Comments on "Soul Purpose"
Jan. 21st, 2004 09:01 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
shipperx1) Okay, see, this is where I don't get Mutant Enemy... or maybe it's Mutant Enemy that doesn't get me (or Spike). Please, explain to me why I should feel sorry for Angel in the first scene because Angel is upset that it's not "all about Angel"? Huh? Why should I? I mean, seriously, it's NEVER about Spike. Spike has never had "he's special." So I'm now supposed to feel bad that Angel is upset that he doesn't believe he's special? Why the heck should I give a damn?! Yet again ME values exceptionalism and this is supposed to be laudable. Why am I supposed to feel bad that Angel feels like everything doesn't revolve around him? Get real! Everything doesn't revolve around MOST PEOPLE. Angel fears he's not super special and it's not all about him? Boo-freaking-hoo.
2) Liked the first Spike/Lindsay scene. Like Lindsay saying Spike was lost. In fact I liked both of the first two Spike/Lindsay scenes (I'm commenting in real-time btw so this is as I go). I do like that Lindsay points out that Spike is lost and doesn't really know what to do with himself (and thank God Spike looked alone and broody instead of leering at the stripper. . . God, I'm happy Spike is brooding? What has ME brought me to).
3) Why is gray so WRONG?
4) Heh. Still liking Spike/Lindsay scenes. Like that Spike went to save the girl despite the fact he doesn't believe in destiny. The "stupid cow" thing went too far, though. I preferred the way it was written in the sides. They are making Spike too harsh.
5) Okay, I hate David Fury and ME. Have I mentioned that in the last five minutes? Why did they have to reduce EVERYTHING Spike has done to impressing a girl? Sure, they were going to respect Spike's sacrifice. Yeah. Right. That's why they CONSTANTLY belittle it. COnstantly call Spike selfish. They just CANNOT let it go. Grr!
6) Angel is "irrelevant"... okay coupled with Harm's "mattering" last week, ME is going for something here. Too bad they're centering it all on being uber special and focusing on the always uber special Angel. Heck the whole 5 years of the show has been about Angel being uber special. Clearly "mattering" is something ME is going for, I just think that the problem is that Angel has always mattered so freaking *much* that he isn't the greatest subject for this. Not sure what ME is really trying to get across (well, other than my cynical self reassuring that the true message is that Angel IS uberspecial just as there was "nothing wrong with Buffy." ME has a way of being so obvious that we think surely there's something else... when there really isn't. So I guess it really is all about Angel being special. I'll only break my heart if I think they actually have something more substantial than that to say.)
7) Cool fight with Spike. Hey, I take what I can get. Better than him being beaten up all the time last year. And thankfully Spike did sound a bit cynical when he said "I'm the hero" and not full of himself (at least that was my read. Season 5 commentaries will probably tell me that I'm wrong).
8) Eve has weird lips.
9) Okay, damn. Harm *is* funny. About if she read the ruins it could cause a fire.
10) DB sure is pale in tonight's ep. Guess it's because Angel is "sick."
11) Okay after all the talk of Angel torture with this... the comedic ep as he's being disembowled isin't screaming "torture"... and LOL at his heart being the size of a walnut.
12) Is the liscense plate a reference to when he got dropped in the ocean? And his soul is a goldfish?? That's GOT to symbolize something. The whole "shell" thing and "empty" thing is pretty obvious. . . but the goldfish? Maybe the goldfish in Dr Seuss? (Okay, that's a stretch).
13) It took reading the description to figure out that was Spike as the vigilante? The listening to Sex Pistols thing didn't give it away?! LOL (And I'd be offended about his asking victims out for drinks if the thing hadn't also been funny... Okay, knowing me, I'm probably still offended. But it was funny).
14) Spike's new digs aren't very posh are they. Sort of dinghy. So Spike is being lured to hero. . .with. . .um. . .nothing but purpose and self esteem. Angel has the digs and is "empty" and poor widdle Angel is feeling insecure about not being special. So I guess we're back to "mattering" (except of course, Spike really DOESN"T matter and this is all a scam perpetrated about Angel and it *is* really all about Angel. Guess Angel does matter, someone hates him enough to try to destroy him -- Harm's Way refernce).
15) Slashorama! It looked for a moment like Spike was in bed with just ANGEL! I mean, seriously, the only thing left is to actually allow Spike and Angel to have sex. :)
16) The girl really didn't have the same hair color as Buffy.
17) Goldfish mention again. Angel killed Willow's goldfish when he lost his soul. Is that the goldfish thing?
