Bella, Harry, and Buffy

So ends another great weekend. This time, Pamela was out of town again at a scrapbooking retreat, and it was 3 solid days with the kiddos. We had a wonderful time together. We ate well, we played well, we slept well. We had our block party last night, which was interrupted by two storms and a tornado warning, plus the fire truck was a no-show, but we all had a great time anyway... and the kids were in the moonwalk for a good percentage of the day, and again this morning - they usually come pick it up around 11 the day after, so Sunday AM is a traditional jump fest. And just like last year, the kids got their jumping done and DONE, so that by the time the jumper had to go, everyone was good and ready to see it go, even the kids.

Isaac and I also tossed a football, kicked a soccer ball, and hit some wiffleballs off of a t-ball stand that Grampette gave us. I was doing my best to encourage his sportiness. We also had an epic 45 minute wrassling match which left his energized and me completely exhausted.

Bella and I are reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone: I'm reading, she's listening, and we're going through it slowly, recapping frequently to make sure she's getting all of the nuances. She's to the point now where she's starting to come up with her own "guesses" about what might have been in the package Hagrid took from Gringott's. Her current theory: Since Hagrid was kicked out of Hogwarts and doesn't have his own wand anymore, he actually got a Nimbus 2000 WAND and is hoping to train to become a wizard again, and Dumbledore is helping him in secret, which is why it's a secret.

It is fun to go through it slowly - I'm picking up so many details I must have blown past before: Rowling really did lay out so much of this story right in the first few chapters - things she mentions in passing right in the beginning are major plot points later on. Also, I like slowing down at some of the magic moments: At Christmas, one of the wizards decorated a tree by waving his wand and gold bubbles came out and turned into balls on the tree. Bella marveled at that, waving her hand in the air as if conjuring the bubbles herself.

Bella did tell me that there is "some scary stuff" in there, but it's not worrying her or keeping her awake. She wanted me to know that. And also, can I please read just ONE more chapter?

Speaking of chapters: You know I'm watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I just finished Season 5 last night, and I'm quite impressed. 100 episodes, and you really get to know these characters. The stories just keep getting better. And I have to say that there has never been a show that I had so severely misjudged as this one. I really thought it was brainless fluff back when it was on, no matter what Entertainment Weekly was telling me. But dang it, Joss Whedon knew what the heck he was doing. Of course there are off episodes (and some seasons have held together better than others), but as a whole, this story is truly incredible.

There are standalone episodes that I can't get out of my mind - one is "Hush" where sinister visitors to the town steal everyone's voices - 2/3 of the episode is completely without dialogue - just sound effects and music. Then there's "The Body" where the sudden death of a key character is reacted to - and it's not played for shock or learning, just a study of all of the ways the death hits us - how time dilates, how tiny details get focused on... There's "The Zeppo" - in which Xander (a character without any powers at all) has a mini-adventure around the periphery of what may have been the greatest crisis ever to hit the series - a hilarious "outside looking in" episode. Plus just fun stuff like Doppelgangerland where an evil twin is on the loose....

But better has been the continual evolution of the characters - By season 5 nobody is even remotely who they were when the show started, but they all got there in a logical progression.

So here's my take:
Season 1: It's short, it's mostly "thing of the week", and low production values, but it has heart. Buffy fights The Master, who plans apocalypse.
Season 2: Character development kicks into overdrive - you really start caring for everyone... plus a really good mid-season twist to shock you out of your seats.
Season 3: Often referred to as the best of the series - A season long arc about The Mayor and another Slayer, leading to a great climax about the end of high school. Everyone leaves the season totally changed.
Season 4: A tough transitional season - Trying to cover College, plus the Military, it was sort of muddled, but we did get to see Willow start on her epic Arc.
Season 5: Much maligned in fan-dom because it basically added a completely random element into the mix - Buffy starts the season with a little sister nobody had EVER mentioned before, and it's all treated as normal. And yet, it was a 22 episode story that was completely linear with everyone deepening their journeys.

One thing I absolutely loved about Season 5: Everybody's been watching Buffy this whole time, tracking her growth. And yet all through the seasons, Willow has been growing in strength, and by the end of Season 5, it's clear that not only is she stronger than anyone had any idea, she's also got a lot stronger opinions about what should be going on than anyone suspected. This sets up the season 6 story with her as the focus. And it's so cool because Joss and company had been putting these pieces into place for 3 years - little things she's done in the periphery of every story.

I'm probably writing this for nobody but myself, because hey, it's a show that went off the air 8 years ago and most everybody I know treated it the way I did. But if there's someone out there looking for something fun to Netflix, I gotta say it's an absolute blast.

And now I'm going to watch the start of Season 6 before heading to bed. Back to Cleveland tomorrow!