Shiny

Shiny Closes

2009-09-14T20:31:00.000-07:00

Issue 6 will be the final issue of Shiny. Twelfth Planet Press originally launched Shiny to experiment with the webzine form, and to carve out an audience for YA short stories. With the overwhelmingly enthusiastic support for Twelfth Planet Press' print publications, both by paying readers and submitting authors, and with so many new books planned for the 2010 and 2011 schedules, it's time to let Shiny go.

In just over 2 years, Shiny published 18 stories, 9 by Australians. "Cracks," by Trent Jamieson (Issue 2) won the 2008 Aurealis Award for Best YA Short Story and reminded us that good stories get noticed, no matter the published format. It was with extreme pride that we watched our little e-magazine that could, Shiny, get flashed up in the Aurealis Award presentation slide show.

It has been an honour to work with both my fellow editors, Ben Payne, Tansy Rayner Roberts and Tehani Wessely, and all the writers who have together made Shiny a fun, exciting and worthwhile project to work on. Thank you to the loyal supporters who read and enjoyed the stories in the 6 issues, over the last two years.

An option of the return of outstanding subscriptions via paypal or credit towards other Twelfth Planet Press products will be offered to those with subscriptions beyond Issue 6.

Top 10 Buffy Episodes of all Time

2009-07-23T07:02:00.000-07:00

Den of Geek released their Top 10 list of Buffy episodes of all time

I'm not sure I've thought about it hard enough to come up with my own list but it'd be hard to diasagree with the top 3:

1. Hush
2. The Body
3. The Gift

Though I'd probably put Hush at three.

How bout you? What's your list look like?

Stalking is not exactly a turn on for a girl, you know

2009-06-21T06:19:00.000-07:00

Edward Cullen meets Buffy The Vampire Slayer

(not kind to Edward, beware!)

Shiny Issue 5

2009-06-09T03:37:00.000-07:00

The latest issue of Shiny was released last Friday. Issue 5 was edited by Alisa Krasnostein, Ben Payne and Tehani Wessely.

The Table of Contents:

"Like Us" by Tansy Rayner Roberts
"Root" by Emily Mah
"Paper Dragons" by Sue Isle

Nonfiction
"Reading Like a Teenager" by Tansy Rayner Roberts

Issue 5 can be purchased on its own or as part of a subscription.

BtVS: 3.04 Beauty and the Beasts

2009-06-03T05:45:00.000-07:00

Rachel says:
There is not much to say about this very straightforward episode. Although it holds some interest as a mystery, there's nothing in it for repeat viewings. Pete and Debbie play out a Jekyll and Hyde story. We wonder if the killer is Oz, is it Angel? It's kind of a disappointment that it's Pete, the non-regular. In the end, Angel saves the day - and he is saved.
"Great. Now I'm going to be stuck with serious thoughts all day." - Cordelia

However there has been some kerfuffle about the internets this week regarding a Buffy movie. The Kuzuis - whose names you will recognise from the opening credit sequence of every episode of BtVS and Angel - are looking at taking advantage of the rights they hold having produced the original Buffy movie to relaunch the franchise.

I'm actually not in favour of a Buffy movie at all. I think it would not have an audience outside of Buffy fandom and would probably go the way of Serenity for the general public. ie a decent stand alone that has some bits that don't make sense. The Buffy franchise (if we want to look at it as a living thing) doesn't need a movie or "re-booting" at the moment, it lives in comic form and is very healthy in terms of tie-in products (calendars, action figures, novels...)

But you can't argue that Kuzui Enterprises wasn't smart holding onto the rights for that long. If Fran and Kaz think they can make a go of it, why not let them? Either it'll be something we can enjoy or something we can forget exists. Like Star Wars I-III. But they're not doing their creative careers any favours by not pursuing a new story.

Alisa says:
I also am not in favour of the movie. I don't want a reboot. The whole point of Buffy, as we have talked about at length is the scoobs and without them, I'm not sure I'm interested. And more to the point, the movie completely sucked and I only saw it twice at the cinema cause Dylan from 90210 was in it.

BtVS: 3.03 Faith, Hope and Trick

2009-05-20T03:10:00.000-07:00

Alisa says:
I'm gonna go out on a limb and say there's a new slayer in town.

I'm loving Oz so much in this rewatching. I think that's a sign of a good ensemble cast show that you can watch it over and over and enjoy the storylines from different character perspectives each time. I love how Oz is so unflappable, often steps in as referee and whilst so cool and calm, finds empathy for most people in most situations.

Whilst this is another Monster of the Week episode, and random boy of the week (is Hope in here purely for the use of his name in the episode title?) there is much meta arc development afoot. Firstly the most divine Faith joins the cast - yay! Secondly we see Joyce start to accept Buffy for who she is and the enormity of the role she plays:

When did you die? You never told me that you died.

I've tried to march in the Slayer Pride Parade

And finally we get the unbelievable hot naked and sweaty Angel leap onto the screen at the very end! Angel! He is not dead!!! And wouldn't you know it, just like they tell me all the time, just when Buffy is starting to move on and past him, he shows back up. Typical!

Rachel says:
Yeah, a new slayer in town wearing the worst outfit ever committed to film. That's a seriously unfortunate first impression, but you know, it's meant to be. We're not supposed to like her. And even though we do, I think it's only because of all the weight the character has built up over the years. Here, not so much. She's shallow and self-centred, tough, but not lovable.

The character I really love in this episode is Mr Trick. And I'm so glad, out of all the bit parts (Scott especially), he's the one that we get to see more of. His big picture, high tech approach to everything is very inspiring.

As for Angel returning from the undead/dead? Thank goodness for it. I was sick of all the dream sequences to justify Boreanaz's spot in the opening credits.

BtVS: 3.02 Dead Man's Party

2009-05-13T02:58:00.000-07:00

Alisa says:
So I already mentioned how much I don't love the Monster of the Week episodes, right? This is the zombie episode and well ... meh. The only bit I think I really and truly love is when Buffy and her Mum are having the awkward fight at her Welcome Home party and Buffy starts yelling at people and singles out Jonathan, "Anyone else want to weigh in? How 'bout you, over by the dip!"
Love it! It's one of my all time favourite lines.

Underlying all the zombie mayhem, and flashing eyes, there's the fact that Buffy's friends didn't let her get away with bailing after the Angel confrontation. She seriously betrayed their trust and friendship and whilst uncomfortable, they force her to face up to and address it. Friendship underpins this series and is what I love about it.

Yay - the Scoobs are back! Bring on Season 3 proper!

Rachel says:
The awkwardness between best friends is really well played here - haven't we all been there? Where you want everything to be alright, but it just isn't?

I have to disagree and say I quite like the use of zombies. Although the metaphor's a little obvious - all the problems Buffy tried to bury are coming back after her - how can you go past that cat?
"I think you should call it Patches."

And Giles is just terrific, his slayer is safely returned, but he isn't off the hook.
"Do you like my mask? Isn't it pretty. It raises the dead!"

Actually the whole episode is filled with quotable lines (Nighthawk, dip, tingly feelings). For a Monster of the Week episode, this one's more than adequate. Killing off Pat - we all have one of those we'd like to shovel through the eyes - yet the arc is still moving forward with the Scoobies reconciled by the end, but not without a fight.
"Talking about it isn't helping, we might as well try some violence."

BtVS: 3.01 Anne

2009-05-06T04:11:00.000-07:00

Alisa says:
I think it's becoming plain that I like the Monster of the Week episodes less than the ones that move the meta story arc or offer character development.

I always think this is such a banal filler episode to introduce the third season after such a climatic finale for Season 2. You notice how Buffy is always out of town for summer vacation? Why doesn't she just want to hang out with her friends?

Thanks Cordelia for the phrase: "and I use sarcastic quote marks" I'm so stealing that one!

And of course, the most memorable line from this episode: Can I be Anne?
Don't we all have days when we want to start over and just ... be Anne?

Rachel says:
It's Chantarelle/Lily/Anne! My favourite of all the recurring characters.
Really dislike Buffy in this episode. I really hate that she's given up - it's so demoralising and powerless.

Another Hell dimension? So soon?

I agree, Alisa, this is a very banal episode, not a great start to the season!

Although I don't mind her going away over the summer. After all, we've been away from her too, and her catching up with Willow and Xander gives us a chance to find out what they've all been up to. And I wouldn't want to begrudge her any time with her Dad.

BtVS: 2.22 Becoming Part 2

2009-04-29T04:11:00.000-07:00

Rachel says:
The Acathla thing really is ridiculous. Sucked into Hell? They just don't think these things through do they? In which episode does it become a "hell dimension"? Are they just using "Hell" as a generic term to describe the experience? Hell, I can't stop saying it. Hell.

Hang on, if Acathla sucks the whole world into Hell, where does that leave Acathla? Standing in a void?

But things to like about this one, there are some; I love Spike as the level headed character, it's sad to see him and Dru go at the end of the episode.

Swordfight! Pretty convincing choreography, one of the best fight sequences of recent episodes.

Xander's vindictive streak, although I of course hate that he's lying to both Buffy and Willow, adds such a great dimension to his character that I love it as well. It's something that lurks under the surface, one of the things that makes him so human.

But Joyce, being also quite human, fails as a parent - you never want to say something that you're not going to be able to follow through!

The costuming is a little obvious in its themes during this and Part 1 of Becoming. The coat changes from the cheery, hopeful blue with clean confident lines to a shapeless brown number. The fight outfit is minimal (although the way she tends to stride into battle with heels always irritates me), with the silver cross displayed prominently in the v of her black shirt.

In the final scene she is in a hobo outfit that really had no place belonging in her wardrobe at all - overalls, giant jumper, brown vinyl bag from an op-shop. What were they thinking?

Buffy's leaving is pretty dumb too, sure she's lost Angel (yeah, I snivelled again) but she still has her friends. Who are ace. And she needs to say sorry for being a dumbass and leaving them while Drusilla strolls in a wreaks the joint.

However this was a really shocking way to end a season. Was it ever really done in television before this? Have, not really a dramatic cliffhanger, but a deep sense of hopelessness. But as we now know, this is so typically Joss.

Alisa says:
Heh - Buffy's ooh if I wear a horrible brown coat and black beanie, I will look incognito! Surely not if you are the only person wearing the brown coat and black beanie and everyone else is not dressed for winter?

Being a big fan of Whistler and his interfering to push things in the direction he wants:
Buffy: What are you, just some immortal demon sent down to even the score between good and evil?
Whistler: (impressed) Wow. Good guess. (grins)

This episode is such a powerful and strong ending to a great season.
In the end, you're always by yourself. You're all you've got.
That's the point.

Which is sometimes the point in this show and sometimes not. Often it's about friendship and the people who have your back and how you wouldn't be able to do things without them. But then when it's the big hard crunchy decisions that are unpopular to make - those are the ones the hero must make alone, I guess. Like in this episode and in The Gift and so on.

BtVS: 2.21 Becoming Part 1

2009-03-15T21:03:00.000-07:00

Alisa says:
I loved rewatching this episode. I found it funny how a lot of the scenes were familiar yet I hadn't associated them as belonging to this episode. This is mostly, I guess, because of the enormity of the episode to follow. Yet this episode contains so much overall backstory. It's here we glimpse some of Angel's life history including when he was sired. We see snippets of Drusilla before she was turned.

We discover that Buffy was the motivating force for Angel to come out of his 90 year mooch-fest and join the real world - and that he knew about her long before they meet in Sunnydale, Angel having watched her get called. And that him watching that moment was what made him want to stand up and be counted. Whistler is a favourite character of mine - too underplayed and should so have gotten more screentime. He works well to hint at the greater worldbuilding for us - that not all demons want to end the world and that there might be some bigger fight at play.

It occurred to me on this viewing that Willow channelling all the energy to re-curse Angel was perhaps the opening of the door that became very hard for her to shut again, in the end.

It was nice to see that Jenny was working on the curse for Buffy and Angel in her private time - that she really was part of the posse and not out to get them.

I love this episode. I love the drama of Dru coming in to kidnap Giles, that she so easily kills Kendra, that it shows how powerful she is in her own right even though she so often stands off to the side and watches and claps. Xander standing up and reminding everyone that it's not so clear cut - that Buffy wants to ignore the murder so she can have her boyfriend back - because oh that it were that simple!!

I love the building to the climax episode. I'm a fan of the costuming department and the use of the coats for Buffy throughout the show. The blue one is so great and wears so well for all the really dramatic shots in this and the next episode - when she faces Angelus down and then when she runs back through the streets and round the halls of the school - its lines are long and clean and they make her look powerful and strong and simultaneously small.

Buffy: This is a beautiful moment we're having. Can we please fight?
Angelus: Gosh, I was hoping we could get back together. What do you think? Do we have a shot? (gets a look from Buffy) Alright. We'll fight.

I love how Angelus is always teasing her because she falls every time for thinking it's about her and it never is, it's always a trap. And one of the best suspenseful moments is when Buffy realises it was a trap and discovers her whole world (the library and her friends in it) in disarray.

And I love the voice over at the end of this episode:
Bottom line is, even if you see 'em coming, you're not ready for the big moments. No one asks for their life to change, not really. But it does. So what are we, helpless? Puppets? No. The big moments are gonna come. You can't help that. It's what you do afterwards that counts. That's when you find out who you are. You'll see what I mean.

That's just awesomely brilliant writing. Does he meant for the next episode or for everything that happens after this moment? I love the way this show is written such that it is internally consistent and holds up all the way to the very end.

Rachel says:
Actually I kind of hate the voiceover.

Also, Alisa has said everything that could possibly be said about Becoming Part 1 except the best line of the episode:

"It's a big rock. Can't wait to tell my friends. They don't have a rock this big." - Spike

Final Day For ONE DOLLAR SHINY DEAL

2009-02-03T20:36:00.000-08:00

Today is the last day you can get Shiny Issue 2 for $1 all this week in celebration of Trent Jamieson's Aurealis Award win for Best Young Adult short story for "Cracks"!

It's ONE DOLLAR!! What better value??? Here's a sneak peek at Trent Jamieson's award winning story:

Cracks

The dark is the dark. The song is the song.

The shadows were boiling to midday when Lolly Robson found me by the river, my feet dangling over the bank, not touching earth so I could get some peace. He grinned, that crooked stunning smile, and spat a wasteful spit on the ground like it was a challenge, like everything for Lolly was a challenge to be spat out. “Jean. I got need of you.”

“Yes I see that,” I said in my old voice. The voice that isn’t mine, but that’s all me, which you’d understand if you had what I had, and maybe you do. “And don’t be all spitting and short with me, boy. Just because I was raised peculiar, don’t mean you have the right.”

Lolly looked almost abashed, but he didn’t say sorry. Robson boys don’t. They’re haughty. Pretty too.
“I like your dress,” he said, kind of charming.

I fixed him with a black stare. “Flattery, boy. Too hot for flattery.” Though I liked it. He was a Robson after all. Not that I’d show my pleasure. “What’s your need?”

We’d done our dance. Lolly understood, and took the direct path, and snatched back a bit of the old voice’s respect.

“Snake’s bit my mum.” He touched his bicep, then a point above his wrist, near where he would be cut when he came of age, like all the Robson boys were cut. "Here and here. She's dying."

Shiny Swancon Young Adult Short Story Competition

2009-02-03T20:33:00.000-08:00

Shiny and Swancon 2009: Contact are proud to announce the 2009 Shiny Swancon Young Adult Short Story Competition.

Judging the competition will be Alisa Krasnostein and Tehani Wessely of Shiny along with a third, as yet unconfirmed, judge. Eligible stories should be both speculative fiction and young adult in nature, with a word limit of 3000 words.

Entry to this competition is free and open to those aged 16 and under, and participation certificates will be provided for all entrants.

Submissions for the competition are due by March 20th, 10pm WST time.

Please submit your entries electronically in .rtf format to: shinystories@gmail.com with the subject heading 'Swancon Young Adult Short Story Competition'.

1st Prize is $25, subscription to the Shiny 2009 series and the complete Shiny back issues.
Two runners up will be awarded Shiny 2009 series and the complete Shiny back issues.

Prizes will be awarded at the judges' discretion. All judges' decisions are final and winners will be notified by email and announced at the Swancon Awards Ceremony on Sunday April 12th 2009.

Information about this competition can also be found on the Swancon website

Shiny Congratulates Trent Jamieson!

2009-01-27T18:24:00.000-08:00

Shiny congratulates Trent Jamieson on his Aurealis Award win for "Cracks" which appeared in Shiny's Issue 2.

In celebration, we are offering the issue with the award winning story for just $1 for all this week.

We're also offering all Shiny back issues for free for subscriptions to the 2009 series, purchased this week. Already got all our back issues? Nominate a friend who you think would love to read them instead!

Both offers finish February 4, 2009.

Look out for more Shiny changes over here - coming soon!

BtVS: 2.20 Go Fish

2009-01-05T01:00:00.000-08:00

Rachel says:
For a monster of the week episode Go Fish is really well put together. Although the costumes were never very convincing due to their design (bipedal water monsters? Huh?). I like the way there's the swimmy/water/sea theme through it all. Even the drug is administered in a moist, and yes, clothing-minimal, environment.

But the best part is Cordy's speech to the fish creature she thinks is Xander. The way her character grows in the last part of this season is great, and I think this is the first speech where she is entirely selfless. Gives us a peek at the woman she becomes in Angel.

Alisa says:
Poor Jonathan is the guy being picked on at the swim team post-meet party. Setting aside how funny it used to be able to spot "Random Guy" as we used to call him (always the same guy as random person), it must have really sucked to actually be Jonathan, considering his Sunnydale experience.

But this episode is pretty much all about the Xander in the Speedos right?

Am I wrong?

That, and stalling for what we know is coming ...

