Random BtVS screencap #14
Friday, November 2nd, 2007
Archive for the ‘Buffy Season 2’ Category
But I have to save the world… again.
Tuesday, January 16th, 2007Becoming I and II (Joss Whedon)
I am just about to commit sacrilege but the first twenty minutes of this two parter are boring. I admit this is the third viewing but unlike many BtVS episodes third time was one time too many. Kendra’s reappearance perked me up but I am surprised in a show that challenges in so many ways that it is a shame that Buffy was allowed to make fun of how she talked. At least, Buffy didn’t go Kevin Kline on us and make fun of Tara’s stutter (they left that to Faith).
Why wasn’t Oz told about Willow’s spell the first time? Why did anyone think that Willow “may be the best person to do this”? Surely, a real witch like Amy should have been drafted in. I’m not complaining that Willow was a witch and a powerful one at that but I feel there should have been more of a build up (and I Only Have Eyes For You wasn’t enough, imo) before this revealing of Willow’s talent and putting her at risk. As Giles says: “channelling such potent magicks through yourself, it could open a door that you may not be able to close”.
Usually Andy leaves the snorting over fashion faux pas to me but even he was prompted to remark how Willow’ purple outfit had the effect of making her skin look purple too.
Willow: her resolve face is quite pathetic really but the moment when the magic takes hold of her is one of the iconic images from BtVS. It must be deliberately ironic that she is felled by a stack of library books.
Xander: he is rapidly becoming my least favourite regular by a long way (not that when I think of it he could be anything but my least favourite). However, I am inclined to agree with him that Angelus needs to be eliminated, he is a killer, and no matter if his soul is restored it can be removed from him and it will all begin again. (Obviously, I’m a liberal and didn’t really write that.) Moving on to the controversial moment when he doesn’t tell Buffy that Willow is going to try the spell again: I think he is right not to tell her because it might have lead to hesitation at a crucial time but what he was not right to do was to get Willow involved.
Spike: it’s good to see him on his feet again. I’m no shipper but I do prefer Spike and Buffy together rather that Angel and Buffy. However, I do object to how much she hits him. 
The unnecessary thumping starts in this episode and their sado-masochistic relationship hardly ever lets up. Another iconic moment occurs when he shrugs when he thinks Angel is going to kill Buffy (actually, this makes no sense because if Buffy dies then Angel’s plan comes to fruition and no more “Happy Meals with legs”). The scenes with Joyce are classic: “You hit me with an axe one time, remember? “Get the hell away from my daughter”” and the uncomfortable silence in the living room.
Joyce: her reaction is understandable and she doesn’t really mean it when she tells Buffy never to return. Joyce has a bigger claim to feeling betrayed than any other character. Every single person that she knows who knows Buffy has lied to her persistently. Now she knows why Mr Giles has been so attentive to her daughter and she has a right to be livid.
Kendra: I liked Kendra a lot. Bianca Lawson drew the short straw regarding accents but she was charming in her brief appearances and gave us the delight of “Mr Pointy”. Her death is a shocker but I do feel that Dru takes her too easily.
Cordelia: not much to note except she has the best line: “Why don’t you just wait here to find out if it worked, see if he phones you?”
Giles: the use of Jenny Calendar (and a welcome reappearance by Robia LaMorte) to get information from him was horrible using his grief as a weapon and his brutal torture is cleverly implied.
Buffy: Angelus is right: Buffy falls for it every single time and more people die. I’m not surprised she was so depressed by season 6. 
In the end, Buffy does find the strength to kill Angel and what makes Whedon a brave and adventurous writer is this comes after his soul is restored making “close your eyes” an even more powerful moment. The best moment in the show is when SMG shows her class in the scene when Angelus is taunting her (“No weapons. No friends. No hope. Take all that away and what’s left?) and she opens her eyes to say “Me.”
“Don’t touch me! You have fish hands!”
“These public displays of affection are not acceptable in my school. This isn’t an orgy, people. It’s a classroom.” “Yeah! Where they teach lunch.” “Just give me a reason to kick you out, Summers. Just give me a reason.” “How about because you’re a tiny, impotent Nazi with a bug up his butt the size of an emu?”
