S01.E12: Prophecy Girl

[Lisin]

From Wikipedia:

Buffy quits Slaying when a prophecy predicts she will die in battle against the Master and the Anointed One, but soon puts aside her fear and enters the fray on her own timetable and terms. In fulfillment of prophecy, the Master indeed kills the Slayer and opens the Hellmouth, but learns too late that Buffy is resilient, unpredictable—and lethal.

 

I like a lot of things about this episode, but I also think it feels a bit anticlimactic. Maybe I'm just spoiled and I don't remember it from my first watch. I love that Xander gets to save Buffy, I like the slayer reveal to Ms. Calendar. I like that Cordy helps too. I like the "we saved the world, I say we party" bit, but I always find the Master himself somewhat annoying and ugh to Colin too. Perhaps that's my problem. I don't know. I'm not saying I hate it, but Buffy, like Friends is a show where I often skip most of the first season when contemplating a rewatch, and this is one of the episodes I'd skip. 

[Wilowy]

To me, this is my only 'must-see' episode of season 1. The others are all a blob of promise to come, not quite there yet. Of course I say this as a pretty much constant watcher. If I were getting someone into it for the first time I'd recommend a few others, as well. :)

[DAngelus]

Best Finale Ever.  Best Scene Ever.  Best Act Ever.  Best Episode for Buffy.  Best Episode for Xander.  (I don't think we ever got that far in the Showdown game, but I think Xander in this episode could win "Best Episode for Any Character, Ever".)  On a scale of 1 to 10, this doesn't suck.

 

Innocence blows up more plots, moves five separate romantic storylines, juggles more characters (Oz, Spike, Dru), has much better acting from David B. and lets us hear Joss Whedon make sex noises, and Passion is just rip-your-heart-out beautiful pain, but this has always been a very close #3 for me.  It's the reason why, if I could only take one set of DVDs with me, it might be S1.  Better closure and all, even if S2 is writ larger, and nearly double the length.

Edited June 11, 2014 by DAngelus

[Joe Hellandback]

On ‎04‎/‎06‎/‎2014 at 7:36 PM, Lisin said:

From Wikipedia:

 

I like a lot of things about this episode, but I also think it feels a bit anticlimactic. Maybe I'm just spoiled and I don't remember it from my first watch. I love that Xander gets to save Buffy, I like the slayer reveal to Ms. Calendar. I like that Cordy helps too. I like the "we saved the world, I say we party" bit, but I always find the Master himself somewhat annoying and ugh to Colin too. Perhaps that's my problem. I don't know. I'm not saying I hate it, but Buffy, like Friends is a show where I often skip most of the first season when contemplating a rewatch, and this is one of the episodes I'd skip. 

Really, I think it's epic, Buffy confronting her imminent death and for her heart to heart with Joyce alone. I would also have like to have seen

Spoiler

her talk with Dawn.

 

On ‎09‎/‎06‎/‎2014 at 5:41 AM, Wilowy said:

To me, this is my only 'must-see' episode of season 1. The others are all a blob of promise to come, not quite there yet. Of course I say this as a pretty much constant watcher. If I were getting someone into it for the first time I'd recommend a few others, as well. :)

Not even Angel or WTTH/The Harvest?

On ‎11‎/‎06‎/‎2014 at 11:02 PM, DAngelus said:

Best Finale Ever.  Best Scene Ever.  Best Act Ever.  Best Episode for Buffy.  Best Episode for Xander.  (I don't think we ever got that far in the Showdown game, but I think Xander in this episode could win "Best Episode for Any Character, Ever".)  On a scale of 1 to 10, this doesn't suck.

 

Innocence blows up more plots, moves five separate romantic storylines, juggles more characters (Oz, Spike, Dru), has much better acting from David B. and lets us hear Joss Whedon make sex noises, and Passion is just rip-your-heart-out beautiful pain, but this has always been a very close #3 for me.  It's the reason why, if I could only take one set of DVDs with me, it might be S1.  Better closure and all, even if S2 is writ larger, and nearly double the length.

Nah, The Zeppo, Grave and BBB show X-man at his best.

