Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 3, Episode 8 Review: Lovers Walk

Lovers Walk
Original Airdate: November 24, 1998
Writer: Dan Vebber
Director: David Semel

Most of the loose ends from last season have been tied up in the first third of this one with one big exception. Spike snuck out of Buffy and Angel’s fateful duel, speeding off with his unconscious beau Drusilla. Obviously he survived for a reason. Spike has a devoted following, so much so that his image is on one of the DVDs for this season despite being in only one episode (and said DVD doesn’t contain it). However, there had to be more to his return than satisfying the fans. So leave it to Spike to breeze into town, make a huge emotional mess, and leave with his old attitude back, while leaving the door open for another comeback later.

It’s apparent in Spike’s return, echoing his arrival in “School Hard”, that he is a different vampire. Smashing through the “Welcome to Sunnydale” sign now doesn’t mean that he’s a bad boy, but that he was too drunk to drive. Fans may have had cause for concern, as they wouldn’t want to see Spike moping the entire episode. However, they mine great comedy out of this, like him sobbing over a park bench where they killed a homeless man. It also serves as a contrast to Angel and Buffy’s relationship: they want him to get over his heartbreak, but they’re oblivious to their own problems with love. All three have a big moment of realization during this: Spike realizing he’s “gone soft” and needs to be tough to get Drusilla back and Angel and Buffy realize they’re fooling themselves.

Of course his initial target is Angel. Through the second part of last season Angelus continually teased the physically impotent Spike while charming Drusilla. It ultimately created the chain of events that caused him to side with Buffy which destroyed his relationship with Drusilla. Until he gets to the magic shop, he seems more like the guy who gets wasted, talks big about revenge and ultimately does nothing. However, it’s Spike’s desire to curse Angel with leprosy that leads him on a collision course with Willow, where he becomes the catalyst for the breakdowns of three major relationships.

Meanwhile, Xander and Willow’s stolen moments have become increasingly obvious. It couldn’t keep it going much longer without everyone else coming off as superbly ignorant. Willow tries to fight those hormones by attempting a “de-lusting” spell. While Xander’s tried it before (nice callback), this episode is the first time Willow’s used magic to simplify her life, a theme that will be explored heavily in future seasons. However, the spells in this episode are merely a device to get Spike involved in the main story and place Xander and Willow in a high peril situation where they express themselves and are discovered in the worst manner possible.

This happens as Cordelia and Oz’s gestures show commitment to their relationships. Cordelia has to deal with the pressures of high school politics, where she’s gotten plenty of flack from her friends for dating a “loser” like Xander. Displaying photos of them in her locker shows that her feelings for Xander have overcome peer pressure. Oz on the other hand, is known for being so relaxed and nonchalant that putting his feelings out there is noteworthy. Because he’s so protective of his emotions, Oz is likely the more hurt of the two.

However, the key development is Buffy and Angel realizing that they don’t have a future together. It starts with Buffy’s SATs. Despite being expelled, suspended and reprimanded for violent behavior, Buffy’s high score offers enormous promise of life outside Sunnydale. For the first time Buffy has the opportunity to live a normal life of “keg parties and boys”, what she’s always wanted. Faith, albeit a ticking time bomb, can substitute for Buffy at the Hellmouth while she studies. Buffy simply isn’t used to thinking about having a future; she slays and that calling carries a short life expectancy. It’s like the cliché of the small town person who thinks they’ll never leave it, but is given a huge opportunity. Blowing it off is fitting for her character, as if she’s expecting the rug to be pulled out, and considering there are a little more than 100 episodes left in the series, it’s warranted.

Although she has every reason to go, she’s still divided with Angel. It’s very much allegorical for teens’ indecisiveness over their post-high school plans because of a boyfriend or girlfriend and how siding with the boyfriend or girlfriend is usually regrettable. Angel wisely advises her not to decide because of him. Obviously the set up for Angel’s departure into his series starts on this arc on the doomed relationship.

