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Buffy The Vampire Slayer - The Complete Sixth Season

Buffy The Vampire Slayer - The Complete Sixth Season

List Price: $59.98
Your Price: $44.99
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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Going Through the Motions
Review: Well here it is, the sixth season of Buffy.

Chances are if you ask almost any fan what there least favorite season of Buffy is they will tell you either 4 or 6. But the thing about that is, even though it is a contender for worst season, it is still one of the best written, acted, and made tevelvision season to date. The budget was almost tripled from the fifth season to this season and you can definatley tell the difference.

The season is basically about growing up. Buffy returns from Heaven the premier and basically everything goes downhill... Giles leaves town, Dawns starts runing around with Vampires, Willow and Tara break-up, Xander and Anya Break-up. But all through the season you can tell that the characters are growing and learning. But then with the growing up comes the big emotional bag of paine.

When the season opens Buffy has just returned from Heaven, and she is totally depressed; Giles has moved back home to England so Buffy can learn to be an adult; and a group of nerds from the past unite to become the "big-bad." But as all this happens nobody releizes Willow growing addiction to magic, except for Tara, who eventually breaks up with her. But when Tara and Willow get back together, Tara is tragedically killed by Warren, and Willow is so grief striken she loses all sense of control and goes on a murdereous war-path.

This season may be one of the worst but it still contains the single episode of the series that would have given Joss Whedon the emmy (if it hadn't of been left off the ballot), Once more With Feeling, and then the alwasy questioning episode, Normal Again. Once more, with Feeling is ofcourse the epic musical episode, and Normal Again, is an episode where Buffy starts to think that Sunnydale is nothing but a dream (many fans including me where hopeing this would tie-into the series finale). But with every great season you get your share of stinkers with "After Life" and "Doublemeat Palace" (which in my opion is the worst episode of the series).

I am really looking forward to this set especially for the commentary for "Once more with Feeling" that has been promised. The Region one Special Features havn't been announced but the region two which are always very similar are as follows. Commentary for "Bargaining" by Marti Noxon and David Fury, Commentary for "Once more with Feeling" by Joss Whedon, Commentary for "Smashed" by Drew Z. Greenberg, Commentary for "Hell's Bells'" by David Solomon and Rebecca Rand Kirshner, Commentary for "Normal Again" by Rick Rosenthal and Diego Gutierrez, Commentary for "Grave" by James Cotnor and David Fury, Karaoka Sing-Alongs for "Once More with Feeling," Behind the Scenes Featurette for "Once more With Feeling" Academy of Television Arts and Sciences panel discussion, Behind the Scenes Featurette "Buffy Goes to Work," Season 6 Overview - Life as the Big Bad, "Buffy the Vamprie Slayer: Televiosn with A Bite," outtakes real.

"Break and Leg" and Grr... Argg...

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Not the best season but it has its moments
Review: This Season starts off rather slow and grim but soon lightens up with everyones favorite musical episode "Once More With Feeling" (a must have) The big bad for this season is only a trio of geeks but they provide some comic relief to the sometimes depressing atmosphere. It all takes a sharp turn when Willow becomes an evil super-witch. Other highlights include Spike and Buffy heating up their ever more dysfunctional relationship (it's just not right), Xander and Anya's wedding and Dawn doing some stuff that no one cares about.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: The Most Emotionally Significant & Satsifying of the Seasons
Review: The Slayer is dead. Sunnydale lies unprotected from the inevitable hordes of demons that eternally flock to the town. Only the struggling remains of Buffy's circle stand between Sunnydale's survival and the town's complete annihilation. However, this is Sunnydale after all - there are always ways around that pesky death thing. Thus begins the sixth season of the venerable (yet, in a way, this time reborn) romantic-horror dramedy "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." After the sacrifice of the perky Slayer at the end of Season Five (and also the end of the show's run on the WB network) to save both her innocent sister and the world, "Buffy" returns with a triumphant bang, resurrecting both the Slayer and the show itself (transferring to UPN after volatile legal troubles). However, this ain't the same old Sunnydale.