 Prophecy Girl

The Good; Buffy's unjustified (but very human) rant at Giles, the wonderful slow motion fight with the vamp whilst Cordy is parking with a guy. Buffy accepting her fate for the sake of her friends and family. The Buffy/Master confrontation and her final battle with him. Xander listening to country music, the white man's blues. Xander practicing on Willow and Willow consequently turning him down. Cordy and Will finding the bodies. Cordy's car trick and the girls fleeing in terror. The Buffy/Joyce scene. Love Buffy's dress.

The Bad; The tentacles from the Hellmouth look pretty weak. Also I thought the boy who get's killed is the same one as in the last ep but it's not, Cordy seems to have a new guy every week. I always think that's lame on TV, characters get boyfriends/girlfriends one week who mean the world to them then they're forgotten about the next ep.

Best line; Angel; "I like your dress" Buffy; "Big hit with everyone"

Kinky dinky; watching the scene you could interpret it as virginal Buffy in her white 'bridal' dress appears to orgasm wildly more or less against her will as The Master paws her and penetrates her body with his fangs. For such a self-professed pro-feminist Joss puts his heroines through a lot as Alien 4 may prove? In 'Get It Done' we learn why Slayers have these dark sexual desires.

Questions and observations; Buffy dies for the first time and is bitten by a vampire for the first but by no means the last time. Giles get's knocked out for the first time (by Buffy!). Jenny's back, yay! Presumably the reason Cordy is being so nice to Will and isn't mad at her boyfriend du jour is that it's one of the signs of the apocalypse?  Note that when Buffy comes back from the dead they play the show's theme full blast. According to Joss the theme starts off like a conventional horror theme but then kicks into rock and roll thrash because it signifies that Buffy and co won't conform to the horror stereotype, they won't take it any more. So we have Buffy dying just as the prophecy says, like all the Slayers before her but she rebels and comes back. If you wanted to see a feminist subtext, she refuses to be the victim, to accept the gender role assigned to her. I don't know if Joss intended it but someone at The Bronze once pointed out that the Scoobies are actually the clichéd victims you'd find in any horror film, the sexy blonde, the athletic hunk, the bitchy cheerleader, the hapless nerd, the wiseass jerk and the stuffy authority figure. But in Joss' show the victim's fight back and win. Angel has a phone and Giles' know's his number. Buffy actually says she feels stronger after Xander brings her back. She shouldn't of course, she should be weak as a kitten so maybe this is God's/the PTB's doing after her 'baptism'? Now of course, at the end of this we see the characters walk off into the sunset and we have no idea if there will ever be a second season? If the series had stopped there it would have been a good ending and fondly remembered, we'd assume the Hellmouth was closed and that our characters would go on to lead fairly ordinary lives. Except for Angel, of course? 

So if Buffy had died for real what would have happened?

Spoiler

 Presumably Angel would have defeated the Master? Or the Initiative? No offence to Kendra but I figure this would have meant that Faith would be the Slayer and consequently Dawn would be HER sister. Faith would never have gone bad and Joyce would get over her grief by adopting Faith and Dawn as her foster children. Even so, in the Buffyverse death isn't necessarily for ever...?

Couple of interesting lines. Xander says that if Willow is interested in Buffy she's playing it close to her chest. Cordy remarks that she doesn't know why she and Willow bother with boys and Willow agrees 'I hear you'

One thing that occurs to me having watched Get it Done and season 8 is that the Slayer's power is rooted 'in the ground', maybe that's the link as to why the Master needed Buffy's blood to open the Hellmouth?

10/10 even with the stupid tentacles

 

[Halting Hex]

4 hours ago, Joe Hellandback said:

Nah, The Zeppo, Grave and BBB show X-man at his best.

Really?  You prefer Xander to be 

Spoiler

a "secretly-cool" clown, getting insulted by Cordelia or Dawn or Harmony until he lucks into a win, or makes a dubious speech, or gets his ass saved by Giles right before he's torn to pieces

, is that it?  Well, I prefer Xander risking his heart to ask Buffy to the dance, rising above his heartbreak to shame Angel out of his cowardice and saving Buffy's life, and thus the world.  (Also, he gets to fight vampires, being classed as essentially Angel's equal, instead of being sent to the sidelines. Character development over regression, heroism over sidelining, drama over being treated as "comic relief" and nothing more.  But JMO.

(Note:  I don't necessarily hate Xander's Big Moment in Grave and I think BB&B is actually a wonderful episode [Top 5 in the series].  But this is better, both for Xander and as a whole.)

