Episode 8 - Halloween / Lie to Me / The Dark Age (feat. David Bushman & Arthur Smith)

For this week’s conversation David Bushman and Arthur Smith, TV curators at the Paley Center for Media in New York and authors of Buffy the Vampire Slayer FAQ: All That's Left to Know About Sunnydale's Slayer of Vampires, Demons, and Other Forces of Darkness join me to discuss rumors of “Golden Circle” behavior in the Mutant Enemy writers room and how that compares to the growing insularity of the Scooby Gang over the course of the series. We touch very briefly on Xander’s role as the Joss proxy; early hints of #Gamergate mentality; and how story, theme, and emotion tend to trump consistency in the Whedonverse.

 

Episode 206, “Halloween” introduces Ethan Rayne, the only character ever to deliver a convincing read of a Latin incantation. In 207, Buffy asks Giles to “Lie to Me,” or...to her, or whatever. You know what I meant. And Ethan is back to mess things up for Giles and Jenny in 208, “The Dark Age.”

 

Next: Melanie Scala, long time fan of genre fiction in general and Buffy the Vampire Slayer in particular, and apparently young Watcher-in-training joins me to discuss “What’s My Line? (Part One)” and, you guessed it, “What’s My Line? (Part Two).”

 

THE BREAKDOWN

Intro / Guest (00:00 - 8:34)

Main Topic (8:34 - 1:28:35)

Outro / Next (1:28:35 - 1:32:39)

 

THE LIBRARY

Buffy the Vampire Slayer FAQ: All That’s Left to Know About Sunnydale’s Slayer of Vampires, Demons, and Other Forces of Darkness, by David Bushman and Arthur Smith

 

THE LINKS

Big Bad Buffy Interviews - iTunes - Facebook

 

THE MUSIC

“Conversations (feat. Wesley Mead)” by Azura (2017)

“Saturday Night” by Bay City Rollers, Rollin’ (1975)

 

THE SCHOLARS

Whedon Studies Association is a non-profit academic organization devoted to the study of the works of Joss Whedon and his associates. They put out Slayage: The Journal of Whedon Studies, and Watcher Junior​: The Undergraduate Journal of Whedon Studies, both blind peer-reviewed twice-yearly online publications. They also host the biennial Slayage Conference on the Whedonverses, which brings all these incredible scholars together to present papers, discuss ways of incorporating Whedon Studies in education, and basically just geek out together.

http://www.whedonstudies.tv/