DakaraJayne patreon

Buffy The Vampire Slayer Reaction 4x19

🕑 Added 2022-09-01 14:00:10 +0000 UTC

Comments

Todd Bolton

Great reaction, of course. Being moved by both Willow and Oz, and Willow and Tara – it makes it hard doesn’t it? With Tara, as you already see, you just need to wait to really get to know her. Willow and Oz’s conversation in the van at the end is one of my favorite bits of dialogue ever. “I feel like some part of me will always be waiting for you. Like, if I'm old and blue-haired and I turn a corner in Istanbul and there you are – I won't be surprised. Because you're there with me – you know?” It gets me every time. I suppose being divorced but still friends with my ex, greatly influences my perspective on such things. Though you’re right, the nature of fictional narrative is that they oftentimes have to pack a lot of change in a short period, I don’t think Riley’s change toward Oz was sudden. At first, when he had “the wiggins” because Buffy told him of Willow’s relationship with a werewolf, it was in conversation. When he saw the real-life Oz before him, being experimented on and imprisoned by the Initiative, it was no longer abstract. I would hope that whatever stupid bigotries I might have would fall apart, as well, under such present, incarnated suffering. I think that’s the nature of empathy. It doesn’t hit us until we see it. Buffy being ignorant of Willow’s more-than-fondness for Tara is mirrored in Willow’s ignorance of how “Buffy” was acting when she was actually Faith. These are symptoms of the distance that has developed between them (and the whole gang) over this season. The next two episodes will makes us uncomfortable (as only BtVS can do) and mostly, beautifully resolve them (even if temporarily so – like real life). On Denmaroca’s comment about “Superstar”, from the dakpak, this is agreement but phrased a little differently. When the season’s plot arc is not “furthered” but the character arcs are (as in pretty much every episode), I don’t really distinguish between the two. The plot is so closely related to who these characters are that one advancement equals the other in my book. Loving your reactions, more and more, with each one.

Bart Aansorgh

Heeeey I'm back to commenting :D. finaly caught up,. It's been a crazy couple of weeks. Anyways.... This has to be one of the best episodes in the series. The way they handled this situation is soo good. the slow buildup to this moment, Buffy's reaction, the chemistry between Willow and Tara. I know how you feel though, I love Willow/Oz, but I also love Willow/Tara. And here I was rootin for Tara too. I think the setup in this episode was good regarding Riley and Buffy aswell. Their past getting a bit more worked out, the split between Riley and the Initiative getting stronger. And lets not forget Adam pulling strings behind the scenes. Getting near the end of this season and can't wait for the next one :). Willow's really moved on now..

Michele

You "almost" shed tears? Well, there was no almost for me. I full on did. A few times. Willow wasn't even tearing up in one of them. Cried in the scenes between Willow and Tara, Cried in the scenes between Willow and Oz. Oz!!! I love him! Honestly, I felt more about this than when Buffy and Angel were having their issues.

John

OK, so that was exhausting. Tears may have been shed. After weeks of speculation we now have it confirmed that Willow thinks Tara is something pretty special. So do I after seeing her deal with everything this episode. Even though her heart was clearly breaking when Oz showed up she kept putting Willow's feelings ahead of her own. Without hesitation. Lovely. I had to keep pausing the video so I could hug the television. As others have commented, this was a pretty big deal. To have a main character come out did not happen; and it wasn't done for laughs. It was a really heartfelt (and overdue) conversation between two best friends. It showed us that it's allowed to be super awkward, and you don't have to figure it all out right away or put a label on it. You're allowed to be scared. You just need to start the conversation and the rest will figure itself out. The most important thing is Willow opened up and shared with Buffy and Buffy showed her that it doesn't change their friendship one bit. For LGBT kids that don't have many role models, that was pretty wonderful to watch. I came out a couple of years before Willow and I can say that her talk with Buffy was sooooo much less awkward than any of mine. So I do think Buffy recovered quick enough, and had a wonderful follow-through chat as well to show she wasn't freaked...just surprised. I wonder if she was comparing her reaction here to Riley's when he found out about Willow and Oz. So glad you enjoyed the episode. Thanks for sharing your reaction and thoughts. xo

denmaroca 2

I got to watch two new Dakara reactions to Buffy on one day - I feel spoiled. Love the fact that during your speculating cum ranting about Oz's reappearance you were still bopping to the theme tune! I think we can cut Buffy some slack. The fact that Willow/Tara was one of the earliest gay relationships on TV (which is why it meant so much to that community at the time) demonstrates how little such scenarios were portrayed or even discussed. People had very little to go on as to how to spot the signs or how to react. Especially people like Buffy who consumed very little media. It's one of the unexpected benefits of the greater portrayal of such relationships that heterosexual people have a much better understanding and don't get thrown so much. Superstar wasn't the last Buffy ep you saw; that was the sex-fest that was Where the Wild Things Are! Granted, Superstar was a much better episode.

Ian

What an emotional episode for you to return to dak bless . Really lovely episode this and who knew candles could be extra flamie lol really enjoyed this one and your reaction was wonderful 👌

Neil Silverman

As Chas said, hang in there with Tara... I always hate spoilers, but I can't help but tell you I guarantee you, you will come to love her. I love this episode - it was so heartfelt and deeply emotional, but not just melodramatically emotional - there was real emotional intelligence happening here. Oh, and as far as Buffy's reaction, I think you're right to some degree about her self-absorption, but also I think it's important to recognize that in that scene Buffy became a bit of a stand-in for the audience. LGBT relationships were only just beginning to gain acceptance, particularly in the media, and I think that Buffy's reaction was meant to be like holding up a mirror to the real world, to make us all think about our own reactions to the LGBT people in our lives. At least, that's how I remember it. Maybe someone else with a better memory or different experiences than mine can corroborate or refute my recollections there. Any, glad you're still as in love with the show as ever - it's been so much fun re-watching it with you. Still so much great stuff ahead I can't wait for you to get to.

Claire Eyles

First fully developed and fully realised same sex relationship that ever appeared on US network television. Tara and Willow's storyline was ground breaking at the time. :)