h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

...What'cha doin'?

Am just testing out my new membership of H2G2 and thought I'd just drop by for a chat as I liked your personal page, lots going on. Am going to try to jazz up mine a bit.

I'm a big fan of Willow, have been all the way through, but lately I've been so impressed with Alyson Hannigan. This season she hasn't had masses of screen time, but she's done great things with it, and has brought a real air of sadness to the character, without losing her essential "Willowness". I think Same Time, Same Place is going to go down as one of my all time favourite episodes, simply because she gave it such a lovely atmosphere of melancholy - gentle and sad, without being depressing or self-pitying. She certainly made me cry a few times this series.

Anyway, must go. Hope to hear from you soon.

Sian.
x

(They made me put a longer name on the H2G2 section, but normally on Talk Buffy I'm just Sian.)

Hi Sian,

Can I say, I love the "wotcha doin'?" quote!

The great thing about Alyson is she doesn't need huge amounts of screen time to get the emotion across. Just look at the scene where Willow visits Tara's grave, that was all of 30 seconds, but she reduced me to tears then!
She's a phenominal actress, other than when Oz left Will and Tara died () Ive never felt sorry for her, she plays Willow so well!!

If/when you run into any probs jazzing up your personal space, give me a scream and I'll help out if I can!

Are you the Sian of the Litchick visiting variety?

Will

ps. When I spend alot of time talking about Willow/Alyson, I slip into Willow speak and often need Xander around to translate me.

W

Hiya,

Yes, I am the "Sian of the Litchick visiting variety". She is the new owner of my video boxsets (I have upgraded to DVD at horrifying effect to my bank balance), so that's pretty much how we got friendly. Are you the Will who sent Litchick the Ghost of the Robot tape? Do you have a new nickname?

Actually, I had a look at the Guide ML thing this afternoon, which I assume is what you need for the more interesting stuff, and none of it made any sense. In terms of being "so the net girl", I'm not. I'm the opposite in fact - I'm more likely to use the Del. button thinking it means deliver. All I really wanted to do is add in a few pics and jazz up the colours and fonts, but it looks quite complicated. If it's actually dead easy, I'd be very grateful for some advice.

I loved Tara, but Oz was one of my very favourite characters of any show ever, and I think in some ways I found that relationship ending harder. Practically everything he said was quote worthy and he was such a sweetheart. I don't think I've ever got through Wild at Heart without shedding a tear or two for both of them (Willow's "Don't you love me?" was totally devastating). I like to think that one day when Willow's blue haired and in Istanbul, she will run into him again.

I notice you've started a We Hate Kennedy club. I haven't made up my mind about her yet, but I'd cast her aside immediately if there was an option of either Tara or Oz returning.

Anyway, I'm off home now.

Speak soon,
Sian.
x

Hey again Sian,

I plead guilty as charged. I do indeed be the Will of Ghost of the Robot tape sending! I change my name to suit my mood, but usually a quote to describe Willow, or sometimes "Just Willow"

The guideML is simple enough as long as you are careful with the typing and make sure you close everything off properly, but it will tell you what you've done wrong.
When I find my mate Xander's page about the guideML, I'll post the link in here and he explains it all in proper english!
I can give you the basics here if you want.

BOXES:
To start a box type: Then in this bit add the text you want. To close the box you need to do exactly the same as opening it but in reverse, like so..

FONT SIZES AND COLOURS:
There are loads of different colours, just pick your favourites from here: A529715 and make a not of either the code or the exact name of the colour then where you want it just type:

If you want to change the size of the text its very simple

When you want to change the colour, close the previous one with and open a new one in the same way!

PICTURES:
There's a full picture library at A692741 make a note of the BLOB number and to add the picture into your entry type:
You dont need to close a picture as the code closes itself!

= paragraph open
= closes paragraph
= italics
= closes italics
= bold
= closes bold text
= underlined text
closes underline

Just remember that for everything you open, you must remember to close it otherwise it wont work.
And where Ive put CENTER in a code, if you dont want whatever it is, ie box/picture etc in the center, replace it with either LEFT or RIGHT!

