It appears that every child in Northern Ireland has required hospitalisation over the last few weeks...
It appears that every child in Northern Ireland has required hospitalisation over the last few weeks - we've been run into the ground in work. Plus staff off sick = me doing extra shifts = no time to ciao!
Member since:10.03.2001
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*Please note that there may be Buffy the Vampire Slayer Spoilers in this Review*
About this time last year, I was introduced to the whole Buffy the Vampire Slayer scene. Call me behind the times if you want, but it’s a bit difficult to get to watch a programme that is on BBC2 at 6.45pm when you work shifts!
The episode that converted me was the one in which this album is the soundtrack to, Once More With Feeling. The following day I was HMV and saw the soundtrack sitting on the shelf, but it was £15.00. I thought it was a bit expensive at the time, so I decided to leave it until pay day – and wouldn’t you know, when I went to buy it, they had none left (The story of my life!). Anyway, to cut a long story short, I was visiting my sister in law in the states and the local K-Mart was closing down, so we went in for a nosey, and there it was sitting there on a shelf, for $9! This explains why I have the American version of the CD.
So what makes this episode deserving of a whole CD to itself, I hear you ask… well this is the musical episode of Buffy The Vampire Slayer. At the end of Season 5, we saw Buffy plunge to her death, now Buffy is back, having been brought back to life by her friends, who though that she was in some hellish dimension, when in fact she was in heaven. Buffy has not told her friends this, but has confided in Spike, a vampire. In this episode, a dancing demon is summoned, which makes everyone in Sunnydale (the town where Buffy lives) start acting as though they are in a Broadway musical, living out their daily lives in song and dance. It is a really funny episode, and yet remarkable in that it shows the real talent that quite a few of the actors have. The tracks are all written by Joss Whedon, the creator
of the Buffy Series. The music is arranged and produced by Christophe Beck, who writes most of the scores for Buffy The Vampire Slayer. This man is an absolute genius, and deserves to have his musical pieces more widely known than they are.
As well as music from Once More with Feeling, there are also snippets from tracks on other Buffy episodes (The backing music to the major events).
Track 1: Overture/ Going through the motions. This song is sung by Sarah Michelle Gellar (Buffy) and is the opening to the musical. In typical musical style it is a grand opening and sets the scene for the rest of the episode, it is bouncy and friendly, almost brady bunch like. It is about Buffy out patrolling, and about how she is different since what happened to her in Season 5, in that she’s just *going through the motions*.
Track 2: I’ve got a Theory/ Bunnies/ If We’re together. This is the track where Buffy and her friends discuss what it is that is causing them to sing in this way – perhaps they are “stuck in some kid’s wacky broadway nightmare” – this is one of Alyson Hannigan’s (Willow) few lines in the whole album, or as Anya (played by Emma Caulfield) says, maybe it’s bunnies (something Anya greatly fears). It culminates with them deciding that they can fight whatever this is, as long as they are all together.
Track 3: The Mustard A small snippet to prove that the rest of sunnydale is feeling the effects of the demon.
Track 4: Under your spell. Tara (played by Amber Benson) sings to Willow, about how she is a changed person since they met. Amber has a great voice, it’s a very beautiful song.
Track 5: I’ll Never Tell This song is by Anya and Xander (Nicholas Brendon), it is a comical number. This couple who are engaged, discuss how they love each other…. Except for, a whole list of amusing things that they will never tell – including references to previous episodes.
Track 6: The Parking Ticket Another filler snippet of a woman who is trying to sing her way out of getting a parking ticket.
Track 7: Rest In Peace James Marsters (who plays Spike – a vampire, turned good), sings this one to Buffy. Its about how Buffy doesn’t want to be with him because she is scared of what everyone will think, and that he’s fed up with her games – and let him rest in peace. It’s a fully rocked up number, just what you would expect from Spike.