“I don’t know. What happened to Angel wasn’t his fault.” “Yeah, but what happened to Ms. Calendar is. You can paint this any way you want. But the way I see it is that you wanna forget all about Ms. Calendar’s murder so you can get your boyfriend back.”
“This means I can’t help you study for tomorrow’s final.” “Ah, I’ll wing it. Of course, if we go to Hell by then, I won’t have to take them. Or maybe I’ll be taking them forever.”
“I wanna torture you. I used to love it, and it’s been a long time. I mean, the last time I tortured somebody, they didn’t even have chainsaws.”
“What are you, just some immortal demon sent down to even the score between good and evil?” “Wow. Good guess.”
“Willow. Uh, she told me to tell you…” “Tell me what?” “Kick his ass.”
“You’re not real.” “Sure, I’m real.” “It’s a trick. They get inside my head, make me see things I want.” “Then why would they make you see me?” “You’re right. Let’s go.”
But he made it perfectly clear of what he wasn’t telling me
Tuesday, January 16th, 2007Go Fish (David Fury and Elin Hampton)
This is the episode that surely everybody refers to as the one with Xander in Speedos. I’m not entirely sure why this episode inspires such ire. It isn’t as lame as I Robot You Jane, Bad Eggs or Some Assembly Required and it is less unpleasant than Killed By Death. I wonder how many people are turned off by the ill conceived introduction of the element of rape. Buffy’s joke about doing it with the entire swim team is well-delivered but just elicits an eww from me. Rape isn’t funny and has no place in a monster of the week episode.
However, there are the delights such as the girls’ reaction to Xander in Speedos (“Shh! I’m undercover” “Not under much”) and his embarrassment (though it isn’t entirely plausible that many would be embarrassed with a body like that – Xander in season six might be). And the scene when Cordy thinks Xander has lost his skin is when I first realised just how much she cared for him (much more than him for her): “and we can still date. Or, or not. I mean…I understand if you wanna see other fish. I’ll do everything I can to make your quality of life better. Whether that means little bath toys or whatever.”
TV is weird – the notion of people losing their skins and having skin lying around in all its gory glory is apparently okay but two women kissing isn’t.
“Xander, I know you take pride in being the voice of the common wuss, but the truth is, certain people are entitled to special privileges. They’re called winners. That’s the way the world works.” “And what about that nutty all men are created equal thing?” “Propaganda spouted out by the ugly and less deserving.” “I think that was Lincoln.” “Disgusting mole and stupid hat.” “Actually, it was Jefferson.” “Kept slaves. Remember?” (well, Cordy has that argument won)
“This doesn’t make any sense.” “Yeah. The skin’s the best part.” “Any demons with high cholesterol?” pause “You’re gonna think about that later, mister, and you’re gonna laugh.” (this is a wonderful joke made even better by Buffy telling us it’s a wonderful joke - apparently these jokes are called “buy backs“)
“I’ll crack him like an egg.”
“I wouldn’t break out the tartar sauce just yet.” “I think we’d better find the rest of the swim team and lock them up before they get in touch with their inner halibut.”
What an ending.
Okay. Over identify much?
Monday, January 15th, 2007I Only Have Eyes For You (Marti Noxon)
I seem to be a minority regarding this episode because I don’t like it much. I do get the themes about blaming yourself and forgiveness but I’m not clear what the arm in the locker, the snakes in the canteen (except a foreshadowing relating to the mayor) or the various happenings during the spell have to do with the re-enactments of the doomed relationship between Henry and Natty Gann.
In a DVD extra, Joss Whedon says that David Boreanaz’s performance in the scene between Buffy and Angel when they are possessed made him realise that DB could carry a series of his own. I do like SMG’s work but her performance in this scene wouldn’t have suggested to me that she could carry a series.
