I Worship Joss
Mood:  happy

Music: Josh Groban
Book: Llamas Night (collection edited by Mercedes Lackey)
Project: Fan Fiction
Favorite Movie of the Moment: Uncorked

This is my homage to "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," it's actors, creators, writers, and everyone who had some remote connection to making the show what it was. And still is, really. An icon. A show with themes as immortal as the vampires themselves. (Make that—the vampires that didn't get dusted three seconds into their unlife by the afore mentioned Slayer).

In some way or another, I got what I asked for. My wish list was this:

"A little bit of happiness is all I ask...is that so difficult? Just a tiny bit. Preferably not complete destruction and death."

Okay, so there was almost complete destruction. But not of the Scoobies, just of the town. And it was just…poetic to have the series end with the destruction of the Hellmouth…it symbolized the end perfectly, without destroying the characters I was utterly invested in.

"…an ending with possibilities. A possibility of spin offs. A possibility of love. A possibility of change, of greater things...of POSITIVE things!!"

A lot happened. That was to be expected…but the possibilities now are absolutely endless. Buffy has a chance to be happy. And somehow I got the idea that she would be, eventually. After much soul-searching and self-discovery…Buffy could actually live a more normal life. She has a chance to make it to 30. And love…well, there's always Angel, right? After Buffy…bakes.

"At least leave the fans with hope. With somewhere to go, in their imaginations if nowhere else..."

My imagination has been to the ends of earth and back with this one. Already the fan fic is flowing. We have somewhere to go. Some people were upset that the end was so open…but what more could you ask for, really? THE END would just be too construed if every subplot were neatly tied in a bow, every character was hooked up with someone to love, ready to settle down and become normal…I didn't want that. I just wanted somewhere for them to go from here that wouldn't necessarily be self destructive or horrifically depressing.

So, really, the finale was all you could ask from a one-hour finale (I feel it deserved two hours, but I'll let it go…eventually). There was the apocalyptic battle of epic proportions, noble sacrifices, potential fulfilled all over the place, touching scenes galore, a complete change in the dynamic of the Buffyverse, and possibilities. Joss, my man…don't bother getting me anything for Christmas. "Chosen" was the best present this rabid fan could ask for. Not that I didn't cry. Cuz I did. A lot. But hey, it's no good if you don't cry, right? It was sad, but ultimately, fulfilling and hopeful. Thanks, guys, for a wonderful seven years.

What Evil Lurks in the Heart of...Harry Potter?
I have a new pet peeve. Namely, those people who feel that Harry Potter is the root of all evil and should not be allowed in schools or theaters, or in the hearts and minds of children anywhere. My first reaction is utter disbelief. How do these people figure that the magic of Harry Potter is going to destroy their children? Or their religion? Or their belief system…whatever that may be? I can't honestly answer the question because I can't stand to be close enough to the people who feel this way long enough to get a full explanation.

Who and what is Harry Potter? What does he stand for? What does he teach the children of today? Well, here are my thoughts. Harry Potter is a young British boy who lost his parents at a young age, and lives with his aunt and uncle, who treat him badly. Does this teach kids that aunts and uncles are evil? Is this the danger that Harry Potter poses? Well…what about the classic wicked stepmother of the fairy tales? I don't hear anyone up in arms over Snow White (despite the fact that the Disney version is an absolute push-over…and not too bright to boot). Anyhow, Harry Potter discovers that he is actually destined to become a great wizard. He learns that there is a place where people know his name! They look at him and recognize him! It's like every kid's dream! (Oh, it must be dangerous!!)

