This is a strange beast. It has an intriguing conceit at its heart, but there's something really 'off' about the whole thing. There are some interesting themes about child abuse and sexual repression, but it mushes badly with such abject failures as the orgasm wall and the monster vines and the bad-sitcom sex gags. At the same time, the 'haunted frat house' thing was done already in Fear, Itself, and that episode was far scarier and far funnier than anything offered here.Sarah Michelle Gellar needed time off to shoot her Angel episode, and her absence really showed. Buffy spends the entire episode either blathering about boning, or actually boning. It's pretty awful. I give the show credit for promoting safe sex, but damn was there something tonally shitty about Where the Wild Things Are. The script is a mess and the set-pieces are underwhelming. What happened with this one?
The strongest parts of the episode arrived whenever Spike and Anya were on-screen together. Their chemistry sounds wrong in theory, but they do have a lot in common, and I loved their reminiscing of their demon days and their twisted fondness for killing and destruction. Anya in general had a lot to do here, as well as Tara, and I liked that they were both involved in the climactic rescue, but that alone didn't save the episode from being pretty worthless. Great shot of Buffy and Riley dissolving into that empty blackness, though. D+
Credits
Guest stars Amber Benson (Tara Maclay); Leonard Roberts (Forrest Gates); Bailey Chase (Graham Miller); Kathryn Joosten (Genevieve Holt); Emma Caulfield (Anya)
Writer Tracey Forbes Director David Solomon
yeah, a very weird one. I think there were too many stops and starts with the action it was just odd.. and ugly.
ReplyDeleteI liked the way Spike was brought in not too awkwardly, him and Anya do have a funny interaction. Xander's bravery was good to see too but the best thing was Giles singing at the coffee house! He meant every word! aww.