Music: “Body of Binky” (in the park), by Coin Monster, from Schematic; “Make Me a Star” (as Xander and Anya make wedding plans), by Strange Radio, from Pre-Release Pop Radio; “Everybody Got Their Something” (as Xander, Anya, and Willow dance), by Nikka Costa, from Everybody Got Their Something; Even If (It Is Love), by Lift, from September; “Around My Smile” (when Dawn and Justin kiss), by Hope Sandoval and the Warm Inventions, from Bavarian Fruit Bread; “Just as Nice” (at the Bronze), by Man of the Year, from The Future Is Not Now; “The Sun Keeps Shining on Me” (when Dawn realizes the truth about her date), by Fonda, from The Strange and the Familiar
Plot: Dawn sneaks out on Halloween, and gets more excitement than she’d reckoned for.
THIS WEEK’S UNDEAD BAD BOYS: Teenage vampires out to score—blood, that is.
INTRODUCING: Dawn as rebellious teen.
ANALYSIS: Buffy is still adjusting to the new path her relationship with Spike has taken. He has become a comrade-in-arms as well as a sort of family friend. The reason she thinks it was easier when they were adversaries was because she didn’t have to worry about any hidden meanings. She knows he’s in love with her, but since she’s been back among the living, he hasn’t pressed her about it the way he did before her run-in with Glory.
While on the one hand Dawn’s kleptomaniacal tendencies and lies may be seen as typical teenage behavior, there’s also a dark side to Dawn. We see this when she and her friends are callously cruel to an old man who wants to give them special Halloween cookies he’s baked. Although Buffy frequently lied to Joyce about where she was as a teenager, it usually involved her saving the world. Dawn knows how special her sister is, but it’s hard growing up in such a looming shadow. Dawn steals as a way of making herself feel special and to give her an identity outside of being just “Buffy’s little sister.”
Buffy has turned much of her parental authority over to Giles. Buffy either ignores or doesn’t see that he feels it’s really her responsibility. But what troubles Giles most is Willow’s growing dependence on witchcraft—and the way she mindlessly resorts to it. Rather than saving it as a tool for fighting Hellmouth creatures, it’s becoming a habit and she is using it to control others.
THE REAL HORROR: Sibling rivalry. Like most teenagers, Dawn thinks she is far more capable than anyone gives her credit for, and doesn’t understand why Buffy seems to get to do whatever she wants. But Dawn doesn’t realize just how much Buffy and the others run interference on her behalf, protecting her from the dangers of living in Sunnydale. When Dawn finds herself making out with a vampire who wants to turn her, she has to be saved by Buffy. The downside is she gets caught big-time in her lie that she was at her friend’s house for a sleepover, which just further proves everyone’s point that she’s too young to be on her own.
IT’S A MYSTERY: Why didn’t Dawn notice that Justin’s face and lips were unnaturally cold when they kissed?
BLOOPERS: If Dawn was in the ninth grade last year, this year she should be a sophomore.
Buffy’s comment to Xander she was gone three months isn’t correct. Spike has previously noted Buffy was dead 147 days, which would be almost five months.
OF SPECIAL NOTE: As a young girl, Amber Tamblyn played Emily Quartermaine on General Hospital. She is the daughter of West Side Story and Twin Peaks star Russ Tamblyn.
107. “Once More, With Feeling”
(NOVEMBER 6, 2001)
Director: Joss Whedon
Teleplay: Joss Whedon
Recurring cast: Anthony Stewart Head (Rupert Giles); Amber Benson (Tara)
Guest cast: Hinton Battle (musical demon); David Fury (mustard man); Marti Noxon (parking-ticket woman); Daniel Weaver (handsome young man); Scot Zeller (henchman); Zachary Woodlee (demon/henchman); Timothy Anderson (henchman); Alex Estronel (henchman); Matt Sims (college guy #1); Hunter Cochran (college guy #2)
Plot: A mysterious force causes everyone to reveal their deepest feelings through song, exposing some unpleasant truths.
THIS WEEK’S MUSICALLY INCLINED MEDDLER: A fashion-conscious demon named Sweet, who was summoned by the misguided Xander, who thought a little music would add some much-needed cheer to the group.
ANALYSIS: Besides being a marvel of ingenuity, this episode allows for vital dramatic development, to move the series and the characters’ relationships along. Forcing everyone to reveal their innermost, most closely guarded feelings put everyone on the same page—Buffy and the others respond to what they’ve learned and/or revealed.