Best line: "How can I say this clearly? [pulls out cross, drives Angel back] I don't like you.  At the end of the day, I pretty much think you're a vampire.  But Buffy's got this big ol' yen for you.  She thinks you're a real human being.  And, right now…I need you to prove her right."

(From memory, I note.  Just because I like showing off.)

Edited June 9, 2018 by Halting Hex

[Joe Hellandback]

20 hours ago, Halting Hex said:

Really?  You prefer Xander to be 

  Hide contents

a "secretly-cool" clown, getting insulted by Cordelia or Dawn or Harmony until he lucks into a win, or makes a dubious speech, or gets his ass saved by Giles right before he's torn to pieces

, is that it?  Well, I prefer Xander risking his heart to ask Buffy to the dance, rising above his heartbreak to shame Angel out of his cowardice and saving Buffy's life, and thus the world.  (Also, he gets to fight vampires, being classed as essentially Angel's equal, instead of being sent to the sidelines. Character development over regression, heroism over sidelining, drama over being treated as "comic relief" and nothing more.  But JMO.

(Note:  I don't necessarily hate Xander's Big Moment in Grave and I think BB&B is actually a wonderful episode [Top 5 in the series].  But this is better, both for Xander and as a whole.)

Best line: "How can I say this clearly? [pulls out cross, drives Angel back] I don't like you.  At the end of the day, I pretty much think you're a vampire.  But Buffy's got this big ol' yen for you.  She thinks you're a real human being.  And, right now…I need you to prove her right."

(From memory, I note.  Just because I like showing off.)

Absolutely, that's his charm!

[Sharna Pax]

This one of my favorite episodes of television of all time. I think it gets overlooked a bit because most season finales tend to be huge sweeping epics that cover two or three episodes, and this one very efficiently wraps everything up in 45 minutes. However, just think about everything the episode accomplishes in those 45 minutes.

1. The pacing! Good lord, how did they fit so many iconic scenes into a single episode without it feeling rushed? We start out with ordinary, day-to-day teen angst - Xander trying to ask Buffy out, and Buffy rejecting him - and it's genuinely moving. We have time to feel for both Buffy and Xander. And then there's the prophecy, and we watch as Buffy absorbs the news, as she breaks down, as she tries to run away - and then as she gradually comes to accept that this is what she has to do. And the show makes all this character growth convincing, so that when Buffy goes off to meet the Master at the end, we know that she understands exactly what she's doing. We know how much this decision is costing her, and we know why she makes it.

2. This is related to my first point, but this is also the episode where every single major character comes into their own. Giles steps into the father figure role for good, refusing to let Buffy confront the Master and insisting on doing it himself. Xander and Angel put aside their mutual dislike and join forces to help Buffy - Xander going to Angel for help, Angel asking Xander to step in when Buffy needs mouth-to-mouth. Willow manages to get across to Buffy what it will be like if the Master wins, with her speech about the murder at the school. Buffy's mom tries so hard to help - the dress is a lovely effort - but is so heartbreakingly incapable of understanding what's going on. And Cordelia, of course, reveals her true colors as a badass who's willing to drive a car into the school if she has to. By the end of this episode, we know every character ten times better than we did at the beginning. And I think it's because - and this is unusual for the season finale of this kind of show - there's far more focus on character development than on action. The episode isn't really about Buffy's fight with the Master, which takes up very little time. It's about Buffy reaching the point where she is willing to fight the Master, knowing that she will die.

And finally, Sarah Michelle Gellar's acting is brilliant here. She and Anthony Stewart Head are so good in the scene where Buffy learns about the prophecy - it's genuinely heartbreaking when Buffy says, "Giles, I'm sixteen years old. I don't want to die."

So yeah, this may not be the Buffy episode that's usually ranked the highest, but it's up there with "Crosetti" from Homicide, Life on the Street and "Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose" from The X-Files on my personal list of Best Episodes of TV Ever.

[Halting Hex]

Discussion of Cordelia's (potential) sex life wrt this episode led me to check out the teaser again, and CC and Kevin aren't parking "practically on school grounds", as Buffy describes one of her slayings to Giles, they are on school grounds! You can see the school buses in the parking lot in the background of one shot.

Geez, Cordy, kin-kee!  What if Snyder had caught you?

