The Replacement

Xander-angst! Last season, Xander was a misfit. He wasn't in college, he couldn't keep a job, he was at loose ends and stagnating. This episode, right at the beginning of season 5, is a logical counterpart to Dawn's "Real Me." In both, the core issue is one of identity. "Real Me" introduces Dawn's search for identity; "The Replacement" makes Xander's struggle with finding his groove as an adult into an explicit theme.

So he's twins--grown-up, responsible Xander and goofy, unreliable Xander. The twist is they are both Xander, and the clearest evidence of that is that the reliable one is doing things--getting a promotion, getting a nice apartment--based on the actions of season 4 Xander, who must have quietly been doing some of the right things in order to have the opportunities he takes advantage of in this episode.

As happens in other places, most notably the yellow crayon speech, Xander calls on his history and relationship with Willow. Despite Oz, Tara, Anya, and Dark Willow--Xander and Willow's bond is deep...arguably deeper than his bond with Buffy despite his loyalty and infatuation with her (Note, I'm excluding the last couple episodes of the series when I say that--but it's worth mentioning that he takes the side Willow is on when they throw Buffy out). True Xander, deep down, Willow knows him.

Two bits of foreshadowing occur: first, somewhat jokingly, Joyce complains about a headache. Yep, that's going nowhere good. secondly, Riley has a revealing talk with "responsible" Xander explaining that he knows Buffy doesn't really love him. The clock is ticking on that relationship, we suspect, AND we see Xander doing something that he does even more once he embraces his grown up side: he is the confidante who sees more than most people, and who is willing to say the hard things.

The resolution is simple, and Xander is restored. The Scoobies reaffirm their partnership by working together to solve the problem, and the Magic Box is established as a home base. Season continues to build from here.

SEASON FIVE: Buffy vs. Dracula

Sure, it's a cute episode. Snappy dialogue, good characterization. And it makes sense that sooner or later, the Count himself would show up.

Here's what I noticed: First, when Dracula is trying to enthrall Buffy, to get her to consider joining his side, he says almost exactly the same thing Dream-Tara said in Restless: "You think you know what you are--what's to come--but you haven't even begun." In significant ways, that's the theme of the second half of the show, and very tied in with it is that Buffy's power is steeped in darkness; that is mentioned in Restless, and Spike (and others) comment on how drawn Buffy is to men who are more dark than light--she comments herself on it as she's beginning to be interested in Riley, that "something is missing." In season 7, she finds out in one episode that the Slayer's original power stemmed from harassing demons, and she rejects getting more demon-fueled-power. Her insistence on right/wrong (as noted by Faith when they switch bodies, and Willow and Xander when they call her "judgmental" during Yoko Factor)--does that stem from a fight within herself to not go to the dark side....? maybe.

Three other things that build throughout season five--because even though this is a light episode, it does establish the season's subtext: Dawn comes, literally. I can't imagine how confused the audience was as they waited week by week to understand how a new character shows up, accepted as canon in-world.

And, just as Giles was preparing to tell Buffy that he's leaving, she decides she needs a Watcher. She's going to accept the official (well, minus the council, so far) responsibilities and structure of Slayer-hood, training, listening, etc. The whole "should I stay or should I go" dance is static this season....he's needed.

Last..Xander, after being in thrall to Dracula, announces he's done being "everyone's butt-monkey." He decides it's time to grow up, to find a place in the adult world for himself. If I remember right, in just a couple episodes he has a defining moment, and is not the poor-little-victim...as often.

That's what I see, and more is coming. (Oh, and Riley was sure he was going to lose Buffy to Dracula, and Anya and Spike both have met him before--Anya seems quite smitten with the memory, too)

Goodbye, Iowa

This is Riley's coming of age, his coming to a crisis point. As Buffy puts it at the end, the underpinings of his world have fallen apart, and he's left with nothing...but she's wrong; he's got her scarf (or whatever the piece of fabric from her was). The end foreshadows that Riley has come to terms with Maggie's betrayal by choosing to align with Buffy. Even though he stalwartly defends Maggie through most of the episode, to the point of accusing Buffy of killing her, when he's faced not merely with the fact of Adam, but Adam's statements about how he and Riley are brothers, "Mother's two favorite sons," Riley rejects being one of Maggie's creations--which continues as we (and he) discover that, like Spike, he has an implant that Maggie used to "improve" him as well.

Is this Joss' updating of Frankenstein? Is Maggie the modern Dr. F? The parallels are obvious, especailly with the killing of the child. It's been a long time since I've read Shelley's classic, so maybe I need to along with this season....free ebooks, here I come!

If part of the subtext of Buffy is to explore what it means to be female, then by extension, this season is a more overt exploration of what it means to be human (via Adam) and male (via Riley and Initiative? Thinking about that.) Riley is more "All American Ken Doll" than any other character, something Buffy knew and chose; he was supposed to be the "boring boyfriend" than Anya told her she needed....even though it was in a comic, sentimental scene, with Anya emphasizing that Buffy couldn't have Xander, and Buffy confessing how crazy about Riley she was, even though he turned out to be G.I. Joe instead of Ken Doll.