At first the singing seems cheerful as mostly-happy emotions are shared when everyone is together as a group or paired off in couples. Tara tells Willow that the greatest magic of all is the transforming power of love, and their nature walk leads to them making love. Meanwhile Xander and Anya come to grips with all the questions and worries they’ve been keeping hidden from each other and themselves, revealing their worry that they might not truly be meant for each other. Giles finally admits to himself and Buffy that she will never grow as a person unless he leaves and forces her to deal with problems herself; while he has been Watcher to her Slayer, he cannot be Watcher for her life.
Buffy’s revelation that she was plucked from Heaven, and the difficulty she’s had in finding any meaning being back, leaves the others, especially Willow, stunned. But it’s Spike who prevents Buffy from dancing herself into spontaneously combusting, by telling her the only way to get past the pain of losing Heaven is to live, and not just go through the motions. She takes his advice and starts by reaching out to him and they embrace in a passionate kiss. But Buffy’s struggle to conquer her demons isn’t ending, it’s only just beginning.
THE REAL HORROR: Brutal honesty. Although we like to think we can handle the truth, few people are secure enough, or masochistic enough, to really want to hear what other people are thinking.
BLOOPERS: One of Sweet’s puppet demons appears to be moving after he’s been killed during Buffy’s speed-dancing moves.
OF SPECIAL NOTE: The original broadcast of this episode ran 68 minutes long. For future airings, the show would be edited down to fit an hourlong time slot.
The “mustard man” was played by co–executive producer David Fury and the “parking-ticket woman” was played by executive producer Marti Noxon.
Even the Mutant Enemy logo sings the “grrr-arg” at the end of the episode.
Alyson Hannigan requested to have no individual songs and as few singing lines as possible.
At one point, there was the possibility of Sarah Michelle using a singing double but she decided against it because she decided she needed to convey the intense emotions expressed in the songs.
MUSICAL NOTE: The soundtrack to this episode is available on CD. In addition to the songs from the episode, the tracks also include the demo of “Something to Sing About,” performed by Joss Whedon and his wife Kai Cole. Here is the chronological list of songs featured in the episode:
“Overture/Going Through the Motions”; “I’ve Got a Theory/Bunnies/If We’re Together”; “The Mustard (fragment)”; “Under Your Spell”; “I’ll Never Tell”; “Parking Ticket (fragment)”; “Broomdance”; “Rest in Peace”; “Dawn’s Lament”; “Ballad”; “What You Feel”; “Standing”; “Under Your Spell/Standing (reprise)”; “Walk Through the Fire”; “Something to Sing About”; “What You Feel (reprise)”; “Where Do We Go from Here”; “Coda”.
108. “Tabula Rasa”
(NOVEMBER 13, 2001)
Director: David Grossman
Teleplay: Rebecca Rand Kirshner
Recurring cast: Anthony Stewart Head (Rupert Giles); Amber Benson (Tara)
Guest cast: Raymond O’Connor (loan shark); Geordie White (vamp #1); Stephen Triplett (vamp #2); David Franco (vamp #3)
Music: “Goodbye to You” (at the Bronze), by Michelle Branch, from The Spirit Room
Plot: Willow accidentally gives everyone amnesia.
THIS WEEK’S DEMON DEBT-COLLECTOR: Sharky, to whom Spike owes a gambling debt of forty kittens.
ANALYSIS: In an effort to make Buffy forget she has lost Heaven, Willow uses a spell. But she accidentally makes everyone forget who they are and what their relationship to one another is.
It’s just the latest example of how Willow is now using magic to deal with all of life’s problems and hurdles. While she may be growing ever more powerful as a witch, she is losing touch with how to cope as a human, and is stunting her personal growth. Although magic seems easy, Willow still fails to understand that by using magic she puts herself and everyone around her at risk because it is not an exact science. Tara soon suggests that she doesn’t know if she can continue their relationship unless Willow deals with her directly and not through magic. Willow sees it simply as Tara leaving her, instead of realizing that her obsession with magic is driving Tara away.
Likewise, Buffy accuses Giles of abandoning her. She doesn’t understand that he loves her enough to leave, thereby forcing her to deal with the issues she’s been studiously avoiding.