Also, I remembered that Kevin was a casualty of the AV club massacre and I thought for a second that Cordelia was actually dating an AV clubber, which wouldn't make much sense.  But in fact he merely says he'll be stopping by "after practice" to pick up the equipment for setting up at the Bronze.  So it was just wrong place, wrong time.

Next time, Kev, make the geeks bring their own stuff.  What's the point of being a jock if you don't (ab)use the privileges, after all?

[lembergwatcher]

Principal Snyder wasn't probably too happy or excited about Cordelia's car in the school hallway and he sure as hell had to demand some explanation from Giles regarding mayhem and strange carcass in the library. Anyway he had legitimate reason to both expell Cordelia or fire Giles for damaging the school property. Also I'd like to know how did Buffy explain ruining her not so cheap dress to her mother or what did Joyce say on the matter?

[Halting Hex]

Well, perhaps Cordelia was able to gently back her car out the the school.  Unless Snyder has a database of paint chips, she'll get away.

Spoiler

And we know from When She Was Bad that Giles buried the Master's bones in consecrated ground, so presumably he removed the skeleton before morning.

Buffy's dress is a different matter, though.  Bad enough Joyce probably thinks Buffy's a lesbian (she's going to the dance with Willow, as far as Joyce knows), but now she's got to worry about the girls doing bondage play or something…

Edited December 3, 2018 by Halting Hex

[lembergwatcher]

I never thought Giles was in the mood to go back to the library immediately after the dance at the Bronze. Because he himself obviously had no desire to do so ("I don't like the library very much anymore"). Therefore the bones had to wait until morning, I guess. Giles and the rest couldn't have spent another sleepless night cleaning the mess. And wasn't the SHS supposed to have a custodian or security officer, who had to call Snyder the moment the incident happened? There was enough noise to wake someone from the deep sleep, after all. For that reason I doubt Cordelia could have backed her car out of the school unnoticed...  

[Halting Hex]

Heck, I'm not even sure Cordy's Cirrus is drivable at this point; I'm just trying to cobble together a theory.  I doubt Giles could clean up the entire Library, nor would he try, but he could pack up the Master's bones in the boot of his Citroen, before moving them to their final destination.  And even if they put in some time at the dance, that still gives Giles time enough to circle back and pack things up before morning.

The key question is whether there's custodial staff that could raise the alert about the "aftershock" before it's discovered in the morning.  Are the night men on duty 24/7, or have they already gone home by now?  Perhaps they've been loaned over to the dance, to work security?  (It is a school event, after all, even if it's taking place off-campus.)

(Yes, yes, rather a localized aftershock, I know.)

[Joe Hellandback]

On ‎02‎/‎12‎/‎2018 at 11:39 PM, lembergwatcher said:

Principal Snyder wasn't probably too happy or excited about Cordelia's car in the school hallway and he sure as hell had to demand some explanation from Giles regarding mayhem and strange carcass in the library. Anyway he had legitimate reason to both expell Cordelia or fire Giles for damaging the school property. Also I'd like to know how did Buffy explain ruining her not so cheap dress to her mother or what did Joyce say on the matter?

I suppose they could explain it all by saying they were fleeing a gang on PCP? Remember Snyder's job is to hush things up not delve too deeply. As for Joyce she was still in her denial phase

On ‎03‎/‎12‎/‎2018 at 1:59 AM, Halting Hex said:

Well, perhaps Cordelia was able to gently back her car out the the school.  Unless Snyder has a database of paint chips, she'll get away.

  Hide contents

And we know from When She Was Bad that Giles buried the Master's bones in consecrated ground, so presumably he removed the skeleton before morning.

Buffy's dress is a different matter, though.  Bad enough Joyce probably thinks Buffy's a lesbian (she's going to the dance with Willow, as far as Joyce knows), but now she's got to worry about the girls doing bondage play or something…

I like the idea although I think you're reading too much into it, maybe Buffy just told her she spilled the punchbowl?

[lembergwatcher]

Always wanted to know what other prophesies regarding the Slayer and her destiny does the Pergamum Codex contain? Since, as Giles put it, "there is nothing in it that does not come to pass". It sure as hell has to be an exciting reading, you know. It's a serious book, not some paperback novel, after all.

Spoiler

Does it predict anything we saw throughout the six seasons, i.e. Buffy becoming what she have become and betraying her calling and her humanity eventually? I'm just asking...

