A brief glimpse into the mind of madness...

As advertised, the "A" story of Storyteller was Andrew chronicling the Scoobies. At least, that's how it was advertised. To me, one of the defining characteristics of an "A" story, is the one that we spend the most time in. Another is the level of importance, in relation to the rest of the story.

In my previous discussion of Storyteller, I spoke of Andrew's chronicling as the "A" story, without including the consequences of it. To that end, I was citing the examples given in the advertisments and what I believe the audience was led to believe the story would have been. The story, that it appeared we would have been presented with, was "Andrew follows the Scoobies with a videocamera, documenting their exploits." We didn't spend nearly as much time doing that as we did dealing with the characters. Pound for pound, we had him chronicle the opening scene (which can, but does not always feed into the larger picture of the rest of an episode), the meeting in the kitchen, and a few interviews with Xander, Anya and Spike. Lastly, he gave us a recap of what has been going on and he chronicled the window that Xander fixed :)

What else happened? A lot. The problems at the High School as provoked by the Seal. Xander and Anya's quasi-reconciliation (not a true reconciliation, but I'm trying to keep my words to a minimum on this one,) and explorations into the truth behind Andrew and what he did. That last bit, I separate firmly from his chronicling because they are two separate events. They are unrelated as cause and effect.

I don't believe that his filming had any personal consequences to Andrew. The final scene was not about how his filming had impacted him, but on how Buffy impacted him and forced him to come to his own conclusions about whether or not he should be taping.

The greatest effect that I gleaned regarding Andrew's taping was that his reasoning was sound and that it may have been a deciding factor in Buffy's mind of Andrew's true worth. Past that, I did not see any personal consequences of his taping.

I suppose that where we disagree, Brian, is that I do not include Andrew's personal journey as part of the story of his chronicles. He did not grow as a result of them. He grew as a result of outside forces (i.e. Buffy) which were set in motion by something outside the sphere of his taping. It was a reconstruction of the events that led to Warren's death that propelled the latter half of the story, more than anything else. Was that reconstruction a result of Andrew's videotaping project? Perhaps. But I feel that it was too indirectly connected for it to be inclusive as part of that journey.

And about Buffy's attack on Andrew. I feel it was well deserved. And for a very simple reason. I know people who have encyclopedic knowledge of pop culture. For the most part, they are rational people who can still talk me under the table about any subject you please. They can have instant recall of minute details which went unnoticed by yours truly. They crossreference moments in a dozen different scenarios in the blink of an eye and can describe in vivid detail any moment in pop culture history.

Does that personality describe Andrew? For the most part, yes. That is why I like him. Now, I am a Star Trek fan. (To qualify, I am not a big fan of any series or production of anything after the original series -- don't get me wrong, they all have their good qualities, but can't hold a candle to the original where it counts the most.) Despite that one fact, and the fact that I have a pretty good knowledge of that show and an almost ravenous fandom for it, I am CREEPED OUT by the film Trekkies. Why? Because some of the people (and not all of them) can give Star Trek fans a bad name by portraying them as socially stunted people who can't speak properly. There's a scene in that film, where an entire family is being interviewed, and they're all dressed in their Star Trek uniforms. You should see the wife when her husband is talking. She almost looks embarassed by what he's saying. AND SHE'S HIS WIFE!!!!!!

My point is not to bring Star Trek to Jossolalia. The point is the same one that William Shatner jokingly made on Saturday Night Live. "It's just a TV show." Before, dear readers, you get offended by that line, it is not Buffy to which I refer. And it is not to Buffy fans to which I refer. It is to Andrew. Like my friends, Andrew has that encyclopedia knowledge. I, however, trust that if my friends and I ever got into a life-threatening situation, they would know when to pour on the pop-culture references, and when to take the situation seriously. Throughout their times, shows like FARSCAPE and BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER have had their pop-culture references. Even in the heat of battle. However, the characters generally won't let them get in the way of their higher responsibility to survive.

It's OK for Andrew to be a coward. They exist in real life. I, myself, may very well be one (having not been in too many serious, life-threatening situations, I can't be too sure.) However, if he wants to contribute to the group (which he has been quite vocal about lately) he is going to have to change who he is to accomodate the stop-gap that should be in place to prevent pop-culture spillage at the wrong time. Do I put myself in Andrew's place? No. I put myself in Xander's place. For he is the ultimate example. Andrew has brought out Xander's geekiness, which we've always known existed. The difference, which Andrew has provided the contrast for, is that Xander knows when to keep it down, and when to expose his true inner-geek.

Besides, if that explanation doesn't work for you, chalk it up to the continual insistance by the characters that the time for fun is over......

Although, wouldn't it be REALLY cool if the reason why they're stressing how important everything is, is because the way to stop the First is to kill it (or weaken it) with laughter?

:)

  posted by J @ 11:21