Rereading Season Nine

[sosa lola]

I'm going to reread S9 and list all my observations in this thread. I mostly focus on characterization, so if you're looking for plot-related analysis you'll be disappointed. 😀 I also invite you to do the same. Let's discover something we haven't covered yet.



Issue One:



"God, what have I done?" This is the very first line of S9, which tells us exactly what this season is about: Buffy facing the aftermath of S8. It's interesting that the first question that pops in Buffy's head is her directing the blame to herself. She must have done something bad. Okay, this is just a theory, so roll with me here: Could it be that subconsciously Buffy is questioning her decision to "losing her body"? Like maybe she was the one who asked Andrew to keep her body safe and put her conscience in a robot, yet after the whole transition happened, her asking Andrew to do it was one of the blackouts?

"Also, why did I do whatever I've done?" If we take the theory that Buffy herself had asked Andrew to do the whole body exchange deal as what really happened, this question would indicate that Buffy has second thoughts about this decision.

"Also, where am I?" Where's her real body?

"My limbs feel screwed on wrong." Another hint that Buffy is in a robot body.

Buffy feels weird in her new body. She doesn't feel right and she think she hasn't drunk that much. She feels dread. She forgot a big chunk of what had happened to her last night, most importantly losing her own body.


Buffy/Xander:

From #1, Xander seems so ticked off with Buffy. He throws rude remarks at her in the form of a joke, which makes me suspect that something happened while Buffy was staying at Xander and Dawn's apartment during the summer. Because where we left off Xander in S8, he was still Buffy's loyal friend who had a lot of faith in her. One would argue that feelings of resentment started growing after Buffy slept with Angel, which was why Xander decided to leave the slaying life and start a normal life with Dawn "“ I really hope this isn't the case as it'll be another Xander development happening off screen situation which I'm so freaking tired of. I'm confident that whatever made Xander pissed off at Buffy happened during the summer and will be revealed later.

"Thanks for being first. I know you hate being first." Buffy's line here is so vague. There's probably nothing deep about it, but I think it means something. She's grateful that Xander was her first guest, which is probably her way to patching things up between them?

"Wanna see my bedroom?" "Maturity causes me not to joke at this point." After reading so many Mark Watches posts, this exchange is probably something the people over there would applaud and fall in love with. Xander is known for his sex jokes, especially directed at Buffy. This exchange could also be about whatever that happened during the summer.

Then there's THE SCENE, Buffy's trying so hard to be peppy and cute, but Xander is so mad at her that he just can't play along. He's very rude to her and yet looks so depressed, Buffy is aware of what he's going through so she doesn't take his rudeness to heart. She attempts to comfort him, but he rejects her attempts and doesn't want Dawn to know about the cause of his depression.


Buffy/Willow

In Buffy's messy room, we can see lots of alcohol bottles, Mr. Gordo, a random teddy bear, clothes everywhere, and Willow, in her underwear, drying her wet hair. Buffy assumes right away that they'd slept together, but Willow had to sneak out of Aura's apartment and stop by Buffy's? Which doesn't make sense. Why didn't Willow just take a shower at Aura's place? Does she already have the keys to Buffy's apartment or did Tumble and Anaheed let her in? Also, wouldn't it be awkward and in bad taste to take a shower in your friend's apartment when she has roommates in it? Roommates that you just met yesterday? I thought this exchange was weird, it would have made more sense if Willow had passed out in Buffy's apartment and woke up before Buffy.

Willow seems to be doing fine despite her magic loss. She got a nice job and an apparently-not-so-serious relationship, she's joking with Spike and having fun at the party, but she still wants to talk about the seed and the consequences of breaking the seed. She still wants her magic back, which is understandable as it was part of her for a long time, not to mention that she's defined by it, so losing magic meant losing her identity.

I found the Spike/Willow snark interesting. It's like both of them want to get rid of the other in order to have Buffy to themselves. Spike's insult was out of line and out of the blue, so it appears he was disappointed to find Willow with Buffy as he wanted to talk to Buffy alone. Willow pointedly retorts that she wants to speak to Buffy alone, and there's an unspoken, "Get lost!"

Buffy being avoidy is understandable as it seems everyone is blaming her for the changes that happened after breaking the seed. Willow's frustration is also understandable, though I'd have liked to see more dire consequences so I could sympathize with Willow's argument.


Dawn Summers:

Overall, Dawn seems happy and normal. She hadn't interacted with Buffy, but she managed to interact with both her sister's roommates. She looked kind of sad in her scene with Anaheed later in the issue. Dawn also noticed that despite the happy mask she's wearing, Willow is sad lately. Dawn and Willow seem to be good friends off screen.


Buffy/Spike:


"And no bumpy face; my roomies aren't in the know." So much for that. 😛 The next scene shows Spike telling the story of how he tried to bite Willow in S4. Spike mingled well at the party, he told stories, talked with Tumble, and kissed a girl.

