Family

Variations on the theme: this season, identity and family have been explored, now the theme reaches out to include Tara (and by extension, Willow, who has been underutilized so far this season). Tara has, understandably, been aware that she's not really a Scoobie. Even though she's been around for a season, Buffy and Xander can't think of a thing to get her for her birthday; they claim to not know her well enough.

By the end of the episode, we've found that Tara's own family is awful, and that she believed she was part demon. It's been established that she is officially part of the group, with everyone bonding together to save her from her father--even though she cast a spell that could have caused them to be killed by demons. She is forgiven and accepted, claimed as family.

Things to note: Spike had come to see Buffy killed, but helped save her (gee, imagine that), AND he is part of the process of "claiming" Tara--he's not a Scoobie, but he is. His intervention not only saved Buffy but also established that Tara's father was lying and she was not part demon. His integration from punch line to essential side man has started.

Also, Tara has misused magic, casting a spell for her benefit that impacts others. She is contrite that she did so, accepting that it was wrong. Willow--foreshadowing next season's issues--excuses and defends the use of magic to make Tara's pain less and life better. Tara has learned from her experience; Willow hasn't.

And, very importantly, Riley helps Buffy move in, then feels shut out and leaves, heading to Willy's bar to drink with vampires--looking for darkness? Leading into something? AND, equally importantly, the big love fest at the end that solidifies Tara (and Spike and Anya) as part of the expanded group--Riley's not there. He's on borrowed time. He knows it, too.

Enemies

Faith and Buffy take center stage again. The title of the episode seems self-explanatory: Faith's choices make her Buffy's enemy. Sex abounds in this episode, which opens with Buffy and Angel leaving a movie that was apparently far more "adult" than they suspected. They are lovey-dovey until Faith shows up, gently mocks them, and takes Buffy to patrol. In a sense, that's the template for the whole episode: Faith makes them look at their relationship as she inserts herself into the equation.

There's a point, of course. The Mayor and she are trying to call forth Angelus. She tries to seduce Angel, believing that he'd lose his soul that way (if you've watched Angel, you know that's a vain hope; sex alone doesn't give him the moment of happiness to break the curse or Darla would have had to deal with Angelus.) When Angel won't even kiss her, she resorts to a spell. Double-cross ensues, and Angel plays Angelus as he pumps her for info.

Buffy is jealous. She can paint it as righteous anger, because Faith is bad, Faith is everything Buffy can't be--doesn't want to be--and maybe wishes she could be. Angel was bad, very bad--he liked living on the edge; Buffy takes risks, but refuses to admit she gets a charge out of it. That would be bad, enjoying the kill, enjoying the chase. And that's without even adding the layer of wondering if Angel really likes Faith, really would enjoy it if Buffy would cut loose a bit more.

This tangled relationship doesn't end with this season, either--it's just about the only carryover plot into Angel. Angel saves Faith; Faith saves Angel. In fact, even late in the Angel show, Buffy and Angel are at odds over his relationship with Faith.

Talking about her name is obvious, and I don't currently have anything beyond the obvious to say. Commenting on neatly the names "Faith" and "Angel" fit together is equally obvious, so i won't go there, either--yet.

So are Faith and Buffy the enemies? So it seems--but the animosity is tangled, and Buffy insists that in different circumstances, she could have been Faith. Willow disagrees, claiming that some people are just born good, and experience won't change that. Interesting to contemplate that in light of season 6 and the developement of Dark Willow...

I think there well be more to say here, but I don't know what yet....I may be editing this one.

Consequences

Basically, part two of Bad Girls. Faith tries to frame Buffy--which is when we realize exactly how bad Faith really is--and she threatens to kill to escape from the council when their goons (lead by Wesley) kidnap her.

I suspect I should rewatch this one too, but perhaps the most interesting thing is the Angel/Faith connection. After Buffy and Angel manage to capture Faith, she's shackled in Angel's mansion. He talks to her at length in a scene that is paced differently than the rest of the episode. Although he is not successful in getting through to Faith--and might even be called whining and stoically emo--he's just set the stage for Faith's redemption on his show in the next season (or two? I'm not sure of time frame). In the Buffy-verse, this is the beginning of a significant relationship; Angel champions Faith later, when Buffy claims to intend to kill her.

When I rewatch, I want to pay close attention to Buffy's costume and color choices. If I remember right, when she's being bad with Faith, she's in black--much like Faith typically is. After the killing and subsequent actions, Buffy seems to be in black/white outfits often. That's obviously used symbolically, but I'd like to watch it to see if there's more to say.