That should get you going for now, I can explain links to guide entries or other peoples pages too, they are pretty simple too!
Oh and finally, change the style to guideML before you start otherwise it wont work at all, its easy to forget to do it at the end. When you do that you will see:


*



* Anything you type, must go in this section or again it wont work!
Right, I think I scrambled enough brain cells for today, most of them mine.
Good luck!!
If all else fails, I dont mind doing it for you, providing you dont mind me accessing your h2g2 account, but Im totally trustworthy really, ask Litchick!

Take care m8!
Will.

ps, I never shut up do I?! Theres a specific code for smileys in guideML too, you cant use the regular code but I cant remember what it is right now! I;ll look it up for you!
Will

If you get stuck and Im not online, check out A2111455 you should be able to find all the info you need and there's a list of ACE's who should be able to help you out. Or just nip into our scooby space, its the conversation on my page titled, Hey Scooby Gang. Xander's helpful too, you'll find him at U541442

Good Luck!

Will

Hi Sian, I hope you don't mind me breaking into your conversation like this, Willow's mentioned you,, so I thought I'd pop in and say HI!!!

Willow's mentioned that you may need some help and I see she's given you all the links to the help pages, the <./>ACES</.> are great guys, they've helped me alot, but if you prefer to go through a friendly face, so to speak, Willow's got really good and I'll help you with any other problems that you might have.

Xander..with the welcome to Sian!!

Im having a thought and will shal it with you, although by the time you trudge through all the other postings on this thread you will probably be asleep so I will try and keep it brief!

Anything where Will's sheading tears is almost a dead cert that I too will be blubbing, all I have to do is read a quote from the 'crayon-breaky Willow' speech and Im gone.... and I dont cry for anything, especially not the tv! Alyson was outstanding for those final episodes of S6!!

I loved Oz too, well up until the veruca incident. The fact that he said very little made him quote-worthy. Gotta love the; "As Willow goes, so goes my nation" and "We think, therefore she is"
See, you got me playing that "Oz, dont you love me?" scene in my head now..... may have to nip of and get tissues and chocolate!
However, from a 'Willow' to the Willow, I dont recommend she does the whole blue-haired thing.... red suits her my better and Idont think she'd suit the same cut as me! It was a disaster!!

The We Hate Kennedy Club basically came about because of two episodes, the first being her arrival and how she moved so fast into Will's bed.. I mean, gotta give the girl credit but c;mon, this is Willow she so wouldnt do that!! And I think its the very final one, she gives a speech and although I think it was meant to be sentimental, it annoyed the hell out of me!!! I also dont believe Will would EVER go out with someone like her. I could go on forever about her but I wont.
I think Ive given you enough to fry your brain with so I will away again and await your response!

Finally, dvd's expensive but worth it for some of the extras alone. How good is Amber's british accent in the 'Buffy Abroad' featurette!!?

"Leaving Now!"

Will

Thanks for all that advice. Will have a go and see how I get on.

All old ladies have to have blue hair - that's the law. They have to have the shampoo and set once a week, so the blue hair is tidily curled, and they have to match it up with the floral skirt, beige anorak, orthopaedic shoes and canvas shopping bag. It comes to us all, even evil fighters. Except Cher, but I think she had to get special dispensation from the Pope. It's not actually that old people have lost their memory, it's just that they're interchangable so they can cover for one another. Say one is supposed to go to a family wedding, but it clashes with when their old person's group wants to go on a weekend to Eastbourne, they just send another old person to the wedding, who can ask generic old person questions like "So, do you have a boyfriend?" and "will you be next, then?" and when asked questions they should know the answer to they can just look blank, and say "sorry ducky, the memory's not what it was..."

