The Body

Cohen

Cohen

Hellhound
Joined
Oct 24, 2005
Messages
4,295
Location
Neptune, California
Sineya
Such an amazing episode. Everyone did amazing in it. I never appreciated it until my grandfather died last year, and now I can't get through it without tearing up more than a few times. The actors' emotions were spot-on. The writing was phenomenal. It should have gotten an emmy. Biggest snub if I ever saw one. This is by far the best episode of the series, and I love it more every time I watch it.
 
S
SoBlind
well, they didn't get an emmy for outstanding music direction for OMWF either. logic doesn't seem to play a big part at the emmys
THE BODY

The Good;
All of it, an epic 40 minutes of TV, the cast are all incredible

The Bad;
A few problems. Why did the paramedics tell Buffy to stop CPR when she breaks Joyce's rib? A broken rib won't kill her, lack of oxygen would. Surely only a doctor can officially determine that someone is dead? How can the vamp rise when it's already had it's autopsy, it's heart has been taken out and put back in again?

Best line;
Buffy; "That's not her, she's gone"
Dawn; "Where did she go?"
Just beating Anya's heartful monologue as she desperately tries to understand what's happening.

Women good/men bad;
No room for that here

Jeez!;
Buffy breaking Joyce's rib is just wince inducing. The scariest vamp in all of the Buffyverse is the one who attacks Dawn in the morgue, partly because this is a naked man attacking a terrified 14 year old girl but also because this is a vamp stripped to it's bare bones, it genuinely looks like what it is, a reanimated corpse. The scene where Buffy imagines successfully reviving Joyce then we realise it's all just her fantasy is just too cruel for words.

Kinky dinky;
Dawn's schoolfriend Lisa says that her crush Kevin 'Wants her'

Captain Subtext;
The Willow/Tara's first onscreen kiss, so much going on that it almost goes unnoticed. Willow likes it when Tara rubs her tummy. Could she be related to Sheldon in The Big Bang Theory? Willow and Tara refer to the Amazons. Anya and Giles hug. Buffy seems to just be able to sense when Dawn is in trouble, maybe their link is deeper than just sisters. Buffy's 'Mommy?' line surely needs no explanation?

Guantanamo Bay;

Scoobies to the ER;
Xander hurts his hand again

Missing scenes;

Apocalypses; 5,

Wheldon Cliches (with kind permission from Boo)

Scoobies in bondage:
Buffy: 8
Giles: 4
Cordy: 5
Will: 3
Jenny: 1
Angel: 4
Oz: 1
Faith: 3
Joyce: 1
Wes: 1
Xander; 1
Dawn; 1

Scoobies knocked out:
Buffy: 16
Giles: 10
Cordy: 6
Xander: 8
Will: 5
Jenny: 2
Angel: 6
Oz: 3
Faith: 1
Joyce: 3
Wes: 1
Anya;1

Kills: 1 vamp for Buffy
Buffy: 95 vamps, 32 demons, 6 monsters, 3 humans, 1 werewolf, 1 spirit warrior & a robot
Giles: 5 vamps, 1 demon
Cordy: 3 vamps, ½ a demon
Will: 6 vamps
Angel: 3 vamps, 1 demon, 1 human
Oz: 3 vamps, 1 zombie
Faith: 16 vamps, 5 demons, 3 humans
Xander: 5 vamps, 2 zombies, ½ a demon, ½ a demon
Anya: ½ a demon
Riley; 18 vamps + 7 demons

Scoobies go evil:
Giles: 1
Cordy: 1
Will: 2
Jenny: 1
Angel: 1
Oz: 1
Joyce: 1
Xander: 3

Alternate scoobies:
Buffy: 6
Giles: 3
Cordy: 1
Will: 2
Jenny: 2
Angel: 3
Oz: 2
Joyce: 2
Xander: 3

Recurring characters killed: 10, goodbye Joyce, how we loved her and how we never really realised it until she was gone.
Jesse, Flutie, Jenny, Kendra, Larry, Snyder, Professor Walsh, Forrest, McNamara, Joyce

Sunnydale deaths; Joyce but from natural causes
89;

Total number of scoobies: 6
Giles, Xander, Willow, Buffy, Anya, Tara,

Xander demon magnet: 5(6?)
Preying Mantis Lady, Inca Mummy Girl, Drusilla, VampWillow, Anya (arguably Buffy & Faith with their demon essences?), Dracula?

