BtVS – Characters

Posted on 14 decembrie 2012 by breathemein

Continued from here.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer is all about characters. Oh, you thought it was a vampire TV show? You are so wrong.

First of all, vampires are not the only bad things that happen in Sunnydale. Sunnydale is the fictional town where Buffy moves in order to move on with her life after burning down school property.

Second of all, in Sunnydale a lot of things happen, things that almost end the world (countless times), things that are so weird that you don’t know what to do with them (Dawn), things that are fucking scary (Hush), things that are weird and sad and no one knows how to react (The Body), things that resemble love and lust (Innocence), and I could go on. But you should know that these things keep the story moving and make the characters evolve.

Buffy starts out as this insecure girl, a little overwhelmed by the sudden power given to her, not so much on the bright side (academically speaking), but fierce, powerful and brave. At first, a little lonely and awkward, she starts caring for the nerdy girl and her BFF, as well as for the father figure that is Rupert Giles. We see her trying to play it cool in front of the boys (Angel), trying to make friends (Willow and Xander), trying to be a good girl while solving the problems in her unique way (Rupert), trying to be a better daughter and sister, trying to stop the first apocalypse (the Master), the second one (killing Angel), the third one (killing the Mayor), the fourth one (killing Adam), the fifth one (sacrificing herself), the seventh one (killing the Turok-Hans and closing the Hellmouth). She’s trying to cope with things like sleeping with a guy and his sudden loss of interest in her, the death of her mother, exes of her boyfriend, her exes, her strained relationship with Willow, with Giles and with Xander, the sudden apparition of her sister, her resurrection. The only evolution we see in Buffy is that she gradually starts to accept her fate. She becomes more aware of her mission and her rights as a Slayer. She becomes this powerful woman, that’s left her childhood behind and is ready to embrace whatever kind of evil life may throw at her. She becomes a responsible leader, being an example for everyone in her life, she becomes selfless and caring with people around her. Pic here.

Willow, the nerdy BFF, shy and scared of the likes of Cordelia, grows to be this strong powerful witch, after losing the ones she loved the most. In the beginning her talents were used for research, especially hacking some police archives or something similar, but after the second season, she started doing magic, resulting in her nearly destroying the world. After a crush on Xander and a failed relationship with a werewolf, Willow embraced her witch side and tried loving a woman for a while. Losing her made Willow abuse her powers and use black magic, but in the end those powers helped Buffy “share” her super-strength and Slayer-characteristics to the army of Potentials. A long way for the scared little geeky girl. Pic here.

Xander, the male friend attempting jealousy in weird moments, was not the scholar, but not quite the clown. Providing comic relief was, for about 2 seasons, his “deal”. But then he was molded into something more. Being only human, he was far from the researcher type, far from the hero type, but mostly stood by his friends when no one else would. He has the ability to see and understand better than others, due to his beautiful soul, and he has to power not to judge his friends and he helps them overcome their darkest times. Also, he has the uncanny ability to attract demons, culminating with his relationship with Anya, the retired demon of scorned women. Pic here.

Giles, the archetypal father figure, is seen mentoring Buffy, mentoring Willow, mentoring Faith, sleeping with Buffy’s mom, trying to make Buffy more independent (in her days after the resurrection) and involved in every little aspect of her life. A younger version of Rupert, called the Ripper, is summoned in few episodes and we can see that the now serious and a bit too British Giles was a wild child, practicing dark magic and singing in a rock band (actually, Anthony Stewart Head has a wonderful voice). At first, he seems dull and out of place, but with time his role is increased from Watcher to father, doing him great justice. Pic here.

Spike was part of the Big Bad in season 2. He was a puppy-dog vampire, promoted from drag to annoyance to dangerous and finally to potential lover from season 2 to season 6 (keep in mind that he didn’t appear in all of the episodes in those seasons). He goes through serious torture to finally get his soul back, because he loves Buffy so much and he wants to be with her, without hurting her or making her feel ashamed. In the end, he becomes the champion without whom the world could not be saved. In my opinion, his transformation is the best example of an evolution in a character. His role, though small in the beginning of the series, grew bigger and became more important when the show became darker. Pic here.

Cordelia, the Bee Queen of Sunnydale High, transforms herself from vapid egotistical bitch to superhero (but this will happen in Angel TV show), after a brief moment that was her relationship with Xander. Pic here.

Oz, the werewolf that I thought was Willow’s soul mate, is an equilibrate character. He doesn’t evolve, he doesn’t involve, he just leaves Willow to “find” himself. Pic here.

