Was the Internet Really That Scary?

The snow day (really snow afternoon and day) gave me some free time to forget about studying for midterms (who really wants to do that anyway?) and get back to my roots. With the help of Hulu (I love love love Hulu!) I was able to re-watch season 2 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Buffy was the first show that I watched religiously. I remember being at my friend Jennie's house for a passover party and after locating the hidden matzoh we sat in front of the television and watched the series premiere of  Buffy. After the show had finished I had to walk back to my house 5 doors down from Jennie's, but I did not walk, I ran. Buffy scared the heck out of me and I couldn't wait to see the next episode. After the first episode, I forced my family to watch the awesome teen Comedy-drama, Supernatural, Fantasy, Action, Horror show every week. And we (turns out my father actually enjoyed the show too) even watched the spin off series Angel which I don't think is as good. Anyway, the point I am trying to make is that Buffy was the first television show I was hooked on and since then I have grown to love television, hence the name of this blog.

One thing I noticed after re-watching this beloved (by me) show, is that many of the characters fear the internet. The show aired in 1997 just as the internet bubble was inflating and I, myself was getting my first AOL account (my first screen name was IBChillin247. Really it was.). Many of the characters, high school students, teachers, and parents seems to not trust/understand the internet and not see the use for it. The characters that do trust the internet (Willow and Mrs. Calendar) are the ones who often save the day by adequately finding helpful information on the net. Also the characters that are not computer savvy are completely  I just found this occurrence interesting. I do not remember people being fearful of the internet, do you guys?

Here's what I am talking about.

This clip is from season 1 episode 8 when a demon gets downloaded onto the internet and seduces Willow in order to trick her into helping him take over the world (seriously horrifying stuff *sarcasm* You can't blame me for thinking it was the best show when I was 9 or 10 years old). Buffy who is not computer savvy seeks out help from a computer geek. When she goes to talk about it with Giles, her watcher/Sunnydale High School librarian he makes an anti-computer comment. "I really don't know how to advise you. Thinks involved with the computer fill me with a child-like terror." Giles would rather fight off evil creepy creatures of the night then surf the net. He's a twisted librarian.

Vampire Slayingly Yours,

Alicia