Buffy the VS Premiere Tonite!!!
 

Alright, who else is excited about this coming back on the air?

Remember tonite @ 8PM on UPN.

I just started watching this show via the FX reruns. I really like it.

If I watched the premiere tonight, would it really ruin anything for me?

I usually prefer to watch series in order, from the beginning.

Totally stoked about the premiere tonight. Can't wait!!!!!

Jadzia - somehow, I had a feeling you might enjoy this show. If you're anal like me, you might want to catch the premiere when you're caught up on the show during reruns. I would hate to have anything ruined for you. They should rerun the premiere after the sweeps in November.

OMG I cannot wait to see what happens on Buffy tonight! :)

I started watching it in the third season. I saw a few earlier ones on the Buffy VHSs that were released but I have always felt at least a little out of it because I missed almost all of the first 34 shows. I'm catching up now of course on FX.

If I may make a suggestion, why don't you tape the UPN season as it goes. Stockpile them until you've seen all the first 5 seasons (100 episodes, 12 for the first, 22 for the others) and then start watching the current season. It should take only 20 weeks as long as they keep on the schedule (all the shows will have been on as of February 8).

That's what I would do if I had never watched it.

I was actually going to suggest the same thing. A LOT happens in Season 5 that you'll want to see before Season 6. Also, there's some very important character development that you'll need or it might not make much sense. What I'm afraid of, however, is I'm not sure how many seasons F/X has the rights to. If they're going all the way through, then definitely tape and wait ... otherwise, I'm not sure. Regardless, tape them now, and wait and see. If F/X halts at Season 3, then I guess go ahead and watch the tapes, or spend the time between now and then trying to acquire other seasons on VHS or mpeg on the Internet. Remember, the first season is only 12 episodes, so you're halfway though it already.

The only possible problem is that it will be very difficult to avoid learning what happens in the current episodes while you're catching up on the previous ones. It's a tough call. Depends on your priorities I guess and your Anal Factor. Personall my Anal Factor is pretty high (yes, thank you Beavis) ... I'd probably tape the episodes and go on a rampage acquiring eps to fill the gaps as quickly as possible.

das

For the love of God, what is das Monkey talking about?

Anyone else sad to see the demise of ...

<B>The WB's ALL NEW New Tuesday</B>

?

Only the WB would market their shows like that. Even if it was all reruns, it was still "The WB's New Tuesday." Scumbags :)

das

I, personally, would advise AGAINST watching Buffy tonight if you haven't seen the first ones. All my friends at college make fun of me for watching Buffy (I got hooked on it in high school, all my friends there watch it), but I can't defend myself because, if they watch it, the say, "What the hell is going on, it makes no sense." In a way, they're right, because every character is so developed. Oh well.
Can't wait, the summer is finally over and Buffy can start again.

Since Fox owns the show and the the FX network, I assume they have the rights to all of them. I'd be very surprised if they did not show all 5 seasons, over and over again and add the 6th season to the cycle next fall.

I would just tape the episodes and not watch them. I have waited a long time for tonight...damn this is going to be good.

I've had the same problem. I had one "friend" who always argued the Buffy and Babylon 5 were stupid shows. "I watched a few of them, and they weren't that good." When B5 hit Sci-Fi, I forced him to watch the whole thing all the way through, and he loved it. He altered his entire schedule to get home in time to see the episodes. This was not proof enough, however, because he still bashes Buffy. You can't win. All you can do is pity people who are missing out. They'll criticize what they don't understand, because they don't know any better.

Around my friends, I have a reputation of sorts of knowing what I'm talking about when it comes to television. I always get the "what's your favorite show?" questions ad nauseum. Anyway, a few years ago, Buffy was the best show on TV. I told them so, and they looked at me like I was crazy. I just tell everyone who doubts it the same thing ... "Look. If I were you, I wouldn't believe me either. There's no logical reason to believe that a show called Buffy the Vampire Slayer on a network like the WB is better than everything else on TV, especially if you've seen the movie. But trust me when I tell you this ... it is." I've converted quite a few people with such an endorsement, but not everyone. Just take comfort in the fact that you are expereincing a piece of television history, and 10 years from now all those friends who don't get it now will be talking about how great the show is :)

das

I would assume so too, but syndication is a funny thing, and the licensing from seasons 1 and 2 is different for 3-5 and will likely be different for 6 and up. Still FX has confirmed that they'll do through season 3 (last I heard). I don't know what goes on past that. I'd love confirmation that they'll keep going.

das

:D
that reminds me of our buffy watching parties in college. sometimes we'd have shots for every time we saw a graveyard, wooden stake, blood sucking, etc. :D

Please, I love Buffy too, but this isn't rocket science. You can pretty much pick up any show after an episode or two. Rather than sitting around w/ your VCR remote, trying to tape the last 5 years, why not just start watching now w/ a long-time Buffy fan, then you can ask them when something doesn't make sense.

