Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Calling Millenials: Pivot Announces Buffy and Veronica Line-Up

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This is great news - you can watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer on the new network called Pivot.

From Hollywood Reporter
In a bid to lure its target millennial audience of 18- to 34-year-olds, the fledgling Participant Media network has acquired the rights to series from 20th Century Fox and Warner Bros., respectively. The cult hits will air together as a 10 p.m. weeknight programming block starting Jan. 13.

"Buffy and Veronica Mars are enormously entertaining and celebrated TV shows with significant cultural and social relevance,” said Pivot president Evan Shapiro in a statement, adding: “Both focus on smart, strong, young women dealing with critical issues from class struggles to gender roles – challenges facing a great many of our viewers. Pivot will contextualize the shows, presenting them with exclusive commentary from fans, experts and academics, to both celebrate these two great series and begin a dialogue with our viewers.”

Monday, December 23, 2013

Sarah Michelle Geller Gently Mocks "Vampire Academy"

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Sarah Michelle Geller tweeted a funny pic of herself in front of a poster for the upcoming movie "Vampire Academy: Blood Sisters" starring Zoey Deutch, wondering if the actress knew how to use the wooden stake she was holding.



Deutch replied in good-natured fashion:


Friday, November 29, 2013

Elisabeth Taylor was a Buffy Watcher


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According to an interview with her great-grandson in People Magazine:
Taylor's great-grandson Finn McMurray remembers cuddling in her big bed, watching everything from her movies, Cleopatra and National Velvet to CSI and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. "We'd watch bad TV and eat popcorn," recalls Finn, 15. "She was so much fun."

Bad? Well, Taylor made a few bad movies herself, and wasn't above a bit of kitsch - have you seen Cleopatra?

What did Sarah Michelle Geller think of this news? She's still a fan of Ms. Taylor:


Best Quotes From "Pangs" - A Buffy Thanksgiving

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"Pangs" is one of my favorite episodes. The writers and actors had a great time exploring all the various pros and cons of celebrating Thanksgiving Day, and we get to see Buffy showing that she can also Slay the Culinary Arts in the kitchen. Angel makes a cameo, unbeknownst to Buffy, and Spike has to be tied to a chair in order to behave, but gets to eat some gravy as a reward. Xander contracts syphilis as Native American revenge, but then finds a cure. There's a LOT to be thankful for!

Read the complete script Here on Buffyworld

Some of the best quotes:

BUFFY: You know what I should do? I should have my own Thanksgiving.Invite all you guys, cook the whole meal just ike Mom always does. It'll be great!
WILLOW: Buffy, earlier you agreed with me about Thanksgiving. It's a sham! It's all about death!
BUFFY: It's a sham, but it's a sham with yams. A yam sham.
WILLOW: You're not going to jokey-rhyme your way out of this one.

GILES: Tell me again why we're not doing this at your house.
BUFFY: Giles, if you want to get by in American society you have to learn our traditions. You're the patriarch. You have to host the festivities or it's all meaningless.
GILES: And this is in no way an elaborate scheme to stick me with the clean up.

Spike peers through a dusty window into a dilapidated building. Inside, in a pool of golden lamp-light, a small nest of vampires is settling down with a dazed human victim. An older vampire is about to bite. Then he pauses and holds the whimpering victim out to a younger vampire. A heart-warming domestic scene. Spike watches, his breath frosting the window, a picture of misery and longing.

RILEY (Talking about his home in Iowa) ... After dinner, we all go for a walk down by the river with the dogs. And there's... trees, and I know what you're thinking, it's like I grew up in a Grant Wood painting.
BUFFY Exactly. If I knew who that was.
RILEY Just a guy who painted stuff that looked like what I grew up in.
BUFFY: Ah. Well, have fun at the homestead.
RILEY: Always do. What's the line -- "Home's the place that, when you have to go there --"
BUFFY: "-- they have to take you in." That's what they say.

BUFFY: We don't say Indian.
GILES: Yes! Right. Always behind on the terms. Still trying not to refer to you lot as 'bloody colonials'.
BUFFY: The thing is, I like my evil like my men: evil. You know, straight up, black hat, tie you to the railroad tracks, soon my electroray will destroy metropolis BAD. Not all mixed up with guilt and the destruction of an indigenous culture.

BUFFY: What happened to the Chumash?
WILLOW: How about imprisonment? Forced labor? Herded like animals into a mission full of bad European diseases?
BUFFY: Boy, the Cultural Partnership center really didn't stress any of that stuff.

XANDER: Can we come rocketing back to the part about me and my new syphilis?
ANYA: Oh, that'll make you blind and insane, but it won't kill you. The smallpox will.
XANDER: Sweetie... not helping.

GILES: Buffy, Xander is in real danger. Are you sure the solution is pie?
BUFFY: Over bickering and confusion? I'll take pie.

GILES: We will find a solution --
BUFFY: And we will have a nice dinner. Okay? Both. End of story. I'm having a Thanksgiving. It's going to be perfect.

SPIKE: Help me...
Buffy slams a palm to his chest, sends him flying back on his ass. He scrambles out of the direct sunlight, his blanket beginning to smoke.
SPIKE: What part of "help me" did you not understand?
BUFFY: The part where I help you.
SPIKE: Come on! I'm parboiling out here!