*girds loins for episodes 2.21 and 2.22*

BtVS: 2.19 I Only Have Eyes For You

2009-01-02T00:52:00.000-08:00

Alisa says:
I love the music in this episode. Actually, I love the music in pretty much all the episodes but the opening song to this one had me tracking down Angie Hart's new band of the time (Splendid) and fell in love with that whole album.

This episode marks the start of Willow's journey as a witch as she conveniently steps into the role of Miss Calendar by inheriting all her notes and files. And reveals that Principal Snyder is bad, as we suspected, and is in fact in with the bad guys. Not only that, but here we have the first foreshadowing if the Mayor also being on the side of, well, bad.

I have so much sympathy for Spike in this episode as Angelus constantly taunts him about being "Special Needs Guy" and keeps insinuating that he is sleeping with Drusilla and that Drusilla likes it. I find it a really interesting peek into that group's dynamics because it does look like Dru likes sleeping with Angelus, yet Spike clearly has a monogamous thing going for her from his perspective. It makes me wonder how icky things got back when they all used to hang out.

So for me, the awesome awesome awesome moment in this episode comes when Buffy and Aneglus relive the moment/tragedy of the killing because they get to go through their own love story using someone else's words and it's so heart-wrenching with the tenderness and the Buffy/Angel theme in the background. Also, Buffy gets to call Angelus a bitch, which is really funny. And then the scene moves from tender to hilarious when Angelus comes to and can't deal with the kissing and the love and has to go and have a long shower. He could have just as easily killed her where she was, especially as she is in a very vulnerable state. But he can't deal with love more than the wanting to kill her. It's really cool the themes that Joss Whedon is playing with here.

And the big Yay! as Spike is planning to fight back and betray Dru and Angelus - oooh! Dram-ah!

Rachel says:
This ep is very similar to "Out of sight, out of mind" with the music room and atmosphere and all.

But there are guns! Guns are bad.

Love is bad.

Angel is bad.

Any questions?

Oh come on, it's all about lurve and romance and the One True, um, One, what do you expect me to say?

BtVS: 2.18 Killed By Death

2008-12-08T23:12:00.000-08:00

Alisa says:
Here we have another break in the intensity of the season arc with a Buffy Needs Some Rest episode. Buffy gets sick - which is a bit weird because she's the Slayer; she never gets sick. But, the break works because otherwise, Come On! Someone kill someone already! The fight scene in the beginning of the episode between Sick!Buffy and Angelus reminded me of how she didn't just kill him when she had the chance last episode.

I think though that I'm not the biggest fan of the break in intensity episodes. I noticed random things like the fact that the creepy music for the monster roaming around in the hospital is the music that use for the menu on the DVDs. I also noticed the great credit shot, right at the end after Buffy kills the monster.

This episode does have some awesome moments though. The confrontation between Xander and Angelus where Xander has no chance of stopping Angelus, if he really had to, but that fact doesn't get in the way of him trying to protect Buffy and will damn well go down trying. We see that Xander is a hero. Or a hero in the making.

Verdict: "Tact is just not saying true stuff."

Rachel says:
I dunno, there's something really horrible in the mundanity of Buffy having the flu. And as you may have gathered, I prefer these off-arc episodes. There's only so much you can do with Buffy vs Angelus given that they can never kill each other - otherwise the show would've had a much shorter run!

For this week's monster we get the Kinderstott who is just the right amount of yuck. He almost looks like an elderly person (surely the most terrifying real life thing that kids ever face) but then has the nasty teeth and eyes that eat you. Which is what old people threaten to do to kids. "Oh, you're so adorable I could just eat you up!" It really hits the buttons in what is scary for a kid. Not to mention that it's something the adults can't see and don't believe in.

Other neat scenes in this episode are Cordelia distracting the security guard, Willow's "Frogs! Frogs!" moment and the sequence where we get a little peek into Buffy's childhood. I know I had never thought of her as a little girl before this.

"I feel fine. I mean, the world's spinning a little bit, but I like it. It's like a ride."

BtVS: 2.17 Passion

2008-12-04T21:54:00.000-08:00

Rachel says:
This was the first Buffy episode to make me cry, and it turns out, it still does. Not Jenny's death per se, but Buffy and Willow's response. So heartbreaking. The other standout sequence is the chase between Angelus and Jenny. The camera angles, editing and low lighting all create a superbly creepy and scary run through the school culminating in the horrible neck snap.
The scene in Giles apartment, where he thinks Jenny is waiting for him upstairs (and I suppose she is) is brilliantly portrayed by Giles, almost to the point where you think there has been some mistake and Jenny really is waiting for him. *sob*

"You know, I think there may be a valuable lesson for you gals here about inviting strange men into your bedrooms."

Alisa says:

I think this episode raises the stakes for the audience. It's here, at the climax of this episode, we learn that all the rules don't apply in Jossverse and that all bets are off - anyone can die, even a main player. And so too, Angelus kills Jenny in an almost anticlimatic, off-hand way, such that I think it becomes all the more shocking and heartbreaking. He doesn't break a sweat. He doesn't stalk and play with her (much). He just does it. Dramatically and with a gorgeous backdrop of the night, framed in that window. And he glorifies in it too but more so because of the anticipated effect on Buffy than for the kill itself.

This episode is about passion and the bookend narration is by Angelus. I think this works beautifully to use the change in POV to show that we, the viewers, should expect the unexpected. That this is not all going to go the way we want it to go. Evil, Angelus may be, but as Willow points out, he is still obsessed with Buffy. Sort of the dark to the lightness that went before.

Even having watched this episode many times before, I still cried in that moment that Giles calls Buffy to tell her what has happened. And it works well. Despite watching it from afar, removed, with Angelus looking through the window, it's still very powerful and desperately sad. And there is a really great shot of Buffy as she sinks down to the ground, absorbing the enormity of what has happened and you can see the realisation dawn to her that this is *real*.

I want to finish by saying how rightly it depicts how CREEPY it is for one's Vampire to sit and watch one sleep. (*cough* Bella Swan *cough*)

Shiny Issue 4

2008-12-02T18:01:00.001-08:00

The Fix have given Shiny 4 are really great review. Thanks for the heads up.

Of Bren MacDibble's "Being Bella Wang", Smith writes: In this short tale, MacDibble expertly evokes an exotic locale full of magic, as well as vivid, interesting characters with a strong bond.

Of Michael Merriam's "All the Leaves Your Bed”, she says: Merriam deftly skirts the well of sentiment that could so easily have drowned this story, and takes it to surprising places. There is an image near the end that is simply breathtaking.

And of Rhonda Parrish’s “Skitter Skitter,” - Parrish does a great job with teen exasperation as Chloe describes their progress, often talking in the purple clichés of teen writing... The rest will please readers who like the illogic of go-for-the-grue horror.

Take advantage of our special promo and purchase Issues 4 and 5 for the special price of $5 and get Issue 4 in your inbox now and Issue 5 very very soon.

BtVS: 2.16 Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered

2008-11-30T21:36:00.000-08:00

Alisa says:
For a very long time I used to say this was my least favourite episode of the whole series. Hated it even. But having just rewatched it twice in recent weeks (let's not talk about bad notetaking), I think in truth, it's quite a fun little episode. We have Xander subverting the gender stereotype and being the lovelorn teenager who convinces Amy to cast a love spell to get Cordelia to love him (and take back the breakup which she so heartlessly delivers on Valentines Day). Course, as is a must in Jossverse, the spell goes horribly wrong and every girl but Cordelia, including Buffy, Willow, Drusilla, Joyce, Miss Calendar and even Amy, comes after Xander with lovelust. I love the moment that Cordelia finds out he cast the spell for her -
"Would've worked fine, except your hide's so thick, not even magic can penetrate it!"
It's funny because it's true - you can always rely on Cordelia to avoid the glamour and see the world as it is and not for how others want her to. So often the spells miss her - like the one on the previous Halloween with Ethan's spell on the costumes for example. And she proves her true colours at the end of the episode when she tells Harmony where to stick it and stalks off after Xander. Yay!

I think my favourite bit (apart from Buffy's, "I seem to have a slight case of nudity here") is where Oz comes up to hit Xander because Oz had listened to Willow cry for an hour on the phone the night before ... over Xander. But that's just cause I have the Oz Love.

So why did I hate this episode for so long? I think it's because Buffy is hardly in it. She was guesting on Saturday Night Live the week they taped it and so they did all her bits on the Monday and she took off. In retrospect, she actually appears for a good half of the episode, and these days I am less Buffy obsessed so it didn't bother me as much. Though I will say that it's a very distinct break in the Angel-goes-psycho plot-line and for me I think I always felt jarred by the standalone nature of this episode after so much season arc.

Rachel says:
Just plain fun. They went all out with this, ramping up the absurd to hilarious levels. It's never scary - even with all the chasing and the axes and the kitchen knives - because it is just so crazy. Although it's painful watching Buffy debase herself in such a way, mega points to Xander for coming through.
I love that Angel gets chased away from Xander by Drusilla and it's good to see Amy again- she's starting to turn bad!! A real cheer-er upper which is refreshing after all the arc-heavy angst of recent episodes. We even discover that Oz's band's name is Dingoes Ate My Baby - suitably wrong but a little thrill for us Australian fans.
"And you know what? I'll date whoever the hell I wanna date. No matter how lame he is."

BtVS: 2.15 Phases

2008-11-27T01:45:00.000-08:00

Rachel says:
This episode works on every level for me. Oz has the horrible discovery that he's a werewolf, and it's a genuine surprise to the rest of us too. The fake out with Larry is wonderful, I just love his speech to Xander in the change room.

Buffy is clearly still cut up by Angel, but is able to (or the writers were able to) put it aside long enough to get on with the job. Saves us all dying of boredom, which is a real danger when characters rant and wail endlessly.

The werewolf costume still looks great, so many years later. I guess we've reached the pinnacle in dog suit technology (furry joke not intended). The Oz-wolf morph is also worth a mention, although the tech used is obvious, it's convincing.
"Welcome to the mystery that is men. I think it goes something like, they grow body hair, they lose all ability to tell you what they really want."

Alisa says:
One of the things I love about Buffy is the constant self-referential and in-jokes. This episode opens with Oz looking at the cheerleading trophy that has Amy's mum, the witch, trapped inside it - her eyes follow you where ever you go. There's also a really cool foreshadowing moment for the rewatcher when Oz defends Willow to the bullies by saying she is an evil mastermind. Uh-huh. If only you knew.

This is an okay episode that brings Oz into Buffy's circle in his own right. I like how nonchalantly he finds out and deals with being a werewolf - almost but not quite like it's not a big deal.

BtVS: 2.14 Innocence

2008-11-24T01:45:00.000-08:00

Alisa says:
Or the loss of ...

Oh poor sweet innocent Buffy! That has got to be the worst feeling to have lost your virginity to the love of your life and for him to not be there when you wake up in the morning nor be contactable and when he does finally show back up ... well to be less than gentle, loving and kind.

Stilll.. mmmm yummy topless Angelus in black leather pants. Yummy.

The best moment in the episode is when Angelus rises, drains the hooker and then blows out the puff of smoke from the cigarette that she was smoking. Does it *get* any hotter? I ask you!

This is a contretemps episode - all the stakes (ha!) are raised and it represents a real pivotal point in the series.

We learn the essential catch in the Buffyverse - that if Angel experiences one true moment of happiness the curse the gypsies put on him is lifted and he loses his soul. Again. And how utterly romantic and beautiful that for him, that moment of happiness was making love to Buffy.

Our characters have all pretty much paired off. Poor Willow walks in on Xander and Cordelia and discovers what we have known for episodes now - that he would rather be with someone he hates than we with her. My heart breaks along with hers every single time! But, we see that even though Willow is not yet ready to give up Xander, the adorable Oz loves her anyway - Willow kissage!! And I'll wait! Awwww ....

Xander gets to show how he is useful and that he is an important and valuable member of the Scoobies in his own right. He comes up with the plan to destroy the judge and how to get the weapons they need to save the day.

Buffy: Thanks for my present.
Xander: Thought you'd like it.

I love the rewriting of old for new and the idea that old and mystical works should be read within the context and time in which they were written:
The Judge: No weapon has been forged to destroy me.
Buffy: That was then and this is now.
Yeah, an uzi will probably get the job done. The looks on Angelus' and Dru's faces when they realise whats in Buffy's hand is priceless as is the way they throw themselves out of the way.

But what I love most about this episode is how the stakes are so rapidly raised between Buffy and Angel. In one episode she goes from being in this starcrossed lovers type of innocent and deep and true love to suddenly finding herself in a highly abusive and somewhat twisted relationship. And how many of us don't have our own (perhaps scaled down) tales of the same woe. Or at least who hasn't had the "but I thought he liked me, why did her turn" experience in high school? Buffy's ex-boyfriend is going to torture and ruin her and enjoy it. She goes from this broken, soft and hurt little victim in the beginning of the episode (and understandably so, she just shared something so intimate with the one man she loves and who she thought loved her) to working her way up to killing him. Give me time And I love the way Giles switches from parent to friend in this episode, to reflect her passage, perhaps from innocent to young adult,
"You won't get guilt from me. You'll get nothing but respect."

Rachel says:
I get very angry at this episode. I know Whedon is only making his characters suffer because that makes for good television, but it still rankles that Buffy has sex and then must be punished. And killing a prostitute and smoking is hot for you, Alisa? It's an effective character moment, I'll grant you... but hot??

Gellar outacts nearly everyone in Innocence with her wailing and crying and gnashing of teeth. Boreanaz does not yet have the evil Angelus side quite up to speed, but we will see this more convincingly in later episodes.

Relationships are breaking all over - Willow and Xander, Giles and Jenny. It's really not a very great joy to watch, except that really, they are all getting together too - Willow and Oz, Xander and Cordelia. And then we get to the

Rocket Launcher.

Two things make it work - the dolly shot up to Buffy standing on the concession stand and Drusilla's reaction. Otherwise we would be paying more attention to the ridiculous layout of this shopping centre set, and notice that the launcher looks like a supersoaker on steroids.

I also think that the fight scene between Angel and Buffy after the Judge has gone down is kind of an anticlimax. Well, it's a post-climax because the best bit was the explosion, naturally. So why this petty bickering and groin-kneeing under the sprinklers?
"We're going to destroy the world. Want to come?"

BtVS: 2.13 Surprise

2008-11-20T01:22:00.000-08:00

Alisa says:
Things never go well on Buffy's birthday. This year the Scoobies are planning a surprise birthday party, but Drusilla has a surprise all of her own as she collects all the bits and pieces of the Judge and assembles him. We see Buffy's secret fear that Angel will get dusted as she dreams one dream after the other that he does. I'm all down with the smoochies and hot and intense Buffy/Angel moments which inevitably lead to the big crescendo - they finally make sweet sweet vampire/slayer loveage. And then we are left on the terrible cliffhanger - which if I recall correctly is where Channel 7 left us for about 6 months when they initially screened it in Australia!

Other important moments include the implication of a duplicitous side of Jenny Calendar - suddenly she is not as she seems. Whose side is she on and what are her intentions? It seems that she is out to make sure that Angel and Buffy are kept apart!

For me, this is one of my most significant episodes. Firstly for the final consummation of Angel and Buffy's love. That seen is *hot* and *sexy* - or so I thought way back when I first watched it. Now it actually seems a bit tame. And sweet, maybe. Ugh! I hate this rewatching thing! Nothing is the way it first seemed. Also of course this is the lead up to the horrible horrible next episode for Buffy.

Rachel says:
Drusilla is in top form in this episode in contrast to Buffy falling all over her man, which is kinda pathetic. Angel is a little creepy older boyfriend-y. Erk, yuk yuk. I can't help thinking that the scene at the dock is Angel leaving to go to war with his knapsack on his shoulder.

Do Drusilla and Buffy share a birthday? Why is this never mentioned again? There's something in that you know - Angel siring Dru and then Buffy is the love of his life. Something astrological.

The Judge, well he is just neat-o. And blue, which is a nice change from green for a demon.

Oz also gets more love from me in this episode, he is just so ridiculously cool.
"See I like that you're unpredictable."

BtVS: 2.12 Bad Eggs

2008-11-17T01:18:00.000-08:00

Rachel says:
There's nothing really wrong with Bad Eggs, but nothing too special either. The Gorches I find very dull and one dimensional as villains. However, the scene where Buffy tracks the hatchling in her bedroom is a great piece of suspenseful television. There should be more of that.

Being not much of a mushy fan, I find the quantity of smoochies in this episode to be painfully over the top.

"I see your 'gyegh!' and raise you a 'gnyaah!'"

Alisa says:
See, my verdict is: "mmmmm" just for all the Angel/Buffy smoochies alone.

This episode had me at its broody, dark, forbidden kisses in the cemetery. Other highlights for me were Xander boiling his egg and showing that sometimes there are rewards from breaking rules and taking shortcuts, and also the bonus cameo of Jonathan - I'd not seen that one before! I also love the bit where Buffy is fighting the vampire and they both turn to fight off people under the spell before turning back to fight each other. I just love the ridiculousness of that.

I also think the way she kills the creature - hacking it to pieces from the inside- was grrl power AWESOME! I just love it when, after she kills the gross monster of the week, she throws the pick up out of the hole, climbs out after it and finishes off the vampire. That moment, which was just a little world-weary, made me think - she's a vampire slayer, why does that mean she has to wear the weight of the world and all the other demons on her shoulders as well?

And then extra "awwwww" for the final scene of Angel leaning in Buffy's window for some nigh-night smoochies. Where, though, is the attraction for a 270 year old vampire to be with someone so young and so unworldly and so naive, especially at this point, so early in her slayer career? I spose we could argue that her youth and passion and lack of world-weariness is attractive to him - that her innocence is appealing? Or that he can see in her, even this early in, that she is the most powerful slayer ever born.

