S02.E02: Some Assembly Required

[Lisin]

From Wikipedia:

Bodies of girls killed in traffic accidents are being dug from their graves. The culprits are two science students, Chris and Eric, using pieces of the girls to create a bride for Chris' monstrous brother, Daryl. The only thing the young monsters need now is Cordy's head—can the Scooby Gang members arrive in time to save her?

 

I'm a big fan of this episode. The brothers are so sweet and pathetic and disgusting and misguided and I liked that they were "bad guys" but not really? Like they were totally bad guys and I understand that but their reasons were sort of well meaning. I'm not in love with the Buffy/Angel stuff here though. A bit tedious. Yay Giles and Ms. Calendar! 

[DAngelus]

 

I'm not in love with the Buffy/Angel stuff here though. A bit tedious.

Eh, it's two scenes, the teaser and the tag.  Would that most of Buffy's "romances" were disposed of that quickly.

 

Yay Giles and Ms. Calendar!

Who get three scenes (four if you count Giles practicing on the chair, five if you count the Scoobs pumping him up as he stares at Jenny from afar) to Bangel's two.  Which is exactly as it should be.

 

I also love that the character-developing storyline doesn't get sidelined for the second part of the episode, that Giles/Jenny's date actually takes place during Act 4 as we build to the climax. Good writing from Joss's old boss.  ("Ty King" was known as "David Tyron King" when he was the showrunner for the original TV version of Parenthood, where Joss worked under him; his work here and on Passion was a favor to Joss.)

 

Also have to love the triple-reveal at the end of act 2, in just two sentences ("Please, you have to understand--" "But you promised me, little brother, that I wouldn't be alone") as we realize that there's someone else there besides Chris/Eric, that it's supposedly-dead Daryl, and that Daryl is a Frankenstein.  Love the economy of the writing there.

 

First fight choreography from Jeff Pruitt (WSWB was Dean Ferrandina) and Sophia really busts out those side kicks trying to get her boyfriend (later husband) the gig, doesn't she?  I also love the score by Adam Fields; glad he got work on Dawson's Creek when Joss decided to go with Chris Beck and Murray/Clement here.

 

Poor Cordy must really be developing a phobia about surgical instruments, between the Marcie episode and this one.  Lovers Walk was probably very traumatic for her on that front alone, never mind the "almost dying" part.

[wingster55]

I like the stare off with Buffy & Xander and Angel & Cordelia with Giles and Willow following along like they're watching a tennis match. (That was this episode right? Going off memory here)

[Joe Hellandback]

On ‎09‎/‎06‎/‎2014 at 9:18 PM, Lisin said:

From Wikipedia:

 

I'm a big fan of this episode. The brothers are so sweet and pathetic and disgusting and misguided and I liked that they were "bad guys" but not really? Like they were totally bad guys and I understand that but their reasons were sort of well meaning. I'm not in love with the Buffy/Angel stuff here though. A bit tedious. Yay Giles and Ms. Calendar! 

Bad guys? Deranged and misguided perhaps, if you read the Sunnydale High yearbook they both seem to have benefitted from therapy. 

On ‎11‎/‎06‎/‎2014 at 11:27 AM, DAngelus said:

Poor Cordy must really be developing a phobia about surgical instruments, between the Marcie episode and this one.  Lovers Walk was probably very traumatic for her on that front alone, never mind the "almost dying" part.

Not to mention;

Spoiler

almost having her eyes removed on Angel. 

On ‎05‎/‎07‎/‎2014 at 10:47 PM, wingster55 said:

I like the stare off with Buffy & Xander and Angel & Cordelia with Giles and Willow following along like they're watching a tennis match. (That was this episode right? Going off memory here)

I always liked the CC putting the moves on Angel phase. 

Some assembly required;

The Good; We have our first sympathetic monster/villains and the show is all the better for it. Love the grave-digging sequence, the fiery rescue, the kids telling Giles how to date Jenny and the date itself, especially Giles' opinion of American football. The twist that the villains are doing it for Daryl rather than themselves. And if you're a guy or girl-who-likes-girls Cordy in her cheerleader outfit. Giles dealing with Cordy's pain.

The Bad; Angel wears a hideous tan jacket which makes him look like a used car salesman. Was all his black leather being dry cleaned or something? We thankfully never see it again. Jenny uses the word 'disses' which I normally negatively associate with people who wear their trousers around their knees and regularly stab each other.

Best line; Buffy; "Sorry, I'm an old fashioned girl, men dig up graves and women have the babies"

What the fanficcers thought; Chris and Eric coming to the rescue of the Scoobs in later years a common theme.

Questions and observations; Of course this resembles Frankenstein but also the Reanimator series and Wes Craven's horror film Deadly Friend' starring the original Buffy Kristy Swanson. Chris and Eric's plan is just creepy in the extreme although a lot more understandable when you meet Daryl, they're doing it for him rather than just creating their own yucky sex toy. Once again Cordy is knocked out and tied up. Jenny again and more and more part of the group. We have the first example here of the Hellmouth genius, that the supernatural energy of the Hellmouth can make certain people smarter, so despite being in high school they can do things that have eluded scientists for centuries. Despite Willow's complaint later it actually seems to be Cordy who always seems to be finding the bodies. We see Cordy beginning to come around to Xander's better qualities. I rather like to think that Chris goes home, pulls back the curtains, switches the TV off and takes his mother to Daryl's grave to say goodbye. As for Eric he has a picture in the Sunnydale High Class of 1999 yearbook where therapy seems to have done him a lot of good. A shame we don't see either of them again but there is only so much room in the show.