Before they realize their relationship has no future, they spend most of the episode continuing to believe they can be friends after all. With the exception of the intervention, Buffy’s friends are content to have her believe it as well, but Spike sees otherwise. He’s right to recall the last time he saw them, as it seems they forgot that they were fighting to the death with the world as the prize. After all that has happened, how can they go back to being friends? Simple answer is that they can’t, and Spike is the only one who can tell them that.

In the heat of all that happened in “Becoming”, it’d be easy to forget that Buffy willingly invited Spike into her home and so far this season, failed to rescind that or reinvite Angel after his soul was restored. The way they dealt with that conundrum is the funniest moment of the episode, where Spike taunts the “bad man” Angel while mockingly posing as if to bite her outside her eyesight. Despite this, they never do get around to rescinding that invite.

The Spike and Joyce friendship really could’ve been forced and absurd, but it somehow works: the suburban single mom and the European mass murderer commiserating over hot chocolate with marshmallows. Joyce has to be the mother to the heartsick Spike, and he, despite his nature to kill humans, is happy to have to someone to talk to.

Spike’s return gets on the Mayor’s radar and what he’s planning is too important for Spike to mess up, despite him enjoying (and the deputy dreading) Spike’s exploits last season. This short scene, in addition to adding the conflict where Spike, Angel and Buffy fight Spike’s former flunkies (now the Mayor’s), offers some insight into how the Mayor perceives outside demons and vampires. So, if he was aware of Spike, what else did he know and did he attempt to intervene off camera?

The only part of this episode that doesn’t work is Cordelia’s impalement. When it first aired, it might’ve provided a brief shock when they cut to the funeral, then Willow & Buffy, who just happen to be walking past it, explaining that Cordelia’s OK. Now, it comes off as a cheap way to get a rise out of the audience. Everything up to it does help make the situation where Xander and Willow are exposed more uncomfortable.

This episode is the best so far this season. It’s essentially the second part of the end of the introductory phase and it ends messily. Faith became jaded by the group and Angel’s return raised tensions last episode, and now all the romantic relationships are in ruins. Spike’s return could’ve been just a bone thrown to the fans, but it provides valuable character development on top of being really entertaining.

Overall Score: 9/10

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 3, Episode 7 Review: Revelations

Revelations
Original Airdate: November 18, 1998
Writer: Douglas Petrie
Director: James A. Contner

This episode and its successor can be argued as the end of the beginning phase of the season. With that, it could’ve been easy to have this change addressed in a two-parter much like “What’s My Line” last season. However, the second episode’s main story deserved its own episode rather than subjected as a subplot in two. Even with the good pay off moments, this episode ends up messy and a little rushed in some places.

Following Faith’s first Watcher’s grisly murder by Kakistos, it seemed like the council was content with having Giles perform double duty training the slayers. This episode at first appeared to answer what the process is for getting a new Watcher to a slayer, but that wasn’t the case with the twist. They would deal with that, but later in the season.

There is a critical story flaw: wouldn’t Giles’ have known Gwendolyn was no longer a part of the Watcher’s Council if she was fired a few years ago? It is pre Google, Facebook and Wikipedia, but why didn’t he contact the Council (or vice versa) to make sure everything was proper? It should’ve been more appropriate to have her still be a Council member, but hiding a secret agenda in obtaining the glove.

Faith’s estrangement from the group becomes more tangible in this episode. As it’s been hinted, she didn’t have support before she became a slayer, so making friends with Buffy made up for that. However, Gwendolyn plants doubt about her position in the gang. Not including her in the intervention, while it might’ve been appropriate since she wasn’t around, sends a message that could be read that the gang doesn’t accept her as one of them. The problem is that this trust between Gwendolyn and Faith isn’t earned enough to make this move as profound as it needs to be. Gwendolyn doesn’t have time to take Faith under her wing, nor does she have a similar personality which would win Faith over.

The biggest sign of Faith’s lack of empathy occurs en route to killing Angel with Xander. While Xander is motivated by his jealousy (and maybe a little interested in Faith), he backs up when he finds Giles seriously hurt and holds back to get him an ambulance. However Faith doesn’t think twice about leaving him to die, using slayer duties as an excuse. Buffy wouldn’t make the choice to sacrifice someone like that for the sake of the kill, another representation of Faith as the Slayer Buffy wouldn’t allow herself to be. Faith isn’t completely lost though, as she seemed to reach out to Buffy, albeit very briefly in the end, but clearly there are dark times ahead for her until she can reach out to others.