Riley's a pysch grad student, yet his moments of introspection and analysis are very limited. It's becoming more clear that Riley is a man of action, a man who follows orders and doesn't question--but when the questioning comes, he deals with it quickly and without a lot of emo (bit change from Spike, and Angel, and...yea). If he's the ideal man, I need to watch for what that means.

And on the Willow front: maybe she hasn't had sex with Tara yet after all, but she did spend the night "doing magic." Willow emphasizes to Tara that she really likes being with her and isn't just using her like Capt. Planet---"by our powers combined.." Interesting: when Willow wants Tara to help with a spell that Tara is uncomfortable with, Tara obviously (to us) undercuts it; even here at the beginning, when it's fun and flirty and helpful magic, Tara questions if Willow is using magic appropriately. Foreshadowing.

A New Man

This seems like another monster-of-the-week shows with a twist: Giles is the monster, transformed by Ethan Raines (of course). But even though it is essentially a stand-alone, not an integral part of the Big Bad plot this season, this episode more clearly introduces the philosophical question at the core of this season, and, in ways, the series.

What does it mean to be a man? Put in a less (potentially) sexist manner, what does it take to be human? Even though he looks like a Fyarl demon (note how close the word is to "feral"--it's pronounced Furr-ral; as Jung said, there are no coincidences), Giles retains his intellect, his human emotions, and his soul. Ultimately, Buffy doesn't kill him because she recognizes him when she looks into his eyes as she's about to stake him--the saying "the eyes are the windows to the soul" seem especially appropriate.

Spike, who just happens to speak Fyarl, agrees to help Giles...for a price, of course--which comes into play in the next episode. Spike is an interesting counterpart to Giles in this episode. Is Spike a man? That question may be unvoiced, but it resonants loudly from this season until the end of the series. He has no soul, hence the Scoobies and the Initiative quickly deem Spike as "other"--"Hostile 17," in fact. Spike's insight, emotions, and intellect are not in question; he's only one soul (and one beating heart) away from being a real boy--in the Buffy spin-off Angel, that issue is explicitly addressed as it applies to both Spike and Angel (who, because he has a soul, is closer to human and worthy of Buffy's affection). In this episode, also, Spike declares himself off-limits for the Slayer and her "Slayerettes." Giles, who was obviously assuming Spike would want to work with them since he can fight demons, was taken aback by Spike's strident insistance that he is evil, that he's a Big Bad they should beware of. (Point of Fact: Spike is never the Big Bad. Season Two, when it looks as if he will be, Angel emerges as the threat--and Spike partners with Buffy to quell him.) Spike looks like a human, thinks and acts like a human in most ways...and in this episode, he again protects and helps humans.

It's worth noting that Giles starts off the episode feeling lost and out of place, at a birthday party for Buffy at the college. He discovers that Buffy has a boyfriend--which everyone else obviously knew--and Riley inadvertantly rubs in Giles' displacement when making small talk. Giles is a man, no question about that...but old, worn, out of place. This episode is the first clear marker that eventually, he will have to leave--that Buffy is outgrowing her need for him, and that he is becoming redundant.

Then....Maggie makes it worse, telling Giles that Buffy needs a stronger father figure, more discipline and focus. Those are Giles' jobs, ones that he defined himself by, yet both the Watcher's Council and now Maggie (unknowingly) question his ability to do this job. Giles is ripe for a crisis, for a re-definition of himself--thanks to Ethan, his crisis is a doozy, blatantly leading to question who he is, how he fits in, and if he is, in fact, human. Giles' totally out-of-character terrorizing of Maggie while he is Fyarl is an interesting peek both at his latent "Ripper" persona, and at the emotion he swallows when Maggie insulted him; as a soulless demon, he was free to react. As a reasonable man, he wasn't.

That Buffy and the gang do not question Giles' humanity once they realize he the "demon," magicked by Ethan, is interesting. Their definition of "human" is fluid; it will be tested by the creation of Adam, the person/demon/cyborg Maggie has created that will be unveiled in the next episode--and the question will echo next season as Buffy refuses to kill "Ben" because he is human, even thought he's a conduit for the evil Goddess Glory. But I'll talk more about that later, I'm sure!

Beauty and the Beasts

On the surface, this is just a throw-away episode. Mysterious deaths, scooby gang doing scooby stuff (Willow even has a Scooby Doo lunchbox in this). Buffy's kind of seeing Scott, but doesn't seem that interested. No big revelations, no huge angst.

However, there is a bit of interesting forshadowing. Buffy is seeing the school counselor, and he echos Joyce's comments from last season about "you're seeing a guy, you get intimate, the guy turns mean..." The theme of Men Turn Mean is not explored in any depth, but is assumed. More interestingly, he also previews Spike's "I'm love's bitch" speech. "Sometimes you love too much, and Love becomes your master, and you're love's dog" was roughly the way it was worded. He made it seem bad; Spike embraced the title. (I think that's this season, too, but I'm not sure.)

Also, Buffy is hiding that Angel's back, and she's obviously worried that he's damaged. In talking with Giles about what it's like to come back from a hell dimension, he explains briefly what it means to have humanity left within you. If it's not there, the returnee can't be saved. If the humanity is, the human can be redeemed. These questions also arise in season 6 after Buffy is resserected--with similar assumptions about her being in a hell dimension, in fact.