Giles’ delusion is hard to watch and the moment when he accepts the truth (“Jenny could never be this mean”) is moving. It’s also a shame to introduce Ms Calendar’s potentially useful rose quartz and have the idea go nowhere and, grr argh, to the computer stuff.
“People can be coerced, Summers. I’m no stranger to conspiracy. I saw JFK. I’m a truth seeker. I’ve got a missing gun and two confused kids on my hands. Pieces of the puzzle. And I’m gonna look at all the pieces carefully and rationally, and I’m gonna keep looking until I know exactly how this is all your fault.”
“You should never be cowed by authority. Except, of course, in this instance, when I am clearly right and you are clearly wrong.”
Yay, Spike is on his feet
Tact is just not saying true stuff. I’ll pass.
Sunday, January 14th, 2007Killed by Death (Rob Des Hotel and Dean Batali)
A monster of the week episode with a decidedly unpleasant child killer who uses stalks that come of its eyes to murder - I see one of Cordelia’s eews and raise it to a yuck.
The little girl who played child Buffy was impeccably cast, I don’t know what SMG looked like when she was young but she could have looked like Mimi Paley (Samantha Mulder!).
The exchange when Giles and the others pretend that Buffy is just delusional while Joyce is there made me realise just how much Joyce is being deceived. This is reinforced when later she says “Oo, looks like I interrupted a secret meeting”. She has the right to feel very angry and betrayed when she learns the truth.
Misc funnies:
- Cordelia’s suggestion about Buffy getting “that thing” on her face done is very funny – surely she’s not talking about Buffy’s nose?
- Giles asks Buffy if the drawing is her own work.
- “Oh, yeah, I’m good at medical stuff since Xander and I used to play doctor all the time.” “No, she’s being literal. She used to have all these medical volumes, uh, and diagnosed me with stuff. I didn’t have the heart to tell her she was playing it wrong.” “Wrong? Why? How did you play doctor?”
- “I’m on sentry duty. Angel won’t show till sundown if at all, but maybe I’ll get lucky with this death guy.” “He’s invisible.” “Yeah, but if I see a floating pipe and a smoking jacket, he’s dropped.”
- “Wait, what does this one do?” “It asks endless questions of those with whom it’s supposed to be working so that nothing is getting done.” “Boy, there’s a demon for everything.”
- “Are you, are you still there?” “Hanging on every eww.”
Buffy-whipped
Saturday, December 2nd, 2006Passion (Ty King)
Ty King wrote two episodes of BtVS, this and Some Assembly Required. At first thought, there doesn’t seem to be any connection between them, particularly in terms of quality but as I wrote the best thing about SAR was Jenny and Giles’ relationship and this has excellent interactions between the two. I have a lot of sympathy for Jenny – her loyalties must lie with her family and her betrayal of Buffy and Giles had to happen because of that.
I’ll say it again but I love how much fun David B is having as Angelus. His taunting of Spike is hilarious and Spike’s fury is building up nicely.
Clearly, Willow hadn’t bonded with her fish when she fed them despite them not being in the tank at all because they were in an envelope. The shot of the two girls on the bed surrounded by garlic with Willow looking nervous (“Although for the first time I’m glad my parents didn’t let me have a puppy”) is very funny.
I imagine the scene when students (one of whom is Jonathan) actually want to use the library is an acknowledgement of the unrealistic emptiness of the library (later reflected in the Scooby meetings at the Magic Box) where serious discussions about supernatural Sunnydale just couldn’t happen,
Xander’s indignation in the “Hey, how come Buffy doesn’t get a snotty “once again you boil it down to the simplest form” thing?” is not misplaced.
Willow is delighted to take Ms Calendar’s class (but how likely is that?) and I find her enthusiastic for potential punishment (“Will I have the power to assign detention?”) rather disturbing.
There is evil on the Summers’ driveway
and look there’s Angelus
Joyce’s denial can’t last much longer but I do like the conversations Buffy and she have when she’s right but so wrong at the same time. Despite knowing the outcome of Angelus’ conversation with Joyce I still feel very anxious for her as she fumbles with her keys and he tells her things about her daughter she isn’t ready to hear.
