Sunday, February 27, 2011

Buffy, Angel and Scooby Dooby DOOOOOO!

There is one thing that I really have issue with in the series of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel and that issue is that both shows have a serious case of Scooby Doo-itis. It seems that every episode is the same. The details vary, but they all end the same way, Buffy (or Angel) kicks evil in the ass and everyone laughs and moves on or Angel mopes a little more: depends on the series. There is the occasional episode that breaks the mold, such as "Hero" and "Once More With Feeling" but largely it follows the 1,2,3 of 1. Encounter *insert Evil being*; 2 Find out what *Evil Being* does and 3 Kick Evil's ass. This monotony is relieved by excellent two parters like "Surprise/Innocence" and "Graduation Day". "Hero" is one of the episodes that follows a story arch that is pretty standard in film but is rare enough in TV that I was kind of surprised to see it. It felt extremely predictable, but I've seen A LOT of movies.

2 comments:

Heidi said...

But how much of this is just the nature of TV in general? Is this an entirely fair criticism?

Unknown said...

I feel like some shows are moving away from this a little, anybody watch True Blood? Another vampire/witch/supernatural-esque show that almost seems to be deliberately trying to break plot arch molds.

I've been comparing this show a lot lately and I have found the big difference for me is the issues at hand, I feel like Angel, and Buffy too, always had a concept of the overarching "greater good" theme, and I feel like newer shows of this generation (I feel old saying that) are almost backlashing and moving towards themes and plots that are much more petty and personal.