Wednesday 4 November 2009

So... I'm kinda switching over to wordpress at the moment. So anyone who still reads this can see my stuff at lizthrilla.wordpress.com and ethicalporn.wordpress.com

I might update this as a personal thing, later on but yeah...

Great. My secret weapon is PMS. That’s just terrific. Thanks for telling me.


During the original run of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer series, there were two major camps: fans of the movie and fans of the series. It’s died down since the series ended, but there are still rabid fans that despise the other incarnation of they’re favorite slayer.

Until the past few years, I was firmly in the movie fan category, and was a rather disappointed 12 year old when I first watched the series. I remember reading about the new Buffy series in TV Guide, but when I first watched it 1997, I didn’t recognize it. If you can’t tell, I love all things camp! The more ridiculous and campy a movie or series is the more I’ll probably enjoy it. The series was lacking the purple spandex and took itself far too seriously for my liking. Then I just became anti-anything that had to do with the WB, so it took until the 6th season episode, “Once More with Feeling” for me to finally change my mind. Through the years I’ve grown to enjoy and love the series, thanks to some research on Joss Whedon and the complete series on DVD.

I might love the series now, but I still prefer the movie–even if it’s a “bastardization” of Whedon’s original script. I’ve found my favorite episodes of Buffy tend to be the most over the top ones. For example, “Once More with Feeling” or the one where we follow Xander around for a night, while Buffy and Co. try to save the world in the subplot. My love for the movie probably explains why I prefer Spike to Angel (not as a love interest) and the nerd villains of Season 6–because they capture the over the top humor from the original film.

I realize Kristy Swanson isn’t nearly as kick-ass as Sarah Michelle Gellar in the role, but she captures the frivolity of a cheerleader from the valley who’s realized her life plan–involving graduating from high school, going to Europe and marrying Christian Slater–has been permanently interrupted by a pre-determined destiny involving mythical creatures. Of course, the difference in characterization is partially due to the fact the series and the film introduce Buffy in two very different places (in the series, she already knows she’s the slayer and has seen the destruction it causes to her, her family and her friends).

However, I must say the biggest reason I love the film was the way Buffy can sense vampires through menstrual cramps. The character of Buffy was created by Joss Whedon as a response to the horror genre tropes, where bubbly, blonde “cheerleaders” are usually the first to die. Buffy is unsuspecting and that is her appeal. However, taking something that every woman deals with (menstrual cramps) and turning it into a super power to help her fight evil was brilliant. I know I wish my monthly cramps would signal something more than the shedding of my uterus. Don’t you?

Anyway, this stemmed from the news I just received (and I realize I’m probably slow to the game) that they are trying to “relaunch/remake” the film for 2012. It seems it won’t involve the TV Series cannon nor Whedon in the production, which makes sense as his original script underwent so many changes to make it “lighter.” However, I have one request: keep the cramps!