Buffy may be back, but whether or not she is happy about the fact is not as apparent. Thanks (or cursed, if you choose) to the growing magical talents of witch Willow and the support of fellow Scooby Gang members loyal Xander, blunt Anya, and devoted Tara, Buffy is ripped not only from her grave (in the special effects and plot heavy two part premiere "Bargaining") but also perhaps from another place entirely (alluded to earlier and finally spelled out in "After Life"). Thus begins a season with some of the highest of the show's high points, but also the absolute lowest of the show's low points (case in point, the admirable Slayer in her emotional distress joins the fast food industry - need I say more?)

Nevertheless - when the season is good, it is really, really good. Standout episodes include the memory loss piece "Tabula Rasa" in which Willow attempts to pacify the critical Tara who accurately postulates that Willow is delving too deep, too fast in the dark magicks, "Hell's Bells," which features the heartbreaking emotional apex of the relationship between Anya and Xander, first planted in the end days of the Third Season, and, of course, the series' showboat episode - "Once More with Feeling." Powered by the energy of a dancing demon summoned to Sunnydale, all the town's inhabitants break into various (and pretty darn good) musical numbers hinting at their inner feelings and emotional conflict. And what emotional conflict there is! Relationships are pulled head first through the mill in this Sixth Season, friends, so be prepared for Buffy-Spike conflict, Willow-Tara conflict, Xander-Anya conflict, Buffy-Dawn conflict, Buffy-Xander conflict, Giles-Willow conflict, and, quite frankly, Willow-Everybody conflict, packaged in the stunning season ender that changes the entire dynamic of the Willow character and all the Scoobies combined in one of, if not the singular, darkest turns of the series.

Besides such climaxes as the musical and finale, we also have three nerds and a burger joint - and, no, I am not joking. Three of Sunnydale's nerd squad band together to form the Trio, the series' weakest offering of villains, yet, of all the irony, (Joss Whedon, you tricky devil) cause the greatest disaster to strike the characters ever. Plus, it is only later we realize in episodes "Seeing Red" through "Grave," that the real season villain had been among the characters all along, years in fact. Additionally, certain additions of the aforementioned burger joint and the cavalier-like return of Riley Finn could have easily been omitted for a stronger season.

Of course, the acting remains top-notch. Sarah Michelle Gellar reaches a new peak as Buffy, crafting a season-long pain that takes the character, in retrospect, to a new level of reality. From her sad songs in graveyards, a vision of a separate life in mental ward, and a pivotal return to the tower she once so valiantly catapaulted herself off, Gellar makes Buffy more than just a beloved character - she makes her an epic one. Accolades are also due to the superb supporting cast, and Alyson Hannigan in particular for her work as Willow. From resurrection spells to the need to resurrect her own dead soul, Hannigan's performance, in the season's final arc, specifically, is the true center piece of the season. James Marsters also turns in superlative work as tortured, enamored vampire Spike and Amber Benson's heartrending performance as Tara is beyond resonant. Michelle Trachtenburg and Nicholas Brendon are, perhaps, given the least to do, but they shrug it off well, and leave room for others characters to grow, like Emma Caulfield's hilariously vapid Anya, herself reaching a pivotal choice between both her past and her present. Guest work is also laudable for former regular Anthony Stewart Head as Giles, Kristine Sutherland as the dear, departed Joyce, and Elizabeth Anne Allen for self-destructive Amy, back from several seasons as a rodent. Multiple other one-episode players also add to the cast.

Truly, this Sixth Season of "Buffy" carried as much superlity as it did disappointment, but the emotional resonance and stunning cast provide an experience that causes any viewing of the entire show to be incomplete without.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: dark shadows john wells and the WB can only dream of
Review: Too dark. Too depressing. Too many dark character arcs. Too kinky, too many nerdy villains, no compelling "big bad," what's up with spike, and, well-- too dark.

Does that cover the list of complaints? Am I forgetting anything? Lord only knows, Buffy-holics can be fierce, persnickity taskmasters (particularly the online folk), and I wouldn't want to miss a single nitpick.