[Halting Hex]

Be funny if the Codex was full of absolutely true but completely trivial stuff, such as

Spoiler

"The Slayer shall buy a creme rinse, but it shall prove neither creme-y nor rinse-y"

"The Slayer shall attempt to play 'Anywhere But Here', but her friend will only guess 'Amy Yip at the Waterslide Park', over and over."

"The Slayer shall wear shoes that resemble having cats strapped to her feet, but her Watcher shall SHUT HIS GOB ABOUT IT, since it's none of his business."

And so on.

[illdoc]

Of course, the Codex may be full of true "Slayer" prophecies, but not for this Slayer! Actually, it could have prophecies that have already come to pass for a different Slayer, but, unless it's somehow "marked", no one will ever know. Giles & company could be worrying about prophecies that are irrelevant. Can a prophecy occur more than once???? In fact, once this episode is over, does anyone ever mention the Codex again? Shouldn't Giles be studying it for future problems, trying to prevent prophecies long before they are "due", rather than waiting until the last second? Think the Watchers Council knows Giles has the Codex?

[Halting Hex]

Ignoring Buffy for the moment (sorry, Slayer!), I've come to realize that Willow is actually putting Xander in the deep-freeze after she rejects his "be my back-up plan, li'l buddy!" invitation, what with her saying "I'll see you on Monday."

Since we know that W/X hang out away from school (we saw them at the Bronze this episode, and Xander asked her over to his place last ep) and that it's no big deal to walk over from one house to the other (Willow does just that, behind the scenes, later this episode), normally Xander might not be expecting a Willow-free weekend.  But she's giving herself some time off, after he treated her as "emergency date", understandably.

No wonder he's in full country-music-mode, later on.  (But to be fair, she does decide to call him, anyway.  He just wasn't in a listening mood on Friday night. Which again, fair enough.)

[Halting Hex]

Quote

CORDELIA: Willow! I really like your outfit.

WILLOW: No you don’t.

CORDELIA: No, I really don’t. But I need a favor.

I like how Cordy sticks that extra "really" in there.  All "yeah, you caught me, I was just kissing ass to get a favor.  Buuuuuut…since we're on the subject, your clothes really do suck."

I mean, you can't be a Queen Bitch if you're gonna leave the easy opportunities on the table, right?  CC knows her role, as the saying goes.

[Halting Hex]

I've lamented the decision to cut the famous Angel/Anointed One scene many times, but a look at the script shows that wasn't the only bit to get chopped, and at least one of them I don't miss so much.

From the teaser, while Buffy's slaying on campus:

Quote

CORDELIA: We could get in trouble, okay? I don't want to be grounded right before the dance. I AM the May Queen. Which means we get the first dance.

KEVIN: The first -- (kisses her) the last -- (kisses her) -- and all the ones in between.

Useless and cutesy and breaks the flow.  I'm glad it's gone.

I'm only mentioning it because the reference to the May Queen contest from OOM, OOS shows another attempt at building continuity in the largely-episodic S1.  And I'm all about that, of course.

Edited December 13, 2020 by Halting Hex

[Joe Hellandback]

On 3/11/2019 at 4:09 PM, lembergwatcher said:

Always wanted to know what other prophesies regarding the Slayer and her destiny does the Pergamum Codex contain? Since, as Giles put it, "there is nothing in it that does not come to pass". It sure as hell has to be an exciting reading, you know. It's a serious book, not some paperback novel, after all.

  Hide contents

Does it predict anything we saw throughout the six seasons, i.e. Buffy becoming what she have become and betraying her calling and her humanity eventually? I'm just asking...

When does she do that exactly?

[Halting Hex]

4 hours ago, Joe Hellandback said:

When does she do that exactly?

Well, there's claims it happens as soon as next season.

Spoiler

Buffy's certainly taken a lot of stick from some fans for letting Angel escape at the end of Innocence, and she herself feels she's disgraced her position by making that "deal" with Spike in Becoming, Part 2.

Others point to later in the series, after the major change that occurs

Spoiler

with the introduction of Dawn in S5.  The whole "I'll kill anyone who tries to hurt my [fake] sister" bit in The Gift earned Buffy a certain amount of anti-fans, it's true.

