|
|
Post by Clare on Sept 23, 2008 8:06:46 GMT -5
2.05 Reptile Boy - Episode #017
Snake-worshipping College boys nearly get Buffy killed
Review (also post a score out of 10) and discuss this episode.
|
|
|
|
Post by cyclica on Sept 26, 2008 10:58:41 GMT -5
A below average and somewhat depressing filler, I give it a 4. Cordy and her snarky comments save it from being 3.
I guess theres no big flaws in the episode, just a few things I don't like. Like how buffy spends the entire episode upset, stressed, and doing as she's told. Even when she rebels against giles, she's doing what cordelia wants.
Or like how the main villain of the story only appears at the end in one scene. This might work in a story like 'expecting' where the villain is huge or impressive, but the villain here it looks like just another demon, only with scales. It wasn't worth the build up.
And hey since when would cordy go on a date with jonathan? I guess they hadn't established his personallity yet.
|
|
|
|
Post by partcynic on Oct 16, 2009 6:13:11 GMT -5
2x05 “Reptile Boy”
Episode Rating = 4
In going back and rewatching “Buffy” in chronological order, this is probably the first episode I feel largely ambivalent about. Although I enjoy “Reptile Boy” and think it’s a fun way to pass 42 minutes, it gives the overwhelming impression of being a rush job. Despite having some good humour and being generally entertaining, a good fifty percent of it borrows from prior episodes, and the one original aspect (the frat boys and Machida) really isn’t anything to write home about. That leaves me with an episode that’s just ‘okay’, albeit still better than a good proportion of what would come in later seasons.
What I Liked about “Reptile Boy”:
- The teaser is fun, and like the Scoobs, I’ve watched random Bollywood films and been completely bewildered by their plots before. The transition to the frathouse escape was good, and I liked the implication that there was a university in (or close to) town, making the eventual introduction of UC Sunnydale sound more plausible.
- The dialogue is pretty solid, with Cordelia and Xander getting some great lines despite some pressing issues in their characterisation (see later comments)
- Although most of the characters showed some form of misfire, I thought that Willow was in good form. She stayed her sweet and faithful self, but got an excellent moment when she chewed Giles and Angel out. She also had some of the episodes’ funnier quips, especially her comparing coffee to relationships (“dark and bitter”), asking Xander if he was going to catch an orgy, and trying to feign disinterest in the frat boys “with their movie star good looks” and “more money than you can [count]”.
- Xander being hazed at the party was amusing, and livened up what was otherwise a mediocre sequence.
- It was cool to see Angel go into vamp face upon realising that the frat guys had Buffy, and Xander’s comment about him being the guy to party with was funny.
- The moment of understanding between Giles and Buffy in the basement was a nice bit of character development, though not up to the standard of its forefather in “Never Kill a Boy On the First Date”. It was also good to give Buffy/Angel some forward momentum, and it at least provides the prompt for the progression of their relationship. Neither scene was great, but in this ep, I’ll take whatever development I can get.
- Seeing Jonathon again was cute, although I’m not sure whether we were supposed to believe he and Cordy were on a date, or whether she’d just duped/intimidated him into being her servant.
What I found to be a mixed bag about “Reptile Boy”:
- What was up with the mass recycling in the first half? It read more like a mishmash of themes that had been explored in earlier episodes than a coherent plot, and it had a check the boxes approach the characterisation. Let’s see: Cordelia snipes at Xander; Xander bitches about Angel; Buffy whines about wanting a normal life; Giles tries to be authoritative but gets his ass kicked (in a scene copied directly from “Angel”). I was okay with watching it, but none of it said anything new, and the little bit of improvement in the Buffy/Giles and Buffy/Angel relationships wasn’t really worth the early slog.
- Most of Cordelia’s material was good, but her behaviour was what I would have expected in early S1, and not after “Out of Mind, Out of Sight” and “Some Assembly Required” had (a) softened her character and (b) shown her being more thankful/respectful towards the Scoobs. I’m not saying that they would be the best of friends, but a little more nuance in her portrayal would have been appreciated.
- I wouldn’t have minded an explanation as to why the frat boys preyed solely on high school girls, when there were plenty of potential sacrifices available on the university campus. I imagine that they assumed high schoolers would be more easily manipulated, and that being unknown to the partygoers would make their disappearances less noted than if a fellow uni student vanished at the party. Or was it just a case of wanting ‘pure’ sacrifices and thinking that high school girls would be virgins?
What I Disliked about “Reptile Boy”:
- If Callie ran face-first through a pane of glass as she tried to escape from the frat boys, wouldn’t she have sustained some nasty cuts?