BtVS: 2.11 Ted

2008-11-13T14:09:00.000-08:00

Alisa says:
I hate this episode for so many reasons. I hate Ted. I hate the idea of Ted - where did he suddenly come from? Joyce has been secretly dating him and Buffy never noticed? It feels so contrived. As does the episode climax and unravelling. I hate it. I hate Ted and his stupid cookies and mini golf.

Bah! Onto the next ep!

Rachel says:
I hated this episode too when it first aired, but I have grown to really quite like it. I was surprised how much my impression of Ted has changed. I was so drawn in by the character that first time I saw it, I so believed he was a human bad-guy, that I was angry, really angry when his secret was revealed. I'd been duped as badly as if I'd been eating his cookies!

But it truly improves on multiple viewings and it's largely due to the late John Ritter's performance. He's so dreadful and horrible as a human character and yet, once you discover his robotic secret, it slots together so nicely. I love the way Xander follows him around begging for food treats for the whole episode, and the scene where he discovers the cupboard's contents is so creepy because you don't see anything but his reaction, which is played perfectly.

This is amongst the best of Buffy because it hits where it hurts most - her mother.

"What? Freud would've said the exact same thing. Except he might not have done that little dance."

Sneak Peek Inside Issue 4

2008-11-12T22:57:00.000-08:00

Bren MacDibble makes her second appearance at Shiny with this story, set against the exotic backdrop of Bali, it's a little bit SF, a little bit Fantasy. Here's a taste of it.

Being Bella Wang
by Bren MacDibble

I'd felt her presence ever since the plane touched down in Bali and still I jumped at my name.

“Sienna!” A frail figure swanned across the green, hips jutting through a lime silk slip-dress.

A row of black shadow puppets danced across the hem at her knees. Her chest was
impossibly bony. The silk gaped, unfilled, and her sinewy feet were bare on the fine grass.

“Juliet?” She’d always been thin but this was the wasted body and disaffected pose of one of the starvation cults.

I dropped my putter and hurried towards her. She stretched out her hands, and when I took them they were cold, bizarre in the mugginess of a Balinese morning.

I pulled her to me, whole again after so long apart. She was stiff in my embrace and returned it with just one arm to my back, then pulled away. It hurt. She seemed shorter than me now, beyond the height given to me by golf cleats, but that was
impossible. We were genetically identical.

“Sienna, you softy,” she said. “How goes the golfing life?”

“It’s good enough I suppose.” The old arguments came back to me.

“I hear you’re the favourite for the junior strokeplay tomorrow. The Mother must be
pleased.” Juliet had never regarded the original Bella Wang as a mother, just as The Mother.

“She’s here you know.” I nodded at the clubhouse.

Juliet’s cool pose broke and she glanced towards the clubhouse.

I enjoyed a moment of evil glee until I saw her face in profile.

BtVS: 2.10 What's My Line Pt 2

2008-11-10T22:04:00.000-08:00

Alisa says:
"I knew this 'I'm the only one, I'm the only one' thing was just an attention-getter."

This episode is huge. It's a crucial episode because we discover the existence of a second slayer in the form of Kendra. I'm going to totally skirt around the totally crap fake accent that she never ever manages to pull off.Oh oops! I did mention it after all. It's godawful! But anyway! The very important, critical information is that Buffy died "for a minute" and a second slayer was called. I couldn't care less about Kendra, I mean yes, sure she's a crossover actress from Dawson's Creek but other than that, there was very little of interest about her. However, this is such an important plot twist for whole the series because it brings us Faith and it also leads us into the final season, which I won't spoil now. I will only point out the genius that is Joss and the awesomeness of his plotting to have sown seeds so early for such a payout later. Or ... he makes good use of happenstance.

Other important things that happen this episode include Xander and Cordelia kissing for the first time. And Whedon can't quite resist playing the comic via the climatic, dramatic background music for what is otherwise Xander finally in a romantic light. Plus, then he gets to hose Cordie down in a naughty wet shirt contest moment. And still, ew! The gross bug man!

Now is this the first Jonathan moment? When he gets taken hostage by the fake policewoman or am I just getting excited about spotting a new one for me? Also in this episode we see a bit more of the Spike/Dru/Angel dynamic and we learn that Angel was Drusilla's sire.

This episode is such a pivotal plot point for all our characters. Kendra works to come in and hold a mirror up to Buffy and highlight the contrasts in her behaviour to that expected of a vampire slayer. For me there were a lot of small nuggets of dialogue like: "He is a vampire, he should die" and "There's a handbook? How come I never got a handbook?" which work so well to show how different Buffy and her approach is to that of all the Slayers who have gone before her ... and perhaps will follow after her? After all, she even changed how it works - now there is more than one Slayer. So too, Kendra serves as a reminder that Slayers are young girls for a reason - they don't tend to outlive their youth.

Oz takes a bullet for Willow. That sentence deserves a paragraph all of its own.

Drusilla's strength is restored by taking the lifeforce from Angel. Interestingly, whilst Spike moves heaven and earth to set this ritual up to restore her strength, he is yet again symbolically castrated by Angel because it is he who provides what Dru needs and Spike merely watches on. Finally, there's the awesome gothic ending which is just exquisite.

I like this episode a lot. Much happens in it. There is much revealed and much progress with the storyline and the character developments. I like too the themes that surface. For me, I am left with the moment of Kendra saying goodbye to Buffy: You talk like its a job but a slayer isn't a job, it's who you are. This job vs calling struggle runs throughout the series and I think Buffy uses the job image when she struggles against that which constrains her but ultimately being a Slayer really is who she is.

Rachel says:
You've pretty much said everything there is to say about this episode, and I can't disagree with much of it. I like Kendra more than you do and I believe her accent is accurate for the location she is supposed to come from (Jamaica?).

The really weak part of this storyline though is the weakness of Angel His being locked in the cage with the flimsiest of locks, to his patheticness at the hands of Drusilla. I can't believe he didn't get angrier, or at least sardonic and broody. He kowtows to her and it's horrible! Also, "lifeforce", Alisa? He's dead! Undeathforce, perhaps?

This is the third appearance of Jonathan, after Inca Mummy Girl and Reptile Boy. He's becoming popular with the writers!

"So I'm wonderin', do the other cookie animals feel sorta ripped? Like is the hippo goin', 'Hey man, where are my pants? I have my hippo dignity.' And, you know, the monkey's just, 'I mock you with my monkey pants!' And then there's a coup in the zoo."

Sneak Peek inside Issue 4!

2008-11-02T21:25:00.000-08:00

Here's a sneak peek inside Issue 4 with a little excerpt from Michael Merriam's story, "All The Leaves Your Bed":

The Tree knew it was dying.

The Tree was a victim of its own success. It had survived season after season, weathering blazing heat, freezing winters, droughts, powerful winds, vicious hail storms, a tornado, a lightning strike. War. But after a mere sixty years, its roots had broken into the decaying sewer system underneath it, crushing the already cracked and leaky lines.

It was poisoned. Anyone could see the dying branches, the slowly weakening trunk folding in on itself, the leaves that never reached their peak. Even if the humans came along and repaired the damage, it was too late. If the poison did not kill the Tree, they would simply cut the Tree down, as they had so many of his fellows during the Great Illness.

The Tree needed someone to pass its spirit to lest everything it had felt, everything it had learned and experienced in its lifetime, be lost.

It considered the small furred and feathered creatures that inhabited its branches, but quickly dismissed them: they had neither the capacity for memory nor the greatness of spirit the Tree required. The Tree gave serious thought to passing its essence to one of the feral cats that roamed the night but decided those creatures’ inherent mystery might prove incompatible with its own spirit. The local canines were all too domestic and reliant on their human masters for the Tree's taste and it disliked them for their crudeness and lack of propriety: they always relieved themselves on his trunk. No, a dog would never do.

Shiny Issue 4 - live!

2008-10-31T05:22:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween!

Issue 4 has finally been released and has been sent out to all subscribers and features:

"Being Bella Wang" by Bren MacDibble
"All the Leaves your Bed" by Michael Merriam
"Skitter Skitter" by Rhonda Parrish
and
Reviews by Tehani Wessely and Tansy Rayner Roberts

To purchase your own copy, click on the button on the sidebar and have it emailed now to your inbox for just AUS$3.

BtVS: 2.09 What's My Line Pt 1

2008-10-30T01:29:00.000-07:00

Alisa says:
I dunno. On rewatching this episode, it was kinda forgettable enough that I forgot what happened in it when I sat down to write this commentary up. But actually the moment where Buffy and Angel are ice skating is unforgettable for me ... I just always forget it happens in this episode! Ahhh ... for me it is always about that moment - Buffy and Angel so desperately trying to pretend or find or make something about their relationship "normal". But really, there is nothing more surreal than a Vampire Slayer ice skating round an empty ice rink with her Vampire Boyfriend. My heart kinda breaks a little every time for them because it's so sweet and innocent and one of the only and first and last innocent moments that they get. Before it all turns horribly wrong and ... you know ... Buffyverse-esque!

Well .. that and the bug guy. Ew! What is it with the bug guy? Yuch!

Rachel says:
I agree the ice skating scene is excellent. It's so poignant that even Buffy's childhood pastimes aren't immune to her present calling.

This episode feels like the coming together of several threads - the insanity of Drusilla is really played up, as is the animosity between Cordelia and Xander.

One of the best moments has to be Buffy thinking that everyone is out to get her. Haven't we all felt like that at some point?

The dialogue in this and the following episode is some of the best of Buffy, and are the first episodes written by Marti Noxon.

"'I aspire to help my fellow man.' Check. As long as he's not smelly, dirty or something gross."

Shiny Wordle

2008-10-27T03:56:00.000-07:00

Here's what I got putting the Shiny blog through Wordle!

Stay tuned - Shiny Issue 4 is so very nearly out!

YA Connection

2008-10-25T07:27:00.001-07:00

YA Connection is a YA blog carnival. Definitely worth a read for new books, book reviews and what YA things are happening round the traps!

BtVS: 2.08 The Dark Age

2008-10-16T03:17:00.000-07:00

Alisa says:

This episode features one of the most memorable Buffy Library scenes for me with her working out to blaring music whilst Giles' "ears bleed". Does she really have to keep up her fitness? And would step aerobics really do it for her? These are the probing questions that come to my mind.

I must admit to having very little interest in Ripper as a character and as a villain. So I'll just note the things *I* was watching during this episode. Is this the first time that we've seen the use of the cage in the library for keeping captives? And on that, *why* does the Sunnydale High School Library have a cage at all? Is it for locking up all the secret and naughty books? And also, I think this is the first episode that we see eyeflashing to depict possession! or evil! It became a bit of a spotter thing around me and my friends parts when mainlining a lot of Buffy in one go. (As did the Jonathan/Random Guy and Credit Shots - if you've noticed in my writeups so far)

Around now there was also a bit of a wardrobe trend of dressing Buffy in shoestring straps with visible bra strap. They had to put a stop to that when SMG started getting lots of letters from men in jail who "enjoyed" the show, shall we say? Yep, nothing but high class commentary from me, all day every day!

Rachel says:

Hmm, I think there was some eyeflashing way back in The Pack, but I never knew the bra strap thing. Kinda wish I didn't now.

But how awesome is Ethan in this episode? Remorseless in so many ways - spilling the beans on Giles' past, and giving a young girl a tattoo to save himself from a demon. I think he might be my favourite baddie.

The ending is a little deus ex machina with Angel running in - I mean, what does he care about Jenny? But I love it anyway.

Lots of tasty tidbits on Giles' past make this a bit more than a monster-of-the-week episode.

"I hope you're not taking this personally, Buffy, I actually kind of like you. It's just that I like myself a lot more."

BtVS 2.07: Lie to Me

2008-10-16T00:27:00.000-07:00

Alisa says (belatedly):

Your heart stinks of her...

There's some great comic moments in this episode coupled with some hints of the darkness that is to come.

Ours is a forbidden love

First I must squee about Ford - whee!! aka Max from Roswell but with new! shiny! earring! That makes him *evil* right? Can Jason Behr ever be anything but a holder of secrets?

Secondly - how 'bout the spooky, spooky opening sequence with Angel and Druscilla? We get the sense that Angel knows Dru just like we already know that Dru knows Spike. Things look like they're gonna get messy.

Ford: He looks older than her.
Xander: You're not wrong.
...
Ford: Woah! Cold Hands.
Xander: You're not wrong.

Xander laughs and then .. wait ... is that double meaning/subtext there, or is it just me? And can I say, when I watched these the first few times round, I never saw such naughtiness. Five years hanging round the places I hang on the 'net have totally ruined me for straight text, now. Yes, yes, pun intended!!!

So, in this episode, everyone is lying to everyone else. Why is it though, that all the live boys that Buffy gets involved with are such dodgy people? It just makes me root all the more for Angel really. And is this the first time Buffy says she loves Angel?

Giles: Buffy, you're not by any chance betraying your secret identity to impress cute guys are you?

hee!!

I love the bit where Angel is walking through the crowd complaining that these people "know nothing about vampires, the way they look, how they dress" and someone wearing exactly what he is walks past. Love love love the comic timing!!

What about my reward?

I found the ending really interesting on this viewing. Buffy hands Ford over to Spike: we'll come back later for the body. Buffy doesn't kill people. After all, she's the good guy. The fact that she doesn't is the stark contrast between her and Faith. Yet, by end of this episode Buffy's white hat status is just that little bit less white.

Nothing is simple any more.

Lie to me.

BtVS: 2.07 Lie To Me

2008-10-13T02:14:00.000-07:00

Rachel says:
This is a great episode for exploring the grey areas between good and evil. Not only with Ford, but how can we forgive Angel the suffering he caused Drusilla in the day? There are some beautiful moments between her and Spike here too. "I'll give you a seed if you sing."

I like the way Lie to Me pokes gentle fun at goths, goth nightclubs and the obsessions that some have with vampires. Which I'm certain BtVS never fueled. No, certainly not. "You look like a ninny."

It's nice to see Chanterelle before she goes on to play Lily/Anne in later episodes and in Angel.

There is nothing really to complain about in this episode aside from some poor make-up, but there isn't anything that makes it outstanding either. I think Lie to Me works better if you recast Ford as Pike (Luke Perry's character in the movie), as I know a lot of people did, but that's probably stretching for references where none were intended.

"The good guys are always stalwart and true, the bad guys are easily distinguished by their pointy horns or black hats and, uh, we always defeat them and save the day. No one ever dies, and everybody lives happily ever after."

BtVS: 2.06 Halloween

2008-07-10T23:21:00.000-07:00

Alisa says:

Continuity issue with the vamp showing up on the video camera in the first scene - I'm sure in Angel there were issues about whether he would show up on video footage ?

So we're still all with the Buffy angst - oh I am a Slayer and I don't get to have any fun. Wah wah wah. And it's Halloween which amusingly in Jossverse is the one night that the evils take a break - it seems this is the only time it's tacky to wreak havoc. According to Buffy, Halloween is the time to dress up as the opposite of what you are and "have a little fun". We see Xander dress up as a soldier and Willow end up as a ghost. Cordelia is a sexy cat woman which I think is her subscribing more to "Halloween is a night to dress up slutty" rather than Buffy's "Come as you aren't". Buffy dresses up as a fair lady from the 1700s - the kind of girl who faints at danger and waits to be rescued by a nice strong man.

So of course the plot twist comes in the form of Ethan - an old friend of Giles' who I always think acts more as a plot device than ever realising the potential that his character could have been. Ethan sets a spell in motion to play, since all the demons are at home watching TV - everyone really becomes the costume that they dressed up in and hilarity, of sorts, ensues. Of course Buffy is totally useless and Xander gets to be the hero that saves the day.

And then we see that of course Buffy likes being Buffy and Angel likes her that way ... awwww

Verdict: "Who is that *girl*?"

Rachel says:

This is the first of the Buffy episodes that broadcast originally (in the States at least) around the time of Halloween each year. Like most dramas, BtVS doesn't react to the outside world apart from the mega-holidays that coincide with screening schedules (the other being Christmas).

This episode keeps a good hold of the tone between humorous and threatening. Gellar's Southern accent is a nice touch although her ongoing "Am I a real girl?" angst is starting to grate.

There is a very intriguing insight into Giles/Ripper's past, but I agree that Ethan is little more than a plot point. It also makes a lie of Giles' earlier claim (in Witch) that he had never cast a spell before.

Other revelations include Cordy learning that Angel is a vampire. "The cuddly kind. Like a Care Bear with fangs." To me this highlights the fact that she never discovered on screen that Buffy is a vampire slayer. During the episode "Out of Sight, Out of Mind" she thinks Buffy is in a gang, after that it is assumed she has learnt somehow of the whole slayer/vampire/demon thing.

Spike and Drusilla return in top form, solidifying their characters - Drusilla has a vision and Spike demonstrates his natural skill in commanding ragtag groups of demons. And yes, the second appearance of Crumpet-Oz!

I find this very satisfying, light Buffy.

Verdict: "Well, this is just... neat."

BtVS: 2.05 Reptile Boy

2008-07-04T22:37:00.000-07:00

Alisa says:

Another kind of throw away episode apart from a few lines of important dialogue for metaplot advancement. Some college guys are part of a secret society that's really just minions for some kind of weird and gross reptile creature. As usual with such demons, they need some sweet virgins to sacrifice and our unsuspecting boy-crazy Cordelia and rebellious havoc-wreaking Buffy get abducted to be fed to the ... reptile boy. It's mostly a stand alone episode that feels much like filler except for us really getting the feeling that Buffy wants to be with Angel and is annoyed that he's holding out and also she's gettin' a bit fed up with the whole being a Slayer who has no fun. Course ... as usual the "having fun" bit backfires. Well it wouldn't be Buffy without that kind of a moral ending, would it?