18) Angel's leech looks kinda like the globby things that sucked all the salt out of people in Classic Trek.
19) See, JM hasn't FORGOTTEN how to be sympathetic...he's just decided that Spike must be a jerk (no doubt having been told this repeatedly. Sad that the spoof Spike is closer to the Spike I loved).
20) Okay, is the Blue Fairy the old original Vicky/Marley from Another World (pre-Anne Heche).
21) Again, I'm supposed to feel all sorry for Angel because he doesn't get everything. Again, might work if it wasn't a laughably thin coverup for Angel does get everything. Hell, in this ep alone, they make clear it's not Spike. It's Angel. So, exactly how and why should I feel sorry because Angel doesn't feel special enough?
22) Oh, and Angel is now "numero cinco" sans mask
23) Crocket and Tubbs -- hee!
24) Interesting scene with Spike/Wes/Gunn. Somehow I don't think either side is "right" per se. But, hey, at least the coat wasn't around.
25) It does seem a bit of betrayal that Gunn/Wes are trying to draft Spike without telling Angel. (And are they a bit mafia-like in their offer? And I think Wes and Gunn's words are very similar to Lilah's words to them last Spring).
26) But when Gunn/Wes are back at W&H they phrase it like Spike is moving in on Angel's territory. (one would think helping is helping for the greater good. . .well, it would count in less wacked out universes than Whedonverse).
27) Okay, the "We paid blood for this." Angel being empty and Gunn getting the panther eyes is also important, I think.
28) Spike does look kind of sad and alone. (This is more a Spike I can recognize).
29) So... Lindsay wanted Spike to save Angel. I guess to convince Angel that Spike is all heroic now? It's clearly a set-up.
30) So Spike doesn't care enough? Well, he did go help Angel. Still, I do get the feeling we're supposed to see Angel as being so much more sympathetic to people whereas Spike is mostly not caring (even if he saves their butts).
31) Oz reference? And you were there, and you, and you and you!
32) Heh, Lorne is the first character EVER to note when Spike actually saves the day (though I'm sure it's more for the effect it has on Angel than to give Spike credit).
33) Fred notices Eve's earrings? Since when?
34) Eve's eyebrows and teeth are weird too. Bad lighting?
CONCLUSION: All in all, I enjoyed the ep. It wasn't boring. Had a few laughs and some interesting questions. Spike is still screwed, but that never changes. ME writes the show and stacks the deck. However, at least I mostly recognized him this time and my gripes on his characterization are minimal (within the context of this season). He was more in character than out of it, so that's something.
TRAILER: Andrew has William's HAIR!!!!!
2) Liked the first Spike/Lindsay scene. Like Lindsay saying Spike was lost. In fact I liked both of the first two Spike/Lindsay scenes (I'm commenting in real-time btw so this is as I go). I do like that Lindsay points out that Spike is lost and doesn't really know what to do with himself (and thank God Spike looked alone and broody instead of leering at the stripper. . . God, I'm happy Spike is brooding? What has ME brought me to).
3) Why is gray so WRONG?
4) Heh. Still liking Spike/Lindsay scenes. Like that Spike went to save the girl despite the fact he doesn't believe in destiny. The "stupid cow" thing went too far, though. I preferred the way it was written in the sides. They are making Spike too harsh.
5) Okay, I hate David Fury and ME. Have I mentioned that in the last five minutes? Why did they have to reduce EVERYTHING Spike has done to impressing a girl? Sure, they were going to respect Spike's sacrifice. Yeah. Right. That's why they CONSTANTLY belittle it. COnstantly call Spike selfish. They just CANNOT let it go. Grr!
6) Angel is "irrelevant"... okay coupled with Harm's "mattering" last week, ME is going for something here. Too bad they're centering it all on being uber special and focusing on the always uber special Angel. Heck the whole 5 years of the show has been about Angel being uber special. Clearly "mattering" is something ME is going for, I just think that the problem is that Angel has always mattered so freaking *much* that he isn't the greatest subject for this. Not sure what ME is really trying to get across (well, other than my cynical self reassuring that the true message is that Angel IS uberspecial just as there was "nothing wrong with Buffy." ME has a way of being so obvious that we think surely there's something else... when there really isn't. So I guess it really is all about Angel being special. I'll only break my heart if I think they actually have something more substantial than that to say.)
