First, the discussion of negative space in Dawn's art class. Negative space. Is there more perfect imagery for human grief? I don't think it exists.
Word. And I love that this scene is pretty much a little key that unlocks the entire episode--because students are told to draw the negative space around the body. And that's exactly what this episode does. Death isn't the subject; grief is.
They're all cut off from Dawn by that glass barrier. They are worried for her. But it doesn't matter. Dawn is really, utterly alone out in that corridor. (Well, with Buffy.)
I love this too. I love that Dawn and Buffy are alone in the hall. And I love that we, as viewers, are placed in the position of the other people in the art classroom. We don't get to hear how Buffy tells Dawn the news. That's something that they are utterly alone in. That strikes me as such a beautiful storytelling choice--excluding the viewers from that moment. Because it underlines the privacy of their grief. And it points out, however much catharsis we experience through their grief, it isn't the same as what they're going through. But at the same time it respects that catharsis--more than respects it--encourages it. Because we've all been (or can imagine that we will be) in the hall. We've been in positions that leave us utterly alone. And this episode shows us that experience from both the inside (Buffy's initial reaction) and the outside (this scene).
First, the discussion of negative space in Dawn's art class. Negative space. Is there more perfect imagery for human grief? I don't think it exists.
Word. And I love that this scene is pretty much a little key that unlocks the entire episode--because students are told to draw the negative space around the body. And that's exactly what this episode does. Death isn't the subject; grief is.
They're all cut off from Dawn by that glass barrier. They are worried for her. But it doesn't matter. Dawn is really, utterly alone out in that corridor. (Well, with Buffy.)
I love this too. I love that Dawn and Buffy are alone in the hall. And I love that we, as viewers, are placed in the position of the other people in the art classroom. We don't get to hear how Buffy tells Dawn the news. That's something that they are utterly alone in. That strikes me as such a beautiful storytelling choice--excluding the viewers from that moment. Because it underlines the privacy of their grief. And it points out, however much catharsis we experience through their grief, it isn't the same as what they're going through. But at the same time it respects that catharsis--more than respects it--encourages it. Because we've all been (or can imagine that we will be) in the hall. We've been in positions that leave us utterly alone. And this episode shows us that experience from both the inside (Buffy's initial reaction) and the outside (this scene).
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And it is SUCH a beautiful storytelling choice. It leaves me gasping.
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