Also, Xander tries to do a yellow crayon intervention here, building on the "connection" he claimed to make with Faith in The Zeppo. Even though Buffy apologetically tells him that she knows it means nothing to Faith, Xander the faithful has to try--and nearly gets strangled to death by Faith for his efforts.

Importantly, Willow is having issues in this episode. She's trying to be the nice girl, but she's found out the Xander had sex with Faith and Buffy has been bonding with Faith--as much as Willow likes Oz, she's feeling like the odd man out. In this episode, a wordless shot in a montage shows Willow alone, sobbing--a strong visual counterpoint to her daffy, chipper persona. This time, Willow is the one who's jealous; Willow is the one who feels isolated--and she's aware that she's feeling these things even as she tries to be the good girl.

Amends

What can I say about this episode that hasn't been said better by someone? It's almost fairy-tale like in its ending, a sudden, unexplained snow storm, hiding the sun so Angel doesn't commit suicide. Buffy had told him that they were done, finito--yet she was the one beside him as the miracle occurred, tearfully admitting that she loves him. Snow--white, pure, miraculous--all the things Angel isn't, yet apparently the Powers that Be decide to use super-symbolic-mojo to insure that Angel is around to get his own series.

Angel is trying to make amends for the evil he's done, but he's not the only one. Buffy reluctantly makes overtures to Faith, and Oz decides that he and Willow belong together. Xander and Cordy are still not civil, and we see Xander sleeping outside in the sudden snow as he avoids his family's dysfunctional Christmas eve celebration. White, fluffy snow baptizes the sleeping xander, symbolically exonerating him even though Cordy won't.

In the plot line and symbolically, the destruction wrought be Spike is washed away, but it's worth noting that unlike many television shows, the characters retain the memories of their flaws and failures, and grow--or at least change--from the experiences.

Worth noting: Joss uses very overtly religious symbolism in this one--and it does take place Christmas Eve/Morning--and Willow mentions several times that she is Jewish, although her last name (Rosenberg) is the main evidence of that. In the episode about forgiveness and redemption, even avowed atheist Joss heads to religious, probably because those are the archetypes we understand....I think.

In the Buffy-verse, the last several episodes are crucial to the myth-making and character development. Soon, season 3 will kick up a notch--but for now, we've had a respite from the Mayor as we explore and build the characters more.

The Wish

Another often-cited episode. It's Joss' version of "It's a Wonderful Life," in a sense, answering the question "what if Buffy hadn't moved to Sunnydale?" The inciting action: Cordelia, now recovered from her near-death experience and facing taunts and rejection from the cool kids (lead by Harmony), wishes that Buffy had never come to Sunnydale. Abracadabra!

Anya is on the scene, vengeance demon extraordinaire! This is the first time we meet her, and she seems to be a plot device. She makes a passing reference to Xander as a loser, but other than that ironic moment, it's all vengeance, all the time.

The meat of the episode is simple, in my mind. A couple episodes back, Willow and Xander were bad. They kissed, they lusted, Willow tried to use magic in a manner foreshadowing later issues--just not the happy go lucky kids we expect. They were not truely bad, but they feel they've fallen--and, presumably, the audience is at least aware that they were not the "white hats" for an episode.

So...let's push that further. Vamp Willow and Vamp Xander are bad, no doubt. And they are obviously together, not just giving into a moment of temptation. In a sense, Joss and his merry band of elves are giving us the worst case--what if Willow and Xander had fallen as far as they seem to think they have? They are busy berating themselves for being human--and hurting Cordelia and Oz, who they really do like--so Joss created a reality where they joyfully hurt people.

And, as is usual in Sunnydale, true evil is named an punished. A scarred, leather-clad Buffy--the bad girl mirror of Faith--kills the Master, Vamp Willow and Vamp Xander, with the help of Angel, suggesting that they are destined? Maybe? And that Buffy is good and human and not Faith because she's got friends like Willow and Xander? Maybe?

In the alt-world, Giles is an ex-watcher, and Oz and a couple others work with him to fight the evil, but without Buffy, the fight is futile.

Redemption is needed, all have fallen in one way or another, and....that's where the next episode goes.

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!

