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Buffy the Vampire Slayer - The Complete Second Season

Buffy the Vampire Slayer - The Complete Second Season

List Price: $59.98
Your Price: $44.99
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The Slayer Kicks Some Ugly Butts
Review: An exclent pack for Buffy fanatics.Angel and all older friends are there. It's watching the old days of Sunnydale.With wonderful familuer faces.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Simply the best
Review: Every television writer tries to create believable characters in a imaginary world like the great writers of fiction it is something for which all stive, but few achieve. Of those authors and TV producers that success are forever linked to that creation, and few have succeed as Joss Whedon did in Buffy's second season for few seasons or books have ever defined a series so completely. In a world filled with Vampires, Demons, and mythological creatures we find a believable world that sucks into the lives of characters and makes us care about their fate. The show mixes drama, humor, and surprise in a plot lines that put the characters we love through hell. Good guys characters of the scoobie gang Xander, Willow, Giles, and sometimes Cordellia Chase are brought together and ripped apart as they struggle to survive the evil that they encounter. We are also become involved in the lives of evil vampire lovers Spike and Drusillia as their own love is ripped apart in Sunnydale. In the shows first Episode we are thrown right into an introspective episode about Buffy having to deal with the fact that she died, and to have to put that behind her. We are given the first romantic relationship with Buffy & Angel that in mid season takes an unexpected turn that ends in tragedy. The beautiful writing of this story of star crossed lovers drives the emotions of the season which makes us believe that love can conquer all even a 224 year age gap. Then we find ourselves confronted by reality that in this case love is a threat to people's lives. The brutal return of Angelus in the midseason episode "Surprise" sets Buffy up against the one person she loves the most. As the second season heads toward its conclusion Joss throughs us another trick that will become familiar over the next 4 seasons as Ms. Calender is killed by Angelus just as she is about to restore his soul. Once more our emotions are put through the meatgrinder that concludes in the two part season finale "Becoming pt1" and "Becoming pt2". I have seen alot of writers use up so much during the rest of the season that season finales seem nothing more then half hearted affairs, but here we find one of the truly great season endings of all time. Buffy must finally confront Angelus in a do or die battle to save the world, but in the spirit of the season there are twists and surprises that keep us riveted to the screen. Giles, Buffy's watcher, is captured and tortured by Angelus. Kendra another Slayer and Buffy's friend is killed by Druisilla. Buffy is believed responible by the police, and must hide from them as she struggles to overcome Angelus bid to destroy the world by unleashing a demon that would suck the world into hell. In the 11th hour with hope and most of Buffy's allies taken out of the game (Willow in the hospital,Giles captured by Angelus, and Xander to emotionally confused to be of any help to Buffy), and Buffy's mom forced to confront the fact that her daughter is the slayer Spike one of Buffy's worst enemies comes to her aid. In an uneasy alliance Buffy and Spike battle Angelus and the vampires who follow him. Xander arrives and frees Giles, and soon only Angelus and Buffy are left in the fight with Spike taking an unconcious Drusillia away from Sunnydale. Meanwhile, back at the hospital Willow awakes and with help gathers the supplies necessary to restore Angel's soul. Then just as Buffy is about to make her killing blow Angelus hollows in torment, and collapses to the ground. Angel has returned, but even as Buffy reaches out to once more hold the man she loves the demon begins to awake. The only way to defeat the demon now is not to kill the evil vampire that freed it, but the man she loves whose soul has just been returned. Buffy has no choice but to send the man she loves to hell, and as he is sucked into hell he stares into and tries to reach out with his hand to onto her. Buffy has succeeded in saving the world, but in doing so has pushed herself beyond the breaking point.Buffy leaves Sunnydale after one last look at her friends, and like the great hero's of the great greek tragedies Buffy is emotional broken by the cost her victory had cost her. The final scene with Buffy leaving in a bus out of Sunnydale says in silence what words never could.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The season where Buffy truly came into its own.....
Review: In case you hadn't noticed, Joss Whedon is a genius. Writer and director of some of the greatest episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, his work is stellar and has been praised by TV critics the world over. After a successful run earlier in the year in the form of Season 1, Buffy returned with full force in the US on September 15th 1997 for it's much praised second season.

The season begins with When She Was Bad. Written and directed by none other than Joss Whedon, it sees Buffy return to Sunnydale after a summer in LA with her father. It is apparent that Buffy has changed - for the better. The storylines are stronger and more consistent with a lot more character development than the previous season. Episodes such as Some Assembly Required, Inca Mummy Girl, Ted, Bad Eggs, Bewitched Bothered and Bewildered, I Only Have Eyes For You and Go Fish follow a similar pattern as that of Season 1 in the way they are singular episodes that do not have a knock-on effect in the future. School Hard sees the arrival of Spike and Drusilla in Sunnydale. Spike is 124 years old (he reminds us in Season 4 that he is "only 126") and has killed two Slayers in the Boxer Rebellion and New York. Drusilla is Spike's companion; drove insane by Angel when she was a human who killed everyone she loved before finally turning her into a vampire. They make many attempts to kill Buffy and end the world in episodes such as School Hard, Halloween, Lie To Me and What's My Line Parts 1 and 2 before becoming a bigger threat to Buffy as the season chugs along.