Other little things, but overall, not a must see episode--that's my opinion right now. We'll see if I change it, which has happened!

Dead Man's Party

Xander summed it up: If you try to bury things, they'll come back up. He was talking about the issues related to Buffy's running away, but zombies were attacking them as he said it. So this is one time when the metaphor is impossible to miss!

Willow and Buffy talk, finally, after dancing around issues the whole episode. Buffy and her mom apparently do, too--but if Xander and Buffy do, there's no hint. However, he makes the strongest statement about Buffy needing to talk, to not isolate herself. He supports Joyce, siding against Buffy in the big argument. Willow backs away from confronting Buffy, but Xander does it because it needs done. Is that part of how he shows manhood and loyalty? Could be.

Notably, Buffy is still dreaming about Angel, sensuous, death-filled dreams

One thing worth noting: some of the intense emotional scenes include dialogue that is ridiculous. It fits with the situation and characters, but the sincerity of the actors in the emotions they bring to the scenes create credibility. Because they take it seriously, we can also. That's a large part of why the show resonants. It is campy, but not because the actors triviolize it or treat it frivolously. That is part of what makes the show.

Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered

Another Xander-centric episode. It seems like comic relief and a break from the evil that is Angel, but there's some character building that is worth noting. Xander gets Cordy a silver heart necklace, and it must be nice--Buffy likes it, and Cordy's first reaction is very appreciative. In the scene where Xander gives her his heart (yea, go with the schmaltzy symbolism), he makes a speech about how he sees something in her, and in their relationship, that isn't apparent at first look. Her reaction, though, is to break up with him. She's losing too much social status over him, and they don't make sense.

So....Xander has Amy do a love potion to make Cordy fall in love, not forever, though. He wants to make her go through the heartache and social stigma that he's experiencing. Like most spells at this point in the show, it goes awry. Every female except Cordy--including Jenny and Joyce and the lunch lady--are desperate for Xander's attention.

At the end of this spell, Buffy (and presumably all the girls) know what they did while enchanted. Buffy talks to Xander about how she tried to get him to undress her, and gives him high marks for resisting. While she was under the spell, he makes a whole speech about how he would if she had any clue how much it would mean to him, but since she doesn't, he doesn't want to. It's an echo of Oz's speech about not kissing Willow until she is kissing him back--seems like a trend. A man doesn't take what's offered until it matters emotionally as well as physically? Not sure how I'd word it yet, but there's a definite trend.

This is the first time we see Amy as a witch, and we're immediately hit with Amy's penchant for rat spells. Gee, wonder if that's going to show up again! And we hear more examples of Angel's torturous side, but it turns comic in this case; instead of getting Xander to hurt/kill/vamp, Dru saves Xander till the angry crowd of females saves Xander from Dru.

Here's the point worth noting: As angry as Giles was with Xander for messing with the forces of darkness--calling him "selfish" and "a fool"--Xander faces no consequences. It's a slightly comic break from the meta-plot, not a tragic building up towards Angel's evil climax. That's true of "Once More With Feeling," when Xander messes with magic, that time causing at least one death, yet he's teflon. Curious. Willow and Buffy don't get that much of a get out of jail free card. Neither do Angel, Spike and Faith when they mess up. Is it possible that because the writers (Joss especially) identifies strongly with Xander, he slids through? Maybe....

Phases

Again, I found more than I expected. I am tired and don't have a structure for this, so I'm going to ramble my ideas. But this is another of the episodes that I want to rewatch and write about in more detail after I've seen a bit past it, just to see what develops with patterns and ideas. This episode is a big exploration of what manhood means. Whedon deals with a variety of related issues, which ties together seemingly disparate subplots.

• Xander slips up and shows that he remembers things from his time as a hyena. On the surface, it's a slightly comic moment, and even Buffy calling him on it is underplayed--BUT the reason he lies about remembering it is because he seriously tried to rape Buffy. In this episode, one aspect of manhood is the whole civilization vs primal urges; Xander is too tame to deal with primal except as a joke (eg his line to Cordy in Innocence: "I'm 17, Looking at linoluem makes me think of sex.")
• The werewolf hunter-- Kane (symbolism, anyone? killing his brother, the wolf..)--treats Buffy like a harmless little girl, demeaning her possible value and assuming that Giles' interest in her is sexual. However, Kane is a "man's man," an Indiana Jones-esque figure that could just as easily be a romantic hero. Whedon casts him as bad--power and aggression leads to the dark side.
• Larry (I think that's his name) is a sexist rude obnoxious jock. He's Xander's first guess for the werewolf. When confronted, Larry finally admits that he's gay--and he thinks X is too. Uncloseted Larry is kinder, helpful--when men tell the truth, when they engage in talking, they are better people, seems to be the message there.
  
