Buffy Episode 3.2: Dead Man's Party

Welcome to our discussion of Buffy Season 3 Episode 2: Dead Man's Party; wherein Buffy's family and friends are incomparable assholes except for Giles who snaps off one of the funniest lines we have ever heard. We have had schnapps to wash down the bitter comments, and also work to try and understand why Buffy's friends are terrible. We postulate many ideas, among them that this episode is from Joyce's point of view, and have some very interesting ideas about the origin of Pat and where she fits into the greater Buffyverse (seriously, Snard found evidence). We also discuss the function of the mask as a reflection of Joyce's consciousness and her need to keep up appearances and activates in her absence of the ability to maintain control - a theme that feeds well into the mythological metaphors of this season. 

We have to do a lot of heavy metaphor and character gymnastics in this episode to arc Buffy from her freedom and slayer awakening back into the confines of Sunnydale and the role she is supposed to play as the hero who never shows emotion - setting her up in a way that will prevent her from opening up to Faith when she gets here, and thus creates tension in the story. Our metaphors broadcast all sorts of internal workings and conflicts, and the characters indicate many trends and issues that foreshadows upcoming actions. Love it or hate it, this is a pivotal and telling episode. Plus, Gile's car rant makes it all worth it.  

As always, thank you fro much for listening and all you do for the show. Make sure to like us on Facebook, go to our website to comment and see what else we're up to, and contact us at info@diogenesclubpodcast.com. Until next time, when we get to the the thing Jen has been waiting for since we began.... FAITH!! 

And because you'll need it after this episode, Richard Simmons being fabulous:

Buffy Episode 2.22: Becoming Part 2

Today's episode is all about Buffy Season 2 Episode 22: Becoming; Wherein Buffy loses everything but herself and we need a f***ing truckload of Kleenex. We talk at great length about this masterpiece because So much happens in this episode, and all of it is crazy important; we discuss some (we think) theories about Whistler and his origins and why maybe we’re supposed to not like him, discuss how the story progresses through both metaphor and character in masterful strokes that show us what is happening to Buffy, defend and also discuss Xander’s worst lie ever and why he says what he does.

This episode transcends all that comes before it in many ways; marking an end of the innocence and previous reality for Buffy and all of her Scoobies, both as metaphor and as characters. One major hallmark of this is the strong and blatant correlation to Buffy showing her mom that she is the Slayer as a coming out, and coding Slayers as bi-sexaul, a trend that if you are watching for it (and believe us, as we're watching) is thick and fascinating as a motivator for much of the rest of the show. This is the event horizon that catapults Buffy into a new world of storytelling and metaphor from here on out. 

As always, thank you so much for listening! Please comment, like, share, and participate in any way you see fit to help us boost our signal. Make sure to like us of Facebook and feel free to email us at info@diogenesclubpodcast.com. 

After some technological near-disasters where the audio of this episode was saved only by the talents of Michelle's techno-pagan boyfriend Alex, we are finally back on track and ready to go! You can ignore our discussion of taking a week off and get your engines running for what comes next. There will be custom cocktails, more explicit discussion of myth in Buffy, and maybe even some Mad Libs. 

Stay tuned!!! 

Buffy Episode 2.17: Passion

Note: due to Snard's new job, we are now updating the podcast on Wednesdays for the foreseeable future. 

In today's episode we discuss the incomparable masterpiece of Buffy Season 2 Episode 17, Passion: Wherein... oh, mercy. 

We drink scotch and delay often, discuss the Shakespearean quality of this episode. We go into depth into the storytelling language of the film medium, lots and lots of costume analysis, and, well... this is one of our favorite episodes. 

We also speculate about the nature of Angelus' crime against the gypsies (hint: he might have turned her instead of killing her. And maybe had her kill her family...)

This episode begins asking the big question of the season: who are you when you have nothing left? And we begin to see what Buffy's answer might be. Plus, Snard/Michelle reveals who Giles' Greek myth counterpart is. Hint: his symbol is a flaming torch and he has a temper. 

And as always, thank you so much for listening, supporting, commenting, and enjoying. Please make sure to visit our website and like us on Facebook for maximum enjoyment. 

