[Just to clarify things: the ACTUAL time is 1:34 am Monday, assuming that the "time posted" on this website is as incorrect as it generally tends to be.]
As I've never really watched a show or a movie thinking about (or attempting to think about) the identity of a character from the point of view of his or her gender, watching these first few episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer has already been a little bit of a challenge for me. I tend to think of men and women, boys and girls as all just being people, with their similarities outweighing their differences. I have always imagined the line between the sexes as being dotted rather than impermeable.
Episode 1: "Welcome to the Hellmouth"
While the entire show is obviously centered around a female title role character, it's my belief that the character Giles "saved" the first episode. The obvious tension surrounding his purpose and how important he was to Buffy's real responsibilities was what really caught my attention: his role as "Watcher" was a strong way to introduce her own role as "Slayer." He makes a nice break from the muddled high school crowd, but still does not hold "the main power": he's not really capable of doing what Buffy herself does. It surprises and intrigues me that the Slayer is referenced as having always been a woman. Is the Watcher necessarily a male?
As a side note: there are some who might complain that Buffy herself is "unrealistic." However, I personally know 16-year-olds who look and dress as she does, and I've seen a smaller woman flip a 300-pound man over her shoulder and land him on the ground. Besides, she does take her fair share of beatings in a fight; it's not really that unconvincing.
It is nice to see a female hero behave like a female, while at the same time she doesn't let anyone walk all over her. Movies like Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom are irredeemably marred because of some woman who can't shut up and stop screaming, while characters like Lara Croft, Tomb Raider are far too cool in every single life-threatening situation. Buffy stands up to all the conflicts that follow her around in different, more practical ways, with a good balance between being feeble and being level-headed.
Episode 2: "The Harvest"
The ending of this episode was a really good springboard for the rest of the season; it would have been miserable to see the "pilot" and have had to wait a whole week to see what happened! The story is good (although I was disappointed to see Eric Balfour-Jess-go so soon), and I will always be impressed by straightforward battles between good and evil. Xander's quips about his being "less than a man" and feeling useless were amusing, and they also helped to establish his different relationships with Willow and Buffy. I feel that his presence as a male character is a good foil for Willow in the same way Giles is for Buffy.
A few thoughts about Buffy herself: the idea of her being a real girl, solidly female, is very obvious. From her makeup to her clothing to her trying out for the cheerleading team (in episode 3), it is clear that she is as feminine as they come. Still, she manages the best of both worlds and lets everyone know it.
Episode 3: "Witch"
This was my favorite show of the first three for a variety of reasons. First, it had a really good storyline with a great twist. It is also quite complex: there are several different simulaneous layers and ideas intermingling with one another that go together to make it a good show. These are things I've come to expect from anything that has Joss Whedon behind it, even a mere 45 minutes.
Second: the interplay between the characters has already become a lot more stable and more clear. When Xander tells Willow that he appreciates her because she is sort of "one of the guys," I could really connect with that: I can recall dozens of similar experiences from when I was younger, having been something of a tomboy myself (though Willow's more of the socially-inept intellectual than a tomboy). Her reaction to his words was equally realistic: in spite of the fact that girls who are tomboys or brilliant do enjoy getting muddy or hacking systems (or whatever it is they like), they are undeniably girls who prefer to be treated as girls every once in a while. Plus, being told you're "one of the guys" is like admitting you're playing make-believe when you should have already outgrown it. It was also a nice twist when Buffy, in her witch-affected state, told Xander he was just "one of the girls"; Willow clearly appreciated the indirect payback.
I can see why there are people who would not be "hooked" from the onset of the first season. The acting is stilted on occasion, as is almost always the case for the early days of any TV show (Firefly being a rare exception). There is also a clear gap between the fashions and dialogue of the 2000s and the 1990s that might deter some, though not actually quite as much as I was expecting. The approach to the different stereotypes, whether it's the high school clique or the garlic/crucifix vampire lore, is handled with just the right amount of campy wit and bluntness to win over harder-to-please viewers.
No comments:
Post a Comment