The Girl's Got Bite: The Original Unauthorized Guide to Buffy's World

by Kathleen Tracy

  THE REAL HORROR: The dangers of Internet intimacy. This episode is almost of the ripped-from-the-headlines variety. Willow establishes a “relationship” with an unknown, unseen stranger by chatting on the computer. With the recent flurry of reported crimes being committed by people who were first “met” on the Internet, the presence of a demon inside the modem is already a perceived reality to some technophobes.

  IT’S A MYSTERY: How did Buffy, on foot, manage to follow Dave, who was driving a car, to the computer research facility?

  BLOOPERS: When Moloch is hacking into the school computer to see Buffy’s school record, her birthdate changes from “10/24/80” the first time we see the computer screen, to “5/6/79,” and her grade changes from “sophomore” to “senior.”

  OF SPECIAL NOTE: The director of this episode, Stephen Posey, who also works as a cinematographer, began his directing career working on a number of horror films, including Slumber Party Massacre, which had the distinction of being banned from movie theaters in Germany.

  The voice of Moloch/Malcolm is supplied by Mark Deakins, who was a popular daytime star on The City, playing Kevin Larkin.

  The voice heard while Giles is listening to the radio is that of series creator Joss Whedon.

  9. “The Puppet Show”

  (MAY 5, 1997)

  Director: Ellen Pressman

  Teleplay: Dean Batali and Rob Des Hotel

  Recurring cast: Armin Shimerman (Principal Snyder); Kristine Sutherland (Joyce Summers)

  Guest cast: Krissy Carlson (Emily); Chasen Hampton (Elliot); Lenora May (Mrs. Jackson); Natasha Pearce (Lisa); Burke Roberts (Marc); Richard Werner (Morgan); Tom Wyner (voice of Sid)

  Plot: The Sunnydale High School talent show turns sinister when one of the featured students, a ventriloquist with a eerily real dummy, is suspected by Buffy and the gang in the gruesome murder of another student, who had her heart cut out.

  THIS WEEK’S EVIL CREATURE: A demon who, in order to retain its human form, must eat a human heart and brain every seven years. This demon is the last of a group of seven demons, the others having been killed by Sid, the demon hunter. Unfortunately for Sid, he’s the victim of a curse that left him a wooden dummy: Think Pinocchio with hormones and an attitude. In order to be freed from the curse, Sid must kill the last of the demons, hopefully before it finds a suitable brain to eat.

  INTRODUCING: Principal Snyder, who is determined to restore order to Sunnydale High. He feels his predecessor Mr. Flutie, who was eaten by a pack of hyena-possessed students in Episode 5, was too soft on the students. The new principal’s hard-line motto is that children should be disciplined and controlled; trying to understand them will only lead to an out-of-control school and a limited mortality.

  Snyder seems to have focused his attention on Buffy and her cohorts because, he says, they seem to be the school’s bad element. He keeps appearing out of nowhere and his too-close-for-comfort, invading-her-personal-space interest in Buffy begins to take on a skin-crawling quality. Is he just an overzealous authoritarian, or something more sinister, possibly even demonic?

  Also introduced is Willow’s stage fright, which will play a major role in Episode 10, “Nightmares,” and Episode 78, “Restless.”

  ANALYSIS: As the reluctant director of the talent show, Giles’s antisocial personality is fleshed out. His discomfort at having to deal with hordes of students is palpable and is reflected by how disheveled he looks whenever he interacts with the participants. He isn’t kidding when he tells the new principal that the reason he became a librarian in the first place was to minimize contact with the students.

  Through Sid, there is more sexual innuendo than in previous episodes. When everyone still thinks it’s Morgan providing the voice of the dummy and Sid says, “Once you’ve had wood, nothing else is as good,” Buffy deals with the sexual connotation by confronting Morgan in a mature, calm manner. Considering creator Whedon stated that at this point Buffy is definitely a virgin, she’s an aware virgin at ease with sexuality.

  At the end, when Giles is locked in a real guillotine, it’s the first time the Watcher needs to be saved from imminent death. Although Buffy readily puts herself at risk to save anyone, she seems particularly panicked when she realizes that the demon will go after Giles because he’s the smartest person around. Although she herself might not yet realize it, Buffy has started to see Giles as a surrogate father figure.