Verdict: "And you! You're gonna live forever and you don't have time for a cup of coffee?"

Rachel says:

I agree that it's a filler episode, but that doesn't mean it doesn't work. It sets up camp (no pun intented) in the frat house genre of teen movies without apology, and mostly gets it right. This is a good long look at Buffy as a teenager.

More than I think we've seen before Buffy is wanting to belong to the crowd, seeking acceptance, even love (from Angel) with Cordelia and the frat boys providing the necessary, if hackneyed, peer pressure. Then comes the spectacular backfiring. Not only does Buffy let down Giles (the "father") and all her friends, she nearly gets eaten.

Reptile Boy is unsubtle in its theme, but effective, and nails the behaviour of the teenage girls and the frat boys. The limited special effects are artfully disguised by dim lighting and careful camera work.

Thankfully it's not Xander dating the monster for once.

Verdict: "Who needs a social life when you've got your very own Hellmouth?"

BtVS: 2.04 Inca Mummy Girl

2008-07-01T05:41:00.000-07:00

Rachel says:

"Who's that girl?"
"No, the eskimo."

The chief attraction of Inca Mummy Girl it that it includes the first appearance of the indie-girl's bit of crumpet, Oz. Which you almost miss entirely on the first viewing, but is so delightful subsequently.

This is a more obvious and straightforward mystery episode than most. It's so blatantly Buffy playing Nancy Drew or the Scoobies playing Famous Five that they even include the reference to a crime club. It is nice to see Giles and Buffy do some planning and action together, but the plot is so obvious that it is near-painful to watch them running around and filling in time before they can reveal the clear culprit.

As an aside, is anyone else even slightly disturbed by the number of kids who go missing from Sunnydale High with nary a police investigation? No? I'm just saying, there could be a memorial wall or something.

Verdict: "Typical Museum trick. Promise human sacrifice, deliver old pots and pans."

Alisa says:

I didn't miss the first appearance of Oz on the first viewing - I loved how smitten he was with her. It's especially lovely after all the angst Willow's been through over Xander, we know that she has someone very cool and desperately in love with her coming her way!

I agree with how painful this episode is - the plot is very dull and there is very little good dialogue to get you through it. I do love the scene with Buffy training with Giles though. And the appearance of Oz and his band (who play a really great song).

Rachel - I love how there is only ever the one reference to the mortality of Sunnydale Highschool students but that is in many episodes time.

Finally, something I did pick up on this reviewing - the VERY FIRST APPEARANCE of Jonathan. For a very long time, my friends and I called him Random Guy cause he is always the random bystander and here we see his very first guest spot as the almost final victim! Yay Jonathan.

BtVS: 2.03 School Hard

2008-06-26T04:14:00.000-07:00

Rachel says:

The most unfortunate part of this episode is the character of Sheila. Not only does the actor give a pretty uninspiring performance, but the character is so poorly thought through and one dimensional. She's an unconvincing foil to Buffy. Buffy is such a teacher-pleaser in this episode that it's hard to believe she and Sheila can be lumped together for detention even by Snyder. Acting aside, we don't even see Sheila actually do anything bad, except get eaten.

And why was that character so thin? Because all the character development went into the first appearance of everyone's favourite evil couple, Spike and Drusilla. From the first moment you can just tell that these characters are going to be fun and I love knowing what they go on to become.

Without these two this would have been a very silly episode. Buffy trying to integrate her many lives (oil, and water, and a third unmeshable thing) through the mechanism of parent-teacher night was not a terribly interesting storyline. Not only does Spike liven up the scene, he break the rules by not waiting for the night of St Vigious, showing that he is badder than the bad guys. He's so convincing, so genuinely evil he can afford to show that he cares about Drusilla.

There are some clumsy logical errors -- Buffy has time to put her jacket on to save a vampire victim, but not grab a stake? Whoops! -- and Cordelia being crowbarred into the scene in the library to justify her screen credit would have let this episode down badly if not overshadowed by Spike. It is he who holds the episode together. He's such a dynamic character that even Angel pales next to him when they face off. It was inevitable that he and Drusilla would hang around a while to cause more damage.

Verdict: "It's time we had a little less ritual around here, and a little more fun!"

Alisa says:

Hmmm ... I think my favourite bit in this episode is the frigging Annointed One getting his comeuppance - it's so quick and painfree that it almost seems anticlimatic. Almost ... but I hated him, so .. yay!!! I like that Spike whisks in and so effortlessly deals with the remainder of last season's Big Bad. But I must admit that the rest of this episode is a bit meh for me. I mean... I think Spike and Drusilla ride in with such promise about how evil and unremorseful they are going to be, and I guess they are in a way, but knowing where both their character arcs go, I dunno, I felt that this beginning somehow was never really followed through with, in the end. The other thing about Buffy is - it's always the Devil you know that wreaks the most havoc.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 1 Commentary

2008-06-04T07:25:00.001-07:00

Our Buffy The Vampire Slayer Season 1 Retrospective all in one place

Welcome to the Hellmouth
Ben says/Alisa says

The Harvest
Ben says/Alisa says

Witch
Ben says/Alisa says

Teacher's Pet
Ben says

Never Kill A Boy on A First Date
Ben says/Alisa says

The Pack
Ben says/Alisa says

Angel
Alisa says/Ben says

I Robot, You Jane
Ben says/Alisa says

Talent Show
Ben says

Nightmares
Ben says/Alisa says

Out of Mind, Out of Sight
Ben says/Alisa says

Prophecy Girl
Ben says/Alisa says

Rachel's Season Summary
.
.
.

BtVS 2.02 Some Assembly Required

2008-05-29T21:47:00.000-07:00

Rachel says:

After the dismal previous episode this one is a gem. In the vein of Season One's "Witch", we see that in Sunnydale it is not always the demons that are the problem. A very satisfying episode that looks at the pain of loss, matched with a wacky subplot of the early relationship between Giles and Jenny Calendar.

It also manages to be truly icky - both the girl made of parts and the resurrected footballer.
The plot clips along at a neat pace, the jokes are funnier, and information is revealed at the right points. Although it is becoming painful the way that Angel is hanging around for no good reason. It seems where Cordelia can be written into the action almost smoothly, Angel cannot, and vice-versa. He is the awkward hanger-on here.

Particularly sweet is Xander's selfless rescuing of Cordelia from the fire, laying the foundations for a future something...

Verdict: "Grave-robbing? That's new. Interesting!"

Alisa says:

I *know* you meant to say gross and disturbing

Heh. I have to disagree with you again and say I think I really despise this episode. It's too long for its main plot and I just can't engage with the motives of the bad guys in this one. I find it a totally forgettable plot but the episode has some really great scenes and one-liners - always the bit with Cordelia scrounging round in the bin and Angel stumbling upon her. And of course "Love makes you do the whacky". And Xander to Willow at the end " You ever feel like we're playing musical chairs and the music has stopped and we're the only ones left standing" - "All the time".

Other moments for me are the awkward Ms Calendar and Giles getting together, the nice repartee between Buffy and Xander, Willow and Buffy leaning back against a headstone talking about the "sexy dance" from the previous episode whilst Giles and Xander dig up the grave and the "What are we hoping for? Body or no body?" followed by the credit shot of everyone peering into the grave.

It occurs to me in rewatching this episode, that it's just as well Cordelia is shallow - how else would she cope with being the bait or the victim all the time? It kinda makes me love her - the way she burns her clothes and bounces back.

BtVS: 2.01 When She Was Bad

2008-05-24T06:43:00.000-07:00

Rachel Says:

I didn't want to start off this series of reviews by being all negative, but this is a poor example of Buffy. Not only is the main character behaving completely unlike herself, the inconsequential plot is laden with melodrama and the jokes are beyond awful. There's a cheesey training montage backed by what sounds like the dregs of an 80s hair band and even worse soap-opera music at the end.

The weird dream is an interesting point, but fails to elicit an emotional response after the initial viewing, and then doesn't really lead to anything. It is not as portent-ful as Buffy's dreams are supposed to be.

Cordelia does get some great moments and lines -- confronting Buffy in the alley and mistaking the Three Musketeers for the Three Stooges -- even though the actor, Charisma Carpenter, is obviously hampered by a bad cold.

Nevertheless this is our first look at Buffy as a dark and withdrawn character. She turns away from her friends in her time of crisis, which becomes a recurring theme. She becomes more withdrawn until she snaps and is forced to make talcum powder of her enemies. Although it plays badly here, it is an interesting early taste of what is to come in later seasons.

If this had been your first experience of BtVS you would not be blamed for never returning.

Verdict: "I hate that girl."

Alisa says:

I didn't hate this episode nearly as much, or even at all, as you did. I think in part that’s because I went straight from Season 1 into Season 2 in the one hour. There was a lot of continuity that worked for me that way.

There’s so much bittersweetness in this episode. The opening scene of Xander and Willow doing what they would be doing had Buffy never come to Sunnydale makes my heart ache - the cute thing with the ice cream on Willow's nose and the very almost kiss? This scene leaves me wondering - if Buffy had never come to Sunnydale, would Xander and Willow have gotten together? They would, right?

Cue Buffy back from summer holidays visiting her dad - new haircut making her look more grownup, reflecting the whole 'coming of age baptism' she had in the Season 1 finale. There's a new edge to her. And there's also something up with her.

As an aside,I also really liked the scene with her parents discussing her well being. I liked that Buffy was clearly more important to them than whatever happened to their relationship. You never really see her parents interact again. And we know that Buffy never really gets to feel that collective love from her parents. It's very noticeably missing in the rest of the show.

Quickly we are back to Buffy and her atitude towards being the Slayer:
Buffy: You're the Watcher, I just work here

But we also get a bit of an insight into what's up with her:
Giles: Fair to say that you stayed in shape
Buffy: Whatever they got coming next, I'm ready

But I liked the contrast to the Buffy in the final scenes of the Season 1 finale where here there's also a new sense of fragility and mortality about Buffy. We see that in the dream sequence: I’ve killed you once, shouldn't be too difficult to do it again.

Being the Buffy/Angel fan that I am, I love the angst of their miscommunicated: "I've missed you" and I love the bit where Angel checks in with Buffy because he thinks she might be angr with him. I love how for someone so OOOLD as Angel, we still get snippets of adolescent from him.

The line by Buffy to Cordelia: "You won't tell anyone I'm the slayer and I won't tell anyone you're a moron" is so out of character that it is so memorable for me. It jars because it's so harsh and unexpected. And I love that even so, Cordelia is still the one that kicks some sense into Buffy. No matter how hard she fights it, Cordelia is in the gang.

But for me, this episode is always have THAT sexy dance with Xander in front of Angel. It harks strongly back to the moment of the dead/undead contrast between Xander and Angel set up in Season 1 finale. It's so extremely hurtful to both Angel and Willow. And Xander ultimately. And it's also I think the only time we ever see Buffy choose Xander over Angel, and much as he wants it to be true, you can see even he struggles to believe it.

Buffy: Xander, did I ever thank you for saving my life?
Xander: No
Buffy: Don't you wish I would?

Unlike you, Rachel, I liked some of the silly jokes:
Undead American.

And I love the joke for Snyder:
S: Some things I can just smell it. It's like a sixth sense
G:That would be one of the five

I love the underlying theme of friends having your back that runs through the whole show.
Willow: What about the other half of the note .... the bit that says PS this is a trap

Ultimately this is a major part of why Buffy is ongoingly successful and where one of her strengths lays but it just takes her a while to get it.
Buffy: This is Slayer business, a little less from the civilians please.

Finally, I love the moment near the end where Buffy asks Angel: "You think you can take me?... Go on! Kick my ass." It reminds me of the scene in Season 4 where she and Riley see who is stronger by beating each other up. Why does she keep goading her men to hit her? It's a bit off.

I think this episode is a good start for Season 2. It's got light and dark, bitch and snark. It picks up where we left off but it also sets up a lot of angst for us in the coming season. I can't wait!

Shiny Blog welcomes Rachel Holkner!

2008-05-18T20:17:00.000-07:00

Welcome aboard to Rachel Holkner who has joined me, Alisa, in the Buffy retrospective from Season 2 onwards. Rachel thought it best to give a brief introduction by way of a summary of her thoughts on Season 1, below.

Rachel and I are working on a new format for the episode by episode commentaries and are aiming to post the first episode for Season 2 later this week. In the meantime here's a quick "Previously, on Buffy the Vampire Slayer".

BtVS Season One - Overview

I thought I'd start reviewing Buffy with an overview of Season One. Ben and Alisa have already done a great job hashing over each episode individually, but for completeness sake I wanted to start at the beginning.

I remember very distinctly watching the first episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I had never heard of the movie, but had seen the show advertised and it looked like my cup of tea. There was nothing much on TV at that time that suited me, I was living in a lousy share house, fumbling through a mediocre university course and I needed a new escape. So, all excited I curled up on the floor on the night it premiered (the couch was fourth-hand and too lumpy to actually be used), scooting up close like I was a kid again watching Saturday morning cartoons.

It was unfortunate that I had built it up so much because no show could survive that kind of expectation*. Although BtVS would turn out to be exactly what I (and millions of others) needed to see, the first episode is not typical. In fact it has a distinctly different mood to even the second episode. Welcome to the Hellmouth does a fine job of introducing this new and complicated world, vampire lore, the destiny of the Slayer as well as introducing a dozen brand new characters. But it's distinctly Californian, something the writers quickly chose to move away from, thank goodness, and make the show more universal with it's own distinct voice.

We learn some important lessons in the first couple of episodes, not least of which is that anyone is fair game. Creator Whedon has been known to take this to extremes of late. Another important lesson being that high school is as ridiculous and amusing as it is terrifying.

The next few episodes begin to explore the world around Buffy and vary in tone and quality. Witch is a great early episode showing that it's not always demons behind the weeks' horror. Teacher's Pet I find fairly weak, Never Kill a Boy... also, but it shows how desperate Buffy is to be normal despite her impressive calling. I love The Pack, the gang of high school kids is believably nasty, the way they work as a team to magnify their cruelty is something I still cringe at. Angel I find largely forgettable, even though it contains the first kiss and the crucial revelation of Angel's vampire-ness and curse. The Three are a threat so briefly, but then there is Darla's ingenious attack on Joyce. Is it wrong that I find that so clever?

I Robot, You Jane works very well largely because we've already all fallen in love with Willow. She brings out the protective instincts in all of us in the early seasons. The introduction of Jenny Calendar is also timely, the lack of teachers at Sunnydale High was becoming noticeable.

The next three episodes, The Puppet Show, Nightmares and Out of Mind, Out of Sight are my picks for Season One. Although they are each standalone episodes they work well as a trilogy of sorts. Each takes a new fear and exploits it in a different way. Each has an unexpected and effective twist and each has an introduced character that we can sympathise with as well as be scared stupid by. These episodes are where BtVS really finds its feet and strides confidently.

The final episode, Prophecy Girl is a mixed bag. The Master has been a presence throughout the season, but I'm not convinced that he makes a truly convincing villain. The Anointed One is far more creepy in my book - at least he can directly confront our heroine! Yes, this episode is dramatic and scary, but it is hampered by clumsy dialogue. But it works in the end. We're rooting for Buffy the whole time as she tries to escape her destiny by quitting (although we knew she wouldn't really) and in the end she brings out the best in everyone around her.

Season One Verdict: "We saved the world. I say we party."

*Firefly excepted.

Prophecy Girl

2008-05-18T05:39:00.000-07:00

So, the finale episode for Season 1. I've been putting off posting on this episode and I think it's mostly because I have so much to say about it but also because it would have to be up there as one of the most important episodes of the show for me (along with The Gift, Hush, The Body and I'm sure a bunch of others which I'll point out on the way). For me it's such an important episode because it sealed the deal - I was well and truly hooked on this ride by this episode. It wraps up the season - whether Buffy likes it or not, she's the Slayer and will rise to the occasion. By this episode, the Scoobies have formed a tight group. And in this episode, Joss Whedon does something that augers great great writing lies before us - he breaks the rules and kills off the main characer. You can't do that! And yet, Joss shows us that yet he can and he will and he will do it over and over and over. And he'll tease and taunt us - sometimes its the end and sometimes not and he will always leave us guessing till the very end. But the best thing about Joss is he never takes it back ('cept for that ep in Angel, but we'll get there ...)

Joss breaks all the rules, he keeps us guessing and he does it with a brilliant sense of humour.

So, the prophecy: the Master shall rise and the Slayer shall die.

Such a serious episode which opens with an ominous earthquake heralding the final days of drama and stuff and then the Master looks at the Annointed One and quips: What d'you think? 5.1?

This episode is filled with lots (more) of angst and some climax moments that we have been stumbling towards all season. Xander finally bites the bullet and puts his cards on the table with Buffy, only to be rebuffed. It's horrible and we watch and admire his bravery but squint to look away, knowing he will be turned down. Willow too gets her moment when Xander then turns to her and wants to take her to the dance instead of Buffy. We applaud Willow when she declines and wince knowing how hard that must have been to do since she really would love to go with him. It's time for me to fall hard for Willow - so strong in character, she wants Xander on her terms or not at all. Go girl power!

Buffy will face the Master and she will die - the discussion between Angel and Giles about the prophecy is the first of many instances where they try to shield Buffy from the horrible truth. They do it because they love her but in so doing, they underestimate her strength and power and wits. Again and again she thwarts the prophecies and rises to whatever challenge comes her way.

