Buffy Episode 3.5: Homecoming

Welcome to our discussion of Buffy Season 3 Episode 5: Homecoming; Wherein a surprise date with Cordelia messes up Buffy's date with Faith. Our drinks this time are Slayerfest and The Spatula of Empowerment. 

Before we get too far, please make sure to take advantage of Plottr’s final days of it’s amazing sale before it’s gone! You can find more out about Plottr here. 

In this, our second try at recording this episode thanks to some technological epic failure, we discuss further out theories about the previous episode and just how gay it—and possibly Oz—are before we move on to bigger and better things. We talk at length about Snard’s theory about what is really going on between Xander and Willow, whether or not Angel knows he has a tattoo, more cargo for the ship of Buffy and Faith, and a whole lot more. 

As always, thank you for sticking through the rocky road of technical issues and life things this year, and please make sure to share us with your Buffy-loving friends and anyone else who might enjoy the show. Thank you for listening!

Buffy 3.3: Faith, Hope & Trick Part 1

Welcome to our 2-part podcast Buffy Season 3, Episode 3: Faith, Hope & Trick; wherein... OMG Faith is here!!! Plus, Trick, some floppy-haired dink, and the return of Angel: now with more naked! We have been anticipating the appearance of Faith since our show's inception and have many, many things to say. As always, we discover deeper themes and meanings than what is meant to be seen on the surface, and we work to uncover what is really going on. 

Among the character developments as well as comings and goings around town, we discuss all that is hidden, including what Buffy's dream of Angel and the ring means (it's a trick... get it?), deeper myths that are beginning to come together, and, well.. a ton. Through Faith, we also get to discuss production coding as a way to recognize gay/bi/queer characters as discussed at greater length in The Celluloid Closet, which explains much of how we see such heavy queer themes where many have detected none: and boy, do we detect a few. 

Please remember that this is a 2-part episode, so make sure to check back this week for part 2 on this same post (in edits now). 

And as always, thank you so much for listening, sharing us with your Buffy-loving friends, commenting, and liking us on Facebook. And thank you SO very much for your patience with our schedule since things have slowed down to terribly this year. We promise we will be back to a regular posting schedule as soon as possible.  

**Please forgive us for any audio issues we have had and are having for the next few issues. Some failing equipment caused some serious anomalies that had to be edited around. We have since fixed the problems with massive equipment upgrades, but we have a few episodes yet to get past before it will get WAY better. **

Buffy Episode 2.21: Becoming Part 1

In our show we discuss Buffy Season 2 Episode 21: Becoming Part 1; Wherein Angelus demonstrates once again that he is really smart, but also really fucking stupid; Kendra, Slayer of the Vampyres, breaks the first rule of slaying; and, offscreen in Boston, the next slayer is called.

This episode is the first half on one of the most impactful season ends in the history of television. There is an incredible scope of storytelling and foreshadowing going on, all while masterfully expanding our understanding of Angel as a character as well as seeing the origin story of our vampire cast, our knowledge of the Buffyverse, and our big feels that lead up to the heartbreak at the end of the season. We also see very interesting work at expanding our conversation about what happens when you become a vampire and how who you were before and how you are turned dictate much of what type of demon you will become. 

We talk about a lot and cover a ton of very interesting ideas. Among them, the possible origins of Acathla, our glimpse into Scoopy normality, the brilliant conflicts between the characters as both metaphor and people, and work at moving forward with queer metaphors. 

Thank you so much for listening! Please make sure to like us on Facebook, visit our website, comment wherever you see fit to keep the conversation going, and as always we are happy to hear from you if you email us any time at info@diogenesclubpodcast.com. 

We’ll see you next time for Becoming Part 2

And in case you wanted to get more information on queerness and production coding, allow us to present The Celluloid Closet: 

Buffy Episode 2.18: Killed By Death

In today's show we discuss Buffy Season 2 Episode 18: Killed by Death - Wherein tact is just not saying true stuff. We talk about why Buffy got sick and the possibilities of influence of the PTBs in early Buffy, Cordelia's continuing evolution as part of the Scoobies, get some hints of the amazing man Xander will become as well as some troubling indications of Willow's moral compass. 

This episode of Buffy helps to set the stage of the final episode of this season and chapter of Buffy's journey into becoming the person who can make the hardest decision anyone could ever make. We have the difficult task of moving her beyond just missing Angel and into some who can lose everything and still find a strength greater than the sum of her parts. We have more work yet to do next week in Go Fish.

As always, thank you so much for listening and for your patience while Snard finishes transitioning into her new job and new schedule. Please make sure to like us on Facebook, check out our website for new things and future developments. And as always, please email us any time at info@diogenesclubpodcast.com.

And because Der Kindestad reminds us of The ErlKing:

Buffy Episode 2.15: Phases

In today’s episode, Buffy is going through a few things and so is our new Scooby Oz. That’s right, it’s Buffy Season 2, Episode 15: Phases: Wherein Angelus, Larry the Closet Case, a werewolf hunter named Kane, and Oz all give us different versions of the “all men are beasts” theory later posited by Faith is Season 3. 