The inane gibberish of I Robot, You Jane didn’t bother me in the least but the gibberish in Passion does. That’s because it wasn’t important in a fun throwaway episode like IRYJ but here it is very important. I just don’t understand why programme makers are so inept at showing basic IT on screen, it’s not like they never use PCs, is it? Jenny saves to her floppy disk in no time at all, Angelus destroys the monitor and not the hard drive and, as we subsequently find out, Willow finds Jenny’s lesson plans on her computer (which also throws up the question of why not the translation too).
The problem with rewatching and recapping is the discovery of flaws and the subsequent nitpicking (which is one of the reasons I love Who Are You? so much is that despite the many many times I have watched it, I think it is practically perfect). Why does Jenny bother to ask Angelus how he got in? It’s a public building. Why did he lock the classroom door (or is it actually locked)? It opens quite easily when Jenny is thrown against it. Why is Jenny unable to open the fire escape doors? How does he get ahead of her? Anyway, none of that matters because HE BREAKS HER NECK LIKE SHE’S NOTHING.
It’s just unbelievable that it happens – it’s just not fair but we had better get used to that sort of thing happening in the Buffyverse.
The scene between Willow and Giles as he wonders whether he should intervene is sweet and funny and the juxtaposition of humour and horror just shouldn’t work but the fantastic thing about BtVS is that is does – often.
The sequence when Giles arrives to find Jenny’s body is heartrending and beautifully directed and edited. (Nitpick alert – just when was Angel invited into Giles’ apartment?)
And finally, this dialogue stops me from being angry at Buffy:
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry I couldn’t kill him for you…for her…when I had the chance…I wasn’t ready…but I think I finally am.”
Xander the Bear
And then a sudden need for cheese.
Saturday, November 18th, 2006Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered (Marti Noxon)
I feel ambivalent about this episode - it is undoubtedly very funny in parts but I feel uncomfortable with so many woman behaving like idiots - I know they are under a spell but it still makes me feel bad.
The scene between Xander and Buffy at the beginning makes me almost like him but it is the subsequent events that make me feel he’s not such a bad guy after all. There is a lot of enjoyable and heartfelt Xander and Cordelia moments. She gets her priorities wrong and hurts Xander quite brutally when she rejects him (maybe Buffy was right with her heart comment “Does she know what one of these is?”). Another great scene when Xander asks for his gift back and it turns out Cordelia is wearing it. They worked very well together and looking ahead I think they probably worked better than Xander and Anya which is something I am surprised to find myself writing. The writers never got the chance to lose interest in Cordy the way they lost interest in Anya so maybe that explains it. Cordy comes good in the end when she turns on Harmony and co: “You’re a sheep. All you ever do is what everyone else does just so you can say you did it first. And here I am, scrambling for your approval when I’m way cooler than you are cause I’m not a sheep. I do what I wanna do, and I wear what I wanna wear. And you know what? I’ll date whoever the hell I wanna date. No matter how lame he is.” (I wonder if there is a connexion with Xander’s bedroom sheep?). Xander is so miscast as a dork - he looks great walking down that corridor to the Average White Band.
Willow is adorable yet again when she tells Amy “My boyfriend’s in the band!”. Angelus is so bad - Spike is beginning to boil as he watches nasty old Angelus flirt with his girlfriend and give her better Valentine’s gifts. The fighting in BtVS is my least favourite aspect of the show partly because of the discrepancy in build between Sophia Crawford and SMG which jars and partly because of the ability of the newly risen to fight really, really well.
Amy does her best Hypnotoad impersonation (or is the other way around?) when she hands in her invisible homework.
I’m not sure if I have mentioned this before but Sarah Michelle Gellar has really hairy arms - what gets me is I didn’t notice this until season five or so. I find it odd that in an era when some (a lot of?) women shave so much of their body hair that arm hair is generally left alone.
Buffy saying “Mom?” in a puzzled tone just makes me shudder.
I love the way Amy leans to look past Xander.