Scoobies shot:
Giles: 2
Angel: 3
Oz: 4
Riley; 1

Notches on Scooby bedpost:
Giles: 2; Joyce & Olivia, possibly Jenny and 3xDraccy babes?
Cordy: 1?
Buffy: 3 confirmed; Angel, Parker,Riley, 1 possible, Dracula(?)
Angel: 1;Buffy
Joyce: 1;Giles, 2 possible, Ted and Dracula(?)
Oz: 3; Groupie, Willow & Verucca
Faith:2 ;Xander, Riley
Xander: 2; Faith, Anya
Willow: 2;Oz and Tara
Riley; 3; Buffy, Sandy and unnamed vampwhore

Questions and observations;
Notice that Buffy never hugs Dawn, never holds her? More on that next episode. How can you have an episode so sad yet so beautiful? Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful, cannot praise this highly enough. Wonderful details like Buffy pulling down Joyce's skirt as the paramedics arrive. The end of the fantastic Joyce/Kristine Sutherland as a semi-regular on the show, she'll be missed as all the cast and crew remark upon but what a wonderful send-off she gets. A very real posibility that this may be simply the best ever episode of television ever.
Marks out of 10; do you have to ask? 10/10
 
Seriously, I never thought it's one of the best episodes the first times I watched it. I didn't notice there's no background music. I didn't know that Buffy throws up. I thought she falls down and she's gonna faint. So many details I missed till I read what you guys post on BB.

So when I watched it after that, it hit me so hard. Maybe it's because I grew up and I lost my grandma. I love the school scene, when Buffy went to tell Dawn the most. Best 40 minutes of all TV time.
 
Joss's DVD commentary on this ep. is excellent. He wanted the whole thing to be about grotesque, indecent physicality--hence the naked vampire at the end with Dawn, a total violation of decency. (btw vamp rising under sheet behind her=one of alltime great scary shots). Also the way Buffy fights him--not like a hero/slayer with acrobatic kicks, but eye-gouging, weak, desperate. Only other time she EVER fights this way is against Spike in Seeing Red---both instances of intense physical violation.

Anya's speech, no matter how many times I watch, never fails to choke me up.

Poor Dawn, destined to be labeled "freak" for the rest of her high school life.
 
I can never watch it without getting tears in my eyes, it's a fantastic episode. Goes to show how brave Joss is - doing different things all the time. I think it's great that he killed Joyce in a natural way, stripping Buffy of her slayer vengeance thing and forcing her to just accept her mother's passing

So much in this episode reveals who the characters really are - I love all of their reactions - the scene with Willow, Xander, Anya and Tara the most. Anya's speach of course, but also Willow's hairbrained wardrobe problems and Xander punching the wall.
 
LOL at emma caulfield, a fan asked what was going through her mind at the time (in the body) she said that she was burstung for a Pee and was starving for something to eat.
HAHAHA..
 
Very nice episode. 🙂 I was actually crying during it, which is odd because I've never had someone close to me die before. Just goes to show you how great the actors are. 😀

And I'm probably a sick, sick person for saying this, but half the time I was actually busting up laughing. 😀 There were a lot of very funny things in the episode (I.e Xander's hand getting trapped in the wall), and a lot of very depressing things.

The scene where Dawn broke down crying was heartbreaking. Not only because simply watching a girl find out her mother's dead, but because it happened in school with people watching. That was just awful. All kids know that you never cry during school, because if you do, that will lead to embarrassment. ESPECIALLY when a "gossip girl" and your crush is watching.

The Willow/ Tara scene was cute. It kinda upset me though how Willow left, not realizing Anya had placed her blue sweater in her drawer. I also loved the little Willow/ Xander scene. Willow getting ready to fight, Xander hugging her and kissing her forehead.

The Anya speech was great, she such an interesting character.

I'm slightly suprised that Buffy barely cried at all during all this. Apparently Xander was crying, and so was Willow and Dawn and basically everyone, but Buffy stayed mostly indifferent. It may have been that she was just in a state of shock, or because she's such a strong character, but I'm not sure. Buffy cried tons before that when she with Angel, but she wouldn't cry about her own mother? She even said that she loved her mother more than anything. Maybe she was just too horrified to cry.

