Random S3 thoughts

[gabrielleabelle]

- The Wish is awesome, y'all.

- Amends is slightly less stupid this time round, though it very much feels like AtS Episode 00.

Oh, and the Magic Snow? Still not a fan.

- Buffy has very unfortunate hair from Amends onward. The Zeppo is especially boggle-inducing.

- You know, I still just can't wrap my head around Buffy's behavior in Bad Girls. I

Comments

[stormwreath]

the whole Buffy and Faith hang-out seems to be a new "thing" for Bad Girls

And 'Revelations'. Don't forget 'Revelations'.

"Well, I wouldn't use the word 'dating', but I am going out with somebody. Tonight, in fact."

And more to the point, there's Faith sharing with Buffy all about her previous love life, and hoping Buffy will do the same, and looking visibly disappointed when Buffy is reluctant to talk about it, but shrugging it off with a "whatever" because Faith can never let herself look vulnerable or needy.

Not that I disagree with you that it needed more build-up. Faith should have been in more episodes in S3. :nods:

[gabrielleabelle]

And 'Revelations'. Don't forget 'Revelations'.

Revelations where Buffy and Faith have a huge falling out that gets somewhat reconciled in Amends but then we still never actually see them hanging out again until Bad Girls? That Revelations? ;)

[stormwreath]

Lovers' tiff. :-)

(Srsly. Faith was all opening up to Buffy there, but Buffy just shut her down, and then Ms Post betrayed her too, and Xander played her for a chump, and she discovered Buffy was still seeing her ex-boyfriend behind her back and lying about it. But Faith liked Buffy too much to just give up, so she gave her a second chance in 'Bad Girls'...)

[gabrielleabelle]

Well, yeah, that explains Faith's behavior. Doesn't really make me buy Buffy's odd behavior any more, though.

[stormwreath]

I won't deny that they should have had several more episodes of Buffy and Faith going out to kill things, dance sexily together and get all touchy-feely with each other. It would have established their relationship more strongly before it all went wrong. :nods:

However, I don't think Buffy's actions in 'Bad Girls' are quite so strange even so when you look at them in context:

* Her mother just betrayed her and tried to kill her.

* Giles just betyrayed her and almost got her killed.

* Angel was acting all weird and tried to kill himself, which in Buffy's eyes probably counts as a betrayal too.

Her life's in turmoil. All the adults she's grown to trust and look on as role models suddenly prove that they're fallible and flawed after all. And she's just turned 18.

Is it so surprising that she might say to herself "Screw them all!", and stop trying to be the 'good girl' all the time, when nobody else seems that bothered about doing the right thing? Why can't she just please herself and do what she wants for a change, instead of

[gabrielleabelle]

Is it so surprising that she might say to herself "Screw them all!", and stop trying to be the 'good girl' all the time, when nobody else seems that bothered about doing the right thing?

No. I just don't buy the suddenness of it. Like I said, I recognize the narrative elements they had in place to get Buffy to that point. But we don't see any build-up in previous episodes for it. After Helpless, Buffy didn't seem to have any problems with Giles. Ditto with Angel after Amends. And Joyce after Gingerbread.

So I still can't get my head around the Insta-Rebel Buffy of Bad Girls. My first instinct is, "What? Spell?" when I watch it.

But, obviously, YMMV.