• Oz is perhaps the least physically threatening, least sexualized male on the show. He won't even kiss Willow, and she insists she's done everything to let him know she'd like to. But even small, harmless Oz has an animal side--a time when the wolf has to howl. Note that at the end, they do finally kiss, but because of Willow running up to him, not him initiating. (That's a girl power move for Willow, though, who was worried that making any move would make her seem like a "slut." So there's a flip side to that scene, too)
• Buffy and Willow talk about how much harder it is to understand boys since they outgrew the "hit them on the shoulder to show they like you" stage. Right after that, Xander walks up to Buffy and unobtrusively, hits her on the shoulder. Later, Larry hits Xander on the shoulder as he thanks X for their conversation. Subtle, but good.
• When Cordy and X are parking, she gets irritated because he can't stop talking about Willow and Buffy. He can't figure out why Willow likes Oz, and Cordy hassles him about not being happy with her. He doesn't want Willow, but doesn't seem to want anyone else to have her. He can't have Buffy, but can't walk away either. (part of that is setting up the next episode, I think)
• In gym, they are learning self-defense. Unspoken reason: men pose a danger to women. Furthermore, when Buffy stands up to Larry (still closeted bully version), Willow grabs her and says "You're supposed to be meek and helpless like the rest of us girls." (not exact) Willow doesn't say it ironically--is it meant that way?
• Angel acts helpful, "sensitive new man" style, then kills the girl. There's a point there, but I have a hard time it's as obvious as "don't trust men when they're nice."
  

There's more about manhood, I think, but I need to rewatch to start getting it straight.

The Dark Age

Eureka! I know why this episode follows "Lie To Me." It's the counterpoint, the answer, to Giles' closing speech--where he tells Buffy (at her request), that life is very simple, the men stalwart and true, good & evil easily identified, etc. He is the wise one, but in doing what Buffy wants--what they both know isn't true--he is still the mage, the Merlin. Ironically, Buffy scoffingly but fondly says "liar," as they walk out of the frame and the credits roll. We know she's right; life isn't black & white, and Giles is lying about the big picture. But the lies he tells there are only the shiny white snow covered tip--and they don't really count because we do see them.

However, "The Dark Age" reveals a Giles whose entire idenity is called into question. Ethan shows up again, and places everyone in danger. That's what he does. No big. But one snitch of dialogue is crucial: Ethan says something along the line of "They (the kids) have no idea who you are, do they? They believe the tweed covered librarian act. They don't have a clue.." And Giles is terse and powerful, making big, strong, definative movements. Ethan calls Giles "Ripper," a symbolic name--especially for a Briton. And Ethan seems to honestly believe that Giles can kill him, will kill him. Ethan, who's known Giles longer than anyone thus far, sees a morally ambigous person capable of unremorsedly killing.

Hmmmm....and Buffy and Willow and Xander see a harmless Dewey Decimal disciple, a font of wisdom and teaching who can handle weapons maybe, but....not the front line unless an obscure language needs translated.

We know Giles can kill--or we will know it, in season 5 when he barehandedly kills Ben after Buffy doesn't. Buffy claims to get confused when things get ethically complex. To a large extent, that's her modus operandi throughout the series. For all the whining and emotional hermit-y stuff she does at various times, her resolutions tend to be simplistic. At first glance, Giles is the barometer for what is good. So far, he is stalwart and true, and the Scoobies count on that. He's choosing that, though--having apparently walked through the fire earlier in his life. Until season 7 when he supports Robin's attempt to kill Spike, Giles consistently chooses good--I think. I'm going to have to watch for that. (Well, and Band Candy...but what's a little B&E?)

While I'm thinking about it: is it possible that Willow wants things black and white, but can't manuvor that; she is essentially gray, living in the moral ambiguities, with the goofy naive reactions as her default? That with the exception of his feelings about Spike, Xander ultimately is the stalwart and true one? And that Spike, who wants to see the world as black & white as Buffy, really understands the gray and sees what the others are---I know, I'm not there yet. And Cordelia, she almost unerringly speaks the truth, not sugar coating; she knows black & white in the deeper ethical sense, but her reality checks are undercut by her overt superficially.

I think there are some undercurrents about what manhood is, but I've gotten sidetracked with other topics this time. But sometime, I should think about what Giles and Ethan are modeling about manhood. Later, though.

Halloween

Early in the show, Buffy makes a point of telling Willow that Halloween costumes are about getting to be something you're not--good girls play at being vixens, for instance. Irony alert: Willow and Giles, instead of pretending what they aren't, reveal what they really are. Willow starts out dressing like a ghost, no surprise for the girl who's goal is to be unnoticed by the mean girls. As circumstances happen, though...she's confidently parading around in a sleek, sexy outfit--although she does have the occasionally uncomfortable moment when she realizes someone is looking. And again, Oz sees her and asks "Who is that girl?" She's starting to be a bit less ghosty. (Oh, and even though Willow was appalled by Buffy lying to Giles in the last episode, she helps Buffy steal the Watchers Diary; apparently stealing information isn't bad.)

Giles is a surprise in the episode, too. Mr. Prim Librarian beats a man to a pulp, using his bare hands. Ethan, a friend from Giles' youth, is a trickster bent on creating chaos. To save Buffy and the rest of the town, Giles pounds on Ethan till he finally reveals how to stop the spell. Interestingly, Ethan says to Giles "they have no idea who you are, what you're capable of, do they?" There's a past that is only slightly revealed, but the parts we get are tantalizing. Even though Buffy will not consider killing a human, Giles has more flexible standards; Ethan believes Giles will kill him, and later in the series, Giles kills Ben and plots against Spike--but that's not for a while.

