The CW's Reaper is Incomparable to Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Why why why are people equating The CW39s new show Reaper with Buffy the Vampire SlayerI39m sorry but as someone who has always loved Buffy the Vampire Slayer the comparison is an insultMy first assumption was that the people making these horrendous associations had never actually seen Buffy To my surprise I then discovered that Buffy is actually the favorite show of Reaper39s creators Tara Butters and Michele Fazekas Say whatNo offense to Butters and Fazekas but Reaper is one of my least favorite shows of the new fall season So to compare it with a show that it is so dissimilar to like Buffy the Vampire Slayer is simply ludicrousIn Reaper Sam is required to be the devil39s bounty hunter a duty he must fulfill In Buffy the Vampire Slayer Buffy is the vampire slayer and it is a job that she can not ignore Both shows deal with the supernatural And that39s where the similarities end and the differences begin People who didn39t watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer on a regular basis sometimes viewed it as a cheesier version of Beverly Hills 90210 or as a silly show about a girl killing demons So while Fazekas and Butters leave me speechless I39m going to pray that the other people comparing the two shows never really watched BuffyPerhaps that39s why people liken Reaper to Buffy because Reaper is just another inane show which is what ignorant people perceived Buffy to be In Reaper main character Sam finds out that his parents sold his soul to the devil and he must now become said devil39s bounty hunter Sam also has the typical best friend the fellow underachieving chunky guy and the girl who he wants but is just way too pretty for him making this just like every other mundane showYet again the people who make those comparisons don39t know BuffyBuffy was one of the most intelligently written shows of my teen years In high school I could actually discuss the show at length with many of my teachers My English teacher loved to dissect the storylines with me and converse about the characters I39m not so sure I see Reaper as the next show that teachers can39t wait to use for examples in classJoss Whedon the creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer knew what made humans tick The idea of a slayer vampires and demons was just a backdrop upon which Whedon had the chance to showcase some of the most intense and real human relationships We see Buffy surrounded by friends who love her while she feels alone in her different world We watch as Buffy falls in love and is yet kept at a distance from the objects of her affection because she is the slayer We know Buffy we understand her love and we feel her painThe actors on Buffy were so talented that they were able to not only pull off a successful musical episode way before Scrubs took a stab at it but also an episode in which for the majority of the episode no words were uttered That episode appropriately titled quotHushquot was not just about the battle against demons More than that it was about the role that speech plays in our society and the importance of using our voice for our personal needs Proponents of Reaper might want to say it also delves deeply into the human experience as Sam must reevaluate his life now that he39s the devil39s bounty hunter but c39mon how can you even read that sentence with a straight face Take one scene for example when Sam first gets wind of his powers A box is going to fall on his toohotforhim girl and he is able to save the day by moving the box out of the way just in time Sam quotIt was too far away it was like I moved it with my mind or something and that39s not the first time this has happened today Something is reallyquot Sam then screams as his best friend Sock throws a bottle at his face quotWhat the hell manquot Sam questions quotYou were supposed to move that with your mindquot Sock responds amp160Supposed to be funny Yes Predictable Yes again Whereas Reaper took Sam39s initial fright as a way to pull off a quick joke Buffy would have made it a riveting and introspective look at life with some humor thrown inReaper might be able to succeed at being a lighthearted supernatural comedy But to say it will venture into Buffy the Vampire Slayer territory which was often dark emotional riveting intelligent and cosmic is absurd

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The CW's Reaper is Incomparable to Buffy the Vampire Slayer

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Jacki Garfinkel

"About That with Carl Mayer:" Alaina Donnellon (Episode 6) - By Carl Mayer

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Click to Make Your 2025 Contribution to Support the MediaVillage Education Foundation

The CW's Reaper is Incomparable to Buffy the Vampire Slayer

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Jacki Garfinkel

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