her he wants them to move in together and have a life. All signs have been point to Dawn biting it, but I'm becoming more and more convinced that Dawn's life will be in peril, but Xander will die protecting her. He'll finally get to save the woman he loves, thereby subverting the 'Xander'sgirlfriend dies' trope. + Angel is being shown as a hero who carelessly drowns the Slayers he saves in blood. Subversion much? + The question is being raised of where Spike got his information. Xander is suspicious and questioning it. It does make me hesitate. I've been wondering this for a while because what we've been getting with Spike seems too good to be true. But I think it would line up that Spike doesn't want to go into detail about what has to be done because he might know something that if he shared, would ruin the plan to save the world. Spike might actually be playing the secretive-for-the-greater-good role that Angel aspired to and failed abysmally at in Season 8. + I love the final page most for what's happening in the background. Giles is lost in thought. Buffy is looking at Dawn with concern while Dawn is hugging herself and still freaked out. Buffy is back in touch with humanity, feeling empathy for those she loves. This is reinforced by her being the first one to notice Willow fainting and crying out with concern. It takes me back to Long Way Home when Buffy runs to Willow lying on Warren's torture table, crying out, "Will!"
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Post by Emmie on Sept 12, 2010 2:45:42 GMT -5
Well, it's not so much a competition as everybody gets together to create fic and art for Spuffy!
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Post by Emmie on Sept 12, 2010 1:11:18 GMT -5
Yay! I've already signed up for Seasonal Spuffy. I'm debating writing a sequel to "Fin Amour" or going in a totally new direction with some Season 2 Spike/Buffy action. You know how much I love to write them bantering and I'd love to write a honest-to-god fight scene between them. Oh yeaaaaaaaaaah.
Any fan artists here on the board should sign up and contribute!
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Post by Emmie on Sept 12, 2010 0:43:44 GMT -5
Thank you again, Sage! I'm glad you were able to read this much happier story after "Fin Amour"--something to give you hope, right? I'm beyond flattered that you think so highly of my writing, but I have to say that whatever storytelling talents I've learned have been from watching Whedon's shows and deconstructing his method. I aspire to be as good a writer as him one day and most of the time, I'm floored by how far away that seems. Check out my analysis of The Long Way Home Part One to get a sense for how I see his work--it's so layered, deep and full of meaning. Every choice really. And while I can manage to tell a story about two people and juggle a scene with a dozen voices talking, I haven't mastered the ability to tell a long-term story with multiple plotlines intersecting and developing throughout. So while I'm beyond flattered to be compared to Joss, I know probably better than anyone my own shortcomings. Hey, I'm a work in progress--I've still got room to grow and a lot to learn.
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Post by Emmie on Sept 12, 2010 0:36:01 GMT -5
Thank you, Sage! I'm so delighted that you enjoyed it. *hugs*
*hands you kleenex*
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Post by Emmie on Sept 11, 2010 20:53:05 GMT -5
Thanks, Moon Eyes! So happy you felt the intensity.
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Post by Emmie on Sept 11, 2010 20:27:53 GMT -5
Thanks, Veriti! Though I have to say, I loved #36 and felt that having Bangel be over the top only made the scene between Buffy and Spike more special in contrast.
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Post by Emmie on Sept 11, 2010 19:08:46 GMT -5
YAY! Thanks, drusillacakes! I love, love, love hearing you enjoyed this and that it got you emotionally. I was going for a lump in the throat--that meant you were feeling what Buffy was feeling. Awesome. Haha, tell Scott! As of right now, this is a one-shot. But you know me... I can never resist writing more Spuffy.