SPIKE: I'm saying Spike had a little trip to the vet and now he doesn't chase the other puppies anymore. I can't bite anything. I can't even hit people.

Spike is being tied to a chair. Buffy finishes the last knot as he complains:
SPIKE: Bloody hell, woman! You're cutting off my circulation.
BUFFY: You don't have any circulation.
SPIKE: Well it pinches.

SPIKE: Oh, someone put a stake in me!
XANDER: You got a lot of volunteers in here...

SPIKE: I just can't take this mamby-pamby boo-hooing over the bloody Indians!
WILLOW: The preferred term is --
SPIKE: You won! All right? You came in and you killed them and you took their land. That's what conquering nations do! That's what Caesar did, he's not going around saying "I came, I conquered, I felt really bad about it"! The history of the world is not people making friends. You had better weapons, you massacred them, end of story!

XANDER: Maybe it's the syphilis talking, but some of that made sense.

SPIKE: Do you know what happens to a vampire that doesn't get to feed?
GILES: Actually, I've always wondered.
SPIKE: Living skeletons, mate. Like famine pictures from those dusty countries, only not half as funny.

BUFFY: You can have gravy. Gravy has blood in it, right?
SPIKE: You know what else has blood in it? Blood!

(After the Chumash Warrior turns into a bear)
SPIKE: You made a bear!
BUFFY: I didn't mean to!
SPIKE: Undo it! Undo it!

XANDER: Hey! Gentle Ben! Over here!
Not getting a reaction, Xander grabs a bag of raw, unpeeled potatoes. He starts lobbing them at the bear.
XANDER: (to the bear)That's for giving me syphilis!

WILLOW: ... did you see me? Two seconds of conflict with an indigenous person and I turn into General Custer.

BUFFY: It wasn't exactly a perfect Thanksgiving.
XANDER: I don't know. It kinda seemed right to me. A bunch of anticipation, a big fight and now we're all sleepy.

Thursday, October 31, 2013

Vamps on TV ~ Retro Halloween



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Great old commercials, some retro trick or treat footage, and an extra vintage filmstrip! Happy Halloween!





















And not really TV but just for fun:




Friday, October 18, 2013

Sarah Michelle Geller Tweets

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You can follow Sarah Michelle Geller on Twitter @RealSMG

Joking around about Husband Freddie Prinze Jr



Wishing "Little Sister" Michele Trachtenberg (The Key)
Happy Birthday on October 11



Celebrating The Crazy Ones



Buzzfeed Celebrates the Buffy Guest Stars


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(Veteran actor John Ritter as Ted the Robot)

It's always fun to watch old TV shows and notice familiar faces among featured players. Buffy has a whole universe of guest stars, from Ashanti to Harris Yulin.

See the Buzzfeed List: Notable Buffy the Vampire Slayer Guest Stars

For a more complete list, see This Page on Buffy Wikia




Thor: The Dark World Featurettes

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Thor: The Dark World could be a mega-blockbuster when it opens in theaters November 8, 2013.

From Hollywood Reporter
If pre-release tracking is any indication, Thor: The Dark World could enjoy one of the best November openings of all time at the North American box office, particularly for a film opening earlier in the month.

. . . Thor 2, like Iron Man 3, is expected to benefit from 2012 global blockbuster The Avengers, the crown jewel of Marvel's superhero film empire. Avengers, which features Hemsworth as Thor and Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man, among other Marvel characters, earned $1.5 billion worldwide to become the No. 3 film of all time after Avatar and Titanic.

Thor 2 is sparking interest among all quadrants of the movie-going audience. Interest is high among younger females for a superhero film, likely due to Hemsworth and Natalie Portman, who likewise returns for the follow-up alongside Tom Hiddleston, Anthony Hopkins, and Idris Elba. Thor 2 is also tracking well among Hispanics.

Kenneth Branagh directed the first Thor, while the sequel is from filmmaker Alan Taylor.

Thor 2 takes place one year after the events of The Avengers, as Thor reunites with Jane Foster (Portman) and tries to save his planet from a mysterious enemy. Thor also forms an uneasy alliance with his adoptive brother, Loki (Hiddleston).








Monday, September 30, 2013

Smashing Premieres for Geller and Whedon

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Both "Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D." on ABC and "The Crazy Ones" on CBS had great premieres this week! As long as they don't put the shows up against each other, I guess we will be okay. :) And lets not forget online watching through cable TV, and future marathons via Netflix. It's just good that these shows exist.

From Variety
Nielsen estimates that the extended, seventh-season premiere of “The Big Bang Theory” did a whopping 5.6 rating/17 share in adults 18-49 and 18.9 million viewers overall from 8 to 9 p.m., funneling plenty of eyeballs into “The Crazy Ones,” which opened well with a 4.0/11 in the demo and 15.6 million viewers overall.

“Crazy,” in which Williams plays a Chicago ad exec, is the season’s No. 2 new series in demos (behind ABC’s “Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD”) and No. 1 in total viewers.

The combo of “Crazy Ones” at 9 and veteran “Two and a Half Men” in its new timeslot at 9:30 (2.9/8 in 18-49, 11.5 million viewers overall) provided CBS with nice timeslot improvement in key demos over last year’s drama, “Person of Interest.”

The Eye carried the night in key demos and won easily in total viewers.

