Buffy the Vampire Slayer: 2x20 – Go Fish
May. 30th, 2022 10:43 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jedi_of_urth posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
tori_reviewsThere's not much here, but it doesn't really go with the Becoming 1 review, so for today it's just a small thing.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: 2x20 – Go Fish
I don’t think I’m going to surprise anyone by saying that this is not a good episode. In fact, part of the reason why this is likely to be short is that I ended up writing this review pretty late at night to get it done therefore it didn’t get in the way of me doing both parts of Becoming the next time I do reviews. I kind of have a few things to say, even a couple of compliments (okay one compliment and one or two personally relevant bits), but all told this is not a good episode.
To start with the best thing, I give it to Cordelia’s monolog. While it’s rarely been front and center, Cordy has come a long way this season. She’s kind of sweet there, even if you kind of have to add ‘in her way’ to that.
Mostly, and unfortunately, this is a paranormal after-school special, and it’s only mildly paranormal (since we’re given an explanation that kind of fits in the realm of science experiments, sans curses and demons). While there are some moments that come from the characters that make up this show, the plot is mostly built around the dangers of steroids and high school sports culture. It’s basically not a metaphor, and I’m not even sure it thinks it is, since it’s so overt.
Small, semi-funny story of how I watched this. When Cam walked up I thought ‘he’s familiar…no, there’s no way that’s a young Daniel Gillies’ (look, I’ve had TVD on my brain for…reasons I guess), so when Gage was also kind of familiar I thought ‘nah, it looks like a young Wentworth Miller, but I’m probably still seeing things, it is pretty dark on screen right now’ but then Miller was in the credits, so I had to double check the credits for any other familiar names. I didn’t find any.
Look, when an episode is this not good my brain latches onto strange things sometimes. And with so little about the episode to talk about, that little diversion still seemed worth mentioning.
In the end, I’m not sure what we’re supposed to think of the swim guys. Were they good kids who got turned into monsters by their coach’s desire to win? Or did the upgrade corrupt them and turn them into assholes until they became literal monsters? Or were they always kind of icky and this just let it out? I don’t think this episode cares, and for the after-school special of it, it doesn’t need to (or at least doesn’t think it needs to, not sure I agree). But this episode brings up Sunnydale High’s high death rate, and three well known kids (plus their coach and the school nurse) all dead inside a week, that’s going to send ripples through the school.
Cam did seem kind of sleazy from the start, with shades of the guy from Reptile Boy. So I guess that continues Buffy’s current type being assholes who pretend to be decent (a trait that…doesn’t not apply to Angel). Which is a habit I would prefer that she break…but I’m not sure she ever does, come to think of it. God I’m not looking forward to Spuffy, I might even decide it’s worse this time around.
Gage is kind of the opposite. He’s acting all tough and arrogant, but he turns into a total goober after Buffy saves him from Angel (or I suppose the fish steroids save him first). But I’m still not sure what to make of it.
I think my last couple notes can go under shipping…
What am I shipping?
I may give Cordy credit for what she tries to say to Xander, but I’m more invested in Willow’s reaction to Xander in a speedo. That is a long way from ‘gay now’ Willow; if anything, looking at that scene I’d peg Buffy as the least interested in watching sexy swimmer guys.
But guys, I think, for fic purposes at least (at least anything that’s starts early and doesn’t wait for more time to pass), I’m going to latch onto this as when Buffy’s feelings for Giles could have started to shift. This whole bit of patrolling the sewers is something she and Angel used to do, and I kind of think that on reflection she might say that she liked being out there with Giles, maybe even felt safer with him. Again, I know this is more a sign that I’m already shipping it than that anything in the episode was trying to say that.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: 2x20 – Go Fish
I don’t think I’m going to surprise anyone by saying that this is not a good episode. In fact, part of the reason why this is likely to be short is that I ended up writing this review pretty late at night to get it done therefore it didn’t get in the way of me doing both parts of Becoming the next time I do reviews. I kind of have a few things to say, even a couple of compliments (okay one compliment and one or two personally relevant bits), but all told this is not a good episode.
To start with the best thing, I give it to Cordelia’s monolog. While it’s rarely been front and center, Cordy has come a long way this season. She’s kind of sweet there, even if you kind of have to add ‘in her way’ to that.
Mostly, and unfortunately, this is a paranormal after-school special, and it’s only mildly paranormal (since we’re given an explanation that kind of fits in the realm of science experiments, sans curses and demons). While there are some moments that come from the characters that make up this show, the plot is mostly built around the dangers of steroids and high school sports culture. It’s basically not a metaphor, and I’m not even sure it thinks it is, since it’s so overt.
Small, semi-funny story of how I watched this. When Cam walked up I thought ‘he’s familiar…no, there’s no way that’s a young Daniel Gillies’ (look, I’ve had TVD on my brain for…reasons I guess), so when Gage was also kind of familiar I thought ‘nah, it looks like a young Wentworth Miller, but I’m probably still seeing things, it is pretty dark on screen right now’ but then Miller was in the credits, so I had to double check the credits for any other familiar names. I didn’t find any.
Look, when an episode is this not good my brain latches onto strange things sometimes. And with so little about the episode to talk about, that little diversion still seemed worth mentioning.
In the end, I’m not sure what we’re supposed to think of the swim guys. Were they good kids who got turned into monsters by their coach’s desire to win? Or did the upgrade corrupt them and turn them into assholes until they became literal monsters? Or were they always kind of icky and this just let it out? I don’t think this episode cares, and for the after-school special of it, it doesn’t need to (or at least doesn’t think it needs to, not sure I agree). But this episode brings up Sunnydale High’s high death rate, and three well known kids (plus their coach and the school nurse) all dead inside a week, that’s going to send ripples through the school.
Cam did seem kind of sleazy from the start, with shades of the guy from Reptile Boy. So I guess that continues Buffy’s current type being assholes who pretend to be decent (a trait that…doesn’t not apply to Angel). Which is a habit I would prefer that she break…but I’m not sure she ever does, come to think of it. God I’m not looking forward to Spuffy, I might even decide it’s worse this time around.
Gage is kind of the opposite. He’s acting all tough and arrogant, but he turns into a total goober after Buffy saves him from Angel (or I suppose the fish steroids save him first). But I’m still not sure what to make of it.
I think my last couple notes can go under shipping…
What am I shipping?
I may give Cordy credit for what she tries to say to Xander, but I’m more invested in Willow’s reaction to Xander in a speedo. That is a long way from ‘gay now’ Willow; if anything, looking at that scene I’d peg Buffy as the least interested in watching sexy swimmer guys.
But guys, I think, for fic purposes at least (at least anything that’s starts early and doesn’t wait for more time to pass), I’m going to latch onto this as when Buffy’s feelings for Giles could have started to shift. This whole bit of patrolling the sewers is something she and Angel used to do, and I kind of think that on reflection she might say that she liked being out there with Giles, maybe even felt safer with him. Again, I know this is more a sign that I’m already shipping it than that anything in the episode was trying to say that.
