Buffy the Vampire Slayer is set to return as a movie however without the
Executive Producer and Creator of the still popular TV show, Joss Whedon.
Originally the movie was set to fall back in the hands of the original
movie producers, Kazui Entertainment, which made many fans apprehensive.
However now Chris Roven and Steve Alexander will produce the remake of the
failed movie and popular TV show along with Roy Lee and Doug Davison of Vertigo
Entertainment, who were responsible for 'How to Train Your Dragon' and 'The
Departed'.
It is of no surprise that the movie is set to take a darker route than the
original movie and the show, but is that what fans want? The TV show had a
balance of dark, scary, humour, love, loss, every possible emotion that you
could possibly think of.
With that in mind, I take a look at my top 10 Buffy episodes to put to
question forward, can a two-hour movie bring the same as a TV show that spanned
7 years?
10. Prophecy Girl
The very first season finale in the show and it set the standard for all
season finales to come. It was the best part of Season 1, showing that Buffy
Summers was not just a Vampire Slayer, she was a 16-year-old girl. That showed
when, after hearing of her death by The Master being prophesised, she wanted to
quit and run away rather than facing it; like she did with every other
apocalypse after.
Luckily for Buffy, one of her friends, Xander, was able to revive her and
she could go ahead and kill The Master and save the day.
9. Restless
Another season finale makes the list, this time Season 4. I think the
episode before this one 'Primeval' was a shock that it wasn't the season
finale. The big bad of the season, Adam, had finally been killed, all loose
ends were tied up but there was still another episode to go. What could there
possibly have been for the season finale?
Cue: Restless. It was an episode that just seemed like a load of nonsense
but now that the series is finished with, it's clear that as much as it was
funny and creepy, it was also a hell of a lot of foreshadowing. Take Tara's
line "be back before Dawn" - at the time that seemed like a reference
to the sun however come season 5 it was revealled that Buffy had a younger
sister called Dawn. Another one would be the black satchel that Buffy finds in
The Initiative with all the mud in it; that is actually the same satchel that
Prinicipal Wood gives Buffy in season 7 with the story of The First Slayer.
8. Earshot
Not a season finale and possibly one that most viewers would ignore. This
episode, although has an element of the supernatural when Buffy gains a demon's
power of reading minds, the episode doesn't solely focus on that and the ending
has nothing to do with said power.
The episode has a blend of comedy and drama all the way to the end. Buffy
finds out that she can read everyone's mind except for Angel and finds out a
few truths that she doesn't want to know, but she eventually starts to go crazy
from all the thoughts. This brings the drama along with the revelation that
someone will kill everyone in the school.
The episode also brings up an feeling never touched upon too much in TV
shows, the feeling of wanting to kill yourself. Buffy finds out that the person
she has been searching for isn't trying to kill the students after all, it's
Jonathon and she stops him from committing suicide, which is a very touching
moment. Although, coupled in with Xander really saving the day when saving the
school from poisoned food by the dinner lady and it keeps the humour to the
very end.
7. Conversations with Dead People
A very well written episode where none of the stories intersect. After six
episoes of questions of who the big bad is and what's coming, the evil annouces
its presence yet still leaves with more questions rather than answers.
It's another episode that manages to bring most emotions to the table. Fear
when Dawn is home alone and is trying to battle the evil in the house. Laughter
during the scene with Buffy and the new vampire Web, while they discuss
everything from Buffy's past relationships to the vampire who sired him.
Sadness during the scenes with Willow and Cassie.
Not only that, but unlike Restless where the episode is full of
forshadowing, this episode is full of references from past episode. The only
thing that could have possibly made this episode any better would have ben Tara
in the scene with Willow rather than Cassie; the emotion that would have
brought would have probably made this higher on the list.
6. Grave
Another season finale, and not the last season finale on the list I'm sure
most will agree. This episode showed that you didn't need super powers to save
the world, it can all come from the heart.
Proof? Xander Harris. Plain and ordinary, Xander was commonly known for
being the most powerless out of his friends, the joker of the pack and the one
who never really grew up. However when Buffy, Giles and Anya all failed to stop
Willow from destroying the world, Xander managed it with three simple words 'I
love you', oh, and a load of nonsense about a yellow crayon which added humour
to a very dramatic and emotional ending to an equally emotional second half of
a season.
