(Buffy Season 4, Episodes 5-6)
(Angel Season 1, Episodes 5-6)

Change is brewing already on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. A little abrupt, and saddening, but it will push the characters into new emotional territory. Never want them to stagnate too much.

Over on Angel, it was so good to see Angel doing something other than the whole brooding thing. The show is really coming into its own comedy-wise, which is important. I don’t need it as light as Buffy, but you can’t have characters like Cordelia and Doyle and stay that dark forever. Read the rest of this entry »

(Buffy Season 4, Episodes 3-4)
(Angel Season 1, Episodes 3-4)

Now that’s a crossover between two shows. Brilliantly and seamlessly handled. This is why I chose to watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel back-to-back like this. I knew Whedon had dropped little treats like this in for his loyal viewers, and now I can pretend to be one, too.

It was also nice to see the return of some familiar faces to both series. As I said last week, the casts are pretty lean. And while I can forgive it as we’re getting settled into our new environments on both shows, it’s time to start stretching out and meeting new people, as well as reconnecting with old friends. Read the rest of this entry »

(Buffy Season 4, Episodes 1-2)
(Angel Season 1, Episodes 1-2)

Welcome to the new and shorter-titled “Diary of a Buffy/Angel Virgin.” I’m a completist by nature, so if I’d been watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer when it was on, I would have surely tuned in to Angel. I’ll bet the vast majority of people who were watching did the same, or at least sampled Angel.

So far, both shows feel a little lean. They took two of the regular cast members of Buffy, and put them on Angel. Buffy is just making do with the smaller number, while Angel added one. After high school so much changes, so it’s pretty cool watching two different shows to see how everybody’s lives are moving in such different directions. Read the rest of this entry »

(Season 3, Episodes 19-22)

After three years with this gang, the final episodes of season four really were the end of an era. The kids are graduating high school, Angel’s heading off to LA to headline his own show. Truly, nothing will ever be the same again.

And the episodes played out just like that. They had all the emotional importance of such a significant transition for both the characters and the audience. We finally got the culmination of the Mayor’s century of scheming, got a resolution, of sorts, with Faith and saw Buffy take those important first steps into adulthood, by quitting the Council.

Read the rest of this entry »

(Season 3, Episodes 12-14)

We’ll call this “The New Watcher Arc.” And by arc I mean two episodes with a bizarrely unrelated one stuck in the middle. Still, though, while “The Zeppo” took some time for me to get used to, I’m still enjoying the season so far.

“The Zeppo” was structured almost like a vaudeville comedy. We had overly dramatic music playing over Angel and Buffy, Xander running around frantically in every direction and shenanigans galore. The music, quick camera cuts and structure made for a very different viewing experience. Read the rest of this entry »

(Season 3, Episodes 9-11)

Still chugging along; if only more shows were as consistently inventive and entertaining as Buffy the Vampire Slayer. FOX recently said they intend to let creator Joss Whedon just be Joss in the new season of Dollhouse, rather than interfere like they did with Firefly.

Maybe they went back and watched Buffy and Angel, and realized what magic he could create when you just leave him alone. Whedon succeeds because he creates TV programs that are uniquely special, unlike anything else on the screens. Network executives coming in and mucking up the works only make that harder. Leave him alone and maybe by Season 3, Dollhouse will be at least half as good as this. Read the rest of this entry »

(Season 3, Episodes 5-8)

The background of these four episodes is the slow burning of affection between Xander and Willow. We know they’ve had feelings for one another since the beginning, but did the writers have to wait until both were in relationships that I actually enjoyed to go and screw it all up?

They still haven’t figured out what to do with Oz as a character, so he’s been relegated to background scenery in most of these episodes. I wonder if this has to do with Seth Green ultimately leaving the show. You’d think you could use your werewolf a little better. Read the rest of this entry »