Isn't the reason shows don't get syndicated after one or two or three seasons because they need enough shows when they're running 5 times a week so that they're not showing the same ones all the time? For Buffy, the first three seasons (2½ actually) would give them only 56 episodes and they'd strip it out almost five times in a year. I just don't see that happening.

Maybe it's the weekly syndication package that has access to only the first three seasons?

You're right, it's not rocket science. However, some folks do have a lot more trouble picking up stuff in the middle. I picked it up towards the end of the second season and there was a LOT of stuff that I didn't get and still don't get fully, because of episodes that I missed. We're all a bit different and it depends on what works for each of us.

das - yea, people keep trying to tell me how great law and order and ER are. I'm like, been there, done that. Hill Street Blues and St. Elsewhere. I'm over that and moving on. Buffy rocks!!!

movielib - according to a producer/writer in the biz, the ideal number of shows for syndication are 100. So, it does make sense that they would commit at least through season four or five.

Yep! I'm that annoying guy that always points out the St. Elsewhere and Hill Street Blues did what ER and NYPD Blue are doing now, except when they did it, it truly was groundbreaking - when it's done now, there's no risk. Issues like AIDS and homosexuality on St. Elsewhere ... that's groundbreaking. On ER, it's just another show retreading the same ground. St. Elsewhere will always be in my top 10 shows of all time. Meeting Stephen Furst last month was a definite highlight (for that and other reasons :))

I liken Law & Order to the Dragnet-type show with an updated flavor and a courtroom aspect. It's still an incredible show. Shows like that will never go out of style

Quote:

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movielib - according to a producer/writer in the biz, the ideal number of shows for syndication are 100. So, it does make sense that they would commit at least through season four or five.

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It used to be that 79 was the big number (see Star Trek's battle to get syndicated). Then 100 was the magic number. But the insane number of cable channels has changed all of that. Flip to USA, and you'll see lots of shows that were cancelled midway through their second season. Show that initially air on cable can go even lower, like Crusade airing on Sci-Fi, or The Invisible Man, which is already appearing in syndication when they haven't even finished airing the second season. Still, 100 is the magic number for most major syndication packages, like the shows you see at 10pm on your WB affiliate.

But my point was that the licensing was so crazy with all the jumping around Buffy did in the beginning that I wouldn't take that to the bank until FX confirmed it. Considering that they've confirmed Season 3, which is in the second batch of licensing episodes, I'd assume they also have 4 and 5, but I don't know for sure. Licensing is a very complicated and tricky process. What seems so simple to us gets all jumbled up once the lawyers get their hands on everything.

das

Looking forward to tonight - three hours of Buffy!


And Jadzia, I'm gonna go against the grain and say, just watch it. If you've seen the ads for the premiere, you know where they're gonna pick up.

Ideally, you'd see seasons 1-5 but its not that hard to put things together. With syndication you'll have most of the picture by the end of the year or so. Its just too bad about the network change because I'm sure a re-run of season 5's last episode would have been great to prime season 6.

KO! I'm with you now. Let's keep our fingers crossed.

I hear ya. I had the same problem convincing people how awesome Deep Space 9 was. In fact, my sister who was a die hard TNG fan dismissed DS9 in the first (admittedly weak) season. "They never go anywhere" she complained. Even though they are the mouth of a wormhole that takes you to the other side of the universe. It definitely got better once they got the Defiant.

A lotof peopel just didn't DS9 because the character development was so great and the stories so well layered that it wasn't easy to watch a one-off episode and appreciate it. I'm looking forward to the show coming out on DVD so people can finally get a chance to enjoy it. I really do think it is the best Trek show ever.

Still undecided about Buffy. Maybe I'll catch it on the repeat tonight?

I have a 60 hour ReplayTv but that's a long time to keep something recorded I may not watch right away.

I am really enjoying the repat episodes. I taped an episode Sunday night which was from season 3, I believe? I watched it and it was good but I could tell I missed a lot of development.

Jadzia - is it the one where she goes into the other world where time flies really fast?

I assume it was "Anne" if it was the first 3rd season episode, like you said, where time flies really fast. I liked the idea of this one, but for some reason I didn't like the episode itself. I think it was because it was a poor choice for a premiere.

das

SPOILERS

Yes, that's Anne. I still love I'm Buffy the Vampire Slayer and you are? She so rocks.

I think what threw a lot of people off is that she wasn't in sunnydale.

I love this show. I live in a city called Sunnyvale and people always mistakenly hear it as Sunnydale and ask me if I've seen Buffy anywhere.