Buffy Between the Lines

A Review of Episode 3 – Never Go Up Against a Sorcerer When Death is On the Line…

Episode 3 throws another character driven show our way; this time around we (quite literally) delve into the mind of Watcher extraordinaire, Rupert Giles. Oh dear. After facing down a fire-breathing dragon and other painful reminders of his slayer’s untimely death, Giles hides away in the Magic Box with nothing more than a bottle of Scotch for company. That is, until the wonderfully devious Ethan Rayne shows up to lock his old friend up in his mind, where his pain and guilt keep him prisoner. The Scoobies are stuck waiting, searching for a way to help Giles, as he is forced to battle his own thoughts.

The episode had some truly amazing moments. Some, like Xander’s offer to get donuts and talk about old times, were subtle and incredibly sweet. Others, like Buffy blaming Giles for her death were powerful and heart-breaking to listen to. With a great mix of humor and drama, episode three proves that this show just keeps getting better and better.

While the previous episodes had a large focus on fighting off the black hats, “Never Go Up Against A Sorcerer When Death Is On The Line” centered largely on the character’s internal struggles. While slightly less action-packed, it’s certainly not any less important. And I loved that writer Gwendolyn Jensen-Woodard was able to bring out just how much Buffy meant to Giles without venturing into the land of cliché. Character development was a huge part of the original series, and it’s nice to see that it’s importance hasn’t been lost on this show.

The episode also gave us a few great extras. Like the birth of everyone’s favorite troika, watcher diaries through the ages, and a sweet ending scene between Faith and Angel.

Once again I feel the need to praise the writers, actors, producers, editors, and everyone who has put together this amazing project.

Quote of the Episode Award goes to:

Dawn: I think I saw “Mystery Date” game in the lounge.
Anya: Oh! Is there money to win in “Mystery Date?”
Dawn: Nope. Otherwise it’d be called “Hooker Date.”

Boxxet, one of those mega-everything sites, sent us an email to let us know that Buffy Between the Lines, which is a featured blog on Boxxet, has the rank of #3 in blogs about Buffy. This is behind the AMAZING Whedonesque and TV Squad.

We’re obviously excited about this. You guys keep Buffy Between the Lines the amazing phenomenon it’s become!

Hi guys! Between Season 1 and Season 2 of Buffy Between the Lines we have a couple months off, but we didn’t want our fans to be wanting so we’ve devised the first Buffy Between the Lines fanfic contest! All accepted submissions will be recorded and featured on the Buffy Between the Lines podcast and the winner will receive a SIGNED copy of “Infected” by Scott Sigler, as well as a limited edition SugarShock poster and some other goodies we have tucked away in the Between the Lines Studios vault.

If you’re interested in participating here’s the rules:

1. Fanfic must be based on Buffy Between the Lines Season 1 and remain true to the TV and audio drama (this rules out non-canonical pairings and AU, we’ll save that for the April Fool’s episodes)
2. Fanfic must not be posted elsewhere until after the contest.
3. Fanfic must be between 1,500 – 3,000 words and must have a clear story (beginning, middle/climax, end)
4. Entries must be received by May 10th, 2008. Winner will be announced at the start of Season 2 (in August).
5. Please email your entry to buffybetweenthelines[at]gmail.com with “Fanfic Contest Submission” as the subject line. Entries can be within the email or attached text/Word files. Please no .docx files.

Winner will be judged on originality, writing skills, capturing the voices of the characters and general “awesomeness”. Please make sure your entry has been proofed before submitting. If you need a beta reader check out: http://community.livejournal.com/beta_search

Exploring the Untold Stories of the Buffyverse
By Sabrina Boyer

Ever wondered what happened between seasons five and six of Buffy the Vampire Slayer when Buffy was dead and Willow became all veiny and scary? So did Tabitha Smith and Kim Butler, creators of Buffy Between the Lines, an audio podcast by and for fans of the Buffyverse. A full on plethora of episodes, the podcast explores the untold stories of the characters between some of the most intense and highly charged seasons, beginning season one with the exploration of the goings on between seasons five and six, the summer sans Buffy. What did the Scoobies do without her? How did they decide to use the BuffyBot as a decoy? How did Spike get drafted into helping out? How did Willow get uber-megawitchy? These were the questions fans Smith and Butler wondered about, and so, the podcast was born.

Click here for the full article.

