(Review) BtVS 8.40 'Last Gleaming' Part 5

[stormwreath]

So; it's over. The last issue of Season 8 had a bittersweet feeling to it, which seems appropriate to the ending of something that's lasted so long and aroused so many passions, both for and against. In this review I'm going to talk about the issue itself for the most part. Reflections on the season as a whole will come later once it's had a chance

Comments

[angearia]

Can't believe it's finished, huh?

I'm also reminded of the scene with Kennedy, the other woman to start crying in this issue - and who. like Buffy, was trying to shield her emotions with anger rater than give in to them. I think it's a deliberate parallel.

Nice point. Hadn't thought of that before.

[stormwreath]

I'm still in denial. Also currently reading about 20,000 words of other people's reviews. I've not reached yours yet...

:-)

I've always seen Kennedy as a younger version of Buffy who hadn't yet learned tact or discretion. I think it's why Buffy kind of liked her even when nobody else did.

[angearia]

Haha, I know the feeling. I got started at 4pm the day the issue was released and I was still hopelessly behind. I actually took the time to write my review first though so that I came in clean, so those are all my thoughts! Mine, mine, mine.

[stormwreath]

Today IS the day the issue was released, from my point of view. :-(

Still, I'm glad I said at least one thing that nobody noticed before, in all those 5000000 comments and discussions...

those are all my thoughts! Mine, mine, mine

*sneaks in and steals one of them*

[immortality]

I think, because now there will be no more Slayers so the empowerment came to nothing, but because of Faith's implication that she never really empowered them at all. That she was always "The Slayer... the only Slayer." How much was her leadership worth, if the women she was supposed to be lifting up to her level never actually got there?

I stopped reading the comics, but I'm glad I never stopped reading your reviews, because this is just so perfect. It's times like this when I think Joss is wonderful. If only he could be this consistent, it would be amazing.

Of course I'm glad Willow and Kennedy broke up, but to be fair, Kennedy was better in the comics than in the show, so in a way, it kind of sucks.

Also, I was still sort of hoping that at the end of the review Buffy would be telling Willow she just got a great pair of shows -- Tara-shaped, of course. But maybe that's for S9 ....

[stormwreath]

Glad you're reading!

And yes, I was very impressed with this last issue; it could have ended badly from a feminist perspective, with the whole "empowering all those womnen ended badly" message - but instead Joss managed to pull it around at the last minute and leave us in a ood that's not all triumphant and flag-wavey, but kind of sad but resolute and not giving up.

Ending-wise, 'Chosen' was 'A New Hope'; 'Last Gleaming' is 'The Empire Strikes Back'.
But if there are ewoks in Season 9 I will never forgive Joss...

I'm nervous about Willow's future; I get the feeling she's about to do something horribly dramatic and stupid. Which would be in character. But I think these days her heart belongs to a green-skinned snakey lady with implausibly silver hair.

Though I'm also becoming convinced she'll end up with Buffy sooner or later...

[mikeda]

Ewoks? Of course not.

Joss is just going to switch things up a bit and bring in Jar-Jar...

[erimthar]

As another one of the four supporters of Willow and Kennedy's relationship, I was struck by how this once again plays into the Power dynamic that we keep seeing. Willow takes it upon herself to assume (wrongly) that Kennedy was only in love with her power, and not with her. In reality, Willow's supposed "love" for Saga Vasuki is precisely that... love of the power that Aluwyn was able to introduce her to

[stormwreath]

Willow's supposed "love" for Saga Vasuki is precisely that... love of the power that Aluwyn was able to introduce her to

I don't agree with that. Willow in S8 never struck me as someone obsessed by power; she's far too self-aware and composed and mature. She's found herself; it shows in her interactions with Buffy from 'Anywhere But Here' right through to 'Retreat'. I think she saw Aluwyn as a kindred spirit: remember her whole: "They say you're no good ... I've a bit of a rep myself" speech from G&M. Aluwyn helped her on her path to spiritual awakening, helped her know herself far better... and now Buffy's taken all of that away from her.

now I can finally start the Leah and Rowena fic I've been contemplating since the first arc, with minimal chance of getting Jossed

Until you discover what he has in store for them in S9, anyway... ;-)

[erimthar]

The thing is, despite Willow's protests to the contrary in this issue, addictions don't go away... especially if you keep indulging in the thing you're addicted to. Having recovered from the grief and shock of Tara's death, she has been able to use (almost) as much power as she had as Dark Willow, while managing to keep her dark side suppressed. (Although it has been seen bubbling not far under the surface on a few occasions

[stormwreath]

You're assuming that Willow actually was addicted to magic as a physical thing, then - as opposed to having a psychological dependence on the feeling of control over her life that it gave her? My impression is that S8 Willow has more or less recovered from that need, and is generally a lot more self-assured. Though of course she's still not perfect.

If there has been any textual basis for Willow to love Aluwyn more than Kennedy, I haven't seen it.

Given that Willow herself only just realised her feelings in issue 8.40 I'd hardly expect there to be huge signs of it all over the previous issues. There is one thing though that does strike to the heart of Willow' personality issues: Saga Vasuki is a goddess... and she treats Willow as an equal. And very much vice-versa. That has to be the ultimate boost to Willow's self-esteem issues. ;-)

[shipperx]

Xander's wearing a collar and tie and holding a blueprint, so it seems he's still in construction management rather than back to being a humble carpenter

I thought that bit was odd with him saying he was going out spackling... and wearing a coat and tie. I also assumed that he's probably a project manager or something.

[angearia]

Couldn't he just be joking?

[shipperx]

I pretty much assumed that he must be. You wouldn't spackle in that outfit, and the drywall guy would never be in that outfit (actually the project manager never would be either. Hell, the architect wouldn't be unless they were having to do a presentation for a client. The Contruction industry is pretty much the industry of khaki pants and golf shirts).

Anyway...

I assumed that Xander was joking.

For that outfit he would be somewhere above drywall subcontractor and project manager is a believable career for him (and one that pays well enough). So, good for him. He had to have done a good job to have been promoted to that position without a college degree (and it is possible to be promoted to that position without a college degree so... it's actually good for him.)

[angearia]

Yeah, it seems like a natural step up for him. He was wearing similar outfits back in the beginning of Season 7.

It could be that he's saying he's doing spackling today when he actually means his team is doing spackling and he's supervising. You know, he gets credit for the end result. :D

[moscow_watcher]

Great review.

If Season 8 has a message at all, I think it's "The real world doesn't work that way." Which is not a good thing; we'd all rather live in a world where we could live happily ever after, wouldn't we? The real world is often filled with disappointments and compromises and lost opportunities. Every revolution comes with its terror; every idol has feet of clay. But does that mean we should just give up?

Well-said. To me, with my Russian heritage, your summing-up is particularly insightful. And poignant.

[stormwreath]

Thanks! I do think the Joss who write S8 is one whos been disillusioned by things like the Hollywood Writers' Strike, and it's made him wary of grand, dramatic gestures to change the world. He's becoming more Russian, you could say. ;-)