Entertainment Weekly Inside Television
ABC’s Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. — a show so big it takes two company names to officially describe it — delivered 11.9 million viewers and a 4.6 adults 18-49 rating. That makes S.H.I.E.L.D. TV’s highest-rated drama debut in nearly four years (since ABC’s V premiere in November, 2009).

That adult demo number is particular impressive given the show’s time slot. S.H.I.E.L.D. had to self-start at 8 p.m. — no lead-in — and ran against huge competition: NBC’s The Voice and CBS’ NCIS are two of the most popular shows on television. And how did it stand up? S.H.I.E.L.D. (recap here) actually managed to tie the two-hour The Voice overall in the demo (4.6) — and beat it head-to-head during the 8 p.m. hour — while trouncing the return of NCIS in the demo (3.4), though obviously losing among total viewers (19.4 million).

. . . S.H.I.E.L.D. co-creator Joss Whedon, who previously launched modestly rated culty dramas like Firefly and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, told EW that ratings for the new show don’t really matter — except for when they do. “I mean, I want it to be a hit because people who I work for have invested in it, and people I work with are in it, and writing it, and I want it to continue,” Whedon explained. “We have the opportunity to do something special. If it’s not special, hopefully it will go away. I think we’ll be okay there. But I can’t measure it in those terms. It doesn’t seem useful to me.”

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Slayer Soundtrack Sunday ~ Gingersol

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Gingersol's "Never Noticed" plays at the end of the "The Wish," season 3, episode 9. Cordelia is angry at Xander and makes a wish in front of Anyanka the Vengeance Demon, who later become Anya, Xander's girlfriend. But in this episode Anya is still rocking the vengeance, and goes all out to give Cordelia some revenge by creating a Sunnydale where Buffy has never existed. This episode is famous for the alternate universe in which Vampire Willow and Vampire Xander are creepy lovers who torture Angel and stalk teenagers.

This is an ironically upbeat song to end such a dark episode.

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Never Noticed:

Doc Martin's Fear of Blood

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I've been watching the British series Doc Martin on Netflix and Hulu, and it made me wonder if someone who fears blood could ever watch a vampire movie or tv show? I'm surprised it hasn't come up even once on that series.

Maybe having vampires come to Port Wenn, Cornwall, would be too obvious. It makes me wish for a Halloween episode.

The story goes that Doctor Martin Ellingham has to leave his career as a surgeon behind and exile himself to Cornwall when he is stricken with Hemophobia, or fear of blood. Obviously as a General Practitioner (GP), this still causes problems, especially during emergencies. That is one of the major plot points of the series, and something Doc Martin struggles with as he tries to overcome his fear, which causes him to shudder at the sight of a bloody finger or a rare steak.

Like all phobias, this is a problem of overactive imagination. Doc tells people that it all started when he spoke to a family just before an operation, then suddenly couldn't follow through in cutting the patient, perhaps for fear of doing harm or disappointing her family. Or perhaps he has the fear of killing someone, then having to face the family.

Indeed, family issues seem to be at the heart of all Doc Martin's troubles, as he longs for a close-knit family, yet was raised by cold parents, has lost his favorite aunt, and his wife Louisa causes more stress than security for him. Even the blood of his newborn child has him leaping into the bushes to vomit.

I hope before the series ends we find out the root of his problem, whether it's based in childhood trauma or just his psyche warning him to move to Cornwall and find happiness. Hasn't happened yet, just saying.

From FearOfStuff.com
The bright crimson hue of blood is thought to serve as a warning system for the human body. When we are bleeding, we are in danger. While many people have no great fear of blood, in others, it can provoke a phobic reaction known as hemophobia (or hemotophobia).

The queasiness or severe nausea that are common for sufferers of hemophobia may cause fainting and lightheadedness. In fact, in the best-selling novel Twilight, the heroine, Bella, faints when blood is used during a science class project. This modern example of hemophobia is particularly interesting, since Bella goes on to fall in love with a blood-drinking vampire named Edward Cullen.

. . . The smell of blood can also be a source of distress in hemophobics. The coppery, metallic scent of fresh blood can cause great psychological distress in afflicted persons.
Some hemophobics may become vegetarians or vegans in order to remove themselves from the reality of preparing and eating flesh foods. The handling of raw, bloody meat can make them physically ill.

. . . Science and technology have exacerbated this phobia. As we come to understand more about the transmission of diseases through the blood, it becomes easy to fear its harmful qualities. People are more reluctant to touch another person’s blood than ever before, and with good reason.

AIDS and Hepatitis C are just two examples of life-threatening diseases caused through blood transmission. Other examples of terrifying blood-borne pathogens are the Ebola virus, which was featured in the film Outbreak, and the very similar Marburg virus.


Embrace of the Vampire ~ Adult Porn Buffy

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Buffy meets True Blood Meets Alyssa Milano Meets the Exorcist. Or something like that.

I never saw the original 1995 version with Alyssa Milano movie, but I've read that it is most famous for a nude scene in which Alyssa is knocked out and gang-banged. Isn't that special? I would call that the Anti-Buffy because even at the worst, when Buffy is allowing Spike to have his way with her, they both know it's consenual and while she is weak, she is also awake. And when it crosses into rape territory, Buffy shuts that whole thing down and it never happens again.

The clue to how different "Embrace of the Vampire" is from Buffy is the picture on the box of Milano with her eyes closed. Not very Buffy-esque.