I will point out at this point that this is a VERY normal thing for kids to feel. I, in fact, wrote a story at the age of 8 or 10 or so, about a young girl (who looked remarkably like a Barbie I used to own) who's family died horribly in a fire when she was young. She discovered that a brooch of her mother's gave her the power to travel between worlds: her world, and a world where, unbeknownst to her, her mother was queen. There were all sorts of cool creatures there: mermaids, centaurs, and lots of other critters that just happened to look like a popular toy of the time: Glimmers. Did this fantasy mean that I burnt down my parents' house to try to get a better look at this world? No! I was imaginative, not stupid! I liked the fantasy of having people respect my opinion, listen to my orders, hear what I was saying…because in the real world, a kid is queen of very little. Don't we all dream of what we can't have? It doesn't mean we do anything to get it. It doesn't mean that we confuse reality with fantasy. Even a moderately well adjusted 6 year old knows the difference between a fairy tale and dad's day at work. It doesn't mean he doesn't find the fairy tale more interesting. Just that he knows it's a story.

Okay. Magic. Why is Harry Potter's version so dangerous? I just don't understand. What is the huge difference between Harry Potter and the Narnia books? Granted, Narnia is a religious series, but kids don't know that. At least, I didn't. I just thought it was a great story. There were still the great elements: good and evil, magical creatures, ordinary kids doing extraordinary things…so why is that so different? As far as I can tell, Harry Potter teaches kids that friends can be found in odd places (Hagrid), that with friends, all things are possible (all the adventures to date), that anyone can make a difference by standing up for what they believe, that school can be a magical place….how can all that be bad? I'm a little confused! The author of these books also stresses that Harry can't fix everything with magic. There are limits. There are times when magic is dangerous. And there are a lot of instances where intellect saves the day (Ron's chess game, Hermione's knowledge of practically everything) when magic can't. Why is that important? Because it's a metaphor. Power isn't the solution to everything. To kids power might mean being a bully, or the teacher's pet. It might mean being the best dressed, or the smartest kid in school. In any case, these books show the pros and cons of each of these categories, and they stress the importance of every type of person: the popular one (Harry), the smart one (Hermione), the loyal one (Ron) and many more. The books also stress that it's important to be flexible. It's important not to pre-judge people.

I see the Harry Potter books as a big metaphor for any kid's life. It can be tough. Sometimes people don't understand you, or assume things about you…but you can overcome adversity with perseverance and a little help from your friends.

I look at the books that I read in school when I was younger. In fifth grade I was in an advanced reading group (I spent most of my free time reading those awful fantasy novels by people like Piers Anthony and Robert Asprin, so I was a very good reader) and we read, "That Was Then, This is Now," by S.E. Hinton (who also wrote "The Outsiders.") It was a good book. I don't remember it terribly well at this point (some 15 years later) but I remember that it was very strong. I remember that the main character had to make a difficult decision on whether or not to turn his brother (a drug dealer) in to the police. I remember that doing so almost wrecked him. The book was very gritty and emotional. It made me think about the shades of gray that sometimes make up right and wrong. It was depressing. People died on the streets, did drugs, got hurt…but it was okay for me to read it. And you know what? I'm glad I did! It really made me think! It didn't scar me for life, or frighten me to death; it just made me think about life and direction and where I might be headed, and what the people less fortunate than myself were doing… But the violence and emotion in that book were so above and beyond anything you'll find in Harry Potter that I just can't comprehend why I was allowed to read S.E. Hinton, but some schools want to ban Harry Potter.

Maybe it's because Harry Potter is too much fun. Maybe he doesn't preach enough. Maybe he isn't pious enough. Maybe making kids want to read because it's fun is a bad idea. I really don't know. But one of the things that make Harry Potter so attractive is the fact that kids want to be important. And they like books where a protagonist their age is important, and able to control his own world, at least to some degree. So I have to ask, what is so wrong with allowing kids that very small amount of control over their lives that allows them to pick the books that they want to read?

Evanescence: Fallen
So. It is the weekend again. Yeah! I can sit at my computer and make useless graphics and create some webpages…what fun!

One of these days, if I find that I actually have things to write about, I may just have to make some emotion avatar things. Sadly, being a bit new to the blog thing, I don't know what to call them. They're little pictures that portray the mood of the moment. Then I'll post them at the top of each post (and there have been so many, don't ya know) and people will know if they want to bother with the post.

