Buffy Fridays! Season 5 Episode 17 First Time Reaction!
Added 2024-09-06 17:23:30 +0000 UTChttps://drive.google.com/file/d/16wuVL6_sjuLXq12h27Lend5KQuU262Uj/view?usp=drive_link
####### EPISODE SPOILER REVIEW BELOW! APPARENTLY SOME OF YOU ARE WATCHING FOR THE FIRST TIME ALONG SIDE ME, SO PLEASE DON'T READ BEYOND THIS POINT UNTIL YOU HAVE SEEN THE EPISODE YOURSELF! ######
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Maybe it is because it is fresh in my mind, but I do think that final scene may be one of the best I have seen in this show so far. Absolutely terrifying, but so emotional and well acted.
Willow... what... what the heck? XD I get it, she is emotional too and is trying to make things better for Dawn. But.... JEEZ! I mean, she has done some absent-minded things before, but this may be the worst (sorry if I have this all wrong XD).
LOVED the scene with Angel. What a good egg! And I love how Buffy confides in him about her actions in the first scene of the previous episode. So well done. Loved it! x
Hope you guys are having a great weekend!
As always, if you click the video just after this post, you may need to download it first. This should be fixed in a couple of hours!
Comments
Angel showing up, and Buffy knowing he would… always my favorite part of this episode. And Xander? Love him. From the beginning, to this point, and on to the end and beyond. 100% XanMan Fan. 😏
Bluesplinter
2024-09-12 07:01:03 +0000 UTCXander's best quality is his bravery and how he stands up for his friends...when he is not being a judgmental prick while being a hypocrite. He does get better over time for me, at least.
TheyCallMeJeff
2024-09-10 03:50:25 +0000 UTCOh yeah, absolutely! Angel is very prickly, to say the least. There was definitely a decent amount of pushback from the jealousy Angel felt over Xander being the Normal Guy that can offer Buffy Normal Things as well, and I feel like they didn't explore it a whole lot early on, but Angel can be hilariously petty :') And then there's the fact that Angel does nothing but sabotage himself and his reputation in a lot of situations. (I've always chalked it up to his guilt overflowing, especially in early seasons where he seems to fully believe he deserves death) I feel like he's always going to be the first one to admit that he actually IS a monster and should be treated as such. There is one scene in particular that stands out to me, it might be in the same episode we find out that he's a vampire - Joyce has been bitten (by Darla, framed to look like Angel), and instead of communicating in *any* shape or form that it wasn't him, he actively goads Buffy into trying to kill him because it so easily COULD have been him. (Or he craved the blood deep down, etc) I feel like any heat from Xander is met with sort of the same response, so I don't think he helped his case or really tried to be particularly friendly towards him at any point (I think there's also that moment where Angel is pretending to be Angelus alongside Faith and decides to improv punch Xander in the face, lmao) IMO early Angel is very hard to like if you're not in Buffy's shoes, but it's still hard to overlook that Xander was so down with murdering his rival at every turn :') (I feel like I need to clarify that I don't mean to say that directly to you as if I'm arguing, just recapping my own thoughts hahah. Also glad to hear it resonated !)
Goblin
2024-09-09 12:47:22 +0000 UTCWhoever is telling you you're saying Tara's name wrong... is wrong. It's pronounced both ways on the show, and Tara never corrects anyone.
Tommy Ross
2024-09-09 03:28:52 +0000 UTCI feel so much of this. I do feel that there was a bit of antagonism on Angel's part toward Xander that went too far (him offering Xander to Spike, for example), but other than that Xander definitely was worse
Tommy Ross
2024-09-09 03:18:01 +0000 UTCalso as for the weakest episode - Go Fish stands out just slightly more than Reptile Boy to me, mostly because of how hilariously goofy the lore of it was. This high school coach had SOVIET UNION MAD SCIENTIST FISH DNA EXPERIMENTS GOING ON ??? I wouldn't have blinked if it had been magic-related, but having it be soviet science is so incredibly funny to me. Also the coach was bananas- the man was losing his team members left and right but never thought to adjust the dosage? How far off was the competition ?? how many kids would've been turned (and presumed missing) by the time the competition rolled around?? Also totally willing to murder people to win a high school sports competition. I could kinda understand if he had been one of the athletes, but what benefits could the coach possibly get from one win alongside a slew of missing persons reports? Also the end is so strange and silly.. They just wander off into the sunset so wistfully (and so slowly, god bless whoever was in the fish suits) and Buffy assures everyone they aren't a threat anymore because they're going "home" ?? What does that even mean, and where in the hell did she pull that one from ?! How could she possibly know that lmaooo ALSO one last thing - add Spike leaving cardless flowers for Joyce (and how he talked about her when questioned about it) to the list of things that seem to fly in the face of everything we've been told about soulless vampires. Can't quite imagine any of our other regular baddie vamps doing something like that for a human.