And now they've remade it and it's probably worse.

Neither the original or the remake is family friendly. Gory and sexually violent. Not my thing. And probably why this is going straight to DVD and Blu Ray instead of to a theater near you. But due out before Halloween, on October 15th.

Watch Video only if you Dare! Lots of blood.

From Bloody Disgusting News
Anchor Bay Films provided Bloody Disgusting with the exclusive trailer premiere for their erotic horror film, Embrace of the Vampire, starring Sharon Hinnendael (Rites of Passage, “Look”), Tiio Horn (Defiance, Hemlock Grove), C.C. Sheffield (“True Blood”), Chelsey Marie Reist (12 Rounds: Reloaded) and Victor Webster (Continuum). Available on Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack and DVD October 15th, the trailer looks like a mix between Twilight and “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” with a heavy dose of sex and violence. I’m intrigued!

The film is a reimagining of the 1995 cult classic version starring Alyssa Milano, which will also be made available on Blu-ray for the very first time on the same day!





Saturday, September 21, 2013

Sunday, September 8, 2013

Slayer Soundtrack Sunday ~ Bif Naked

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Bif Naked's name is a play on her name Beth and the phrase "buff naked," which fits right into Buffy the Vampire Slayer canon. She is a Canadian/American singer with a soulful voice and an interesting goth background. Her videos remind me of Pink's later work - clearly an influence!

Via Canadian Expat on Wordpress:
For anyone who doesn’t know Bif she was born in New Delhi, India to two teenage Americans attending a private school there which resulted in her being adopted by missionaries and being brought back to the US. From elementary age on she lived in The Pas, Dauphin, and finally Winnipeg, Manitoba. She has a bit of a gothic look, lots of tattoos and an amazing voice. She’s been called Gwen Stefani’s evil twin which I’m sure she hates because she’s unique in her own right, and well, much more awesome.
Since I heard her last she’s released 2 more albums, acted in various shows and movies, continued to write poetry, and has done motivational speaking.

From Huffington Post
...Bif Naked has made a career out of being a badass chick. Initially, it was by way of the late-'90s CanRock boys club, prowling Edgefest stages, infiltrating rock radio and even performing at the Hellmouth-adjacent all-ages club on Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
More recently, the heavily tattooed singer has become known as a badass chick in another venue -- the B.C. Cancer Agency's Vancouver Centre, where she successfully beat breast cancer with a lumpectomy and chemo back in 2008-2009. She now returns regularly, boldly confronting her own fragile mortality to encourage those women still fighting for their lives.

Lucky:



Moment of Weakness:



Bif Naked's songs appear in the fourth season of Buffy, episode 3 "The Harsh Light of Day," all from the album with a great title "I Bificus" - a reference to "I Spartacus," from the Kirk Douglas movie. The three songs are "Lucky," "Moment of Weakness," and "Anything" (which unfortunately has no video I can find). The song "Lucky" is included on "Buffy: The Album."




In this episode, Spike uses the fabled Gem of Amarra ring to make himself invincible to sunlight. Eventually Buffy defeats him and decides to give the ring to Angel in Los Angeles. This is the reverse of what happens at the end of the series, when Buffy rejects Angel and gives the "champion" medallion to Spike, who by that time has proven his love and loyalty, and won back his soul. And of course, in the "harsh light" of that rare gem he fries himself to kill the demons underground and save the world.

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This is considered a "cross-over" episode because action continues on the show "Angel," episode "In the Dark," when Spike goes to LA to get the Gem of Amarra back from Angel, torturing him with exposure to light. Nice contrast with the episode titles - "Harsh Light" versus "In the Dark."



The title also refers to disillusionment with relationships, as Buffy wakes up to regrets for sleeping with Parker (see this previous post about "Beer Bad"), and Anya strips down to throw herself at Xander, with unsatisfactory results. Another disillusioned woman is the vampiress Harmony, who realizes that Spike doesn't love her but merely uses her for sex. The point of all three stories is that it's easy to confuse sex with love, and that feelings often aren't mutual.


Lengthy Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D Promo

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Woot woot! Enjoy . . .


Sarah Michelle Geller Loves Some HGTV

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Who knew? "Crazy Ones" star Sarah Michelle Geller has a favorite show and it has nothing to do with vampires, and everything to do with the home-selling Canadian show "Love it or List it." It's rather hilarious that she expresses such a liking for HGTV, the home-improvement cable channel, since a running joke on Buffy was that the Summers house was constantly being destroyed by demons, to the point that Xander had to learn to be a construction worker so the house could be fixed before the next episode.

The Loop Canada
Spying this reporter’s press badge, Gellar’s eyes opened wide. “Wait, are you TV Guide Canada?” she asked excitedly. “Can we discuss my obsession with Love It or List It?!?”

“It’s like my favourite show!” she continued. “And I love Love It or List It too with the girl from The Bachelorette!”

By Love It or List It Too Gellar was referring to Love It or List It Vancouver, the spinoff series that pairs one-time reality star Jillian Harris with Todd Talbot (picture above). Apparently that’s what the show — which returns to Canada’s W Network on Monday — is called in the States, where it airs on HGTV.

Gellar described herself as an “HGTV addict,” with Canadian import Love It or List It being one of her main fixes. She apparently encourages her friends and co-workers to watch it constantly. She explained, laughing, “I’m like, ‘You have to see what happens! They’re either going to love it or they’re going to list it!’”