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Post by Emmie on Sept 11, 2010 15:33:43 GMT -5
Title: Sincerity Summary: When the weirdness fades away, all that's left is what's real. Timeline: Season 8, set immediately post- Last Gleaming Part One |#36 Rating: PG-13 Word Count: ~1700 Author’s Note: Thanks to penny_lane_42 and ladyofthelog for helping to make this story shine. Your help was invaluable as always. ♥ “Stay the course, Bug One!” Spike stepped aside and handed over the navigation controls to his spaceship, slapping the giant talking bug on its wing before he walked out of the control room. Which would’ve looked totally normal if not for the whole giant talking bugs and Spike has a spaceship deal. Hello, Buffy’s insane life—what shocking new development will you unveil next?Bug One rolled his—her? Its?—eyes and exchanged a silent look with Bug Three. Buffy guessed Spike had gotten their names mixed up again. It probably happened a lot, hence the need for colorcoded jumpers. Wait, weren’t jumpers dresses? So did that mean they were lady bugs? Or maybe crossdressers. Or maybe they were Arabian or Scottish giant talking bugs ‘cause it’s not like only women wear skirts—American egocentrism much? Okay, get a hold of yourself, Summers. Distracting yourself with demonic bug fashion choices isn’t helping.“Buffy, you okay?” Willow stood beside her, rubbing Buffy’s shoulder in small circles and giving the occasional gentle squeeze. Wiping her cheeks, Buffy blinked back the moisture in her eyes. She gave a small nod, shrugging her shoulder under Willow’s hand. “Sure. The world’s ending and it’s all my fault.” Her smile wobbled. “Best day ever.” “And the moral of the story, when you’re offered apocalyptic sexcapades? Just say no.” Willow sighed. “Buffy, it wasn’t you. I mean, it was you, but it wasn’t you even though it was you, you know?” Buffy pulled away and hugged her arms tight across her abdomen. “It felt like me. I did this. I did this and I… you and Xander and Dawn and Giles…” “We’re okay,” Willow was quick to reassure. “Sure, bruised, on edge, and kinda freaked by the lack of personal boundaries but—” “I was happy.” Buffy’s gaze turned inward as she remembered. She shook her head from side to side. “You guys were about to die and I was happy.” She turned and at looked Willow. “What’s wrong with me?” Willow laid her hands on Buffy’s shoulders and gave her a level stare. “There’s a force or something. Some one. It’s playing you, messing with what you feel for Angel and using it against you. You didn’t do this, Buffy—it was done to you.” “No,” Buffy denied, shaking her head forcefully. “That’s not true.” “You were out of control. You couldn’t control yourself. That means it’s not your fault.” “But I wanted to be out of control. A part of me wanted to just let go and be… free.” She closed her eyes. “I did this. Oh god.” “Snap out of it!” Willow shook her until Buffy’s eyes shot open. “Diving headfirst into the deep end of the guilt pool isn’t gonna help. You did bad. I forgive you. Who hasn’t tried to end the world when they’re having a crap day? It happens. Let’s move on so we can save the world ‘cause I kinda like it here, okay?” Buffy nodded, bobbing her head a bit frantically. “Okay. You’re right. I know. I, uh, I’m just gonna walk it off.” She slipped out of the control room, walking blindly down the ship’s dark corridor. Whenever she came to a corner, she turned and walked on, trying to shake off the weirdness, trying to ignore the siren song of bad that was still whispering in her ear. She kept walking until she hit a dead end. “And I’m lost. That’s… great. Just great.” She tried retracing her steps only to find herself facing the same dead end again. Well, she thought it was the same dead end. “Hello? Bug guys? Little help here? …anybody?” “Turn around, take two lefts, a right, and you’ll be back safe and sound,” Spike shouted down the corridor, his head sticking out of an opening in the bulkhead for a moment before disappearing from sight. Mere seconds later, Buffy stormed through that opening to Spike’s quarters with a tart, “Thanks oh so much, Mr. Helpful Navigator. Not that I need your hel…” Her voice trailed off at the sight of Spike’s naked back. He tossed his shirt onto the white sheets covering the mattress anchored to the wall—his boots already lay at the foot of the bed. Unable to look away, she watched the muscles of his back ripple as he lowered his arms and grasped his belt buckle. Spike glanced over his shoulder and raised his eyebrow. “Still not satisfied, love?” “Oh please, don’t flatter yourself,” she scoffed. “I’m here to talk and do the mature ‘closure’ thing.” “Fine. You talk.” He whipped the belt free and unzipped his jeans. “I’m knackered and we both know I can’t get a wink if I’m feeling confined.” Buffy whipped around so her back was facing him, then noticed the door still open and quickly pushed it shut. “Shameless as always,” she muttered, thinking how anyone could just walk by and see Spike in all his glory. “That’s funny coming from you,” Spike retorted, chuckling. “Don’t see how what I’ve done compares. Here I thought giving it a whirl on your front lawn was pushing you out of your comfort zone, but you’ve taken PDA to a whole ‘nother level, pet.” Buffy cringed for a moment then firmed her jaw. “Don’t change the subject,” she ordered, refusing to turn around. “There was a subject?” “Yes, and it doesn’t involve you rubbing my nose in the… things I’ve done.” Or the people I’ve done it with. No, don’t think about Angel. That way lies badness and crazy out of control destructo girl antics.