I love the bit straight after their conversation where Buffy finds out about the prophecy and tries to avoid it - she's still so young here and in a way a childis response in that she tries to run away from something that she doesn't want to have to deal with. Later on in the series, she has accepted her duty and just gets on with it. But later in the series, she has experienced the rest of this episode ... But here we see how Buffy always views "being the Chosen One" as a job and not as a birthright or a part of her makeup. It's something she shows up to do and chooses to do and therefore, at any point she has an exit or an option to decline.

Buffy: Read me the signs!
Tell me my fortune!
Giles, I'm 16 years old... I don't want to die.

Oddly, early in this episode Joyce gives Buffy her prom dress. It's an odd moment almosy the only one in the whole series where she's cool and clued up. But it also makes her one who dresses Buffy up in her "virginal sacrifice" look for the rest of the episode.

One of the memorable scenes for me is the moment where Willow realises, I think, once and for all that this is serious and real and seriously real.
Willow: I've seen so much. I thought I could take anything. This was difficult ... I'm trying to explain it so you understand ... I go to that room everyday. When I walked in, it wasn't our world anymore. They made it theirs. And they had fun. What are we going to do?
Buffy: What we have to do - and yay she's back! And she's the Buffy that we come to know and love - dong the right thing, doing what has to be done even whilst knowing it means she could/will get killed in the process.
(Willow: Buffy I like your dress)

I love Ms Calendar and so I love that this is the episode where she finally is let into the fold:
The part that gets me, though, is where Buffy is the vampire slayer. She's so little.

Ms Calendar: You fight the Master and you'll die.
Buffy: Maybe. Maybe I'll take him with me.

I love the little wave out to the Trekkies amongst us, I guess cause I am one, with the following quote:
Xander: I'm sorry, calm may work for Locutus of the Borg here,
(indicates Giles) but I'm freaked out, and I intend to stay that way.

And the slight begrudging of letting someone else into the circle:
Willow of Ms Calendar: How come she's in the club?

One of the most iconic images is Buffy as she heads off on her own to meet her destiny in white dress, leather jacket (Angel's), cross around her neck and armed with the crossbow.

When Xander goes to Angel for help to find Buffy after she leaves to take on the Master on her own we root for him for being so brave or for how deeply his love for Buffy is.
Angel: You're in love with her.
Xander: Aren't you?
I'm never really sure which it is and it has me wondering if his love for Buffy is his motive throughout the series. At this point in the show, it certainly feels that way and standing here and looking down the barrel to all that happens, it feels creepy. But I think perhaps with his falling for other girls, that must move to a platonic love because it never really feels that way later.

I love the odd moments that Joss Whedon chooses to break the fourth wall and to be self conscious and make fun of himself, like in this remark from the Master:
Oh good the feeble banter portion of the fight

And his use of humour in the oddest moments. Xander has been avoiding Angel all season because of his jealousy over Buffy. That makes this scene work so well:

Xander: You were looking at my neck.
Angel: What?
Xander: You were checking out my neck! I saw that! (starts following)
Angel: No, I wasn't!
Xander: Just keep your distance, pal.
Angel: I wasn't looking at your neck!
Xander: I told you to eat before we left.

I love the running comments on Buffy's dress all the way through. Even the Master has a go:
Master: And by the way...
She falls face down into the pool of water.
Master: I like your dress.

And she's dead. Joss actally kills off the lead character in the show named after her. Up till this point, you're sure somehow the prophecy is wrong. I mean, Buffy *can't* die, obviously. It's *her* show. And then ... she is! And what does it mean? It means all bets are off - and you always remember, throughout the series. And the other thing we learn to remember is not to take the text at face value:
Xander finally gets to kiss Buffy - by giving her the kiss of life. Just like everything in this episode, things read one way but the act means another. You can never ever get comfortable and think you know where things are at in Buffy. I really love the interesting contrast between Xander and Angel in this scene. Whilst Xander gives Buffy the kiss of life, Angel can only ever give her the kiss of eternal life (or death).

Straight after this shocking scene, we get some comic relief with Cordelia driving her car to the library. Through the school. Who pays for all the reconstruction of the school buildings after each season finale?

And then we have the climax for his scene and for the season:
Xander: No. You're still weak.
Buffy: (stops) No. No, I feel strong. I feel different.

Has her death and her revival changed her? *Is* she different? Cue the cool theme music and Buffy strutting through the streets and suddenly her virginal white dress looks wayyyy sexier. Suddenly she's more confident than we've ever seen her. Perhaps her rebirth *has* changed her. Perhaps she has finally realised that fate and destiny are hers for the taking and that prophecy is in the eye of the beholder.

Buffy: I may be dead but I'm still pretty.
Master: You were destined to die! It was written!
Buffy: What can I say? I flunked the written.

The Master's death has to be the best, most inventive, think-on-your-feet slaying of the whole series. And in a way, kind of anti-climatic - the final fight scene is not 3 minutes long.
Buffy: You're that amped about Hell... (grabs him by the neck) Go there!
And the Master gets impaled (but doesn't get dusted).

In the final scene we see that 1 (Slayer) became 4 (Watcher and two best friends), which became 6 (The Scoobies).

Buffy: Oh, sorry. It's just been a really weird day. (smiles)
Xander: Yeah! Buffy died, and everything!
Willow: Wow! Harsh.
Giles: I should have known that wouldn't stop you.

And ... after all the drama:
Buffy: Sure! We saved the world. I say we party! (looks down at her
dress) I mean, I got all pretty.
Angel: By the way, I really like your dress.
Buffy: Yeah, yeah. Big hit with everyone.

And so we are left with the dress as the final image - the virgin sacrifice which Buffy was and made but which threw the tradition on its head. Our virgin throws on a leather jacket, comes back from death and slays the monster.

And I guess that probably sums up the show pretty darn nicely.

Shiny Competition Announcement

2008-05-13T01:14:00.001-07:00

Unfortunately, due to a lack of submissions, we are declaring the Shiny Short Story Writing competition null for 2008.

Thank you to those entries and interest we did receive.

Shiny Submission Guidelines Update

2008-05-12T22:52:00.000-07:00

Shiny is now closed to submissions. Thank you for your support over the last two years.

Shiny is looking for fresh, entertaining stories between 2000 and 8000 words long. The style and substance of Shiny stories should be up there with the best current YA fiction, and should (for the most part) feature teenage protagonists. We're mostly interested in stories with speculative elements - science fiction, fantasy and horror - but we're open to non-speculative stories that would appeal to genre readers [as with, for example, So Yesterday by Scott Westerfeld, Boy Proof by Cecil Castelucci, or "Anda's Game" by Cory Doctorow]. We prefer a contemporary setting and/or feel to our stories, but will not let this restrict our choices. Shiny is aiming to appeal to teenagers, but also to the wide body of adults who read and enjoy Young Adult fiction. We look forward to reading your submissions!

Who: the editorial board consists of Alisa Krasnostein, Ben Payne and Tansy Rayner Roberts
How: send your submission in rtf attachment to shinystories@gmail.com. Keep an eye on our blog at http://shinymag.blogspot.com for more about what we're looking for.

Payment: AUS$50 per story

Rights: First International e-rights, and exclusivity for three months after first publication. We are not looking to reprint stories that have been previously published in print or online.

Out of Mind, Out of Sight

2008-04-13T00:39:00.000-07:00

There's two things about this episode of Buffy that make it memorable for me. The first is the idea that someone could become invisible because to everyone else, they are already so. I quite like the idea of that. But also, I just really really relate to feeling so invisible that you may as we already be. And who can't relate to that? We've all been there at some point in time. It's just a really good high school moment, I think, taken to it's sort of (?) logical conclusion. And I often think back to Marcy when I'm in a social situation where I feel invisible, or wish I was.

Course I wouldn't beat someone up with a bat if I were invisible. *That's* a bit crazy.

The second thing about this episode that I always think back to is that scene after Cordelia has engaged Buffy's help and she talks about how she can feel so alone even when she's surrounded by people. And that she sees people being so busy rushing to agree with her that they never really listen to hear what she has to say. Such a contrast to Marcy yet the endpoint of feeling alone is the same. I too can relate to feeling alone even when in the thick of things and I like that Cordelia can take a step back and see things from a distance. For me, this glimpse at her is a foreshadowing of her character to come.

I also love the bit where Cordelia comes to Buffy - in the hopes that she's in a gang. I love that even though Cordelia is so self obsessed and has been blowing Buffy off (as we see in the beginning of this episode), there's lots of things about Buffy that she's noticed and noted. And whilst this too foreshadows Cordelia's eventual joining of the group, I like that just *someone* else is paying attention at Sunnydale High. I was starting to worry!

Prophecy Girl

2008-03-17T01:13:00.000-07:00

Ben says:

Let me introduce you to the Joss Whedon recipe:

1) Introduce us to a bunch of characters
2) Make us love them.
3) F*#k them up.

Over the season we've grown to care about Buffy, Willow and Xander, both as individuals and as a group. this season finale has little of the build up of later ones, but Whedon compensates by taking an axe to our favourite characters' feelings and relationships. We care about all three of our leads, but it's impossible for all three of them to get what they want. The scene where Xander asks Buffy out is heartbreaking, more so because we know how inevitable her answer is. But at the same time our feelings are dragged through the wringer for Willow, who is forced to watch it all and then be asked to be a pawn to make Buffy jealous.

And then of course Buffy herself is thrust into a situation which encapsulates one of the central conflicts of the first season: the choice between being The Slayer and being an ordinary teen. Buffy tries for a while to hang onto the notion that she has a choice, but of course there is no choice at all; like growing up, there is no way to unlearn once you've seen the world as it is. There's no way to close your eyes, to go back to the innocence you once enjoyed.

All of our central characters are given some nice moments, and there is real poignancy at several parts of the episode. We see Buffy moved by Willow's hurt, we see Xander's love overcoming his jealousy, we see Buffy accept her destiny with all the pain it entails. And the victory takes us back to the things we learned in episode one; that what makes Buffy more than any old slayer is the friendships she has formed. It means a lot more now that we've been through a year's worth of adventures, as we've seen the dynamic between the four central characters grow. It's the difference between knowing something and feeling it.

Anyway, it's a fitting end to the series. There wasn't much of an arc in this season compared to those to follow. The big bad is fairly simple, and there aren't a lot of character curveballs. The first season is really about the developing closeness between Buffy, Xander, Willow and Giles, and it's that dynamic which makes this episode work, and makes it a fitting finale.

I give it five dead Buffys.

Is Young Adult SF/F Too Explicit?

2008-03-16T23:04:00.000-07:00

That's the topic of discussion over at the Mind Meld. Check out what Ellen Datlow, Gwenda Bond and others have to say on the matter here

Out of Mind, Out of Sight

2008-03-13T02:28:00.003-07:00

Buffy: If you feel so alone, why do you work so hard at being popular?
Cordelia: Well it beats being alone all by yourself.

Out of Mind, Out of Sight

Ben says:

This season sure pulls out some fantastic metaphors for teenage life. In this episode, Cordelia is threatened by a girl who has been ignored, looked through, brushed aside, so often she became invisible. Who has never known how that felt?

In this episode, though, it’s pushed to extremes. The flashbacks of Marcy’s life are truly heartbreaking, and the fact that even the nice kids like Willow and Xander don’t remember her make the story even sadder. Marcy is probably the most sympathetic psycopath so far.

There’s not quite the same level of drama as the last two episodes, but there are some nice moments, including a rare glimpse into the human side of Cordelia, even if Whedon undercuts it (believably) later on. On the whole, it continues the impression that the show has kicked into gear. It doesn’t really feel like the penultimate episode, but then it’s a short season.

I didn’t entirely buy the use of the X-Files type FBI agents who turn up at the end. It’s clever, but it didn’t feel entirely believable in terms of the Buffyverse. If the FBI are that interested in supernatural occurrences, surely they’d be turning up a lot more often.

There’s not a lot to say about the episode really. It’s a simple, effective metaphor. There’s a little interplay between Willow and Xander that give us a taste of Buffy not quite belonging. I can’t remember if this thread is taken up in later episodes. I guess we’ll find out!

Anyway, we’re about done with Season 1! Roll on the finale!

This one gets three and a half Harmonies rolling down the stairs.

Nightmares

2008-03-12T03:35:00.000-07:00

Alisa says:

This episode is always an uncomfortable one for me to sit through because it's about fear, and core fear - the fear you don't want anyone else to know grips you in the middle of the night. What if suddenly everyone could see, nay experience, what you feared most? There's some kind of fear in that too - the being stripped naked and judged by what you fear. And the two fears that I really relate to in this episode are Buffy's - becoming that which you most hate (whatever that may actually be) and Willow's. In fact, when I was learning to get over my own fear of public speaking, I once gave a speech that included this very thing - Willow's fear of singing in public from this very episode.

I love this episode but it's not one I enjoy sitting through - there's spiders and clowns and permanent night and *shiver*

New Moon

2008-03-12T03:27:00.000-07:00

So, I'm about 200 pages into Stephenie Meyers' New Moon, the sequel to Twilight. Gosh this is a totally different book to the first one, isn't it?

Don't check the comments if you don't want to be spoiled.

Nightmares

2008-03-10T03:19:00.000-07:00

Willow: So why is this happening?
Giles: Billy.
Xander: Well, that explanation was shorter than usual. It's Billy!

Ben says:

Wow. This is a classic Buffy standalone, and really a great example of what the early seasons are all about.

A mysterious young boy appears and suddenly everyone's nightmares start coming true.

Simple idea, but it's used here to great effect. Wheden and Greenwalt explore some of the absolute archetypal teenage (and indeed adult) nightmare scenarios: forgetting the history test, turning up to class naked, fear of spiders, fear of clowns, fear of turning up to sing soprano and not knowing the words (or how to sing). There's barely a stone of subconscious paranoia left unturned and there are some great laughs along the way.

But like the best Buffy episodes, this one pulls the rug out from under us, and it gets really dark and sinister, with the gradual revelations regarding Billy's attack, as well as the escalating danger to the others. The moment where Giles encounters Buffy's grave is movingly done, and the finale with the "Lucky nineteen" thing still chills me. It's here that Buffy does what it does best; provides an intersection between the comfort of the fantastic and the horror of real life.

One of the highlights of season 1 for my money, it gets five Singing Willows.

Talent Show

2008-03-06T02:12:00.000-08:00

Buffy: Could I have a little support here? I'm not just some crazy person. I'm the slayer!
Xander: The dummy slayer? (awkard silence) There's nothing funny about that.

Ben says:

Okay, let's say this up front. Buffy is right: Ventriloquist dummies are creepy. Any episode with a live puppet who has some kind of control over its master is already several steps ahead in the spooky stakes. Poor old Morgan does such a good job or portraying the fear and confusion created by Sid's life, it's impossible not to feel the freakiness.

This isn't just a scary episode, it's also one of the funniest so far. Any episode that opens with Cordelia singing The Greatest Love of All is gonna have to work hard to top that, but there are some classic lines in this episode. My favourite:

Willow: It could be anyone! It could be me. It's not, though.

And Giles's facial expressions during the auditions alone are worth watching the entire episode for.

We also meet Principal Snyder for the first time, and what a fantastic first episode he gets, describing his predecessor's attitude as "The kind of wooly-headed liberal thinking that leads to being eaten". This is just one of many awesome lines that Snyder gets. There is also something undeniably sinister about him here. He is set up quite clearly as a fearsome and unpleasant force at the school, and a thorn in Buffy's side.

There are a few clever twists, and we get to see Giles in danger again, which always raises the stakes (Giles or Willow in danger = Ben on edge of seat). And Sarah Michelle Gellar manages to create poignancy out of a scene with a plastic doll... I am actually realising more so this time around than the first time I watched, what a fantastic actress she is.

And I love the ending. "I don't get it. What is it, avant garde?" followed by a very funny rendition of Oedipus the King.

What's not to like about this episode really?

I give it four spooky dummies.

Twilight

2008-03-06T01:11:00.001-08:00

Is anyone out there a fan of Stephanie Meyers' Twilight series?

I just finished Twilight and would love to debrief!

Shiny 2008 Writing Competition Form

2008-03-04T21:50:00.001-08:00

Below you can find the form for entry to the Shiny Writing Competition for 2008. Contact the Shiny editors if you have any problems with it or you can't email this into us - for postal or fax information -- shinystories@gmail.com

I Robot You Jane

2008-03-04T21:23:00.000-08:00

Alisa says:

The final scene of this episode pretty much sums up what I love about it:

Willow: "Malcolm. Moloch. Whatever he's called. The one boy that's really liked me and he's a demon robot. What does that say about me?"
Buffy: "Doesn't say anything about you."
Willow: "I mean, I thought I was really falling..."
Buffy: "Hey, did you forget? The one boy I've had the hots for since I moved here? Turned out to be a vampire."
Xander: "Right, and the teacher I had a crush on? Giant preying mantis."
Willow: "That's true."
Xander: "That's life on the Hellmouth."
Buffy: "Let's face it. None of us are ever gonna have a happy, normal relationship."
Xander: "We're doomed!"
Willow: "Yeah!"
(everyone laughs then everyone goes silent)

Uhuh.

And that's kinda what Buffy is all about really - the awkwardness of high school, and well, my life, where nothing ever seems to come off just right and everybody else is having the life that you kinda want.

But for me, the main plot is a side issue. I feel bad for Willow that this is the most attention she's ever received from a boy and that maybe that is the reason she is so easily caught off guard by this demon. But ... the rest of this plot is kinda ... yawn ... after the first time you see it.

To me, this episode is all about Miss Calendar! Who rocks! It's about time that another adult joins the circle - it was getting a bit creepy with Giles hanging out mainly with our trio in all his spare time. Surely he needs adult conversation once in a while? Like, about taxes or whatever. And the coolest scene is where he gets up the courage to stammer "there's a demon in the internet" and she calmly looks back, unblinking, and replies "I know". Plus, she's kinda hot.