  THE REAL HORROR: Mandatory participation in a high school talent show and the ensuing public humiliation for the artistically impaired. Nothing is quite so sadistic as forcing students, or anyone else for that matter, to get up in front of a roomful of people and perform. While some people, like the Cordelias of the world, have no shame or sense of embarrassment about themselves and are happy to get up on a stage and sing off-key just to be in the limelight, others, like Buffy, Xander, and Willow, find the experience degrading. Ironically, the people with the worst self-image problems are the ones most damaged by this barbaric school ritual. Buffy sums up the prevailing attitude of most students when she tells her mother, “If you really want to support me, you’ll stay far, far away.”

  A second, and more serious issue is raised by Morgan’s illness. The monster of this episode, a demon who coldly robs people of their lives for its own insidious gain, could be seen as the fictional embodiment of his terminal brain cancer, a disease that literally eats away at bodies to keep itself going. For anyone there are few horrors so great as the thought of dying a slow, painful death from disease, but it is especially so for a young person. Debilitating illnesses are not supposed to afflict children, but do—and anyone who has ever had a classmate die from disease knows the difficult realization that there are no guarantees that we will all enjoy a long, aged life.

  BLOOPERS: Sid kills the demon by stabbing it through the heart with a jumbo-sized kitchen knife. But in the next shot, when Buffy is carrying the lifeless dummy away, there is no knife in the demon’s chest.

  OF SPECIAL NOTE: Principal Snyder is played by Armin Shimerman, who is known to Star Trek: The Next Generation fans as Quark. According to Whedon, the casting was simply lucky. “Armin came in to read because I guess he had some free time, and he was hilarious.”

  Lenora May, who plays Mrs. Jackson, appeared in the classic 1979 horror film When a Stranger Calls.

  The voice of Sid is supplied by Tom Wyner, who produced, directed, story-edited, and narrated the animated series Techman.

  The scene Buffy, Willow, and Xander perform for the talent show at the end of the episode is from Oedipus Rex.

  10. “Nightmares”

  (MAY 12, 1997)

  Director: Bruce Seth Green

  Teleplay: David Greenwalt

  Story by: Joss Whedon

  Recurring cast: Dean Butler (Hank Summers); Andrew J. Ferchland (Colin/the Anointed One); Mark Metcalf (the Master); Kristine Sutherland (Joyce Summers)

  Guest cast: Jeremy Foley (Billy Palmer); Scott Harlan (Aldo Gianfranco); Tom Magwili (Billy’s doctor); J. Robin Miler (Laura); Sean Moran (stage manager); Brian Pietro (Billy’s coach); Justin Urich (Wendell)

  Plot: An attack on a young boy leaves him comatose, and his wandering spirit unleashes everyone’s worst nightmares, making them come true. While battling her own REM. demons, Buffy races the clock to uncover the identity of the boy’s attacker before reality folds completely.

  THIS WEEK’S MYSTICAL PHENOMENON: Astral projection—the belief that while the physical body is unconscious, the astral body is able to navigate freely through dimensions of time and space.

  INTRODUCING: Dean Butler, who plays Buffy’s dad, Hank Summers. Hank still lives in Los Angeles and only comes to visit Buffy on occasional weekends. The depth of Buffy’s emotional reaction to her parents’ divorce is delved into, as well as her worry that she may have in some way contributed to their growing apart because of the havoc wreaked by her secret life as the Slayer.

  ANALYSIS: The opening dream sequence in which Buffy confronts the Maste
r and is terrified into paralysis as he leans in for the kill, is a clear indication that Buffy’s unspoken fear of the Master’s power is growing—a nice foreshadowing of the season finale.

  Suddenly life at Sunnydale High begins to take on a surreal, dreamlike quality when nightmarish events become daytime realities. In one of the more upsetting scenes, Buffy’s father tells her he left because he couldn’t stand living in the same house with her—she’s too much trouble and an overall disappointment, and he really has no interest in maintaining a facade of a relationship. The girl who has faced down death on a weekly basis crumbles under the emotional barrage, revealing her true Achilles’ heel.

  The bizarre happenings are related to Billy Palmer, a boy who lies comatose in the hospital after a brutal attack. The nightmares Billy’s astral body has brought with him from his comatose state are enveloping reality. Buffy’s worst nightmare—that she’ll become a vampire—comes true, but in a dramatic dénouement, Giles figures out how to reverse the nightmares, and restores reality.

