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October 2004


yet ANOTHER question on AS4.. this time on EvilCordy and angelus (& sthg on spike) -- ghady, 12:28:31 09/30/04 Thu

i recall cordelia scolding the beast for his confrontation with angelus, saying "you KNOW angelus is CRUCIAL for my plan!"
What PLAN??!?!?! If Angelus had STILL been around AFTER the birth of jasmine, she wouldn't have been able to control him.
Was the super-angelus-plan simply distracting the gang?? cuz honsetly that's pretty silly!

And speaking of plans, what the HELL was the First's plan for spike?!? and whyy did It want Buffy alive all this time? (plz note that i havent seen end of days/chosen yet.. so if this is clarified, then plz don't explian. thx.)


Replies:

[> The beginning of "End of Days" should clear that last question up a little -- Finn Mac Cool, 13:29:44 09/30/04 Thu

Just keep in mind: "It is not for thee. It is for her alone to wield."


[> Re: yet ANOTHER question on AS4.. this time on EvilCordy and angelus (& sthg on spike) -- DorianQ, 21:16:08 09/30/04 Thu

He WAS crucial to her plan, but after Jasmine had been born, he was completely expendable. Without Angelus, people (namely, the Fang Gang) would have started asking questions about her and Conner and her pregnancy. Originally, her only plan for Angelus was to cause chaos. But after the Beast was killed, she tried to turn it around and turn Angelus into her flunkie by dangling the threat of regaining his soul in front of him. She didn't think Faith and Wes would actually find a way to capture Angelus without killing him. That's why she tried to get Conner to kill him, because of the risk of him giving her identity away.


[> Re: yet ANOTHER question on AS4.. this time on EvilCordy and angelus (& sthg on spike) -- Drusilla, 07:19:40 10/01/04 Fri

It's clarified.



What's everyone watching this season? -- Finn Mac Cool, 14:17:45 09/30/04 Thu

For the first time in seven years, a season of television is beginning without anything from the folks at Mutant Enemy on the Fall Lineup. So, in the absence of anything Joss related on the television horizon, what's everyone watching. Here are my shows listed by network:



NBC

"Joey" - I was always a big "Friends" fan, so this spinoff is right up my alley. It does a good job of being faithful to the character it spun off, and also manages to have a similar comedic tone to that of "Friends", but still including plenty of new characters and situations to set it apart.



FOX

"Quintuplets" - A very different sitcom family that contains teenage quintuplets. It's usually very funny, handles the ensemble cast well. Also, I happen to love its lack of sentimentality. It never gets down to the annoyingly nihilistic level of "Married . . . with Children", but the Chases are a far cry from the Bradys, rarely learning a lesson by the end of an episode (and it's usually the wrong lesson if they do), and they tend to tolerate each other far more than they support.

"That 70's Show" - I thought the last couple seasons of this show had heavily dipped in quality, but this season's premiere did a good deal to alieve my fears. Eric's decision to "take the year off" really made my heart cheer, both because he's living the dream, and because he finally stood up to his father (responding to the questions he was asked earlier: "What am I doing about my girlfriend? We're hanging out. What am I doing about my job? I quit. What am I doing about my future? Nothing. When am I moving out? Maybe.")

I'm also looking forward to "Oliver Beene", "Malcolm in the Middle", "The Simpsons", "Arrested Development", and "Tru Calling" when FOX finally starts showing new episodes (especially since three of those shows ended on quasi-cliffhangers last season).



WB

"What I Like About You" - It's not a particularly great show, but it has some pretty funny moments, and the character of Holly is pretty sweet and reasonably well developed.

"Grounded For Life" - Kinda the same thing as the above show, although somewhat less funny and slightly less likable characters.

"Smallville" - The first two episodes of the season have been pretty good. Lois Lane, Lionel being sent to jail, a mysterious, almost supernatural plot involving Lana and three stone talismans, and Clark flying using some truly amazing effects. Unfortunately, it airs at the same time as "That 70's Show" and "Quintuplets", so, until one goes into reruns, I'm forced to try and flip back and forth during commercials to get as much of the each as I can (so far I've been leaning more heavily towards "Smallville", but depending on the continued quality of the episodes, that could change).



Cartoon Network

Teen Titans - An superhero cartoon that has some good action, often great humor, but still manages to deliver powerful moments of drama.

