The Uniqueness of S5

[vellavu]

1. Most episodes end with cliffhangers or revealings instead of closures.
2. Some episodes have neither the Big Bad nor MotW in them.
3. The environment color/lightning is the warmest.

It gives me the feeling that it's planned out long before it's written. And it seems that the writers have the least freedom under Joss's tyranny in this season since the tones are highly similar from episode to episode.

Do you have similar or opposite opinions?

 

[Skanky Vamp]

Because the networks (at that time and to a point still do) discouraged season long arcs Buffy never had them before. As this was to be the last season Whedon thumbed his nose at the demands of the network (or perhaps they acquiesced) and created a season long story. That's the difference. It was the same thing with Angel and the Jasmine storyline when that was thought to be the final season.

 

[Mr Trick]

1. Most episodes end with cliffhangers or revealings instead of closures.
2. Some episodes have neither the Big Bad nor MotW in them.
3. The environment color/lightning is the warmest.

It gives me the feeling that it's planned out long before it's written. And it seems that the writers have the least freedom under Joss's tyranny in this season since the tones are highly similar from episode to episode.

Do you have similar or opposite opinions?

1. Actually never noticed that for some reason. I mean to me all the seasons apart from the first one had long story arcs, its just that up until that point most the episodes themselves had been fairly self-contained.

2. The BB one is true of many seasons, the first one being a key example. A big theme of the season was Buffy questioning her talents and exploring the roots, so I guess that logically meant that Glory was put on the backburner til later in the season.

3. Maybe, didn't notice that too much, certainly the later seasons seem to have bigger production values.

 

[bespangeled]

Because the networks (at that time and to a point still do) discouraged season long arcs Buffy never had them before. As this was to be the last season Whedon thumbed his nose at the demands of the network (or perhaps they acquiesced) and created a season long story. That's the difference. It was the same thing with Angel and the Jasmine storyline when that was thought to be the final season.

Every seson has an arc - the Master, Spike, Dru and Angelus, the Mayor, the Initiative. All of the seasons have a few stand-alones, but also a season long arc that culminates with defeating the Big Bad. The only reason I really see 5 as different as the pieces fell in to place so much better.

 

[Skanky Vamp]

Every seson has an arc - the Master, Spike, Dru and Angelus, the Mayor, the Initiative. All of the seasons have a few stand-alones, but also a season long arc that culminates with defeating the Big Bad. The only reason I really see 5 as different as the pieces fell in to place so much better.

Every season does. But most of the seasons, excluding 5 and 7 had primarily self-contained episodes, and their episode arcs were smaller. 5 and 7 were wider reaching.

 

[nancylives]

i'm watching season 5 for the 4th or 5th time, but first time in over seven years, and i'm really feeling it. on the front end, i love the way this season does the most shark-jumpingest thing possible--adds a new kid--and makes it work both as a necessary plot point, but, especially, as an emotional additive to the season. imagine, for example, if there had been no dawn in the body and forever. i can't even conceive of sarah michelle gellar nailing these episodes as seriously as she did without michelle trachtenberg to act with; they are just lovely together, never more so than these two episodes.

this season really puts the power in the hands of the ladies, and it just does so gloriously. buffy has many shining moments, but she matures noticeably in checkpoint, one of my favorite episodes, when she stands up for the scoobies and hands the watchers council their collective you-know-whats.

buffy matures in season 5, as do the rest of the gang (even giles). i also really love glory/ben. season 5 really starts to fool around with gender in an even more subversive way than prior seasons, and i like it. plus, the idea of an insane female hell god sharing the body of a male mortal is super brilliant. i think this season gets short shrift sometimes, but it's one of my favorites.

i also want to agree with the op in their point about the lighting being warmest. i noticed that immediately and it really works well, especially when we get to the latter portion of the season, as that warmth is completely used as a set-up for the body, when, suddenly, everything becomes very cold. it's delightfully jarring, and further proof of the incredible organization, foresight, and attention to detail of the showrunners and everyone else.