Ok that started to get a little bit bizzarre... Back to Buffy:

Yep, those were great Ozisms. I think my favourites were the animal crackers conversation from What's My Line II - that melts my heart every time, and in Living Conditions about hair braiding and shifty benches. The thing with Tara is that, while I thought she was a lovely, lovely character, there aren't that many memorable lines from her (a couple of the few things that stick in my mind are "can you just be kissing me now" and the absolutely gorgeous song "Under My Spell", which is my favourite song to sing in the shower) and my favourite characters tend to be the ones that make me laugh the most, which is why I've always loved Anya and why currently Andrew is the recipient of my worship. The oven glove airquotes around "guestage" were the most perfect thing.

Regarding Kennedy, I think she is probably the right person for Willow right now - someone to help her move on from Tara and find some faith in herself and her abilities again. She needs someone feisty enough to break through the shell and keep pushing her to find her strength because right now she is pretty damaged and fragile. I don't think Kennedy's the long haul girl though. When you think about it Oz and Tara were similar in many ways: quiet, thoughtful and kind and willing to sit back and let Willow take the lead. I don't think someone like them would be much help in her current frame of mind, but eventually, when she's found some equilibrium she will probably get back to being attracted to that kind of person.

Re: the DVDs, I'm bummed because I looked around for cheap deals and as far as I could see the best option was Play.com, but then once I'd bought a couple I found Splashdvd.com, which were cheaper, but a bit crap about delivering in good time. THEN I found I could have got them even cheaper - the cheapest option of all that I've found is CD-Wow.co.uk where they are £38.99. I got my Angel box sets there, so I managed to save on them at least. Amazine when you think HMV are selling them for £79.99!

Amber's accent was really good. Do you follow Angel too? The interviews with Alexis Denisof are really strange because his British accent is so good, but his American accent sounds really bizzarre.

Anyway. Must go, tummy rumblins as I didn't have breakfast and I must post a response to your Xander as well.

Later,
Sian.
x

Hi Xan,

No, I don't mind at all. Thanks very much for the offer of help. I'll have a go myself and see if I can master this techno stuff. If not, I'll definitely take you up on it.

Thanks for dropping by my page as well. It's always lovely to hear from new people. Your page is very cool. I think I'll start simple and try to work up to that level of colour and links and what not, when I've stopped being freaked out by all the different Smileys!

One of the fun things about using these posting boards is that you could just be walking down the street and the stranger who walks past you could be the person you've just had a long, involved and passionate debate with. I also live in South London and it's entirely possible that we've sat next to one another on a bus or tube train!

Anyway, must go and forage out some lunch before I pass out from hunger. One cannot live by Buffy alone...

Sian.
x

Hiya.

I dont think Cher will ever be old. Its written in her contract I think. I just couldn't see her toodling round tesco's on a thursday afternoon in a rain coat with a canvas shopping bag and one of those plastic things on her head to make sure her newly permed blue hair doesnt get disheveled! Although it is one of the funniest thoughts ever!! Thank you.

The animal crackers conversation was brilliant. The look on his face in Dopplegangland, when vampy Willow walked into the Bronze was a picture!
Tara as a character was hugely underrated and underused. Everyone else's partner has great lines but the writers seemed to neglect Tara in that department. She did have the whole 'you're gonna have to go through me first' speech to Anya in Older and Far Away though. I was dancing round like; "Go Tara, Go Tara".
On the rare occasions she was angry she was brilliant!! And also, AMber played the crazy very well!
I love Anya especially in The Body and Hells Bells, her realisation that death is in fact the absolute end and no-one really understands why was so Anya but so heartfelt and moving!
Andrew is great this season. He was a bit of a wet lettuce before.
I can live with Kennedy being the 'rebound' girl!!

I had pretty much the choice of two places to get my boxsets from and they both charged £75.99, its atotal rip-off when there are places on the net doing them so cheap. I was I'd known that at the start of the year!

Alexis' accent is truely bizarre. He lived here for something like 14 years so I guess its not surprising that his accent is so strange.
I love Amber to bits, she can do no worng as far as Im concerned!!

Hope youu had a good lunch!
Speak soon,
Will

Hiya,

Have you ever seen Cher in direct sunlight? Do you think it's possible that she's actually a creature of the night now? Wouldn't surprise me. Her, Tina Turner and Diana Ross all in Drac's Chick Pit together. Now there's an image to keep you up nights!