 

On 3/11/2019 at 12:09 PM, lembergwatcher said:

[The Codex is] a serious book, not some paperback novel, after all.

Says you!  What if it's just smut?

Spoiler

"The Slayer shall fall off of a dock and get dripping wet, and then get caught in the rain, and even her lummox vampire boyfriend can eventually catch a clue and it's bye-bye pesky flower!"

"The Slayer shall be ensorceled by a love spell and pursue her inamorata wearing nothing but a raincoat.  And, lo, there shall be a line of students outside of the Library such as ne'er seen before."

"The Slayer shall be disconcerted to realize that her healing factor requires her to be freshly-popped each time, which shall prove distressingly repetitive, even if her boyfriend is on government-strength steroids."

"The Slayer shall go to her local club without wearing any panties, and shall learn what befalls those who fail to guard their rear."

"The Slayer's cute redheaded BFF shall give her A FUCKING DILDO for a birthday 'present', and yet the Slayer shall somehow completely miss the giant HINT, despite the part where said BFF is literally only two doors down the hall and has been single for 32 days and complaining about how her ex won't even take her phone calls, I mean, FFS, already!

But then of course this is the same chick who somehow missed that her little sister is so horny she's been fucking said Slayer's robotic duplicate, and spends her nights audibly masturbating and calling the Slayer's name, hoping big sis will 'check in on her'.  Apparently, even when the Slayer is no longer dead-dead, she's still brain-dead.  Oy and vey."

I mean, how do you think Angel "just happened" to have the Codex laying around, after all?  It gets pretty lonely spending those nights "translating" in that basement apartment, I'm just saying…

Edited December 13, 2020 by Halting Hex

[watcher1006]

The action in this season finale seems rather tame compared to what will come in later seasons but this episode has some of the best character dialogue and acting in the whole series.

The scene where Xander asks Buffy to go to the dance with him and she turns him down - it feels so believable. It is painful to watch and makes me squirm every time. As Buffy says to him - he's her close friend and she doesn't want to do anything to damage their relationship but romance - no. Typically his ask being declined would introduce an uncomfortableness in their relationship going forward but heck, he brings her back from death. I guess that means they can go back to the way they were and Buffy, now knowing of Xander's romantic interest, can simply put it aside.

Yes, I like the scene between Buffy and her mom, Buffy just wanting to be her mom's daughter and not able to explain to her the burden that she is carrying.

Charisma Carpenter is great. Funny line: the vampire is trying to break in and she bites his arm: "See how YOU like it!"

Several scenes stand out - of course the library scene with Buffy, Giles, and Angel - "I'm only sixteen - I don't want to die" but I also find the shot of Buffy walking hand in hand with the Anointed One as he leads her to the Master to be oddly moving. I wish there had been more scenes in the show of SMG with small children.

And for fans of the Harry Potter series:

The part where the Master tells Buffy of her part in his rise just before he bites and drops her: "If you hadn't come, I couldn't leave" is either prescient or reminiscent of the intertwined fates of Harry Potter and Lord Voldemort in J.K. Rowling's tale. Probably prescient is the word, given that

Prophecy Girl dates from 1997...

[Joe Hellandback]

On 12/24/2020 at 2:25 AM, watcher1006 said:

The action in this season finale seems rather tame compared to what will come in later seasons but this episode has some of the best character dialogue and acting in the whole series.

The scene where Xander asks Buffy to go to the dance with him and she turns him down - it feels so believable. It is painful to watch and makes me squirm every time. As Buffy says to him - he's her close friend and she doesn't want to do anything to damage their relationship but romance - no. Typically his ask being declined would introduce an uncomfortableness in their relationship going forward but heck, he brings her back from death. I guess that means they can go back to the way they were and Buffy, now knowing of Xander's romantic interest, can simply put it aside.

Yes, I like the scene between Buffy and her mom, Buffy just wanting to be her mom's daughter and not able to explain to her the burden that she is carrying.

Charisma Carpenter is great. Funny line: the vampire is trying to break in and she bites his arm: "See how YOU like it!"

Several scenes stand out - of course the library scene with Buffy, Giles, and Angel - "I'm only sixteen - I don't want to die" but I also find the shot of Buffy walking hand in hand with the Anointed One as he leads her to the Master to be oddly moving. I wish there had been more scenes in the show of SMG with small children.