Love plays a bigger role in the second season than it does in the first with almost every member of the Scooby Gang finding themselves in love. Giles continues to hide his attraction from Jenny Calendar - that is until she asks him to a Football game on a date. Their relationship is an on/off one that has its fair share of highs and lows before Jenny's subsequent death later on. While Xander continues to pine for Buffy, he realises he's getting no where as Buffy is more interested in Angel and finds himself secretly falling for Cordelia and vice versa. Willow has been rather unlucky in love. She starts to date Oz, a super-cool guitarist. Her love for him is proved when she finds out, in the worst possible way, that he is a werewolf. Their relationship is strong and lasted until Season 4. But when it comes to relationships in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, none is more troubled, tormented, certain and passionate than that of Buffy and Angel. Their love for each other is legendary as he is a vampire and she is a vampire Slayer. They continue to see each other in almost every episode of the first half of Season 2, but become more romantically inclined in the episode What's My Line Part 2. Angel is almost killed at the hands of Spike as he tries to transfer Angel's strength to Drusilla. They are both deeply and madly in love by the episode Surprise and end up sleeping together on Buffy's 17th birthday. She unknowingly undoes Angel's curse which results in him losing his soul and turning back into the evil, demented vampire that he was eighty years previously. He goes to Spike and Drusilla, who are still trying to work on a way to kill the Slayer, and offers to work side by side with them to kill Buffy. He goes after the people she loves, like he did with Drusilla, and attempts to kill them.

The season finale, Becoming Part 1 and Becoming Part 2 are both written and directed by Joss Whedon and represent his best work on Season 2. Angelus plans to open the portal to Hell through the statue of Acathla which will suck everything on Earth into Hell where every living being with a soul will experience unbearable torment and eternal hell. Only Angel's blood can open the portal and therefore, only his blood can close it. Willow works on the spell of restoration and returns Angel's soul after he opens the portal. No matter what, the only way it can be closed is if Angel is killed. His soul is restored, but Buffy knows the only way to save the world is to send Angel to Hell. This makes it all the more gut-wrenching and heart-breaking for Buffy and the audience - not only because Angel has been restored, but because he will have to suffer eternal torment and torture in Hell now that he has a soul. Buffy kisses Angel before plunging him into Hell. This all proves too much for Buffy now that her mum has found out that she is the Slayer, something she doesn't accept. Becoming is truly an astounding accomplishment in the history of dramatic television that deserves all the praise it has received.