Of course, her own background story, which is soon to be revealed, does dampen the impact of her being all wiccan and down with the hellmouth and all that on subsequent viewings.

It's kinda like Trent Jamieson's "Small Change"

2008-03-04T21:16:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Rachel who sent us in this link to a blog post about another house that had a mysterious room behind a book case.

Check it out here

I can't decide if what was behind the bookcase is more or less creepy than in Trent's story.

I Robot, You Jane

2008-03-01T19:26:00.000-08:00

Jenny: Wrong and wrong, snobby. You think the realm of the mystical is limited to ancient texts and relics. Since bad old science made the magic go away? The divine exists in cyberspace, same as out here.

Ben says:

Finally! A Willow story! After a couple of Xander stories it's about time Willow gets some play.

Willow gets herself an internet boyfriend, but her buddies suspect something is not right.

Buffy's overprotective nature is easy to identify with. Willow is just so adorable in these episodes that we immediately feel afraid for her, both physically and, in terms of her recent hurt at Xander's lack of attention, emotionally.

Xander's jealousy is cute, and Buffy has him pegged; "You got used to being the belle of the ball."
There's kind of a dark side to their protective sides too, though. Willow is clearly a little hurt that everyone assumes her love interest must be a psycho, and that's understandable too. Willow wants to believe that she's loveable.

Also, Jenny Calendar! I'd forgotten she appeared this early in the series. It's good to see her interplay with Giles. It would have been easy to give Giles a straw-man opponent in the arguments over technology, but Jenny gives as good as she gets.

Giles: It's been so nice talking to you.
Jenny: We were fighting.
Giles: We must do it again some time.

Jenny, too, is more than she seems, as we discover later in the episode. It's a nice surprise.

Again, this episode suffers a little from being quite linear and predictable. The sense of menace grows but there are few real surprises. Or perhaps I've seen it too many times.

The notion that a scanner can release a demon instead of a human reader is a cool one though.
And as the stakes grow the threat seems scarier. And anytime Willow is in danger the level of drama is immediately raised.

I didn't think the story made as much as it could have of some of the interplay between the scoobies, but then I guess not every episode can. And Willow gets a nice moment of hurt and anger at the end. Also, the final bonding moment between the three leads sharing their doomed relationships with monsters is classic.

I give it three ghosts in the machine.

Angel

2008-03-01T18:47:00.000-08:00

Willow: So he is a good vampire. I mean, on a scale of one to ten.

Ben says:

Since Alisa has declared her own bias, I'll declare mine.

The first time I watched Buffy season one I hated the Buffy/Angel bits, for two reasons.

1) Any time a show has two leads who are *obviously* going to get together, I don't want them to.

2) Angel is a bit of a romantic lead cliche. "Oh, I'm so dark and mysterious, dangerous with a past, older than you, and I have a terrible secret, and did I mention I work out? And oh man, now my shirt's chafing me, mind if I take it off?"

Yawn. Excuse me while I fetch my barf bag. Why not just rope Tori Spelling in as a romantic interest for Xander and we can flush the whole series down the toilet?

Of course, having seen the rest of the series, I now know that Whedon has more interesting things in mind for Buffy and Angel, and this episode is a lot more interesting when you know some of the things that are being set up here.

This isn't a bad episode. The romantic storyline is set up early and pretty quickly undercut by the revelation of Angel's vampireliness. Gellar gets some good chances to play hurt and she does it well. After Buffy's recent troubles with boys, this one comes as a kick in the teeth, and Buffy's mixed feelings are complex and believable. "What it a joke? To make me feel for you?"

We get some nice interplay from the scoobies, with Xander demonstrating confusion and jealousy and Willow slipping into confidante mode. There are, as Alisa has already listed, some snappy one-liners between the four leads.

This is also the first sense we get of the danger that Buffy's mum is placed in through her lifestyle.

We actually get some nice stuff with the Master, for the first time, really. His place as villain of the season is starting to emerge. Darla is a great character here, serving as the embodiment of Angel's dark past. She's also probably the most threatening vampire we've encountered so far, and helps to give a sense that Buffy's job is going to be tougher than thrust and move on.

I got a bit annoyed with the coincidences; Buffy walking in on Angel holding Joyce, the misunderstanding when Joyce talks about Buffy's "friends". It all got a bit English farce for me at one point.

Despite my Buffy/Angel reservations, the scene where Buffy and Angel confront one another is quite poignant, with their acceptance of life's complexities, chiefly because Sarah Michelle Gellar acts it so strongly.

And the ending is quite nice. So all up, a better episode than I remembered it. Not one of my favourites, but a good arc-building ep with some nice moments.

I give it three tortured souls.

Angel

2008-03-01T03:47:00.000-08:00

Alisa says:

Okay, I probably should have declared this upfront. I'm a massive Buffy/Angel fan. I mean *massive*. Enormous. The biggest. I love love love love them. And I'm also reading Stephanie Meyers' Twilight right now. So ahh ... yeah that may colour your view of me. I'm a hopeless romantic.

So ... sigh ... now we come to the first big Buffy/Angel episode. Yummy!! OMG - when they are in the kitchen and we see Angel's eagle tattoo? Okay, I'm also a David Boreanaz fan. Mmmmm..... But seriously, all that topless close up action and tension whilst Buffy is finding a bandaid. Yeah, you had me at "take off your shirt". Aside: they just encountered The Three and Angel is hurt - would a bandaid *seriously* sort that out?! But nevermind...

Willow: How is it that you always know all this stuff? I never know this stuff.
Giles: Yes well you weren't here researching it from Midnight to 6am
Willow: No. I was sleeping.

Plot - oh yes, there is one. The Master is grumpy cause there is a Slayer in town messing with all his plans. He sends The Three to take her out. They fail. Then Darla hatches a plan to set Buffy and Angel up so that Angel wil take out the Slayer.

This episode also brings us the first Buffy/Angel kiss and Angel's big revelation. Xander (You're in love with a vampire? Are you out of your mind?) gets a chance to be the moral compass by being the one to point out that Buffy has to kill Angel (although he's somewhat biased in terms of the outcome).

Other memorable moments include the Bronze pre- and post-fumagation parties (What's the difference between this and the prefumigation party - more partier roaches); some early Cordelia/Xander time (It's not true what everyone's saying. You don't look like a hooker in that dress.) And Xander's offer for Buffy to stay at his house till it all "blows over".

One of my all time favourite scenes is the one of the weapons training in the library:
Goodbye stakes, hello flying fatality!

I'm not going to need pads to fight you.

And some really great one-liners:
Buffy: 'A' stands for Ahmed, a charming foreign exchange student.

Cordelia: This is a knock off! This is exactly what happens when you sign these free trade agreements.

The Master: Angel, he was the most vicious creature I ever met. I miss him.

Willow: It is kinda novel how he'll stay young and beautful forever. Although you'll get wrinkly and die. Oh! What about the children?

But there is just so much jam packed into this episode.

Did you think she would look at your face, your true face, and give you a kiss?
For me it hits home what this episode is about with Darla's taunting of Angel. There's so much double speak in that - firstly, the revelation of his secret - his true face - it's the most personal thing you can ever show someone else, who you really are. And it's such a powerful YA theme - high school so often a time for awakening self awareness and the defining of one's identity. And the awkwardness that comes with being an adolescent and not really wanting to be different. That line always reminds me of a scene in Babylon 5 where it's the Minbari tradition to watch one's beloved sleep in order for them to reveal their "true face". But of course there's the other double speak here for "give you a kiss" which also means the bite of a vampire.

In this scene with Darla, we see so much of Angel's past revealed and we begin to see how tortured he is. But it's not till his showdown with Buffy at the end when he just wants her to end it for him (I did it with a song in my heart) that we discover he is in excruciating mental anguish: you have no idea what it's like to have done the things i've done and to care. Which of course makes him all the hotter - to both Buffy, and me!

There's two other great things about this episode I want to touch on. First, it marks the first in the long Buffy tradition of donning the BLACK LEATHER and using the crossbow for all the serious showdowns and duels. Here, both Buffy and Angel don the black leather pants and frankly, it looks *awewsome* in the darkened warehouse against the red pool table. This is also the scene I was thinking of earlier (post from a few back) with Darla and the guns and the staking.

The second thing I want to touch on is that this for me is the first episode where we see the group as a solid entity. When Giles discovers that Darla was involved in the drinking of Buffy's Mum he leaves the room and says to Willow and Xander: We have a problem. The "we" is really touching here because it was Buffy who was the target and Buffy who is on the vengeance gig but the other three are in, no questions asked. This is important, I think, because from the next episode on they start allowing others to know their secret and to join their group.

But still ... you can't beat the heart breaking final scene as Buffy and Angel agree that they cannot continue and that they both have to walk away. Gets me everytime to see Buffy's cross burnt into Angel's chest, over his heart!

The Pack

2008-02-26T01:15:00.000-08:00

Alisa says:

I think what I like about this episode is the theme which runs through so much of the Buffy series - the desire to be accepted, to be cool, to be popular. We've seen Buffy wrestle with her own secret desire to be normal, to not be the Slayer. Here we see Xander's inner yearnings for acceptance, to be part of the pack. What I like most is the parody of the cool group. Their pack behaviour becomes a caricature when they turn into a pack of hyenas - preying on the weak for their own amusement, and eventually, survival.

You can't help but think that Joss must have had some pretty horrible high school experiences, the way he really goes to town with the portrayal of the cool kids - showing them to be stupid, pack-like, unable to think on their own and looking like mindless idiots with the hysterical laughter after picking on someone they see as below them on the pecking order.

But there is a very dark message, as always, that comes with this fun - how easy it is to become that which you hate. That you should be careful what you wish for and that very easily the prey can become the hunter (and the hunter, the prey).

What I also like in this episode is that it gives Buffy and Willow a chance to develop their own friendship, without the input of Xander. It's the beginning of their steadfast friendship, and importantly we begin to see that whilst this is a friendship of three, it's also based on the foundations of strong friendships between the members of the trio.

The Pack

2008-02-23T22:10:00.000-08:00

Ben says:

Giles: Xander's taken to teasing the less fortunate?
Buffy: Uh huh
Giles: And there's a noticable change in both clothing and demeanor?
Buffy: Yes.
Giles: And all his spare time is spent lounging around with imbeciles.
Buffy: It's bad isn't it?
Giles: It's devastating. He's turned into a sixteen year old boy. Of course you'll have to kill him.
The Pack

The metaphor in this episode is pretty clear-cut. A group of cool kids are infected by hyenas, they become, literally, a pack, terrorising and bullying. Xander is drawn into their group, and Buffy and Willow have to attempt to come to terms with the changes in his behaviour.

This is Nick Brendon's episode, and it's his acting that carries what is otherwise a pretty straightforward episode. Brendon's change in attitude and carriage is beatifully handled, and serves to undercut the notion of teenage coolness nicely; we see the arbitrary nature of popularity in the way he so comfortably co-opts the guise. The change in the power relation between Xander and Buffy is a large part of what makes the episode powerful.

Indeed the strongest moments of The Pack come not from the menace of the pack itself, but in the way Xander's transformation impacts on the interrelations between Xander, Buffy and Willow. Xander's treatment of Willow is truly heartbreaking, particularly because we know there is a little truth in it. And Alyson Hannigan handles the hurt beautifully. Her facial expressions in the cage scene are just painful.

The central storyline itself is less interesting, although the attacking of Principal Flutie is quite genuinely surprising and raises the stakes. Up until now, it seemed Flutie was comic relief, destined to play a light role of ingnorant bumbling in the face of supernatural disturbances. His treatment here demonstrates, again, Joss's commitment to keeping us on our toes.

The tension does escalate, but at this point, while normally I'm a fan of the sideline episodes, I'm starting to feel that the season has had perhaps too many peripheral episodes, and it's time to bring back the central story arc. This story isn't as strong as the last three episodes; the metaphor is a bit obvious, the acting of some of the pack is a bit hammy, and the writing isn't as clever.

There's a nice gag at the end, and I love Willow's wish that Xander could have been possessed by "some ducks" instead. Ultimately though, probably one of the weaker episodes so far.

I give it two principal Fluties...

Never Kill A Boy on the First Date

2008-02-21T04:11:00.000-08:00

Alisa says:

I love this episode! To me, if I had to think about what a typical Buffy episode would be, it would be one like this one. It's horribly depressing in it's underlying message but Joss rewards that hideous look into the deep abyss with hilarious humour. This episode is funny - all our ensemble cast get great lines. We see the Scoobs do what they become depended on to do - back Buffy up. We see the developing of the great rapport between Buffy and Giles with Giles matching each of Buffy's quips, remark for remark. Two points for the Slayer while the Watcher is yet to score.

And really is there a better line in the whole series to sum up the character of Buffy herself than: If the Apocalypse comes ... beep me? So flippant, so desperate to do anything other than be the Slayer, but can be depended on to come through if you really need her.

I love also that this episode brings us back to the Master and why he is Buffy's biggest foe and what he is plotting and planning. I think this episode works to ground us back to what this series is really about.

The Owen plotline is mostly missable because Owen himself is so forgettable but really that's what appeals to me about this episode. Haven't we all had moments when we desperately want to be someone else, to not be bound or held back by our responsibilities and commitments? Haven't we all tried to live over in the house with the greener lawn? Haven't we all tried to fit in the round hole even whilst knowing we are actualy the square peg? I love the symmetry of Buffy fawning and stumbling over Owen in the same way that Xandr did over her in the first episode. I love the message that we all find ourselves out of our depth sometimes. And that even when we try so desperately hard to be what we are not or to have what we cannot, we must soon face the inevitable fact that this is not for us. No matter how hard we want it.

My heart breaks for Buffy in this episode. All she wants is just a little respite from her life which is full of being more grown up than her age and sacrificing life experiences for the greater Good. And yet, even when she gets her one date with Owen, pretty much every member of the Scoobs manages to show up at some point through the evening and she never gets a moment to be Not!Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I feel for her frustration and it all just being so unfair - that she doesn't get to do what every other teenager gets to do. Just because of some birthright thing she had no control over. I love her outburst in the corridor that so poignantly captures it (and my own experience at a similar age): Yeah that's right! I've got no life! Nothing to see here! Move it along!

And my heart totally shatters in that final scene where she finally gets what she wants - Owen - and realises that the reason he wants her is the one reason she doesn't want him to want her. Buffy just wants to be a normal teenager. She just wants to be wanted and seen as normal. She wants just one part of her life to not be about the Slayer. But she's not normal. And she has to make sacrifices.

Oh Buffy! If only you knew it was like that for all of us!

(Although less with the apocalypse and more with less life or death stuff)

And finally ... The Annointed One yadda yadda yadda. I love that stupid, precocious little kid!

Never Kill a Boy on the First Date

2008-02-21T01:00:00.000-08:00

Ben says:

Buffy: Clark Kent had a job. I just wanna go on a date.

The first of many episodes recounting Buffy’s disastrous love life. It’s also the first episode truly centred around Buffy since the first double-episode, and the first since then to continue the season arc.

Never Kill a Boy on the First Date was an episode I’d largely forgotten and overlooked, but I must admit I found it one of the most enjoyable so far. Buffy is probably the most likeable she’s been in the series so far, in her awkward struggles to deal with Owen as well as her attempts to juggle her love life and slaying. There are lots of great comic moments, both from Buffy (I love it when she thanks him for saying she can read) and also from Xander in his inevitable jealousy (my favourite moment is probably when he compares his and Owen’s watches).

Owen’s character is pretty nicely done; initially intriguing and intelligent, later revealed as shallow and pretentious… he’s a totally believable type without being clichéd. There’s also a nice side-story developing with the arrival of the anointed one. This was another nice twist that caught me off-guard when I first saw it. But mostly the vampire stuff is peripheral to the relationship drama.

Anyway, it’s a nicely handled episode all round. Shout-outs also go to some lovely Giles moments; the use of Owen to remind us that Giles is, in fact, a librarian (the scene at Buffy’s house is priceless!), and the first of many nicely written and acted quiet chat scenes between Buffy and Giles at the end.

I give it four Emily Dickinsons.

Teacher's Pet

2008-02-16T18:35:00.001-08:00

Ben says:

Xander: She's not an insect, okay. She's a woman. And hard as it may for you be to conceive, an actual woman finds me attractive. I realise it's no Mystery Guy handing out leather jackets. And while we're on the subject, what kind of a girly name is "Angel", anyway.

Buffy: What does that have to do with...?

Xander: Nothing. It just kinda bugs me.

Another clever standalone episode. I've always been partial to the Xander-centred episodes, and Willow-centred episodes. In this episode the teacher-crush storyline is given the Buffy treatment, as Xander finds himself falling for a giant praying mantis.

Once again the metaphor is apt, and well-done. Xander is given some nice moments, and we get to see a bit more of his crush on Buffy, as well as his bitterness at her lack of reciprocation. We also get another little flash of Willow's crush on Xander. These elements give the story a little more interest, with what is a mostly pretty predictable plot.

It's not as funny as a lot of Xander episodes, although there are some nice touches; the moment where Buffy pulls out the dictaphone is one of my favourites. There are also some poignant moments. Xander's character gets a little more depth in this episode, and we get to see some genuine frustration at his lack of female attention, especially his increasing realisation that Buffy has no interest in him, which culminates in his attacking the egg-sacks. The contrast between his fantasy at the start of the episode and the way Buffy shoves him out of the way to save him from the bug is telling and sad. Buffy, too, is given some added development, with the portrayal of her touching and sad relationship with the biology teacher, the only teacher who recognises her intelligence and potential.

There are a couple of silly moments. Why the praying-mantis decides to show off her head-twisty trick in the middle of school, for instance, or keeps her bugs in a tupperware container marked "food". Seems a little like she wanted to be caught :-)

Anyway, another pretty good episode. The series is gaining momentum after the average start, but it's not yet hit its straps fully.

