It's really interesting to see the reactions of other people watching for the first time, who also appear to be pretty unspoiled. Because right now, they know that Angel exists, but they have no idea how that's supposed to work, with Angelus being totally and utterly awful right now.

I don't think I've ever felt *betrayed* by the choices a creator of fiction has made (that seems like a very extreme reaction), but I think I've had reactions of "No! What they did was wrong!"

I did kind of feel that way about Larry McMurtry. I was invested in a character in Lonesome Dove and then in the sequel he went and killed the character off-screen! And it was an important character. But he wanted to clear the decks so he took one of the central dynamics of the first book and threw it away.

Actually, that's exactly how I felt about killing off Newt off-screen in Alien3. Same thing. It wasn't driven by narrative but a kind of expediency that disregarded the previous emotional investment that they'd asked for.

Holy shit. Those characters have the same name.

Interestingly enough I have seen Alien 3 and not this Lonesome Dove thing. So I am spoiled by your oddly white fonted post.

Movies and television are less likely to make me crave purity of story. There are so many meta considerations who knows what makes it to the screen. The writers may intend one thing, the directors another, the actors capable of something else, and then the shots in the truck were unusable so that part of the story had to be thrown away. Whether or not someone died because the showrunner wanted it that way or the actor didn't sign up for the sequel, or whatever. I can barely buy into half the outrage.

There are so many meta considerations who knows what makes it to the screen.

This. Particularly one I don't see mentioned much, TIME. We sit here with all our leisure time devoted to dissecting the story or the performances, and the writers and actors have such a limited period to come up with it..... If you listen to the commentaries and such, there's a lot of places they say, basically, "We ran out of time and just threw shit together." Sometimes it works (Hello, "Conversations with Dead People") and sometimes it just doesn't.

That's one reason I can never get behind saying, if they'd done it THIS WAY, everything would have been better. (And I realize I'm saying this in the presence of authors of a "Spiral" rewrite.) It's just so hard getting something even halfway decent to the screen, I can't feel comfortable doing anything beyond pointing out where it didn't work FOR ME.

I feel lucky to have been able to listen to actors and directors go off the record with what they might have wanted to do, in contrast to what we saw.

I can rail against someone's intentions when I can't see any way there was something material that got in the way of the decision (like you'll never convince me The Show didn't think Spike should try and rape Buffy), but there's a definite limit to me even knowing where to point the finger when something changes canon in a way that displeases me.

I have seen so much internet screaming and kvetching when I know more about why it went down that way, and they people they want to draw and quarter are the wrong people entirely. I try not to be hypocritical (I certainly don't succeed, it's impossible, but I try, and hard) knowing that.

I wonder, if Joss had sat down to write a book of the story of Buffy, where he would have gone. If he had no boundaries of cost or FX or acting limitations, what would we have gotten? And what would we have gotten without fan feedback, and amazing acting performances, and writer's room collaboration and killer stunt choreography...who even knows?

If he had no boundaries of cost or FX or acting limitations, what would we have gotten?

Judging by Season 8...something terrible?

And what would we have gotten without fan feedback, and amazing acting performances, and writer's room collaboration and killer stunt choreography...who even knows?

It's such a collaborative process. I am thankful for everyone involved.

Judging by Season 8...something terrible?

It's funny 'cause it's true.

Aw, lots of love for "I Only Have Eyes for You" over on Mark Watches. I don't often think of it when I think of my favorite episodes or, in general, it seems, but it is a really great episode.

but it is a really great episode.

It's both a great standalone and great in the season arc. One of Marti's best.

Christopher Gorham was really engaging too-- it was the first I saw of him.