tvthatdoesntsuck

So “Buffy Week” comes to an end.  If you’ve learned anything, it’s that this is a great show that you should at least try to get into.  Buy either Season Five or Three first, but if you promise me you’ll stick it out until the finale of Season Two at the very least, buy the first season.  Many people can’t deal with the campy initial episodes, but the payoff is beyond extreme.  I’ve watched mucho, mucho TV and this show that’s pretty much gotten universal praise by critics and fans alike is easily, easily the greatest I’ve ever seen.

So here is the review of the seventh and final (or not? see below) season of Buffy.

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER - SEASON SEVEN

“I was surprised how much flack this season got from fans, because even if it was weaker than some of the previous seasons, it’s still quite a bit better than anything else on the television. Being that this was the final season, there was a lot to wrap up. Whedon and co. did a stupendous job doing that, giving the most consistently decent season of the show. Seasons two, three, and five are unquestionably better than seven, but seven lacks the silly episodes (”Go Fish”, “Superstar”, “Doublemeat Palace”) that plagued every other season. I didn’t expect such a stellar season after the inconsistent sixth, but this final season let me go with a smile on my face.

Great Arcs…
+ Spike’s fall and redemption was stupendous, as was Anya’s and Andrew’s. All of these characters were fleshed out in this season. The arc of Spike’s redemption came to a beautiful end in the last few scenes of the show (Spike/Buffy final scene in the hellmouth), paying off all the loyal fans of Mr. William the Bloody.
+ The villain of the season was The First Evil, as seen in Season Three. After facing vampires, a mayor, a cyborg, a God, and an unstoppable witch, the Big Bad of this season had to be something major–what else could have been picked but the very essence of evil itself? The First’s ability to take on the image of any one who has died before was an amazing way to include some of the fan favorites who have died in the past (Joyce, the Master, Mayor Wilkins, Adam, Drusilla, Buffy herself, etc…)
+ Caleb, a misogynistic priest and an agent of The First, was a great choice as a preliminary villain. Never (other than maybe Warren or Angelus) have I found myself actually hating a villain as much as I have Caleb, and for a character to have such an effect on an audience is amazing.
+ The romances suffer in this season, but it’s all believable. The only relationship I saw as shallow was Willow and Kennedy’s. With Tara, I understood why Willow loved her. I understand why Xander loved Anya, and why Spike loved Buffy. But I don’t see a shard of chemistry between Kennedy and Willow. All of the other arcs are handled well.

The Best (Episodes) of the Bunch…
4. Help (This, as a mostly stand-alone episode, featured Cassie Newton (played by Azura Skye). She was one of the most intriguing guest stars, and played her part well. This episode also spoke a lot about fate, but from a different perspective than usual.)
5. Selfless
7. Conversations With Dead People
9. Never Leave Me
16. Storyteller
17. Lies My Parents Told Me
19. Empty Places
20. Touched
21. End of Days
22. Chosen (This is one of the best season finales of the entire series: the image of Buffy and Spike holding hands while Spike ignites is as potent as the images of Buffy stabbing Angel (S2) and Buffy jumping into Glory’s portal (S5).

So, I write my bittersweet goodbye to the best show television has ever been graced with. I’m just glad that BtVS went out on a high note.

Grrr. Arrg.

9/10″

VERDICT: Buy.  But buy it after you’ve watched 1-6.  Extreme payoff.

NOTE: Buffy’s story doesn’t end with Season Seven.  In fact, there’s a Season Eight.  While Joss and Sarah Michelle Gellar retired the show (that’s right kiddies, the networks wanted more, but in 2002 Joss told the network they wanted to end in 2003 to go out on a climatic, high note) after this season, years later Joss Whedon felt the itch to write some more Buffy.  So, along with Dark Horse comics, he launched “Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season Eight” as a comic series in 2007.  Each month, the Season Eight comics make the Top Ten best sellers and often attract media attention by the big character developments, such as Buffy bedding fellow slayer Satsu.  To see my reviews of the Buffy: Season Eight comics, check out my Buffyverse Comic Reviews blog.

NEXT TIME: “Supernatural: Season One”

*static*

Trackback URI | Comments RSS