Goblin
2024-09-08 09:04:47 +0000 UTCvery long/harsh Xander rant ahead, but you did ask :')... Even when I was a teen (girl) I found Xander far too uncomfortably familiar to enjoy about 90% of his character beats. He starts off as the guy who doesn't take "no" for an answer, and is often wildly inappropriate with his crush on buffy (and every other girl on screen that breathes, generally) I'm not sure what his redeeming quality was meant to be early on, but whatever it was did not reach me. He is often shown to be some form of "boys will be boys!" condensed into a goofy every-man average joe kind of schmuck, but unfortunately IMHO the positives very rarely outweigh the EUGHH factor of most everything else he does. It's hard to see him as "protective" or really in any sort of positive light when we're repeatedly shown his one-track-mind for laughs, or his scummy, selfish ulterior motives for drama. (or both at the same time!) Now as an adult it feels very apparent that in the first few seasons buffy would have realistically probably never sought out or chose to hang with Xander at any point if he hadn't been a package deal with Willow. (And for good reason, IMHO) He's also been given some of the worst character moments in the show. (What sticks out most to me after all these years is how he treated Cordelia in practically every scene (they were both toxic though, don't get me wrong), but specifically the anger(!!) and lack of guilt & responsibility he has after being caught cheating) Was his redemption / growth for that supposed to be that he paid for her prom dress? In a show where I find myself continually feeling incredible bouts of empathy for the questionable-morals characters, the villains, and the characters who just don't have their shit together and who keep making all the wrong choices-- I feel like they dropped the ball completely on dear old Harris. From that trainwreck of a relationship we move on to how there's something that really doesn't sit right with how he treats and talks to Anya, but I think part of that is from the strange circumstances that started their relationship in the first place. I don't think I've ever really bought into him being in love with her (or appreciating her in general), it very much feels like it started because there was readily available sex that he would *tolerate* Anya for, and now we're sitting with a minimal effort relationship that's probably familiar, convenient-- but not particularly fulfilling for him? I just never got the feeling that he's in it for anything beyond the simplicity of it. (He does get a few cute moments, sure, but Anya deserves so much more than the occasional "oh hey, wait, this woman is actually pretty great-" revelation) For one of the longer running relationships in the entire series I just wish there were more sparks. I wish he adored her. At the end of the day I can't help but feel he's coasting through a relationship that he seems to be taking completely for granted, and it all just adds to the pile of "eughhhh". I think I mostly wish he'd stand up for her more. Or was better at communicating. Because we've definitely been shown that he can be one of the absolute bests when it comes to emotional talks!! I'm not sure, I think I've just got a sour taste in my mouth from the scenes where Anya does something "odd" and his response boils down to "see what i have to deal with??" The women in his life deserve so much better, and actually the men do as well. Check out his cool history so far: Oz - was weirdly hostile as soon as he started showing an interest in willow, later cheated with his gf, chose to immediately shirk all responsibility the one time he had werewolf duty Angel - repeatedly tried to get him *killed* because he couldn't deal with buffy's interest in him, saw him as less than human, and pretty much consistently refused to acknowledge that angel and angelus are separate beings Giles - ok there's not much here I can think of beyond the time he tried to weaponize jenny's death to further his own goals Riley - this isn't something he's done TO riley, but don't get me started on that talk with Buffy after we find out Riley is doing Very Bad Things with vampires IN THE MIDDLE OF A MASSIVE HEALTH SCARE WITH HER MOM. Where was his righteous anger and protectiveness for buffy's supposed wellbeing there? I feel like that scene mirrors a lot of traits in Xander- particularly what he thinks should be overlooked in himself as well. Some parallels could be drawn with how he acted post-Cordy, I think. I also have trouble looking past how even as late as the end of season four (maybe beyond that, i'm not sure) he was shown to be fantasizing about his female friends despite being with Anya. That's just a rough trait to see in a character IMO. tldr I don't scowl when he's on screen- the Xander-centric episodes are fun, and usually provide much needed depth into his character. But the writers have given me a sea of negative scenes to stew on and not much else, so he's solidified his place at the bottom of the tier list quite well. 0/10 would run for the hills if a man with these traits was interested in either me or my friends IRL.