I did think Tara was very good dealing with Anya in Older & Far Away. I also thought her interaction with Spike in that episode (and generally) was very funny. Also, just remembered her line "I'm cured! I want the boys!", which did make me laugh. It is tough being the straight man (in the comedy sense, obviously, as Tara was in fact a gay woman) as you tend to get left in the background. I did think her Glory joke about insect reflections was quite funny, in a terribly nerdy way. Which can be explained by the fact that I am a nerd. It is a shame they didn't give her more witty lines to work with because she did do well with them when they came along.

Eeek! on the boxset prices. High street shops can be such a rip off. Still, if there hadn't been cheaper options I still would have talked myself into buying the sets at full price - it's Buffy after all, and I MUST have them...

Doppelgangland - Love Willow's little grin and wave, and Oz's look of relief. Awww. Heartwarming. AH is totally brilliant in that episode; I think it's one of her best.

Can't wait for Buffy tonight. Have my book group so will have watch it later on tape. This having to socialise business is really getting in the way of my Buffy watching...

Later,
Sian.
x

Hi

As you can tell by the rough times of my postings, I am a creature of the night and can confirm that Cher is actually one of us too!!
(Which also explains my tragic spelling, Im'm told I'm quite bright really)
Although the though of her, Diana Ross and Tina Turner in Drac's chick pit has turmed my stomach!


I guess that would make Tara a str8 male really then. Her lack of lines wasn't really such a huge thing as she was able to say so much with her eyes that you didn't need it scripting..... However could the get some of those looks past the censors if they had words to go with them!? Im thinking OMWF, Joss' commentary during 'Under Your Spell' is exactly my thought on it, its intellectual porn, he said so much himself!
Her interactions with Spike In Older and Far Away were so funny, again most of her lines were in her eyes there too!
Im relieved to know I wasn't the only one who loved the insect reflection joke!

Alyson: Dopplegangland is definately one of her greatest pieces of work to date. Its the whole 'Hands, hands' thing that gets me every time and, 'Oh my, look at those!'
Her ability to cry, and make me do it to is amazing, have you listened to the commentary on The Body, again Joss sums it up perfectly. How she can look so vunerable, rip your heart out but still look cute at the same time just blows me away!
You will never hear a bad word about her from me!!!

Sadly, or luckily (I cant decide which) I dont have the issues of social life to deal with so I can just watch Buffy all the time.
Unlike you, I can live on Buffy alone. I did for almost a whole week, with the occasional bar of chocolate, packet of crisps, bottle of water to keep me going!!

I got all the dvd boxsets before I even had the dvd player... its a long story!

Chat soon,
Will

Hiya,

Well, just received some news at work, that our division is going to be moving to a new office while they refurbish our old building. We're going to be up on the 9th floor, so will have excellent views over London, and it should be a lot more swish. The downside is that I will be within walking distance of HMV and Waterstones, which means I will have to exercise a great deal of restraint. I'm doomed!

I was quite surprised by them leaving Tara's number intact. The suggestive lyrics coupled with facial expressions and suggestion of what exactly Willow is doing down there are pretty risque considering the problems they seem to have with showing lesbians having a bit of a snog. One can only assume that they are so repressed that they didn't realise what was going on at all - in the manner of Queen Victoria who didn't outlaw it because she couldn't imagine the logistics of lesbianism.

Re: Doppelgangland - I loved Willow's rebellion at the start "I'm eating this banana, lunchtime be damned!" and I loved her reaction to Anya's spell "I believe these chicken feet are mine!" She's so cute when she's angry. I always loved her interrogations as well: cracking Jonathon like an egg.