Once everyone gets their memories back, there’s still plenty of awkwardness to go around. Tara is heartbroken that Willow couldn’t keep her promise to not do magic for a week, and breaks off their relationship. Giles leaves Sunnydale with a heavy heart. Despite knowing he’s doing what’s best, it pains him that Buffy is angry with him and he goes on his way carrying a sense of loss. Buffy feels abandoned and, remembering the freedom from pain she felt when she lost herself and didn’t know who she was, Buffy turns to Spike in a bid to lose herself again, just for a while, in his kiss.
THE REAL HORROR: Having to live with yourself. Willow is left with the consequences of her reliance on magic, while Buffy turns to Spike in an effort to forget who she is and what’s expected of her.
OF SPECIAL NOTE: Tabula rasa is Latin for “blank slate.” The expression has come to mean “starting from scratch.”
MUSICAL NOTE: Michelle Branch performs onstage at the Bronze at the end of the episode.
109. “Smashed”
(NOVEMBER 20, 2001)
Director: Turi Meyer
Teleplay: Drew Z. Greenberg
Recurring cast: Danny Strong (Jonathan); Adam Busch (Warren); Tom Lenk (Andrew); Elizabeth Anne Allen (Amy Madison); Amber Benson (Tara)
Guest cast: Patrice Walters (woman); John Patrick Clerkin (man); Jack Jozefson (Rusty); Rick Garcia (reporter); Kelly Smith (innocent girl); Jordan Belfi (Ryan); Adam Weiner (Simon); Melanie Sirmons (Brie); Lauren Nissi (girlfriend)
Music: “Vermillion Borders,” “Parachute,” and “Here” (at the Bronze), by Virgil, from Virgil; “Run Away” (by girl band onstage at the Bronze), by the Halo Friendlies, from Halo Friendlies Ghetto Demo
Plot: Willow turns Amy back to normal and they go on a magic spree.
THIS WEEK’S CURIOUS TWIST: Spike discovers he can hit Buffy without his feeling pain, leading him to believe she came back to life less human than when she left it.
INTRODUCING: Amy. Willow manages to finally de-rat Amy after she spent nearly three years in rodent mode.
ANALYSIS: Without Tara around to curb Willow’s use of magic, Willow is further seduced by her power, and gets even more careless with it—urged on by Amy, who uses her powers with reckless abandon. Although the others, especially Xander, are worried about her, and Anya knows how seductive this kind of power can be, Buffy wants to believe that Willow’s innate levelheadedness will win.
Buffy also wants to believe that her kissing flings with Spike are aberrations and that she really isn’t drawn to him for some more primal reason. But after Spike taunts her about perhaps not being so much better than he is, as evidenced by his ability to hit her without causing himself pain, Buffy loses her cool and her control, and finally gives in to her emptiness and loneliness by finding violent comfort in Spike’s arms. Their lovemaking is so raw and fierce that it literally brings down the abandoned building they are in. While this may be love for Spike, for Buffy it’s not about passion, it’s about the desperate desire for release.
Each in her own way, both Willow and Buffy have gone and crossed over to embrace the darkness within, in an effort to rid themselves of the pain that’s enveloping them.
THE REAL HORROR: Losing yourself. Doing something completely out of character, just as a way of not dealing, will only lead to more alienation because the outcome inevitably will be self-loathing.
IT’S A MYSTERY: Why is Amy’s hair a different color from when she originally turned herself into a rat?
OF SPECIAL NOTE: Andrew claims to have seen every episode of Doctor Who which began in 1963. However, the BBC purged their archives (for unexplained reasons) sometime during the 1970s, and about a hundred early episodes of Doctor Who were destroyed. Clearly Andrew isn’t old enough to have seen them prior to the purge.
MUSICAL NOTE: The band Virgil is performing onstage at the Bronze, before Willow turns them into a girl group.
110. “Wrecked”
(NOVEMBER 27, 2001)
Director: David Solomon
Teleplay: Marti Noxon
Recurring cast: Elizabeth Anne Allen (Amy Madison); Jeff Kober (Rack); Amber Benson (Tara)
Guest cast: Fleming Brooks (Mandraz); Mageina Tovah (jonesing girl); Michael Giordani (jonesing guy); Colin Malone (creepy guy)
Music: “Black Cat Bone” (while Willow is at Rack’s), by Laika, from Good-Looking Blues
Plot: Willow’s addiction to the dark magics has near tragic consequences. Buffy must deal with the emotional consequences of having sex with Spike.
THIS WEEK’S MIND-ALTERING FORCE: Magic that can be as addictive as drugs.
