Why was Riley s' character written out of 'Buffy' in season 5?.
-
SkinnyEcho — 19 years ago(May 31, 2006 01:06 PM)
If Riley wasn't after Angel he would have stayed longer.I never understood why everyone hated him, I mean look at him, way hotter than Angel and plus he has a heartbeat.
"Ready Randy?"
"Ready Joan." -Btvs
TWA
(Tom Welling Army) -
IrishBlueEyes — 19 years ago(June 30, 2006 09:16 AM)
Remember also that the writers have always used the fantasy of the Buffyverse to express the reality of being a teenager/young adult. In real life, we change as we grow up and the relationships that once fit us perfectly don't alway5b4s fit as well as we change. How many people marry the person they dated their freshman year of college? In Season 4, Buffy got a peek at the real depth of her power and we see in Season 5 her standing more on her own (i.e., growing up). At the same time, Riley went from Big Man on Campus to small fish, similar to what many of us go through when we graduate. The only place he still felt confident was his relationship with Buffy, but then as she got stronger, she needed him less and less in the way that he needed to be needed. Both were going through huge transformations in opposite directions. As much as I hated to see Riley go, it was the natural evolution of a real relationship.
-
johnnycage10 — 19 years ago(July 21, 2006 03:12 AM)
Good discussions here. Very much enjoyed reading these ^_^
And of course we'll always have the cool, Initiatve2000-based episodes of season 4
Personally, I thought most of the good eps from seasons 5 and 6 involved Riley (loved his comeback in season 6 and his bitchslapping of Spike, and the way he handled those vamps in the crypt in season 5).
But in regards to their relationship, I know it's partly because Buffy simply didn't love Riley as much as she loved Angel, and he wanted to be the most important variable in her life (as Angel was).
As useless as Xander was after the end of season 3, the one smart scene he had was when he lectured Buffy at the end of the episode when Riley left in season 5. At the end of the day, Buffy and Riley could've had a contest regarding who's more at fault where, but one major question is this - would Buffy be as detached from Angel as she was from Riley if her mother was gravely ill in season 2/3? The answer is No, which means Riley's not as important as Angel was. -
TamlynR — 18 years ago(July 30, 2007 04:33 AM)
He was the all american boy next door. Normal, except for the secret army thinglol And what Buffy has always wanted most was to be normal and have a normal life. I think Riley represented that. But no matter how much Buffy wanted "normal" it wasn't ever going to work out, just their relationship.
-
justmehere — 18 years ago(February 10, 2008 06:48 PM)
I loved Riley, and that episode where he left is one of my favorites of Buffy. Not because he left, but because of how well done it was. I loved the scene with Buffy and Xander where he lectured her on Riley being "the one" and also the scene preceding it with Buffy and Riley, where she said she couldn't take care of him, and he said it was about him taking care of her. So sad.
Also - IrishBlueEyes, great observation about Riley going from BMOC in the initiative to being small fish (in the Scoobies). I know he wasn't Supernatural, or Angel, but he was a good guy all around, and I thought he was a great character.
Total side note, but I just saw him in The Jane Austen Book Club, and really liked him in it. -
Boogiebuster — 17 years ago(January 24, 2009 10:41 PM)
Ok kids, this is why he got written of the show he sucked
His is dull and ugly and he don't make me laugh.
He was as plain a white bread sandwich with two slices of bad acting and a slab of empty lines.
He had ZERO chemistry with Sarah, (well to be fair it was Sarahs fault for throwing up a little in her mouth every time they made out). He was boring to the highest degree, he wore ill fitting clothes, he was less interesting than PARKER, and could not even hold a candle to Angel. He was incredibly awkward and annoying; his character was only introduced as a necessity to the plot.
Now I know I am going to get death threats, but this is my opinion of why he got written off.
~Booth->
<-Brennan~ -
tasteslikepaste — 18 years ago(May 21, 2007 12:02 PM)
hahahahaha he was kicked off because his character was a complete tool. everytime riley opened his mouth i laughed out loud because of how stupid marc blucas is. i wish he'd never even been written into the show at all.
-
Phillip Marlowe — 16 years ago(July 03, 2009 06:37 AM)
While I admit to being an Angel fan (so I was not particularly inclined to like Riley), he was just never a well written character. The main problems were twofold. First, as written and performed, he was just white bread boring. Although this was undoubtedly intentional to fulfill Buffy's desire for a normal guy, neither the writers nor the actor were able to give the character any interesting subtext. Second, and far worse, Blucas and Gellar had zero onscreen chemistry. This lack was exacerbated by the far more charged relationship, even if mosatly antagonistic, bewteen Gellar and Marsters. Hell, Buffy had more chemistry with Parker, who was probably created in large part to vaccinate Riley from the anticipated Angel backlash.
-
christeline1 — 16 years ago(January 07, 2010 09:10 PM)
I loved Riley and hated that he was axed off the show. I cry everytime I watch the helicopter scene. He was a true "good and classy guy" and that's why I loved his character so much.
Just my two cents.
Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle. -
kk_85 — 16 years ago(March 16, 2010 05:43 AM)
I remember seeing somewhere that the actual reason they wrote Riley out of the show was because Joss wanted Buffy's love interest to be Dawn. I'm sure it had something to do with how unpopular Riley was too, but the main reason was Dawn.
I was sad to see Riley go though =( Into the Woods to this day (to me) is still the saddest episode next to The Body. I hated seeing him come back with Sam. -
ymmiT — 15 years ago(May 25, 2010 02:05 AM)
I always liked riley, too
I thought his exit was well done and a classy one at that.. he was a great character and offered something different to the show..
I don't get a lot of the dislike for the guy as I thought his story was solid
he seemed like someone I would hang out with, too