I give it three Xanders.

Witch

2008-02-14T06:23:00.000-08:00

Alisa says:

I think this could very well have been the episode that captured me. After all, we see Buffy as a cheerleader again - as she was in the movie. Up until this episode, I really couldn't see how the movie and the TV series connected and for me, that made the series a fraud, untrue to its roots. So yay! I guess I never really did understand how, with all her Slayerness and her LA background, she didn't qualify for the team. But then ... the cheer practice would really have gotten in the way of the hunting and slaying, which is of course the point of the show.

Yellow!! I love the stark contrast between the lighting in this episode to the previous two, which really do seem darker in comparison. Here there is light. And a lot of yellow. And Buffy and Willow and Xander trying to just hang out and be high school kids. Here we see a kind of standalone episode and the fact that the monster doesn't always lurk in the shadows, but is sometimes right there in the light, hiding behind smiles and cheers. I like that this is a sort of discrete episode, open and shut with the villain and with all returning to a somewhat upbeat, if slightly philosophical end.

This episode is the first of many to succeed it which act as comic relief to break up the ongoing, draining intensity of the enslaught of Evil and the fighting of the good fight. As a regular viewer, you need these to come back to the show after a particularly gruelling episode the week before. And my don't some of the episodes utterly rip your insides out. But Joss never ever lets comedy and lightheartedness and laughing into the face of despair be far away. And that's the utter drawcard of this show - never ever lose your sense of humour. No matter how bad it gets, if you have a quick quip, you're okay.

This episode sets up a lot of our ensemble cast in a way that the two earlier episodes didn't necessarily nail. We see Cordelia in full flight. We see other elements of school life. We see Buffy's contempt for Giles' authority. We see future keepers of Buffy's secret. We see the rapport between Buffy, Xander and Willow, before things get too multilayered in meaning and we see glimpses of the foundations of their friendship upon which they will all draw in the seven (eight!) seasons to come. And most of all, here, in the third episode of it all, we see key elements laid down that will be vital plot points in episodes far far ahead.

The writing of this show and the loose ends that are so carelessly thrown out and then so carefully picked up just when you have forgotten them make this whole series a thrill to watch unfold.

Yep, even if there hadn't been that "Macho macho man .. I want to be .. a macho man" scene, I would have fallen just as hard and just as deep into this love affair as I did.

Witch

2008-02-14T01:59:00.000-08:00

Ben says:

Cordelia: we have to achieve our dreams, Amy. Otherwise we wither and die.

Nothing could have turned me off Buffy as a character faster than the knowledge that she wants to be a cheerleader. Fortunately this aspect of the storyline is sidelined for the majority of the episode. It quickly turns to a story of obsession, of one girl’s dangerous desire to win at all costs. It’s also a story of parents’ desire to live through their children, and the pressure they put on them as a result.

Initially I thought this story was a fairly predictable story about a fairly uninteresting subject, but I found myself enjoying it despite myself. The story is genuinely horrific, in particular the awful curses manifested on the competing cheerleaders (that no-mouth girl gives me the creeps to this day!). The acting from Amy and her mum in the latter parts of the episode is actually very good, and creates some nice tension too. The twist got me the first time I saw the episode. Even knowing it was coming it still gave me a little chill, because it was acted so well.

There are some great moments for our regulars too. Buffy singing “Macho Man”, the comic entrance of Willow and Xander at the end of the main fight, the escalating tension between Willow and Xander, and Xander and Buffy (the reflection of Xander’s overlooking of Willow in Buffy’s overlooking of Xander is particularly nice). It was actually the characterisation of Willow and Xander that held my interest through much of the first season.

Witch isn’t the greatest Buffy episode ever. It’s nicely plotted and well acted and directed, but there aren’t the layers that there are in other episodes; it’s pretty A-B-C in terms of what it has to say, and I found my attention waning a little (okay, I’ve watched it three of four times!). It’s a good example of a strong monster-of-the-week horror story with a clever metaphor for teenage life. It’s also, to me, the first indication that Buffy as a show would not be all about vampires, that there’s versatility in the format.

So not a bad episode all told…

The Harvest

2008-02-10T05:00:00.000-08:00

Alisa says:

So I'm gonna take a free pass early on in this for this episode :-) My previous comments kinda applied to this ep as well which I consider to be part 2 to "Welcome to the Hellmouth". You'll note by my referral to Giles' final quip which actually happens at the end of this ep that that's true.

So ... Ben and I are aiming to update on Buffy on Thursdays and Sundays. So ... next up - our thoughts on "Witch" on Thursday!

The Harvest

2008-02-10T01:28:00.000-08:00

Ben says:

Buffy: I have a friend down there. Or at least a potential friend. Do you know what it's like to have a friend?
Angel: ...
Buffy: That wasn't supposed to be a stumper.

So one of the running themes of Buffy is friendship. One of the big differences between Buffy and a lot of shows on TV is its strong supporting cast. Buffy's sidekicks aren't just there to be either comic relief or love interests, as is too often, too obviously the case in a lot of similar shows. TV and film in general spend a lot of time focused on relationships and very little time pondering the value of friendship. Buffy is an exception.

The Harvest establishes this theme. In the former, first episode, we were told that at her old school, Buffy had no real friends, or at least nobody who knew about her hidden life. Buffy, arriving in Sunnydale, is basically lonely. And there's a clear dichotomy in Buffy's reaction to the atttempts of Xander and Willow to force themselves on her and help her out. On the one hand, she's resistant, concerned for their safety. On the other, there's a clear longing too. Buffy doesn't resist too hard.

The theme of friendship will be developed and explored through the series, but it's one of the likeable things about this early episode that it's not all about Buffy. Of course, it's also explored in this episode throught Xander's relationship with Jesse. Nick Brendon plays the tension well here, giving Xander a bit of depth and conflict, and making his pain believable (It's unfortunate that in later episodes Jesse is quite shamefully forgotten).

There's also a nice gag in that Cordelia finally finds Jesse attractive now that he's a soulless vampire.

The showdown at the Bronze is quite nice in terms of mood. Another familiar aspect of the show over the years is its commitment to garage bands rather than schmaltzy pop hits, and that works well here. Luke is genuinely threatening, again.

The light trick is a good one. The payoff perhaps isn't that great, unlike other two parters later in the series which come at the end of long character arcs. It all feels a little anti-climactic here. Looking back on this two-parter, I can see why I wasn't hooked immediately, but I can also see the elements which would become so awesome as they develop across the show's seven years.

Oh, and cool to see Harmony here too.

Roll on episode 3.

Shiny Writing Competition

2008-02-07T21:17:00.002-08:00

In 2008, we’re looking to publish short stories written by young adults for young adults. Writers aged 12 to 18 are invited to enter their YA short stories in our Shiny Competition and we will publish the winning entry in Issue 4!

Shiny looks for fresh, entertaining stories between 2000 and 8000 words. The style and substance of Shiny stories should be up there with the best current YA fiction, and should (for the most part) feature teenage protagonists. We're interested in stories with speculative elements - science fiction, fantasy and horror - but we're open to non-speculative stories.

We prefer a contemporary setting and/or feel to our stories, but will not let this restrict our choices. Shiny is aiming to appeal to teenagers, but also to the wide body of adults who read and enjoy Young Adult fiction.

We look forward to reading your entries!

How to enter: attach your entry in an rtf format and our permission slip signed by your parent or guardian (if you’re not 18) to shinycomp2008@gmail.com by April 1st 2008.

Note: the permission slip will be available for download shortly. In the meantime feel free to email us at shinycomp2008@gmail.com to obtain one.

Welcome to the Hellmouth

2008-02-07T05:59:00.000-08:00

Alisa says:

I must admit to having watched this episode in preparation for this post way back at Christmas time. In fact, I watched 8 episodes in one sitting hoping for inspiration to hit me for what I was going to say here. There's so much I love about Buffy and so many interesting discussions to have but for me ... just not about Season 1.

I think in part, Season 1 hasn't lasted the distance for me. It's the season I have seen the most number of times. I can spot all the credit shots. I know a fair proportion of the dialogue by heart. I have lost none of this knowledge with the passing of time. I was unable to watch *any* Buffy after the final episode (just, you know, cause, like that was the last one n'all) and so it's been a good few years since I last watched Welcome to the Hellmouth.

I think in part for me, I discovered Buffy in reruns. My mother and uncle (who will forever be cooler than me, and I'm okay with that) discovered Buffy when it first aired here in Australia, late at night on Channel 7, I guess. They tried to get me to sit down and watch it but I was too busy and not interested. Then I moved to Israel for about 8 months and for some reason, I happened to catch an episode, I think maybe mid-Season 1, late on a weeknight and I got hooked. I tried to catch as many as I could find (I think I even learned enough modern Hebrew to be able to read the TV Guide and figure out when it was on and what channel etc) on free to air in Israel. When I came back to Australia, I either watched the whole season in rerun or managed to catch Season 2 and later tracked back down all of Season 1 and watched that then (it's bad that I can't remember back that far, isn't?)

So what I am trying to say is that Welcome to the Hellmouth is not the episode that sparked my Buffy-love and it just doesn't seem amazingly engaging in retrospect. Buffy for one, looks sooooooooo young. And perky. She is wayyyy darker later on. And *all* those short skirts! And bra straps! Season 1 is good for bad clothes spotting. Look out for Angel's first appearance - is that a velvet jacket? I think it might be. Willow never ever looks as dowdy as in the pilot. And there is I think my favourite scene with the two outfits choice before Buffy checks out the Bronze for the first time: Hello! I'm an enormous slut! and Hi would you like a copy of the Watchtower? (I may have paraphrased just a little.)

And I must confess here that I was actually a fan of the original movie (I had a thing for Luke Perry. I was young.) so for me .. I was all like um? what? when this series first came out. Back then, I did not know that a spinoff TV series could crap all over the original movie. It hadn't been done before.

But as always ... there's the great Joss humour. The very best line of Giles' right at the end of the episode: The world is doomed.

So ... Welcome to the Hellmouth. It's Sunnydale. It's on a hellmouth. There's vampires and demons and quips. You'll get used to it.

Welcome to the Hellmouth

2008-02-07T01:25:00.000-08:00

Ben says:

So welcome to the Buffy blog, where your jolly shiny eds plunge their way through the series and share their meandering mumbles of wisdom.

So Welcome to the Hellmouth is probably the episode of Buffy I've seen the most times, and the hardest to watch again with fresh eyes. I actually didn't like this episode at all when it first screened, all those years ago. I didn't become a regular watcher until Season 2, and only saw the rest of the first series in retrospect.

The initial episode is a lot more fun to watch as a fan of the show; you can see where Whedon is setting things up for later follow-through. Buffy starts the episode as a kind of almost anti-hero. She wants nothing more than to forget her former adventures at her old school, and to shake the responsibilities placed on her.

Episode one is basically the story of how Buffy tries to avoid being the Slayer and fails. She tries to hang with the shallow, vacuous Cordelia, but her kindness draws her to the put-down Willow. And when she unwittingly helps to land Willow in danger, her sense of responsibilit can't be dodged. There's a nice metaphor here; a lot of us at some point in our lives wish we could live life simply, stupidly, without the dramas that come with intellect and conscience. But life always draws you back, forces you to take responsibility again.

The thing that sets Buffy apart from a lot of similar shows is its supporting cast. Xander is goofier and probably less likeable here than he will be later in the series (his line "Can I have you?" would have to be up there with the crappest lines the show ever produced), but still fun, and Willow is just loveable from the start. The real smart move in Welcome to the Hellmouth is putting Willow in danger; the stakes are suddenly very high.

Luke is a tough vampire to set against Buffy in this episode. I particularly like the line "You're strong... I'm stronger." Clearly our hero is not gonna be a superman kinda unbeatable hero in terms of strength. I like that.

A lot of the comedy in Buffy arises from the characterisation, and as such the first episode is probably not as funny as a lot of later ones; not having as much to build on. Nevertheless, there are some truly funny lines and moments. Giles admitting that he sent away for the Readers' digest series on monsters, for instance, with the free calendar, nicely undercuts his character's seriousness.

This episode will never be my favourite episode. There's a lot more set-up than payoff and to some extent you can feel Whedon and co still learning the ropes, testing the boundaries. But it's a fun introduction and a good start... I enjoyed watching it again.

Sneak Peek at Issue 3

2008-02-03T21:31:00.000-08:00

Light on Water
by Lisa A. Koosis

How odd, that on the eve of my twenty-first birthday I should identify most strongly with the flies, dead, dying, or soon to be dying, that litter the ledge just inside the dome. Or maybe not so odd, I think, watching the living ones propel themselves again and again against the thick material that separates them - and me - from the potentially lethal world around us. Potentially lethal, I should say, for me - for people - not for flies.

And no matter how many times the bots make their circuit, sweeping away all expired organic material to be recycled, no matter how many times they come, there are more dead flies.

The sun, orange and round, dips below the horizon. As darkness falls, the flies begin to settle, at least until tomorrow, when they renew their quest for impossible freedom.

Along with me.

“Hey Toby, shove over.”

I shift slightly on the ledge. Everest brushes away some of the flies before sitting. His weight is solid against me, and I lean into him. He puts his hand on my back and rubs, making small circles with his palm.

“What are you thinking?” he asks.

I shake my head, turn slightly, and press my palm against the dome, savoring the cool night air through it, as if by osmosis, I can absorb it.

Shiny Teaser

2008-01-30T21:08:00.001-08:00

The Future is Already Seen
by Katherine Sparrow

Jamais Vu

Mr. Connell put me in a group with three total dweebs for the science competition. I was like no way, I don't want to be part of affirmative action for super-nerds. So unfair!

Then I thought about how I would get a really good grade in Physics, which would be good for college apps.

He put me in a group with Joshua, which felt awkward because we used to be best friends when we were little, which is hard to believe because we are so different now. He used to live next door to me, but his Dad got laid off when we were in 7th and they had to move. We probably wouldn't have stayed friends anyway - that was right around the time Maricela was teaching me how to wear makeup and clothes.

Joshua mumbled, "Hi Kamala," but he wouldn't even look at me when I pushed my desk over and we made a four desk square. I sat next to him and faced his two friends - Spence and Penny - who ignored me like I was the invisible woman. Thanks, hugs and teddy bears to you too. They each had a laptop open in front of them.

Spence chewed on his pen like it was a cigar, wiggled in his seat like a squirrel, and looked at Penny. Penny frowned at her computer screen and squinted at it behind big Velma glasses. Joshua laced his hands behind his head and stared up at the ceiling.

Shiny 2008

2008-01-30T20:57:00.000-08:00

Shiny is going quarterly from Issue 4, which will appear in April.

Subscriptions are now available to buy for 2008 - Issues 4 through 6.

There have been some changes at the editorial desk for Shiny. Ben and Alisa remain the co-editors of the ezine and Tansy will continue to write some non-fiction (introduced in Issue 2) for the magazine.

We are now reading for Issue 4 so please continue to send us your submissions.

Meanwhile.. Issue 3 has finally been released. Subscribers should have already received their copies. Expect some teasers from the stories over the next couple of days.

Shiny 2007 Issues 1 through 3

2008-01-30T20:23:00.000-08:00

The first three issues of Shiny formed the 2007 Trio Series.

Issue 1 stories:

"Small Change" by Trent Jamieson
"Close to Death" by Eugie Foster
"The Sun People" by Sue Isle.

Issue 2 stories:
"The Goats are Going Places" by Tina Connolly
"Cracks" by Trent Jamieson
"Blurred Horizons" by Bren MacDibble

Issue 3 stories
"The Future is Already Seen" by Katherine Sparrow
"Light on Water" by Lisa A Koosis
"Some People's Kids" by Sarah Totton

Shiny 2 review

2008-01-28T00:01:00.000-08:00

Another review up at ASif. This time a more positive one, by Tehani Wessely.

She has plenty to say about the stories themselves, which you can read at the site. My favourite part though is the final line:

What I can say is that anyone who reads it - tween, teen or adult - will find three well-executed stories offering to grab the imagination of the reader and drag them along for the ride

Meanwhile, we're eagerly working on Issue 3, which should be out any day.

Review of Shiny 2

2008-01-19T21:23:00.000-08:00

Another review of Shiny 2, this time from Daniel Ausema over at The Fix.

Here's a brief snippet of what he has to say:

Based on this issue, Shiny is certainly a great ‘zine to point out to any teen and pre-teen reader you know if you want to get them interested in speculative short fiction

'swhat we like to hear!

He particularly liked Bren MacDibble's story but has some interesting things to say about all three.

You can read the whole review over here.

Funny lil' Buffy riff

2008-01-10T22:04:00.001-08:00

Check out this great GOP Presidential Candidates versus Buffy Demons riff from Cogitamus

Shiny Review

2007-12-29T04:08:00.000-08:00

Rich Horton has reviewed Shiny in his yearly roundup of the markets.

Shiny is a brand new Young Adult speculative fiction ezine edited by Alisa Krasnostein, Tansy Rayner-Roberts and Ben Payne, out of Australia. I think a YA short fiction outlet is a great idea. Two issues appeared in 2007, each with 3 short stories, so a total of 6 short stories, about 27,000 words. From the first issue my favorite was Eugie Foster’s "Close to Death", a lighthearted piece about a literal encounter with Death on an Atlanta freeway. From #2 I liked another lighter piece, Tina Connolly's "The Goats are Going Places", sort of a sendup of "Gossip Girl" type stories about ritzy prep schools, in this case with a heroine whose aunt, a witch, teaches her a lesson.

Four of the six stories were by women, and two of the stories were SF.

