turnonmyheels | (no subject)

I happened to pass by the Willow + Tara forever marathon on Logo over the weekend. Despite having all the Buffy DVDs I tuned for a couple episodes of season five including The Gift. It so happens, I watched The Gift within 24 hours of having watched Supernatural's season premiere episode. Most everyone who reads this journal knows I don't have any strong fannish leanings toward Supernatural. I watch it because Jensen Ackles is pretty. [and sometimes Jared takes off his shirt so I can see his gorgeous body instead of his weird shiny forehead and strange nose]

I do have a point, and it is this:

Sometimes, it's best to end the narrative. Buffy should have ended with The Gift. Yes, there were some really awesome episodes after that point, but the story was over. It came to its natural resolution, Buffy died fulfilling her duty and stopping A GOD. Joss was always going on about giving the viewer what they need instead of what they want, and they needed Buffy to end. Because that was the end.

Supernatural? Should not have continued. It's easy for me to say that because I'm not a big fan, I realize this. But the story was over, it ended with Sam making the sacrifice and Dean going on to live the life that Sam wanted. It wasn't a little Apocalypse, they invoked GOD and SATAN and everything in between. When you go that big? It's over with. Whatever it is they have planned for this season is not going to grow organically out of the ending they already had that *worked*.

I'm glad you have a fan base. I'm glad they spend money and draw in advertisers and all that other corporate stuff, BUT!

BUT! BUT!

CW/WB/UPN -- learn from Buffy. It's too late now of course and hindsight 20/20 blah blah blah.

/random string of words that don't serve any purpose

I hunted and hunted through my icon drop down box for Buffy icons. All I have left are icons of Faith [which are saved under Eliza] and one Angel the Vampire puppet. How sad. It really makes me wonder where the hell my Anya doing the Money Dance icon went...

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I am a HUGE Buffy fan, as you know. I would have continued to watch Buffy episodes if it had been Xander and Willow carving stakes and talking about hummus, as long as there were quips and big emotional moments and nekkidness. And I will always be grateful for the musical and for that group scream in Tabula Rasa and for getting to see Dawn grind on RJ and Spike to say "I'm drowning in footwear" and for Xander to give his Potential speech to Dawn.

HOWEVER. You're completely right -- the narrative ended with "The Gift" and had the show ended then, it would have been the most satisfying series end that I can think of. (And then they could have done OMWF as that movie genre creators/directors always say they're going to do post-series.)

And SPN should have ended last season. I wasn't sure of that until I saw the S5 finale, and then I was sure. I'm pretty much just watching at this point for any funny eps and Sam to be shirtless. I'm not really invested in the storyline arc (since there isn't much of one left to tell, unless Sam and Dean *are* actually in love. That could fill a season, but not much else has the emotional resonance left to do so.)

Edited 2010-09-27 18:28 (UTC)

I do know! I'm thinking about setting Buffy to record on Logo, even though I have the DVDs I think it would be fun to watch it play out again on TV, plus I could catch enough Logo commercials to find something else fun to watch on the network.

I think it's funny how no one seems to be watching SPN because they think there's some story left to hell. Why couldn't the people in charge do the right thing for the story for a change instead of their pocket books?

I preface this by saying you're absolutely right, and season five was it for both shows. As glad as I am for having s6-7 for a lot of reasons, there wasn't really any story left after that and digging themselves a new path turned it into a trench. It didn't work with Buffy.

I suspect it won't with Supernatural, either.

But god damn, I loved that episode. I loved the possibilities of character arc and story lines they could follow. I loved Dean finally growing up, whatever Jensen himself might say.

I wanna see where it goes. I may even be genuinely fannish about it, when I never could the first five seasons.

I always enjoy Dean, full stop. But that BS with neither Sam nor Bobby telling Dean? I just can't get passed that. It doesn't work, it's not THEM. You can say Sam's not Sam because he's been in Hell and Bobby's not Bobby because he sold his soul, but in the SPN narrative the demons always tell the truth, because they know it hurts more.

Yeah, but that's why I liked it - it's so sincerely atypical that either Sam is proving himself to be the uncaring asshole I've always suspected of him, or there's something else going on. Either is interesting to me.

Now, I could be wrong about this, of course. I don't write the show, or believe me, Sam would've been different from ages ago. But until I do see where the resolution's going, I'm willing to actively pay attention.

That doesn't mean I think you're wrong - you aren't. The writers are digging a trench right now and they're doing all the wrong things to the true fans of the show.

But I've never been a true fan. I enjoyed it, parts of it, I liked the fandom that grew up around it, but it was never my show. Given how much I'm enjoying it, it tells me that they are making every misstep they can and it will backfire, if they don't come up with something brilliant.

But I'm going to enjoy the ride until it collapses.

And I think you should enjoy it! I sure as hell enjoyed those bright and shining moments that remained and there were more than a handful. I'd forgotten Misha was signed on for this season until azewewish reminded me, that alone would keep me watching b/c I think Castiel is *hilarious*. I was sad for all the die-hard fans being so disappointed in the episode.

See, and this is EXACTLY why I don't want to start watching S6 of Supernatural. The story arc is done. And, frankly, if it weren't for Misha, I wouldn't even be a little bit tempted to watch S6 at all. I signed on for the 5 year journey & it wasn't perfect, but it was complete. Dragging it out just feels gratuitous.

I forgot Misha was going to be recurring again this season. That and Jensen will have to be enough to keep me tuning in, because the jumping off point didn't work on about a hundred different levels.

Yeah, I've heard nothing but horrible things about the premiere, which makes me curious in that rubber-necking kind of way. I mean, I am DVRing the show, so I suppose I'll start watching at some point, just to see how bad the trainwreck is.

There may be some clever plot twist that makes it all ok.

I doubt it.

I agree. It is done at season five.

However I did pay my cable bill for this so. I don't know what's going on. I am sincerely hoping that this was all a set up to a bigger picture because if not and this is really the reality of the show then...I want my money back :)

But Jensen is pretty! Nothing else really matters in the face of that

*g*

I agree with you totally about Buffy.

Haven't had time yet for SPN, so I can't say, but.

But.

In comics, one of my all time favorites is Wildcats 2.0 because it's an (often painful) story of people fumbling around trying to pick up the pieces after Life As They Knew It is very suddenly over. Some of them don't make the transition so well.

Buffy really went completely off the rails in the comics, that's gone so far into crackland it's obscene.

It's probably way too early to tell about SPN yet, but I felt the ending last season *was* the ending. Anything after that IMO is fan service.

See, I loved season six Buffy. It was amazing to watch her try to deal with what she'd been through. I was really upset with SPN the other night because I'm a Dean girl and I was so angry at Sam and Bobby for betraying him. I thought the episode did a great job of showing how Dean feels. I actually watched the ep again last night. I seem to be in the minority that really liked it.

I loved parts of both 6 and 7, but it all felt very tacked on and not very well thought out and very *un*Buffy. Which makes sense considering Buffy was in PTSD and all, but

I'm glad you enjoyed it! I just feel that the the season finale was the ending. I hope they change my mind.