. . . “I only know Vancouver. I only know Kitsilano,” she explained, before launching into an impression of her future, house-showing self. “Like, ‘Here’s a really nice house in Kitsilano!’”

Buffy Saves CBS from Time-Warner Cable

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What better way for Buffy star Sarah Michelle Geller to return to television than to immediately kick some ass of the corporate kind?

Time Warner Cable was refusing to pay CBS for broadcasting in major markets such as New York and Dallas, but pressure from both football fans and especially Buffy fans anticipating a new Geller series, "The Crazy Ones," they backed down.

From Businessweek
The month-long staring contest between CBS (CBS) and Time Warner Cable (TWC) is over, now that Time Warner has blinked first. The cable giant agreed to pay significantly more than its prior rate for the right to beam CBS signals in New York, Los Angeles, and Dallas, though not quite as big an increase as the network was seeking. It’s “hard to believe this isn’t a CBS victory,” Richard Greenfield, an analyst with BTIG in New York, said in an e-mail to Bloomberg.
. . . With CBS airing its first pro football games of the season on Sunday, including Chicago’s beloved Bears, Time Warner Cable was in store for some serious ire if it didn’t get the network back on its platform.
CBS, however, had an additional programming ace up its sleeve in recent negotiations: Buffy the Vampire Slayer. More precisely, Sarah Michelle Gellar, who stars in The Crazy Ones, a CBS comedy about an ad agency that will premiere on Sept. 26.
In large part because of the seven years she spent hunting the undead, Gellar still carries a cultish fan-base, according to Networked Insights, a New York-based data-analysis shop that helps such big companies as General Electric (GE) deploy advertising dollars. Buffy vanished from the airwaves in 2003, yet Gellar still sparks more conversations on social-media platforms than any of CBS’s actors. That’s a group that includes Robin Williams, who headlines Gellar’s new show, Will Arnett, Carrie-Anne Moss, and all kinds of other top-flight talent that wasn’t in Scooby-Doo 2 or I Know What You Did Last Summer, as Gellar was.


Saturday, August 24, 2013

Slayer Soundtrack Sunday ~ Beer Bad

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In "Beer Bad," episode 5 of Season 4, Buffy is depressed after breakup with boyfriend Parker, who has dumped her after a one-night-stand. Depressed, Buffy starts hanging out in the local bar where Xander works, and soon begins to drown her sorrows in beer with some philosophy students.

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The beer is literally a "brew" called "Black Frost" that has been hexed by vampires to turn the local kids into Neanderthals. Thus, College Buffy turns into Cave Slayer, and is taken home to her dorm by Xander. Meanwhile, Willow decides to put glib Parker in his place by letting him believe she can be seduced, then criticizing his way with women. But they both get trapped after the Cave Boys rush in and start a fire in the coffee shop. Buffy rescues them, but later knocks Parker on the head with a stick, showing she has her mojo back and he can't make her feel bad anymore.

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This is one of my favorite episodes of Buffy. It's a cautionary tale about boys and alcohol, capturing the archetypal college experience of getting dumped by a boyfriend, feeling alone, and seeking solace at a bar with strangers. Drugs and alcohol make everyone act differently, so this script takes that to a new level with the cave-dweller imagery. Some fans and critics have called it a preachy message, and resented that Buffy "caved" in to depression and self-doubt, but I think the episode works best for people with a sense of humor. Lighten up and be entertained! If this happened on Gilligan's Island, people would just laugh. Wait a minute, it did happen on Gilligan's Island!

The Buffy Guide has some cool insight:
There are traces of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, in which Jekyll drank a potion which unleashed his monstrous dark side. The cave guys, which remind us of the apes in 2001: A Space Odyssey, are a pretty stereotypical depiction of the common-man's concept of cave men and Neanderthals.

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From a BBC Interview with Producer Doug Petrie:
Doug Petrie: Beer Bad. Again, light and fluffy, as we say. It came from the brain of Tracy Forbes, a Canadian writer who was on our staff. We were just trying to mine the college experience as much as possible and what happens there. Well, very young people get unlimited access to alcohol and become horrible! We all do it - or most of us do it - and live to regret it, and we wanted to explore that. So the metaphor of college boys - intellectual college boys who drink and become Neanderthals - is pretty straight up. It's a metaphor.

BBC : At this point in the season we are seeing the fallout from the relationship between Buffy and Parker too.

Doug Petrie: We did want - and Joss wanted - a kind of harsh college experience. Of giving your heart and body to someone when you're not experienced in either, and having them use you and split, you know.

BBC : Do you think it was very cut and dried who was right and who was wrong, or do you think Parker to a certain extent had a point: that Buffy shouldn't have got so emotionally involved?

Doug Petrie: I think in reality the right and wrong of it is very fuzzy. I think that on our show Parker was portrayed as a little more... I think that those things do happen and I think that Parker had a little bit of a responsibility to listen to Buffy and he owed her at least a good solid conversation, and I think he just kind of blew her off. Also, the fans had a very strong response to it. We were surprised. I'm pretty sure from the internet and from what I've heard, the fans just hated it.

BBC : Hated what?

