Buffy - Season 5 impressions (episode 11)

[thalia_seawood]

Triangle

For a summary click here.

spikeylover has a screencap summary of this episode here.


- A delightfully funny episode. I needed that after all the angst and darkness.

- The tension between Anya and Willow regarding Xander surprised me a bit. I hadn't picked up on the tension between them before. I'm not sure if I missed something here or if the authors just decided to introduce this tension between them for this episode. This is something I'll watch out for when I rewatch the show in the future. But even if this was just introduced for the sake of this episode, I don't mind. The resentment between Anya and Willow is well explained and above all it's just fun to see them interact and snark at one another.

For example, this scene made me laugh out loud. Xander is uncomfortable with the situation anyway - and then Buffy doesn't really do anything to make him feel better. :-)

Willow: Don't worry, Giles. I'll help her take care of everything. It'll be ship-shape. Better, it'll be shop-shape. (smiles)
Anya: Xander, she's talking to Giles like I'm not here. Make her stop.
Giles: Perhaps I'd better call the airline...
Willow: I'm just trying to help out! Xander, tell her. (smacks Xander in the arm)
Giles: ...schedule an earlier flight back, excuse me.
Anya: Tell her that I don't need her help.
Xander sits between Anya and Willow looking uncomfortable.
Xander: (to Buffy) So, how goes the slaying?
Buffy: I killed something in a convent last night.
Xander: In any other room, a frightening declaration. Here, a welcome distraction. (Anya and Willow both look at him) Tell us all about the killing, Buff.
Buffy: Pretty standard. Vampire staking. Ooh! But I met a Nun, and she let me try on her wimple.
Xander: Okay, now we're back to frightening.

- Buffy is trying to deal with her breakup with Riley. Interesting choice that this is played out in a tragicomic way.

The most serious moment is her talk with Giles:
Giles: Truly, Buffy, if I saw an alternative ... if, if the Initiative were still around, I'd consider using them, but... they're gone, and then Riley was, was, uh, the last link we had to the government.
Giles wipes his face with a towel. Buffy looks down sadly.
Giles: Sorry, I didn't mean to....
Buffy: It's okay. You can say his name. (pensively) I'm doing all right. These things happen. People break up and they move on ... for a while it feels like the end of the world, you know, but ... big picture...
Giles: Not so huge.
Buffy looks at him in disbelief.
Buffy: Not so huge? I just said it feels like the end of the world, don't you listen?
Giles looks dismayed. Buffy leans in closer toward him.
Buffy: (whispers) I'm teasing.
Giles: (relieved smile) Oh.
Buffy: Sort of. I'll be okay.

But when Buffy is crying her heart out on two occasions, I had to smile both times. I also wanted to give Buffy a hug.

Her scene with Tara:
Buffy: (alarmed) He left? Xander left Anya?
Tara: (frowning) Ummm ... no, not "left her" left her, he just left. It was only a little thing, it-
Buffy: Little thing? (tearfully) See, the thing is, the ... little things get bigger, you know, and, and, and, and, if you don't catch the little thing and then, boom! You have this, this, this whole huge thing!
Tara: Oh dear.
Buffy: (sniffling) Not, not, not them with the little things! They can't break up!
Tara: Oh, I think-
Buffy: They have a beautiful love.
Tara: I think they'll be fine.
Buffy bursts into tears and puts her face against Tara's shoulder, hugging her. Tara looks alarmed, pats Buffy on the back.
Buffy: (muffled) They have a miraculous love!
Tara: What?
Buffy: (sobbing) A miraculous love!

And after the big showdown:
Buffy: Well, see how well things worked out? (looks fondly at Anya and Xander) And look at you guys. So good and alive and together. (starts to tear up again) So together, and ... good, and ... alive... (sniffles, turns to grab a tissue) Oh, god... (crying) I'm ... I'm just so happy for you...
She bursts into tears and buries her face in the tissue as the others stare.