Buffy is in some terrible outfits in this episode - the scarf is bad enough - but the tiny leopard print mini-skirt (with a slit!) makes her look like a hooker. (I can’t find a decent grab of it but trust me.)
Buffy commiserates with Xander and as they face each other you can see her starting to fancy him - SMG does this extraordinarily well. 
Xander mentions lap-dancing which strikes me as odd - surely, he’s underage? Anyway, Buffy comes on strong and it’s quite disturbing as well as funny to see her flirting outrageously. Xander runs home to find Willow in his bed and, omg, this scene is hilarious (and a little sad). Is she wearing his shirt? Does she really suck on his ear and does she really say “force is okay”? And why does it say sheep on Xander’s wall? Robia LaMorte does the infatuation thing really well complimenting his shirt and rubbing her hand up his bicep. Buffy in a raincoat is a Xander fantasy come true and he does the right thing. Buffy hits Amy far too hard considering she isn’t a demon and it’s pleasing when Amy turns Buffy into a rat. Oz hits Xander which was kinda fun. “Joycie” kissing Xander’s neck and handling him with her “mom aged mitts” was a moment to be savoured. Willow doesn’t entirely disappear from the angry mob in the basement but it puzzles me that we weren’t rewarded with a hurt face as she realises how her humiliating behaviour was with Xander.
Oz chasing Buffy in the basement is dull and gets in the way of the Xander Cordy affair but it is worth it for the pay-off as she is de-ratted: “I seem to be having a slight case of nudity here” ” “But you’re not a rat. So call it an upside.” I have to ask - was Buffy a plain rat or was she Buffy-rat? And, big big annoyance, if she can be changed back to a human so easily then why was Amy-rat left to run round her wheel by super-witchy Willow for so long? Not only does it say a lot about Willow (and Tara’s) lack of manners, it deprived us of more of Elizabeth Anne Allen.
“Sorry to say, Xand, slaying is a tad more perilous than dating” “Well, you’re obviously not dating Cordelia”
“My boyfriend’s in the band!” “Cool” “I think you’ve now told everybody” “Only in this hemisphere”
“Dear Buffy. I’m still trying to decide the best way to send my regards” “Why don’t you rip her lungs out? It might make an impression” “Lacks…poetry” “It doesn’t have to. What rhymes with lungs?”
“I want you, Xander…to be my first!” “Baseman! Please tell me we’re talking baseball.”
I didn’t jump. I took a tiny step, and there conclusions were.
Sunday, November 5th, 2006Phases (Rob Des Hotel & Dean Batali)
This episode opens with Oz looking at the cheerleader trophy and he comments on how its eyes seem to follow you - this what one of the (many) reasons I love BtVS - its continuity which generally is quite subtle. Willow is wearing one of a series of silly backpacks
which is so not in character - her backpack would be very organised with compartments for everything (like say, different coloured pens) and I can’t see her emptying her bag every night just to put in all in a new one the next day. She is, of course, wearing a hat. (These reviews are so not deep.)
Cordelia and Xander’s conversations are always amusing with the actors’ great line readings.
The self defence class is a hoot - Oz tucks in Willow’s tag and Xander gets very jealous, Larry was bitten by a “huge dog” while Oz was bitten by his little cousin (”My cousin Jordy just got his grownup teeth in? Does not like to be tickled”), Willow tries to get Buffy to restrain herself (”Don’t forget, you’re supposed to be a meek little girlie-girl like the rest of us”) but how can she resist flattening big bully Larry.
Larry Bagby III is fantastic as Larry. He got the obnoxious over-compensating bully nailed, becomes really sweet
when he thinks Xander has him rumbled and realises he doesn’t need to hide his true nature. The scene when Xander confronts Larry is hilarious as Xander slowly gets a clue about what he has said about himself.
Giles is comical as he suggests asking the car occupants in Lovers Lane if they had seen anything, Buffy does a great look and verbal put-down.
The conversation between Willow and Cordelia in the Bronze is another example of what I like about BtVS - two mismatched people having an intimate conversation e.g. Anya and Spike in Where the Wild Things Are, Tara and Buffy in Dead Things, there must be others but these are my faves.