And really, the subtitle says just about all we can say. This episode works both to examine toxic masculinity as well as showing us the inner workings of Buffy dealing with the loss of Angel to Angelus in beautifully orchestrated metaphor through the Scoobies, as well as the reflection that a beast doesn’t have to be a monster, as Oz proves. We also get to see Cordy and Willow bond over their tipping of the gender norm tables and that scene never gets old (“Who do they think they are?” “A couple of guys.”)

As always, please keep commenting, liking, sharing, reviewing, and all the other wonderful things you do to help boost our signal and give us feedback. And you can always contact us directly on info@diogenseclubpodcast.com. 

Also, keep in mind that sometime this week or next, Michelle/Snard will have finished re-mastering the sound on our old episodes and will be refreshing the podcast feed, so if things go all wonky, that’s why.

Buffy Episode 2.12: Bad Eggs

**Please note that we have received some feedback about quiet audio, and we hear you (even if you couldn’t hear us!) The latest episodes have had a volume boost, and Snard is hard at work remastering all of our previous episodes for re-release as soon as possible. Let us know if we sound better!**

In today’s episode, we discuss Buffy season 2 Episode 12 Bad Eggs wherein we are inexplicably entertained by what is supposed to be a bad episode. Though this episode is primarily a bit of fluff and fun to carry us through the tempestuous emotions of the season’s coming turn of fate, we uncover that a lot more is going on than meets the eye initially, including some musical foreshadowing and cues, a little potential backstory of Angel’s darker days (and a fantastic cult film reference), as well as the fluctuating dynamics between the truth about Buffy’s life and her mother that will come to a breaking point by the end of the season. It’s a pretty fascinating time. 

We also discuss some changes to our review incentives we’re offering: ten iTunes reviews and Michelle/Snard will perform One Night in Bangkok, fifteen, and we will allow a vote on what will be done, and at twenty reviews, we will give our analysis and attentive treatment to the masterpiece of crowdfunding and cinema: Kung Fury. 

We really want to do these extra things, so please, please help us by posting an honest review. Also, like us on Facebook for updates and conversation, and always feel free to comment on our website (www.diogenesclubpodcast.com) or email us at info@diogenesclubpodcast.com.

Buffy Episode 2.11: Ted

Today we celebrate Valentine’s Day Hellmouth-style with our discussion of Buffy Season 2 Episode 11 Ted: Wherein Buffy performs several acts that she will deny for the rest of the series. We investigate the possibly Greek myth themes of Ted and the other robots found on the Hellmouth (hint: it’s Pygmalion) and also it’s heavy foreshadowing of Faith’s character arc and vulnerabilities along with some incredibly strong similarities between Ted and the Mayor. We also track Joyce’s downward momentum as Buffy’s mom and introduce the Faith and Buffy Bell. 

One of the very interesting aspects of this episode is how much it exposes the vulnerabilities and character arc of Faith later on and sets the stage for a lack of understanding that leads to her to working with the Mayor. Once again, we see that there’s no such thing as a standalone episode of Buffy.  

We’re still trying to get 10 reviews on iTunes to help boost our signal, and Michelle (Snard) is eagerly working on incentives and rewards for as soon as our milestones of 10, 15, and 20 reviews are reached. 

Thank you so much for listening! 

For reference, Manslow’s Hierarchy of Needs as discussed in our episode.

Buffy Episodes 2.9 & 2.10: What's My Line Parts 1 & 2

Welcome to our discussion of Buffy Season 2 Episodes 9 and 10, What’s My Line Part 1: Wherein we meet Kendra, Slayer of the Vampyres, and What’s My Line Part 2: Wherein Buffy’s only child syndrome makes an appearance for what will not be the last time. 

We make some observation about linguistic cues into the relationships between Spike, Angel, and Drucilla and some reasons Spike has to be jealous, begin our tracking of how the nature of the slayer and her lifecycle work (and which of the two slayers are actually the real one). We get to have a window via Kendra into the typical life of a Vampyre slayer and just how different Buffy is from the rest. We also discuss the evolution of Bangel and the blossoming of their shadow-relationship of Xander and Cordelia, all of which sets us up for the heartache we know is coming. We would also be remiss if we didn’t mention the crazy chemijstry between Angel and Dru and how their scene reveals the depth of the torment that Angelus visited on his object of lust, which might be relevant. 

Don’t forget our review incentives! When we get to 10 iTunes reviews, we are offering a big reward on our website www.diogenesclubpodcast.com wherein Snard will display her lack of shame by singing One Night in Bangkok, and the more reviews we get, the more extras will be created just for you — you might even get to tell us what you’d like to see next.