“Like boffing your beeftoy in the buff, Buff?” He chuckled to himself. “Not that I blame you, circumstances being what they are. How could you resist tall, dark and brooding with the promise of a mystical destiny where you get to sparkle in the sun together and bang out universe babies?” He shrugged. “It’s not like you really had a choice. Angel’s always been the Achilles’ heel to your heart.” “Shut up.” Buffy glared at him over her shoulder and got an eyeful as Spike dropped his jeans to the floor. Gasping, she snapped her head back around and stared at the wall, her eyes wide. “So what’d you wanna talk about?” His voice dripped with amusement. Jerk. “I, uh, wanted to tell you… to ask you what…” Cheeks burning, she swallowed the lump in her throat. “Can—can you put your clothes back on?” “Sure. Later,” Spike murmured, the sound of his voice tickling the back of her neck. Buffy jumped, surprised to find him right behind her. “Don’t.” “Calm down, Buffy. I’m not gonna touch you,” he whispered. “Not yet. I wanna see what you do.” She shivered and fought to keep her voice firm. “No touching. Just talking. We’re talking about…” “What?” he prompted, his voice low and— damn him—seductive. Buffy closed her eyes, then took a deep breath before continuing. “You were dead. And now you’re… not.” “Still dead, love. Always have been.” Her throat threatened to close on her, but she forced the words out. “You came back and… and you didn’t tell me.” “And you didn’t seem to care. Busy ‘somehow running an army’, that it?” She squeezed her eyes more tightly shut. Shaking, she licked her lips and whispered, “I care.” He didn’t respond for a long moment. Then he said in a neutral, controlled voice, “Do you now?” She opened her eyes and turned to face him. The tears she’d been holding back threatened to spill over. “Of course I care.” His eyes bored into her, questioning her, then he raised his hand to cup her cheek, but hesitated inches away from making contact. He sighed and let his hand drop. The distance between them cut through her, a knife twisting in her gut. “I’m not the one who doesn’t care anymore,” she whispered, shaking. The admission nearly killed her. “You think I stopped loving you?” He stared at her in disbelief. “I’ve learned a lot since I… left. Since I died and came back. I’ve changed, I know that. But I don’t know how to stop loving you. That’s something I never want to learn.” She’d forgotten to breathe for the past minute and now she found herself gasping for air. He still loves me. He loves me and he said it. God, why is it so easy for him to say it? She didn’t know how to say it anymore. The words just wouldn’t come. She couldn’t say it, so she reached for his hand and pressed it to her cheek. She closed her eyes and leaned into his touch, savoring the coolness of his palm. His callused fingertips brushed against her skin, rough on smooth. With her free hand, Buffy reached out to touch his face, smiling at his bewildered expression. She stretched her fingers wide to take his measure, letting her fingertips brush against the fine hairs at his temple and press her palm into the hollow of his cheek. She traced the lines of his face, across his forehead and down the sharp edges of his cheekbones, along his jaw and the indent of his chin. She let her fingers wander up to stroke the flat bridge of his nose, then followed the line of his eyebrows, first left, then right, stopping to press down on his scar. “Spike,” she murmured, and began again, trailing her fingertips across his brow and sweeping down his temple. He caught her hand and kissed the center of her palm, then leaned forward and pressed his forehead against hers. “You love me. I get it.” She nodded and licked her lips. This is real. Finally her throat unlocked and she found she couldn’t not say it. “I love you.” She smiled, then bit her lip and asked, “Can you put your pants back on now?” His eyes flicked down and smirked. “Or you could take yours off.” Outrageous, shameless, provocative vampire—what’s a girl to do?She laughed. *** Feedback makes me happy!
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Post by Emmie on Sept 8, 2010 19:45:56 GMT -5
Hey, SlayAlive may have gotten a shout-out, but you were referred to specifically. I actually still have no idea in which video the shout-out is. I watched the whole thing and I guess I missed it somehow. Help!Nevermind! I see it now.
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Post by Emmie on Sept 8, 2010 19:17:28 GMT -5
I missed the shout-out completely, but that's cool! Go SlayAlive!
This was so much fun to watch. We're lucky someone recorded the panel and shared it. Woohoo!
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Post by Emmie on Sept 2, 2010 12:29:20 GMT -5
I just posted this meta on my journal and wanted to share it here.
Allie says the influence of Twilight is affecting Buffy and Angel, specifically:
But I'm running across statements (not just on LJ, but in forums too) that say this means that's just Buffy and how she really feels. Uh, I really don't think so. I think this influence of Twilight is similar to what happened in the AtS episode "Billy".
It's not that Billy's touch (or contact with his blood) injects misogyny into men, but brings out a primordial urge. It's already inside people and Billy's influence amplifies it until it becomes the individual's overriding characteristic. Isn't that similar to Buffy and Angel? Love for each other is already inside them, as is self-serving motives and even being insensitive to other people's suffering (we all have that inside us, sadly), but the influence of Twilight is amplifying specific characteristics to create a Buffy and Angel melange so that they'll be just dandy about the world dying so they can go create another world where they'll live as gods. Think about that--the callousness is necessary so that Buffy and Angel will abandon this world and move on to the next.