Besides her relationship with Faith, Gwendolyn’s motivations about getting the glove (besides wanting to blow stuff up with lightning) are never fully explained. Unfortunately the Lagos demon is wasted as well, barely a blip before Buffy dispatches him. Another episode could’ve fleshed this out more.

Short term, Gwendolyn does very well in challenging the Giles and Buffy relationship. Obviously they have grown close like a father and daughter, but Giles’ job is to train her to kill demons and vampires. While there have been some minor tensions since Buffy came back, he doesn’t start to question her judgment until this episode. Once Angel’s return comes out in the least comfortable manner possible, Gwendolyn’s criticism gains considerable weight.

The intervention is how the catharsis in “Dead Man’s Party” should’ve played out. Each of the characters’ reactions reflect who they are, instead of them acting inconsiderately to create a scene with awkward fighting. Giles is betrayed that she would place above him the man who murdered his love and then tortured him for kicks. People will assume Xander’s motivations will always been driven by his jealousy rather than what’s right. Having the characters bring that out in the open made for great drama. It’s also good to show that they haven’t forgotten what Jenny’s death did to the group and Giles in particular. It’s surprising no one considered maybe Buffy lied about sending Angel to hell since they don’t know how he returned. Of course, Willow’s going to be sympathetic towards Buffy’s predicament as she’s in a similar jam. With Buffy in the dog house, she’s not likely to come clean about it anytime soon. It’s a shame it gets resolved by the end of the episode.

There are some problems that hinder the episode’s climax. The Faith and Buffy fight had too many shots where it was clear the stunt people were on camera rather than the actresses. Obviously the stunt people do the more dangerous moves, but they’ve done better at hiding that. This fight is a key moment: the first between Buffy & Faith, but the impact is diminished because of poor editing.

Then there’s the end, where Buffy slices off Gwendolyn’s arm, causing the heavens to vaporize her. It’s more the method than the amputation itself that’s awkward. Is it possible for even a sharp shard of glass to slice off someone’s arm that way? Cutting through the flesh would work, but I think that it’d have to be faster than anything Buffy could throw would cut bone clean off. If only Lagos’ axe was still handy.

This may be one of the few instances where Buffy shows bruising after a fight. Considering the routine beatings, it’s shocking that that didn’t happen more often, but with the story, perhaps keeping it was meant to be metaphorical for the pain Faith is in being unable to trust anyone.

Overall this episode needed some expansion to make some of the moments too rushed to be really effective. Unfortunately they had a bigger idea for what device they would use for the other key turning points at this point in the season. Regardless, what follows this episode and where the characters go in the rest of the season make up for the faults in the road getting there.

Overall Score: 7/10

Thursday Three-fer Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 3, Episode 6 Review: Band Candy

Band Candy
Original Airdate: November 10, 1998
Writer: Jane Espenson
Director: Michael Lange

Throughout the series there have been episodes where identities were distorted in a way to develop the characters and/or advance the plot. Last season’s sixth episode, “Halloween”, did that, exploring some subconscious desires of the wearer. Unlike many of those instances, this episode decides to alter the identities of the supporting cast (excepting Giles) to help mend some of the residual problems from season two between Buffy and her guardians. The producers have said this episode turns on the common teenage wish that their parents were “cool” (ie just like them). With no one to be responsible, it turns scary. That may have been the intent, but ultimately the episode is far more comic.

Buffy, like any teenager, desires freedom and greater independence from her parents or parental figures in the case of Giles. However, she has to face the consequences of running away, which means being kept on a tight leash by both Giles and Joyce. The close watch is intensified by the increased difficulty in keeping Angel’s return a secret. Deceiving her loved ones could be interpreted as her heading down another slippery slope toward bad things. Although Buffy would win their favor by stopping Lurconis, she still has to deal with Angel, who can’t stay hidden forever.

