When She Was Bad (Joss Whedon)

What happened to Buffy’s dad? I would like to know how he metamorphosed from this sympathetic and caring dad to the one that didn’t care about his daughters after his ex-wife died in season five. It’s not as if the actor wasn’t prepared to reprise the role because he was in Normal Again. It seems rather mean to twist his character around like this.

Willow’s face when she tries to get Xander to notice her rather than Buffy and stoops (not literally) to putting ice cream on her nose is heartbreaking. Willow (or should I say, Alyson Hannigan) is getting seriously cute with ice cream on her nose (twice), that tongue behind the teeth grin and pigtails.

Cordelia is rising further up in my estimation with each episode. The likes of “Whatever is causing the Joan Collins tude, deal with it. Embrace the pain, spank your inner moppet, whatever, but get over it. Cause pretty soon you're not even gonna have the loser friends you've got now” contrasted with “It stays with you forever. No matter what they tell you, none of that rust and blood and grime comes out. I mean, you can dry clean till judgment day, you are living with those stains” is just perfect.

I was reading somewhere (sorry can’t remember exactly) that the IQ of Xander and Willow seems to drop in an episode written by Joss Whedon and it’s true: it is an undeniably a laugh out loud moment (sorry guys, certainly not dialogue to bury) but I think Xander would know how to spell bitch…still, bitca is funny and lives on.

Rather belatedly, I spotted a subtle clue in what turned out to be a Buffy nightmare and that’s when Willow and Xander swap their snacks – she gives him the apple and she takes the sugary snack – like that would happen.

There is a classic scene with Snyder and Giles with Snyder going on about hormones, locusts and talking to himself and then Giles wanders after Ms Calendar following his own hormones. Let’s not to forget the sixth sense exchange: “There're some things I can just smell. It's like a sixth sense.” “No, actually that would be one of the five.” (the timing from ASH, the smugness and meanness beautifully played by Armin Shimerman, wonderful).

Buffy’s behaviour is totally out of order and her friends are a little too forgiving of her outrageous treatment of Xander (and, by extension, Willow) in the Bronze: sexy though and cool music. It’s only episode 13 but Buffy is just getting started on her “I can do this alone” crusade which, naturally, leads to her endangering her friends and getting them strung up upside down like pigs in a slaughterhouse (unfortunately, this made me laugh because it looked a little silly). Xander’s response to this (“If they hurt Willow, I'll kill you”) is heartfelt and sincere and you hope he’ll realise what Willow means to him (until Oz turns up and then you don’t but I am getting ahead).

Most importantly, this is the episode that clearly states there is no crazy golf course in Sunnydale.