Overall, though, manhood is the theme that keeps popping up. Before Halloween, Buffy is baffled when Xander is upset that she rescues him from a bully. Xander explains that a black eye goes away, but a slight on his manhood never fades. Then, Xander becomes a soldier, protecting "the women," mainly a helpless 17th c Buffy. The manhood subtext continues. Soldier Xander shouts orders that Buffy, Willow and Cordy--and even Angel--immediately follow. He takes action as a leader and earns respect. He even fights the bully to protect Buffy and admits that gives him an odd feeling of "closure." When they get their memories back, Xander is the first to reach Buffy after she slams Spike into submission--yet again, he's her backup, even with Angel there--but her responses to Xander are cursory; Angel is where she's focused.

Quick note about Buffy/Angel: she wants to be girly, to remind him of the girls he presumably chased as a young man. She doesn't talk to him about any of those types of issues, just makes assumptions. Angel isn't the only one in that relationship that doesn't do conversation much, but somehow Angel's mysterious reticence is what gets the focus. There's a power imbalance in their relationship--which isn't necessarily a bad thing--but I'm trying to figure out what I'm seeing and how to say it so it makes sense.

"Inca Mummy Girl"

Couple notable things about this episode:

• First sighting of Oz and Jonathon, as far as I can tell--which is sort of cosmic balance. The embodiment of cool and the social outcast intro'd at the same time. And Oz is attracted to Willow from first glance, which is nice.
• Buffy sees an analogy between herself and the mummy girl, both chosen, both sacrificing themselves. The only mention of Buffy and death is at the very end, when she tells Xander she wouldn't be alive without him and smiles...not the "thank you" she'd purred that he wished for when she danced at him, but a far more genuine acknowledgment. Contrasting that with the pat little speech she gives at the Magic Box to thank them for bringing her back in season 6...this, unspoken, is much more sincere.
• In an episode about sacrifice, it's Xander who offers himself as the sacrifice, pulling Willow out of danger and saying he wants to be in the line of fire--or kissing, as the case may be. (Judas imagery, but not...) This is almost practicing for the yellow crayon speech at the very end of season 6--same dynamic in the logic, and interestingly, same goal: saving Willow.
• The goofy Xander/champion Xander split is becoming more pronounced, I think. Even the way he's dressed in a scene forshadows which one we see--that's my theory. I'm going to keep watching to see if it holds true. Thus far, I still think the writers understand him better than any other character and so we're getting a more nuanced personality from him, but the others are coming along.

No Spike, Angel, or Jenny in this one, and Cordelia is just comic relief. But what I'm noticing (first impression--gotta see if this holds true) is that the episodes in season 1 & 2 that I originally thought were throw-aways or weaker (Teacher Pet, the Pack, etc)--usually not part of the meta-plot--are in fact character building/defining episodes and figure importantly into the overarching mythos of the series. Hm....gotta think.

Prophecy Girl: Entre Act

Quick note about something I forgot to mention earlier: In the very last episode, as Buffy is sending Xander away to keep Dawn safe (which doesn't work), Xander says something like, "I always thought I'd be there for you (with you?) at the very end." There's an implication, if I remember correctly, that he expected to have her back, to be able to pick up the flag, in a sense.

In "Prophecy Girl," this attitude surfaces but is not made explicit by Xander's insistence that he is following her to the Master, and his forcing Angel to go also (would Angel have gone anyway? Probably--if he had known. He doesn't know until Xander shows up at his door, and Angel insists that neither Buffy nor Xander know how overmatched they are).

NOt sure what I'm going to make of that, or if that's going to fit in definition of manhood, or Xander's infatutation with Buffy, but I wanted to mention it. Buffy is only alive because Xander followed; does he think he can be her savior again, or is it just needing to know she wouldn't die alone? Gotta see as this all transpires.

"School Hard"

Spike's here--and there's going to be a little less ritual and a lot more partying.

The "Buffyverse," a storyline with a rich history to draw from and a berth of characters and incarnations, is finally becoming evident. The characters are starting to jell, and (I think) the major themes explored throughout the rest of the series have been introduced, at least briefly. There are still more characters to come--even important characters--but the structure of the Buffyverse is fairly well established even though people, relationships, and storylines still mature.

With that said, here's my quick list of important stuff

• If your name involves time, for instance, Calendar, it's a hint that you can count the number of days (or episodes) you'll last.
  
