Disappointed By Season 6 Finale

OFAWB

Spike's Pet
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Black Thorn
Yup, I feel like they dropped the ball with this one. I loved most of Season 6, for a variety of reasons, but the last few episodes fell flat with me.

Conceptually speaking, it was nice to see Willow's struggle with magicks come to a head, making her an additional/alternate "Big Bad" to The Trio. (I don't mean that it was "nice" in the conventional sense.) The scene where she was in control of that semi truck was great! Overall, though, I found her attitude unconvincing and her powers, frankly, silly.

After all the love that Spike expressed to and for Buffy, he decided that loving her was a messed-up idea and he wanted his chip taken out. That displeased me greatly. I know that later, it will be revealed that he wanted his soul back all along, but this still bothers me. I'm not even going to get into his attempted sexual assault on Buffy and his "solace sex" with Anya. Plus, the demon trials didn't seem that impressive, even though Spike looked beautiful throughout them. He got his soul back, which was supposed to make me think that this is what he had wanted all along, but then why did he call Buffy a bitch? It's just all very incongruous. Clem and Dawn were funny. I really like Clem! He's such a sweetheart.

When Xander held Willow and told her he loved her, bringing her back to her old self, I shed a tear. It was very powerful. But the utter misrepresentation of "Satanic" ideas had me rolling my eyes. Also, the world was going to hell, and Buffy and Giles were holding their sides and laughing. It seemed quite out-of-character for them both.

In summation, I found the final episodes of Season 6 to be sorely lacking and anticlimactic. Unlike the finale of Season 4, which was also non-climactic, these episodes did not wrap up the season in a way that satisfied me emotionally or intellectually.
 
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I thought that the Dark Willow finale worked pretty good, considering the fact that the alternative would have been having the Three Stooges as the major evil for the season, and, as the doctor told Buffy in "Normal Again," that would have been just pathetic. As for the attempted fake off about Spike's soul, I wasn't fooled for a minute. But then, I knew something that most other fans didn't know. (Remind me to tell you that story sometime.) Even though Season 6 has a couple of my least favorite episodes of the whole series, for the most part I thought that it was pretty good as a lead in to Season Spuf... I mean, Season 7.
 
The Three Stooges! I like that characterization. When Tara's blood splattered onto Willow, I thought up the worst curse words for Warren. I deeply hated him at that moment, because I like Tara's character very much. I still hate Warren.
 
Evil Angelus 95
Evil Angelus 95
[No message]
After all the love that Spike expressed to and for Buffy, he decided that loving her was a messed-up idea and he wanted his chip taken out. That displeased me greatly. I know that later, it will be revealed that he wanted his soul back all along, but this still bothers me. I'm not even going to get into his attempted sexual assault on Buffy and his "solace sex" with Anya. Plus, the demon trials didn't seem that impressive, even though Spike looked beautiful throughout them. He got his soul back, which was supposed to make me think that this is what he had wanted all along, but then why did he call Buffy a bitch? It's just all very incongruous.

This has been a huge wedge issue for people, and it's one of Joss Whedon's biggest missteps. There's an interview out there with him somewhere where he discusses the scene, and he has this unbelievably annoying and arrogant moment where he says something along the lines of "well, I personally invented something called...a plot twist", in a voice dripping with sarcasm. He, and other writers, have maintained staunchly that Spike went into that cave to regain his soul.

Personally, it's a view that I share. I never really thought about the possibility of him going there to have the chip removed until later. However, that said, the actions of the character can easily and very fairly be construed that way. You're right. If Spike was as pure as Joss has said, why call Buffy a bitch? I have NEVER seen an adequate answer to that question.

It's too bad, because if they'd just changed one or two things, it could have been a really, really awesome scene. During re-watches I can suspend my disbelief enough to essentially ignore the other context, but still, it's a little stupid.
 