Did you see that documentary last night about celebrity and fans? I think all the TV critics have pointed out the total hypocrisy of Piers Morgan presenting it, but it's pretty interesting viewing. I didn't see all of it but they did make the point that fandom is replacing religion and community in many ways, that we need people to worship and celebrities are used like saints used to be. This tied in with how I've thought of it over the last few years, with the rise in popularity of magazines like Hello and Heat. I didn't see all of the programme, but some of the cases were pretty out there, stalking and so on. Obviously us Buffy fans on this site don't take it that far (I suppose we're more like the group of women who would meet up at events where Will Young was scheduled to appear and saw it as an opportunity to make friends with like minded people than the ones who hang about outside celebrity's houses going through their bins and sending them creepy letters) but I wonder if 20 years ago we would all have been quite so into visiting this website and talking to people online. Perhaps the internet has developed in the way it has because we've needed to create new communities, rather than being the evil influence that's killing true community. What do you think?

Yes, I did see the times of your postings - when I was tucked up and dreaming. Are you an insomniac, or do you just keep late hours?

Anyway, must go, have a singing lesson tonight.

Sian.
x

On the move....

Being that close to all those books, dvds, videos and cd's, I think they'd have ti tie me to my chair, thats just far too many excellent shopping experiences to be having at your disposal!

I nearly fell through the floor the first time I saw Once More With Feeling, especially Amber's number. All I can think is the censors just didnt get it, or the 'spell' in Who Are You. Is it not blatantly obvious that the magic was used as symbolism of their sexual relationship? Maybe I was just really looking too hard!?
Some of the looks Tara was giving Willow were amazing, especially between 2 str8 actresses.... they should have received some sort of award for the looks alone, as I fully believed they were so totally in love, you dont see that very often at all!!
As far as Queen Victoria goes... she obviously didn't know what she was missing!!

Dopplegangland: Willow's rebellion was so funny, as you could see the doubt in her eyes about going through with it. Did she actually eat the banana in the end?
Also, I cant quite remember the name of the episode, but when they were allowed to go off campus for their lunch (S3), her teatering on the edge of the steps before Oz and Xander carried her off-site... she is so funny!

I've not been watching the show you mentioned, mainly because of Piers Morgan. They might as well have called it the Hypocracy Show.
Its a valid point though, celebs are taking over from religion. I think it's because people want to believe in something that the can prove is real.
Stalking is one extreme side effect of the celebrity status, although many fans are happy enough just to spend hours talking about their favourite celebrity and watching shows/films they've been in.
Sites like this are great for that. The internet in itself is a brilliant way of bringing people together, and it eliminates the 1st physical impression, so you dont get to judge on appearance before getting to know someone.
It proves how looks can be deceiving!

I dont think its killing community at all, more like bringing people closer together. Had it not been for the internet, I would never have met, Xander, Anya, Faith or Litchick and I cant imagine not having them around now!
Its introducing people who would not have had the opportunity to meet in 'real life'. Surely that can only be a good thing?

With the exceptions or terrorists, and all those crazy people who use it for bad, the internet is an amazing thing. You can learn just about anything, and for every site, there's usually a debate/chat forum. Its a cheap way of talking to people all over the world about a vast aray of subjects.
Also keeps people like me, mentally stimulated!
Besides, there's not a whole lot of true community anymore anyway, not like it was 30 years ago!

Hiya,

Well, thank god that's over! Hooray for the weekend!

This week's all been pretty stressful hasn't it? Three episodes to go and everything is falling apart - so we're pretty much on schedule for a classic against the odds victory for the Scoobies.

Poor old Xander - first he gets stabbed by his date then he loses an eye. Hasn't been a fun year for him. At least he got to have some breakup sex (another classic Andrew moment, writing that on the easel (spelling??)). How did Caleb know that Xander was the one who "sees"? Does the first still have a spy in the house, or is it just all knowing? Either way, they're never going to be able to sneak up, which is going to make the final showdown pretty tricky to plan.

I feel a bit sorry for Buffy, but not as much as I would have if she hadn't been quite so full of her own importance lately. Did you get that Caleb had planted the 2nd assault plan in Buffy's mind while she was unconscious, or did I misinterpret what he and The First discussed afterwards? If that was what they meant, it would explain why Buffy was unable to see the other side. I'm very glad to see Faith back again. I've missed her. I thought Dawn was very good in Empty Places - just as Buffy said she would put the mission first, so is Dawn.