The outside influence also would affect people differently. So Angel might be a more extreme case than Buffy or each person might have different characteristics dialed up depending on who's more susceptible--Angel might be more prone to callousness (like how he cut himself off in AtS Season 2) because for Angel is a struggle to connect while for Buffy it's more natural (though increasingly becoming a struggle). This would explain why Buffy rejects Twilight and goes back to help her friends and save the world--her ability to care about people besides herself and Angel hasn't been obliterated.
The influence is something inside a person that's forced to the surface, but it's not really you but something that's done to you. Personally, even if it were just an alcohol metaphor, I believe being under the influence makes you a very different person. Lowering a person's inhibitions makes you a very different person than you typically are, but what if on top of lowering inhibitions, aspects of your character were magnified and dulled arbitrarily?
Struggling to find a connection to others has been an important theme for Season 8 and Buffy's emotional character arc. She struggles to "feel it" even when she's just normal, old Buffy. Imagine how Buffy would act if the aspect of her character that disconnects suddenly became the dominant part of her personality.
So everyone who's saying that's not my Buffy or that's not recognizably Buffy--you're right. It's still her, but it's not her at the same time.
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Post by Emmie on Sept 2, 2010 0:22:50 GMT -5
Hey, Buffy fans! I'm delighted to present to you an in-depth interview with Dark Horse editor, writer and gentleman extraordinaire, Scott Allie, also just in time to celebrate the release of "Last Gleaming Part I", scripted by Joss Whedon and pencilled by Georges Jeanty. ~ Within you'll find the usual spoilers for Season 8 so read with caution. ~ * Hey Scott, thanks for taking the time to bare your soul to the public. Before we get started, I feel the need to warn you that I am a Spike fan (to an exponentially prefixy degree) and by the end of this interview, I plan on killing you if I don't like your answers. You might be wondering how I'll attack since we're currently on opposite sides of the country, but I'll remind you that I am the most lethal breed of fan, the SpikenSpuffer, and I have magical powers which I'll use to punch through the internet. Cue the torture and the screaming and more really long questions because I’m overly verbose, but no pressure, man. Speak from the heart and know that I'm merciful every other day (wait, which day is today?). Okay! Let's go! SCOTT: Well, the minute you announced I was doing this interview, I was getting warnings that you’d attack, but I haven’t felt the pain yet. I’m told you don’t like the book, so maybe my decision to do the interview was as weird as some readers seem to think. But I figure I have nothing to lose, right? [/b] Well, if I don't like the book, I should really go delete my glowing review for this issue, but I think word's already out. On Season 8Some fans have voiced concern about Angel’s time travel in Season 8, feeling that it undercuts the story they’ve followed for three years (it’s not the real Angel, but future Angel). Can you talk about how Angel’s future world will impact the conclusion of Season 8? How about time travel in Season 8 in general? SCOTT: Time travel is a big pain in the butt, it’s been in a bunch of my comics the last few years, but I don’t know what you mean about Angel. He didn’t time travel to get here. Is that what fans are thinking? I think I might not understand the question. [/b] Season 8 took Buffy to another level with its mature content rating for Issue 34 “Them F#©%ing”. The show has never been easily defined in terms of age appropriateness, but many fans began watching at a young age. Buffy has always had a huge appeal to a teen audience and as the Season 8 letter columns show, a youth audience remains. Is there a point when Buffy becomes exclusively for adults? How do you weigh the loss for young fans (some who see Buffy and the other characters as role models) if they’re not old enough to read the comic? SCOTT: I didn’t get complaints from parents or retailers about the contents of Buffy #34, so I don’t know how much of an issue that last aspect of your comment is. As role models all these characters are pretty imperfect, and having sex, in space or otherwise, is not the worst thing about them. We pushed that imagery in #34 pretty hard, indeed. For me, if I compare #34 to some Buffy/Spike stuff in the show, I feel like it’s simply the difference between having to deal with actors and TV—Joss got away with some intense stuff on television, and we got pretty extreme in the comic. I know that I don’t have a very sensitive gauge on these things, myself. I let some things into the Conan book that I thought were okay in context, and retailers freaked out. Joss and I were talking about this sort of thing, the other day, not in terms of Buffy, but our own kids, and what is okay for them to watch. We both think we know, but when it comes right down to it, how can you be sure? As with so many things, we rely on the kids’ moms to know better. It’s so hard to know what’s right in terms of mature content—the Star Wars movies are supposed to be pretty all ages, but they get pretty violent. Anyway, yes, Buffy #34 might be too racy for a fourteen