- The theme is too simple and pushed too hard. Buffy ignores her responsibilities, goes to a party unsupervised and has a drink – and pays for it by being held hostage by a group of misogynists who try to sacrifice her innocent purity to a giant phallic symbol that lives in their ‘basement’. And of course, she beats the men by chopping the phallus in half. Sometimes, subtlety is a writer’s best friend.
- Considering how basic most of the writing is, more emphasis should have been placed on bolstering the plot. It was too linear to be interesting or tense, and the fact that it served as a framing device for character development that didn’t develop anything acts as quite a mark against it. I think it would have been more successful if they’d jettisoned some of the angst and just made it a pure monster hunt, expanding Machida’s role and giving the fratboys individual personalities.
- Every time I see the Buffy/Angel graveyard scene I’m struck by its awkwardness. The characters come across as a bodice-ripper and his damsel in distress, and the “when you kiss me, I want to die” line came from nowhere. It felt like there had been some major interaction between them that we hadn’t been shown, and the emotions felt too windswept and melodramatic to be real.
- Major work was needed on Machida – he makes the She-Mantis look like a costuming masterwork. With the show having had its budget increased, there’s less of an excuse for blatant wires and visible seams. I think that SMG’s reaction to seeing the demon for the first time says it all – it seems that she’s stuck between ‘I’m frightened’ and ‘Lord, that thing looks stupid’.
- Assuming that the final scene at the Bronze takes place an evening or two after Machida’s death, the Sunnydale court system appears to move very quickly. I know that it was necessary to give the story closure (and it was good how the monster’s death led to the cessation of its influence/power over the fraternity brothers), but a completed, successful prosecution in two days is impossible to believe.
Do I like this episode more or less than the last time I watched it?
Less, which came through when I was writing this review and found it tougher to talk about its positives than its negatives. That’s not to say that I think “Reptile Boy” is a bad episode, but it could have done with some rewriting to make its plot fresher and downplay the overdone ‘I want to be normal!’ angst – especially since the same theme appeared in the prior two episodes, and would emerge again in “What’s My Line?” Rating-wise, I think I hit it on the head when I originally gave it a four out of ten (making it a watchable but below-average episode) – and that’s where I’m going to keep it.
|
|
|
|
Post by cyclica on Oct 20, 2009 15:26:37 GMT -5
I'm bumping this one up to 5. It's an ok filler ep, the only real let down was the reptile demon at the end. It's one of the stupedist ideas for a villain the show has ever had. It looked ridiculous, and it didn't even talk, it just bobbed around. Like I said before, it wasn't worth an episode's worth of build-up. The rest of the episode was fine. There were a few funny moments, especially anything involving cordelia (I loved her line near the end, "You did it! You saved us! I've never been so happy to see anyone in my whole... You guys. I just... hate you guys! The weirdest things always happen when you're around!"). I also enjoyed the gang watching indian tv at the start, and I always laugh at xander's lines in the last scene (Xander- "Angel, angel, angel. Does every conversation we have have to come around to that freak? (notices angel) Hey, man, how you doin'?" Angel- "Buffy." Buffy- "Angel." Xander- "Xander."  As for the story, I liked the idea that the college guys were getting all their wealth and power from worshipping a demon. Though by this point the ongoing 'buffy is tired of slaying' storyline is getting a bit old. Overall this ep isn't as bad as I had remembered, but it's still nothing special. As for nitpicks, I did find a few, but they're all really minor flaws that won't affect your enjoyment of the episode. - Richard says to cordy 'who's your friend', and cordy knew he was talking about buffy. For all she knew he could have been talking about willow or xander, or anyone in that general area. - There's blood on the bracelet, but not enough to see? How did it get there, if callie was cut surely there would be visible blood, and perhaps some blood on the ground too? - Cordy tells buffy not to dress in black because it's cordy's trademark, but later on buffy is in black anyway, and cordy isn't. - Giles knows angel's phone number? |
|
|
|
Post by partcynic on Oct 22, 2009 11:38:35 GMT -5
*cough* killer snot monsters from outer space *cough*
I agree x 100.
He was looking over at B/X/W, and the process of elimination lets you figure out who he means. With Xander being a guy and Willow being the (supposed) plain girl, it's obvious he'd be referring to Buffy.
That's perfectly possible. Microscopic blood evidence pops up like this all the time in the real world.
It was implied he (and the other Scoobs) knew Angel's contact details after "Out of Mind, Out of Sight" - they've been able to contact him ever since then.
|
|
|
|
Post by cyclica on Oct 22, 2009 16:11:03 GMT -5
*cough* killer snot monsters from outer space *cough* Hah! Ok you've got me there, this show does have plenty of villains even stupider than a reptile boy. *cough*old-lady-phallic-monster-head*cough* |
|