Buffy Retrospective

2007-12-29T04:05:00.000-08:00

You know, it occurs to me that doing this retrospective is going to become a big deal to me - I have never, ever rewatched the episode The Body. Now, I know it's ages and ages away from now but ... I actually am going to have to kinda psyche myself up for it.

- Alisa

Sneak Peek From Shiny 2

2007-12-29T04:03:00.000-08:00

"The Goats Are Going Places"
by Tina Connolly

Once in the most boring lunchroom of the most boring junior high school in the world, there sat a girl who refused to be bored for one more minute. Renee Ryder cut P.E. and found some interesting girls who liked to hang behind the shop building and get artistic with spray paint. She decided to be their leader. With Renee in charge, the girls got very good with spray paint. In the amount of time it took a red light to change, they could paint an entire ocean on a car, with goldfish and seahorses and two dolphins doing it. But then they got busted for tagging the vice-principal's minivan, and then Renee was snarky and got expelled, which was fine with her because she'd mastered both the graffiti and the girls by now and it was all so boring.

Renee's parents shrieked, which was also boring, but then Renee's aunt Simone stepped in and said Renee could come live with her and go to the very best junior high in the City. Renee's mother, who often called her sister something rhyming with witch, cackled. "Whatever happens to you, you'll deserve it," she said.

"Six bedrooms, a hot tub, my own flatscreen the size of a bed? You bet I deserve it," said Renee. She packed her ripped jeans and her cans of spray paint, her old teddy bear and her lighters, and went to live on 1313 Strega Place with her aunt.

Buffy Retrospectives - Starting Mid January

2007-12-27T23:02:00.001-08:00

For a while now I've been wondering how I can contribute to the meta discussion on YA works. Both Ben and Tansy wrote really interesting editorials for the first two issues of Shiny and I was kinda at a loss as to what I would say in mine, when it came round to my turn. They both are so much more well-read in recent YA novels than me. What could I possibly have to add to the discussion?

It then occurred to me that what I know about YA is television. I've been a big fan of YA TV series since, well, since I was a young adult myself and I've never really lost my love for it. And I thought what I could add to the discussion is the extra dimension of the celluloid medium.

I have just finished the final season of The Gilmore Girls. This has been a rather serious accomplishment, since in Australia, broadcasting of this show has had obstacles at every turn. It's sad because this show so heavily relies on the in jokes, often of current pop culture, and this is what I loved about this show. And the fast talking. And so much of the pop culture references get dated when you have to wait three years to view the show. As part of my protest to Channel 9, I started buying the series as they were released on Amazon.com and am happy to have finally seen the whole show all the way through.

Although the final season suffers from the change in writers, I noticed something that has kinda piqued my interest. Whilst the show started out deeply entrenched in YA territory - one of our lead characters is embarking on High School (Australian equivalent being Year 10) - by following one year of her life for every year of the show, by the seventh season, we are no longer in YA land anymore, Toto.

And really, isn't any YA ongoing series destined to this end point? Unless the characters stagnate with following instalments using a restart button, a la Star Trek, time must surely move on. And isn't that what we, as consumers of the material, want? I know I want to invest in a character and see them grow and learn and change. And to do that ... don't they have to grow up? Off the top of my head, I came up with some other examples: Harry Potter, Dawsons Creek, The OC, Anne of Green Gables, Roswell and on.

What's interesting to me is that the initial instalments are YA and appeal to a (mostly?) YA audience but as they progress, the characters must surely grow up and grow up along with the initially targeted audience. My question, though, is does that limit the material to the originally hooked audience or can a younger audience buy in? Does the later material still appeal to the younger (or original target demographic) audience even though it is no longer technically YA? And how do you categorise it? Are the final books of Harry Potter still YA? Are shows that finish set in College when they started in High School still considered YA? Would an older audience buy into such material had they not been there for the set up?

And this leads me to Buffy The Vampire Slayer, where for me, all roads inevitably lead. Because, really, is it not the Queen of YA TV? Is it not the be all and end all of everything? (It is for me). And I find myself with a fair bit of time on my hands, suddenly. And in the mood for a bit of angst. And so I thought I might revisit my Mecca and see how the show stands up with this much distance and with this much extra life experience. And so ... over the coming year, Ben and I are aiming to feature two episodes a week here on this blog with some meta discussion and commentary.

And we would love for you to join us. The first episode should be covered here in the third week of January. So feel free to watch ahead or along with us and come past and join in the discussion!

Shiny 2 - Sneak Peak

2007-12-18T18:19:00.000-08:00

Blurred Horizons
by Bren MacDibble

Tash adjusted her goggles and scanned the horizon. A low drone, barely audible, was the only clue that something was up there. She blocked the sun's glare with her hand. A dark shape slid into view, distorted by heat. It took Tash a few minutes to make out the shape of an old transport, an older series Kenworth Big Rig Flyer by the looks of it. The old hulks were the only things that stopped here now. New transports could get clear across the country without refuelling. Once all the old-style Flyers were scrapped, the station would close and Tash and her mum would have to leave.

Tash held her breath as the vehicle descended onto the concrete pad. Red alluvial dust billowed up, stuck to the sweat on her skin, and thickened her hair and clothes. The day was a stinker. She wasn't looking forward to braving the full blast of the sun.

The Flyer touched down with a clunk and its motor shut off. Tash snatched her slouch hat from the bench beside her, jammed it firmly on her head and strode over to the vehicle. She wasn't in the mood for work today. Not after what had happened last night.

-- to read the whole story buy a copy of Issue 2 --

Shiny Issue 2 released!

2007-12-16T18:18:00.000-08:00

Issue 2 is now available. Don't miss out!

"The Goats Are Going Places" by Tina Connolly
"Cracks" by Trent Jamieson
"Blurred Horizons" by Bren MacDibble
Young Adult Fantasy Review: From the Sublime to the Frivolous by Tansy Rayner Roberts

Keep on subbing

2007-11-21T03:18:00.000-08:00

Once again one of the market listing pages has listed us as being closed to subs... not quite sure where they got the info from, but when in doubt check back here. We're very much still looking for stories, so keep sending us the good stuff!

In other news, we are ploughing through the edits for Issue 2, so expect to see it prancing happily through the fields, chewing daisies and collecting bees in a jar for Mayday with Aunt Gertrude and a dog called Patches very soon!

Ben

Shiny Issue 2

2007-11-13T06:22:00.000-08:00

Hello all! I am meandering my way home from World Fantasy Con in Saratoga Springs via London. I had a really awesome time and it was cool to hear that our new little trial ezine had made its way all the way out there by word of mouth.

Keep your submissions coming! We still have to fill Issue 3 and hopefully issues beyond!

Issue 2 is very nearly on its way out to subscribers. We have three new stories and almost none of them are about death. This issue features a hilarious story about trying to fit in in high school by Tina Connolly, called "The Goats are Going Places". Bren MacDibble brings a cool SF story with time travel to the Shiny pages with her story "Blurred Horizons". Finally, Trent Jamieson contributes "Cracks" which is a story worlds away from the one he gave us in Issue 1.

So make sure Shiny Issue 2 is in you email inbox as soon as it's out and preorder your copy now.

Shiny Issue 1, the Clean Version

2007-10-15T22:57:00.000-07:00

The clean version of "The Sun People" is now available. Check the Paypal button on the side menu to purchase this version of Issue 1 of the magazine.

Check out another review of Issue 1 at the newly relaunched The Fix here. Shaun C Green says:

"Shiny has begun well with its choice of fiction. Perhaps the most difficult challenge facing it will be raising its profile amongst teenagers who might not know where to find an e-zine like this. But I wish the editors and their readers all the best and look forward to seeing Shiny grow and develop over its coming issues."

Shiny Issue 1 - second version

2007-10-12T19:10:00.000-07:00

Twelfth Planet Press are happy to announce the release of a cleaned up version of "The Sun People" for those who felt the use of some offensive language in Shiny Issue 1 prevented them from purchasing the issue. You can register your interest at shinystories @ gmail dot com or wait for the new paypal button soon to hit this site!

Another Shiny Review

2007-10-07T23:52:00.000-07:00

ASif! has published their first review for Shiny here.

Rachel Holkner says:
In all, it’s a strong start from Shiny. I have been rough on a couple of the stories, but only because I really want this to be, as TPP have declared on their website, “up there with the best current YA fiction”. In essence, I want more. I also would like to see some illustrations, but that’s being greedy.

Check out her whole review here or join the discussion buy grabbing your own copy (see paypal buttons to the side).

Paypal got you down?

2007-10-07T21:26:00.000-07:00

Want to subscribe to Shiny but don't have paypal?

Email the editors at shinystories @ gmail dot com to arrange for a direct debit.

Find an editor in person to give cash - editors can be found in real life in Perth, Brisbane and Hobart.

Alisa will be attending World Fantasy Con later this month and can thus be found in real life in NY to make cash payments.

Shiny Reviews

2007-10-07T19:09:00.000-07:00

One of the most agonising aspects of editing is the bit between launching your publication and hearing what people think of it. Limbo land.

But here is the first review I've come across of Shiny Issue 1:

I still can’t decide if it’s a good idea to market an e-zine to young adults. On the one hand, today’s teenagers may well feel more comfortable reading electronic publications than adults do, because they will have grown up with computers and therefore be used to the medium. On the other hand, how likely are teens to have the means to make electronic payments through Paypal?

These are indeed the questions we are still wrestling with. Read the rest of the review and/or grab a copy of the ezine and make up your own mind.

Shiny has launched!!!!!!!

2007-09-27T06:31:00.000-07:00

Shiny Issue 1 has finally left the nest and has set flight for inboxes everywhere.

Not in your inbox? Buy your own copy now:

Issue 1 features:
"Small Change" by Trent Jamieson
"Close to Death" by Eugie Foster
"The Sun People" by Sue Isle

Shiny Submissions

2007-09-26T21:17:00.001-07:00

We've had a few queries - yes! yes! we are still accepting submissions for Shiny. We are still looking for exciting, fresh new YA stories for Issue 3 for this year!

Book Review: Peeps

2007-09-26T20:57:00.000-07:00

Check out Alisa's review of Scott Westerfeld's Peeps over at the ASif! website.

Sneak Peek: The Sun People

2007-09-24T20:53:00.001-07:00

Here's a sneak peak of the third of three stories in Issue 1 of Shiny. Don't forget you can subscribe using the paypal button on the sidebar to get yourself a copy of the whole issue as soon as it comes!

The Sun People

by Sue Isle

The only way into Perth these days is to catch a ride with a supply truck from one of the private operations. Not many of us know how to drive any more. From Melbourne I got a series of rides to the WA border where I hooked up with an interstater. I helped Sharon, the driver, load supplies and bags of mail and then piled into the truck's cabin. She wanted to chat and that, of course, is the main payment for riding.

"Why the fuck do you want to go back there now that you're out?" was the question she most wanted cleared up.

"I was only in Melbourne for medical treatment. I'm not an evacuee."

"Yeah but what happens if you get sick again? There's shit-all in WA now. You couldn't even score an aspirin."

"I won't get sick again. It wasn't that kind of problem." The last thing I wanted was to explain what it was and maybe have Sharon throw me out of the truck. While not exactly the stereotype of the female truckie, she was definitely more muscular than I was. Her red tank top and shorts didn't leave much to the imagination.

"You couldn't pay me to live in Perth. It's so fucking hot they have to do all their work and whatever at night and just lie around during the day."

I didn't answer that. It was pretty well true. When the sun rose on the highway, Sharon cranked up the air conditioning which was so noisy that I didn't have to talk any more. When we stopped for a mutual leak on opposite sides of the truck, I opened my shirt and peeked at the scars covering my chest. They were healing fine, which wasn't why I was checking. I just wanted to look at them again and make sure this was really real. I'd finally gone under the surgeon's knife in Melbourne and come out looking like the real me. I was still sort of skinny and would have to look up to a lot of guys but I didn't care about that. I'd been warned that unless I could continue with the medication, I might not muscle up very much or need to shave a lot. They'd given me as many pills as they could but I wouldn't exactly be able to wander down to a chemist to get more. They'd done a really good job below the waist too.

Sneak Peek: Small Change

2007-09-24T00:19:00.000-07:00

Here's a sneak peak of the second of three stories in Issue 1 of Shiny. Don't forget you can subscribe using the paypal button on the sidebar to get yourself a copy of the whole issue as soon as it comes!

Small Change

by Trent Jamieson

I found the door on the third day after we moved into the new house, and the eighth day of the summer holidays. The door was behind a big empty bookcase which, if things had been normal to begin with, Mum and Dad would have filled straight away. But they weren't. I'm still not sure why I decided to find out what was behind the bookcase, though I can imagine what Mum would say.

"What possessed you to look behind the bookcase is what possesses you to read books, Julia. You are a curious, imaginative soul, and an empty bookcase, well... what might lie behind it is exactly the sort of thing that would appeal to you. The type of books you read, the books that would normally be contained within that bookcase, are all about magical doorways."

Which isn't precisely true, but Mum is given to hyperbole. I really hadn't expected to find anything there. I knew the difference between the worlds I inhabited in my head, and the one I clumped around in, in my shoes.

I moved the bookcase by degrees. Sort of rocked it to one side. It was rather heavy, but after a couple of teetering swings, I could see the door. I shifted it a little more, creating a wedge of space, and then crept in. I was sweaty. It was hot outside, but here near the door it was quite cool. The bookcase shuddered dangerously behind me, but I ignored it, because here was a door, and in my head, I knew it would open inwards, away from the back of the bookcase, and out into..

And it did.

This would not have been peculiar, if the bookcase hadn't been against the rear wall of the house. You can see where this is going, because if you're reading this, you probably like the same sort of books I do. What the door opened onto shouldn't have been there.

Sneak Peek: Close to Death

2007-09-18T20:39:00.000-07:00

by Eugie Foster

Calling the northbound traffic on Georgia 400 a crawl was an insult to all crawling things. Tortoises could have overtaken them without breaking a sweat. Ronnie wondered briefly if tortoises sweated, but then she regretted it. Thinking about sweating tortoises made her acutely conscious of the perspiration soaking her pantyhose and the sticky feel of the vinyl seat against her skin.

“We’re going to be late.” Don gripped the steering wheel of their timeworn Honda Civic. His face matched his voice, grim and resigned.

“Will they wait for us?” Patsy asked from the back seat.

Ronnie flipped down her sun visor with its inset makeup mirror. As far as makeup went, she couldn’t think of a better way of turning herself into a Tammy Fay Baker casualty than to apply it in a moving vehicle. But the little mirror was perfect for keeping tabs on kids in the back.

Patsy’s golden pigtails drooped, wilting with perspiration, but her bright blue eyes glittered eagerly. “I don’t want to miss seeing Uncle Henry’s body.”

Shiny Set to Launch

2007-09-18T05:54:00.000-07:00

Table of Contents for Issue 1 of Shiny:

"Close to Death" by Eugie Foster
"Small Change" by Trent Jamieson
"The Sun People" by Sue Isle

Shiny is set to launch with the first issue due out any day. Keep an eye out on this blog for some teasers and for news on when the first issue is finally available!

Reviews: City of Bones & The P.L.A.I.N Janes

2007-08-03T22:25:00.001-07:00

Tansy here - it's a while since I've done some YA reviews on this blog, so I thought I'd catch you up.

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare was one of the major YA hardback releases of the year. Clare already has a large internet following thanks to her major involvement in Harry Potter fanfic several years back (though her fic is no longer available on the web), so there was plenty of buzz about this book before it came out.

Clary is a smart, arty everygirl character who is thrust Buffy-like into a weird world of demons, magic and dispossessed teenagers. The more she finds out about the magical side of life, the more worried she gets about her own dark family history... and while she's busy trying to save her mother, her own neck, and to survive the bitchiness and betrayals of her new world, she also has two cute boys competing for her affections.

I enjoyed City of Bones (once I wrested it back from my 60+ mother who stole it and adored it) as a fun, non-insulting addition to the subgenre of YA supernatural fiction. I did feel that it slotted in neatly with books such as Westerfeld's Midnighters series, Holly Black's faerie books and Larbalestier's Magic or Madness, but without adding anything overly new to the subgenre. City of Bones is vivid and compulsively readable, though, and while it is a dreaded first book of a series, it ends on an interesting enough note that I felt satisfied rather than frustrated.

*****

The P.L.A.I.N. Janes, by Cecil Castelluci, was another high profile YA release of this year, as a graphic novel in DC Comics' new Minx line. It was Castelluci's name, though, that made me go to the trouble of ordering this in from the US, as I have absolutely no trust in DC's ability to gauge what female readers want from comics.

I can't fault their publishing of The P.L.A.I.N. Janes, though. This is a fantastic story about girl misfits, beautifully balancing a darker story thread about terrorism with the natural humour and flawed life of teenagers. The art is awesome, with girls who look like individual people, not just the same bodies with different hairstyles.

Jane's life is changed forever when she is caught near a bomb blast in her big city. She reacts to her near death experience by cutting off her hair, obsessing about a coma victim of the attack, and becoming an artist. Her parents react by whisking her away from the city to Safeville, Suburbia.

Constantly frustrated by her parents' attempts to wrap her in cotton wool, Jane is determined to make a fresh start in this school. She evades the cool kids, who want her to join them, preferring to hang out with the Janes, a disparate group of girls who only sit together because none of them fit in to the clubs they want to join. Together, they embark on the P.L.A.I.N. (People Loving Art in Neighbourhoods) project, a form of guerrilla street art, which is interpreted by the authoties as a form of terrorism.

Basically, The P.L.A.I.N. Janes is a funny, cool story about girls trying to find their identity through art. It ends a little abruptly, and I was glad to know there's going to be a sequel, as I could happily read volume after volume of this series. Excellent stuff.