year old, but there were some bits in Season 6 that’d pose problems too. So I know it pushed it, but I didn’t think it was wildly inconsistent. [/b] The TV series ended with a strong feminist message about empowering women. In the DVD commentary for “Chosen”, Whedon says “it was very important to me to say ‘Okay, it's great that you've worshipped this one iconic character: but find it in yourself.’” How do you see this extending to Season 8? Is Season 8 still telling a feminist story? SCOTT: Sierra made a comment to me, when someone wrote in to tell us that Angel had raped Buffy in #34. I think her point was basically that while we can argue about how predestination conflicts with free will, Buffy very clearly CHOSE to have sex with Angel, even if it was a bad choice. We can make bad choices, and people certainly do. But we make them. I’ve seen people say that Dollhouse is anti-feminist, because the characters are turned into prostitutes. If you make a film that involves racism, and you fail to explain clearly in the text that RACISM IS WRONG, it’s not that you’ve promoted racism, or turned your back on equality; it’s just that you’ve failed to make a piece of propaganda. Buffy Season 7 left us with this wonderful female power in the world—Season 8 turned that into an army, and that army has been far from perfect. I don’t think that’s a poke in the eye to feminism. I hope that Buffy’s continued complex romantic decisions don’t ruin her as an example of female empowerment. That thread about the Slayer army, the shared power, which began in Season 7, will continue to evolve in Season 9, and that extension will likely be viewed as more clearly supportive of feminism. [/b] The lack of real-world creative-budget limitations has long been cited as a great strength for the comics—scenes that would’ve been impossible on the show (e.g. Buffy and Angel getting groiny in space or the Giant Dawn versus Mecha Dawn Tokyo showdown) became reality. Has this new creative freedom changed the series on a fundamental level? SCOTT: The move to comics changed the series in a lot of ways. I don’t feel they’re fundamental ways, but until there’s an agreed-upon list of the fundamentals of Buffy, we can’t say for sure. The things we would agree on as fundamental are unchanged. I don’t think the ability to make Dawn giant is a fundamental change. I’m pretty sure that was something Joss wanted to do on the show, and they decided they couldn’t pull it off with the budget. So is it a fundamental change that he now can pull it off? I’d be a lot more worried if Buffy started dressing like Lara Croft. Then, I think something fundamental would have changed. On the other hand, you could say that it’s a fundamental change moving from TV to comics. That’s not what I see as fundamental to the story, but I couldn’t convince someone else to see it the way I do. [/b] Fans are looking forward to the deluxe hardcover edition of Season 8. Any update on the release date? What special features might it include? Is Dark Horse considering publishing a Jo Chen artbook? SCOTT: No updates. We’re doing that Tales hardcover first, to sort of warm up to it. Got the cover from Jo today and it’s amazing. We’ve got to put some thought into special features for the Season 8 hardcovers, though. There just hasn’t been the volume of supplemental material that some series generate. Comics sometimes are just designed on the page, a lot is worked out on the comics page itself, so there’s not the great behind-the-scenes stuff you get in other media. But of course we want to do something special, so we’re not rushing into getting them made until we can put our heads together. Right now our heads are very much focused on wrapping up Season 8. [/b] Season 8 has been a controversial season eliciting intense and very vocal reactions across the board, so intense that some fans worry the critiques have affected creative direction. Do you think fan reaction has influenced the story? If yes, how so? SCOTT: We’ve corrected mistakes we’ve made that readers pointed out. We’ve tried to answer the questions that have perplexed readers the most, unless we wanted them to go unanswered, or felt that taking the time to answer them would detract too much from the focus. Those are the main ways in which readers have influenced the story. We wouldn’t have done the Riley oneshot, I don’t think, if it weren’t for questions from readers. There’ve been things we thought were covered in the story that we heard loud and clear were not, and so sometimes we’ve made efforts to handle it differently. [/b] Earlier seasons often had a main theme or catchphrase. Season 7 was "It's about power", Season 6 was "Life is the Big Bad" and S5 was about Family (real or created). What would you say is the theme of Season 8, if you had to sum it up in a pithy sentence? SCOTT: Ask me after #39 comes out. I’ve been holding back from answering this question till then. I’ll tell you a funny anecdote, the reason why I’m afraid to answer the question before you see where it’s all going. [/b] Spike’s return is a highly anticipated event, not only for the first on-screen reunion with Buffy since he died in the Hellmouth, but also with the entire cast. Will there be an opportunity for him to have significant interaction with other characters he has a long history with like Xander, Dawn, Giles, or Willow? How about a Spike and Satsu faceoff? SCOTT: Not as much as anyone would like, especially me, as co-writer. Spike shows