There's been a lot of talk lately on the LJ about the Buffy S7 DVDs and Joss Whedon's final commentaries on "Chosen," in which (short form) he more or less confirms that Buffy really did mean it when she says she loves Spike at the end.
Hmm, I'm of the opinion that while she did mean it, she didn't mean she was in love with him, though that was certainly the implication. I've always felt that Buffy's declaration was necessary so that we could see Spike deny it, and therefore truly make a sacrifice that wasn't about Buffy. I viewed it as the culmination of his character's growth, that after hearing the woman he loves tell him she loves him, he finally accepts that it isn't the truth and is truly redeemed. I always thought that Buffy's silence after Spike's denial and her smile so soon after his death, was proof of that. In that moment, when she realized Spike was going to die to save the world, she probably did feel something very powerful for him, but he realized that it wasn't the real deal.
I don't generally blame the actors for a failure to pull off a scene properly. If Joss wasn't happy with it, then he could've brought her aside and clarified what he wanted from her. I believe that SMG's flat performance in S7 had more to do with the ambiguity that JW employed that resulted in such poor performances. Admittedly, I tend to favor Buffy in the whole Buffy/Spike relationship, though I don't think that Buffy's using Spike was okay. As you mentioned, I don't think the writers knew where they were going with this, and as a result the actors were frustrated and unclear as to how it should be played.
I do agree though, that JW's ambiguous comments are a clear sign of poor storytelling and indicate to me, that he lost interest in the show a long time ago. And while I had problems with Greenwalt's story direction on Ats, I agree that he was sorely missed on Buffy when he moved to the other show.
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Date: 2004-04-05 06:58 pm (UTC)There's been a lot of talk lately on the LJ about the Buffy S7 DVDs and Joss Whedon's final commentaries on "Chosen," in which (short form) he more or less confirms that Buffy really did mean it when she says she loves Spike at the end.
Hmm, I'm of the opinion that while she did mean it, she didn't mean she was in love with him, though that was certainly the implication. I've always felt that Buffy's declaration was necessary so that we could see Spike deny it, and therefore truly make a sacrifice that wasn't about Buffy. I viewed it as the culmination of his character's growth, that after hearing the woman he loves tell him she loves him, he finally accepts that it isn't the truth and is truly redeemed. I always thought that Buffy's silence after Spike's denial and her smile so soon after his death, was proof of that. In that moment, when she realized Spike was going to die to save the world, she probably did feel something very powerful for him, but he realized that it wasn't the real deal.
I don't generally blame the actors for a failure to pull off a scene properly. If Joss wasn't happy with it, then he could've brought her aside and clarified what he wanted from her. I believe that SMG's flat performance in S7 had more to do with the ambiguity that JW employed that resulted in such poor performances. Admittedly, I tend to favor Buffy in the whole Buffy/Spike relationship, though I don't think that Buffy's using Spike was okay. As you mentioned, I don't think the writers knew where they were going with this, and as a result the actors were frustrated and unclear as to how it should be played.
I do agree though, that JW's ambiguous comments are a clear sign of poor storytelling and indicate to me, that he lost interest in the show a long time ago. And while I had problems with Greenwalt's story direction on Ats, I agree that he was sorely missed on Buffy when he moved to the other show.