Doug Petrie: That Buffy was jumping into a relationship and that this guy would treat her so callously. But also we were getting a lot of stuff from the first half dozen or so episodes of the first quarter of the season where people were saying, "We're tired of Buffy being abused and Buffy being wimpy and Buffy being battered about by the forces of college." There was a pretty strong fan response. They felt that she was being kicked around by Spike, by Sunday, and by Parker, Not at all the strong character that people love to see.

This was a very conscious choice - we had to ride that out because we didn't want her to find her strength immediately in this new setting. But fans were pretty outspoken about how to find her sea legs now and eventually she did.

Episode Clips - notice Buffy's hair, which earned the stylist an Emmy nomination!





Music:

Kim Ferron ~ Nothing but You
Xander plays this on the Jukebox



Luscious Jackson ~ Ladyfingers
This is the Video Buffy watches on TV
"I want pretty people."



THC ~ Overfire
Oz's werewolf friend Veruca plays this with her fake TV band "Shy"



Friday, August 23, 2013

Vamps on TV ~ Commercials

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Vamps are good at selling things to consumers! Even in daylight! Well, maybe not . . .

Kellogg's Nutri Grain Fruit Crunch Bar Vampire Commercial 2013



Audi 2012 Dusted by Daylight - with homage to Twilight tree climbing



Sonic Burger Commercial 2011 (thankfully not the double-meat palace)



Doritos Vamp



Diesel Jeans 2009



Cute 1990s Retro Duracell Battery Vamp






Whedon ~ New Teen Vampire Shows are "Choosing Boyfriends: The Movie"

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Joss Whedon is frustrated with the latest crop of Vampire tales, and he has good reason to be. From "Twilight" to "Vampire Diaries" there are no characters to match the power of Buffy, Willow, Tara, or Anya. Most girls don't want to slay the vampires - they want to date them!

From Entertainment Weekly Via Wet Paint
"The thing about Buffy for me is–on a show-by-show basis–are there female characters who are being empowered, who are driving the narrative?”

That question mark has him disappointed in relationship-centric vampire dramas that focus on love triangles — which he did with Buffy, Angel, and Spike through the years, but in a different way — and the magazine specifically asked about Twilight and The Vampire Diaries.

“The Twilight thing and a lot of these franchise attempts coming out, everything rests on what this girl will do, but she’s completely passive, or not really knowing what the hell is going on,” he said. “And that’s incredibly frustrating to me because a lot of what’s taking on the oeuvre of Buffy, is actually a reaction against it. Everything is there — except for the Buffy. A lot of things aimed at the younger kids is just Choosing Boyfriends: The Movie.”

Sunday, August 18, 2013

What kind of name is 'Buffy' Anyway?

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In the first episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, "Welcome to the Hellmouth," we have this snippet of dialogue:

Girl #1: The new kid? She seems kind of weird to me. What kind of name is Buffy?

Girl #2: [walking by] Hey, Aphrodesia.

Aphrodisia: Oh, Hey!

LOL - clearly Buffy doesn't have the strangest name at Sunnydale.

But it does beg the question about the origins of Buffy's name. Now the obvious symbolism is that she is a really strong girl with muscles - she's buff. But what else?

On her tombstone in season five her name is "Buffy Anne Summers."

From Urban Dictionary:
Buff: Very strong or having defined muscles, hot. Used mostly for guys.

From Think Baby Names
Buffy \b(uf)-fy\ as a girl's name is of English origin. Informal pet form of Elizabeth, based on a child's unsuccessful attempts to pronounce the name.
For more information, see also the related name Beverly.
Baby names that sound like Buffy are Bevvy, Bevie and Bev. Other similar baby names are Bunny, Daffy, Effy, Taffy and Tiffy.

Famous Buffies:

Elizabeth Bowles-Lyon, mother of Queen Elizabeth, was known as "My Darling Buffy" as a child.
Anissa Jones played Ava Elizabeth "Buffy" Patterson-Davis on TV's Family Affair
Folk singer Beverly "Buffy" Sainte-Marie wrote the songs "Universal Soldier" and "Until it's Time for you to Go"



Sunday, August 11, 2013

Slayer Soundtrack Sunday ~ Trespasser's William

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Where did the California band Trespasser's William get their name? From Winnie-the-Pooh of course.

CHAPTER III

IN WHICH POOH AND PIGLET GO HUNTING AND NEARLY CATCH A WOOZLE

THE Piglet lived in a very grand house in the middle of a beech-tree, and the beech-tree was in the middle of the forest, and the Piglet lived in the middle of the house. Next to his house was a piece of broken board which had: "TRESPASSERS W" on it.

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When Christopher Robin asked the Piglet what it meant, he said it was his grandfather's name, and had been in the family for a long time. Christopher Robin said you couldn't be called Trespassers W, and Piglet said yes, you could, because his grandfather was, and it was short for Trespassers Will, which was short for Trespassers William. And his grandfather had had two names in case he lost one--Trespassers after an uncle, and William after Trespassers.

"I've got two names," said Christopher Robin carelessly.

"Well, there you are, that proves it," said Piglet.

Piglet and Christopher Robin are too innocent to understand that the entire sign should read "Trespassers Will Be Shot." So there's a hint of danger in this name.