Track 8: Dawn’s Lament A short track about how Dawn ( played by Michelle Trachtenberg) feels left out. As Buffy’s little sister she frequently feels this way.
Track 9: Dawn’s Ballet Basically a musical interlude.
Track 10: What You feel Dawn meets the Demon, who is called Sweet (played by Hinton Battle), who explains that because she is wearing his charm that she has to marry him (he believes she summoned) Dawn sings and explains why she can’t marry him (shes too young, her sister is the slayer).
Track 11: Standing This song is wonderful. Anthony Head Stewart who plays Giles (Buffy’s watcher and father figure), sings of how he feels he is holding Buffy back from being something better than she is and how he wishes that he could make her life easier – and slay her demons.
Track 12: Under Your Spell/ Standing – Reprise As the title suggests, this is a combination of under your spell and standing, as both Giles and Tara debate their problems – Giles how he is not sure where he stands in Buffy’s life, and Tara about how she can no longer trust Willow.
Track 13: Walk through the Fire Buffy sings of how she feels since her friends brought her back – how she has no real feelings anymore, and how she feels her friends of them do not understand her anymore. Sarah Michelle Gellar has a decent voice. Spike is also featured in this song, about how he is free if Buffy dies. The song culminates in all Buffy’s friends deciding that they have got to go and help her.
Track 14: Something to Sing About. This song is very typical of Musicals. Buffy sings that she doesn’t need songs, what she really needs is something to sing about. Her friends find out the truth about how she feels now and how she thinks she was in Heaven. This song is the show stopper.
Track 15: What you Feel – Reprise Sweet makes his exit, realizing that it wasn’t Dawn that had summoned him.
Track 16: Where do we go from Here? The “big group sing” the finale piece, in which the gang discuss how the events of the episode have affected their relationships with each other – people said things that they wouldn’t normally say. It is a typical finale song.
Track 17: Coda Buffy and Spike sing, it’s a combination of lyrics from Walk through the Fire and Rest In Peace. It’s a nice ending to the episode.
Track 18: End Credits (Broom dance / Grr Arrgh) This is the closing title track, again an upbeat, bouncy sort of Brady Bunch type tune.
Track 19: Main Title This is another Brady Bunch type musical introduction, basically the usual Buffy Main title (originally composed by Nerf Herder) with the pace changed and dispelling with the usual electric guitars.
Track 20: Suit From “Restless” Composed by Christophe Beck, this episode was about delving into the dreams of each of Buffy’s friends. I wasn’t particularly interested in this episode, but it is nice to have the music from it on this CD.
Track 21: Suite from “Hush” Hush is an episode from the 4th Season of Buffy, in which all the people of Sunnydale have their voices stolen by the “gentlemen” – fairytale characters who then go around removing hearts from their victims. They can only be killed by a real human voice. This episode was all silent – no voices at all, so the music played a really important role. This is entirely composed by Christophe Beck.
Track 22: Sacrifice (From “The Gift”) This is music to Season 5’s finale – its an emotional episode, which I don’t want to spoil for anyone who wants to, but hasn’t already seen it. Again this was composed by Christophe Beck.
Track 23: Somethinig to Sing about (Demo) Joss Whedon’s wife sings the demo for the musical, before it was actually decided to make the musical. Its ok, not how I would choose to end the album, but it is understandable why it is there
Let’s face it. This album is really only for fans of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. As a fan, I absolutely love it. People who are not fans would probably find it strange/boring/sad.
I find it brilliant that they could get away with making a musical episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, that actually had some credibility and that didn’t come off looking really stupid.
As a BtVS fan, I give it 10/10. Lets face it – the fans are who the album is for.
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Good review (-: .....................................Darko
xanderburns 25.07.2004 21:59
great review, I'm new to ciao and never even thought of going into so much detail! it's obvious that your a real fellow buffy fanatic! glad to seen someone appreciating this excellent ep after alot of flack from my mates. tash
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