Buffy the Vampire Slayer - 5x04 "Out Of My Mind" FULL REACTION

"Oh god no..." LOL

Stephen Mintac

This one paragraph perfectly sums up Riley, in a great way. It’s very relatable. After his revelation to Xander, I remember watching how Buffy treated him, and this whole time when she’s trying to convince him to go to the doctor, to understand what he means to her, she never once says “I love you.”

Richard Lucas

I like Riley. I think part of the fandom hates comes from 1) his flaws like yes the masculinity thing but more so 2) he's the follow up to Angel. The Buffy x Angel romance was so iconic, and tragic and epic and all that, that audiences automatically (but imo unfairly) get a negative bias towards Riley. That's one of the reasons the show went with Tara being Willow's next love interest. Joss straight up said, "How the hell do you follow up Seth Green?" So by making it suchhh a diff relationship and chemistry, the audience doesn't defensively get all 😤😤. Riley's very different from Angel but not soo different you won't be subconsciously tempted to compare them.

Pate

I think Riley just feels like he loves Buffy more than she loves him... and that's hard to deal with. It ends up coming off as insecurities about everything (strength, purpose, ect) , but in reality, I think he's just insecure about her feelings for him. I honestly don't blame him... he's now said he loves her 3 times without her saying it back.

Bisibia

I never got the impression that Riley wants to be the dominant one in the relationship. I feel like he just wants to be equal, not in mere strength, but in capability. He wants to know he can stand on the front-line alongside Buffy, rather than needing to be protected, or worse, be the one in need of rescue. The fact that he isn't causes insecurity. This is compounded by Buffy never telling him she loves him, making him believe he is inadequate, and fearful that Buffy will eventually see him the same way.

It's almost like they <i>haven't</i> chosen to write him at all, like they had this random idea--soldier who fights vampires--but no two writers had the same idea of who he was, and sometimes the same writer couldn't remember what the last development was. It's too bad, because Blucas is a charming actor, and the idea could have been interesting. It just seems muddled sometimes.

FernWithy

You know the more I watch this show through other people's points of view, the more I realise I don't actually dislike the idea of Riley as a character so much as I hate the way he's written. It's like one minute he's all in the 'strong women, rah rah rah' parade, and the next they have him acting like his masculinity is being affected because his girlfriend will be stronger than him if he gets treatment to stop him dying. It's too whiplash-y, the character lacks subtlety a lot of the time with how they've chosen to write him.

Claire Eyles

I had a lot of problems too. In fact, I quit watching on Drop Box after “Out of My Mind” ended and just waited for Liam to post it on YouTube so I could watch his comments there.

Koz

I dont know if it's just my phone or not but I only can watch the 1st 30 minutes then it get all buffering and then wont play any more.

Catherine Thurmond

"Oh god no. *Please* no." is basically my reaction anytime I realize I have a major crush on anyone. Truly a nightmare. Spike's insults of Buffy have gotten significantly less biting of late, with the "shampoo commercial hair" and "well, speaking of dishes..." remarks. And he just loves pointing out that Riley is Buffy's boyfriend. I can't quite tell if he was projecting his feelings with those comments, because he's also using it to emasculate Riley. Spike is a complex demon. And I'm here for your Riley opinions. I've gotten significantly more compassionate towards him since I started participating heavily in discussions about the show and was forced to really think about it. I think all of this insecurity stuff this season is much more relatable and interesting than his similar struggles last season, since we can debate about whether Buffy loves him, but it became clear pretty quickly that leaving the Initiative was the correct choice. (Edit: not that I think people who hate Riley haven't really thought about it, I still understand all of the common frustrations with him.)

KT

Lol, it was!

Squee! Really perceptive comments on all the characters. Riley must have bottled up some insecurities from before, he does seem torn about his identity and I feel sympathy for him here even if he isn't being very reasonable. I like Harmony too, she's funny in a hapless sort of way, it's hilarious how she's utterly convinced Buffy's coming after her lol. That scene where Spike's reluctantly playing twenty questions with her before Buffy barges in, LOL. Love Willow and Tara. Also *love* your reaction to Spike's dawning realisation that he's in love with Buffy, haha. 💓Some of that came through in his rant to Harmony about her "shampoo commercial hair" lol. There were some other hints too, right at the start when he says "I will make your neck my chalice" etc before falling down and then later he's kissing her neck in his dream. LOVE Buffy's hair and clothes in this episode. I feel a lot of empathy for Buffy too, she's got so much to deal with...the Joyce scare would have terrified her, then Riley...She's incredibly cool when she tells Graham "If you tell me to hurry, I'll kick your ass". 😎 Overall, I love this episode and really enjoyed your reaction &lt;3

The look on your face during Spike's dream was everything I could have hoped for :D

peggin

Just to add to your brain theme... the episode is called Out Of My Mind.

Bisibia

Great reaction, was waiting for the bit at the end lol. I couldnt listen to the end thoughts as for some reason today my phones being a bitch and it took me over an hr to watch the reaction cuz the video kept freezing! Grrrr! Will catch the thoughts another day or on youtube 😁 “Buffy, I love you -“ “oh god, no! Please no...”

Holi117

Thanks so much! Can't wait to see more of your reactions. You are always so great to watch, and your commentary is very in depth. Much appreciated!

Grace

I loved your “This can’t be real” and then your surprise and relish for future possibilities when you saw Spike’s reaction to his dream.

Steve Maxey

Riley would def know Buffy better than Angel, because Riley's known her as an adult. Angel knew her as a child, when she was barely old enough to be able to make sense of let alone articulate feelings. When she was only in the beginning stages of knowing herself/forming an identity. Angel got kid Buffy, Riley gets college-going Buffy who is finally starting to get a sense of who she actually is.

cs

I really admire the structure of this episode. Hopefully Joyce will be okay, but what a great way that was to get Riley and Dawn and a stethoscope together in one place in order to learn Riley's problem. At the same time, it introduced the hospital setting that was going to be needed for the final act. In a similar way, Harmony showed up obsessing about Buffy and brought out the realization for Spike that he is too. But not in the same way.

Bruce Trogdon

Spike was watching Dawson's Creek this time. He's broadening his horizons. :)

Jarrod Wild

[Liam, pls don't read my reply]: Telling someone not to think too much about a certain topic because of the potential for spoilers...kind of IS a spoiler in itself. You're indicating that he's on the right track about something, or that brains are indeed relevant. I know it's not on purpose because you clearly do care about preventing spoilers; I just think this is the wrong way to go about it. If I were a first time viewer, I would feel spoiled by your comment.

cs

who's the other one?

Bisibia

Your Riley opinions are good, rare, and precious.

Thomas Hansen

Interestingly, you are the 2nd reactor in a row I've seen with a (somewhat) pro-Riley stance. If nothing else, you're at least able to see him as a sympathetic character. It's a stark contrast to the majority of the fan-base that is incredibly vocal in regards to their hatred for Riley.

Second_Strike

More Buffyverse.. I'm so happy 💃