Episode 54 - Two to Go / Grave (feat. Elizabeth Rambo)

“She's a truck-driving Magic Mama! And we've got maybe seconds before Darth Rosenberg grinds everybody into Jawa-burgers, and not one of you bunch has the midichlorians to stop her.”   - Andrew Wells

 

Never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee, Season Six. We’ve come to the yellow crayon end of the darkest Buffy the Vampire Slayer timeline, and Mistress of the Dark herself, Elizabeth Rambo is back again to help us all get through it. In 621, “Two to Go,” we talk about the Dark Phoenix of it all, Doritos taste tests with prosthetic teeth, and the coolest scene transition effect in the entire series! And in 622, “Grave,” Giles is a Trojan Horse; Dawn gets to swing a sword; the Zeppo saves the day; and how the hell was the crawling out of the grave circular storytelling NOT part of the initial draft of this finale?!

 

Bonus: AITA for thinking things would have gone differently if Jonathan had ever been given a real shot at joining the Scooby Gang? (Possibly, since I literally almost die on mic during the recording session.)

 

Next: we’re in the endgame now as we begin our approach to that controversial opinion I’ve teased having about the series finale. But First, Evil in 701, “Lessons,” 702, “Beneath You,” and 703, “Same Time, Same Place.”

 

 

THE BREAKDOWN

Run Time: 01:48:36

00:00:55  -  Intro / Guest

00:05:42  -  Main Topic

01:44:54  -  Outro / Next

 

 

THE LIBRARY

Buffy Goes Dark: Essays on the Final Two Seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer on Television, edited by Lynne Y. Edwards, Elizabeth Rambo, and James B. South

Television Finales: From Howdy Doody to Girls, edited by Douglas L. Howard and David Bianculli

Bite Me!: The Chosen Edition The Unofficial Guide to Buffy The Vampire Slayer (Seven Seasons One Book), by Nikki Stafford

 

 

THE MUSIC

“Conversations (feat. Wesley Mead)” by Azura (2017)

“Prayer of St. Francis” by Sarah McLachlan, Rarities, B-Sides, and Other Stuff, Vol. 2 (2008)

 

 

THE SCHOLARS

Whedon Studies Association is a non-profit academic organization devoted to the study of the works of Joss Whedon and his associates. They put out Slayage: The Journal of Whedon Studies, and Watcher Junior​: The Undergraduate Journal of Whedon Studies, both blind peer-reviewed twice-yearly online publications. They also host the biennial Slayage Conference on the Whedonverses, which brings all these incredible scholars together to present papers, discuss ways of incorporating Whedon Studies in education, and basically just geek out together. 

http://www.whedonstudies.tv/