Book Review: The Physics of the Buffyverse by Jennifer Ouellette - Page 2

As the book goes on, Ouellette delves deeper into both the science and the Buffyverse. More complicated and theoretical science is discussed, from Schrödinger's cat (using Miss Kitty Fantastico, of course) to black holes to that Buffyverse perennial, portals and interdimensional travel. Ouellette illustrates quantum phenomenon using the Vegas-imprisoned Lorne as an example:

 

[I]n a quantum world, Lorne merely has the highest likelihood of being found somewhere in his dressing room. There is the tiniest probability of finding Lorne on the street just outside the casino. If he waits long enough, eventually he can escape his captors with no effort at all, thereby violating the laws of classical physics, not to mention common sense. Of course, he would have to wait longer than the entire lifetime of our universe before this occurred, but the probability is definitely there.

...But the electron doesn't have to wait the lifetime of the universe for this to happen, thanks to the vast number of subatomic particles involved at quantum scales. The probabilities that one particle would slip through are much higher. In fact, the phenomenon occurs all the time. So if Lorne were a subatomic particle instead of a big green empath demon, he could escape his captors much more easily.

Whoa, I found myself thinking, did I actually just understand something from quantum physics?

The book avoids becoming pedantic because it acknowledges that the TV writer's foremost job is to provide an engaging and emotionally resonant story; illustrating physics is merely a tangential side-effect of the work, like the heat or sound released in a chemical reaction. She also realizes that there is an inherent tension between reality and fantasy in TV series like Buffy or Angel. Creating mystical entanglements that echo the rules of physics can make the fantastical seem more believable and spare the audience the disappointing moment when disbelief falls completely from its suspension. Her examination of Ghost Spike specifically addresses this precarious balancing act (and my biggest pet peeve with the vast majority of ghost stories):

True, he can't touch anyone, he can walk through walls, and when he first emerges from the amulet, he lunges at Angel in a fury, passes right through Angel's body, and finds himself standing in the middle of Angel's desk. Yet he somehow manages to make contact with the floor, and he later makes himself quite comfortable seated in Angel's desk chair—indications of a corporeal being. The willing suspension of disbelief notwithstanding, this is a troubling inconsistency.

Even a physics-illiterate recognizes the inconsistencies that Ouellette enumerates through explanations of how matter interacts. (Ultimately, she also provides a loophole explanation which, though not fully supported by the "canon" evidence, might explain how Spike could be there and not there at the same time.)

Article Author: Bonnie

Bonnie writes about books every Thursday at Fourth-Rate Reader, about everything else at Signifying Nothing, and sometimes she resorts to pictures. She lives in Toronto.

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