Of course Buffy’s return wouldn’t ease tensions between her and her mom. Buffy running away negated any signs of responsibility she showed in front of her mother before. They tried to explore this tension in “Dead Man’s Party”, but it failed in its forced delivery. This episode, along with its supernatural allegory, works far better to illustrate that generation gap. Joyce’s teenage persona explains why she is so concerned about her daughter: she was just like pre-Chosen Buffy, and it’s common for parents to want their children to be better and not repeat their mistakes. However, seeing Buffy take charge of the situation while her grown up counterparts do little besides tag along makes it clear that Buffy is far more mature than Joyce gave her credit for.

Through their teenage selves, we see some interesting and humorous character development. Snyder was the kid who never read between the lines in social situations and when he eventually did, solidified for his sour demeanor now. As mentioned, Joyce was similar to pre-Chosen Buffy. However, it is Giles, who reverts to his Ripper persona under the candy that is the most interesting. This is probably the closest insight into who that was the series will get, which is a little disappointing, especially with the Ripper spin-off in perpetual limbo.

It’s worth noting that, since those intoxicated were either school staff or parents who bought all (or half for Joyce and Giles) the bars, the teenage personas represented reflect only the culture from the late 60s and early 70s. It may be an excessive criticism, but it would’ve been cool to have adults of various ages behaving as they would if they came of age before or after the Vietnam era. As a side note, thankfully Giles’ played a song that isn’t in every cliché depiction of the 60s.

Joyce and Giles’s adventures touch upon their attraction towards each other, which has been alluded to in a few episodes, but kept brief. With their teenage inhibitions, they can’t keep their hands off each other. It’s implied (later confirmed) that they had sex as well. Once they sobered up, they can’t look each other in the eye the morning after. Their feelings toward each other were never as obvious as in this episode, probably so it wouldn’t cheapen what Giles had with Jenny, but perhaps they never tried a real relationship out of fear of what it would do to Buffy, as well as Giles’ role as her watcher. It’s certainly adds a lot of subtext, especially down the road.

This is the first episode to offer some insight into the Mayor’s motivations. He made “campaign promises” to several powerful demons to get in office (and to have somehow a vampire cease fire the night of the mass intoxication). While Mr. Trick noted he should be relieved not to pay Lurconis tribute, The Mayor’s request that Trick be cautious about which “favors” he does for him hints that there is something in progress that requires these powerful entities to be alive. Regardless, this tribute is really a MacGuffin to the episode’s story. It doesn’t matter what the adults weren’t paying attention to, it could’ve been anything.

Although Slayerfest failed miserably, Trick tries again outsourcing mayhem by having Ethan supply it. It makes sense to have Ethan return as the origin of this threat. Back when we last saw him, he served as a counter to Giles for maturity: not moving past the dark magic he got into as a teenager. In a way, he’s bringing everyone to his level.

While she took responsibility as the adults became immature, Buffy’s still can’t see clearly with her relationship with Angel. Buffy lying to Angel about her break up with Scott continues the theme that Buffy and Angel aren’t going to get back together. Letting him know that there is one less hurtle would just make things more uncomfortable. They’re trying to get into the “friend zone”, but that is impossible since they clearly want to be more than that and too many lines have been crossed.

Similarly, Willow and Xander are trying to go back to the friend zone, but after that kiss, they’re no facing the “more than friends” feelings that have always been there. Their gestures toward each other are far more pronounced. While not enough to get the attention of the rest of the gang, the guy plucking the acoustic guitar could almost be a character.

Probably the most noteworthy element of this episode is it is the first from Jane Espenson, who would be one of the series’ most prolific writers (second only to Whedon) and who currently works on the Battlestar Galactica update. It’s one of the last elements that solidified the Buffy brand into the thing people love and it’s been interesting to see how that happened.

“Band Candy” succeeds far better than “The Dark Age” at showing tight leashed adults that they were once young and irresponsible too and that their children are more grown up than they give them credit. Perhaps this is because it’s done it in a light hearted manner, with the adults’ new found immaturity played for laughs. This episode is another piece addressing unresolved threads about the aftermath of the second season, and is one of the better examples than the ones that started this season.

Overall Score: 8/10