Buffy season 1 revisited

[boot_the_grime]

So, I’ve finished my re-rewatch (!) of season 1. I expected it to go faster, but there were a lot of distractions - from unexpected work, to the fact that, well, it was hot summer weather and most days were being spent on a beach, and a lot of nights out in the city. My impressions were mostly the same as the last time, which is no surprise since

Comments

[kikimay]

I should rewatch Season One! I agree with you, it's the less intriguing Season, but there are good episodes and it's funny.
I hate Jeanty's way of drawing Buffy and I hate her characterization in the comics.
I don't understand why David Boreanaz was so thin: I think it's more natural in Season 2 and 3, he seems a very "large" kind of guy, unlike JM. Cordelia is very jealous of Buffy, even in AtS she still thinks that Buffy's a weirdo.

[itsnotmymind]

The funniest detail is that the “text” in Marcie’s textbook under the headline “Chapter 1: Assassination and Infiltration - Case Example 1: Radical Cult Leader as Intended Target” actually consists of the lyrics to “Happiness is a Warm Gun” by The Beatles, written as prose.

Except where it should say "happiness is a warm gun" it says "joy is a hot revolver". Copyright concerns, maybe?

I'm American, but I was homeschooled until college so I never had the "highschool experience". I know in grade school American students just have a single class with one teacher who teaches them all their subjects, and in high school they get to plan their own schedule and pick their own classes. Being "sent to the principal's office" is a common disciplinary tool for grade school and middle school--I assume that kind of interaction with the student body extend into high school? I'm not sure. It might depend on the school. And the size of the student body.

[local_max]

Good thoughts, all. (Willow is SO heartbreaking in these eps

[eveolina]

I agree with you about season one and the show not really knowing what it's going to be yet

[frelling_tralk]

Jesse has always been something that bugged me the most about season 1. If he was introduced as a casual acquaintance even it wouldn't have been quite so bad, but it was implied that Xander/Willow/Jesse were all pretty close and hung out together at school most days, yet he's NEVER spoken of again?

And at least Xander got to act somewhat mad and upset at the time, but when Buffy and Xander came to the library to tell Willow that Jesse is dead the most she can manage is to look a bit shocked and say "At least you two are okay". It doesn't ring true on a emotional level that any teenager would react to a death of a friend in that way, especially as later on season 1 actually placed more emphasis on death being a hard thing for them to deal with. In The Puppet Show they're all really upset about Emily, even though they really only knew her casually, and Xander rants that he HATES this school. That felt like a much more natural reaction for 16 year olds being face with the death of a classmate

[eveolina]

Hi! I really enjoy your Buffy reviews. I agree that season one is underrated. The last three seasons are my favorites, but I liked the show right from the beginning. It does a great job of capturing the feeling of what high school was like.
I went to an American high school, and I think it is portrayed mostly accurately. We chose our classes. We had school sports and homecoming and all that, but it wasn't as big a deal as teen movies/shows make it out to be - at least not for everyone. A lot of people had dates to prom, but a lot of people didn't. I think the primary difference for me is that my high school was a lot larger, in terms of the number of students - there were almost 500 in my graduating class. I always got the feeling Sunnydale High was supposed to be a smaller, small town school - everyone knows each other, there's more universal interest in school functions, the principal interacts directly with the students, etc.