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3.18 Earshot Xander: "I'm still having trouble with that fact that one of us is just going to gun everybody down for no reason." Cordelia: "Yeah, because that never happens in American high schools." Oz: "It's bordering on trendy at this point." Was it just Buffy-deprivation, or was this a really good episode? We had the biting wit and great lines, and yet they were addressing truly serious issues here. I'm now very put out that this one didn't run when it should have, because it was a necessary consequences episode after "Enemies." The Faith fake-out and her open move to the Mayor's camp was a major plot change that needed consequences. I really do understand why WB postponed it, but it sort of suffered from being out of order, don't you think? Buffy accidentally acquired an aspect of a telepathic demon, and started reading minds. At first, it was way better than a tail (I really enjoyed the scene where she was smugly reading her teacher's mind), but she soon discovered that she was making everyone she cared about uncomfortable. She heard Willow's self-esteem issues, Oz' deep philosophical thoughts, Xander's preoccupation with sex, Wesley's preoccupation with Cordy -- and the one that was the most fun -- Cordy thinking everything she was about to say right before she said it. Buffy wasn't at all sure that Angel kissed Faith only "for the greater good," and it was an obvious (and fun) move for her to run over, get him out of bed, and try to read his mind. And even more fun for him to realize what she was doing. The Buffy/Angel scenes in this episode were really great. "I don't want a bad girl; I've done that before" raised some interesting questions about Angel's previous sex life; "I'll love you even if you're covered with slime" was delivered in such a way that you really couldn't tell what he was thinking. And I just loved that totally deadpan, "I'm a funny guy." The serious stuff was intensely serious. The thoughts Buffy caught really hit a note with me: "I hate my body." "No one is ever going to love me." "Am I normal?" Everyone is lonely. Everyone has pain. I was worried for a second that they were going to have Jonathan go completely out of character and be a killer, but I should have known better. Instead, we had the delightfully satirical cliche of being poisoned in the school cafeteria. Bits and pieces: -- The most enjoyable revelation in this episode was that Giles and Joyce did indeed have sex in the episode "Band Candy." How delightful. -- It struck me as odd to see Buffy doing Xena-like leaps and kick-boxing moves in front of an audience in broad daylight. It's usually in a deserted graveyard or a sewer or something. -- We had some neater than usual reminders of Angel's vampirism: arriving at Buffy's door smoking, and having Buffy not see him in her makeup mirror. -- People rarely commit suicide with a rifle; the angle can be a challenge. Buffy still should have gotten a clue when she only jacked one round out of it. -- Larry is a lot happier now that he's out. And he still thinks Xander is gay. -- Loved Freddie the newspaper guy. Or at least I loved his prose. -- Again with the Scooby Gang chain of command: with Buffy and Giles unavailable, Willow was so much fun as a top sergeant. "Write neatly and label your worksheets!" -- Xander was distracted from his life-and-death mission by Jell-O. -- This week's dog: Buffy: "Well, I thought I saw a four-legged demon, but it was just a dog." Oz: "A were-dog?" Buffy: "Regular." -- For those of you coming to "Buffy" late, this episode was originally pulled because it was scheduled to air only days after the Columbine massacre. The second part of "Graduation Day" was pulled as well, for the same reason. We had to wait quite a while for both of them. Quotes: Giles: "You touched one of the demons." Buffy: "A good touch, not a bad touch. Anyway, it's been itching like crazy. No big. Just another problem for the good people at Lubriderm, right?" Willow: "Well, according to Freddy's latest editorial, 'The pep rally is a place for pseudo-prostitutes to provoke men into a sexual frenzy, which when thwarted, results in pointless athletic competition.'" Xander: "And the downside being?" Willow: "The school paper is edging on depressing lately. Have you guys noticed that?" Oz: "I dunno. I always go straight to the obits." Buffy: "Is this the thing? The aspect thing? Because I gotta say, if it is, it is way better than a tail. I mean, I have a hard enough time finding jeans that fit right." Giles: "Buffy, slow down. I'm not even convinced that this is genuine mind reading. You're most likely projecting your..." Buffy: "When I walked in a few minutes ago, you thought, Look at her shoes. If a fashion magazine told her to, she'd wear cats strapped to her feet." Angel: "Buffy, be careful with this gift. A lot of things that seem strong and good and powerful, they can be painful." Buffy: "Like say, immortality?" Angel: "Exactly. I'm dying to get rid of that." Oz: "It was intense." Xander: "Yeah, for a minute there, I thought you were going to make an expression." Oz: "I felt one coming on, I won't lie." Willow: "Man, I've never seen anyone jump like Hogan Martin. They should call him... the jumper." Xander: "Or a name that isn't an article of women's clothing." Buffy: "You had sex with Giles?" Joyce: "Um, ah..." Buffy: "You had sex with Giles?" Joyce: "It was the candy... we were teenagers..." Buffy: "On the hood of a police car?" Joyce: "I'll be downstairs. You feel better." Buffy: "TWICE?" Xander: "Today's editorial entitled "Big game draws mindless brain-dead mob." Cordelia: "Does he mention the cheerleaders? Because we were on." Oz: "(reading) Dingoes Ate My Baby played their instruments as if they had plump, Polish sausages taped to their fingers..." Freddy: "Sorry, man." Oz: "Nah, its fair." Willow: "So you're feeling better about Angel?" Buffy: "Well, we talked. And then he ripped out the heart of a demon and fed it to me... and then we talked some more." Willow: "See? That's how it should work." It doesn't get better than this. Four out of four stakes, Billie |
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