Reviews for Running on Faith, Season One
| Kevin |
10/19/04 - 04:09PM |
9: Episode 9: Departures (from the norm) |
Signed |
Wow, what a shocker. I have to admit that I love this chapter. You really have a lot of guts to put together a pairing that might even get you death threats- lol. But I loved the pairing. As unlikely as they were, the situation definitely fit, especially considering both immediately began experiencing regret. As for the rest of the chapter, it was utterly hysterical. You should call the guys who wrote American Pie and tell them you seriously need a job writing dirty jokes. Loved htis departure from the norm!
Author's Response: As you can imagine, I'm really happy to get positive feedback on this. While I didn't receieve death threats, the story certainly polarized people. I'm glad to know that some people liked it. Thanks agin for the read and the review. |
| Danielle_G |
10/15/04 - 03:04AM |
22: Episode 22: You Call This a Finale? |
Signed |
I think a second season would be great! I really enjoyed reading the first season!
Author's Response: Thanks. 3 and a half eps of season 2 are written. I just need to get a few done before I start posting so I can go back and fix and inconsistencies ahead of time. |
| Kevin |
10/14/04 - 06:26PM |
8: Episode 8: Can We Just Pretend |
Signed |
Can We Just Pretend was the prefect name for this chapter. As usual, I loved this ending. I knew you could end a story with the cliff-hanger, but this ending is as good as any of them. Dawn and Buffy's moment of bonding and the "one good hug." Man, that was awesome. I liked Ethan covering for Dawn's keyness and talking about the fairy costume. It was a very cool bit of inserting Dawn into pre-Dawn episodes. I often wondered where she'd fit in to the old stories. Fairy costume- brilliant! The babies- yeesh- very scary, very creepy, very sick- but all in a good way. Connor's "Slayer search and rescue" line- lmao! You were very clever remembering Buffy's issues with Riley and Faith. that definitely played into that moment that happened. This was another spectacular chapter. Filled with action, angst, and reconciliation. Fabulous.
Author's Response: Thanks for loyally reading and reviewing. I, like Dawn, thought the sisters deserved one good hug. I really enjoyed thinking up what could have happend when Dawn and Ethan met previously. Sorry about the yeesh, but glad it was in a good way. |
| jason17 |
10/13/04 - 05:41PM |
1: Pilot: Goodbye Boston |
Signed |
Hey totally loved your story... well what i got a chance to read. anyways... i don't get online much. you mind if i copy your story so i can finish it????? Thanks in advance!
Author's Response: Thanks for the review. Feel free to copy the story so you can read later, but please don't post it on line anywhere unless I say it's okay. Thanks again. |
| Monkey Pants |
10/12/04 - 08:08PM |
22: Episode 22: You Call This a Finale? |
Signed |
An excellent series that definitely merits a second season. Wouldn't be surprised if Mr Whedon contacted you to be on his writing staff for a future Buffyverse series. :-)
Interesting how Dawn and Connor were given wider dimensions to their characters, as they originally functioned on tv as the stereotypical surly youths.Not many people could write their characters so convincingly. Well done!
Author's Response: Thanks for reading and thanks for the review. You're way, way too kind. One of my goals was definitely to further develop the characters. I think Faith, Dawn, and Connor all had the potential to be more multi-faceted. Hopefully I’ll do that more in season 2. |
| embargo |
10/11/04 - 08:35PM |
22: Episode 22: You Call This a Finale? |
Signed |
First I would like to say that I never offer a review, but your story was very good I have read it from the beginning and have kept silent waiting for the end. Let me just say it was worth the wait. It was an excellent beginning to what I would consider a worth while contender to the programs themselves. The story line was excellent I like to the idea of basing a fiction around two characters that I always considered don’t get enough screen time in other fan fictions. Faith & Connor are very unique characters and you have captured them well I especially liked the way you seamlessly made the transition from geeky college Conner to feral Connor, and nicely incorporated the character Dana.