• This episode has one of the first overt mentions of religion, I think, when Willow tells Cordelia to pray as they are hiding in the closet from the vamp attack. Even though religious imagery abounds, like when Xander used the cross to make Angel listen and cooperate last season, religious references are worthing noting when they happen. In this case, when nothing else seems possible, prayer is last resort--and then, Cordy's prayer is humorous and ironic.
• Spike claims to feel more "manly" when he uses weapons, but what this means is subject to interpretation. She knows he's not a man, he knows she knows--it could be meant ironically humorous, or to underline that as a non-man, he doesn't need a weapon (his speech to her in "Fool for Love" about how a vamp always has his weapon, but she has to reach for hers is an interesting contrast.). Note that he's lying/manipulating the truth in that scene--the last slayer didn't beg for her life (we see flashback in a later season), Angel is his grandsire (although in another show he clarifies: Dru made me a vampire, you made me a monster, he tells Angel)
• Joyce stops Spike. After hitting him on the head with the axe, she says something about not hurting her daughter. Irony/foreshadowing: we know Spike has a weakness for mothers and had a loving relationship with his. And Joyce and Spike end up getting along well, even though she knows he's a vamp. (Contrast that with Angel, who she didn't especially like even when she didn't know he was a vamp; knowing it didn't improve the situation any either)
• "A slayer with friends and family...never heard of that before," or something close. Spike makes that point two times, underlining how unusual that is. It keeps her alive, he says later--and it throws his plans for a loop; Xander gets Angel as reinforcments to help, and Joyce bops Spike and stops the crisis du jour.
  
• Foreshadowing: When Spike sets up the vamp attack at the Bronze, it's so he can see Buffy's fighting style. Buffy doesn't have a stake--a spike--on her person (and how often does that happen in 7 years?? Once, I think) so Xander dashes to her purse, grabs her stake, and throws it to her. Buffy then dusts the vamp, and Spike appludes the show. Notice that Spike gets to see how emeshed Buffy is with her friends--and symbolically, Xander has handed her (or thrown her) to another man, the one who ultimately is a bigger threat to his relationship with Buffy than Angel is.
• Spike's image is all emotion, red hot. Where Angel is dressed in black, or black and white, blood red is spike's color--in this season, I think he's always got some red on somewhere. His speech in season 5 about blood--of course it's blood, that's the color of life...etc--underlines how important blood is to him, and of course to all vampires. The color of life, of passion--that's Spike's trademark color, at least for now.
• Despite how strongly Spike is identified with emotion, impatience, and the Id, notice the strategizing and planning. He wants to see Buffy fight before fighting her, he approaches the Annointed to gain an "in" there before incinerating the Anointed. His talk with Angel isn't about bonding, but digging for info--but Spike is as much about deliberation and power as about emotion.
• Spike is as tied into pop culture as the Scoobies. He calls Angel his "yoda," and he makes another few references just in the time between Angel and the fight with Buffy. He lives in the human world in many ways.
• Spike is gentle and caring towards Drusilla, his ill (mentally, primarily) partner. He's more overtly gentle than Angel is--at least towards their respectivie romantic interests--and that's even though Spike doesn't have a soul. Soul doesn't control empathy, at least totally.
  

That's the short version for now...

Episode Six: The Pack

Wow, was this one a surprise. I'd only seen it once before, and I didn't like it then. It's Xander-centric, but he's mean and rude and I thought it interrupted the flow of the season. I was considering skimming the scenes, whipping out a paragraph, then going to the next episode, "Angel," which is where I'd been waiting to get--it's where the love story picks up, and Angel's so... Anyway, I turned on The Pack and--taken in the context of the series, it's the most interesting episode yet.

First, what's BtVS really about? Girl Power? Sure. The existence of evil, and the fact that good people have to fight the good fight? Ok. That everybody needs people, who need people, are the luckiest...you know? Of course. That High school and life in general can be hellish, with metaphorical monsters stalking you? Umm...yeah. That redemption is difficult, but essential? Definitely. AND, that everyone has a dark side, that we are yin/yang, and need to seek balance, not letting the darkness take us? YES--and that's introduced in this episode.

This is the first episode with a dark tinge, foreshadowing the tone that is more prevalent in later seasons. While on a school field trip, Xander has been possessed by the spirit of a hyena and is now running with the pack of Sunnydale bullies--he quickly becomes the Alpha, of course. Whedon's trademark quick wit and fast lines abound, but not in every scene, and Giles' dry wit is more on display in this episode than previously.

There's one specific aspect of the show that strikes me: Xander turns predatory, mean, aggressive--and at the end, the girls explicitly allow him to take no responsibility for his actions because they know he was under the influence of the evil hyena and--importantly--they believe he has no memory of what happened. In their minds, none of it was Xander's fault, so they don't even tell him what he did, much less discuss the dynamics underlying Xander's actions. However, Giles outs him to the audience: Xander is well aware of what he did; amnesia isn't part of the animal spirit possession package. And Giles literally pats him on the shoulder, blessing Xander's sins of omission.

So what did Xander do? The less damning actions were against Willow. First, to the amusement of his Pack, he says that because he's going to drop geometry, he'll "never have to look at her pasty face again." He's well aware that she's got a crush on him, as proven by dialogue with Buffy later in the episode, and Willow has been his best friend since before kindergarten, as every Buffy fan knows. But hurting her in public, then later (after Buffy has caged him) wheedling and appealing to her as his best friend, claiming they were happy before Buffy : "Weren't things much simpler when it was just me and you," he asks, knowing how much Willow wants the "me & you" aspect of their relationship to blossom. At the end, although he doesn't apologize to Willow or acknowledge what he said hurt her, he saves her from the crazed zookeeper the second he is rid of the hyena-spirit, and he later hugs her as he says, "nobody messes with my Willow." For a love-struck 16 year old girl, that qualifies as affirmation, I'm sure.