  THE REAL HORROR: This prickly episode touches on our secret fear of public humiliation: nightmares of standing naked in front of class; being onstage and not knowing your lines; getting lost in a familiar place; being chased by malevolent clowns; becoming physically disabled or mentally incapacitated—all are common dream manifestations of universal anxieties. But concerns of ostracism are probably never as intense as during the unforgiving high school years, when the smallest social misstep can become a permanent red-letter identification.

  Series creator Joss Whedon, who came up with the story idea for the “Nightmares” teleplay, accentuates the power of these fears by resurrecting them out of sleep and giving them flesh. To Whedon, true terror is found in the mundane, not the fantastic. While a vampire may give us the creeps, a family member we thought we knew, turning monstrous, is far more frightening. When Hank Summers tells Buffy that the family fell apart because she wasn’t worth loving, Whedon taps into the overriding fear harbored by most children of divorce.

  BLOOPERS: In the opening scene, when Buffy is talking about her parents’ divorce, Willow turns her back to the camera and slides her backpack off her shoulder. Quick cut to Willow’s face, and the backpack is still on her shoulder.

  OF SPECIAL NOTE: Take a close look when Willow opens her locker and you’ll see a Nerf Herder bumper sticker on the inside of the door—an homage to the band that plays the show’s theme song over the show’s opening credits.

  Dean Butler, who plays Buffy’s dad, starred on Little House on the Prairie for five years as Almanzo Wilder, who married Melissa Gilbert’s character, Laura.

  11. “Invisible Girl”

  (MAY 19, 1997)

  Director: Reza Badiyi

  Teleplay: Ashley Gable and Thomas A. Swyden

  Story by: Joss Whedon

  Recurring cast: David Boreanaz (Angel); Armin Shimerman (Principal Snyder)

  Guest cast: Ryan Bittle (Mitch); Denise Dowse (Ms. Miller); Clea DuVall (Marcie Ross); Julie Fulton (FBI teacher); Mercedes McNab (Harmony); Mark Phelan (Agent Doyle); Skip Stellrecht (Agent Manetti)

  Plot: After her boyfriend, best friend, and teacher are all attacked by an unseen assailant, Cordelia—who has just been voted May Queen—pleads with Buffy for help. The problem is, the assailant is a former classmate who is now invisible and bent on exacting revenge, with Cordelia as her primary target.

  THIS WEEK’S PHENOMENON: Invisibility. According to a basic tenet of quantum physics, reality can be shaped and created by our perceptions of the world and of the people around us. In the case of Marcie, the invisible girl, she literally faded away because she didn’t exist in the eyes of others.

  INTRODUCING: A kinder, gentler Cordelia. Sort of. When Cordelia realizes she’s actually the one who Marcie is after, she comes begging for Buffy’s help, making it clear she does not have the ability or wherewithal to fight an invisible opponent. It’s a new vulnerability for Cordelia, albeit laced with the same self-serving pragmatism.

  The first season’s story arc involving the Master is pushed along by the appearance of the Codex, courtesy of Angel. The Codex is a book of prophecies concerning the Slayer that Giles had believed was lost. Its appearance sets the stage for the season finale.

  ANALYSIS: Once again Buffy’s good heart is emphasized by her inability to refuse Cordelia’s plea for help. Even though the look on her face says she would really love to see Cordelia squirm, she can’t. She is, after all, the Slayer, and evil is evil, and Marcie, who has gotten increasingly violent, needs to be stopped.

  It’s also interesting to note that while Buffy often seems harried and at loose ends whenever she runs into Cordelia and her entourage in the hallways, Buffy is in her element in the library and all it represents. Her body language—languidly sitting back in the chair while listening to Cordelia—speaks volumes about Buffy’s double life. Out in the scary, sociopolitical world of high school, she’s just as insecure as anyone, but in her Slayer’s lair, she’s confident and in command.

  This episode marks the beginning of a sea change in Cordelia’s relationship with Buffy and company. Cordelia’s admission to Buffy that being the school’s most popular girl isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, is a surprising show of vulnerability. Appearances are still everything, but Cordelia has begun to show that there’s something else, too, underneath her haughty exterior. Cordelia is not a bad person, nor is she stupid; she is simply a prisoner of her own inverted social standards.

