I love it when I see a new movie with an actor I already know and love and I don’t automatically see them as their previous roles. I was delighted when I didn’t constantly see Merry in Charlie or Magneto in Gandalf or… I dunno, Qui-Gon in Valjean. And now, major props to James Marsters for joining the Few, the Proud, the Able to Act in a Versatile Enough Manner That I Can Actually Concentrate on Your New Character Without Uncontrollably Associating it With A Preexisting Fandom!

Yes, I acknowledge that his changed appearance was a major contributing factor. It’s why I couldn’t see Naveen Andrews in Bride and Prejudice without thinking “OMGSAYID” or Nathan Fillion on Buffy without thinking “WAH why is Mal evil?”. Will mocked me the other day for my blog entry on “Chance”, saying “It’s because of people like you that well-known actors can’t get jobs!” Hee, yeah, that’s true.

Though it’s not just change of appearance: I saw Gollum in every frame of Andy Serkis’ performance in 13 Going on 30. And there was this moment on James’ appearance on The Mountain (why oh why did I endure that agony when I knew the James bits would be up on Buffy.nu in a matter of days?), where he let out this sad sort of chuckle, which conjured memories of that same chuckle in “Lessons,” after Buffy asks CrazyintheBasement!Spike if he’s real. Okay, so appearance and voice. Memorable mannerisms. I should just stop talking, yes? This post really isn’t going anywhere, and I sound like even more of a deranged fangirl than usual. Not that there’s anything wrong with being a deranged fangirl. La la la.

Suffice it to say, I enjoyed Cool Money. James was great, and the reliance on human ingenuity rather than just a bunch of high-tech devices was refreshing. Though I admit, I started with slightly low expectations for the quality of the overall movie, based on the credits that were a blatant ripoff of “Catch Me if You Can.” In sum, good movie. I’ll get back to work now.