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Wow, it's a long time since I posted anything in my own journal (as opposed to comments in other people's)! In my defence, I've had a bad couple of weeks: first my 17 month-old son Jack had a cold - his first really bad one - which meant he was waking up several times a night so I got very tired. And then of course I got the cold. Last night was our first through night in ten days, which I know is the norm for some people but Jack normally sleeps right through and therefore so do we!
Added to that, I've just joined a new drama group which means I'm out till c. 10.30 two nights a week for the first time since I got pregnant. Not great timing, admittedly, but I wouldn't miss rehearsals for anything. I hadn't realised how totally I had missed the buzz of the theatre. So I'm in at least the chorus (auditions next Monday to see if I can get in the dancing chorus) of Anything Goes, to be performed in October, and I am loving every second of it!
So all in all, I haven't had energy for writing or evenings in for tv watching. But tonight I suddenly felt Buffy/Angel withdrawal pangs, so decided to get on with the next pair of episodes. Not that they're particularly brilliant episodes, either of them, but they quelled my withdrawal symptoms (except my Giles ones).
Wrecked
Another episode that gets a lot of flack, and this time for good reason. It’s, well, to put it simply, it’s boring.
Some very sweet scenes between Dawn and Tara again; they have a lovely vibe together. I feel so sorry for them, coming home and finding no-one else there – all night! Cute scene in the kitchen in the morning with Tara making ‘funny shapes’ pancakes. Feel so bad for her when Willow walks in after an obvious all-nighter.
Didn’t enjoy the Buffy/Spike scenes. Partly because, however ‘fit’ (*grin*) James Marster’s body is, I just find it very uncomfortable trying to watch people have a conversation with so much nakedness going on (and JM really doesn’t do much for me anyway). Plus I’ve had enough of Buffy being in denial – especially after she’s slept with the guy, for God’s sake!
I did like the way Willow felt guilty about not being there for Dawn and that she tried to make it up to her by taking her out the following night. And I think I finally just about understand her craving for Rack’s magic. I’ve never managed to make sense of it before, because I always felt it was very clear in Smashed (and before that) that Willow and Amy were just having fun doing spells, because it made them feel powerful, and I couldn’t understand how the emphasis completely changed with the introduction of Rack – because suddenly they weren’t doing spells as such, they were just on a happy drug courtesy of Rack. Now I can see that I was right about the first part and the emphasis hadn’t really changed that much: they just got withdrawal symptoms when they weren’t getting the powerful feeling from doing magic and that’s where Rack’s type of magic comes it. I think.
I also finally understood where the monster who almost kills Dawn comes in: he was the catch in Rack’s happy spells. Interesting that he looks very like the monster in Superstar, who is a similar idea. And this time (on a big, flat screen, with DVD quality) I could finally make out the monster in Willow’s visions at Rack’s, so that all finally made sense.
I liked the girls’ talk at the end, though I do feel it’s bad that Willow has admitted her problem to Buffy while Buffy won’t admit hers to Willow. I also thought it was a shame that once upon a time Willow would have gone to Xander with her problem, not Buffy (OK, I know it makes story-sense for her to talk to Buffy, but I miss the Xander-Willow friendship). I liked the final shot of Buffy curled up on her bed, wide awake with garlic and crosses everywhere.
But on the whole, there were a lot of awkward pauses and tense silences that just didn’t make for enjoyable viewing. I think it might have been better if they’d squashed Smashed and Wrecked together and made one slightly-more-interesting episode out of them.
4/10 (my lowest score yet)
Dad
Well, after a really great episode in Lullaby, we’re back with the rather mediocre ones in Dad. I still, even though I’ve had a baby myself now, find all the Angel/baby bits boring. In fact, most of them make me cringe. I can’t stand goofy Angel and this was him in spades.
Also, now that I’ve had a baby, it was so obviously unrealistic. No newborn is going to react to anything very much, and I doubt it would even have good enough eyesight to focus on Angel’s face as he vamps out to stop it crying. All right, I know the first thing babies focus on is their mother’s (or primary carer’s) face, and all right Connor is a somewhat special baby, but still… And who on earth had time to go out and buy nappies and formula etc.?
I did, as an avid cloth-nappy-promoter, enjoy Angel grumbling about disposables and saying he knew how to change the old-fashioned ones with pins. I wanted to take him by the hand and show him all the wonderful new shaped cloth nappies that are so much easier than terries and pins! I also wondered when on earth a 250 year-old vampire had had experience with nappies???
I also still get annoyed by the plot-twist of Angel not having the baby with him in the quarry. I still don’t understand who was in on that and when it actually started, once Lorne had given Angel the note. And who was looking after the baby?
And I can’t stand Justine. Her attitude annoys me so much.
Some little things I liked. Wesley saying ‘lift’ not ‘elevator’ when the gang come home to find their hotel in chaos – I do like it when they actual get the Englishisms right. Both Holtz and Sahjahn, and Cordelia looking up suspects on Demons Demons Demons. Angel holding his hand out into the sun to show he would die for his son – very heroic, though not actually that practical. Angel threatening Linwood and making him Connor’s ‘godfather’. The gang doing their walk down the corridor at the hospital – with a pram!