Good ep; 8/10

[Halting Hex]

8 hours ago, Joe Hellandback said:

What the fanficcers thought; Chris and Eric coming to the rescue of the Scoobs in later years a common theme.

Would have been nice if Willow had thought to ask Chris for a spare pair of jumper cables 

Spoiler

after The Gift

instead of

Spoiler

spending the summer hunting up the Urn of Osiris and making with the snake-puking.  Bring Buffy back sooner and maybe she won't have such a case of the sulks.  It's worth a shot.

[Joe Hellandback]

2 hours ago, Halting Hex said:

Would have been nice if Willow had thought to ask Chris for a spare pair of jumper cables 

  Hide contents

after The Gift

instead of

  Hide contents

spending the summer hunting up the Urn of Osiris and making with the snake-puking.  Bring Buffy back sooner and maybe she won't have such a case of the sulks.  It's worth a shot.

When you look at Daryl you're glad they didn't.

[Halting Hex]

11 hours ago, Joe Hellandback said:

When you look at Daryl you're glad they didn't.

I think that's an effect of how Daryl died (fell while rock-climbing), not anything Chris did.  As long as you're not a bloody smear to begin with, you shouldn't end up Frankensteined, I shouldn't think.

[Joe Hellandback]

2 hours ago, Halting Hex said:

I think that's an effect of how Daryl died (fell while rock-climbing), not anything Chris did.  As long as you're not a bloody smear to begin with, you shouldn't end up Frankensteined, I shouldn't think.

Would Slayer healing restore you?

[Halting Hex]

Spoiler ^ ? (And irrelevant, given that those events were different from these…)

[Joe Hellandback]

10 hours ago, Halting Hex said:

Spoiler ^ ? (And irrelevant, given that those events were different from these…)

More like speculation. 

[lembergwatcher]

Quote

Cordelia: Xander? I just wanted to thank you for saving my life. What you did in there was really brave and heroic, and I just wanted to tell you if there was anything that I could ever do to...

Xander: Do you mind? We're talking here.

Cordelia is taken aback, rolls her eyes and leaves.

Aww... good old times. Just love it.

[Halting Hex]

Quote

CORDELIA: (SCREAMS)

ERIC (supervillain mode): Scream all you like.  We're in an abandoned building.

CORDELIA:  (SCREAMS LONGER AND LOUDER)

ERIC (picks up metal tray, cocks it at her head): Okay, that's enough!

Heh.  Never underestimate Cordy's lungpower.  When we say she's got "healthy lungs", we're not just talking about her rack.

Okay, that, too.  But still.

[lembergwatcher]

Scream queen of Sunnydale...

[lembergwatcher]

How a certain scene in this episode should have ended...

Quote

Xander: Any sign of our suspects?

Buffy: Not yet. I don't get it. Why would anybody wanna make a girl?

Xander: You mean when there's so many pre-made ones just laying around? The things we do for love.

Buffy: Love has nothing to do with this.

Xander: Maybe not, but I'll tell you this: people don't fall in love with what's right in front of them.

Willow gives Buffy a sad, knowing look.

Xander: People want the dream. What they can't have.

Willow looks over at Xander longingly. Buffy understands only too well.

Xander: The more unattainable, the more attractive.

Willow hops down from her perch. Then silently pinches Xander's ass.

Even if that move didn't make Xander take his head out of his ass immediately, he sure as hell would've noticed Willow and her feelings for him sooner or later...

[Halting Hex]

Eh, I don't know.  Not only would that have been wayyyy out of character for Willow, but Xander just last episode stopped himself from kissing Willow because he didn't want to go there with her.  (Further romantic moments called on account of vampire, and then Buffy-shaped distraction, but he stopped himself before that.)  If Willow is suddenly all over him, he might just blame himself for "leading her on", and turtle out of guilt.

Better for Will take her time and gently nudge him, as she does at the end of the episode.  If we've learned one thing about Xander thus far, it's that he is not easily dissuaded, for better or worse.  He's no more going to start proposing to Willow because she's suddenly getting grabby than he's going to stop insulting Cordelia just because she gave him a sincere thank you.  Which might merit as much of an eye-roll from Willow as the one CC shoots his way, but that's the breaks.  JMO.

(Besides, Willow's already heard this from Xander, in the cut scene from Angel, right?  So a second [fifth? tenth? Who knows how often he bangs on about this, after all…] helping of "It's so unfair Buffy can't realize how great I am for her" right in Willow's face seems less likely to provoke an ass-grab than a face-slap.  Not that Willow's going there, either.)

[lembergwatcher]

3 hours ago, Halting Hex said:

a face-slap

Face-slap would've been good too! Not in this particular situation though.

Spoiler

W could have slapped X in Innocence, for example.