"Time of Your Life" meta

[angearia]

I've been reading old reviews of Buffy Season 8, pondering the season and re-evaluating the story, and once again "Time of Your Life" has me wondering.

Spoilers for all of Season 8

Comments

[angearia]

it's definitely more satisfying to think that her plan succeeded because it involved something happening to her, then, in the year 22-whatever, than that it was all about us here now

I feel like Willow living for 200 hundred years alone and then manipulating her best friend to kill her is already so OMGTRAGIC that I have trouble imagining Joss would also make her plan hopeless and ineffectual. He veers towards the dark, but the purpose has always seemed to be to starkly contrast that one remaining flicker of hope that remains strong enough to once again blaze bright. (I was reading Beer Good's meta on Whedon's use of Shakespeare and a comparison in comments was about how Whedon's more hopeful than Shakespeare; his tragedies aren't as tragic as the Bard's.)

My reading? She had the last of the world's magic carefully saved up inside her body, and being killed with the Scythe allowed it to flow back into the Earth to restore it to how it was before. With the magic leaving her body, she can die as a normal woman again

Ah, yes! I'd forgotten about that but yes that's something I subscribe to.

Re: Mel and the vision Willow showed her -- I think Willow was more interested in showing Mel something that would be meaningful to Melaka, less so to Willow. I don't think Mel would necessarily care about the army of Slayers being broken in the past; and maybe I'm remembering this wrong, but I believe the mythology for Fray states that girls in the 200 years still had the power, but none were Called, so I'm not sure how terrible and far-reaching this is supposed to be in terms of future Slayers.

This is actually interesting on another level in terms of another conversation I've been having with Pocochina about Chosen and the Potentials. If the Potentials were born with inherent power and the Chosen spell was about reversing the magic imposed by the Shadowmen -- then by rights, shouldn't the power still pass on from body to body, life to life? The Chosen spell didn't give these girls power, it removed the lock on the power they already possessed; once that impediment has been removed, what's to stop more Slayers in future generations? It follows the Fray mythos: Girls still born with the power, but none Called.

I like your point about how Willow's reasons are more personal. Though I think her personal reasons are ones she'd keep close to her heart; I don't think she'd show Mel her greatest tragedy in order to manipulate Mel. Future Willow is all about showing just enough to manipulate the players on her chessboard. And ultimately, what defines her ToYL appearance is the obfuscation and mystery of her true intentions and purpose -- so I don't think she'd reveal what mattered most to her in that vision to Mel. And when it comes to convincing Mel that Buffy is a danger, what better way than showing Buffy starting the apocalypse (which actually had catastrophic casualities even though it was ultimately averted).

[stormwreath]

I think Willow would show Mel whatever it took to convince her both that Buffy must be stopped, and that Willow's reasons for that were personal and justifiable. She'd lie or distort events if needed, but sometimes the truth is even more effective.

On the other hand, Mel didn't seem to regard Buffy as an evil apocalypse-starting monster; simply that she was too selfish and self-absorbed to care about destroying Mel's world when she went back to her own.

(And in light of 8.39/40 you can substitute "Willow's" for "Mel's" into that last sentence if you like.)

If the Potentials were born with inherent power and the Chosen spell was about reversing the magic imposed by the Shadowmen -- then by rights, shouldn't the power still pass on from body to body, life to life?

You'd think, but sadly I think the effects of breaking the Seed are "whatever we want them to be". For that matter, everyone's talking about how witches draw magical power from other dimensions, and ar now cut off from them - but didn't Willow's power in 7.22 come from the Earth? As in, this Earth which is still here?

[angearia]

I need to reread ToYL again, tbh. I'm going based on memory which works well enough, but I think I'd have more solid theories based upon the impression given by the art/writing/mood. There's all kinds of cues that I'm no doubt not considering here.

So we should raincheck on this convo? Though even after reading ToYL, I still feel like Season 9 is an essential missing piece of the puzzle.

You'd think, but sadly I think the effects of breaking the Seed are "whatever we want them to be".

In a way, it's always like this. The phlebotinum will yield to the master. But I keep getting stuck on that line from Fray, that girls had the power, but none were Called.

[stormwreath]

You don't keep all the S8 TPBs right next to your computer for instant reference? Shame. SHAME.

;-)

[angearia]

Haha, I actually don't have all the TPBs, just the individual issues. I've been waiting for the deluxe edition to be released!