Goblin
2024-09-08 09:02:40 +0000 UTCOn another note, that last scene with Buffy breaking down...man oh man, that always gets to me. Also, I don't think Tara knew Willow was involved in the theft. She was VERY against manipulating life and death with magic. I think she would have been a lot angrier if she knew Willow encouraged it, especially since Dawn is young, inexperienced and alone.
Nyssa Rawther 🍉
2024-09-08 02:06:58 +0000 UTCSince you asked, I've never liked Xander, even to this point of the show. He's too possessive of Buffy and Willow (to the point where he thinks he has a say on their personal lives) and he NEVER respects the women he's actually with. He treated Cordy like crap (she matured and became empathetic enough to consider his best quality of life when she thought he'd turned into a fish monster and he, in turn, cheated on her with Willow because he got jealous of Willow and Oz), and we see as recently as last episode that he is ALWAYS so dismissive of Anya's feelings. She was grieving too and she was so lost, which he didn't notice until her incredible speech. I can excuse that, since he was in a state of grief and shock too but later at the hospital, she wished Joyce wasn't dead and he just made a glib remark about it. I think Buffy understood the gravity of Anya's wording from her very sincere "thank you" but Xander didn't. It's not a secret that the creator of this show made Xander the "normal" guy as a way to insert himself into the show, and the incel behaviour shines through quite a bit. Sorry, Xander-lovers.
Nyssa Rawther 🍉
2024-09-08 02:06:27 +0000 UTCActually Tara didn’t realize what Willow did. That’s why she reacted the way she did. Willow is being irresponsible with magic and she did it knowing that Tara wouldn’t approve.
Vicky N
2024-09-07 20:45:57 +0000 UTCAngel showing up makes the episode along with Buffy ultimately nearly succumbing to letting Zombie Joyce in. She's spent the season being so strong/stoic/detached and these two moments really humanize her.
Mo
2024-09-07 14:46:10 +0000 UTCSince you asked: I didn't like Xander at the beginning ot the show and I thought he did some really bad and immature stuff there. But by this point I really like Xander quite a lot :)! Dont get me wrong: I don't think that makes all the really bad things he did in the beginning (like putting love spells on people) okay at all! But I understand that people can learn and grow from their mistakes and so I like who Xander is now even though I didn't like at all who he was at the beginning of the show. On the other hand the comments have shown to me that I'm far to lenient on Willow because I really like her. And so I was really willing to instantly forgett about all the times she just stupidly tried to solve her problems with magic (like in this episode). So I'll really have to keep that in mind a little more and stop putting her on that much of a pedestal🤔🙈
Diego Zenhäusern
2024-09-07 07:05:05 +0000 UTCAfter just having watched the intro: As someone having never seen the episode I thought your reaction to the previous episode was really quite good! It didn't feel rambling to me (I at least wasn't distracted by your reaction) and I also didn't feel like you supress your emotions to much or anything like that :).
Diego Zenhäusern
2024-09-07 06:43:25 +0000 UTCOh also, I think reptile boy is probably my least fave buffy episode, too!
x_Rhi_x
2024-09-07 04:04:02 +0000 UTCAs others have said, willow isn't always particularly responsible and kinda jumps a bit quickly to solving things with magic. Especially to try and avoid/manage intense emotions, and her feelings are often tied to magic, too. E.g. when in s3, buffy mentions faith, and willow is spinning a pencil which gets out of control and stabs into a tree, because she hates faith. Spike, well, yeah not the best idea to help Dawn, but he's a very morally-wobbly character. He's an emotional, poetic, intense guy. He misses Joyce and wants to get her back, but he is still a soulless vampire, and so not the best person to resolve a situation. He doesn't stop and think rationally or logically about things, and so doesn't see why letting Dawn try the spell is a terrible idea, he just follows his heart about wanting Joyce back, naiive and almost childlike in his reactions, like Dawn.
x_Rhi_x
2024-09-07 04:03:16 +0000 UTCWillow doesn’t have the proper respect and caution when it comes to magic. She always goes straight to spells, even when it’s wrong, dangerous or extremely inappropriate. Willow has a very unhealthy attitude and is far too eager to use magic in all the wrong ways. I’ve never liked Willow, she doesn’t think things through properly and even when things are pointed out to her like in previous magic gone wrong moments she never takes it onboard or learns from it. She is far too arrogant of her ability which is dumb because she’s not that good and far too ignorant of magic and far too reliant on it. SMG was amazing as always.
