April 25 2009
When Did Dawn Get That Cell Phone?
NPR and Marti Noxon Bynum (!) discuss the inconvenience of texting and other technology when constructing a plot. Also, how well Buffy has held up, even though technology is more widespread now than when the series was written.
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Wesley: "You should've tried to call us on your cell phone. - You probably forgot you had it."
Angel: "These things hardly ever work. Besides it was a lot easier and quicker to just (mimes punching a hole and grimaces, shaking his hand) - Look, I'm the boss here, I say when we use the cell phones and people are gonna die and - I have to go."
pixiedust | April 25, 06:23 CET
jlp | April 25, 06:43 CET
Jaymii | April 25, 06:50 CET
menomegirl | April 25, 07:09 CET
Interesting that MN apparently doesn't remember giving them cell phones in S7. It has been a while.
newcj | April 25, 07:28 CET
WilliamTheB | April 25, 08:05 CET
RaisedByMongrels | April 25, 08:23 CET
Dhoffryn | April 25, 08:30 CET
My own fic "Kind Hearts and Crossbows" was written in early '02 but set in 2026. (I did make one concession; if a character uses a house phone, I call it that.) I'd probably do it differently now that texting is a common thing; be tricky for Cordelia to be too busy to communciate her latest vision to the new hot young Watcher, so she writes it down and has Dawn deliver it over a romantic catered lunch.
DaddyCatALSO | April 25, 08:52 CET
Rachelkachel | April 25, 09:12 CET
Maeve | April 25, 10:12 CET
JesterInACast | April 25, 11:22 CET
daylight | April 25, 14:41 CET
Marti Noxon would have no problems with doing this, if she's working on period piece Mad Men. If anything, as she mentions, it's the opposite. You have to put yourself in that mindset for writing in that era.
John Darc | April 25, 14:52 CET
"Dude, my cellphone."
"....Forget it. It's too far."
John Darc | April 25, 14:54 CET
Also, the episode came out in -97. That was the time we were using modems to dial to BBS:s in addition to the internet, and only the tech savy slash rich dudes were in possession of ISDN digital phones... As computer sciense graduate I like the episode, and though the tech is indeed a bit funny in places, it's still good enough and vastly better than in many more recent shows (Alias comes to mind).
Eerikki | April 26, 02:19 CET
daylight | April 27, 02:22 CET
Possibly it's only problem was that it brought the computer issue into focus when computers on Buffy and Angel are just there for convenience - the apparent amazing hacking powers of Willow that could say something about her personality and ability but are never really touched on in that way (just watched Smashed where the gang are happy when they think she's hacking again which they see as preferable to magic even though her 'dabbling' with one is surely part of her lead up to dabbling with the other).
Angel's computer skills in City Of bother me though.
Leaf | April 27, 14:58 CET