It's definitely time for Willow to get off the bench. Judging by Conversations With Dead People, in which The First tried to convince her to stop using magic, as in season five, she is the one the Big Bad recognises as actually being a threat.

I'm desperate for next week, but also so gutted that it's nearly all over.

Anyway, just a quick one today as I am planning to apply for teacher training and have to do some internet research for my application form before I leave work today so I'd better get moving on that or I'll be here forever.

Til next week, hope you have a great weekend.

Sian.
x

Im still having trouble coping and absorbing the 3 episodes a week concept. Im missing things!
This season is so complex that three a week is just too much to digest!
Im torn between being hugely excited and unbearably sad about the final episodes, although I know that Willow has an absolutely fabulous line, providing the bbc dont cut it, which they probably will!!
The final 2 episodes are my fav of the season but I'll have to wait til the dvd's out before I can completely understand and nit-pick!

Willow has always been the biggest threat... but by god, you are so going to love her and she gets the recognition she deserves!!

I must have missed the point about Caleb putting the assault plan in Buffy's mind. Like I say, there's so much going on that I cant take it all in and 3 per week has scrambled my brain!
I'll form an informed opinion after Ive seen the dvds, you'll get the full picture then as the bbc have been having way too much fun with the scissors in the editing dept.

Good luck with the teacher training!

Chat soon,
Will

Hi Willster,

How's it going? Sorry I haven't been in contact for a while. I don't have a computer at home, so my only time on the internet is at lunch time or after 5.30. Work's been really busy and I get to the end of the day and just want to go off home...

Watched the uncut Same Time, Same Place, and my, was that gruesome. Got to say, I could've lived without seeing that flayed body. The extra bits in the cave did add to the atmosphere though. It is a fab episode. I always enjoy the ones that focus on Willow. They're always really inventive and Alyson Hannigan is just brilliant at all that emoting. The Killer in Me was a fantastic episode as well, and up there with Storyteller and STSP as my favourites of the season.

I bought Firefly on DVD from Amazon.com and am really pleased I did. It's a fab show. It's a real shame it got cancelled, although having seen it I'm not surprised it did. It's got a very odd feel to it, and in spite of the fun stories and great characters and typical Joss Whedon funny lines, I can see why people didn't get it. You might know that the lead character in Firefly is the same bloke who played Caleb in Buffy. He was so horrible as Caleb, and really repulsive. Having seen him in Firefly, I have to confess I've developed a rather large crush on him. As Captain Mal Reynolds he's just lovely. I've only seen the Buffy episodes he was in once, so I'm looking forward to seeing them again to remind myself how awful he was. I was on a US based Buffy website a few weeks back where they were talking about the evilness of Joss Whedon in casting the lovely "Captain Tightpants" in the role of Caleb, because obviously they would have seen Firefly before he appeared in Buffy. He must be a really good actor, because usually if I've seen someone in something where I didn't like the character I find it quite hard to like them in other roles. I never quite trust them to be on the up and up.

Anyway, I'm sneaking this in work time, so I'd better sign off now. Hope you're well and enjoying the uncut ones. Looks like we can "enjoy" a bit of a snooker break this week though...

Hope to hear from you soon (hope to be around a bit more often too).

Sian.
x

Hey Sian,

Was wondering what had happened to you! Glad you're ok and haven't fallen off the edge of the world or been sucked into a Hellmouth or some thing gruesome like that!

I have to say, I wasn't at all sure of season 7 when I first saw it on sky, but when the bbc decided to have its butchery session with it the first time round, I realised that, in fact, I quite enjoyed myself!
STSP, was one of those I was unsure of the first time, I don't know why! Although the fact that I loved Willow's shirt and jacket may have influenced my uncertainty, as I don't do girlie!
The uncut version refreshed my memory, and Im kinda odd in the fact that Ilove some gore! Gnarl was an amazing character with some very clever dialogue! If I remember correctly, I think that was the same actor who was the 1st Ubervamp and previously on of the Gentlemen!