And for fans of the Harry Potter series:

 

  Hide contents

The part where the Master tells Buffy of her part in his rise just before he bites and drops her: "If you hadn't come, I couldn't leave" is either prescient or reminiscent of the intertwined fates of Harry Potter and Lord Voldemort in J.K. Rowling's tale. Probably prescient is the word, given that

Prophecy Girl dates from 1997...

 

Never actually read the Potter series although;

 

Spoiler

Dawnie is obviously a fan, of the books rather than the movies. 

It's funny watching Die Hard first time reactions on YouTube where everyone goes "Oh it's Snape" when Hans appears and I have no idea who they're talking about.  

Edited December 28, 2020 by Joe Hellandback

[Halting Hex]

On 12/28/2020 at 6:59 AM, Joe Hellandback said:

Never actually read the Potter series although;

 

  Reveal spoiler

Dawnie is obviously a fan, of the books rather than the movies. 

It's funny watching Die Hard first time reactions on YouTube where everyone goes "Oh it's Snape" when Hans appears and I have no idea who they're talking about.  

Do they chant

Spoiler

 "my body is willing" or whatever Snape's infamous line is

?  Seems as though that might be amusing coming from Hans.

Edited December 30, 2020 by Halting Hex
"Quote" ≠ "spoiler"

[Joe Hellandback]

55 minutes ago, Halting Hex said:

Do they chant

  Hide contents

 "my body is willing" or whatever Snape's infamous line is

?  Seems as though that might be amusing coming from Hans.

No, again I'm afraid that's lost on me although a good many ladies comment on Hans' sexiness. You know what they say about a well dressed man?  

[secnarf]

8 hours ago, Halting Hex said:

Do they chant

  Hide contents

 "my body is willing" or whatever Snape's infamous line is

?  Seems as though that might be amusing coming from Hans.

I have read the Harry Potter books numerous times, and I have absolutely no idea what you are referring to in the spoiler tags - I don't think I have ever read that line before.

[Halting Hex]

Rather sure an elementary .gif-search should find Rickman saying the line.  People even used it when he passed away.  Couldn't tell you if it was in the books or not; I also have not read them.

[secnarf]

6 hours ago, Halting Hex said:

Rather sure an elementary .gif-search should find Rickman saying the line.  People even used it when he passed away.  Couldn't tell you if it was in the books or not; I also have not read them.

Did a google search and nothing remotely close to that quote came up. Whatever that line is from, it isn't Snape.

[Halting Hex]

17 hours ago, secnarf said:

Did a google search and nothing remotely close to that quote came up. Whatever that line is from, it isn't Snape.

I have no idea if Rickman is actually saying the line, but trust me, this .gif was omnipresent:

ETA:  Apparently it's something dorky a Nintendo executive once said at a conference and it became a meme and HP fans thought it would be funny to apply it to Snape.

My apologies;  I don't do memes.  (Honestly, I think they're stupid.)  And I'm entirely ignorant of HP, bar the fifteen minutes of Prisoner of Azkaban that led me to turn it off and knowing one fact about the final film.  Sorry for the blind alley.

Edited January 1, 2021 by Halting Hex

[Halting Hex]

Back to the episode…

Quote

Vampires are advancing across the field and through the parking lot

MS. CALENDAR:  Why are they coming here?

WILLOW:  Not caring!

Quote

After Cordelia drives up to the Library (!), she and Willow and Ms. Calendar rush inside, barricading the door against the vampiric horde:

GILES:  What's happening??

CALENDAR:  Guess!

Okay, so a small demerit for telling the same joke twice (essentially).  But I like that the show is aware there's usually a lot of exposition going on. (Including the first half of this episode.) So I find it cute.

Quote

Giles has joined the trio at the Library door.  A noise is heard behind them.

GILES (turning): They're coming in through the stacks!

Willow and Ms. Calendar run up to the second level.

WILLOW: The bookcases!

They move the cases into place, blocking the access.

ME:  Gee [given that neither Willow nor Calendar has super-strength], it's lucky there aren't any books in the bookcases, huh? [Catching myself] Oh, right, the earthquake.  Duh.

Excellent work by Joss, using the earthquake as not merely the quintessential SoCal Sign of the Apocalypse (I love the Master's "Whaddaya think? 5.1?" in the teaser, since "guess the intensity" is the game everybody plays after a tremor), but as a way to set up plot mechanics later in the episode.