And that fits well with the Buffy theme of various characters named "William." Spike's human name was "William Pratt" - known as "William the Bloody" to others in upper class circles thanks to his "bloody awful poetry." Angel was also originally named "Liam" which is the Irish equivalent of William. Then there are many characters named "Billy" or "Will" in the Buffy series, as listed by SlayerWorld.net
  • Billy Fordham: (Buffy’s friend from LA who sold her out to Spike)
  • Billy Palmer: (the little boy in the coma who caused nightmares to come to life)
  • Billy Crandal: (chained himself to a snack machine in I Only Have Eyes For You)
  • Billy (an unclassified demon in Angel, who brought out the worst in men with a touch)
  • Willy the Snitch (demon bar tender)
  • Wil or Will: the name sometimes given to Willow (yeah, this was a bit of a stretch)

Trespasser's William had two songs in Season Six of Buffy. "I Know" is from the episode "Gone," and "Washes Away" is from "As You Were."






Saturday, August 10, 2013

Vamps on TV ~ Marceline the Vampire Queen

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Marceline, the Vampire Queen is a main character of Cartoon Network's "Adventure Time," a show that is much more for teens and adults than children. Marceline is an ancient rocker-chick vampire who sings and plays guitar with her band The Scream Queens. Her guitar is a red battle-ax reminiscent of Buffy's in Season Seven. She doesn't drink blood, but drains the color red out of objects like apples and strawberries - quite fitting for a 2-dimensional ink-drawn character.



From LA Times Hero Complex
The Emmy-nominated cartoon is one of the Cartoon Network‘s most popular shows, consistently ranking No. 1 in its time slot among boys 2 to 14, according to Nielsen. But the show has developed its most devoted following among adults, who appreciate the dark humor beneath the inviting rainbow storybook exterior. It’s rare for an animated series to be equally informed by the likes of “Meatballs” and “An American Werewolf in London” as by fairy tales.
As whimsical as the “Adventure Time” world may appear, the series is dappled with hints that the Land of Ooo is, in fact, a post-apocalyptic version of Earth — a dark origin story for a colorful world. After all, Finn is the only human he knows, and although he is unfailingly positive, that knowledge comes with a profound loneliness."
. . . The Land of Ooo is home to a host of zany characters, including Marceline, an immortal vampire queen who feasts on the color red and turned her heirloom battle ax into a bass guitar;

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From ComicVine
Wild and fearless, Marceline the Vampire Queen's origin is somewhat vague and ambiguous. She is over a thousand years old, and as her title suggests a vampire queen. She is also half demon, as confirmed by her alternate Farm World self.

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. . . She is said to be a survivor of the great Mushroom War, a near cataclysmic event which dramatically altered the world at the time. Her relationship with her father Hunson Abadeer "King of the Nightsphere" was also strained after an incident in the past where he partook in eating her fries, and was further exacerbated when he stole her axe bass guitar. Although Marceline will often try to convey that she is evil and dark, it is much more of a pretense and act, unlike her actual father who is actually the lord of all evil.

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. . . Despite her wild, scary and unpredictable nature, she is friends with Finn and Jake. She also appears to have a complicated love hate relationship with Princess Bubblegum hinting at a deeper and more complicated relationship. She often likes to jam on her custom made battle-axe bass guitar, she sustains herself on shades of the color red, as opposed to blood, and there is said to be no Vampire King, as Marceline is said to have killed him.






Joss Whedon's Episode of The Office "Business School"

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Halloween is a few months from now, but anytime is right for vampires in the Buffyverse, right?

So indulge yourself with either DVDs or Netflix and watch The Office episode directed by Joss Whedon. In it, a bat is trapped all day inside the building, leading Dwight Shrute to believe that his co-worker Jim has transformed into a Vampire. But in the end it is bimbo Meredith who gets bitten by the little flying creature, putting her in the hospital with rabies.

But there's just as much hilarity when Michael Scott (Steve Carell) accompanies his protege, Ryan Howard (B. J. Novak), to business school to give a pep talk to the class and instead ends up destroying textbooks while furiously denying that the "paper-based business model" of Dunder Mifflin could ever fail. It's a tour-de-force for Carell.








Geek Out with Felicia Day on YouTube

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Felicia Day played a "Potential" in the seventh season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and went on to sing as the sweet character Penny on Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog.

Of late she can be found on "Geek and Sundry" which is both an Official Website and an entertaining YouTube Channel.

Here she is on Twitter also: @FeliciaDay

There are loads of videos on the channel, so Check it all OUT! And Geek Out! Far OUT! ....Peace Out.



"Gastro Geek" is a cross between the Food Network show "Chopped" and SyFy's geeky monsterfest "Face Off" - contestants make monsters out of food and then Judges give them a VERY SERIOUS ARTISTIC critique. Featuring actors Alexis Denisoff (Angel, Much Ado About NOthing) and Colin Ferguson (Eureeka).




Friday, August 2, 2013

Exciting ~ Sarah Michelle Geller Talks Possible Buffy Movie

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Wow - you don't get news like this every day! A Glimmer of Hope for the Fans from an E! Online interview with Sarah Michelle Geller.

"Joss and I always talk about [a movie]," Gellar told me during an interview for E! News. "But the thing with Buffy is that Buffy was a movie, and it ultimately didn't work as a film. And I mean, we had such miles to overcome when we were trying to do a TV show based on a movie. And one of the reasons is that the story works better over time."