Tara, the greatest love in Willow’s life, is introduced as this shy girl, that takes interest in magic and witchcraft and, as the time goes by, she becomes more and more involved with Willow and the Scoobies. She goes from shy to no identity whatsoever to powerful woman and witch in just 2 seasons, only to be killed by a human. Pic here.

Anya is the ex-demon stranded on Earth, flunking math and scared of rabbits. Oh, and also she has a relationship with Xander. She is introduced in season 3, after Cordelia wishes that Buffy never came to Sunnydale, but is immediately liked by the viewers and she stays as a regular until her death in season 7. She is awkward, has a very poor sense of what behavior is deemed as appropriate, she is very blunt and honest in her opinions and usually provides comic relief. In my opinion, we would all be Anyas, if socially accepted rules weren’t thought since early years. Pic here.

Dawn, the sister that was the key, is annoying and remains annoying throughout the series, without being funny.

Faith. The rogue Slayer. Five by five, if you know what I mean. She’s the dark Buffy, if you want, starting as a scared, insecure Slayer, getting promoted to Lieutenant Evil, then put in a coma (by badass Buffy) and then coming back, as an important ally against the Turok-Hans. Pic here.

Angel. Oh, Angel. The love of her life… Or so we thought. He is boring, with his hidden weird ways, with his soul and his mystery, eventually deemed too good to be true. He doesn’t evolve, he just moves on. Actually, he did evolve. From drunken Irish to killer vampire to vampire with a soul to killer vampire once more to vampire with a soul (again?!) and then to LA. There, he has another deal, with Cordelia and other demons, making babies with Darla and whatnot. Pic here.

The list is not complete. There are so many great characters, like Joyce Summers, Ms. Calendar, Darla, Drusilla, Jonathan, Snyder, Kendra, Riley, Warren, the Potentials and so on, that contributed to the evolution of Buffy and her friends and to lead us into the final battle against evil.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Posted on 13 decembrie 2012 by breathemein

I can easily admit that, even with all the Friends and the Scrubs and The Walking Deads, Buffy the Vampire Slayer is (still) my all-time favorite TV show. Joss Whedon’s creation started out as a feature film, but after 5 years it became a mid-season replacement for a soap opera with no future.

I still remember how I stumbled upon one of its first episodes, in a Saturday afternoon, and how it changed my life. The TV station that aired it didn’t do it justice, since I couldn’t see all its episodes. I remember there were only bits and pieces from the 2nd, 3rd and 4th seasons. I always felt that, even with the light connection between us, me and Buffy had something special, something that could be developed into something more.

That something came in February 2007, when I remembered that somewhere in this world there is Buffy and there are vampires and other kind of monsters and I felt the urge to reconnect with it.

I watched all of the seasons (7), all of the episodes (144) at least 10 times each. I think I broke some records of some sorts, laughing, crying, hoping, chocking, felling… things while watching it. I grew with Buffy and Willow and I wished my father was more like Giles. I wanted to go to Buffy studies and I wanted everyone to love this show as much as I do.

I got used to people not wanting to see it and I got used to people mocking me for loving a kids TV show. It doesn’t bother me anymore that people don’t want to see the jokes in it, the magic in it, the awesome empowering fights, the great music, the great ideas. In time, BtVS became my magical little moment, where nothing bad can happen and good people always find their way home.

Everything started in 1992. Buffy the Vampire Slayer was a blonde ditzy girl, with superpowers and a mission. Mission that kinda stood in her way, because she wanted to date boys and be a pretty cheerleader. So she burnt the school’s gym and that would be all for the feature film. Also, Luke Perry and Donald Sutherland are in it.

In 1997, people on WB wanted a replacement for Savannah, so they did Buffy. And they made it legendary.

This article is the first in a series of Buffy-related articles. Stay tuned for info about Characters, Story, Superpowers, Metaphors, Buffyverse, Music, and so on.
Pic here.

Albumul lunii aprilie: Kings of Leon – Come Around Sundown

Posted on 30 aprilie 2012 by breathemein

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Come Around Sondown e cel mai apropiat album (based on the number of plays) care merită titlul de albumul lunii. E apărut în toamna lui 2010 şi mult timp a trecut de atunci, dar pentru mine încă e actual.
Discuţia clasică în ceea ce-i priveşte pe The Kings e că sunt sellouts şi că se vând mai bine ca alţii, lucru care e motiv de ciudă, of course. Bineînţeles, toţi hipsterii se vor trezi să-ţi spună că ei ascultau KOL când erau cool, nu ca acum, când sunt nişte prostituate muzicale.
Dar asta e doar discuţia clasică… Pe mine una, nu mă interesează. As long as I like it, it’s ok. And I like it.