7) Cool fight with Spike. Hey, I take what I can get. Better than him being beaten up all the time last year. And thankfully Spike did sound a bit cynical when he said "I'm the hero" and not full of himself (at least that was my read. Season 5 commentaries will probably tell me that I'm wrong).
8) Eve has weird lips.
9) Okay, damn. Harm *is* funny. About if she read the ruins it could cause a fire.
10) DB sure is pale in tonight's ep. Guess it's because Angel is "sick."
11) Okay after all the talk of Angel torture with this... the comedic ep as he's being disembowled isin't screaming "torture"... and LOL at his heart being the size of a walnut.
12) Is the liscense plate a reference to when he got dropped in the ocean? And his soul is a goldfish?? That's GOT to symbolize something. The whole "shell" thing and "empty" thing is pretty obvious. . . but the goldfish? Maybe the goldfish in Dr Seuss? (Okay, that's a stretch).
13) It took reading the description to figure out that was Spike as the vigilante? The listening to Sex Pistols thing didn't give it away?! LOL (And I'd be offended about his asking victims out for drinks if the thing hadn't also been funny... Okay, knowing me, I'm probably still offended. But it was funny).
14) Spike's new digs aren't very posh are they. Sort of dinghy. So Spike is being lured to hero. . .with. . .um. . .nothing but purpose and self esteem. Angel has the digs and is "empty" and poor widdle Angel is feeling insecure about not being special. So I guess we're back to "mattering" (except of course, Spike really DOESN"T matter and this is all a scam perpetrated about Angel and it *is* really all about Angel. Guess Angel does matter, someone hates him enough to try to destroy him -- Harm's Way refernce).
15) Slashorama! It looked for a moment like Spike was in bed with just ANGEL! I mean, seriously, the only thing left is to actually allow Spike and Angel to have sex. :)
16) The girl really didn't have the same hair color as Buffy.
17) Goldfish mention again. Angel killed Willow's goldfish when he lost his soul. Is that the goldfish thing?
18) Angel's leech looks kinda like the globby things that sucked all the salt out of people in Classic Trek.
19) See, JM hasn't FORGOTTEN how to be sympathetic...he's just decided that Spike must be a jerk (no doubt having been told this repeatedly. Sad that the spoof Spike is closer to the Spike I loved).
20) Okay, is the Blue Fairy the old original Vicky/Marley from Another World (pre-Anne Heche).
21) Again, I'm supposed to feel all sorry for Angel because he doesn't get everything. Again, might work if it wasn't a laughably thin coverup for Angel does get everything. Hell, in this ep alone, they make clear it's not Spike. It's Angel. So, exactly how and why should I feel sorry because Angel doesn't feel special enough?
22) Oh, and Angel is now "numero cinco" sans mask
23) Crocket and Tubbs -- hee!
24) Interesting scene with Spike/Wes/Gunn. Somehow I don't think either side is "right" per se. But, hey, at least the coat wasn't around.
25) It does seem a bit of betrayal that Gunn/Wes are trying to draft Spike without telling Angel. (And are they a bit mafia-like in their offer? And I think Wes and Gunn's words are very similar to Lilah's words to them last Spring).
26) But when Gunn/Wes are back at W&H they phrase it like Spike is moving in on Angel's territory. (one would think helping is helping for the greater good. . .well, it would count in less wacked out universes than Whedonverse).
27) Okay, the "We paid blood for this." Angel being empty and Gunn getting the panther eyes is also important, I think.
28) Spike does look kind of sad and alone. (This is more a Spike I can recognize).
29) So... Lindsay wanted Spike to save Angel. I guess to convince Angel that Spike is all heroic now? It's clearly a set-up.
30) So Spike doesn't care enough? Well, he did go help Angel. Still, I do get the feeling we're supposed to see Angel as being so much more sympathetic to people whereas Spike is mostly not caring (even if he saves their butts).
31) Oz reference? And you were there, and you, and you and you!
32) Heh, Lorne is the first character EVER to note when Spike actually saves the day (though I'm sure it's more for the effect it has on Angel than to give Spike credit).
33) Fred notices Eve's earrings? Since when?
34) Eve's eyebrows and teeth are weird too. Bad lighting?
CONCLUSION: All in all, I enjoyed the ep. It wasn't boring. Had a few laughs and some interesting questions. Spike is still screwed, but that never changes. ME writes the show and stacks the deck. However, at least I mostly recognized him this time and my gripes on his characterization are minimal (within the context of this season). He was more in character than out of it, so that's something.
TRAILER: Andrew has William's HAIR!!!!!