But that wasn't all Xander did. In a very intense, fairly lengthy scene, Xander tries to rape Buffy. He is aggressive and mean, claiming that "We both know what you really want. You want danger, don't you? You like your men dangerous...dangerous and mean, right? Like Angel, your mystery guy. Well guess who just got mean." The transformation from goofy, harmless Xander to threatening, predatory Alpha is complete--and surprising, especially given Nicholas Bredon's scant resume at the time he started playing Xander. Later in the scene, he slams Buffy into a vending machine, saying "C'mon, Slayer, I like it when you're scared. The more I scare you, the better you smell." Then--instead of forcing a kiss--he goes for her neck, vamp-style.

Fast forward to season six and seven. Xander is overtly rude to Spike, especially after Spike attempts to rape Buffy. Xander repeatedly ridicules Spike's feelings, and rarely relates to Spike without that subtext. Is it because Xander knows that he is Spike? That when the guise of humanity was stripped away, he did exactly what Spike did--only with less justification? Spike and Buffy had been aggressively sexual; Spike's attempted rape didn't look that much different than the beginning of some of their consensual activities. And once Buffy kicked Spike away, he realized what he'd tried to do and was immediately upset.

Xander, however, gets kicked away and comes back for more--and that's without ever having any encouragement from Buffy that would imply interest. (Interestingly, I didn't time it, but I'm sure that the Xander attempted rape scene is significantly longer than the one with Spike) Without a soul, Xander is less human than Spike before he earns back his soul. Popular theory is that Xander's dislike of Buffy's boyfriends (except possibly Riley) is that he's jealous that Buffy doesn't ever respond to him romantically. And in the first season or two, that's an ongoing subtext. Later, though, I'm not as sure. It may be there somewhat, and Anya implies it a time or two, but as Xander matures, I think there's a chance he's more aware of the yin/yang within himself and how easily he crossed it. His evolution into the person who sees others, as is made explicit in season seven, comes because he has seen himself.

But in this episode, he's teflon. Any possible guilt slides off him, and the girls see only Xander's goofy, friendly demeanor at the end. After his conversation with Giles, though, he walks away with his head hanging. He knows what he did, and presumably is at least embarrassed, maybe appalled--and the girls don't even really have a clue about what's going on inside of Xander. Throughout the series, neither of them is gifted with emotional insight; in another gender twist, Xander evolves into the emotional savant of the Scoobies (another trait he shares with Spike, who without fail has more insight into people--especially Buffy--than they have themselves. Spike even echos Xander's speech about danger, claiming that Buffy "likes a little monster in her men.")

It's worth noting that because Xander never acknowledges what he did, he can't seek forgiveness or redemption; in contrast, although Spike doesn't exactly apologize for attempting to rape Buffy (saying that it's beyond simple words, or something like that), they do talk about it and is forgiven, even redeemed. Perhaps it is logical that Xander, young and inexperienced, doesn't find the way to broach the subject with Buffy. It's hard to imagine the more mature Xander of season six or seven not seeking resolution after letting his id loose. But still, it's possible that Xander's reactions to Spike says as much about Xander's own baggage as it does about Spike.

So Xander and Spike in a yin/yang do-si-do? Before this episode, I wouldn't have seen them as the negative image of each other, but now I'm thinking. Could be.

Three other quick points:

1. This is the first mention of "soul" in the series. Giles mentions it in connection with animal possession, saying "Humanity, the soul, is a perversion, a dilution of spirit The animal state is holy (to the Maori, who worship animal spirits)." The concept of soul is so crucial later in the series--and I suspect in the next episode about Angel, but I don't remember!
2. Buffy pulls a Simba at the end; the crazed zookeeper is killed by his hyena when he flies into the cage, meaning Buffy doesn't kill a human. In "The Lion King," Simba indirectly caused Scar (his uncle and King) to die by letting him fall to the hyena pack--so both Simba and Buffy are innocent.
3. Again, Xander is key in an early story. Whedon claims that he was Xander in high school, and it seems evident that in early episodes, they know the character better than they seem to know the other characters. At this point, Willow is still the brainy computer nerd who finds information and needs saved--little sense of her as a character.
   

Now, to watch "Angel!"

Epsiode 4: Teacher's Pet

Here's the truth: I've got several different directions I'd like to go with this, but I've got a cold and I'm grouchy and achy and I just want to watch Buffy, but until I write this one, I don't want to watch a different episode--it would cloud my memory. So pretend I'm far more nuanced, detailed and insightful than I'm really going to be.

This episode is one I had only seen once before. It's about a giant bug-lady trying to mate with Xander. I'm not into bugs. This is a stand-alone episode, one outside of the mega-plot for the season, which can be a find thing...but it just isn't an episode I love.

With that said, though, I love the opening. Xander fantasizing about rescuing a scared Buffy from a vamp in the Bronze, then jumping on stage to finish his set with the band, where he's the lead singer/guitarist. vintage boy-fantasy, I presume--and he's hot. the normal Xander geeky-gawky vibe is gone, and he's got moves. Serious moves--like Xander doesn't have in the whole series. (Side note: When BtVS began, he was 26, six years older than Sarah Michelle Gellar in real life, and 10 years older than the character he played. This scene is one of the few times his real age shows.) Interestingly, in the fantasy he bears a striking resemblance to Angel, who he hasn't seen yet, and he comments later in the show on how attractive Angel is.