Buffy Episode 2.4: Inca Mummy Girl

In today's episode, we discuss Buffy Season 2 Episode 4 Inca Mummy Girl: Wherein Xander Continues His streak. We discuss the continuing overall themes and movements, some interesting parallels between the attraction between Buffy and Angel and Xander and Not-Ampata (aka the Life-Sucking, Twinkie-Mauling, Puzzle-Smashing asshole), and many other tiny hints of other things yet to come as well as the inner workings of the Scoobies and their reflection of Buffy's difficulties adjusting to her new life and relationship to being The Slayer post-mortem.

Please make sure to like us on Facebook, share us with your Buffy-loving friends, and review us on your listening platform of choice to help boost our signal. And as always, we are happy to hear from you in the comments or at info@diogenesclubpodcast.com. 

Thank you for listening! 

Buffy Episode 1.12 Prophecy Girl

The holidays are already upon us, and so is the end of the first season of Buffy! In today's episode, we discuss the might, myth, and legendary themes in Buffy Season 1 Episode 12 Prophecy Girl: Wherein Buffy, Slayer of the Vampires, Breaks the First Rule of Slaying. 

This one is a heavy hitter, so we run a bit long. We dive right in with some further observations about the use of the color red, and then later get into a lengthy discussion about the nature of the slayer and vampire in Buffy lore. We also get to a seasonally appropriate subject and how it parallels Buffy's choices in this episode. 

Please make sure to comment, email us at info@diogenesclubpodcast.com, and share us with anyone who will enjoy what we do. Above all, make sure to be extraordinarily good to yourselves and those you care about this holiday season. 

And for your viewing a film education pleasure, watch at least this excellent episode of Every Frame a Painting. 

Buffy Episode 1.8: I Robot You Jane (Darkness Arc 3 of 3)

Here we conclude our 3-episode arc investigating Buffy and the Scoobie's tendency to dark attraction and investigate some of the shadow aspects of their true natures. We now discuss, Buffy Season 1 Episode 8 I Robot You Jane: In Which We are Warned of the Dangers of the Internets. We discuss the blooming romance between Giles (and his shirt collar) and Ms. Calendar, as well as follow the ultra-doomed and very ill-advised romance between Malcom (Mollock) as we broaden our understanding of the Buffyverse.

Please like and share, comment, email, and review to help us boost our signal and find more of those who like what we do. We are very, very appreciative of your support. Make sure to like us on Facebook, visit our website www.diogenesclubpodcast, and email us at info@diogenesclubpodcast.com.

Also, if you are in the market for some fun, non-toxic, and consumable holiday gifts, please visit our friend's Jamberry page, where you can find low-fuss and unique nail art that's easy, fun, and long-lasting. We both love Jamberry and we think you and the nail polish lover in your life will too!  

Buffy Episode 1.5: Never Kill a Boy on the First Date

Today we discuss Buffy Season 1 Episode 5 Never Kill a Boy on a First Date: Wherein the slayer tries to have a normal date out with a normal boy and even he has a dark side. We explore how the Scoobies act as metaphor for Buffy's psyche, find yet another hint that Giles isn's all tweed and book dust, begin our arc of The Annointed, and watch some epic posturing from Angel in the Bronze.

If you enjoy our podcast, please help us spread the word by sharing us with the Buffy fans in your life, and make sure to subscribe on your platform of choice, visit us on Facebook and keep the conversation going about anything you wish.

Make sure to join us for next week's tripple feature!

And as promised: Buffy vs. Edward https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZwM3GvaTRM

Buffy Episode 1.4: Teacher's Pet

In today's episode we discuss Season 1 Episode 4 Teachers Pet: Wherein attempted statutory rape by a large preying mantis goes awry - go figure. We observe how costuming decisions indicate the attraction between Angel and Buffy, expand our understanding of the dangers in the Buffyverse, see the first example of Buffy's kinky hair indication of Something Being Off, and begin our discussion of how all the aspects of Buffy share an attraction to the demonic and strange. 

As a fledgling podcast, we depend on out gentle listeners to review us, rate us, and share among your friends. You can always find us on Facebook as well as our website (www.diogenesclubpodcast.com), and you can email us at info@diogenesclubpodcast.com any time. 

Buffy Episodes One and Two: Welcome to the Hellmouth & The Harvest

Welcome to the Hellmouth and The Harvest: Wherein we meet Buffy, Slayer of the Vampires

In this, our first official episode, we begin our discussion of how the cast of Buffy not only tells us the story of Buffy and her friends, but also the metaphorical rolls of the Scoobies as Buffy's internal workings and separate parts. (Giles = mind, Willow = spirit, and Xander = heart). We also discuss visual cues, costume as storytelling, and other things. 

There are many giggles, swears, and spoilers so please be advised. Make sure to subscribe on your media player of choice, share with your friends, and discuss at length anything you wish on our website (www.diogenesclubpodcast.com), Facebook, email and any other ways you wish to communicate. 

Also, as mentioned in the podcast: 

Giles as Dr. Frankenfurter.