Okay, just thought the old FX Buffy thread was getting a little long, so here's a new one, mainly for Season 5.

Okay, they skipped over "Buffy vs. Dracula" and now I'm SOOOOO confused watching the second episode of season 5, "Real Me", ! So how did Dawn get introduced in that episode?

Patman:


Ah, Season 5. Starts off really slow, with Dawn vacilating from annoying to pathetic. I really felt that Season 5 was full of mostly average to good episodes, though. Less clunkers than Season 4, and what few memorable episodes there are, are some of the best of the show's run.

About today's FX showing:

Real Me: The annoying humor of Dawn isn't stale yet. One episode with her diary would be enough; I remember dreading that device would rear its head again. Though there are some great lines. "Harmony has minions?" . When Xander called Dracula "The Master", that brought my hopes up that Dracula was still around and might be the Big Bad for the season. Of course, that was not to be. Wasted potential.

The Replacement: A fairly decent episode. Nice to see Xander get out of that dingy basement; this episode was pretty humorous, a stark contrast to the end of the season. And is it me, or does Willow have some really badly dubbed lines? I don't remember noticing that before. Was this some joke referencing the badly dubbed kung fu flick? Or was there some editing involved?

Yes me too...was Buffy vs Dracula a 3 hour episode or something? The way episode 2 started out it's like she has been part of the cast for a long time. What gives...and how does an out of work Librarian afford a new BMW?

If I remember correctly, B vs. D (one hour) simply ended with Buffy going home and her mother saying, your sister's been waiting for you or something like that. And then we see Dawn. Maybe Buffy and Dawn say hi to each other. That's all there is. And to tell you more would spoil what's coming.

Edited to add: I'm not watching Episode 2, Season 5 now. I'm taping it. Did they recap the ending from B vs. D at the beginning? If so, you saw all there was.

Edited again: Just saw the recap scene. I didn't get it exactly right but I had the gist of it. And I'd forgotten the whiny, simultaneous "Mom" line.

Yeah ... the recap at the beginning is all you see of Dawn in the first episode. That's it. The point is that she's always been there. She's Buffy's sister. You don't need a big introduction. She's toned down her performance in recent episodes, so I'd forgotten how damn_annoying she is.

das

So this is just a total out and out Retcon from hell to add Dawn to the cast? Amazing amount of nards to even attempt such an addition.

BTW, I really enjoyed the dialog in "Real Me", it was crisp and funny. Plus seeing SMG laugh was a treat.

Also, the opening credit montage has one of my favorite shots of Buffy, which is from the "Jonathan" episode at the very end when Buffy talks to Jonathan after everything is back to normal. (Actually, I'm just experimenting with my video capture capability from my new ATI All-in-wonder card). Too bad my cable TV feed is sort of poor for the FX channel.

I liked Season 5 and Glory. Annoying as she is. Some of my favorite episodes are:

Buffy VS. Dracula
Fool for Love
Checkpoint
The Body
I Was Made to Love You
Tough Love
The Gift

"The Replacement" - not a bad episode (any episode that features the Snoopy Dance needs to be archived). Now at the very end they sow the seeds for writing Riley out of the show as he tells Xander that he's lucky to be with Buffy, but in the final analysis, Buffy doesn't love him, so I suspect he'll be moving on with his life somewhere else. Enjoyed the 2 sides of Xander, and how the splitting shows Xander that he does possess the qualities that he was jealous of his suaver self possessing within him. Anya's idea of a Xander sex sandwich was too good not to play on.

I sort of like the vibe of season 5 already, having seen only these 2 episodes, plus the tale end of the season during summer repeats (I think I picked up after "The Body", but I didn't get anywhere near the references to their past, so it'll be fun to watch them with more knowledge of the characters' histories).

Just a bit of Trivia, apparently Nicholas Brandon has a twin brother who worked with him on this ep.

I thought I was imagining the difference in the part of Xanders' hair at the end of the episode when they were about to be joined. I didn't think they'd go to all that expense to get the parting of their hair to signify a difference between the two.

But I think when they were in the new apartment, that was Brendon all the way for both roles.

Did anyone else besides me notice in Real Me when Buffy was doing the handstand in the opening sequence that it looked more like a man's figure?

That person did have a thick midsection, I figured it was just Buffy's stunt double.

So Dawn just shows up like she had been there all along, and they explain it later?

That reminds me of when Tasha Yar just showed up in "Yesterday's Enterprise" after the alternate reality was created. And Guinan, like the homeless guy on the street, is the only person who knows something is wrong.

"You don't belong here."

That must have been a mind trip for viewers who were watching the show at the time.

She has been there all along ... she's Buffy's sister.

das

Nice retcon.

Not in the reality we just watched 4 seasons of.......

Any time both Xanders were on the screen at the same time, it was Nick and his brother Kelly. Otherwise, Nick played all the speaking parts of "both" Xanders when they were separated.

And just for the record, the "kill us both Spock" line cracks me up EVERY time I see it.


Buffy got a new stunt double this season. I like her a lot more than the old one. She does better "acrobatic" stuff, and her body type is closer to SMG's than the old one, I think.

X

The Season 4 Buffy stunt/action double had some ta-ta's on her! I always knew who was who.

Patman - leave it to you to notice those details.

Yes, they do explain who Dawn is and why we never saw her in the first four seasons. Patience, folks.

Okay, on "Out of Mind, Out of Sight " the episode got to feel more like something out of Season 4. Spike and his drive to get that chip out of his head, plus accepting Harmony as his sidekick (she's starting to remind me of Harley Quinn of the Batman: The Animated Series cartoons.

With Dawn fooling around with Dr. Ben's stethoscope, they discover Riley's heart beats at some unhealthy rate (over 150 beats/minute) and it's all due to his "modifications" at the Initiative.

Anyhow, the effect of the discovery is to "de-power" Riley in the end because he'd die from a heart attack otherwise.

The on "No Place Like Home" episode, Glory finally shows up, chewing up the scenery wherever she goes. Riley is coming to grips with being a normal "scoob" and is getting phased out. Loved Buffy and Glory's fight because Buffy was up against a much stronger opponent. And we finally learn the truth of Dawn's "placement" in Buffy's life. Anyhow the "Glory looking for the Key" storyline is now in full motion.

For those who care.

The airing of "The Body" on UPN next Tuesday almost lines up with the airings on FX. The episode before The Body airs Wednesday night.

Just for those that want to watch them in sequence.

I was wondering about that. I knew it had to be pretty close. I guess I'll just hold the UPN episode for a day and rewatch them in sequence.

Thanks, palebluedot.

Tonight... three words- FOOL FOR LOVE, the only Buffy episode to combine three of my favorite things, Spike, Chinese kung fu, and 70's exploitaion. Ahhh, life is wonderful.

The first time I remember hearing about this Wednesday's episodes (during their first run), I thought the credits were switched somehow. Family (A Joss "I'm a Freaking Genius" Whedon Episode) was no better than fairly good, while Fool For Love (written by Doug Petrie, directed by some person I can barely remember), is one of the best episodes of Buffy ever made. I might write more about them after the airing.