|
|
Post by Clare on Sept 26, 2008 10:50:53 GMT -5
6.04 Flooded - Episode #104
After the basement floods, Buffy has to face the mundane reality of home life; Three nerds team together and enlist a demon to help them rob a bank.
Review (also post a score out of 10) and discuss this episode.
|
|
|
|
Post by cyclica on Oct 4, 2008 15:36:18 GMT -5
Not too bad of an episode, its flawed but its still enjoyable. Giles returns, buffy is overwhelmed with demons, life stuff and coping with living in 'hell', and we get to see the first appearance of the nerds. It's great to see buffy back to her old peppy self... even if it does mean seeing her mopey 'going through the motions' self again later is now much less beleivable. Giles yelled at willow, which was awesome, and shocking. And then she goes and threatens him. That was scary, maybe even scarier then actually seeing dark willow later on. The nerds were funny, and a good break from the depressing atmosphere in the summers house. It was great seeing jonathan and warren again, though a little annoying that warren and new guy were mentioned as going to sunnydale, when we'd never seen them ther before. Couldn't they have chosen characters whom we had seen at the school, like I dunno... tucker maybe? Instead of his brother that we've never seen before? The m'fashnik demon I don't get. He's angry at the nerds because he ran into the slayer, which obviously wasn't their fault. The he threatens them even though he's easily capable of simply killing them all on the spot, and demands that they hand the slayer over to him. So warren gets rid of him by telling where she lives. I don't get why he's ok with that, a moment ago he wanted the trio to kill her for him, since he had done all that bank robbing for them. My biggest problem with this episode though is the gang handing a bunch of bills to recnetly resurrected, unemployed buffy and telling her they're her problem. I know I've ranted about this in another thread, but it really bothers me that willow and tara would move in to the summers house, use their electricity/water/whatever, and not pay any of the bills until they brought buffy back, which they didn't know for sure they could do anyway. So basically this is an average episode- some good moments, some bad. The horrible 'make poor buffy suffer more' scene is balanced out with the awesome 'watcher vs witch' scene.  I give this ep a 5. |
|
|
|
Post by partcynic on Nov 7, 2010 13:05:36 GMT -5
6x04 “Flooded”
Episode Rating = 2
Another S6 episode, another parade of nothingness. It’s weird (and sad) to think that when I was watching the first few seasons, handing an episode a ‘2’ or a ‘3’ meant that it was the bad egg in the basket, but now, those are my ‘good’ grades, and I’m grateful to get eps of this quality knowing the true monsters the season has in store (I think you can near-objectively say that the stretch from “Smashed” to “Hell’s Bells” inclusive is the most consistently bad in the series). That said, there’s still very little to commend about “Flooded”. Like “After Life”, it’s a weakly-written piece of filler featuring only one good scene – but unlike “After Life”, “Flooded” has a lot of significant problems, causing it to go beyond ‘boring’ and into ‘bad’.
What I Liked about “Flooded”:
- The teaser was nicely filmed, and it was amusing to have Buffy go after ‘Mr. Drippy’, only for the pipes to explode behind her. I could feel her exasperation at the disaster, and I got some satisfying schadenfreude at watching Dawn get doused (and then her running away, squealing).
- Buffy slitting her skirt during the bank robbery scene was sexy, and her comment about the uselessness of guns a cool foreshadow.
- Giles’ return was a decent scene, and there was a little bit of emotion in the tenderness with which he treated Buffy. I don’t think it was as powerfully written as it could have been (the convo in the training room dragged), but I liked seeing someone besides Spike consider Buffy’s feelings.
- Willow and Giles’ confrontation about the resurrection spell was easily the best scene, and the only one in the episode I found gripping. Willow was obnoxious and arrogant without breaking from character, and Giles’ points were all excellent. There was a very tense moment when she warned him not to piss her off, and it’s good to know that his calling her a “rank, arrogant amateur” will pay off later in the season.
- The Spike/Buffy scene was tacked on (does he have nothing better to do than stand outside the Summers house on the offchance that he might see her?), but it remains that they have one of the better character dynamics on the show (at this point).