Spike seems surer of himself and kinda grumpy. He's also annoyed at Buffy for not taking his warning seriously - though I have to wonder how she's gonna take them seriously when she doesn't know who's coming and what do they want. Unless and if my theory above is right, Buffy did do something about Spike's warning by keeping her real body safe.

"That's a bit harsh after last night." This could be a hint that Spike was around when Buffy's conscious was transferred into a robot body. However that contradicts with his argument about Buffy wanting normal later on.

"Is that why you came out? To protect me?" Spike probably started attacking Willow because he wanted to avoid Buffy's question.


Buffy/Riley:

I'm not really sure if Riley is gonna appear again this season. He was a gentleman in this issue, bringing wine and being a good friend to Buffy. He was another guy who thought that Buffy did what was right by breaking the seed and Buffy needed that, he also tried to get Buffy to stop pretending that things are fine. I thought it was a good last scene for Riley's character.


Tumble and Anaheed:

Anaheed Facts:

1) Anaheed is 30.
2) She is a fact checker for a website.
3) She wanted cute boys in the party and she'd sleep with anyone if they told her she's 28. She seems desperate for love to the point of being attracted to Willow.
4) She was at the pool with Buffy and Andrew.
5) She is the only one cleaning the mess in the apartment. *hugs her*

Tumble Facts:

1) His name is obviously a nickname that Dawn unsuccessfully tried to guess where it came from.
2) He wants to form a band with Spike.
3) He plays video games.
4) Seems lazy. He's the "not-getting-up" type. Always seated on the couch. And doesn't help Anaheed cleaning the mess.



Buffy/Andrew:

"So I got a bunch of squads together and started a disaster-relief organization." Andrew seems to be the only one dealing positively with the aftermath of S8 by cleaning up the mess.

Buffy was seen with Andrew at the party and in the pool. If the change happened at the party, I think it probably happened between these times.

 

[brinkster130]

I’m going to join you on your re-read. 😀

Issue 1: Freefall p1
[MENTION=7613]sosa lola[/MENTION], I really like your theory about Buffy asking Andrew to switch her body to the robot. It fits well with the dialogue, time line and what we have been told by Joss and Co. (ie: the party will have serious consequences). If this is in fact what happened I wonder how aware of the change she is; her line “My limbs feel screwed in wrong” stands out to me, like maybe she’s questioning and/or doubting it.

B/Andrew:
I thought their first interaction at the party was odd. While I can understand why Buffy is glad that she is no longer playing “general” and that the war is over it’s odd to see her talking about it so nonchalantly. I’d expect talk about the past to bring up feelings about Giles’ death, but it doesn’t seem to be on her mind at all. It’s nice that Andrew is doing something productive on his own.

B/Riley: Love how Riley called Buffy out on pretending everything is ok, shows that the two of them are good friends.

B/Spike: Buffy seemed a bit flirty with Spike when he first arrived, but we later see him making out with another girl who is sitting on his lap.

B/Xander: Seems to be an awkwardness between the two; Xander’s passive aggressive jokes and Buffy being extra chatty. I really wonder what their secret is, we really haven’t been given any clues.

Thoughts/Questions:
Buffy got wasted at the party and either A) blacked out or B) is so embarrassed/ashamed by what she did that she is pretending that she doesn’t remember. Buffy seems pretty depressed; binge drinking; pretending to be happy; hitting on Riley and flirting with Spike, the talk about her future, talking negatively about herself…she seems to be ignoring her reality.

If Heinrich in 2D is the Master, what is he up too? Sounds like he has lived there longer than B, but there is no way him being neighbors with a slayer is a coincidence.

We see Simone driving onto town; interesting to know that she keeps a low profile for a few days (maybe weeks even?).

If Buffy did in fact switch bodies while she went MIA for a little bit at the party, how did they manage that with no magic?

 

[crazysoulless]

This thread is from a long time ago but I thought I'd say a few things.

"Thanks for being first. I know you hate being first."

^ I think that is referencing the days Xander felt like a loser geek. In his unpopular got beat up by jocks days he probably would've hated being the first at a party since there is a cool kid unofficial rule about not arriving early. Being first would make you feel like the pathetic kid that didn't have other plans and is so grateful to even be invited a party.

So, we now know that Xander's rudeness to Buffy is about Dawn & the monk creation spell. And that Andrew switched Buffy's body without her consent or knowledge.

I do not understand how Spike could think Buffy is the one holding back between them and that he is the one that has been patiently waiting and putting himself at emotional risk. He didn't even tell her he was alive! He stayed away from her for two years! He had meaningless sex with Harmony! He dated and had sex with Maria/Spider! He flirted and had idyllic fantasies about Fred/Illyria for months! He kissed another woman in Buffy's home at Buffy's party! This is not the Spike from late S7 and a lot of fans and Spike himself need to stop thinking that Buffy is the one at fault. She's heartbroken and mourning and being harassed and violated and guilt tripped and should not be expected to somehow know from Spike suddenly being there for her again that it means he wants to continue where they left off in Chosen.