Medieval text vindicates Buffy (kinda) - BtVS

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June 08 2006

Medieval text vindicates Buffy (kinda). "Flebotinum" or as it's more commonly known "phlebotnum" has sort of turned in a medieval text (if you squint hard enough). But what is this term? Well according to Joss on his commentary for 'The Harvest', it came from David Greenwalt and essentially means "any magical or mystical force or event that arises in the process of inventing the Buffy mythology/or advancing the plot".

Hardest word in the world to spell, I swear to god. I've found at least three different spellings of the term.

Anyhow, go read the relevant phlebotnum entry at the ever wonderful and thorough "The Buffy and Angel Trivia Guide" website.

Simon | BtVS | 15:11 CET | 26 comments total | tags: david greenwalt, joss whedon, phlebotinum

I just listened to Joss's Conviction commentary the other day, and he mentioned it there too.

Grounded | June 08, 15:35 CET

Simon, please tell us that someone sent this into you, otherwise you spend far too much time on the Web! You've come up with some off kilter items in odd places but this one ranks up there.

Lioness | June 08, 15:54 CET

'too much time on the web'.

too...much...time. Too much...time. Nope, just can't make it make sense. Is this to do with that life thing people keep going on about ?

;-)

Saje | June 08, 16:13 CET

There's a wonderful thing called Google Blog Search which brings up the occassional nugget.

Simon | June 08, 16:21 CET

Simon spends his time drunk, teaching AND finding Whedon things on the internet. All at the same time.

(gossi now realises how Simon found THAT Whedon link last night).

[ edited by gossi on 2006-06-08 14:25 ]

gossi | June 08, 16:25 CET

Yes, that bizarre word I never figured out how to spell until now! Neat find!

chosenkitty | June 08, 17:12 CET

Awesome find! I don't remember exactly where I got my own spelling of "phlebotinin" (see my username.) I think it was from one of the printed David Fury interviews - the Watcher's Guide Pt. 2, I think. Anyway, this is a wonderful find. Thanks for that, Simon.

phlebotinin | June 08, 17:58 CET

This is right up there with Wesley's realization that the Wolf, the Ram and the Hart were in Pylea, too.

Chris inVirginia | June 08, 18:01 CET

"You can have Willow fall in love online . . . but if you turn her lover into a cyborg demon they'll all laugh at you."

LOL! I honestly think that is the worst episode of Buffy ever.

AnotherFireflyfan | June 08, 19:14 CET

Hey now. "IRYJ" introduced Miss Calendar, had great Giles moments (including his dialogue on why books are better than information), and the usual fun character stuff. Including Buffy's sarcastic:

"Follow Dave? In what? Dark glasses and a trenchcoat?"

Then, cut to her doing exactly that. Her lack of knowledge on anything computer-related, also funny. Plus her and Xander's whole conversation how "Malcom" might be an axe-murdering circus freak. And the scene with "Malcom" writing Dave's suicide note, and then Fritz there to hang him....kinda creepy.

I love the first season to death.

[ edited by pat32082 on 2006-06-08 17:37 ]

pat32082 | June 08, 19:37 CET

You know the great thing about Joss shows? Even the bad episodes have great character moments and great dialog. (Although that also means that you can't ever skip the episodes).

AnotherFireflyfan | June 08, 20:17 CET

Let me put it this you - you can tell Joss rewrote large chunks of the early seasons of Buffy The Vampire Slayer.

gossi | June 08, 20:22 CET

It was I Robot You Jane that first brought Buffy to my attention way back in 1997. I worked at a magazine at the time, and the all-20-something fellow writers were laughing their heads off about some stupid show that had a "demon taking over the Internet." I vaguely recall sampling a few minutes of Buffy sometime after that, pausing only long enough to see Giles--hey, isn't that the Tasters' Choice guy?--wiping his glasses before I switched channels. I didn't try it again until my wife started tuning in for S4.

1starbuckstown | June 08, 20:34 CET

Simon, please tell us that someone sent this into you, otherwise you spend far too much time on the Web! You've come up with some off kilter items in odd places but this one ranks up there.