- There are few funny lines here and there (Willow trying to wind Buffy up by saying she’d slept with Angel and Riley; Dawn’s “that’s not a horn...”; Giles’ “I know I’m back in America now I’ve been knocked unconscious”), which helped break up the tedium a little.
- The end fight is passable, with a bit of comedy as Buffy attempted to do battle and protect her property simultaneously. Killing M’Fashnik in the flooded basement tied the two plots together nicely, and it was good to see Buffy vent her financial frustrations on him.
What I Disliked about “Flooded”:
- As is the show’s new style, this episode had very little plot and substituted character happenings for character development. Sure, the nerds got introduced and the issue of money management was brought up, but the framework was exceedingly weak, and the bulk of the script featured characters endlessly chatting. As a result of this, it was very linear and boring – multiple scenes dragged by without any emotion or memorable lines, and many of the attempts at humour fell flat.
- The scene with the gang discussing money issues was jaw-dropping in its ridiculousness. I couldn’t believe the amount of self-centred myopia it would take Willow and Tara to dump all of the financial responsibilities onto Buffy, who they know has just been resurrected after supposedly being tortured in Hell. It would have been fine if all of them were working to make monetary contributions (heck, even Dawn could get a paper round or Saturday retail job and chip in) – but they aren’t, meaning that they’re expecting Buffy to not only cover the debt they incurred, but also future living expenses. It’s even worse that Buffy never calls them out on this, when an “okay, I’ll pay this – but as you guys are living here, you have to give me your share of the bills and mortgage” is perfectly within her rights.
- I didn’t understand the hullaballoo over Anya’s suggestion that Buffy charge for slaying. Sure, it would be inappropriate for her to help people and then randomly demand a fee, but there’s nothing to stop her making like Angel and having a ‘supernatural assistance’ business on the side. For all the talk of S6 being true to life and ‘dark’, it would have been great for the show to actually be those things and demonstrate pragmatism, as opposed to tossing out simplistic moral statements.
- M’Fashnik was an uninspired demon. He looked generic; acted in a stereotypical manner; and wasn’t intimidating. He also can’t have been that bright if he actually believed what the nerds told him. I can’t say it’s interesting to have yet another disposable reptile that wants Buffy dead, and I consequently found his scenes boring. And as a last point, why did he decide to put himself in danger by going to Buffy’s house, instead of seeking revenge on the nerds for failing to uphold their part of the bargain (after all, giving him Buffy’s address hardly required effort on their part)? If he’d been smart, he could have just killed them and taken all of the stolen money for himself.
- While the nerds are tolerable on paper (and it’s clever that the show avoided attempting to create a villain stronger than Glory), they fail in practise. They don’t work believably as a unit and have no real backstory (how did the three of them meet in the first place?), and although we’ve been shown that Jonathon is desperate for friends and can be easily manipulated, his working with Warren and Andrew didn’t feel particularly in-character to me. I will say that I thought Warren was good (his amorality and immaturity makes sense after his creepy behaviour in “I Was Made to Love You”), but that one strength is negated by the fact that I can’t stand Andrew. It also doesn’t help that the dialogue is bad – the characters make pop-culture references, but don’t say anything bright or witty in addition to them. As such, I had a hard time watching their scenes, and thought they sucked in their entirety.
- Willow and Xander’s characterisation is starting to slip, and they’re beginning to become one-note figures defined solely by their ongoing plotlines. It’s particularly obvious with Xander, who is now doing nothing besides bickering with Anya about the wedding. Not only is that reductive (and let’s face it, completely uninteresting), it’s also hard to reconcile his behaviour with the emotionally mature man he’d become in S5. And even if his problems were organic and made sense, it’s still hard to feel much sympathy for him – after all, if you don’t want to get married, it’s a good idea not to propose.
- If there’s one sound on this show I hate, it’s Dawn screaming. Her voice is so shrill and high-pitched that it cuts through you like a blade.
- The closing scene was a non-entity. It didn’t feel like the conclusion of a story or theme, instead coming across as one of the season’s predictable downer endings.
Do I like this episode more or less than the last time I watched it?