Lastly, the Anya/ Giles interactions are quite interesting. It seems that whenever Anya sees Giles she automatically hugs him tightly.
 
Wishing Oceans said:
I'm slightly suprised that Buffy barely cried at all during all this. Apparently Xander was crying, and so was Willow and Dawn and basically everyone, but Buffy stayed mostly indifferent. It may have been that she was just in a state of shock, or because she's such a strong character, but I'm not sure. Buffy cried tons before that when she with Angel, but she wouldn't cry about her own mother? She even said that she loved her mother more than anything. Maybe she was just too horrified to cry.
Click to expand...

Not crying doesn't mean you're not sad. I didn't cry when my grandma passed away. I was worried that everyone would think I'm a cold heart bitca. ^_^

I guess Buffy was still shocked. But she knew this day might come. She had talked to Joyce about this as we learned in Forever. So I agree that she had to be strong for Dawn. She had to be the one who handles everything. Her eyes were red, though.
 
The body is honestly the only episode of buffy I cant watch,not because its bad,its bloody terrific. But its just way way depressing. Its a different type of depressing than say season 2 or season 6..it just captured the airlessness of death. How almost boring it is for lack of a better description. how time seems to stop and you just cant kinda feel. Ive been able to sit through other episodes of buffy that are mega depressing and been able to enjoy them,but when i try watching the body i cant get past maybe the first 15 minutes. its such a punch in the gut. But,everybodies terrific. Im not a fan of dawn as a character by any means but her scene at the end is one of the best of the episode. And yeah the speech anya gives that everybody loves is one of the best moments of the series. But yeah,in terms of pure effect and innovation it might be one of the best buffy episodes ever,maybe even the best.
 
Rack
Rack
[No message]
C
Chris2
I consider this one of the best episodes of the series, but I hardly ever watch it.
An absolutely amazing and touching episode. Sarah's performance...Alyson...Michelle Trachtenberg...everyone was amazing. I really don't know what to say. An episode with no music makes the dramatic moments even more sorrowful.
 
This is maybe the best episode of the series in my opinion. The writing, the acting, everything was brilliant. I really love the way all the little character moments (like Buffy pulling on Joyce's skirt to make her decent, or Willow desperately searching for the right clothes) give the episode a kind of hyper-realistic feel. It makes me cry every time. Still, I don't like to rewatch it very often because it's just so depressing.
 
Everything about this episode is art in my opinion. It just strikes home and really goes there. The lighting, the acting, Buffy & Dawn's reaction...it really made me cry my eyes out & realize how blessed I am to have the family and the mother I have because you never know when they're gonna be gone. It's sad to think about & I don't like to. That's how emotional the whole episode is for me. When I first saw it, I felt like I was going through everything as Buffy was. Shocked, angry, confused, wondering if she was dreaming & I even wondered what could Buffy have done to stop it? What happened? It definitely gets you emotionally & even more so because it is done so realistically & really depicts natural death. It gives me chills. I cried & cried. I didn't want to lose Joyce as a character on the show because she has always been one of my favorites. She was a bright light in all the chaos going on in Buffy's life. She always had strength & advice. She was a strong, fearless woman. I was the most sad to see her go & the way it happened was just...very unnerving & it really took you there.
 
For the 1st time, the reaction to the death of a loved one is portrayed with STARK realism on tv.


SMG not receiving an Emmy Nomination still baffles me.
 
M
Marisa
[No message]
Yea anya's speech was good. It was this specific episode that made me start to actually LIKE anya. (well her lil speech in the ep.)

*shrugs* i'm loyal to a fault to the original scoobies.

didn't like tara when she was first introduced, didn't like anya, didn't like dawn lol. took a good... season (or more) to actually start liking the new(er) characters.
 
Best episode of the series imo. Very powerful. Everyone great.
 
A
alliern21
[No message]
not only the acting was good, but the filming.... when Buffy is talking to the paramedic guy in the beginning, and you can only see half his face, and the sound of his voice is fading in and out, its real, its how it really is, its amazing.
 
That episode was spoilt for me because who ever did the research on Joyce's condition got it so wrong. It made the medical proceedures in America look so out of date.
 
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