I love the way the door is closed shut behind Buffy as she enters the Bronze - little things like that are yet more reasons I love this show - have I ever mentioned that I love this show before?
I also love Oz’s “Huh?”
when he wakes up and his low key reaction to Aunt Maureen’s news about young Jordy. I feel much love for this episode.
Here’s the no love: the hunter is a cliche and a dull one at that. No fun at all from him. The wolf costume is plain naff.
The scene in the funeral parlour with Theresa coming to as a vampire is great. Buffy is hit for six with the remark that “Angel sends his love”, Xander stakes Theresa, they hug, Buffy is grateful for the comfort (Angel is not just evil but mean with it) but Xander still wants more (despite Cordelia being so much hotter than Buffy) and it’s moving.
Willow’s two confrontations with Oz are as awesome as you would expect and may I say that Willow is lucky that it’s only three days out of a month she’s grumpy but if they are lucky they might synchronise.
“I know, I know, it’s me. I’m, I’m goin’ through some…changes.” “Well, welcome to the world! Things happen. Don’t you think I’m going through a lot?” ” Not like me.”
“I spoke to Giles. He said I’ll be okay. I just have to lock myself up around the full moon. Only he used more words than that. And a globe.”
“You mean, you’d still…” “Well, I like you. You’re nice and you’re funny. And you don’t smoke. Yeah, okay, werewolf, but that’s not all the time. I mean, three days out of the month I’m not much fun to be around either.” “You are quite the human.” “So, I’d still if you’d still.” “I’d still. I’d very still.” “Okay. No biting, though.”
The best of the rest:
“How far have you gotten?” - cut - “Nowhere. I mean, he said he was gonna wait until I was ready, but I’m ready. Honest. I’m good to go here.” “Well, I think it’s nice that he’s not just being an animal.” “It is nice. He’s great. We have a lot of fun. But I want smoochies!” “Have you dropped any hints?” “I’ve dropped anvils.” “Ah, he’ll come around. What guy could resist your wily Willow charms?” “At last count, all of them. Maybe more.”Well, none of them know a thing. They all get an ‘F’ in Willow.” “But I want Oz to get an ‘A’, and, oh, one of those gold stars.” - what fantastic dialogue, saying so much directly and indirectly and with a touch of foreshadowing.
“What relationship? I mean, what life could they possibly have together? We’re talking obedience school, paper training, Oz is always in back burying their things, and that kind of breed can turn on its owner.”
Now I’m having a wiggins
Monday, October 23rd, 2006Innocence (Joss Whedon)
Is this the first 10/10 episode of BtVS?
David Boreanaz is a revelation as Angelus (as we must call Angel when he’s bad); he is clearly having a lot of fun in his role: taunting Spike, flirting with Drusilla and being really, really mean to Buffy. The scene at his apartment when she meets him for the first time since that “one moment” is gut wrenching. SMG shows off her undoubted talent as she negotiates Buffy’s path of humiliation, shame, guilt, pain and disappointment that Joss Whedon has laid out for her.
But it may be SMG’s show, but it’s Alyson Hannigan as Willow who has the moments in the episode that are simply sublime: the look on her face as we see her discovering what Xander and Cordelia have been up to:
the pain in her voice as she realises the truth about Xander’s platonic feelings for her:
the first to realise what had occurred between Buffy and Angel (“Shut up, Giles”), and yet another awesome scene with Oz, Seth Green is marvellous here, but AH’s face says it all: “this boy is the one”:
I could quote it all but here’s the best bit “It’s like, it’s like freeze frame. Willow kissage.”
We discover that Angel is the real deal baddie because he’s smokin’.
I’m starting to warm to Spike as he shows his vulnerable side as he watches helplessly as Angel and Dru rekindle their pervy past.
Xander’s eyebrow does an amazing thing when he gets a plan:
Urgh, reviewing the programme as I write this means I have to revise this to a 9/10 – I have just been reminded of the Buffy/Angel sex scene with added heavy breathing by Joss Whedon – it brings back awful memories of Where the Wild Things Are.