And now here comes the tiny sliver: "If there was ever the right story, we would do it."

We'll take it! Right, fans? Even though Gellar also jokes that, "At this point, the stake would be my walker and I would be hobbling in."

Useful Chart ~ Know Your Vampire Hunters

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This is cute, via Pinterest

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Pakistan's Burka Avenger Fights Bad Guys with Books and Pens

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The "Burka Avenger" is a superhero cartoon in Pakistan, inspired by a real-life hero and child-activist Malala, who survived an attack by the Taliban and was honored by "Malala Day" at the United Nations.

While she wears a burka like extreme traditional women, in her everyday life this cartoon character is a modern woman - a teacher - who doesn't wear a veil or cover her hair. The creator says he wanted the burka to be used just to hide her identity, a nice twist on the usually oppressive use of the burka to hide a woman's sexuality from the world.

And she protects children from the bad things - sweatshops and religious oppression.

Her weapons? Books and Pens only. And that goes back to something Malala said:

Let us pick up our books and our pens. They are our most powerful weapons. One child, one teacher, one book, and one pen can change the world. Education is the only solution. Education first.

Mr. Giles would certainly approve.



Sunday, July 28, 2013

Slayer Soundtrack Sunday ~ Heather Nova in "Touched"

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Heather Nova is a singer-songwriter born in Bermuda and raised in New England.
More background on Nova Here



The song "It's Only Love" is in Episode 20 of Season Seven, as Buffy loses leadership of the Potential Slayers to Faith and leaves the house feeling betrayed, even by the Scooby Gang and Giles. Thinking no one will stand by her, a defeated Buffy has to be convinced to come home by her most loyal and true friend, Spike. I get a little sappy and sentimental over this song! Maybe because Spike gives such a great homage to Buffy out of his love and respect for her - they went so far as a couple before the end of the series! *wipes away tear*

Spike - "You listen to me. I've been alive a bit longer than you, and dead a lot longer than that. I've seen things you couldn't imagine, and done things I'd prefer you didn't. Don't exactly have a reputation for being a thinker. I follow my blood, which doesn't exactly rush in the direction of my brain. I've made a lot of mistakes. A lot of wrong bloody calls. A hundred plus years, and there's only one thing I've ever been sure of: you ... Here, look at me. I'm not asking you for anything. When I say "I love you", it's not because I want you, or because I can't have you. It has nothing to do with me. I love what you are. What you do, how you try. I've seen your kindness and your strength. I've seen the best and the worst of you. And I understand, with perfect clarity, exactly what you are. You're a hell of a woman. You're the One, Buffy."


Sunday, July 21, 2013

More Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Mania at Comic Con

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Fans React to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Pilot (Minimal Spoilers)



Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. actor's panel interview:



Marvel Highlights Reel:


Slayer Sountrack Sunday ~ "The Sun Keeps Shining" By Fonda

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Fonda appeared in the Buffy episode "All the Way" from Season 6. The title is an obvious reference to teen sexual activity, and Dawn thinks she is ready for that . . . until her date turns out to be a vampire! And Dawn gets her first kiss on Halloween, which seems totally appropriate for a rather supernatural girl.

Also in this episode, Tara is getting fed up with Willow's magicks, and Xander announces his engagement to Anya while wearing a pirate costume and eye-patch - foreshadowing his "accident" in Season 7.

Although the action takes place on Halloween night, this is actually a breezy summer song.



From YouTube
Los Angeles based indie-pop band, Fonda perform "The Sun Keeps Shining On Me" live. The song was originally released on Fonda's 2001 CD, "The Strange and the Familiar" and is now available on the original motion picture soundtrack for "Remember Me."





Saturday, July 20, 2013

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Premiere and Panel at Comic Con

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Lucky fans got to see the complete pilot episode of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. at Comic Con in San Diego!

Entertainment Weekly Has the Scoop ~ *S*P*O*I*L*E*R*S*

From USA Today
SAN DIEGO -- ABC took the wraps off Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. on Friday, giving the new drama its first public screening at Comic-Con. It premieres Sept. 24.

What the pilot showed was a team of highly skilled but not superpowered agents under the suddenly alive and kicking Agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg), who died in The Avengers movie.

The episode explained the revival of the character, who appeared to have a grand time getting around, whether by team plane or his vintage, souped-up Corvette, Lola.

. . . Avengers director Joss Whedon is an executive producer of the series, which started shooting last week. He co-wrote and directed the pilot and the episode reflected his style, down to its humorous touches.

"I have that feeling that I have not had for a long time where I have assembled this extraordinary ensemble of ridiculously talented and soon-to-be-very-full-of-themselves people," Whedon said after the screening. "The endless possibilities that we have between them, among them, in their pasts, in their futures ... the things we've taken from the Marvel universe, that we're bringing to the Marvel universe, this is a show that has so much history and so much to make. I guess I'm a little excited."


Thursday, July 18, 2013

Cakes with a Buffy Theme

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I was inspired by a tweet from @GhouliaChilds (funny) with a spectacular Buffy Cake.



I hungered for more and took a trip to Pinterest ~ enjoy the sweet pics!

This one is similar to Ghoulia's but with a candle on top:

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Stakes and Crosses:

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And everyone's favorite: Angel Cake

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Or maybe Spike on the topper instead of Angel?
Either way, the Buffy doll looks fabulous!

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