Hey! About 700 people read my blather daily. I'm not that obscure. Alright, so maybe I am, but that doesn't mean I'm not important, because I am. Really.

I am.

Really, really important.

Stop laughing. I may know where you live.

Scott Eric Kaufman | June 08, 23:02 CET

Oh, and thanks for the link, Simon. (Don't want y'all thinking I lack social graces.)

Scott Eric Kaufman | June 08, 23:03 CET

"I may know where you live" should be the UK Home Office's new tagline.

gossi | June 09, 02:08 CET

Yeah, but they're all "& safe, just tolerant." I'm safe, but not all that tolerant. (Despite what I want you to think, I do lack social graces.) Or wait, do you mean the Home Office's as reliable in matters of national importance as the good-but-shockingly-incompetent members of the Acephalous Politburo? Because I wouldn't trust those wankers to get the mail, much less ensure ideological homogeniety in an imaginary country the size of Illinois. (The real one.)

Scott Eric Kaufman | June 09, 02:47 CET

oops. Sorry Scott Eric Kaufman. I am a fan of things medieval,but not everyone is, so I just assume that it will be odd and offkilter if I find it interesting.
Profuse apologies. Really really profuse.
really

Lioness | June 09, 02:51 CET

Welcome Scott Eric Kaufman. Interesting site you have there. I am going to have to take a better look around when I have time.

...and I'm sure you are very important.

newcj | June 09, 02:58 CET

Lioness, I was with you up to the third "really," but then I got the sense you were just humoring me.

newcj, thanks for the welcome. I read Whedonesque regularly but always managed to miss the enrollment window. It was nice of them to let me sneak in the backdoor.

Oh, and I'm very, very, very important. (I can see Lioness's response already: "Yes, Scott, you're very, very, very, very important." I'm already apoplectic, shaking my fist in wounded rage and stuff.)

Scott Eric Kaufman | June 09, 03:43 CET

Oddly enough, I was wondering how you spell "Flebotinum" recently. Thanks.

Ashley | June 09, 04:05 CET

"I may know where you live" should be the UK Home Office's new tagline.

LOL till the tears rolled down my face (in a manly way). ;-)

I'm already apoplectic, shaking my fist in wounded rage and stuff.

*sek yells to no one in particular, "don't you know who i am?!?"* ;-)

Welcome to you and your Flebotinum, Mr. Kaufman, sir! :-)

billz | June 09, 05:10 CET

Yes, welcome Mr. Kaufman!

And I hate to belabor the obvious. . . (Well, no, actually I don't. I do it all the time. But I, too, wished to convey the impression that I do not lack in social graces.)

But speaking of unusual words & such, doesn't "acephalous" have something to do with not having a head? Or did I miss something somewhere? (Like my head.)

Also, Lioness, I'm interested in things medieval (thesis on the Wars of the Roses & Shakespeare's take on some of it)(yeah, I know, WotR is [are?] about the latest you can get & still be medieval). So I also found this site interesting. Thank you, Simon!

Where was I? Oh, yes. I, too, am sure that you are quite, quite, quite important, Mr. Kaufman. And thank you. And, about the two students en deshabille in your office? I would have lawered up, too.

SangChaud | June 09, 10:09 CET

Sorry!!! That should have been "lawyered" up--but I don't know how to edit my posts! Ouch. . . . Nor do I know how to get the accent egule thingy on my "e's."

SangChaud | June 09, 11:02 CET

Good Find

Soulless Vampire ED | June 09, 19:03 CET

Thanks to all for the warm welcome.

As for the name of my site, well, academics have a (well-deserved) reputation for taking themselves too seriously. I decided to forestall such criticism by letting everyone know up front the extent of my intellectual chops. (That, plus in my research I'd found that great quote in my banner: "Some modern travellers still pretend to find Acephalous people in America." I set out to prove those travellers correct.)

Also, my wife's a hardcore 12^th and 14^th Century medievalist, and she says you'd be an "early modernist." See what I mean about academic know-it-alls? We're incorrigible, we are.

Scott Eric Kaufman | June 09, 20:52 CET

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