up, saves the day with his weird bug-operated ship and his useful knowledge of the situation, and from that point, it’s fast-paced action to save the day. The character moments that we take the time for are those essential to getting the story through the climax—mostly between him and Buffy. Definitely some interaction between him and the others, but as with Angel, there just doesn’t wind up being the time for it. I wish we could stop it for all of that, each of the characters you mention, particularly Xander and Dawn. But it’d stop the momentum of the climax dead, and there is not that much of that. Spike and Angel basically showed up for the climax—if it were a three-act film, Spike walked in a little ways into the final act. [/b] The decoy died in “The Chain” saying, “You don’t even know my name. But I do.” Since then we’ve had Harmony become famous and a hero of the media and Buffy’s become a god and a villain in humanity’s eyes. How would you characterize fame and heroism in the context of Season 8? SCOTT: I’d characterize fame as silly—it gets in the way, it services the villains more than the heroes. Heroism, I’d say, is compromised. I think that’s true of everything Joss does. He doesn’t believe in Superman. I wonder what he’s gonna do with Captain America? But I’d say our heroes are not perfect, and fame is a distraction and hindrance. In the comic. In real life it makes you beautiful and better than other people. [/b] The introduction blurb for “Last Gleaming Part I” says, “Temperatures run high when Buffy and Angel reunite to fight all matter of evil things. Enter Spike—former vampire, former lover, latest prophecy keeper.” My question is—“ former vampire”? Wait, now, back it up and explain, please. SCOTT: See, that’s that sort of thing that when a reader calls it out, we go and fix. Buffyfest called us on that. Lame excuse, like all my excuses, but that kind of marketing copy sometimes gets written by committee, sort of with too much back and forth, and you lose sight. That line used to make sense, then was edited until it didn’t, and went to print not making sense. Sorry about that. Will fix, hopefully in time for #37. [/b] How would you describe Angel’s role in Season 8—is he the hero, the Big Bad, or both? SCOTT: Gotta see the end. Or at least #39. Ask me then. [/b] When in the Twilight dimension, Angel fights to persuade Buffy to stay, even after he’s seen the decimation on Earth—it’s only when Buffy chooses to leave that he decides to go back and help save humanity. How do you reconcile Angel’s selfish desire for a romantic idyll in paradise as the world burns with his characterization in “Not Fade Away” when he tells Connor that it doesn’t matter if the Senior Partners kill him because “as long as you’re okay, they can’t [destroy me]”? SCOTT: He believed this was the inevitable evolution of the world and reality and all things great and small. He was letting the world end, but none of that had to do with him being destroyed or not destroyed. His own life is not the point—he didn’t bring Twilight about because someone threatened him, so while I think his motivation deserves scrutiny, I don’t know that that line to Connor is the point. No, in the end, Connor would not be okay—but whether Angel himself is destroyed or not wasn’t the question. Angel has shown his willingness to sacrifice for the greater good, and he’s shown his imperfection at identifying that greater good. [/b] Fans are making statements like “Angel is crazy” and “I don’t want to know this Buffy anymore”, as characters’ behavior in Season 8 has been complicated by the influence of possible future realities, a potentially mind-altering glow and a nameless Power that can possess people. Are Buffy and Angel’s actions and behavior true to who they are now or the result of an outside influence? SCOTT: Both. The outside influence of Twilight has been a big factor, for sure. [/b] With the end of Season 8 in sight, which arc or issue do you think was most successful? Is there a storyline you wish had been executed differently? SCOTT: The fourth arc might’ve been my favorite. When I answer questions like this, I don’t take it that seriously, I guess. If you ask me tomorrow I might say the one I cowrote, or the first one, or Goddard’s … Changes a lot. I loved Brad’s arc, because the writing was really fun, and it really upset people, but what worked best about it was more oblique, intangible, and he did the best job we’d seen in a while of moving the Season 8 plot and thematic stuff forward. He had the toughest arc to handle, and there were things he really got about it, and about Joss. In the sixth arc, I wish we handled the massive level of conflict differently. It’s a logistical issue, to some degree. Jane gets the characters so right, but comics is not always the best medium for dealing with an army. [/b] There’s been a lot of fan controversy to wade through in reaction to Season 8—through the din of noise, have there been some critiques that hit home? Which ones? SCOTT: The bit where Bill Willingham called me and Joss repugnant liars. I think he hit the nail on the head. No, there are really fair criticisms out there, but they do tend to get swallowed up in the din. Season 9 will be 25 instead of 40 issues. We’re leaning toward one writer per title, rather than a new body every arc. We want to stay closer on core characters, in each title. Less global, more personal, but still use the visuals in the way that comics allows. [/b] The