Your thoughts always scare me some. Why? Because they make sense to me. I understood everything you brought up here. Somehow I doubt that Joss or who ever wrote this arc realizes just how this did unfold. You are wonderful with subtext.
Hard to say. I think a lot of stuff in S6 was unintentional. Most of Buffy/Spike's story was. Hell, they were trying to tell a completely different story than the one what actually happened. :)
Very interesting. I always wonder with these types of metas how much of it was intentional, and how much is just happy coincidence, but it definitely makes me think.
Even though I recognized that Buffy was depressed and the Trio's interference made it worse, I'd never made the metaphorical connection between the effects of the Trio's tests in Life Serial and actual symptoms of depression.
I never thought this through, but it makes absolutely perfect sense. And funny, I never picked up on the depression metaphor even in "Life Serial," in spite of the fact that I've seen it a gazillion times -- but yeah, that's probably part of the reason I find it so funny: I completely relate to it.
I did notice that the Trio's capacity to (or anyway, tendency to) cause actual trouble ebbs and flows. Taken as part of the metaphor, that makes sense, too.
One of the questions I've always had about S6 is, why didn't Buffy deal with the Trio sooner? She clearly could have scared the pants off Andrew and Jonathan, at least, at any time -- but she didn't. If they're an external manifestation of her depression, though, she actually couldn't -- any more than she could have "just stopped" being depressed
( ... )
Do you think there's a meds metaphor with the antidote in "Normal Again?"
Hmmm...let me ponder that. By that point, Buffy was on her way to recovery (That started in As You Were), and she was being pro-active in hunting down the Trio. Will have to think on that in terms of meds.
Slightly OT, but have you ever watched the end of S5 and the start of S6 back-to-back?
I have. Really, once Joyce dies, the grimness of S6 starts back in S5. It's when responsibility shifts to Buffy to take care of everything, whereas before she'd have her mother to take care of her. So yeah. Definitely. The plot in S5 just takes center stage so it's hard to pick up on. But even Willow's magic use is an issue at the end of S5 (her fight with Tara and then her smackdown of Glory).
Do you think there's a meds metaphor with the antidote in "Normal Again?"
Ohhh I'll jump in, if I may. I think there could be a meds metaphor in there. Buffy's avoidance in taking her medication is often common among those with mental disorders. You could also look at it as Buffy avoiding treatment forced on her by others and it's known that true recovery isn't possible til the patient actively seeks it.
2) I WAS RIGHT!!! (Ahem) But, to quote my essay: But in S6 the nature of the metaphors changed. We didn’t get MOTW metaphors, instead we got something else: Other characters as metaphors.
However I never connected the dots from the Trio to Buffy. You are a genius! *puts in memories*
On #2, that is something that struck me while reading your essay. I'd never actively thought about it, but it did make perfect sense when you pointed it out. The metaphors in S6 didn't disappear. Instead, they took the form of other characters, which is a lot more complex. That's why it's so fun to analyze. :)
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Even though I recognized that Buffy was depressed and the Trio's interference made it worse, I'd never made the metaphorical connection between the effects of the Trio's tests in Life Serial and actual symptoms of depression.
I still don't really like them, though...
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I never thought this through, but it makes absolutely perfect sense. And funny, I never picked up on the depression metaphor even in "Life Serial," in spite of the fact that I've seen it a gazillion times -- but yeah, that's probably part of the reason I find it so funny: I completely relate to it.
I did notice that the Trio's capacity to (or anyway, tendency to) cause actual trouble ebbs and flows. Taken as part of the metaphor, that makes sense, too.
One of the questions I've always had about S6 is, why didn't Buffy deal with the Trio sooner? She clearly could have scared the pants off Andrew and Jonathan, at least, at any time -- but she didn't. If they're an external manifestation of her depression, though, she actually couldn't -- any more than she could have "just stopped" being depressed ( ... )
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Hmmm...let me ponder that. By that point, Buffy was on her way to recovery (That started in As You Were), and she was being pro-active in hunting down the Trio. Will have to think on that in terms of meds.
Slightly OT, but have you ever watched the end of S5 and the start of S6 back-to-back?
I have. Really, once Joyce dies, the grimness of S6 starts back in S5. It's when responsibility shifts to Buffy to take care of everything, whereas before she'd have her mother to take care of her. So yeah. Definitely. The plot in S5 just takes center stage so it's hard to pick up on. But even Willow's magic use is an issue at the end of S5 (her fight with Tara and then her smackdown of Glory).
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Ohhh I'll jump in, if I may. I think there could be a meds metaphor in there. Buffy's avoidance in taking her medication is often common among those with mental disorders. You could also look at it as Buffy avoiding treatment forced on her by others and it's known that true recovery isn't possible til the patient actively seeks it.
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Sarah
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1) This is EXCELLENT!
2) I WAS RIGHT!!! (Ahem) But, to quote my essay: But in S6 the nature of the metaphors changed. We didn’t get MOTW metaphors, instead we got something else: Other characters as metaphors.
However I never connected the dots from the Trio to Buffy. You are a genius! *puts in memories*
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On #2, that is something that struck me while reading your essay. I'd never actively thought about it, but it did make perfect sense when you pointed it out. The metaphors in S6 didn't disappear. Instead, they took the form of other characters, which is a lot more complex. That's why it's so fun to analyze. :)
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