I can't say Joss didn't play fair; we see the empty bookcases at the top of Act I.  Buffy even points them out.  So that's a "Chekov's Bookcase", I suppose?

Speaking of previous Library scenes:  

Quote

GILES (to CALENDAR):  Buffy's not going to face the Master; I am.

BUFFY (having entered unobserved):  No, you're not.

What's amusing (concerning?) is that this is the second time in Act II that Giles has been surprised that Buffy is lingering by the door.  I grant you that Giles has a lot on his mind (the first time was when he and Angel were discussing Buffy's Inevitably-Prophesied Death), but still.  Giles might want to be a bit more cognizant of his surroundings, given that the vampires can come in at any moment.  (As shown by Darla's eavesdropping in Angel, Angel's visits in both last episode and this one and the imminently-descending swarm.)

To quote the Buffster herself, "Wakey-Wakey, Giles!"

Spoiler

Is this foreshadowing of Giles's inability to secure his flat in S4-S5?

Quote

SPIKE:  For someone who's got "Watcher" on his résumé, you might consider casting a glance at your front door, every now and then.

—The Yoko Factor

 

Quote

GILES:  And this time, I swear I'd locked that door…

—The Replacement

Hmmm.

 

 

Edited April 6, 2022 by Halting Hex

[Halting Hex]

It's often noted that the show goes to pains to have Buffy be the one to suspect weirdness, whether it's preying-mantis substitute teachers, Xander's unusual new friends, Willow's suspicious "pen-pal" or demonic involvement in Emily's death, because they want to be sure people see Buffy as a full-blown protagonist, not just some bimbo with fists.  Admirable.

But as we get towards the end of the season, we find that Joss is also making an effort to portray Xander as more than a useless horny boy, which is also good.

In episode 9, he's the one who realizes that Giles is in danger ("Giles is really…smart") and he literally saves Giles's life.

In episode 10, he's the one who first realizes they can take action against the nightmares, recognizing that he's no longer 6 years old and he can punch out that damn clown.

Last episode, he threw himself into research and spotted that they'd be swindled and trapped before Willow or Giles did.

And here he not only figures out that Angel can help them save Buffy

Spoiler

(Giles was apparently just keeping Angel's phone number for a potential booty call…I know you miss Ethan, bro, but come on)

and is able to intimidate Cave Brow into leading the way, but he also realizes about the CPR while Angel is just in his feelings holding Buffy's corpse.  

Yes,

Spoiler

as we later learn, for Angel, Buffy's death wouldn't necessarily mean that he'd lose interest ("Maybe later.  I like my girls to lie still.")

but Brood Boy shouldn't need Horny Boy to point out the possibility of CPR.  Clearly, Angel knows about CPR, since he knows he can't give the Breath of Life, so it should be less "She's dead" and more "get your ass over here, kid! Start puffing!" on his part.

It's understandable that Angel's distraught, but we just established last Act that both of them are equally in love with Buffy, so that's a win for Xander that he's able to be practical where Angel can't.  Or, as Buffy might put it, "two points for the skateboarder, while the vampire has yet to score".  Well done, bro.

Now that the show has gone to such pains to establish that Buffy and Xander are both intelligent, could we do the same for our alleged brainiac, Willow?  Because belatedly realizing that she's being catfished really isn't cutting it in the "smarty-pants" department, IMO.  As nice as helping the audience learn √841 might be .

Edited June 10, 2023 by Halting Hex

[lembergwatcher]

When I saw the episode for the first time for a moment (just for a brief moment) I thought thing could work between X and B. What a naive fool was I... 

On 6/8/2023 at 12:37 PM, Halting Hex said:

Now that the show has gone to such pains to establish that Buffy and Xander are both intelligent, could we do the same for our alleged brainiac, Willow?

Don't worry about Willow...

Spoiler

Soon she'll prove to be much smarter and ten times stronger than Buffy and Xander. Not to mention that Xander will start rapidly regressing after graduating...

 

[Halting Hex]

So apparently the exterior scenes for this were shot Torrance H.S.  Here's our Slay Gal shimmying out of her trailer at sundown for good night's worth of kicking and flipping.  (No, I don't know why Buffy doesn't have a stake, but apparently she doesn't need one.)