glow in the Twilight arc has been controversial for various reasons, most significantly because of issues of consent for both Buffy and Angel. What was the reasoning behind the glow originally, and to what degree should we take it as making Buffy and Angel’s decisions for them? SCOTT: We wanted a visual representation of what was going on, the way they were infused. But you should not let the characters off the hook completely for their actions. It worked like a drug, clouding your judgment, but you’re still you. You should not abandon responsibility for your actions, even if you might have acted differently if not under the influence. [/b] On Season 9 and other Future ProjectsExcitement is all abuzz over Season 9. Can you share any more details? Have artists and writers already been chosen? Which characters will be getting their own books? Any hints? (Please!) SCOTT: Nope, no details. I ‘m extremely excited about Season 9, but focused on Season 8, and you guys should focus on Season 8, and the wrap up over at IDW. Big things happening across the board. [/b] In 2006, Joss announced on Whedonesque that “in my world, heroes bugger each other senseless” in reaction to discussion of the sexual history of Angel and Spike. With the greater creative freedom of the comics, will we finally see an open gay male relationship become part of the story? Will we get to see the Buffyverse equivalent of Apollo/Midnighter? SCOTT: This is very much on my mind as we start planning Season 9. If we do it, it won’t be anything in the vein of Apollo and Midnighter, I don’t think. Wasn’t that stuff sort of shock value? It was a great moment for me when we had Willow and Tara kiss in the comic for the first time, way back before Season 8—in part because I feel like we sort of treated it like no big deal. I’d want a gay male relationship handled the same way. [/b] In November 2009’s Wizard Magazine, Joss said he scrapped his original 4-issue arc planned for Season 8 after reading All Star Superman, realizing, “’Oh yeah, this is how it’s done.’ We’re working on a grander scale. I had been telling a very intimate little soap opera story. I should be thinking epic.” This is interesting and a bit odd as I personally found the strength of Buffy to be how it made epic stories out of intimate moments: Buffy having to kill Angel in order to save the world or sacrificing herself to save her sister and the world, Xander saving Willow and saving the world with his yellow crayon speech—these moments were made epic not just because of the apocalyptic stakes but because they were emotionally intimate. Will Season 9 continue on the epic scale of Season 8 or will it be a more intimate drama (and perhaps through this intimacy, be epic)? SCOTT: It’ll be different in many ways. We’ll make more room for the intimacy, because the plot ate up a lot of room that got us away from that stuff in Season 8. [/b] Any hope for another fan contest like the incredibly rewarding one for “Anywhere But Here”? SCOTT: Yeah, we should do something like that again, certainly. Plenty of time to plan for it at this point. [/b] The Ripper series and the Spike movie are two live action projects that never managed to get off the ground. Is there hope of seeing these stories in comic form? SCOTT: We’re not talking about either of those at this point. Maybe someday, but we’ll be totally focused on Season 9 once we wrap up Season 8. If there’s a way to do Ripper that hits at the heart of Season 9, we could do that, but I don’t think that’s the road to go. [/b] Has any thought been given to doing a fully animated version of Buffy similar to what we saw with the Goon demo reel? SCOTT: That’d be a Fox thing. We have Goon film rights, but Fox owns Buffy, and we just license the comics rights. We can’t even do … oh wait, was that a trick to get me to comment on the Buffy motion comics? [/b] Brian Lynch is a fan favorite Angel comic writer for his collaboration with Joss in creating Angel: After the Fall. Is it possible we’ll see more stories from him when the Buffy and Angel titles are reunited at Dark Horse? SCOTT: When I talk to Brian, I talk about his Spike monthly at IDW. He’s very loyal to Chris Ryall. [/b] Let’s talk artists. John Cassaday worked with Joss both on the Astonishing X-Men and he also directed Dollhouse’s Season 2 episode “The Attic”—any chance we’ll see the Eisner award-winning artist and writer working with Joss again? Perhaps on Buffyor the future Dollhouse comic? SCOTT: We’ve definitely talked about it. I’m friends with John, would love to get him back at Dark Horse, but he is a very busy guy with a lot of his own irons in the fires. Joss loves Cassaday SO MUCH. I know they want to do more comics together. [/b] Brad Meltzer shared he’d suggested Joss get all the writers together in the same room to plot out Season 9 in order to provide more structure and consistency amongst the writers. As Season 9 will have several titles being published at the same time, continuity will become even more important. Are there plans for a writers’ room getaway to plot out Season 9? (If you’re looking for a retreat locale, Giles recommends the Cotswolds for its “horse riding and hiking and punting and lectures and discussions.”) SCOTT: It’s not on the schedule yet, but we keep talking about getting it going. [/b] On the Creative ProcessWhat was it like working with Joss on “Last Gleaming” and more directly contributing to the story? How would you describe your role in the writing