Season Six of Buffy the Vampire Slayer is easily the most divisive of the show's seven-year run (to paraphrase a wise swampland muppet, there is only love or no love-- there is no try). It is also one of the show's very best, and listening to the litany of concerns that even the most devoted fans have with this season brings to mind the exchange between Woody Allen and the aliens in STARDUST MEMORIES: "We love your films. Particularly the earlier, funnier ones."

Series creator/auteur Joss Whedon has stated in numerous interviews that BUFFY was designed to be loved and adored beyond all reason, and as its spin-off ANGEL finally reached its magnificent conclusion a few weeks ago, bringing to a close the stories of what fans affectionately refer to as "the Buffyverse" (or the WhedonVerse)-- and leaving fans of quality television bereft in a universe of soul-sucking reality television and jeffy foxworthy-- it's clear that Whedon succeeded beyond his wildest expectations. Spin-offs, novelizations, comics, videogames, action figures, ep guides, conferences, conventions, oodles of websites and at least a dozen academic collections testify to the intense feeling fans had for the program.

I mention this because it's impossible for me to separate my appreciation and understanding of the events of season six from this fan culture, and that culture's divided response. At the end of season five, contract disputes with the WB led to the show's departure from that network, and its debut on UPN. Without wanting to give away any plot twists, I'd like to propose that season six -- in addition to offering heartbreaking drama, hilarious comedy, and the single best musical in recent memory-- also acts as a kind of metacommentary on both network politics (the show's characters going through the same kinds of growing pains as the program itself went through in moving to a new home) and, much more daringly, on the dangers and limitations of fanboyism.

What does that mean? Well, watch the box and we'll talk (no spoilers, remember, although I'm dying to tell you about this moment when...and then it turns out it's his sled...and...). Suffice to say that, even for a show as consistently risky and daring in its tonal shifts, stylistic pastiches and character arcs as BUFFY, Season Six finds Whedon and Co. pushing everyone to their limits. Yes, it's dark, although even a quick perusal of the previous five seasons suggests that darkness has always been a key element in BUFFY (she *is* a vampire slayer, after all). Yes, there are scary, depressing things that happen (although anyone who's sat through Buffy Season Two should be prepared for that possibility). Characters change, relationships alter, and not everything conforms to the formula of good/evil that had been established (and also played with, deconstructed) over the previous seasons.

But guess what? This sort of ambiguity has been part of the BUFFY make-up since the first season. It was clear, at least since Season Two, that the show was not going to be the campfest that its title (and forgettable movie parent) suggested, and that, under the guise of a "teen show," Whedon and Co. were going to deliver some of the richest, most complex emotions on TV.

Too dark, too depressing, too kinky-- and yet, upon reflection, everything that happens in Season Six is a logical outgrowth of what had come before. Pulling the rug out from under fan expectations has been one of the show's hallmarks from the first epsiode, and previous years have seen shocking plot twists, from an extreme makeover of a key character in season two, to the surprise arrival of another in season five. One of the joys of Buffy has been the show's willingness to thwart expectation and push character and audience alike to new and strange emotional places (inevitably, once the outrage dies down, fans look back on these arc-altering episodes nostalgically). The writers do so gracefully, wittily, movingly and logically-- the changes never seem like just a stunt-- and it's to the writers' credit that they trusted their audience enough to, after six years, take them to even harder places (given the difficulties many had, the writers arguably trusted them too much). Better that than another police procedural regurgitation where NOTHING EVER CHANGES.

Remember, too, a crucial component of the BuffyVerse's success-- hope (no shadow without light). As a show with the word "slayer" in the title would suggest, there has been violence and pain in the show's run, but never nihilism, the kind of flip, darkness-for-its-own-sake conservatism that infects the work of Alan (SIX FEET UNDER) Ball, for instance. The difficulties and consequences the show's characters face are always mixed with humor, whether it's a throwaway joke or a full-scale musical episode (the masterful "Once More With Feeling," the single best thing on television during the 2001-2002 season). Ultimately, it is that hope that justifies all of the darkness of the season, and when the characters reach a kind of understanding and grace in the season's final minutes, it is an extraordiarily moving capstone to a magnificent six-year run (don't get me started on the painfully disappointing seventh year, there's no time...).

