Customer Reviews

Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Spike - Love Is Hell

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Okay, for the sake of argument, let us say that Spike, played by James Marsters, was your favorite character on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and when he came back from the dead, so to speak, for the final season of "Angel" you were overjoyed. However, for some reason you really, really like Spike but not enough to have all of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" on DVD. The "Spike: Love is Hell" DVD seeks to meet your needs by providing four choice Spike episodes of "BtVS." Just be aware that these four episodes focus on Spike's tortured relationship with Drusilla (Juliet Landau), and not the Spike and Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar) roller coaster, so you are not going to find "Something Blue" or "Intervention Here":

Episode 3 of Season 2, "School Hard" (Story by Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt, Teleplay by Greenwalt, September 29, 1997), begins the fun with the arrival of Spike and Drusilla in Sunnydale in time for the Festival of St. Vigeous, when vampires are at the height of their powers. But Buffy is facing something even worse: Parent-Teacher Night at the high school. Spike decides not to wait for the big day and goes after Buffy on school ground (4.5 Stakes).

Episode 7 of Season 2, "Lie to Me" (Written by Joss Whedon, November 3, 1997), finds Buffy surprised when old friend Billy Fordham shows up at Sunnydale High and even more surprised when he says he knows she is the Slayer. But she is totally shocked when she learns Ford is part of a club that worships vampires and wants to become one of the undead. Ford's plan is to give Spike the Slayer and then Spike turns Ford into a vampire (3.5 Stakes).

Episode 8 of Season 3, "Lover's Walk" (Written by Dan Vebber, November 24, 1998), has a drunken and besotted Spike back in Sunnydale after being dumped by Drusilla. When Spike discovers Willow at the magic shop, he kidnaps her and Xander tell the wicca-wannabe that she has to perform a spell to make Dru come back to him or else. Buffy captures Spike, but cannot dust him because he has Willow and Xander stashed someplace. The irony is that by the end of this one Spike is the only one feeling good about his relationship with the person he loves, but then he is the only one who is willing to admit that he is "love's bitch," when it is clear everyone is in this one (4.5 Stakes).

Episode 7 of Season 5, "Fool for Love" (Written by Douglas Petrie, November 14, 2000), provides flashbacks to when Spike killed two vampire slayers. After almost getting beaten by a regular vampire, Buffy wants to know. However, we also get to find out what William the Bloody was like when he was still human and Drusilla turned him to a vampire. As we follow Spike through time he kills one slayer in China during the Boxer Rebellion, where he and Dru have gone with Darla and Angel for some fun, and then takes down another in a New York City subway in the 1970s (4 Stakes). The flashbacks begun here continue in the "Darla" episode of "Angel," although the emphasis is not on Spike like they are here. But it is just a nice little reminder that you should have all of these episodes.

In terms of quibbling with the selection, "Lie to Me" is really the only one I would want to replace of this quartet, even though it is written and directed by Whedon. You have to have "School Hard," "Lover's Walk" is where Spike becomes a fully blown comedian, and "Fool for Love" goes all the way back to the creation of Spike. But "Lie to Me" is fairly pedestrian. Then again, you can only do four episodes here and "What's My Line? Part 2" where Drusilla regains her strength and "Becoming, Part 2" where Spike takes Dru and leaves town, are not going to show up without their first halves. Spike is in a wheelchair for both "Surprise" and "Innocence," and you cannot do anything from Seasons 3 and 4 of "BtVS" when he has the chip in his head, and Dru takes a back seat in "Halloween," so it sort of ends up being "Lie to Me" by default (but quibbling is such fun!).

The featurette on Spike is decent, but it is certainly not a reason for die hard fans to add this to their collection. Will there be follow-up DVDs of Spike with the bloody chip in his head and then Spike in love with the Slayer? Stay tuned. Or, just go out and get all of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" on DVD.

If you have all the episodes on DVD, don't bother. Only 15 minutes of extras, including clips.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer is my favorite show and I like James Marsters (Spike). Spike was the reason I started watching this show but I think it's very silly to buy this DVD which only has a few random Spike episodes and since the ten dollars back coupon is now expired the excuse that you wind up getting the DVD for free just doesn't hold up! If you don't own this show on DVD yet just buy the individual seasons or the new 40 disk complete series DVD package!

1/5 for idea. 5/5 for the fact that Spike was ever in BTVS. Okay...um first up, Spike is an incredible character, brilliantly conceived and developed over the seven Buffy seasons, which is arguably one of the greatest shows on television. We like Spike, we love Spike, bloody great. Putting four episodes on one disc of "spike themed" stuff, good idea, but wait...oh yes, what about getting the actual seven seasons? (And if you can't find these used in Game Stop or on the net, then you must not possess eyes. Tee hee!) There's no way better than tracing the development of a character than actually WATCHING more than four episodes of the show. This set is kind of for the lazy person who doesn't feel like going back to the box set. *groan*...use of fingers...or needs to blow more money. Hey, I love Buffy to bits, but I mean, dvds, videos, shirts, comics, novels, bumper stickers, a SPIRITUAL GUIDE TO BUFFY's LIFE, *pause*...Come on...this dvd is a sad cry for more money. Well, *shrug* perhaps the deserve it... and it's your cash

I've never really understood the point of releasing little sets like this when everything in them is duplicated in a season set. Sure, I'd buy a new set of Buffy DVDs...if they were actually, you know, new. I already have all seven seasons of Buffy and all five of Angel, so what would this give me that I don't already have? A $30 completion? Please.

I have to admit two things right off.

1. I am a DIE HARD Buffy fan. I have all 7 seasons and watch them regularly.

2. I LOVE Spike. He is the reason I stuck with Angel when it became the "Let's See If We Can Be Wolfram & Hart" show. There's more to say about it, but not here.

That said: Why is Buffy featured on the cover? It appears that it's about the relationship between the two of them, but NOT!

If you're just after some good Spike time, this set may be for you, but I was frankly disappointed because of the lack of REALLY great Spike episodes, Buffy relationship time, and ONLY 4 EPISODES? What's the deal with that?

I would like to have seen:
Pangs
Something Blue
Intervention
Becoming

The list will grow too long, so I'll just stop and say...

MORE!!!!

I bought this DVD thinking it was some kind of special features of the show Buffy with many appearances of Spike (James Marsters) but what a disappointment. All there is on this DVD is 4 episodes of Buffy which included Spike in them. If you already have all 7 seasons of Buffy, you've seen those 4 episodes. There is also a little bit of special features with Spike, but again, these were included in one of the seasons of Buffy. Granted the DVD is not expensive, but still a waste of money when you have all of Buffy's seasons. I gave it a 2 stars because even though I was disappointed of the content of this DVD, I still think Buffy is a great television serie!

for those fans of spike from buffy.this a four episode disc with spike and other favorite characters in it.1)School hard is about when Buffy and her mother get trapped inside the school where Spike launches an attack against Buffy the slayer,to kill her.2)Lie to me is about a cult of vampire wannabes that want Spike to turn them into the undead and a long lost friend of Buffy who offers her to spike in return 3)Lovers walk;Spike returns to Sunnydale after Dru dumped him,hoping to force Willow and Xander into creating a love spell to get Dru back.4)After an ordinary vampire bests her in a fight,Buffy turns to Spike the vampire for advice on how he defeated previous slayers in the past. He's a fool for love.Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Spike - Love Is Hell

I have all of the Buffy seasons so I had to get this DVD also

If you are as obsessed with James Marsters as I am, then this dvd is for you. With four eps., that focus on Spike, it's a must for any Buffy fan.

My only real complaint is that I wish it was longer. Other than that, enjoy!