Less. “Flooded” is essentially one riveting scene (Willow vs Giles) surrounded by a bunch of horribly paced, drab filler. The introduction of new villains and the potentially far-reaching problems posed by Buffy having to provide for herself could have made for a fine episode, but everything was written about as badly as it could have been, and a multitude of scenes (nerds; M’Fashnik; the full-gang money chat) are in dire need of deletion or massive rewrites. Overall, “Flooded” is far below the standard I expect from “Buffy”, and because of that, I can only score it a low two out of ten.
|
|
|
|
Post by cyclica on Nov 13, 2010 15:53:50 GMT -5
(I think you can near-objectively say that the stretch from “Smashed” to “Hell’s Bells” inclusive is the most consistently bad in the series). I'd say everything between 'conversations with dead people' and 'storyteller' was the worst run of episodes in the show, but the 'smashed'-through-'hells bells' run is a close second. - The teaser was nicely filmed, and it was amusing to have Buffy go after ‘Mr. Drippy’, only for the pipes to explode behind her. I could feel her exasperation at the disaster, and I got some satisfying schadenfreude at watching Dawn get doused (and then her running away, squealing). Agreed. That was possibly my favourite scene in the episode, after giles vs willow. - Giles’ return was a decent scene, and there was a little bit of emotion in the tenderness with which he treated Buffy. I don’t think it was as powerfully written as it could have been (the convo in the training room dragged), but I liked seeing someone besides Spike consider Buffy’s feelings. Meh, I felt they brought giles back far too soon after having him leave. He was only gone two episodes. I admit it made sense story-wise that he'd return after discovering buffy was alive, but I don't like having to sit through a lengthy goodbye scene for a character, only to have them return straight away. - Willow and Giles’ confrontation about the resurrection spell was easily the best scene, and the only one in the episode I found gripping. Willow was obnoxious and arrogant without breaking from character, and Giles’ points were all excellent. There was a very tense moment when she warned him not to piss her off, and it’s good to know that his calling her a “rank, arrogant amateur” will pay off later in the season. Yep. - As is the show’s new style, this episode had very little plot and substituted character happenings for character development. Sure, the nerds got introduced and the issue of money management was brought up, but the framework was exceedingly weak, and the bulk of the script featured characters endlessly chatting. As a result of this, it was very linear and boring – multiple scenes dragged by without any emotion or memorable lines, and many of the attempts at humour fell flat. Yep. Well I didn't have a big problem with the humour, but I agree with everything else. - The scene with the gang discussing money issues was jaw-dropping in its ridiculousness. I couldn’t believe the amount of self-centred myopia it would take Willow and Tara to dump all of the financial responsibilities onto Buffy, who they know has just been resurrected after supposedly being tortured in Hell. It would have been fine if all of them were working to make monetary contributions (heck, even Dawn could get a paper round or Saturday retail job and chip in) – but they aren’t, meaning that they’re expecting Buffy to not only cover the debt they incurred, but also future living expenses. It’s even worse that Buffy never calls them out on this, when an “okay, I’ll pay this – but as you guys are living here, you have to give me your share of the bills and mortgage” is perfectly within her rights. Very much agreed. - I didn’t understand the hullaballoo over Anya’s suggestion that Buffy charge for slaying. Sure, it would be inappropriate for her to help people and then randomly demand a fee, but there’s nothing to stop her making like Angel and having a ‘supernatural assistance’ business on the side. For all the talk of S6 being true to life and ‘dark’, it would have been great for the show to actually be those things and demonstrate pragmatism, as opposed to tossing out simplistic moral statements. It was bizarre how the gang thought it ridiculous for buffy to charge people, when that's what angel does all the time. Was the writer of this episode even aware that the spinoff existed? Though I did like how it was anya who came up with the idea. I love it when she 'says what needs to be said' and comes up with plans (like later in the gift). I only wish the rest of the gang didn't dismiss her idea as typical 'anya loves money' crazyness. - M’Fashnik was an uninspired demon. He looked generic; acted in a stereotypical manner; and wasn’t intimidating. It didn't help that he was wearing human clothing. Was he meant to be in disguise? Was he supposed to be a more 'human demon' who lives like we do? Either way, it didn't fit