If I could make a suggestion for your second season, and I truly hope that you will consider this I would like to see less of the original cast i.e. Angel, Buffy, Willow, and Giles. I’d be more interested in seeing these characters in sparse guest appearances and more concentration on this new team while seeing you add a few original characters like Angel did when the show broke free of Buffy. You have a great core of characters to expand upon. Again I can’t say how much I enjoyed your story as a whole.
Author's Response: Thank you. Thank you for reading. Thank you for enjoying. Thank you for your far too gracious review. Just to let you know, two and a half episodes of season 2 are written, so I’m almost definitely going ahead with it. There are a few old faces (and one new one) in the first few episodes. However, I will be concentrating more on original characters and new villains. Again, thank you so much for reviewing. |
| Kevin |
10/11/04 - 01:30PM |
7: Episode 7: Sunnydale |
Signed |
Best. Breakout. Ever. After umpteen failed breakouts using muscle, Stanford-attending Connor whips out the brain and hacks Faith out of prison. I’m completely retarded, too. The whole time there’s this other person with Connor, I’m wondering who it is. Faith’s “Read a lot of Shakespeare in the can” line was so lol hysterical. As was Spike dunking Eve. I love that Spike is catching on to Connor. There were so many great lines. I want to go through them all, but there’s not enough time. But the lines “Budget Cuts. Fucking Schwarzenegger” and “I’m guaranteeing 16% less sewage” deserve special mention.
Author's Response: Thanks! Glad you liked the jailbreak. I kind of liked it too. Also glad to see you liked the funny lines. Since you’ve given me carte blanche to reveal my gags in my responses to you, I think I’ll take advantage of that. This ep’s in-joke? Spike’s alias is a character on the show “Alias”. |
| Kevin |
10/11/04 - 12:31PM |
6: Episode 6: Almost a Jailbreak |
Signed |
Loved the Spike/ Connor banter. They’re the perfect odd couple buddies. It was nice to see Willow, even if briefly. She was awesome as “spy girl.” I love the conniving baddies. Eve is used here to much greater effect than she ever was on the show. Ethan Rayne was very cool. I love how he’s still playing for himself and willing to sell out to anyone. Finally, that last line was killer. I’m really sick of calling him the Risen, too. Hopefully we’ll meet him soon. I’m dying to see this guy. Also, I caught this chapter’s in-joke. Dr. Tam was a character on Joss Whedon’s “Firefly.”
Author's Response: Thanks again! Yep, Dr. Tam is from "Firefly." There's another "Firefly" reference down the road. As for everything else, keep reading. |
| Kevin |
10/11/04 - 11:12AM |
5: Episode 5: Heartland and Homeland |
Signed |
Loved it! The characterizations were fabulous. Dawn’s growth into an adult continues with her remorse over killing Amy. The romantic tension between Buffy and Riley is so true to life and their characters. I absolutely loved the exploration of Faith’s fear of the death penalty. I think it really fits with her character that she wouldn’t be afraid of dying in battle, yet would still freak out at the idea of being killed while strapped helplessly into a chair. The action sequences were great as usual. Connor’s spur of the moment plan to rescue Faith rocked, even if it failed. Once again, the ending was flat out awesome. I *love* these villains. As for in-jokes, Judge Harold T. Stone was the judge on People’s Court or something, right? Are there any other references/in-jokes/shout outs? Please feel free to use your response to any of my reviews to mention any such jokes. Thanks again for another awesome chapter of an awesome story.