Come Around Sundown începe cu „The End”, care face parte din trilogia THE (The End, The Face şi The Immortals), printre cele mai bune piese. Triste, angoasate, reale, pline de sentiment, cu linii de bass şi tobe clasice, dar cu voce şi spirit şi tot ce-ar trebui să aibă un bărbat pe-o melodie. Sinceritate, cred. Ăsta e cuvântul cheie în ele.

„Radioactive” şi „Pyro” – comerciale, pentru că ceva trebuie să vândă albumul, de duzină, plictisitoare şi repetitive, dar cu ritm.

„Mary” – cică ar fi o cerere în căsătorie, as in „marry me”, dar nu bag mâna în foc… E o piesă bună şi a good play on words, dacă e adevărat.

Urmează două piese bune, „The Face” şi „The Immortals”. „The Face” e cea mai frumoasă declaraţie de pe album, reprezintă abandonul total într-o relaţie, într-o persoană, fără reţineri şi regrete stupide, aşa cum ar trebui să fie…

„The Immortals” e next, cu chitările ei rebele, o odă a tinereţii şi a şanselor furate, tot felul de curiozităţi ale oamenilor curajoşi. Un imn al tuturor care au ceva de dovedit, al tuturor care au fost călcaţi în picioare şi care vor să se ridice. Oh, and that bass… OMG!

„Back Down South” e that southern classic tune, ce-ţi aduce aminte de vară, iar dacă-i vară te face să vrei să mergi pe drumuri neumblate. O piesă simplă, care-ţi dă idei de umblat.

„Beach Side” e altceva, mi se pare că se leagă mult de greşelile din trecut, mult de regrete, mult de frustrări, de vise neîmplinite. As usual, I love its bass.

„No Money” e una din piesele care iniţial îmi sunau bine, eterna balada a cuplului lipsit de bani şi de griji. Tehnic vorbind, e o piesă foarte bună, dar subiectul ei simplu nu-mi mai spune nimic…

„Pony Up” e una din preferatele mele. One of my all time favorites. Începe cu un bass, care se menţine pe toată piesa, şi un ritm de chitară sălbatică. Nişte versuri stăpâne pe situaţie, ca să zic aşa, deşi n-ar fi exprimarea potrivită. It just feels like someone else is in charge. E o piesă ce ia controlul cu de la sine putere, are un ritm al ei şi ţi-l induce, fără să-ţi ceară părerea. The way it should be.

„Birthday” e, iar, una din piesele mele preferate. E o piesă sinceră, murdară, tristă, reală şi cum mai găseşte vreo cineva de cuviinţă. E un fel de „Milk” mai curată, dar tot perversă. Iar peste toate astea, e o declaraţie de dragoste. E superbă. And the bass line is…

„Mi Amigo” e cântecul perfect pentru o beţie. Probabil că, dacă aş fi bărbat, aşa aş vorbi cu prietenul meu (n-aş bea niciodată singură). Instrumentele sunt fenomenale pe piesa asta…

„Pickup Truck” e una din piesele de la KOL hauntingly beautiful. E aproape perfectă, simplă, numai bună pentru stat într-un balansoar, unde să ţii pe cineva în braţe (merge şi-un căţel/pisoi/orice, în lipsă de prezenţe masculine). Îmi aduce aminte de o toamnă caldă, poate un început de septembrie, în care lucrurile nu sunt tocmai clare, poate cineva e pe picior de plecare, sau cineva a înşelat, cineva nu mai doarme bine lângă tine, dar amintirile sunt încă frumoase şi calde…

Tracklist:

The End – 10
I don’t want the street lights
Laughing at the grave
He swears he’s gonna give it up
It’s never gonna be enough
I just wanna be there
When you’re all alone
Thinking about a better day
When you had it in your bones
This could be the end

Radioactive – 6

Pyro – 6

Mary – 7.5

The Face – 10
Beneath the dance hall lights, you seem a girl so sound
Lights up the ground
If you give up New York I’ll give you Tennessee
The only place to be (I wish somebody would give me Tennessee)

The Immortals – 10
Spinnin on the streets of stars
And ride away
Find out what you are
Face to face