with his actions. And as a last point, why did he decide to put himself in danger by going to Buffy’s house, instead of seeking revenge on the nerds for failing to uphold their part of the bargain (after all, giving him Buffy’s address hardly required effort on their part)? If he’d been smart, he could have just killed them and taken all of the stolen money for himself. I have to turn my brain off whenever that demon is on screen, his scenes make no sense. - While the nerds are tolerable on paper (and it’s clever that the show avoided attempting to create a villain stronger than Glory), they fail in practise. They don’t work believably as a unit and have no real backstory (how did the three of them meet in the first place?) Is it so hard to believe that three like-minded people in a small town would have met and decided to work together? I actually loved how their entire backstory was summed up in one scene, "So ... you guys wanna team up and take over Sunnydale?" What else do you need to know? - Willow and Xander’s characterisation is starting to slip, and they’re beginning to become one-note figures defined solely by their ongoing plotlines. It’s particularly obvious with Xander, who is now doing nothing besides bickering with Anya about the wedding. Not only is that reductive (and let’s face it, completely uninteresting), it’s also hard to reconcile his behaviour with the emotionally mature man he’d become in S5. And even if his problems were organic and made sense, it’s still hard to feel much sympathy for him – after all, if you don’t want to get married, it’s a good idea not to propose. Agreed. I really wish we'd seen more of the scoobies than what they were doing in their plots. ..... I may bump this one down to a 4, though I can't say I really disliked this episode in particular. It had some really annoying flaws, but it was still a lot more watchable than many episodes later on. |
|
|
|
Post by partcynic on Nov 14, 2010 11:35:58 GMT -5
Agreed. Willow was actually sinister during that scene - it would have been fantastic if they'd kept with that portrayal later in the season. I wish I could find the nerds funny, but their style of humour just doesn't work for me.  I think that was the original intention, but they couldn't get the actor to return. I'm also pretty sure that he was supposed to be in Warren's place during "I Was Made to Love You". The writers obviously liked him so much, they opted to clone him twice. Yep to all. I don't know about that one. I don't like any eps besides "Gone" from the S6 sequence (and even that one's below average), and while the S7 sequence is weak, "Storyteller" is genuinely good, and I can handle stuff like "Potential" and "Never Leave Me" much more easily than "Wrecked", "Dead Things" or "Older and Far Away". Agreed. What makes it sad that this ep's two writers (Jane Espenson and Douglas Petrie) had actually written for "Angel" before. Jane penned "Rm w/a Vu" and "Guise Will Be Guise", and Doug wrote "In the Dark" and "The Trial". No, but I would still have liked more detail. The flashback scene was fine as a throwaway joke, but if I'd known more about the characters' backstory as a group, I might have actually cared about them and been interested by their dynamics and eventual dissolution. |
|
|
|
Post by cyclica on Nov 14, 2010 16:05:43 GMT -5
I think that was the original intention, but they couldn't get the actor to return. I'm also pretty sure that he was supposed to be in Warren's place during "I Was Made to Love You"The writers obviously liked him so much, they opted to clone him twice. I had heard andrew was supposed to be tucker, but I was unaware warren was too. I still don't see what the appeal was of bringing back such a minor character as tucker. They could easily have made andrew simply a new character and not had him be tucker's brother. Or better yet, have him be the brother of pete from 'beauty and the beasts', or the sidekick kid from 'some assembly required', or some other character who had some actual screen presence or memorable moments. I don't know about that one. I don't like any eps besides "Gone" from the S6 sequence (and even that one's below average), and while the S7 sequence is weak, "Storyteller" is genuinely good, and I can handle stuff like "Potential" and "Never Leave Me" much more easily than "Wrecked", "Dead Things" or "Older and Far Away". I meant the episodes between CWDP and storyteller, but not including them. As bad as smashed, wrecked etc were, I can at least remember most scenes from those episodes. A lot of s7 is blurred together. Agreed. What makes it sad that this ep's two writers (Jane Espenson and Douglas Petrie) had actually written for "Angel" before. Jane penned "Rm w/a Vu" and "Guise Will Be Guise", and Doug wrote "In the Dark" and "The Trial". Wow, those are pretty good episodes. I've never understood how some writers can write some truly great episodes, and yet write really bad ones as well. |
|
I give this ep a 5.