Author's Response: Thanks for another awesome review :) I too thought it would be natural for Faith to crave a warrior’s death, rather than the ignoble death of a criminal. Part of it, for me, was pushing Faith into thinking of herself as a warrior-for-good as opposed to a criminal. She wants to be a good guy and have all the good and bad that comes with that. She also wants to put her life as a criminal behind her. I hope I’m able to continue to show Dawn growing. Nice to see you liked the action sequences and villains. You were close on one of the shout outs. Judge Harold T. Stone was the judge on the 80’s television sitcom “Night Court.” The other in-joke I remember putting in this episode was Faith’s prison number, 123080. 12-30-80 is Eliza Dushku’s birthday. Thanks again for reading. |
| Michael J |
10/10/04 - 07:47PM |
22: Episode 22: You Call This a Finale? |
Signed |
The final chapter of my favorite series. Before I get into specifics, I just want to say that I sincerely hope you write another season. Find other writers if you have to. As for this specific chapter, I'm so glad you had one of the final scenes being Dawn and Faith working side by side with noone else. There was hardly any Faith/Dawn interaction during the whole season and since assumingly the show should be based on them, I found that disappointed. I felt like you really got to the root of what you started out to write here, Dawn's growth into a confident woman (and thank you for having Buffy acknowledge that) and Faith truly becoming a slayer and a hero in her own right. Faith saving Buffy (especially in a way that Buffy would never do if the roles were reversed) was inspired and brilliantly written. Loved all the Angel/Connor stuff even though it still somewhat suffers from the over detailedness I described in the last chapter review. I read a bunch of your responses to other reviews and if I were you, I would seriously stay away from writing a plot point specifically to get a reaction (like Connor/Buffy). I felt like that was the beginning of you getting off the track of Faith's journey and centering on Connor's. I also thought Drusilla, even though she had ample character motivation, was wasted and unnecessary to bring in. As a whole, the series suffered a bit from you trying to use as many characters as possible instead of introducing new characters. For example, I'm intrigued at the Markovic family reappearing, but a casual reader might not care since you haven't mentioned them in several chapters. Introducing them and then completely ignoring them as soon as Dawn was rescued led me to believe that they weren't important characters and as such, I had no reason to worry about them. Truthfully, I still don't care about them being the villians later because not enough was done with them in the beginning. If they are to be Faith's major adversaries, I think you needed to provide a bit more of them during this season. With all that said, this was an excellent series and I sincerely hope you do another season. Like I said, if the task is too daunting, get some other writers!!
Author's Response: Thanks for reading and reviewing. I’m glad this was your favorite series. It’s also difficult for me to tailor the story to anyone person’s tastes. Many of the aspects of the story you mention as weaknesses are mentioned by others as their favorite parts. So if I continue the series, you’ll have to continue taking the good with the bad. I’d like to note that I never wrote anything *solely* to get a reaction. Specifically, the Buffy/Connor hook up was in part to create tension between Connor and Spike as well as Connor and Angel. I realize the move was a pretty daring one and would likely provoke a response, just as many events on Buffy and Angel did. The Connor/Spike tension, I think, turned out to be important in future episodes. It certainly said a lot about Spike’s character. Despite not liking Connor and actually being jealous of the kid, Spike never fails to come to Connor’s aid. I also disagree that Drusilla was wasted. First off, Dru’s always a hoot. Second, she played an interesting role in the series. Third, she’ll probably be back to build upon the havoc she wreaked this time around. Fourth, I did intend this to be like a season of a show, including mini-arcs and stand alone episodes. Dru was a mini-arc. If the series suffered from too many characters, it wasn’t because I was “trying to use as many characters as possible.” In fact, I was constantly trying to use as few characters as possible. And I agree that I probably threw too many characters into the mix. But this was solely because I was forced to use these certain characters as they already filled certain roles that I needed filled. Although I’m not happy with how many I eventually had to use, I don’t feel like anyone’s appearance was “wasted.” Perhaps guest characters didn’t develop, but that’s not really the point of a guest spot. As for the Markovic family, I completely disagree with your assessment of how I handled them, both in terms of the story’s integrity and in terms of audience interest. I feel like your statement that I should have left them in is akin to saying that Jonathan Levinson and Warren Mears should have made more appearances in Buffy season 5 if they were going to be major villains in season 6. I didn’t want you growing used to them because their return was supposed to be a bit of a surprise, which it seems to have been. As far as the characters within the story, they had no reason to remain in the U.S. They’re essentially mercenary vampires who came in to do a job. They did it successfully, got paid, and left. The reason for their return after a prolonged absence will be explained should I write season 2. I may explore your idea of bringing on other writers, but I doubt it’ll work. Most writers I’d trust to carry out my story are pretty busy with their own stuff. Also, coordinating stories with others would probably be as time consuming as writing my own stuff. I already have the first two chapters of next season down. If I get to about five, I’ll probably start posting. Thanks for reading. Thanks for reviewing. Thanks for your interest in a season 2. |
| crayonbreaky gal |
10/10/04 - 05:11PM |
21: Episode 21: I Shanshu, You Shanshu, He Done Been Shanshued |
Signed |
But what can I do? He’s family. Spike gets it. It seems he always gets it before anyone else does. And the scene between Angel and Connor, and Angel talking him down. I have to say, one of the best chapters you have written. This was how it should have been in that sporting goods store instead of Angel taking that deal which killed all of his friends. Loving the Faith/Spike/Angel banter, fighting too. No dick swinging? That's what Angel and Spike do constantly. You really do it well here.