  Angel also is slowly becoming a more accepted presence. Giles starts to look at him the way a father scrutinizes his daughter’s new boyfriend. Giles immediately picks up on the fact that Angel is in love with the Slayer, and his response that the situation is poetic, “in a maudlin sort of way,” shows both his sensitivity to emotion as well as his concern that such a pairing will probably only bring Buffy heartbreak. He is now not only concerned with her physical safety, but her emotional well-being as well.

  Angel’s role as protector is further cemented when he turns up in the nick of time to save Giles, Xander, and Willow after they are locked in the school basement by Marcie, who has jammed open a gas valve. Up to now his interaction has largely been confined to Buffy; with this episode he shows that his concern extends to her friends as well.

  THE REAL HORROR: Unpopularity and exclusion. At some point or another, nearly everyone during their high school career feels left out of the loop, but for some students, it’s a full-time position. Marcie represents all the kids who somehow manage to pass through school nearly totally anonymous. Not only are they not included by their classmates, but even teachers tend to overlook them. These kids aren’t the nerds, who tend to hang with each other, and thereby have their own clique. The Marcies of the world are teenagers who don’t seem to fit in anywhere and spend most of their time completely alone.

  BLOOPERS: In the scene where Buffy and Cordelia are being held captive, Buffy frees herself and manages to untie Cordelia’s left hand before getting punched by Marcie. In the very next shot, the hand is still tightly tied to the chair.

  OF SPECIAL NOTE: This episode was originally titled “Out of Mind, Out of Sight.”

  Denise Dowse, who plays the teacher, Ms. Miller, appeared for two years on Beverly Hills 90210 as Mrs. Teasley, the headmaster.

  Clea Du Vall, who plays Marcie, has had practice playing the supernatural. She co-starred in Little Witches, a poor man’s takeoff on The Craft, in which four girls at a Catholic boarding school delve into the occult.

  12. “Prophecy Girl”

  (JUNE 2, 1997)

  Director: Joss Whedon

  Teleplay: Joss Whedon

  Recurring cast: David Boreanaz (Angel); Andrew J. Ferchland (Colin/the Anointed One); Mark Metcalf (the Master); Robia La Morte (Ms. Calendar); Kristine Sutherland (Joyce Summers)

  Guest cast: Scott Gurney (Kevin)

  Music: “I Fall to Pieces” (while Xander is lying on the bed, depressed) by Patsy Cline; “Inconsolable” (while Buf
fy morbidly looks at the photo album), by Jonatha Brooke, from Plumb

  Plot: The Codex, the book of Slayer prophecy given to Giles by Angel, tells of a great battle between Buffy and the Master, which will result in her death and the opening of the Hellmouth. When Buffy discovers her foretold death, she initially bolts, but eventually returns to face the Master and her destiny.

  THIS WEEK’S PROPHECY: According to the Codex, the Slayer will face the Master—and be defeated by him. Once freed, will open the mouth of Hell and release an apocalypse of demons onto the Earth which will result in the annihilation of humankind.

  INTRODUCING: Cordelia and Ms. Calendar’s full initiation into the Slayer’s inner circle, when they help fight the Master’s minions and witness the opening of the Hellmouth.

  ANALYSIS: All the primary players go through a transition or a coming to terms with emotions as the first season’s story arc ends. Xander has to come to grips with the reality that Buffy will never love him the way she loves Angel. After Buffy turns down Xander’s invitation to the dance and rejects his romantic overtures, Willow provides a double whammy by also refusing Xander’s suggestion that the two of them go to the dance as buddies, making it clear her feelings about him prevent her from being his platonic date.

  Buffy’s impending battle with the Master brings out Xander’s mettle as a friend and once again emphasizes his dogged loyalty. Despite being romantically rejected by Buffy, he’s still willing to risk his life to save her—so much so, he swallows his pride and enlists the help of Angel to find Buffy. But it ends up being Xander, not Angel, who brings Buffy back from the dead by resuscitating her after she is drowned at the hands of the Master.

  Cordelia and Jenny Calendar’s presence when the Hellmouth opens after the Master is released—and Angel’s decision to help Xander—is a precursor to the increased involvement they will have with Buffy in the second season.

  THE REAL HORROR: Premature death. In fact the concept is so unnatural that most people, much less teenagers, have a mental block when it comes to mortality. Dying in the prime of youth just doesn’t compute, so it is rejected out of hand by most teens.