If and when I write about a serious article about manhood and/or sex, this is a show I'll analyze in more detail, but today's topic is Willow. This is the first episode with serious reseach mojo happening. Throughout the episode, the gang is back at the library for more research, and this cements Willow's chops as a computer hacker. She's in the background constantly, and she's even been in danger in an eariler episode, but so far, she is not much more than a plot device. She gets to break important news, she gets to react to Buffy and Xander and Cordelia (who's not in this episode), but she hasn't really shone yet--she's the quirky nerd girl. In the last episode, we find out that she plays around with witchcraft, but treats it like a science experiment with no consideration for philosophical or ethical implications--a trait that continues until season 7. She becomes the cautionary tale of science/ability outstripping wisdom, but so far, she's just a handy, sweet, quirky friend for Buffy.

That's a formula we see throughout pop culture, the girl BFF who isn't as cute, as flirty, as desirable as the ingenue, but is a stalwart friend and invaluable resource. (We can call it the "Gentleman Prefer Blondes" formula--that play is an excellent example of the dynamic) Of course Willow is attractive, but lacking confidence and still dressing somewhat dumpy, not quirky/fun (although I think that begins very soon).

But we're still only four episodes into it; the characters are barely introduced. They all evolve from here---and I've barely mentioned Giles, who I adore! Soon, I'm sure.

Episode Three: Witch

What does it mean to be a man? BtVS is usually cited as an exploration into girl power, and in interviews Whedon speaks eloquently about women's studies and his mission as a male feminist--but the flip side of that is exploring what it means to be a man in a post-patriarchal paradigm. That is never answered explicitly in BtVS--in fact, it's not even alluded to as a question--but hints of the issue pop up like prairie dogs every so often, quickly scanning the situation, then retreating. The third episode of the series, which completely leaves the whole "Master Ascending" metaplot, is overtly about girls and their mothers, but the "what does it mean to be a man" issue is raised in several times.

Does Xander accept being emasculated to be one of Buffy's "slayerettes?" Willow uses that term in this epsiode as she and Xander affirm that they are choosing to be by Buffy's side, choosing to be in danger and fight for right. Both X and Willow emphatically agree that they want to be "slayerettes" for Buffy. The feminization of Buffy's title, the Slayer, is at once both bonding them into a unit and somewhat linguistically demarcating them as weaker, as the female partners. But by embracing the designation, Xander becomes one of the gang and perhaps by being inclusive, "-ettes" loses the derogatory connotations that it might otherwise imply.

A couple other snippets of conversation stand out:

• Buffy, giddy under the influence of a weakening spell, is aided by Willow and Xander, refers to Xander as her "Xander-shaped friend," and says it's as if he's not even a boy because he's so nice and isn't just trying to date her (which he'd been trying to get the nerve up to do). Although the audience knows that he is still attracted to Buffy, she becomes the unattainable dream girl, as alluded to in season 6 by Xander's financee, who knows that Xander's first allegiance is to Buffy. To be a man in Buffy's life, he chooses to not be someone who she thinks of as "a guy." Both times when Xander does get a serious love interest, the females involved are not actually friends with Xander or, significantly, with Willow and Buffy. Is part of being a man in the next wave dependant on checking your hormones at the door?
• In an especially interesting exchange, Xander says that Willow is like his best guy friend, but who understands girls. Does Xander pick up on Willow's sexual ambiguity long before Willow realizes she's gay? (and before the writers decide that, based on interviews). And does having a friend of the opposite gender require that there be no sexual tension, that the "friendness" of the relationship completely trump any awareness of other vibes? (Willow and Xander's one epically mistimed kiss in season 2 almost proves how dangerous it is to imagine a physical relationship with your "friend." Do new age men have to only notice a female's intellectual attributes if they are to be real friends?
  
• All these seemingly emasculating concerns are juxtaposed against a plot line involving cheerleaders. Buffy, Cordelia, Amy and a bevy of others bounce around in short skirts, which Xander panting on the sidelines. Xander is obviously enjoying the view, but does Whedon unwittingly divide women into "my friend" (Buffy, who Xander chooses to not actively pursue so they can be friends) and "my eye candy," girls who he'd gape at and date, but not "friends" (When we get to season 3, we can argue about whether Xander buying newly-destitute Cordelia a prom dress is about friendship, or about something else; I'll argue that's not indicative of the depth of their relationship)
• If Giles is the role model for manhood in an age of female power, note that he both guides Buffy and takes orders from her (last episode he does that). He places himself in danger for her, and insures her safety as best he can--but always conceding that she's stronger and more able. And notably, Giles' only male friend (Ethan) is a destructive force in the Buffy-verse; Giles is only safe around women, it seems.
  

I'm realizing how much I'm writing about Xander in these early posts. That's curious; I have things to say about Willow, and about the Buffy/Joyce relationship, but...it's late. I'm done for tonight.