5. Touched
Jump back to season 7. No season finale, in fact I'll let you into a
spoiler, the season 7 finale doesn't make my top 10. No, this episode is much
more memorable for me. This is the point when it was clear that Buffy had
almost given up hope of being able to save the world from this apocalypse and
if it wasn't for a very touching speech from Spike, she would have probably
stayed on that bed until The First Evil took over the world.
It also showed what leadership really meant; and not everyone can lead. It
proved that Faith wasn't a leader, despite being a Vampire Slayer, she wasn't
capable of making decisions without having people around her to boost her
confidence. Buffy's natural ability to make the hard choices made her the ideal
leader at the time and she managed to come back fighting after proving that
everybody was wrong and she was right. Yet she didn't stand straight back up as
leader, she became the girl that we knew all the way back in Season 1; the girl
who needed her friends just as much as, possibly even more than they needed
her.
Looking for humour in the emotional and dramatic episode? Just look at the
conversations between Spike and Buffy, not just during his touching speech, but
also later when Buffy is back in the house.
4. Becoming, Part 2
Closing in on the number one spot and it's another season finale, this time
from season 2. Now, I've got to admit, season 2 wasn't my favourite season;
mainly the whole Evil Angel bored me after a while. However, this episode hit
the nail on the head when it came to mixing laughter, drama, surprise and
suspense.
It shows the first time Willow uses magic and shows just how powerful she
is naturally, some great forshadowing when it came to season 5 onwards. It also
shows Buffy stepping up to do the right thing straight away; she knew she had
to kill Angel, unlike in season 1 where she tried to run from her destiny. It
proved that Buffy was growing up and learning from mistakes. In fact, Buffy's
decision to kill the re-ensouled Angel is possibly one of the most
heartbreaking moments of the entire series.
3. The Gift
The last season finale on my list, and happens to be The WB's series finale
since the show then moved to UPN. This would have probably made one of the best
series finales ever.
This was the episode that proved everybody could have a role to play in
stopping an apocalypse, even a 1000-year-old, chicken of a demon. In fact it was
that 1000-year-old demon's, also known as Anya, who made it possible to kill
Glory due to her wonderful planning and constant upbeat attitude. Everyone had
a role to play in this episode and Buffy showed that she still needed her
friends in a time like this even though a few episodes earlier she had proved
that she was strong enough to leader everybody; when talking to The Watchers.
It also had Buffy grow up completely, in season 1 she ran away wanting to get
away from the idea of dying yet in this episode she almost welcomes it as she
sacrifices to save not only her sister but also the world.
2. Hush
This has to be the creepiest episode, and the most frightening, during the
whole of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It was something I could picture in a Tim
Burton movie. It focuses on communication, which is amusing in it's own right
when you consider that at least half of the episode is music only; there is no
dialogue while The Gentlemen are in town.
Even without any dialogue, the show still kept it's humour and still kept
it's premise. Funnily enough, no more words are needed to describe why this
episode is sitting at number 2 of my top 10.
1. The Body
Finally, the episode to top the list. Why does this sit at the top of a
list of great episodes and wonderful season finales? It's the episode in which
the show made a very bold descision in killing off a character in the most
normal of circumstances. There was nothing that Buffy could have done to stop the
death of her mother as it had nothing to do with the all-powerful God that was
the threat of the season, but was all due to medical complications that could
have hit anyone.
This episode was actually the complete opposite to 'Hush' when it came to
dialogue and music. There was absolutely no music in this episode, which makes
the moments during it seem even more real; in fact I still cry whenever I watch
the episode and try to skip it when rewatching the show.
Not only do the emotional scenes get to you; like when Buffy has to break
the news to Dawn, or when Willow tries to distract herself by finding the best
sweater to wear. It's also the semi-humourous scenes; like Anya's child-like
innocence as constantly asks questions because she fails to grasp the concept
of death and why someone as nice as Joyce Summers could die so young in her
life.
No matter whether you were a fan of the original Buffy the Vampire Slayer
or not, this TV show is one of the best written shows to date and maybe that is
why people want to remake the movie. However, for me, everything that was
captured in 144 episodes will not be the same in a two-hour movie, even if it
is a different plot. Buffy the Vampire Slayer is something that I can't be
disappointed with, no matter how many times I watch it.
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