If it was a simply a personal blog I would agree with you completely but he is doing this in a professional fashion i.e. selling ebooks of his reviews and going on tour for readings. At some stage the element of connecting with his intended audience has to come into play. By engaging the story with his own past so frequently he alienates his readers.
Well-known reviewer and blogger MarkWatches started watching "Buffy"
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If it was a simply a personal blog I would agree with you completely but he is doing this in a professional fashion i.e. selling ebooks of his reviews and going on tour for readings. At some stage the element of connecting with his intended audience has to come into play. By engaging the story with his own past so frequently he alienates his readers.
L
Living Dead Boy
Guest
Does anybody else just skim through his reviews and go straight for the comments? I'm a bigger fan of enigmaticagentscully's reviews than his. 😛
S
Spikefan31
Yes! I love that person :D
I still read his reviews, but I find myself enjoying them less too. I'm fine with him talking about his personal experiences, though. But the reviews are quite short in general, and they should really have more analysis than just WTF reactions. I took a look at his book reviews though, and those are actually pretty good. Longer, too.
Perhaps because Cordelia is his favorite character. One of, anyway. He'd mentioned on several occasions than he wanted a Cordelia-centric episode, and The Wish does look like a Cordelia episode but eventually it ends up being about Sunnydale without Buffy, so I really understand why he'd be so disappointed.
Btw, I'd love to read your post on LJ, is it okay if you give me the link?
I love that he loves Cordy, because I love Cordy. But sometimes I think he misses major facets of the show by getting caught up in her not getting the time he thinks she deserves.
Aloverssoulz
Potential
Decent reviews. I like reading his first time reactions to things and he notices a few things I never noticed.
I dislike how he takes everything so personally though. I'm waiting for him to write "The last half of this episode wasn't good because a random extra in the background wore a green tie and when I was 15 I got beating up by someone in school that hated gays who also wore a green tie" Relating to characters and TV shows is one thing, but he goes overboard with it.
I dislike how he takes everything so personally though. I'm waiting for him to write "The last half of this episode wasn't good because a random extra in the background wore a green tie and when I was 15 I got beating up by someone in school that hated gays who also wore a green tie" Relating to characters and TV shows is one thing, but he goes overboard with it.
C
Cast No Shadow
Haha, I don't agree, I fricking adore!
L
Living Dead Boy
Hahahaha exactly right!
T
The Scourge
[No message]
L
Living Dead Boy
Guest
With all that being said, does anybody else wanna pack it up and go to another review site? Cri-Cri-Critically Touched, for example? (Wink at [MENTION=11317]Cast No Shadow[/MENTION])
Now this is a review site. 🙂 I'll still check Mark's whenever I get a chance, but Mike's review site is where it's at. 😉
Now this is a review site. 🙂 I'll still check Mark's whenever I get a chance, but Mike's review site is where it's at. 😉
Aloverssoulz
Potential
"Bad Girls" review. It's pretty good and long! ^.^
http://markwatches.net/reviews/2012/02/mark-watches-buffy-the-vampire-slayer-s03e14-bad-girls/
http://markwatches.net/reviews/2012/02/mark-watches-buffy-the-vampire-slayer-s03e14-bad-girls/
Cast No Shadow
You are my world.
I didn't mind the Bad Girls review, it definitely was better than the most recent ones.
Could have done without the "I wet myself LOL" story though.
Could have done without the "I wet myself LOL" story though.
T
The Scourge
[No message]
L
Living Dead Boy
Guest
Yeah, I actually didn't mind the review either. And I'll admit, the "wet myself" thing made me chuckle a little, just because it happened to me as well. 😛
I like that he's very excited and engaged in Faith's character because I can related to that, I'm really excited to see what he'll think about what happens to her at the end of the season 🙂
Consequences is up now, too. I have to say, though, he really gets almost too close to what happens later in his review:
"There was a very clear and simple path that "Consequences" could have taken: redemption. This story could have been about Faith finding a way to reconcile her actions with her own personal belief system. I don't doubt that that would have been an entertaining thing to watch."
And
"She uses Xander to demonstrate what this is all about for her: power. She wants to hold that sort of absolute power over everyone around her." It just reminds me of Chosen and about how the essence of it comes down to power.
"There was a very clear and simple path that "Consequences" could have taken: redemption. This story could have been about Faith finding a way to reconcile her actions with her own personal belief system. I don't doubt that that would have been an entertaining thing to watch."
And
"She uses Xander to demonstrate what this is all about for her: power. She wants to hold that sort of absolute power over everyone around her." It just reminds me of Chosen and about how the essence of it comes down to power.
