Improving the Buffy/Angelverse

[sylvanscribe]

In the Buffy forums I have seen a lot of threads of "how you would improve Season # so-and-so." And some interesting ideas have been generated.

But it got me to thinking how I would improve both shows over all.


First, I would rewrite Buffy Seasons 4 & 5 to have better Big Bads, and no Dawn. But I would have Buffy die at the end of Season 5, with it being the series finally. Then SMG could have gone on to her movie career, ASH could go back to England, and the rest of the cast go on with their careers.

Meanwhile on Angel, Faith would break out of jail a little sooner for whatever reason, and she instead of Spike would join the Angel cast at the end of Season 4. Spike could make a guest appearance, maybe some story about how the powers of Wolfram and Hart get the chip out of his brain ... but he would not be a regular.

I think I would kill Faith off in the Angel series finally, paving the way for a new slayer.

Then once Angel expires, we'd get a spinoff series starring a new Slayer, the one called after Faith. Something completely new. Giles and Willow and Spike might make the occasional guest appearance, but on the whole it would be a new supporting cast in a new location (setting it in England would be really cool, though I doubt with production costs they could swing that).

 

[white avenger]

I think that it would have made a world of difference to the entire series if, instead of killing the Assistant Mayor in Season 3, Faith had accidently staked Angel, but I would never suggest it for fear of having scorpians planted in my boots every morning.

But something that think really WOULD have been interesting would have been a televised Season 8 with Buffy, Faith, Spike, and Willow (In my version, Kennedy wore the amulet, got fried, and went on to make life a living hell for Angel in LA) would be running a Slayer Academy in a former hunting lodge in Northern California or maybe Oregon.

 

[Wesley Junior]

BUFFY/ANGEL: I would remove all crossover episodes. They leave a bad taste in my mouth.

BUFFY:

I would Buffy and Angel's relationship in Season 2 more time to develop before it all goes to hell in Surprise.

Either I keep Anya in the show or not, I would have Buffy and Xander hook up and see how that relationship would unfold.

I would have Xander be recruited by the Initiative and develop a backbone/dark side so he wouldn't just the guy with the jokes.

I would make Maggie Walsh the Big Bad of Season 4 instead of Adam.

I wouldn't make Buffy and Spike a romantic pairing. Spike's fixation on Buffy would be one-sided and the whole point of the experience would be for Spike to learn let go of being dependent on women like he was with Dru and be his own man and a fighter in the war aganist evil by Buffy's example.

I would either end the show with Season 5 or merge Season 6 and Season 7 together into one season that would contain the best elements of both seasons.

ANGEL:

I would make Connor a bit less damaged and whiney. I would give Connor's relationship with Angel the chance to improve and for Connor to grow beyond his Angel-hating phase so having his memories altered wouldn't be necessary.

I wouldn't put Cordelia through the whole posession/coma experience. I would love to see Angel and Cordelia together with the way they developed their relationship. But for their relationship to fully work, I would make a storyline in which Angel search for a way to be completely happy with Cordelia without losing his soul.

Beyond those two things, I wouldn't change anything else. Angel rocks!

 

[anyatara]

In all honesty, I don't think there's a whole lot that could be improved. There're a few things I'd omit from both shows, simply because they bug me/seem irrelevent but I think, generally, I was happy with the way both series' turned out, if I wasn't, I wouldn't love 'em so damn much.

I think I'd change how things unfolded in season 4 of both shows, though. I know most people hate Angel season 4, but I do like it; I just think the whole thing was a little...ridiculous rushed, the Jasmine arc, at least. The Evil Cordy thing should have been strung out a little longer. Cordy in a coma I liked, because You're Welcome couldn't have come around without it, and that's my favourite Angel episode of all time, but the Jasmine storyline was always lacking a little depth, for me, I don't think it would have been one of the things I'd omit, but I think it could have been improved.

With Buffy season 4, I always thought it should have been centered a little more about how Buffy was dealing with being the slayer in a new setting, being at college rather than high school, as a pose to being centered so much around the Initiative and Adam. I prefer the back end of the season, when things started to focus more on the relationships within the Scoobies, rather than the Initiative.

Also, in Buffy, a huge improvement would have been Anya surviving the final battle and getting her on spinoff. Totally not just saying that because I'm a huge Anya fan, or anything...


(Pretty sure my improvements make no sense to anyone but me. Brain sleeping. /fail.)

 

[BuffyThoughts]

"Life as the big bad" would've worked better in S4 than S6, I think.

I disagree with you about Glory, though. She was great as a big bad.

 

[Misty]

I'd change the Jasmine arc in season 4, because it destroyed Cordy and I did not need to see her in bed with Connor! I'd also change season 5 of Angel, because it felt dull with Cordy, and I think I would have liked it better if she was in it.

As for Btvs, I wouldn't change anything because I love it the way it is 😀.

 

[andredk]

First off I trust that Whedon and the other writers are all better at giving a story then me. So, the only thing I would change is Angel coming back from the dead the episode after he leaves. I know its not the only death that results in a come back the next episode but it is the one that bugs me the most. I mean either way Buffy is going to whine about something in all the seasons so why not give people a big surprise half way through the season. But then it screws their whole Angelus thing up so..... ahhhh all well. That Episode just felt like a cliche comic book.

 

[Red Sox Nation]

the whole no Dawn thing would be a huge improvement.

other than that, I like Faith in Angel, she seemed more fitting in it because of her dark side & how much she has in common with Angel. though I don't want a no-spike S5 Angel, the Angel & Spike interactions were hilarious, the funniest parts of both shows were their interaction & their brotherly love-hate relationship. it was sad seeing the show cancelled on its best season.