Topic of the day: music. Or rather, one band which is my newest obsession (well, that and fanfic…but that's for another day). I started hearing Evanescence on the radio a few months ago. Guess their first single, "Bring me to Life" is from Daredevil. I haven't seen it, so I didn't know. But it really seems to describe the relationship between Buffy and Spike in Season 6 (see, little did you know…I bring Buffy into everything. I am truly obsessed). I actually made two wallpapers using the lyrics…but I'm not going to link to them cuz, well, they kinda stink. Then, the weekend before last (seems like just yesterday…) I bought the album (Fallen) and listened to it, and decided that this band has watched way too much Buffy! Song titles like "My Immortal," lyrics like these:

" Now I will tell you what I've done for you
50 thousand tears I've cried
Screaming, deceiving and bleeding for you
And still, you won't hear me.
Don't want your hand, this time I'll save myself
Maybe I'll wake up for once
Not tormented daily defeated by you
Just when I thought I'd reached the bottom
I'm dying again."

Those are from "Going Under" and make me think of Spike, trying to convince Buffy that he really loves her. I was actually going to use quotes from the show to illustrate the parts of the song, like when Spike talks about "Spilling useless buckets of salt" over Buffy when she died…but then I decided that it would really label me as obsessed. Which I am. But I don't really want everyone to know the depths of my obsession. It might scare some people. Well, if they haven't seen my website, that is.

Anyhow, a big plug here for Evanescence. They're an amazing band out of Little Rock, Arkansas…who knew anything good came out of that little town, huh? The lead singer has a great voice, soprano, amazingly enough! My husband says they're a goth rock band. I choose not to catagorize. They're pretty unique, I think…tho I don't listen to a ton of new rock so I guess I don't really know. Anyhow, their sound varies: heavy ballads to some great rock. All in all, amazing lyrics and powerful music.

Out with a Bang
I have this issue with series finales. In case you're wondering why this is coming up, it's because "Buffy" is now ending...and Joss Whedon seems to be dead set on killing every character I ever loved...or at least changing them so much that they're unrecognizable.

I don't understand why writers/creators/directors seem to feel that they are obligated to destroy the world they've just spent all this time developing and making people love. Ya know? Us die-hard fans have spent 7 years watching Buffy and friends grow and change...be deliriously happy, and horribly sad. We've seen them die, go evil, feel inadequate, lose love, gain love...all these things that endear us to these characters and make us watch. So, why then do they then feel obligated to destroy what we've come to love? The show is ending, we know that...so they don't lose anything by letting our heros stay alive, hook up with someone and live a somewhat happy life. But, no, that's not what seems to happen. Too easy, I guess. Maybe these writers/creators are so obsessed with their shows, and so upset that it has to end, that they want the fans to feel the pain as much as they do. And if that's the case...I have to say...GIVE IT UP!! It's stupid. Give your characters a chance, for crying out loud! Obviously, after 7 years of averting apocalypse after apocalypse, Buffy Summers is not going to retire and go live in Alaska with Spike (where he can go out in the daytime...at least part of the year). It's not her style...or his. A little bit of happiness is all I ask...is that so difficult? Just a tiny bit. Preferably not complete destruction and death.

Examples of what NOT to do: Kill your main character after putting him through horrendous mental torture, a la "Forever Knight."

Put your main characters on the cusp of a happy moment, then turn them to dust, a la "Farscape."

All I ask is an ending with possiblities. A possibility of spin offs. A possibility of love. A possibility of change, of greater things...of POSITIVE things!! There's no need to kill everyone. There is nothing to gain there...just a lot of unhappy fans saying...why did I watch this show for 7 years if they were just going to kill everybody at the end? Why did I get involved in these relationships if nothing is ever going to come of them? Why are these writers so unimaginative that they can't give us just a little room to wonder, or hope?

So, here is my plea. It won't reach those at Buffy...I'm sure everyone who's going to die is already written that way. So, to the future generations of writers/creators/directors--please...if you're going to take a show away...at least leave the fans with hope. With somewhere to go, in their imaginations if nowhere else...