Delia P
2024-09-07 01:46:15 +0000 UTCHave you never heard of an "Irish Wake"?
thompur
2024-09-07 00:20:43 +0000 UTCOkay, I’m finished watching now and I’d say yes, that last scene is absolutely amazing. One of my favourites. There are others that rank higher for me though. Some still to come. But yes, definitely amazing and underrated due to its proximity to The Body, as others have said. I’m never happy to see Angel sadly, I’m just accepting of it but really glad he was there for Buffy. She needed it. Love everything with Dawn and Buffy and I think this was important to bring them closer. I don’t think either of them really understood how the other was feeling till the end, both too overwhelmed with the pain. Its heartbreaking that Buffy is so against it but when she heard Joyce chap, she threw all that away. She’s pretending to be Joyce but she’s really just Dawn; a scared little girl who wants her mum back. It’s really beautiful. I also enjoy episodes that follow Dawn and I do like her scenes with Spike. I think they are super interesting characters to bounce off each other. I love it all <3 Enjoy the reprieve from the heaviness of Buffy !!! You handled it like a trooper though !!
Giorgia M
2024-09-06 22:35:30 +0000 UTCIt's been years, multiple rewatches and I don't really cry at The Body anymore. It's a great masterpiece of an episode with great acting, directing, writing and incredibly sad moments. That's part of why we watch first time reactions to see new reactions to the tears, shocks, laughs that we had. I say all this because it doesn't matter how many times I've seen it, I always cry at that final scene in this episode. SMG and Michelle knock it out the park. Buffy's "I don't know what I'm doing... who's going to take care of us" and the way her voice cracks. Ah man, tears every single time.
Inseriousity
2024-09-06 22:17:33 +0000 UTCI think a part of Willow wanted Dawn to find out about those spells, that's why she acts so guilty at the end. She's struggling with the loss of Joyce too- we saw that last episode. Unfortunately, magic isn't always the answer😔
Jake M
2024-09-06 21:58:46 +0000 UTCThe song is Cream!!! Tales of Brave Ulysses. It was the song that Giles was listening to with Joyce in Band Candy. He’s having a drink and thinking of her while he listens, it’s such a sweet moment.
Giorgia M
2024-09-06 21:42:11 +0000 UTCYes that was Cream, Tales of Brave Ulysses. The song Joyce and Giles were listening to together in Band Candy. The demon 'Doc' that Spike and Dawn go to see about the resurrection spell is also played by legendary academy and tony award winning actor, Joel Grey. He played the role of the emcee in Cabaret, both in the original stage production, and in the 1972 movie with Liza Minnelli. Apparently they had thought of Joel Grey for the role of Doc before this episode was even filmed, but the production team was hesitant to ask an Oscar winning actor to appear in a TV show like Buffy the Vampire Slayer. According to behind the scenes discussions (ages ago) they needn't have worried, because he was supposedly a fan of the show and was more than happy to be in it. If you haven't already seen the movie 'Cabaret' as well, I highly recommend it.
Claire Eyles
2024-09-06 21:00:25 +0000 UTCWell spotted, Doc is humming Peter and the Wolf- you might say Doc is the wolf, taking advantage of Peter (Dawn) in her moment of vulnerability and naivety. Such a minor detail, but subtle foreshadowing.
Jake M
2024-09-06 20:48:24 +0000 UTCWillow has always had issues dealing with negative emotions. Think back to the absent minded/not thinking clearly type stuff she has done in the past, and what her underlying motives were? She couldn't handle having feelings for Xander, do a spell; she was angry and grieving over OZ's betrayal with Veruca, jump straight to almost cursing them both; she couldn't handle feeling grief when Oz left; hey maybe there's a spell for that. It's an ongoing issue with Willow.
Claire Eyles
2024-09-06 20:37:16 +0000 UTCI find this episode is very underrated due to its proximity to the monolith that is The Body, and I agree that the final scene is one of the most powerful in the entire series. It also manages to blend the tone very well, with a combination of very heavy subject matter as a continuation of the last episode and a bit of the campiness we've come to expect from the rest of the show. Aside from the final scene, Angel's appearance and conversation with Buffy is the highlight of the episode for me. 💜 I'm going to watch your reaction later :)
Jordan McLaren
2024-09-06 18:49:38 +0000 UTC
