Buffy the Vampire Slayer: 1x4 Full Reaction
Added 2023-04-19 21:41:11 +0000 UTC
Comments
Yeah, I'm pretty sure Blaine would be sans head if she had mated with him. So his trauma isn't physical as much as emotional from having to watch her do that to someone else and being drugged/locked up. But you're right, it would be great to see them process trauma more. I don't think that's something they could do in their first 12 episode order (they were a mid-season replacement), with no idea if they'd have more, especially for non-full cast members. Perhaps that's something they can address once they get a stronger foothold on their storytelling, character definitions, and their place on the tv schedule.
indaeo
2023-05-15 21:45:15 +0000 UTCI don't think the implication was that Miss French/Mantis had actually gotten around to doing anything with/to Blaine yet, rather that he had had to watch her go through the whole process with her other victims on the other side of the cage. Still pretty traumatizing stuff thoughπ¬
Absolute0
2023-05-02 03:09:37 +0000 UTCThis episode is a great example of one of the things that I find nice and clever about the show. Because many of the people involved in their stories are not actually people, they were able to talk about topics that would otherwise have been problematic on open broadcast tv. Here they clearly talk about teachers who sexually exploit young students, all the references are obvious, but, technically, their teacher is not a teacher nor a human being but a 100 years old shapeshifting giant prey mantis, or 10 years old who knows. She plans to sexually exploit her victims but without actual sex, that would clearly be impossible, then kill them and eat them β¦ so it's ok. Even Buffy herself, she's human but also a slayer, basically a mystical creature. She has superpowers, she perceives the world differently, she has to mature much faster then a normal person because she has the weight of the world on her shoulders, and, as she said, she seizes the moment because tomorrow she may be dead, after all she has to fight for her life every single day, as she pointed out in the very first episode, so it's easy to imagine that the life expectancy of the slayers is pretty low. All of this allowed them to put her and other characters in extreme situations, disregarding common human social conventions, keeping the characters very relatable while also avoiding alienating the audience because, technically, they are't normal human beings or human at all. It's the same trick used in sci-fi by introducing alien species, alien biology, and alien cultures. Speaking of which, do you really think teens today think or talk to each other differently than Xander and Blayne do? Social conventions and institutions have changed, sure, boys didn't. Giving them another 1000 years of evolution, maybe, who knows, but in just 25 years? β¦ there is no way. Side note: I would suggest again that you put away your notebook, you don't need it and in fact it seems to be even counterproductive. It maight not seem like it but this is a fairly fast pace show, at least in the way it feeds you informations, and it's hard enough not to miss key details while also trying to create content. Writing down notes at the same time is probably a bit much. Here are some examples of things you missed leaving you a bit confused duting the episode. Giles reads in the newspaper about the homeless man being hacked up in the park, so we see the police patrolling the park at night. Does Blayne lost his virginity?? No. by what he told Xander it didn't happen for two reason. One, it's not sex but more dry humping. Two, if that had happened, he would have already died because the She-mantis kills and eats the male immediately after.
G.Un.
2023-04-22 14:35:27 +0000 UTCIIRC the "chosen one" intro stops after the first season. It's clunky, but it's been coming in handy for synching up these reactions so I will miss it. The whole "let's all assume sixteen year old boys have sex and that the ones who don't are socially inferior" thing is the most uncomfortable part of the episode for me. Blayne, thank goodness, was not physically harmed. (Unlike the poor kid who did get assaulted and murdered in front of him, whose name we never knew.) Characters from previous episodes do come back sometimes but yeah, it's safest to assume otherwise. Nonetheless, if you enjoy trauma processing you _are_ watching the correct show. Your shipping theories are hilarious, please continue to speculate. π
Marith Lizard
2023-04-21 01:23:56 +0000 UTCSex -- the big mystery that teens are wondering if they'll ever solve. Making a femme fatale preying on boys is another one of the reversals of teen drama that Buffy was going for. And it is a hint of the darkness that kids have to deal with in the modern world. Joss and the writers wanted to push the limits a bit, within the prime slot that they could on network tv, and they got away with a lot of stuff then by airing on the UPN Network, which was brand new and had no ratings so noone bothered them too much. They did get some censor pressure later on, but probably less than they would have in the decade before, or even now. TV was wild in the 90s. Really having her seduce Xander in the living room was a little too real, the ick factor was rising. But then having the She-mantis all over him while was tied up spread-eagled was .. horrifying, and really a lot for a TV show. They got away with a lot of naughty dialog and hinting as the show went on, using humor to gloss over it or cutting to new scene, but we knew, and later there was even gore and terror and depictions of real trauma. The scene with the councilor and Buffy's reaction to it was really well done. How could adults deal with something like that, if they really did care about kids, and how could Buffy tell them she is not like other kids when it comes to violence and so on, but she is just like the other kids in every other way? It's early days for the show, but you see the group doing the research, finding the clues, showing up for the battle, and supporting the mission.
spikeysnack
2023-04-20 00:49:45 +0000 UTCWow, you are absolutely flying through season 1 and I'm loving it. It's awesome that you seem to be enjoying the show so much already, given the levels it reaches in the future. I really like your insight as well and relating it back to tropes of the time. The point you made about Friends is interesting as I believe that the original premise was to have Central Perk be a bar with an older figure there acting as the "mentor" figure.
Shandler
2023-04-20 00:44:59 +0000 UTCWell, thatβs an easy fix. Iβll grab my laptop and enjoy another one of your reactions. Thanks! :)
Jack Stankovic
2023-04-19 23:42:06 +0000 UTCoh no!! I just double checked and it's giving me the same error on mobile, but it is still available on my laptop. Must be a weird mobile Patreon glitch :(
Cassie
2023-04-19 23:40:37 +0000 UTCβSorry the video does not existβ
Jack Stankovic
2023-04-19 23:37:33 +0000 UTCHey! Unfortunately, the video isnβt loading for me? Iβll try again in a little while. Really looking forward to another episode π
Jack Stankovic
2023-04-19 23:36:58 +0000 UTCOur weirdo friend Cass, I can already tell this is going to be your favorite show. Anyone who vibes this hard with the early episodes is going to be deeply touched by what comes after.
K Murray
2023-04-19 23:19:56 +0000 UTCAh, Teacher's Pet... most peoples least favorite episode. "I'm So Uncomfortable" would be a good alternate title. Also, someone else may correct me, but I never read it as Blayne being assaulted, just that he witnessed what happens and that he and Xander would be next.
Negative
2023-04-19 23:10:17 +0000 UTC