Cast No Shadow
You are my world.
And now I think I've come full circle. I really liked his Consequences review, it was detailed and well thought out, and I thought the examples from his own life he used were precise and succinct enough to demonstrate the point he was trying to make.
BananaBuffy
Peanut Bear
It suddenly seems that after we all started getting a bit restless and bored and complaining about his reviews he has suddenly fixed many of the problems. I find that I enjoyed his Bad Girls and Consequences reviews quite a lot.
S
Spikefan31
[No message]
Cast No Shadow
You are my world.
Funny comments in Enemies. Well, funny if you read Discworld. Or if you love Giles (and who could not love Giles?).
Commenter A: In other news, I really like how Giles seems to be loosening up a bit with Wesley's presence and being kicked out of the Watchers. He's started to wear jackets a lot less as well, I've noticed. I miss the tweedyness, but I do have a certain penchant for rumpled!Giles.
Also, he introduced that demon guy to his wife. Who else wants to hear that story? At this point I am utterly perplexed as to why this show isn't just called "˜GILES, plus a bunch of other people.' Also also, he ate a banana, and in light of a brief conversation we had about Discworld the other day, this was really hilarious to me. It's clearly a Librarian thing.
Actually"¦my mum's a librarian and she eats bananas ALL THE TIME. Damn, I think I'm really on to something here!
Is this the source of a librarian's power??
Commenter B: I always believed the source of power for librarians was whiskey. Mainly because every librarian I know, my dad included, really like whiskey.
C: Also also, he ate a banana, and in light of a brief conversation we had about Discworld the other day, this was really hilarious to me. It's clearly a Librarian thing.
In one of the commentaries I think it was mentioned that Anthony Head is very adamant about characters not "just talking," which happens a lot in television shows, where people just kind of stand in front of each other and talk back and forth. it's completely unrealistic if you think about it. It also probably doesn't help that he's usually the exposition guy. Hence, he is always licking a lollipop or eating a banana, and always always cleaning his glasses. 😀
A: Frankly, I would be quite happy to watch an entire show of him just eating bananas and lollipops.
Nothing else.
Just that.
D: Also, he's always trouserless if Joss is to be taken seriously 😀 .
Commenter A: In other news, I really like how Giles seems to be loosening up a bit with Wesley's presence and being kicked out of the Watchers. He's started to wear jackets a lot less as well, I've noticed. I miss the tweedyness, but I do have a certain penchant for rumpled!Giles.
Also, he introduced that demon guy to his wife. Who else wants to hear that story? At this point I am utterly perplexed as to why this show isn't just called "˜GILES, plus a bunch of other people.' Also also, he ate a banana, and in light of a brief conversation we had about Discworld the other day, this was really hilarious to me. It's clearly a Librarian thing.
Actually"¦my mum's a librarian and she eats bananas ALL THE TIME. Damn, I think I'm really on to something here!
Is this the source of a librarian's power??
Commenter B: I always believed the source of power for librarians was whiskey. Mainly because every librarian I know, my dad included, really like whiskey.
C: Also also, he ate a banana, and in light of a brief conversation we had about Discworld the other day, this was really hilarious to me. It's clearly a Librarian thing.
In one of the commentaries I think it was mentioned that Anthony Head is very adamant about characters not "just talking," which happens a lot in television shows, where people just kind of stand in front of each other and talk back and forth. it's completely unrealistic if you think about it. It also probably doesn't help that he's usually the exposition guy. Hence, he is always licking a lollipop or eating a banana, and always always cleaning his glasses. 😀
A: Frankly, I would be quite happy to watch an entire show of him just eating bananas and lollipops.
Nothing else.
Just that.
D: Also, he's always trouserless if Joss is to be taken seriously 😀 .
Hale Caesar
Sunnydale Nerd
He didn't like Earshot.
He. Didn't. Like. Earshot.
I don't even know...
---------- Post added at 10:03 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:52 PM ----------
This is what I am saying, Abby. THIS IS WHAT I AM SAYING.
That's two of my absolute favourite episodes that he thought were...strange.
But Earshot? I mean, come on man!
He. Didn't. Like. Earshot.
I don't even know...
---------- Post added at 10:03 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:52 PM ----------
This is what I am saying, Abby. THIS IS WHAT I AM SAYING.
That's two of my absolute favourite episodes that he thought were...strange.
But Earshot? I mean, come on man!
Abbeycat
*gasp* how can someone not like Earshot?!
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