Author's Response: Thnka yu so much! This is my favorite episode of mine, so I'm really happy you think it's one of my best. I, too, wanted Angel to talk Connor down and really try to save him in the sporting goods store. I'm also glad you liked everything else; the fight scenes, the banter, the "dick swinging" comment. Thanks again for all your kind words. |
| crayonbreaky gal |
10/10/04 - 05:07PM |
20: Episode 20: Growing Up |
Signed |
I absolutely love what you've done with the Spike/Faith relationship. It's real, it's sexy, it's great. I hope you continue to develop it. I like it that Faith is breaking with Buffy. So is Dawn? Such a twist. They all think that Buffy is loony to want to kill Connor on the spot. I'm glad that Faith stood up to her.
Author's Response: Should I do a season 2, Spike/Faith will be angsty until they remember who they are. As the chapter title says, this is about growing up. Faith grows up a little. Dawn grows up a lot.
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| crayonbreaky gal |
10/10/04 - 05:03PM |
19: Episode 19: Feral |
Signed |
I did like season four Connor. So many people pulled him, including his father, every which way, not letting him figure things out on his own. Did you make him a tad too insane? I don't know. It depends on what you do with him in subsequent chapters. The interaction between Connor and Dana suggests that he isn't insane, just so screwed up that it will take a lot to reach him. I just wonder if Angel ever had it in him to reach the boy. I don't think that he did in season four.
Author's Response: Glad you liked season 3 and 4 Connor. You're going to be stuck with him for the rest of the story's run. I agree that Angel in many ways failed Connor. I want to play with the idea of people successfully reaching *that* Connor and a *real* redemption for the poor kid. |
| crayonbreaky gal |
10/10/04 - 04:59PM |
18: Episode 18: Funhouse |
Signed |
This chapter is absolutely scary and creepy. I think it's one of your best chapters to date. Vail's mansion would be a house of horrors. The only thing that might have been interesting to see would be all of Angel's dead friends going after them. In reality, he did indirectly get each of them killed. They died because of him. It's good to see that Willow can overcome the effects and help them. And as I still say, poor Lorne. Angel made such a big mistake not trying to really help Connor. Instead he struck a deal with the devil and everyone has to pay. I just want to feel that more from him. There seems to not be a lot of guilt for that from Angel.
Author's Response: You get to see Angel's guilt in later chapters and, if I write it, season 2. But this isn't his story, so I'm trying to not overdo Angel stuff. |
| crayonbreaky gal |
10/10/04 - 04:56PM |
17: Episode 17: Baggage, Ghosts, and Destiny |
Signed |
Dawn and Connor bantering? Really, really good. Going back to Vail's place? Spooky as hell. It gave me shivers. I still am mad at Angel though. Have you played this a little too much? Would Angel go this far? I'm still not so sure about it. I guess it's a matter of interpretation. But Angel does suffer the consequences of his actions. So Whendonverse! Perfect.
Author's Response: Glad you like the Dawn and Connor moments. Everyone wants those two together, so I really, really want to tease you all. Glad Vail's place was spooky. I really do believe Angel is 100% capable of murder when it comes to his son. |
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