Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 2, Episode 16 Review: Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered

Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered
Original Airdate: February 10, 1998
Writer: Marti Noxon
Director: James A. Contner

Spells gone awry is a common plot device in fantasy going back to Shakespeare, often allegorical for an easy solution to a difficult problem, which in turn makes the problem worse. Love with all its complexity is a very appropriate problem. This chaos can be played both seriously and comically. Considering its position in the season arc, right before even darker revelations and events than we’ve seen so far, it’s fitting for it to be done comically.

With the reference in the previous episode to the cheerleader trophy from “Witch”, it’s fitting to bring back Amy for another story, especially as magic grows in importance on the series. Despite having her witch mother switch bodies with her and hold her hostage in her home, the draw of magic to accomplish her own desires is too tempting, evidenced with the “invisible homework”. This is setting herself up for a big fall in the future.

Of the main couplings on the show, Cordelia and Xander’s is the most flawed. They came together out of fear of the bug man and since then have stayed together merely out of teenage lust. Once it happened, they kept it secret from the rest of the group until it was revealed at the least opportune moment possible. Despite them having some feelings, there isn’t a solid foundation for their future.

Perhaps the episode would’ve been strengthened had the focus been on Cordelia, not Xander, since her actions set up the episode. Cordelia broke up with Xander to meet the approval of her clique, who besides Harmony are nameless generic high school girls. Once the spell has gone awry and every female in sight is obsessed with him and attempt in zombie esque fashion to seize the Summers’ basement does she turn around. Even with her self assertion at the end of the episode, her decision to stay with Xander is influenced by how her friends reacted under the influence. Only she would find such a gesture romantic.

Also, a fact creator Joss Whedon acknowledges in some commentaries, Nicholas Brendon is much better looking than his nerd persona would suggest. So it’s easier to believe he could get a girl as good looking as Cordelia or that women would fawn over him (not that Nicholas Brendon likely cared), but not as easy for him to be completely humiliated when he gets dumped, as if his peers think he’ll never get close again. However, that humiliation is a good motivator for him to resort to witchcraft for an easy answer.

Quickly, Xander realizes the spell was a major mistake, as every female in sight becomes entranced by him. It also creates some uncomfortable moments when he faces his feelings with the two unavailable women in his life. These encounters, as hard to resist as they were (between Willow’s ear biting and Buffy’s sexy raincoat, I would’ve been catatonic), really show that Xander is a stand up guy, refusing their advances due to their intoxication with the “mystical roofie”. He even saves Cordelia from being torn apart by his admirers. While he caused a lot of trouble (so much that the only people who could help stop it were straight guys, one of whom was a briefly angry Oz), Xander attempted to avoid further harm for his friends.

More could’ve been made of Willow’s pain following the spell, since she’s the one who really loved Xander without magic, as Buffy reminds him in the end, and whose obsession was the most intense. Casting the spell showed an unusual amount of selfishness and almost resulted in serious consequences, particularly if Buffyrat went for the cheese before Amy could revoke the spell. Perhaps the light hearted nature of the episode prompted them to gloss over it: they’d have plenty of dark times ahead.

Considering the tone of the episode, it makes sense to set up the reconciliation between Giles and Jenny, whose relationship has been inactive since “Innocence”. This awkwardness is far worse than the episodes following Jenny’s possession in “The Dark Age”. Unfortunately, they wouldn’t have much time for that as Jenny falls victim to the spell. Giles’ telling Amy she’s not feeling love could be his way of expressing the angst over his own relationship.

While he never gets to craft any grand “poet[ic]” display to taunt Buffy, much to the delight of puppies everywhere, the hints of the menace Angelus poses to Buffy’s friends is still clear. One important piece that hasn’t been referenced since Angelus’ return is the fact that Angel’s invitation into Buffy’s home extends even to his monstrous alter-ego, evidenced when he reaches into Buffy’s room and pulls out Xander. Although he passed on slaughtering the bewitched women afterward, he still has total access to her home, a reality that isn’t addressed until the next episode.

Spike continues to sit impotently while Angelus moves in on Dru. For a vampire gift, a fresh human heart would be more endearing than a necklace. Every time Spike tries to do something in his less mobile state, Angelus is ready to upstage him with something more dramatic, something Dru, who is unable to be docile for too long, would be drawn to. Not to mention Angelus putting the necklace on her eats Spike up and Angelus couldn’t enjoy it more.

Side note on Spike: it’s interesting that he doesn’t automatically find a rhyming word for “lungs”, considering who he was before he turned.

Regardless of its flaws, this episode is still a fun piece of comic relief to throw us off guard before the dark twists in the final episodes of the season. It helps establish connections with magic and spells, something that would become very important to the series. The cast clearly has fun going over the top, which makes it even more enjoyable.

Overall Score: 8/10