I did catch a bit of an episode of Firefly, but I came in half way throught the season and midway through an episode so "Colour me confused!"

I have the same thing with actors, once you grow to love them in one role, it is tricky accepting them as anything else.
I don't know if Litchick has told you about Amber Benson's movie, Chance, but she couldn't be any less Tara-esque if she tried! Litchick had the dvd on in the background and Amber uses some hugely colourful language... I was actually horrified, like; "Tara, NO!!! you can't say words like that!!" I think its going to take a while before she stops being 'Tara' to me!

Snooker.... the point is??? I mean the only people that really watch the snooker are pensioners, and I don't know a single one that is still up at 1am!! Bad BBC!!

How's the guideML going? Thought I'd ask as I seem to become the doctor, some friends of mine have just appeared on here and Im currently giving their pages the guideML treatment as its scrambled their brains, so if you want me to have a crack at yours too, get my email addy from Litchick and send me your login name, password and answer to your secret question and any instructions and I'll jazz it up for yu!

Speak Soon!
Will

Hiya,

Well, I have to say that sometimes being at work greatly resembles being sucked into a Hellmouth. Sometimes I wonder if I would actually notice if someone Life Serial-ed me, since one day is much the same as any other in this job.

"That's gloomy..."

Still, had a lovely weekend of doing very little except sleeping and lounging on the sofa reading. And I have tickets to When Harry Met Sally on 21st, to which I'm very much looking forward. Lots to be happy about.

How about you? Any fun stuff on the weekend?

Watched the uncut Same Time Same Place last night with my flatmate. She is one of the most squeamish people I've ever met, so is the most unlikely person to enjoy Buffy. This episode went well past her capacity for gore. By the time Gnarl was eating bits of Willow she had her head stuck in a pillow and was squealing in distress. She had a hangover as well which didn't help. It was very funny. Does it make me a bad person that I laughed?

Yep, Litchick mentioned having Chance. She's coming to stay with me the weekend of 21st (we're going to see When Harry Met Sally together) and hopefully she'll be able to bring it, so I can watch (girlie squeals of anticipation).

I think the snooker is for the insomniacs. It's part of the BBC's charter to be a public service, and in this case they're helping to unburden the NHS from having to supply sleeping tablets to the masses. Obviously Buffy doesn't help at all with insomnia. Especially not when featuring disgusting flesh eating demons and comically paralysed sisters.

I haven't had a chance to have a go with the Guide ML yet. I was wondering whether I'd rather missed the boat on that one, since we're just on to repeats now, so would anyone ever look at my page again. I suppose it would be good for me to expand my computer skills a wee bit, so if I'm going to jazz up my page I ought really to have a go myself before availing myself of your v. generous offer of help. For which, very much thanks.

I know what you mean with Firefly. I think watching from mid-way through would be nigh-on impossible. Like with Buffy, there's a lot of complexity to the universe of the show and the stories and character relationships. I had heard they showed it on one of the satellite channels. I only have terrestrial, so didn't see it then. If they repeat, do give it a go from the start as it's well worth the time. Might be worth taping it though as I found that at first I had trouble with the Southern accents and odd syntax. I had to keep rewinding to listen again because I couldn't follow what the heck they were saying. Also, found the subtitles quite helpful in that respect. God bless DVD. In most American TV and film they tend to all have the same generic accent, which everyone understands, so when they go all out with Southern slang and grammar it's almost like another language until you get used to it. One of the characters (Jayne the mercenary) sounds almost like Yosemite Sam sometimes. Also there are the sudden bursts of Chinese, which I thought were a great idea, but apparently were a total nightmare for the actors and have spawned many websites with translations. It's quite cool, because you can pretty much tell what the gist is - mostly slang and insults, and I get the impression they used it in much the same way that in Buffy they used Spike and Giles's Britishness to slip profanities under the radar of the censors.

Anyway, must be going.

Speak soon,

Sian.
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