These are such great interviews. I remember the one with Steve DeKnight was also fabulous. Good stuff.

wren | May 30, 18:50 CET

It sounds like ME hasn't been a happy place for the last two years.

it turned out to be for various reasons, a very difficult time at the show. There was a kind of depression hanging over the place


the actors have gotten to a point where they don’t want to talk that much about it. Basically, their things are “Can you get me out of here by 2 o’clock? I have a hair appointment."

Amazing that they still gave solid performances despite being jaded. Professionals through and through.

And perhaps this explains why Spike has been getting so much attention in Season 7. It sounds like James Marsters was one of the few who was still invested in the process. Maybe the writers decided to reward his positive attitude.

Of course, this is nothing but speculation until the tell-all books come out. :-)

Vamp_Insurance | May 30, 20:23 CET

Fury's "too dark" Angel script is avaialble here.

Vamp_Insurance | May 30, 20:29 CET

Great read, especailly enjoyed the bit abut the actor's work habits in Gone & LMPTM.

Unitas | May 30, 20:41 CET

I hate the bit about Buffy slamming the door in Giles' face. Is that the message they want to convey? That we're all alone and none of your friends/watchers/role models will stand by you?

When, exactly, are we done learning from other people?

Never, I say. And judging from Buffy's behaviour S6/7 there is a WORLD of things she could learn from Giles.

Otherwise, a good interview. I haven't read it all yet.

Caroline | May 30, 22:18 CET

Thanks for posting the dropped script. It's interesting that a show that dives into the darkest parts of the soul becomes squeamish (network-wise) about the inclusion of prostitutes and the absolute desolation of spirit they face. I thought that the script presented a genuine and touching examination of that world, a world most of us are able to ignore.
Perhaps they were more bothered (like the PTC can be sidetracked) by the scene where the girl rips into her john, and then tears her own face off. That must be worse than the daily denigration prostitutes face, right?
I would have really enjoyed that episode.

velvetfrailty | May 31, 19:07 CET

Regarding Buffy's slamming the door in Giles' face... Ooh. To explain this I have to give a lot away, so just to be on the safe side...

Spoilage Warning for those outside N. America: If you have not seen the season seven finale yet please read no further.

I don't know if the Buffy finale hit worldwide yet so I figured better safe than sorry.

Regarding Buffy's slamming the door in Giles' face, I took that the same way I took the scene where Spike watches Buffy kiss Angel and The First goes "that bitch." It was an attempt by Whedon to get the audience thinking things were gonna go one way, when in fact they go another. Same goes for when Buffy told Xander to drive Dawn out of town, or when the entire Scooby gang gangs up on Buffy & kicks her out of her own house. The writers were showing us that Buffy was pushing everybody away, and almost succeeded, but when it came down to the nitty gritty, it was not the Slayer standing alone against the forces of evil, as had been transcribed and prophecied. That attitude is what got all the previous slayers killed.

When Buffy turned to Spike and explained she just realized why they were gonna win, that was her realization. Rather than face the forces of evil alone, she was gonna break with tradition and bring in reinforcements - i.e. every single potential on the face of the Earth. She said to hell with the prophecies and wrote her own destiny. It's not about right and wrong. It's about power. Having the power to claim your own life, and improve the lives of others with it.

So, slamming the door in Giles' face was a red herring. There were a lot of those throughout the seventh season. Remember when we were thinking maybe Giles was dead? Red herring. Anya claiming the others were cannonfodder when really she ended up on the chopping block? Sleight of hand by the writers. Subterfuge. The writers tried to do to us the same thing Spike tried to do to the Scoobies in The Yoko Factor.

Didn't work then either. =)

ZachsMind | May 31, 20:23 CET

I think part of it was that she had learned as much from Giles as she could, but I also agree with Zachsmind about the other purpose for that particular scene.

jack knight | May 31, 20:29 CET

Just read a bit more of the interview. His comments on Gone explain a lot why the episode was so dire. I don't understand how they can let a rookie direct such a complicated episode. If I had been an actor on the episode I'd have run out for that hair appointment too.

Caroline | June 01, 19:42 CET