5.5/10
Added to that, I've just joined a new drama group which means I'm out till c. 10.30 two nights a week for the first time since I got pregnant. Not great timing, admittedly, but I wouldn't miss rehearsals for anything. I hadn't realised how totally I had missed the buzz of the theatre. So I'm in at least the chorus (auditions next Monday to see if I can get in the dancing chorus) of Anything Goes, to be performed in October, and I am loving every second of it!
So all in all, I haven't had energy for writing or evenings in for tv watching. But tonight I suddenly felt Buffy/Angel withdrawal pangs, so decided to get on with the next pair of episodes. Not that they're particularly brilliant episodes, either of them, but they quelled my withdrawal symptoms (except my Giles ones).
Wrecked
Another episode that gets a lot of flack, and this time for good reason. It’s, well, to put it simply, it’s boring.
Some very sweet scenes between Dawn and Tara again; they have a lovely vibe together. I feel so sorry for them, coming home and finding no-one else there – all night! Cute scene in the kitchen in the morning with Tara making ‘funny shapes’ pancakes. Feel so bad for her when Willow walks in after an obvious all-nighter.
Didn’t enjoy the Buffy/Spike scenes. Partly because, however ‘fit’ (*grin*) James Marster’s body is, I just find it very uncomfortable trying to watch people have a conversation with so much nakedness going on (and JM really doesn’t do much for me anyway). Plus I’ve had enough of Buffy being in denial – especially after she’s slept with the guy, for God’s sake!
I did like the way Willow felt guilty about not being there for Dawn and that she tried to make it up to her by taking her out the following night. And I think I finally just about understand her craving for Rack’s magic. I’ve never managed to make sense of it before, because I always felt it was very clear in Smashed (and before that) that Willow and Amy were just having fun doing spells, because it made them feel powerful, and I couldn’t understand how the emphasis completely changed with the introduction of Rack – because suddenly they weren’t doing spells as such, they were just on a happy drug courtesy of Rack. Now I can see that I was right about the first part and the emphasis hadn’t really changed that much: they just got withdrawal symptoms when they weren’t getting the powerful feeling from doing magic and that’s where Rack’s type of magic comes it. I think.
I also finally understood where the monster who almost kills Dawn comes in: he was the catch in Rack’s happy spells. Interesting that he looks very like the monster in Superstar, who is a similar idea. And this time (on a big, flat screen, with DVD quality) I could finally make out the monster in Willow’s visions at Rack’s, so that all finally made sense.
I liked the girls’ talk at the end, though I do feel it’s bad that Willow has admitted her problem to Buffy while Buffy won’t admit hers to Willow. I also thought it was a shame that once upon a time Willow would have gone to Xander with her problem, not Buffy (OK, I know it makes story-sense for her to talk to Buffy, but I miss the Xander-Willow friendship). I liked the final shot of Buffy curled up on her bed, wide awake with garlic and crosses everywhere.
But on the whole, there were a lot of awkward pauses and tense silences that just didn’t make for enjoyable viewing. I think it might have been better if they’d squashed Smashed and Wrecked together and made one slightly-more-interesting episode out of them.
4/10 (my lowest score yet)
Dad
Well, after a really great episode in Lullaby, we’re back with the rather mediocre ones in Dad. I still, even though I’ve had a baby myself now, find all the Angel/baby bits boring. In fact, most of them make me cringe. I can’t stand goofy Angel and this was him in spades.
Also, now that I’ve had a baby, it was so obviously unrealistic. No newborn is going to react to anything very much, and I doubt it would even have good enough eyesight to focus on Angel’s face as he vamps out to stop it crying. All right, I know the first thing babies focus on is their mother’s (or primary carer’s) face, and all right Connor is a somewhat special baby, but still… And who on earth had time to go out and buy nappies and formula etc.?
I did, as an avid cloth-nappy-promoter, enjoy Angel grumbling about disposables and saying he knew how to change the old-fashioned ones with pins. I wanted to take him by the hand and show him all the wonderful new shaped cloth nappies that are so much easier than terries and pins! I also wondered when on earth a 250 year-old vampire had had experience with nappies???
I also still get annoyed by the plot-twist of Angel not having the baby with him in the quarry. I still don’t understand who was in on that and when it actually started, once Lorne had given Angel the note. And who was looking after the baby?
And I can’t stand Justine. Her attitude annoys me so much.
Some little things I liked. Wesley saying ‘lift’ not ‘elevator’ when the gang come home to find their hotel in chaos – I do like it when they actual get the Englishisms right. Both Holtz and Sahjahn, and Cordelia looking up suspects on Demons Demons Demons. Angel holding his hand out into the sun to show he would die for his son – very heroic, though not actually that practical. Angel threatening Linwood and making him Connor’s ‘godfather’. The gang doing their walk down the corridor at the hospital – with a pram!
5.5/10