Justice League Unlimited - I'm not too fond of this new format of the show, but "The Greatest Story Never Told" did a very good "The Zeppo" style story using superheroes, and "The Return" showed the show's ability to do huge, epic action. I still wish they'd return to the hour long format though, or at least an alternate back and forth between hour and full hour.

Inuyasha - A very good anime that, while it can occasionally have some pretty cheesy dialouge, does a good job delivering a fantasy/action epic with sprigs of humor and romance thrown in.

The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy - I'm really surprised at how much stuff they're able to get away with in a kids' cartoon show. The basic premise is that two kids, Billy and Mandy, beat the Grim Reaper at a limbo contest, forcing him to become their friend. I know not everyone enjoys the dark side of the humor genre, but for me this cartoon is great. Jokes about demonic possession, death, insanity, and cannibalism are common occurances on "Grim Adventures". Add in the often ruthless ways characters will behave (such as Grim trying to have Billy and Mandy killed so he can be free, or Mandy casually pushing Billy into a demon dimension) and I'm amazed that this show got on the air, but I'm glad it did.


Replies:

[> The First Debate on C-Span! (with split screen) -- frisby, 17:35:55 09/30/04 Thu

C-Span, with the split screen, not the other one, is the thing to watch for the next month, for the debates. Apart from that, there's Gilmore Girls ... and Buffy reruns of season seven, and the usual Buffy at midnight Saturday which is on its second run-through. Survivor might prove interesting, and the new Law and Order sometimes, and of course PBS generally, such as Nova recently, on Origins!


[> Re: What's everyone watching this season? -- Wizard, 20:03:34 09/30/04 Thu

My newest addiction is Lost, on ABC. I came for the cute guys (especially a certain sexy ex-Hobbit). I'm staying for the interesting plot, great characters, and situations that on a lesser show would be utterly over-the-top.

I also watch a two-hour (mostly) anime block on YTV (the kid's station up here in Canada): Justice League Unlimited, Gundam Seed, Inu Yasha, and Witch Hunter Robin. All are very good shows. YTV airs Teen Titans as well, and I watch that too, as well as Kinights of the Zodiac.


[> [> Lost and the Angel connection -- Cleanthes, 09:29:55 10/03/04 Sun

Lost has been great so far.

You neglected to mention that Daniel Dae Kim, Angel's Gavin Park, has a role on Lost. So far we've seen only a little, but I'm hoping for more. There's been quite a bit of set-up.


[> [> [> My bad! -- Wizard, 21:53:49 10/03/04 Sun

I also forget to mention that David Fury is involved with the show. Eeps!


[> Re: What's everyone watching this season? -- Drusilla, 07:18:09 10/01/04 Fri

Also Quintuplets! I love that show it's hilarious and Ryan Pinkston(Patton) is very sexy! I like funny guys!!! I love that show!!!!!


[> [> My favorite character is Pearce -- Finn Mac Cool, 08:43:12 10/01/04 Fri

That guy lives out every weirdo fantasy I ever had but didn't have the guts to do. After him I'd probably have to go with Penny (you gotta love a character who manages "mean spirited loyalty").


[> Re: What's everyone watching this season? -- Evan, 11:01:13 10/01/04 Fri

Series I've always watched and plan on continuing: Enterprise, Monk, The Simpsons, Curb Your Enthusiasm, The O.C. (make fun if you want, but know this: you suck).

Series I've watched in the past and might stop if they continue to suck like last season: The West Wing.

Series I'm planning to start watching: Lost (David Fury!!!!), Alias (Drew Goddard!!! Jeff Bell!!!)

Shows I might start watching: Father of the Pride, Scrubs, Arrested Development

Shows I'm gonna watch on DVD: Wonderfalls!

That's all I can think of for now.


[> There's a new season? -- Ames, 09:16:31 10/02/04 Sat



[> [> No sh!t... ; ) My thoughts exactly. -- Masq, 13:57:10 10/02/04 Sat



[> 24, Alias, Farscape, Grim -- dmw, 18:01:49 10/02/04 Sat

24: I almost got caught up with 24 over the summer, so I may be able to watch the new season (if one's planned) in real time for a change.

Alias: I'll probably watch it if it returns.