process? SCOTT: It’s been awesome. First sitting there and plotting it with him, that was great. Seeing what was important to him, seeing how to turn something around a character, in a more intimate way than I’d ever done with him, that was a real education. And then to find out I’d be cowriting with him, that was exciting, intimidating. As an editor, I like being hands on with notes to the writer. I’m a very hands on editor. So I’ve always felt it’d be pretty lame of me to be resistant to notes from an editor when I’m writing. But getting notes from Joss on the script has been amazing. I’ve really studied his writing, tried to see what makes it tick, and tried to use my position to get that insight. But this has been the best opportunity for that. None of these scripts went to Georges after one or two drafts, there was a lot of conversation, a lot of talk, and then even after they went to Georges, Joss came in before lettering to rewrite significant chunks of dialogue. And every little thing he changed, I tried to learn something from it. I will say that #39 went through much less rewriting than the previous two. [/b] How do you connect to the creative process? Editing requires a certain degree of distance to see the big picture and which aspects of the story need tweaking, but in doing so, you run the risk of losing touch with the emotional thread of the story—how do you reconcile the two? SCOTT: With both editing and writing, you need a certain amount of distance, I think, in that you need to be able to go in and out. You need to be right in the thick of things to understand it from the inside, and you need to go out on the edge so you can appreciate how the ideal reader would see it. As editor, you spend more time out on the edge, and as the writer, more time on the inside. I’ve always seen editing as an aspect of the creative process, the way writing, drawing, coloring, and lettering are—you’re in the middle, on the inside, but you have certain different responsibilities. I see a book I’m writing and a book I’m editing as occupying different spots on a single continuum. For instance, when I edit Hellboy, it’s different than when I edit Umbrella Academy, and different from when I edit Groo. I’ve moved away from the books at the far end of the continuum, like Groo, where I’m mainly an outside observer to the creative process. The opposite end of that continuum is when I write the book, like Exurbia. But for editing, I prefer the books where I’m closer to the core. It’s more fun, and it suits me better. When I went to LA to work out the plot for the final arc, my job shifted on the continuum, a little further away from Groo. Then when he said I was cowriting, it just moved a little further, closer to Exurbia. It still doesn’t compare to Exurbia, really, because I’m just writing what Joss tells me to write, and then changing anything he asks me to. But what I’m saying is that it’s not entire apples and oranges, from my point of view, editing and writing. [/b] Joss has discussed Stephen Sondheim as a creative inspiration for him on numerous occasions. Who’s your creative inspiration? SCOTT: It changes. Bob Dylan’s probably the most consistent, but sometimes Carson McCullers, sometimes Alan Moore or Roman Polanski. And quite often it’s Mike Mignola or Joss. But that gets weird. Too close. [/b] Talk about a controversial answer! Why Roman Polanski? SCOTT: I just love his movies. Aesthetically, no filmmaker has done it as consistently for me as him. I love Lynch, Kubrick, Hitchcock, Scorsese, but something about Polanski's work takes it to a higher level for me. He's a storyteller possessed of incredible technical skill, which I can't help but envy, and a great vision, which I happen to identify with a lot. It speaks to me. There's no more accomplished filmmaker/craftsman than, say, Speilberg or Cameron, but their work doesn't speak to me. So, Polanski. It's not so much that I separate the art from the person—I know the art as intimately as one is meant to; I don't fool myself that I know the person. When you know them, it changes it. I know Joss, and it makes me like his stuff even more. I don't separate the person from the art there, which is what I meant by it getting complicated, when my inspiration comes from Joss or Mike. Because there are personal feelings there that make it different. There are comics guys I've met, where meeting them has cost me the love of their work, and others who I didn't like, but it doesn't overshadow the work. But I'm perfectly happy that I don't know Bob Dylan, and judge him, or consider him, rather, only based on his work. [/b] Thank you, Scott! Your answers have pleased me and you may live to edit and write another day. * And there you have it, Season 8 fans. I hope you enjoyed! Until next time. *** Special thanks to Maggie, ladyofthelog, stormwreath, AndrewCrossett, local_max, Shapinglight and Simon for their contributions and suggestions.
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Post by Emmie on Aug 27, 2010 13:25:28 GMT -5
I doubt the kinds of girls with self-esteem issues read comics anyway. Shut it down. This is offensive to women. Refrain from making speculations and judgments of female fans. It is not relevant to the topic and won't be tolerated on this board. It's one thing to speculate on the message of the material at hand, but it's a step too far to make dismissive, judgmental remarks about the audience.
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