In previous seasons, you had the capabilities of the Big Bad clearly defined, and you knew what he was doing. He had talks with the Prime Minion (The Master and the Chosen One, Spike and Dru, Angel and Dru, Mayor and Deputy Mayor, Mayor and Mr. Trick, Mayor and Faith, the Trio, etc) to tell you as much of the plan as the writers had figured out. You had clear "Send the flying monkeys" scenes whenever the Big Bad send minions against the Scoobies. In S7, up to a point, you didn't have that. Who set up the talisman in "Lessons"? When did Spike get the song brainwashing? Where did the jacket in "Him" come from? Where did the stupid high-school kids get the demon idea? Was the First a player in any of that? We don't know. "Conversations With Dead People" works because of the muddle, because of the confusion of the capabilities and goals of the First. The "CWDP"-"Show Time" arc relies on Buffy's confusion and self doubt, which was finely crafted through what I call S7.1 ("Lessons" through "Him" -- the "back to high school" episodes) and honed through S7.2 ("CWDP" through "Show Time"). It's when Joss came back after Firefly and swept away the muddle, the smoke and mirrors, that you got the lame S7.3 ("Potential" through "Lies") and the nonsense ending in S7.4 ("Dirty Girls" through "Chosen"), when we get a Prime Minion in Caleb and the Big Bad explaining itself.
To my mind, we were caught up in Buffy's muddle, with her not having a good view of reality (remember, she thought it was still October when Christmas came up) and the goal was to be that she was to get so muddled that wrong would become right and she'd bring about whatever result the First wanted. Something I'm not convinced didn't happen.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2005-05-25 03:47 pm (UTC)In previous seasons, you had the capabilities of the Big Bad clearly defined, and you knew what he was doing. He had talks with the Prime Minion (The Master and the Chosen One, Spike and Dru, Angel and Dru, Mayor and Deputy Mayor, Mayor and Mr. Trick, Mayor and Faith, the Trio, etc) to tell you as much of the plan as the writers had figured out. You had clear "Send the flying monkeys" scenes whenever the Big Bad send minions against the Scoobies. In S7, up to a point, you didn't have that. Who set up the talisman in "Lessons"? When did Spike get the song brainwashing? Where did the jacket in "Him" come from? Where did the stupid high-school kids get the demon idea? Was the First a player in any of that? We don't know. "Conversations With Dead People" works because of the muddle, because of the confusion of the capabilities and goals of the First. The "CWDP"-"Show Time" arc relies on Buffy's confusion and self doubt, which was finely crafted through what I call S7.1 ("Lessons" through "Him" -- the "back to high school" episodes) and honed through S7.2 ("CWDP" through "Show Time"). It's when Joss came back after Firefly and swept away the muddle, the smoke and mirrors, that you got the lame S7.3 ("Potential" through "Lies") and the nonsense ending in S7.4 ("Dirty Girls" through "Chosen"), when we get a Prime Minion in Caleb and the Big Bad explaining itself.
To my mind, we were caught up in Buffy's muddle, with her not having a good view of reality (remember, she thought it was still October when Christmas came up) and the goal was to be that she was to get so muddled that wrong would become right and she'd bring about whatever result the First wanted. Something I'm not convinced didn't happen.