Too dark, too depressing, too kinky-- and as cancellations and reality gluts are apparently proving, too damn cool for contemporary television.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Trouble playing episode OMWF (DVD error?)
Review: This is a great Buffy season! My favorite episode, Once More With Feeling. But...has anybody had trouble playing the episode Once More With Feeling? For some reason, the episode won't start on my RCA DVD player, model RC5215P. The player plays all other DVDs OK, including other Buffy episodes. I thought the disk was damaged, so I took back and got a second set...but same problem. It makes it to the "Play Episode" screen, then when you hit play, the screen goes dark, the disk spins for about 40 seconds, then an error message comes up "Disk Error." The episode plays fine on our JCV DVD player...but of course the RCA one is the player connected to the big screen projector! I can't find anything on the packaging or technical notes to indicate there's anything special about that episode. I know it's in Letterbox, but several Letterbox movies play fine. I'm stumped.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Cinderella, one past midnight
Review: With this season, the magical carraige that was "Buffy" turned back into a pumpkin. It's no surprise, really: five years is generally the point at which a show starts to show signs of exhaustion, and while season five was a definite thumbs-up, there were a a number of sure signs of trouble to come:

1) Dawn. Adding a "baby" to a family is an old sitcom device to shake things up. It worked because of the clever writing and, obviously, Michelle Trachtenberg.
2) Glory. Upping the ante in the villain department every season is a good idea, but how do you top a God?
3) Spike. Changing a character's basic nature from evil to good (or good to evil) is an old soap-opera trick ("What, he's good now?")
4) Buffy. She died. Again. Since death is the ultimate sanction, undoing it takes the finality of death away, and stops us from caring if future characters are killed, because they can always be brought back.

Season Six dealt with the problem of topping Glory by going the opposite route, and creating the Triad, three hapless nerds who in no way were worthy successors to the Master, Angelus, bad Spike & Dru, evil Faith, etc. It was often hilarious, but not really strong enough of an idea to sustain over a whole season. The Triad would have made a very funny three story arc, but beyond that, their limitations were obvious.

It also made the fundamental mistake of pushing suspension of disbelief right over a cliff (that shark-headed gangster demon boss was just the worst idea in history....what were they thinking?). Also of betraying some signs of insecurity about the things they had done in season five and in six as well, and then trying to cover it up with clever humor, such as when the shrink tells Buffy that the retro-active addition of a sister (Dawn) into her alredy established family is a "ridiculous plot device" or that the Triad were "pathetic" villains. Tongue-in-cheek is one thing, farce is another. The episode where they allude that Buffy is in fact in a mental institution and everything you have seen in the previous 100 episodes is nothing more than the fever dreams of a schizo nut case is the classic "Bobby Ewing" mistake...."That last season? It was only a dream!" This was just insulting to the audience.

I also felt the middle episodes suffered badly from the absence of Giles and from an overdose of Spike. Sometimes the best thing you can do with a great actor/character is hold him back a little bit, so as to leave the audience hungry. Spike is a great character and James Marsters a great actor, but sometimes less is more.

This is not to say there were not some truly good moments in the season, such as Riley showing back up (didn't realize I liked this character until he left) the crotchey old Doublemeat Palace demon ("You may want to flail your limbs while you still have time"), the musical episode, the capricious and brutally violent way that Tara is killed off, or the fact that ordinary Xander finally got to save the world when all the super-powered people failed. But overall, season six left me feeling a bit like Buffy after her ressurection: down, disappointed, and ungrateful. Five out of six ain't bad.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: what is everyone talking about?
Review: ok i just bought season six(but ive already seen all the eps)
and everyone has their own opinion but this season kinda sucks. But i am basing this on one thing: spike and buffy relatioship! the two characters i once loved i cant stand! they are so bitter! anyways a good season for all the other characters especially willow. besides for spike and buffy its watchable.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Life is the "Big Bad"
Review: Only Joss Whedon could resurrect his this series after the season five "SERIES" finale. Buffy died, it was over. Whedon however manages to bring her back in a spectacular fashion, restoring the slayer her full glory. Though overall not the best season (a weak season opener being its biggest downfall), this season delivers some of the best episodes the series has ever seen, including the Emmy-nominated "Once More With Feeling."