OVERALL GRADE: 10/10

Many fans of Buffy the Vampire Slayer consider Season 2 to be the best of the entire series. I'm not sure about that, but it sure does have some of the best episodes of Season 2 - Surprise, Innocence, Passion and Becoming Parts 1 and 2 are all undeniable proof of this and are true classics in TV history. It's a shame that Buffy as a TV show doesn't get enough recognition because it really is good. People who don't watch the show are put off by te show's name and see it as a sexy girl who scuttles around killing vampires - but the show is so much more than that. If everyone between ages 15 and 40 watched Season 2 of Buffy, I could guarantee that more than 80% would love it to bits.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Sunnydale, second season. Very Good, and worth every moment.
Review: I have just finished viewing the second Season and it was consistently good.
The quality of the actors became apparent.
From a story point of view, the existing characters were developed and given more depth and some very interesting new characters were introduced (Spike, Drusilla, Ethan Rayne, and Oz). Each disc, and there are six of them, had at least one tremendous episode, if not more.
As in the previous season, the dialogue was as snappy as the action and stories continued to deal with issues faced by every one of us.
Another thing that I liked was that there was not a cliff hanger at the end of the season. You could finish viewing Disc-6, and be satisfied. It concludes, and that in itself, is worthy of inteterest, as too many series make you wait to see what happens next. In this case it is not necessary though, as with all memorable characters, you do want to see what happens next.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Buffy At Its Best
Review: This season has some remarkable episodes including Becoming Parts 1 and 2 and Passion. There are also creepy and exciting episodes like Killed By Death. And in this season we meet the new slayer Kendra and passion between Giles and Ms. Calendar escalates... This season is a triumph for Joss Whedon and I reccomend buying this for any buffy fan. You can relive the episodes all over again. I cant wait to buy season three!!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Buffy the vampire Slayer
Review: The second season is way better then the first. Sure its sadder, but life is that way no matter what. You look at Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar) and can relate to her troubles and her sadness. And sometimes you wonder about why she does some of the things that she does, but in the end, you understand. I absolutely love this show. And Sarah Michelle Gellar is my new favorite actress. She does such a wonderful job of expressing her feelings about her and Angels relationship that she can get you yourself to cry. In the end of this season, each character has a hold on you, and to see one of them go, let alone three, is horrible. I would recommend this season (and series) to everyone.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Angel & Buffy sitten in a tree
Review: So much better then the first, the DVD's were better organized and the show grabbed a BIT more depth.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A Great Show Continues To Blossom
Review: I fell in love with "Buffy" the TV series after just the first few episodes of the first season. Its complex handling of big scares, painful emotions and high comedy is one of the most impressive balancing acts in television history. Credit this not only to the fantastic writers, directors and other less notable (yet hugely important) crew members, but also to the people who take the scripts and give them life: the actors. Boasting one of the best ensembles ever, "Buffy" has been able to transcend inherent silliness to become an endlessly entertaining series that has happily sustained its own nifty little universe centered in the fictional Sunnydale, CA.The debut season, obviously, set up the show and "the rules" for slayage and the Hellmouth, etc. But with the arrival of even the very first episode of the second season (now excitingly and masterfully preserved on DVD), the tone darkened a little, emphasizing the horror and, especially, the drama over the laughs. Buffy (the increasingly priceless -- and beautiful -- Sarah Michelle Gellar) returns home after spending summer with her father, and she isn't happy to have to return to her day, er, well, "night" job of being "the Vampire Slayer." Her big battle with the Master (portrayed in the previous season's finale, "Prophecy Girl") has left her haunted and a little uncertain about her future and how to deal with her feelings for that gloomy, soul-restored hunk of a vampire, Angel (David Boreanaz, who, in the season's most important story arc, plays his character's "big change" with amazing, surprising skill).Things are further complicated by the arrival of Spike (the sinfully playful James Marsters), his wacky lady love, Drusilla (Juliet Landau, stunning in her breakout role) -- the new "season-long" villains, following in the footsteps of Mark Metcalf's delightful Master -- and, of course, the typical meyhem that ensues throughout the course of any "Buffy" year.There is a big mid-season plot twist involving Angel, which old fans know all too well and which relatively new fans -- perhaps discovering "Buffy" for the first time on DVD -- don't deserve to have spoiled. I will say that this change does an awesome thing for the show as a work of art, shaking up characters and forcing them (in often painful episodes) to accept new facts of life and, as a result, mature. It's no secret that the writers have often used "Buffy"'s scary storylines as grand metaphors for life matters (like growing up), and reading the hidden meanings behind both important plot developments and big monsters (like "Reptile Boy") adds a subtle extra enjoyment for viewers.The "growing up" theme is a big part of "Buffy"'s excellent second season, and it enables the regular cast -- which also includes the adorable Alyson Hannigan as Willow, the lovably goofy Nicholas Brendon as Xander, the reliable Anthony Stewart Head as Giles and so much more great talent -- to endear itself to the viewers nicely. As well, new arrivals Marsters and Landau (who fake British accents perfectly) achieve the nice feat of making their very cool and very inspired characters classics in the Buffyverse.As for technical details, the transfer is splendid, the featurettes interesting and the commentaries revealing and funny (especially when wry creator/exec. producer Joss Whedon jumps on the audio track for "Innocence"). The packaging is brilliant and beautiful, and it perfectly captures the spirit of "Buffy".For fans of either "Buffy" or great TV in general, this fantastic 6-disc collection is worth any price, and Amazon.com offers one of the best.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: GOOD JOB JOSS WHEDON
Review: OK- THIS SEASON WAS REALLY IMPORTANT FOR MANY WAYS. OF COURSE EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENS TO BUFFY AND THE FINAL SEASON FINALE... IT WAS JUST SO GREAT!! BECOMING PARTS ONE AND TWO WERE PERHAPS MY FAVORITE EPISODES AND TWO OF THE SEASONS MOST IMPORTANT EPISODES. THE BUFFY-ANGEL LOVE IS JUST SO TRAUMATIC! I MEAN EVERYTHING BUFFY WENT THROUGH DURING THE SEASON... WOW! BUT REALLY, THIS SEASON WAS ONE OF MY FAVORTITES. IF YOU ARE A NEW FAN OF BUFFY- BUY THIS YOU WONT REGRET IT AND ONCE YOU FINISH WATCHING IT YOU WILL BE BEGGING FOR THE THRIRD SEASON! I TRUELY RECCOMEND THIS DVD- IT IS ONE OF THE BEST SHOWS ON TV AND THIS SEASON PROVES IT.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: It gave me chills and made me cry.
Review: If you haven't noticed, the creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer--Joss Whedon--is a new, better version of Shakespeare.

One of the storytelling principles of this TV series is that *the fancy demon stories must always help to tell more personal stories that the characters are going through.* Frequently, the demons are metaphors for issues the characters are dealing with. For this reason, BTVS deals with real-life issues better than any other show, including those not based in fantasy.

Plus the idea of a high school girl who strikes fear in the hearts of demons is wickedly cool.

This show does to me what all good art should do--it makes me love life. Rather than get lost in my enthusiasm and tell you some MAJOR SPOILERS (a.k.a. the OTHER reviews), let me just say this. When you get absorbed in the story of this heroic girl and her heroic friends, it will make you want to be a more good-hearted and courageous accountant. Or whatever it is that you do.


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