Buffy Episode 2.8: The Dark Age (Ripper Arc 3 of 3)

Here we conclude our third and final episode of our Ripper Arc episodes with Buffy Season 2 Episode 8 The Dark Age: Wherein there is more Ripper (and more Ethan. Yay!). In this episode, Giles’ Ripper past comes back to haunt him in the most literal and worst way possible. We get to see Giles at his worst and from that as a consequence, we get to see the Scoobies and their metaphorical roles have to handle a difficult situation without Buffy’s mind. We also get to see Angel do something pretty helpful and bad ass. 

We learn though this episode (as well as the others) not only that Giles has a dark past, but also that he has a dark alter-ego just beneath the surface at all times. We are also rewarded with some heavy foreshadowing and interesting character movements that set us up for the next heartbreaking and amazing chapter of Buffy.

Michelle (Snard) also introduces her incentive to help us get more reviews to help us boost our ratings. It involves music. And singing. Review us on iTunes, and good and things will happen. 

One more time, please help us boost our signal, dear Gentle Listeners, in whatever ways you can. We are always, always happy to hear from you on the interwebs, facebook, or you can reach us at info@diogenesclubpodcast.com.

As discussed earlier, make sure to check out the fabulous Jonathan Coulton song RE:Your Brains and the irresistibly funny Eddie Izzard. 

Be seeing you….

As discussed earlier, make sure to check out the fabulous Jonathan Coulton song RE:Your Brains

 and the irresistibly funny Eddie Izzard. 

Buffy Episode 2.7: Lie to Me (Ripper Arc 2 of 3)

In this, our second episode of the Ripper Arc, we discuss Buffy Season 2 Episode 7 Lie to Me: Wherein Giles weaves a breathtaking, heartbreaking lie. And everyone lies to everyone else. 

This episode is rife with symbolism and metaphor from beginning to end, taking us much deeper into the lies told by everyone — Giles, in particular. We also continue the returning of Angel’s past, and have many of his old issues come to the foreground as he struggles internal with past deeds - much as Giles is in our three episodes. We also have some hard truths coming Buffy’s way, and one of the saddest monologues in the whole of Buffy. 

We are so grateful to you, our Gentle Listeners. Please keep liking, sharing, and reviewing us anywhere you see fit and as always, we would love to hear from you — you can always reach us by commenting anywhere online or email us at info@diogenesclubpodcast.com.

And because we wax poetic about this episode's discussion by Passion of the Nerd:

Buffy Episode 2.6: Halloween (Ripper Arc 1 of 3)

Today in our first episode of our Ripper Arc, we discuss the much-beloved Buffy Season 2 Episode 6 Halloween: Wherein Buffy damsels herself and Angel is not impressed, and we meet Ripper and the chaotically cunning Ethan Rayne.

We are finally here - the Ripper episodes! So make yourself a creamy or crunchy peanut butter sandwich (trust us, you’ll want one) and settle in for our 3-episode arc investigating Gile’s dark and difficult past coming back to haunt him and launching us into the consequences of unresolved past actions, and preparing us for some further secrets coming to light. We discuss many things including the tension Buffy feels with Angel’s past, some stellar acting from Nicholas Brendon, and also excellent work done by the prop and set dressing departments. Also, Latin. And Greek gods. 

We are so grateful to you, our Gentle Listeners. Please keep liking, sharing, and reviewing us anywhere you see fit and as always, we would love to hear from you — you can always reach us by commenting anywhere online or email us at info@diogenesclubpodcast.com. 

We’ll be seeing you in our next episode of the Ripper Arc, Lie to Me, coming up next.

And just in case you want to see Anthony Steward Head flirting his ass off, we'll leave this here. 

Buffy Episode 2.2: Some Assembly Required

In today's episode, we discuss the shockingly layered and important episode of Buffy Season 2 Episode 2: Some Assembly Required, Wherein We Learn the Giles is Hot For Teacher and Sometimes it’s Really Tough to Get A Head. We know that this episode isn't on everyone's factories list, but we promise you do not want to miss our findings. 

We discuss the foreshadowing and development of several important romantic attachments, explore the allegorical implications of Daryl's existence and the possible things that might have gone wrong in bringing Buffy back from the dead, and also reveal some discoveries we made about mythological links into the Buffy cannon. 

As always we would love to hear from you! Please comment, like, share, and review us to help boost our signal. You can always reach us at info@diogenesclubpodcast.com, www.diogenesclubpodcast.com, and on Facebook and Podbean. We heart our Gentle Listeners and would love to hear from you! 

And as promised: a link to some Sunnydale-esque science stuff happening now - the first human head transplant (ewww).