If you auditioned and did not get an email please contact us at betweenthelinesauditions[at]gmail.com ASAP so we can get you any information you may need. Even if you did not get a role, you should have gotten an email!

We will be posting the cast list as soon as we have confirmed all the roles.

Join Kevin Cummings (Doc, Short Cummings Audio) as he talks with Tabz (Anya), Rachel (Janice), Larissa (Teenage Girl), and Laieanna (the Dybbuk) about episode 9 of Buffy Between the Lines.

Promo for this podcast is from the Geek Spin.

More info on Dybbuk.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

A Review of Episode 2 – Requiem for a Demon

“Los Angeles! Home of the Dodgers. Movies. And a broody vampire who…”

Buffy Between the Lines is back for Episode 2, and they’ve brought along the Angel Investigations crew for good measure. “Requiem for a Demon” takes on the daunting task of interlacing two separate storylines. Willow joins Angel and his team in LA to bring news of Buffy’s death, and sticks around for a little impromptu monster fighting. Meanwhile, the rest of the Scooby gang remains in Sunnydale, facing off with a demon that has started attacking the girls in Tara’s choir.

After breaking the news to Angel and Co, Willow realizes that demons aren’t just the Sunnydale town mascot when she gets wrapped up in the hunt for a hitchhiking demon that’s stalking the Hyperion Hotel. She also gets a taste of how they do things in L.A. while helping out her old friends Wesley and Cordelia.

Back in Sunnydale, Tara is put in charge when a “Puce colored Barney” starts ripping out the throats of her choir members. Without Buffy or Willow, the gang scrambles to put a stop to things before it’s too late. While unbeknownst to them, an even greater threat has just arrived on the Hellmouth.

It couldn’t have been easy attempting to tell two separate stories within the show, but the BBtL crew pulled it off nicely. With “California Blonde” serving as a bumper to segue into the Los Angeles scenes, it was easy to separate the two stories and keep things organized. And on top of everything else, we were given a great storyline with one of the shows more secondary characters. Tara, who is often overlooked because of her quiet nature or overshadowed by her relationship with Willow, was unexpectedly shoved into a leadership role. And while somewhat hesitant at first, she showed that she could handle herself, and proved herself to be an intricate part of the Scoobies. Any show that can manage all that in 50 minutes is worth a listen.

Quote of the Episode Award goes to:

Xander: You’re the new bearer of the Dork Baton. I knight you Dame Dork of Dorkshire upon Nerdom.

After numerous efforts on behalf of the production team of Buffy Between the Lines, it’s been decided that the whole cast just needs to be recast. Especially Nick, who doesn’t sound a thing like Xander. “Kim and I sat down and talked, and it really was a hard decision, as much as our cast loves this show – they just aren’t cutting it,” producer Tabitha Grace Smith said.

“We really are striving to be the best, and the guy we have playing Spike – he isn’t even British!” Kim said in a follow-up statement. Harsh criticism also reigned down on the actress playing Enya, but she was not available for comment.

“I can’t believe it,” Cliss said in a phone interview. “It’s like, all my dreams are dead.” Other cast members expressed shock and amazement. “I knew people didn’t like me, but I didn’t think it would come to this,” said Tasha, who plays Dawn. “That’s extreme Dawn hate.”

“I can’t even stand the guy we have playing Angel. Seriously. The guy can’t pronounce babies correctly,” said Tabitha. “I think we’ll just have Emma do all the roles. She’s got a fantastic voice.”

“I knew we should have stuck to shadow puppets,” said Beth Nelson, Crew Manager for Season 2 of Buffy Between the Lines.

Auditions are being held tomorrow in New York and LA in an attempt to salvage the rest of the series. Click here to find the locations.

by Tabitha Grace Smith

Feeling guilty for pushing Dawn off the tower, Buffy finds solace in the one person who understands how she feels. Or is it just the one person who looks good on everyone? Only time, a bit of insanity and a couple spells going wonky can tell. Oh yeah, Angel shows up too.

The full script is available as a PDF.

E-Book PDF: Open in New Window | Download

by Tabitha Grace Smith

Feeling guilty for pushing Dawn off the tower, Buffy finds solace in the one person who understands how she feels. Or is it just the one person who looks good on everyone? Only time, a bit of insanity, and a couple spells going wonky can tell. Oh yeah, Angel shows up too.

Special thanks to FanficRants on LiveJournal.

Promos for Moron Life.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download