I Only Have Eyes For You

Guilt, Forgiveness, Redemption--those are the words of the day. Although the obvious correlation is Buffy's guilt over causing Angel to lose his soul (which she seems to believe she is responsible for, but am I seriously supposed to believe it's entirely Buffy's doing that they had sex? And that Angle never considered what the curse meant??), it's framed in a tragic love murder/suicide story from 1955, and it's plausible that the underlying significance could be missed until Cordy snidely asks Buffy, "Over-identify much?" Even then, Giles and the Scoobies assume Buffy has the woman's role in the tragedy, the victim; when Buffy and Angel--enthralled by the spirits--reenact the deaths, Buffy is the male, the shooter. The one who is angry and seeking redemption--not the victim. Angel plays that role.

The gang believes the morality play can't be resolved; it will just keep going in an endless loop because the victim can't forgive the shooter. That may be true most places, but not when a vampire is involved. Being shot and falling from a balcony are no big deal, so Angel finishes the drama by stopping Buffy's impending suicide and forgiving her for causing the situation, pledging enternal love. Notably, Angel is wearing his claddaugh ring through this whole episode, too, making the symbolism even clearer.

A couple episodes back, Buffy announced that she's ready to kill Angel. In this episode, she essentially gets absolved of the guilt for her actions--which may include what she has to do, perhaps? And interestingly, back at the mansion, Angel has been taunting Spike, who we discover can walk now--a little fact Angel doesn't know yet. The pieces are falling in place...

Season 2.1: When She Was Bad

Season one is over...but it's not. This episode demonstrates part of why BtVS was able to have characters that grow deeper and engage audiences in their journey. It has history, and the history matters. Buffy fought the Master, and died, and then they went to the dance at the Bronze. End of story, end of season.

And that's how season two begins, with business as usual--well, over the summer, Buffy's been in LA with dad, not slaying, not in touch with Willow or Xander. Willow and Xander have apparently been spending a great deal of time together, Willow's infatuation remains--and they nearly kiss when a vampire interrupts and Buffy materializes from the shadows. Life on the Hellmouth is back in full swing.

I could argue that for all her angst, Buffy is a fairly simple creature. She's not hardwired for deep thought and philosophy; she takes action, usually the most direct course and as time goes on, relishing the release of fighting. Dealing with emotion isn't easy for her, and that shows in a variety of ways. Tree pretty, fire bad--the world is more simple for Buffy than for many people, and the issues where it's not simple, she seems to lack the tools to express and deal with the issues. That's often when she isolates herself, as she shows repeatedly. As important as a soul is to Buffy--that nebulous spark that differentiates man from monster--even soul seems to run on a binary code: yes, no; black, white; right, wrong.

SO....Buffy was killed by the Master, and she doesn't deal with it well. Instead of starting season two with a new Big Bad right off, with shiny happy plots and people, the emotional baggage of season one has to be dealt with. Buffy can't articulate her issues, so she turns mean, insulting and hurting not only Cordelia (who may deserve it) but Willow, Xander, Angel and Giles. She's hurting, so she's lashing out. Cordy, who lives up to her name, tells Buffy the hard truth: you're going to lose your friends if you don't deal with whatever is causing the Joan Collins-tude, so "spank your inner moppet and get over it."

Before she does "deal with it" by smashing the Master's dones, Buffy tortures Xander with the sexiest moment seen till season 6, then walks away; she tortures a vamp girl by burning her with a cross; and she puts them all in danger by refusing to listen--leading Xander to tell her "If they hurt Willow, I will kill you"--and at that moment, the audience believes he could do it. Early in the episode, he's said he's over his infatuation with Buffy, but it's clear he wasn't; when he threatens Buffy, he has no vestige of affection for her. When she starts sobbing after pulverizing the bones, though, as Angel holds her, the expression on both Giles' and Xander's faces are heartrending.

But the writers are so clever. They do begin the season's meta-plot when Buffy and Angel have a emotionally vicious conversation. Buffy asks: "You think you can take me?" She needles him, saying she knows he's thought about it--implying that she has thought about it? Yes. Angel answers that he won't fight her, and Buffy still eggs him on, "Come on, kick my ass." Yep, that's season 2 in a nutshell. That's the question it will take 22 episodes to answer--who's stronger, Buffy or Angel?

At the end, Buffy is older and wiser. She realizes she was a moron, and can't figure out how to apologize. She fears that Cordelia is right and she's pushed away her best friends. But at the end, they save a seat for her and welcome her nervously, but genuinely. She's back, and it will be ok.

But in those shots, we see Xander intimately talking, and Willow laughing--seems fine, business as usual--but we only see Buffy's back. Is she still holding back? Has she found the redemption she needs? Not sure...stay tuned.