Recently I started watching Buffy: The Vampire Slayer again. The series, not the god awful movie. Though Peewee Herman does a pretty good job in the movie. So I thought I'd write a bit of a review of the show, in review.
I didn't discover Buffy until it had already been out for a few years. Now it's quite a bit longer. The show seems to have held up remarkably IMO though.
Trailer for Season 1 of Buffy: The Vampire Slayer
There are a few issues with it. For one, it's from the days gone past when shows were still in 4:3. That can make for quite a few issues. You could end up watching a version that's stretched, or poorly remastered. The first season is generally the worst quality, when it comes to video quality anyway, it's not that bad as far as first seasons go.
It's up for debate if the fuzz and 4:3 aspect ratio is better or worse than the poor quality remaster though. They seemed to be a bit too hasty with the remaster, and there are scenes where things get into the camera view that weren't supposed to be there, such as film equipment. There's also a scene at one point in the original remaster where it's supposed to be night, but Buffy's laying in bed in the middle of the day. Some kind of error in post processing that wasn't also done for the remaster. I don't mind all of that too much, but it might be time for a new digital remaster.
But what about the show?
I honestly did not expect it to hold up so well. There's not a lot of great shows that have come out recently. At least not many that I'm interested in. I tend to like Scifi/Fantasy. So I figured I'd try watching Buffy again. I figured that I'd get tired of it pretty quickly. I mean, it's a bunch of high school kids fighting vampires. It has to be corny, right?
Yeah, it is. But they own it! The show knows it's silly. They fill every episode with dry subtle humor.
And the dialogue!
I don't know how to explain it. There is a bit of a miss with the first episode where a couple of characters put it on a bit too thick with some California girl slang, but the rest of the show is pretty damn spot on. They somehow have this mastering of interpersonal banter where every character is entirely believable as both themselves and their interpersonal relationships. They each use their own particular brand of slang and discourse that seems to meld and perfectly interweave with each other's characters.
It's one thing for them to have the stuffy shirted Giles with his English vernacular, and it's another thing entirely for them to masterfully write each and every character to have their own brand so to speak. I just have to say, whoever the writers were that were ensuring each and every character sounded exactly like they should, did a masterful job.
I keep remembering this one line by Cordelia, in which she tells someone to "spank their inner moppet" if they have to, referring to getting their inner child in line. It was just masterful. The show is full of unique banter like that. It's a masterpiece in pop culture TV writing.
About the Music...
Honestly, it's a bit of a mixed bag IMO. There are some great pieces in a few episodes that really fit with the show. A bit of pop, punk, alt, grunge. It's all in there. But every once in a while the music just doesn't fit and sometimes does not seem to be well matched with the scene. Not just in mood, but occasionally it just doesn't sound like it was properly mixed.
But I supposed that can happen with any show occasionally. A song can just not sound right. Small budget. Not enough time. Whatever the reason.
The theme music is great though. And there are some nostalgia gems in there.
The Makeup
If there's anything about the show that didn't hold up, it's the makeup. They have all the vampires with their knobby bits on their foreheads, and it all looks a bit ridiculous. The prosthetics for the vampires were certainly a choice. They influence vampire media for many years after, and likely still do. But now, it just looks a bit silly.
But I suppose that is part of the show. They know they're a bit silly. They don't try to take themselves too seriously.
The Stunts
Honestly, they could have been done a lot better. I never noticed them back in the day, but the cut scenes with the stunt actors are pretty obvious now. The martial arts isn't half bad, though it could be a bit more advanced in my opinion, I don't think you should necessarily be watching it just for the action scenes though, as the character development and interplay is really the highlight of the show.
This is all a lot to say about a show you probably already know. Or it was before your time and you have no idea what I am talking about. But you should watch it or watch it again.
What else are you gonna do, endlessly scroll through the mountains of shows you don't want to watch on your streaming service that used to have good things to watch but doesn't seem to anymore? Read a book? PSHAW!
The characters really are unique and lovable and FUNNY. Which I can't say the same about a lot of shows I've watched over the years in retrospect. Some are just painful if you really listen to the dialogue.