Back Down South – 8

Beach Side – 7

No Money – 6.5

Pony Up – 9.5
I got a razor sharp mind that wants to cut you down
A little place in mind, maybe I could bed you down
Pony up we got a ways to go
Set me up my friend I’m running low

Oh if you take my hand I”m gonna get you outta here
The crash of bottles breaking and the swinging chandelier
In a rain of bullets and blood and snow
I saw the midnight coming and watched her go

In a rain of bullets and blood and snow
I saw the midnight coming and watched her go
Yeah I watched her go
I watched her
I watched her go
I watched her go

Birthday – 10
It’s in the way she often calls me out
It’s in the cut of your pretty gown
Your come on legs and your panty hose
You look so precious with your bloody nose

We’re gonna come together
We’re gonna celebrate
We’re gonna gather round
Like it’s your birthday
I don’t wanna know
Just what I’m gonna do
I don’t care where you’re going
I’m coming along with you

Walking her home with a grassy feel
Falling and laughing at the drinks we spill
Just one those nights that I have to share
Chasing the death without a care

Mi Amigo – 8.5

Pickup Truck – 9.5
Walk you home to see where you’re living around
And I know this place
Pour yourself on me and you know I’m the one
That you won’t forget

In your denim eyes I see something’s awry
And I see you’re weak
When he comes around I see you’re fixing to shine
And my face won’t speak

Kings of Leon înseamnă ceva pentru hipsterii frustraţi şi pentru femeile care-l iubesc pe Caleb, dar uneori chiar se ocupă cu muzica. Şi uneori, merită ascultaţi. Beyond „Sex on Fire”. They are so much more than that. Mi-aş dori să-i văd live măcar o dată…

The Price Of Love… For a band

Posted on 2 iulie 2009 by breathemein

Am fost si la concert. Am intarziat putin la Patrice, dar am ajuns la timp, cat sa ma pot baga in fata si sa remarc pusti de 12-14 ani fumand si distrandu-se, de parca ar fi fost high. A fost fun for a while, dar dupa toate piesele noi ale lui Patrice, a urmat evident „Soulstorm”, in timp ce pe scena de alaturi, unde ar fi trebuit sa cante White Lies, organizatorii se uitau ingrijorati spre cerul ce dadea semne de furtuna. O data cu „Soulstorm” si dansul populatiei si al lui Patrice, a venit si ploaia, invocata probabil de noi. A mai cantat vreo 2 piese, si in timp ce ploaia ne mura pe toti, pe scena si in public rasunau cuvintele „Everything will be alright”.
A plecat Patrice, a inceput sa ploua si mai tare, si oamenii de la lumini si sunet si alte chestii utile in concert se chinuiau sa protejeze instrumentele si aparatele de pe scena. Pe langa ploaia deranjanta, mai batea si vantul, si nu aveam nicio umbrela, nicio haina, decat tricoul de pe mine.
Intr-un final, ploaia s-a mai potolit, si am revenit in fata scenei. Ca sa nu pierd primele locuri din fata de la The Killers, si totusi sa vad si White Lies, am stat langa gardul despartitor dintre cele despre 2 scene. Apoi au inceput sa cante cei de la White Lies and my soul died a little. Au fost absolut geniali, vocea lui Harry McVeigh e superba, deep and stuff, everything that makes a girl feel good. Au avut parte de public, oamenii le stiau melodiile, dar parca nu a fost publicul pe care-l meritau. Si in plus, nu au cantat nici „Taxidermy”, nici „Love Lockdown”.
Intre timp, pe scena unde ar fi trebuit sa cante The Killers se amenajau diverse chestii, cum ar fi instrumente, un palmier, doi palmieri, K-ul reprezentativ pentru ei. Si cand cei de la White Lies au terminat, in partea cealalta de scena, la The Killers, oamenii cu cablurile inca mai aveau treaba. Multimea ii chema pe cei din formatie, ii striga, tipau, aplaudau, incercand sa-i faca sa vina mai repede. Si cand, in final, au venit, it was mass hysteria. Nu o sa zic acum nimic de piesele pe care le-au cantat, doar despre marile „perdante”, cum ar fi „Sam’s Town” si „Bones”, si despre faptul ca am ramas uimita ca au cantat „Shadowplay”, aratand imagini cu Ian Curtis pe fundal, si m-a mai uimit si ca au cantat „Dustland Fairytale” si publicul a cantat cu ei, desi e o piesa trista si piesele triste nu prea au succes. O sa va spun mai ales despre atitudinea lui Brandon Flowers, care chiar are atitudine. Mic si cu nerv, se misca pe scena, are o a doua personalitate care infloreste pe scena and he knows how to drive the babes wild.
Per total, uzi si fericiti am fost.