O
OFAWB
Stop the presses! Robb Stark and I agree on something to do with Spike! :D
I might be the only one, but I love everything about that final! (or final few episodes). To me the Spike "bitch" line fits in perfectly. It shows that no matter what, Spike is still the soulless monster he's always been. For some reason I also never thought that he was talking about the chip. To me it was always clear that he was gonna go get his soul. In combination with the whole "bitch is going to see a difference" line, I think it really shows how Spike has no notion of true wrong or right, he doesn't understand why Buffy can't love him, thinks that getting the soul will change everything. Swearing at her just emphasize that no matter how much he loves her, the monster is still in him. I completely agree that the line makes no sense, but that's the exact point, and what makes it so great is the contradictions in his speech that go perfectly in accordance with his vampire self. That's something s2 Spike could have said, the circumstances were just different, but nonetheless it shows who he truly is, even if in the end getting the soul is a positive thing, he certainly didn't do it for the right reason (at least not in my opinion, not after talking crap about Buffy like that). On a side note, I also don't believe everything that Joss says about Spike is very accurate, at least not by what is demonstrated on the show.

As for Willow, I really like the whole idea that the real bad guy of the season is life. A lot of people hated the addiction storyline metaphor, but personally I loved it. Yup, what can I say, I like s6 😛
 
R
Robb Stark
Awesome analysis on the Spike stuff.
S
sleecin
Spot on analysis
Wesley Pryce
Wesley Pryce
[No message]
NeonNightLight
NeonNightLight
[No message]
SRMarx
SRMarx
YES! Couldn't have put it better myself!
If Spike was as pure as Joss has said, why call Buffy a bitch? I have NEVER seen an adequate answer to that question.

Undoubtedly, Spike was still hurting and heartbroken from Buffy calling him "incompetent" in "As You Were." he just wanted to get back at her, like when he said that she had stupid hair.
 
...Maybe he was still angry about the time she said, "It's Buffy, you big, bleached...stupid guy." 😉

---------- Post added at 11:43 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:28 PM ----------

Swearing at her just emphasize that no matter how much he loves her, the monster is still in him. I completely agree that the line makes no sense, but that's the exact point, and what makes it so great is the contradictions in his speech that go perfectly in accordance with his vampire self.

I hadn't considered it that way, but I should have. It fits right in with my belief that everyone and everything is grey.
 
Blaze
Blaze
completely agree about the grey!
The season 6 finale isn't my favorite or anything... mostly I think some of dark Willow's lines is a bit silly and cringeworthy.

But I love end with Xander saving the day, quite a lovely moment.

I also don't mind the Spike plot twist. It surprised my for sure, but I still think it makes kinda sense that it actually was his soul he went for all along.
So even if I know many has a problem with it I must say that it worked pretty well on me.

Also agree with Blaze on the Bitch comment.

/SK
 
Although I don't particularly like many things about Season 6, I think it begins and ends (relatively) strongly. In the dark Willow arc we have stakes, all of a sudden, after a year of pretty much no plot we have pacing, interesting moral dilemma's, excitement. plus Giles shows up to save the day. Man, I really missed him.🙂

The only real thing about Spike getting a soul was that he didn't change overly much. You look at Angel/Angelus, they can pretend to be like each other (briefly) but really their very different personalities, even when their both doing morally questionable acts.
Spike with and without the soul is pretty much the same guy- sounds the same, acts pretty much the same, looks a little different before he gets his coat back, and that's it. Oh, and he loses his emotional intuition, he got a lot more emotional declarations right when he was evil than when he was good.
It just...really bothered me, but I guess that a Season 7 problem.
 
Also, the world was going to hell, and Buffy and Giles were holding their sides and laughing. It seemed quite out-of-character for them both.

I've laughed after (or during) terrible, terrible things before. Sometimes, when things are so bad, all that is left to do is to laugh, and it helps. It's a physiological reaction that aids in alleviating the stress or pain. It's a valid reaction. You've never done that?
 
Evil Angelus 95
Evil Angelus 95
My thoughts exactly
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