Some random S7 Spuffy thoughts

[elisi]

Did some Buffy watching tonight... my wonderful husband took the children round to the grandparents’ house, and then once there decided that they might as well stay there for tea. Cue hours of blissful peace for me. :)

Oh, and I’ve decided that my husband will from now on be known as Mr Darcy... this was lillianmorgan’s suggestion after seeing our wedding

Comments

[bogwitch]

Nice to see I'm not the only one who skips to the good bits.

[elisi]

I very rarely get the opportunity to watch all on my own, so I just indulged! :)

[twilight__]

Hello...I have been lingering in your journal lately. You & I seem to be sailing on the same ship with all of the storm tossed waves & beautiful scenery (going with boldly romantic theme of your post here). You have expressed many of my thoughts & feelings about Buffy & Spike...& BtVS in general in your last few posts. I have almost commented more than once. This post is the one that has urged me to actually comment. Your post reveals exactly the romance that I saw evolving between Buffy & Spike during Season 7. The moments that you point out are the ones pivotal to me also. You even pointed out moments that I missed. Thank you

[elisi]

How wonderful to see you! *waves* I always get terribly excited when I find out that I have lurkers. Although having had a look at your LJ I'd like to friend you - I like fellow S7 lovers! :)

About your points about Buffy and Spike's communication skills... it remembered an analysis of Becoming II. This is from The Soulful Spike Society, in the 'Spikecentricity' reviews by Spring Summers (which I'm only halfway through reading, they're an indulgence!). Anyway, this is what she says about Buffy and Spike:

THERE IS SUCCESSFUL, STRAIGHTFORWARD COMMUNICATION: This happens for the most part between Spike & Buffy. The scenes between them are packed with interesting dialogue and foreshadowing, but for now, let’s stick with looking at the communication aspects. The season-long parallels drawn between the dynamic duo are reinforced when Whistler tells Buffy: "You’re all you’ve got" and the very next scene features Spike telling Buffy, "I’m all you’ve got." They are each other’s counterparts, and that pays off in the clinch

[elisi]

Grrr, there should have been a link to awmp's clever post there. Anyway, here it is: Never Leave Me and Touched. A comparison.

[twilight__]

Oh...& I adore that comparison. The presentation is amazing, lovely & gorgeous. Also, something that I did not catch the intricate details of...just the overall feeling. Big thank you for pointing me in that direction.

[lillianmorgan]

I really enjoy your posts - it gives a lot to contemplate, and you always catch things that I miss.
I think "Sleeper" is well-liked across the board - the potential between them really seems to be strong and coherent. And the fact that he calls her from the Bronze? I'm a puddle just there.
Just a question: what did you think about in "The Killer in Me" when Spike's writhing on the floor in pain from the chip, everyone's just discovered Willow/Warren and it appears as though they're ignoring him? Do you think it's down on purpose?
Maybe a complete rewatch of S7 is in order?
If he's Mr Darcy, you ARE Elisabeth - willful, strong, purposeful and intelligent. And likes long walks too! :) It's all good!

[elisi]

Re. 'The Killer In Me'... I really don't know. I'll have to watch with the commentary on. What I did notice however, was that as soon as Buffy realised that Spike was in pain again, her attention turns for Willow to him. Willow - who's just somehow magically turned into the man she murdered - says she'll sort herself out, and Buffy happily agrees and goes off to look after Spike. It is very obvious where her priorities and focus are!

And you just make me blush with all your compliments... I'm just me really and not at all as forceful as 'Lizzie' (thankfully no one has ever called me that!).

[zimshan]

And then suddenly he takes that excuse away. There is no reason why she shouldn’t be able to love him or be with him, and I think she’s terrified. Because it could all very suddenly be very real.

Many people have scorned S7 on the fact that the middle half came apart. But I love these episodes for the little things...for the nicely layed out B plots that continued throughout to develop the characters more and more. One of the most interesting, IMO, is watching Buffy's progression in these middle eppies. And one progression she faced was her dealing with Spike's soul, a view which you hit right on...she is terrified but it's not until these episodes that she starts to deal with it, in any way shape or form. It's here that she starts to treat him as a human and not as a thing.

And Giles very obviously thinks that this is Angel all over again... Buffy is making decisions with her heart and not her mind (as she admits to Spike). And my favourite line? “I want more for you.”....The seeds for LMPTM are planted right here!Another amazing

[elisi]

watching Buffy's progression in these middle eppies
That's it... especially after Spike is kidnapped and she begins to understand just how much he means to her and how much she needs him.

It's here that she starts to treat him as a human and not as a thing.
She's just so gentle... the way she looks after him is the exact opposite of S6.

Apart from anything else, I think Giles is also just very, very worried. The Council (and a lot of his former collegues) gets blown up, and he has to gather all these potentials from all around the world and there is a big apocalypse around the corner that they have no idea how to stop! His little speech at the end of 'First Date' is brutal, but it showcases very well his frame of mind. And people who think him out of character have obviously forgotten 'The Gift':
BUFFY: (whirls back) No! No, you don't understand. We are not talking about this.
GILES: (jumps up from the table, yells) Yes, we bloody well are!He was ready to kill Dawn then - so why he should have a problem with killing Spike 2 years

[zanthinegirl]

He was ready to kill Dawn then - so why he should have a problem with killing Spike 2 years later I've never understood. It's perfectly in character. Good point! I'd kind of forgotten that. Been a while since I watched season 5. Though I have to wonder if season 7 Buffy would make the same choice...

[elisi]

This is from LMPTM:

BUFFY:...Giles, we had this conversation when I told you that I wouldn't sacrifice Dawn to stop Glory from destroying the world.
GILES: Ah, yes, but things are different, aren't they? After what you've been through, faced with the same choice now, (paces) you'd let her die.
BUFFY: If I had to...to save the world. Yes.
[...]
GILES: So, you really do understand the difficult decisions you'll have to make? That anyone of us is expendable in this war?
BUFFY:Have you heard my speeches?
GILES: That we cannot allow any threat that would jeopardize our chances at winning?
BUFFY: Yes, I get it.
GILES: And yet there is Spike.

QED

[zanthinegirl]

What struck me while watching the season 7 DVDs was how well it all flowed together. I remember being a little irritated at the time by what seemed to me to be choppy storytelling; but viewing all the episodes one after the other they worked much better. I agree re: Spike and Buffy's growing relationship. My roommate at the time was in the process of being converted to the wonder of BTVS, and hadn't seen much of anything beyond the first season. We usually watched season 7 episodes together, and i was always pointing out Spuffy moments-- she started out leaning BA. I think she'd pretty much moved to the light by the end of the series; she took the big Angel kiss very hard!

[elisi]

Since S7 is very much one long story, it makes sense that it'd work better when watched it 'all in one go'. I just wish I had better time...

[zimshan]

Although alot of people have said that S3 flowed the best, IMO no season flowed as nicely as S7. The character progression was just amazing, and I loved every minute of it. I think it was Joss who said in one of the commentaries that the whole season was like one long series finale. So lucky that he got a chance to do something like that...to bad the same was able to be done in Angel...

[elisi]

I've heard that said about S3 as well, and it rather puzzles me. S3 was the only season I didn't watch when it first aired and only caught up with it post-Chosen. And it just struck me as a season full of stand alones, much like S5 of Angel.

Re. that season btw, because S4 was all story-arch, they didn't mind S5 being more 'choppy'... of course I guess that was before they knew it would be the last season. Anyway, I love S5, and I'm very happy the way it turned out.