Recenzie – Concert Basement Jaxx

Posted on 28 iunie 2009 by breathemein

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Hello, Basement Jaxx!
A inceput concertul cu un nene DJ – Tom Wilson, necunoscut pentru mine. Acceptabil, ingurgitabil, muzica de adormit, nu chiar monotona, fara high-pichted sounds, care sa deranjeze la ureche. Nu stiu ce canta el, in ograda lui, dar sa zicem ca a fost ok. Am incercat sa ma misc pe muzica lui, asteptand sa se mai umple pe-acolo.
A urmat un nene dubios rau de tot, TRG, conform specialistilor, mixator profesionist de dubstep or smth. Jenibil. Ma durea capul, cred ca era nevoie de o buna cantitate de alcool ca sa ma inteleg cu nenea ala care invartea de butoane cu o atitudine de genul „uite-ce-miscari-ample-fac-eu-ca-sa-demonstrez-ca-e-nevoie-de-multa-maiestrie-sa-apesi-pe-butoane-din-cand-in-cand”, iar cum eu nu bausem nimic, cred ca nu aveam cum sa pricep misterul acestei muzici care-mi distrugea neuronul. Aici am cam renuntat sa mai dansez, pentru ca neuronul de care tocmai am vorbit cedase nervos.
Dupa el, au urmat Moderat, o senzatie pe-afara, si am constatat ca si aici ii stia multa lume. Era o tipa care a stat singura tot concertul, si parea ea destul de plictisita, parca asteptand highlight-ul serii. Pentru ea s-a dovedit a fi tipii de la Moderat. 4 tipi, frate, dintre care unul (Apparat – asa il cheama!) canta la clape, la chitara, la voce si facea si pe DJ-ul, si ceilalti 3 aveau un rol incert in tot spectacolul, au inceput show-ul care mai mult era vizual, decat muzical, destul de spectaculos, dar din ce in ce mai banal in timp. Pentru ce ai avea nevoie de 4 oameni, cand unul face cat 4, ca sa repete acelasi sunet, la volume diferite, timp de 6-7 minute? Inca n-am inteles, asa ca am renuntat s-o mai observ pe tipa roscata cu codite cum se extazia pe-acolo (in liniste, fara sa lesine sau sa deschida ochii – dansa cu ochii inchisi), si m-am dus sa ma odihnesc pe scaune, asteptand concertul pentru care venisem.
Cu greu, a venit si momentul meu. BASEMENT JAXX PE SCENA! Au inceput, cum nici nu ma asteptam, cu „Good Luck”, apoi „She’s No Good”, apoi nu mai stiu ce piese, apoi piesa noua „Raindrops” – pe care au adaptat-o foarte frumos cantand „Raindrops in Romania”, dar cu care publicul n-a stiut ce sa faca si a cam picat experimentul, „Romeo” – varianta acustica si alte piese super tari, culminand cu „Where’s Your Head At”, la care doua dintre soliste au coborat de pe scena in public. Ambele au dat mana cu mine, iar una din ele m-a ciufulit. Loved that! Pacat ca n-au avut un public bun, cel putin cei din primul rand de pe langa mine nu cantau, nu dansau, nu sareau, nu bateau din palme, nu incurajau artistii deloc, desi ar fi meritat. Unul din tobosari facea mereu semne, incercand sa animeze aceasta mare de obositi care nu puteau pricepe diversitatea muzicala ce li se oferea, dar nu a avut sanse deloc. Mi-a placut concertul lor, pentru ca desi e proiectul muzical a doi oameni, au reusit sa-i „bage in fata” pe solistii si instrumentistii cu care lucreaza, recunoscandu-le meritele. Tipul de la trompeta era genial, solistele erau criminale, chiar daca doua dintre ele erau mai plinute, dansau si scena era plina la tot pasul de aluzii si conotatii sexuale, a treia era atat de mobila si elastica, dansa si canta in acelasi timp, facea spagatul and shook her booty on the floor, solistii erau foarte diferiti, unul alb, foarte classy si sassy, altul negru, ultra-jamaican, costumele erau super tari si ei se schimbau dupa fiecare melodie, the dance routines nu erau chiar routines, lumini, muzica, DJ, mixuri dupa Michael Jackson, Kings Of Leon si altii. Ma doare gatul de la cat am tipat, dar pe bune ca a meritat!