There is no Buffy-typical "BIG BAD" in this season. The point of the season, and source of the darker thems, is that life itself is the big bad. The relationship between Spike and Buffy, along with introduction of fan-favorites Andrew and Dark Willow make this season one to remember.

There is also a GREAT documentary called "Buffy: Television with a Bite."

My only big complaint is that the musical episode "Once More with Feeling" is not presented in Anamorphic Widescree (highly annoying on widescreen TVs), and the lack of 5.1 audio.

If you liked seasons 1-5, then you will surely love this one. Buy it and cherish every episode of the amazing series.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Dark and Different, end result? Still Fab
Review: With this season some of my friends took a break from Buffy. I on the other hand loved the new depths. It showed different aspects of Buffy and allowed the actors to really show off their talent. It includes the forever remembered "Once More With Feeling" episode. Which is by far the most interesting episode to date. This season really explored human emotion. Buffy has always been this show that has semi deep feelings but everything is happy and fixed at the end of a show or two. This isnt the case with this season. If you're a hardcore Buffy fan you can appreciate how Joss made Buffy really grow in this season. If you could think it might go wrong, well it did in this season. He took a chance with it and if anyone can appreciate that like they do seasons 5 "The Body" a new avenue but great drama. Lets face it Buffy grew up and everyone knows that the real world is a lot crappier when you grow up. Dont get me wrong this season isnt all glummy. Lots of highlights of "Buffiness". Great season lots of funny ha ha's and great twists! Highly recommended...you wont be disappointed!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Buffy Season Six
Review: This season was misunderstood, people said it went to dark and didn't have the normal Buffy happiness. Well Buffy was snatched from heaven by Willow's spell. (Although Willow thought she was in some hell dimension.) It was the only time Buffy felt at peace. No pain. She comes back digging herself out of her own coffin. What do you expect, for her to be happy she's not in heaven anymore?

A lot of people only liked this season because of the musical episode Once More With Feeling. Personally I thought it was great that they tried something new, but I don't think it was as great as everybody is saying.

Some people thought the relationship between Buffy and Spike, was horrible and uncalled for. But I thought it was a great way to show Buffy's way of dealing with things. She felt like an outsider, because she didn't feel the same, as she used to. So that allowed herself to be drawn to Spike.

I thought the Nerd Villans was a really good choice for this season, because here Buffy is all sad and depressed, and she doesn't have to take some the dangerous evil guys. But the nerdy wierd guys. Them and Glory were my favorite villans.

Willow and her addiction to magic, was very well put together. I mean in the beggining you always saw Willow on her computer, searching. Now she's using magic for information, and she keeps using more and more. And it starts to concern her friends. At one point she starts using magic to solve ordinary day problems, like the sun in her eyes, or to get over her loneliness by turning Amy back into a human. But where it gets really outragous is when she uses it as a way to solve problems between her and Tara. She uses this one flower that makes people forget things. But when she uses it to make Tara forget her magic problem and Buffy to forget she was ever in heaven, she went to far and Tara left her.

But what I think really freaked people out is when they saw loveable Willow, kill Warren. There was a crack and then Warren's skin was peeled off. Then he burst into flames. Willow went out after Warren out of pure revenge. He came to Buffy's house and tried to kill Buffy. While a bullet did manage to hit Buffy, another also hit Tara, and killed her. Willow was so sad and so depressed that she used magic to kill Warren. But when she goes after Andrew and Jonathan, Giles comes back from England to try to stop her. But Willow ends up taking his powers from him, and overcome by the grief of people, tries to destroy the world.


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