I feel sorry for Jenny – she did conceal her real identity from Giles and Buffy but she did that because of her loyalty to her family. It is sad to be made a scapegoat for something you couldn’t have known would happen. Buffy’s inaction at the end of the episode costs Jenny dear. While Andy is forgiving of Buffy’s leniency, the subsequent deaths that occur because of her behaviour anger me, “give me time”, she says, time that others don’t have.
The double ending with Giles in the car and Joyce and the old film are just lovely (“I got older”).
“I knew it! I knew it! Well, not ‘knew it’ in the sense of having the slightest idea, but I knew there was something I didn’t know. You two were fighting way too much. It’s not natural!”
“No. It just means that you’d rather be with someone you hate than be with me.”
“One moment of true happiness, of contentment, one moment where the soul that we restored no longer plagues his thoughts, and that soul is taken from him.” – I like sex, love it even but I’m not entirely happy with the idea of coitus as being true happiness – plus it places a terrible burden on Buffy’s loss of her virginity which is unfair (but totally dramatic!)
“But she’s so cute and helpless. Really a turn-on.” – oo, evil!
“This is great. There’s an unkillable demon in town, Angel’s joined his team, the Slayer is a basket case. I’d say we’ve hit bottom.” “I have a plan.” “Oh, no, here’s a lower place.”
“To kill this girl – you have to love her.”
Do you really think you’re ready, Buffy?
Wednesday, October 11th, 2006Surprise (Marti Noxon)
From the ridiculous to the sublime (actually not quite the sublime, that’s to come). Surprise is the slow build up to Innocence and it’s a good episode in many ways: though that excludes the comedy strangling by severed arm
and the Judge’s name (that’s because all I can think of is Rowan and Martin’s “here comes da judge”).
The tension between Buffy and Angel is palpable though my rational mind can’t help thinking – he has no circulation, he’ll be clammy, yuck – while my romantic mind is going ahhhh. The way they escape from Spike and Dru is a bit lame but gives them an excuse to get their clothes off and give Angel that “one minute of happiness”.
Willow is continuing her remarkable cuteness curve despite:
the big purple hat
and the jumper with the Scottie dog
Her exchange with Oz is just adorable and the way she says “I said ‘date’” is just wonderful. She has every right to be excited – Oz is so darn cool.
We discover that Jenny Calendar isn’t Jenny Calendar but “Janna, of the Kalderash people! A Gypsy!” – oh boy, there’s going to be trouble ahead – just what is she doing with Buffy and the Beetle? – it’s all so suspicious. It’s a pity Vincent Schiavelli hams this up a bit though the costume department wasn’t doing him any favours with that hat (what is it with the hats??).
Some random asides: Juliet Landau has incredible arms – all muscle and veins – I bet she has no problem giving blood. Buffy has a lot of rings on her fingers which reminds me of the incongruous collection on Abby Grant’s fingers in Survivors.
“Fish of the day?”
“You think he’s too old ’cause he’s a senior? Please. My boyfriend had a bicentennial”
“I’m gonna ask you to go out with me tomorrow night. And I’m kinda nervous about it, actually. It’s interesting.” “Oh. Well, if it helps at all, I’m gonna say yes” “Yeah, it helps. It-it creates a comfort zone. Do you wanna go out with me tomorrow night?” “Oh! I can’t!” “Well, see, I like that you’re unpredictable.”
“I know it’s hard to accept at first”. “Actually, it explains a lot.”
“Hmm, it’s sad, granted. But let’s look at the upside for a moment. I mean, what kind of a future would she’ve really had with him? She’s got two jobs - Denny’s waitress by day, Slayer by night - and Angel’s always in front of the TV with a big blood belly, and he’s dreaming of the glory days when Buffy still thought this whole creature of the night routine was a big turn on.” “You’ve thought way too much about this.” “No, no. That’s just the beginning. Have I told you the part where I fly into town in my private jet and take Buffy out for prime rib?”
“Do it again! Do it again!”