Farscape: I'm looking forward to the conclusion of the Farscape series.

The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy: While no replacement for Invader: Zim, it's a nicely twisted cartoon that's quite enjoyable once you learn to ignore Billy.


[> [> Yeah, I could definitely do with less Billy -- Finn Mac Cool, 19:04:40 10/02/04 Sat

Or at least portraying him as not quite as mind-numbingly stupid (when he acts more everyday dim-witted combined with hyper-activity, he's much more tolerable (even funny) than when he's portrayed as the dumbest person alive). My theory is that there's some sort of karmic law going on where the smarter and more viscious Mandy becomes the dumber and more overly-friendly Billy becomes.

P.S. I've seen references online to "Invader Zim" before. Mind filling me in on what it is/was?


[> [> [> Invader: Zim -- dmw, 15:38:40 10/04/04 Mon

Zim is a child-sized green alien soldier supposedly sent to conquer an obscure planet off the charts (Earth) but actually sent here by his superiors to prevent him from ruining Operation Impending Doom II through his incompetence. Zim disguises himself as an Earth school boy, and although his classmate and paranormal researcher, Dib, quickly sees through his disguise, no one else does.

Every episode is filled with great one-liners, while Zim's plans to conquer Earth rival the Brain's for their absurd grandiloquence while his robot "assistant" Grrr is more amusing than Pinky (for one thing, Grrr's smarter than Zim, but due to a few extra components dropped randomly into his brain, he's a bit insane.)

You can see an episode list here and the titles will give you an idea of what sort of show it is.


[> [> [> [> I'm Gonna Sing the Doom Song Now! -- Wizard, 19:22:58 10/04/04 Mon



[> [> Alias is definitely returning... -- Rob, 00:09:43 10/03/04 Sun

It's coming back in January. This wasn't the regular case of a TV hiatus because of low ratings. J.J. Abrams, the creator, specifically requested more time to shape up this season, since he was not pleased with the third. Also, it now affords the show a 20 episode uninterrupted run, without the regular 6 week-and-over breaks throughout the year. FOX is doing the same thing with 24.

Rob


[> [> [> Thanks for the information, Rob. -- dmw, 15:40:56 10/04/04 Mon



[> [> [> Wonderfalls is being shown in Canada... -- Jane, 22:30:18 10/04/04 Mon

The first episode aired tonight on Vision TV (a cable station that is mostly focused on religious/spiritual type shows). They are going to show all 13 episodes. Yay.


[> Braincandy - ABC Sunday night -- Ladyhelix, 16:05:49 10/05/04 Tue

Sunday night the kids left the TV on and I genuinely enjoyed both DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES, and BOSTON LEGAL. I had no plans to watch... but they were actually quite smartly written, and the characters were.. well... FUN!

Desperate housewives (which I SWORE I would not watch after seeing the ads) opened with the actress that plays Amber Benson's mom in CHANCE ( - which was the ONLY reason I didn't hop right up and flick if off immediately. Well, that and the fact that I was sewing and didn't want to get up). It's a dramady/mystery that does a damn fine job of poking fun at "suburban wives" (been there - done that). And - character driven (good strong characters).. so of course I'm loving that.

Maybe it's just the multiple genre's that I was in the mood for Sunday because Boston Legal made me giggle too. No it's not profound - and "dilbertesque" in the way it portrays how things really get done in business (been there, done that). And - who knew that William Shatner could still have a commanding presence after all those TV commercials!! Well - he gives it the good old college try (without trying too hard - which is key).

Not "must see TV" - but at least last Sunday night.. much better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick!! I'll tune in again next week - see how things unfold, and hopefully - giggle some more.

Ooops - this IS the All Things Philosophical posting board... and these were hardly profound - but they were FUN! And in all honesty that's what hooked me on Buffy in the beginning, so who knows? (David E. Kelly? - RRRIIIIGGHHTT).


[> [> I liked both the shows, too. I'll definitely be back next week! -- Rob, 07:25:45 10/06/04 Wed

I watched Desperate Housewives, because I've adored Felicity Huffman, who played the woman with 700 4 kids, ever since she was on Sports Night. I thought it was a lot of fun. There were some great comedy moments, the mystery's pretty intriguing, and Teri Hatcher was great!

Rob





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