INTRODUCING: Rack, who is kind of a dealer—except here the drugs are magic spells; Anya’s new hair color.
ANALYSIS: Buffy is horrified at having slept with Spike, so she lashes out at him in anger when she’s really upset with herself. She knows she doesn’t love Spike, and while the sex may be physically pleasing, she knows she is complicating her life in unnecessary ways.
Willow is beginning to suffer the effects of her magic binges, which take a physical toll. After Amy introduces her to Rack, whose spells are nothing short of drug highs, Willow is terrified because she knows she’s out of control, but at the same time she can’t stop herself from going back for more, like any addict. She misses Tara so much, she wants something to fill the void, even though by using magic she is only further alienating the woman she loves.
After Willow crashes a car with Dawn in it, Buffy finally realizes that Willow indeed has a problem and confronts her on it. Willows promises to stop, horrified that she put Dawn in danger—but it’s a promise Willow knows she may not be able to keep.
THE REAL HORROR: Addiction. The first step is admitting to yourself that you have a problem. Willow is at that stage, but now the hardest part is being strong enough to keep from slipping back into whatever has control over you.
OF SPECIAL NOTE: This is Jeff Kober’s second appearance on Buffy. He previously played vampire Zackary Kralik in Episode 46, “Helpless,” in Season Three.
The cartoon playing on TV is Ding Dog Daddy, made by Warner Brothers in 1942 and directed by Friz Freleng.
111. “Gone”
(JANUARY 8, 2002)
Director: David Fury
Teleplay: David Fury
Recurring cast: Danny Strong (Jonathan); Adam Busch (Warren); Tom Lenk (Andrew)
Guest cast: Jessa French (Cleo); Kelly Parver (girl in park); Jeffrey Jacquin (meter man); Dwight Bacquie (security guard); Lyndon Smith (little boy); Melina Webberley (little girl); Elin Hampton (co-worker)
Music: “I Know,” by Trespassers William, from Anchor
Plot: The Trio turn Buffy invisible. Social Services threatens to take Dawn away from Buffy.
THIS WEEK’S HI-TECH SURPRISE: An invisibility ray. Warren builds it using the mystical diamond they stole from the Sunnydale Museum. Unfortunately, it causes whatever it has turned invisible to eventually dissolve into nothingness.
INTRODUCING: Warren’s dark side. Unlike J
onathan and Andrew, Warren wants to know the power of taking a life, and has set his sights on the Slayer.
ANALYSIS: In another attempt to enhance the Trio’s criminal profile, Warren builds an invisibility ray-gun and accidentally zaps Buffy with it. Buffy relishes the sense of freedom it gives her and she delights in some mischief, including getting back the Social Services caseworker who’d threatened to take Dawn away if Buffy didn’t prove herself a more fit guardian.
Willow distracts herself from going cold-turkey on the magic by investigating what exactly happened to Buffy. She uses the old-fashioned methods of computer- and legwork, and eventually tracks down the Trio’s lair. Jonathan and Andrew simply want to get Buffy to meet them so they can make her visible again. They are not killers, and neither wants anything to happen to her. But Warren shows his true colors when he tries to zap Buffy into oblivion. After Willow uses the ray-gun to make everyone visible again, Buffy is stunned to see who has been behind the strange things that have been happening. She doesn’t take the Trio very seriously, and considers them mostly a nuisance. But she will soon find that she tragically underestimates the evil in Warren’s soul.
THE REAL HORROR: Lost time. Once she’s confronted with the possibility of fading away, Buffy finally realizes she really doesn’t want to die, and that she wants to be there for Willow and the others, because life is precious.
LITERARY ALLUSION: Warren calling Jonathan “Frodo” refers to Frodo Baggins, the Hobbit hero of J. R. R. Tolkier’s trilogy, The Lord of the Rings, who stands only about three feet tall.
112. “Doublemeat Palace”
(JANUARY 29, 2002)
Director: Nick Marck
Teleplay: Jane Espenson
Recurring cast: Elizabeth Anne Allen (Amy Madison); Kali Rocha (Halfrek)
Guest cast: Pat Crawford Brown (old lady); Brent Hinkley (Manny); Kirsten Neilson (Lorraine Ross); T. Ferguson (Gary); Marion Calvert (Gina); Douglas Bennett (Phillip); Andrew Reville (Timothy); Kevin C. Carter (Mr. Typical); John F. Kearney (elderly man); Sara Lawall (housewife type); Victor Z. Isaac (pimply teen)
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