- My favorite moment is Spike practicing his apology to Buffy with his Buffy mannequin. I really liked this scene, because I could see that Spike is no longer quite convinced that telling Buffy about Riley's secret was the right thing to do. He seems to feel genuine guilt and tries to work through his motivations. He mentions that his intentions were good, but becomes so worked up about this that I get the impression he isn't convinced by his own argument. Anyway, whatever his intentions were (getting rid of Riley, helping Buffy), I'm convinced he didn't want to hurt her.

The end of this little scene suggest that Spike doesn't give up easily. He'll try again and again and again - no matter how often he fucks up.

Cut to: Spike holding a box of chocolates. He talks to someone we can't see.
Spike: (softly) Um ... there's something I got to tell you. About showing you Riley in that place. (deep breath) I didn't mean to ... (long pause) Anyway, I know you're feeling all betrayed - by him, not me. (The camera pans around and we see he is talking to a mannequin, which has no legs but wears a blue blouse and a blonde wig. It's set up on a block of stone so that it is about Buffy's height.) I was trying to help, you know. Not like I made him be there, after all. Actually trying to help you. Best intentions.
(He gets a little agitated, paces a few steps away.)
Spike: I mean, you know, pretty state you'd be in, thinking things are all right (moves back toward the mannequin) while he's toddling halfway round the bend. (Stares at the mannequin, gets madder) Oh, I'll insult him if I want to! I'm the one who's on your side! Me! Doing you a favor! (very angry) And you, being dead petty about it - me, getting nothing but your hatred and your venom and - you ungrateful bitch!
(He loses control of himself, smashes the box of chocolates over the mannequin's head.)
Spike: Bitch!
(He hits the mannequin with the chocolates again and it falls over. The box of chocolate goes flying.
Spike sighs. He picks up the mannequin and replaces it. He carefully rearranges the wig, sighs again, picks up the box of chocolate, tries to stuff the chocolates back in. He composes himself and faces the mannequin again.)
Spike: (quietly) Buffy ... there's something I wanted to tell you.

- Other nice Spike moments are Spike chatting up Xander in the bar to find out if Buffy is angry at him and totally baffling Xander who has no clue what information Spike is fishing for. Also when he "helps up" Buffy after the fight with Olaf. Spike, in order to help someone up, you have to let go of them evantually, not cling to them. :-) Good thing Buffy has her mind firmly on fighting the good fight.

- Anya: Well, he wasn't a troll then! You know, he was just a big dumb guy, and ... well, you know, he cheated on me and I made him into a troll, which by the way is... (embarrassed) how I got the ... job as a vengeance demon.

Nice to get a bit more info about Anya's past.
I also like the parallel between her and Willow who also got offered a job as a vengeance demon after her performing her spell in Something Blue.

- Poor Xander. Olaf doesn't cut him any slack - and if this was real, he would have been dead by the time of Olaf's second punch.

- I hope Giles has a very good insurance covering for his shop. This is the second time it got trashed.

- Dawn is listening to things not meant for her ears. Only a matter of time until she puts things together.

- Anya and Xander talking about the breakup between Buffy and Riley is a well-written scene. Neatly catches the attitude of happy couples that they will never get into a similar situation.

Comments

[spikeylover.livejournal.com]

Hey, the same thought crossed my mind as the Troll was crashing Xander through walls--this guy should be seriously dead or injured. Obviously, this episode was more about the funny but we did find out some things and moved the plot.

Thanks for the pimp.

[thalia-seawood.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the pimp.
Also linked to you in some of my older LJ entries as I really like your screencap summaries.

[spikeylover.livejournal.com]

After TRiangle, I've got to go from distant memory since after this, I haven't watched the shows in well over a year or more. (We are on INTO THE WOODS in the episode discussion at CDS message board, and I just go along with them-- With TRIANGLE, I've caught up with them now..)

[thalia-seawood.livejournal.com]

Do you have a link for this discussion board? I'd like to take a look - also it might be too spoilery. Hm.

[spikeylover.livejournal.com]

You have some of the most intelligent people in fandom there-- But yeah, it might be spoilery since they discuss episodes and how they affect future and past..

Here's a link..

http://www.forum.colddeadseed.com/viewforum.php?f=24

The last one reviewed was INTO THE WOODS. (although you can discuss any episode from season five in the season five thread--etc. etc. and so forth)

[thalia-seawood.livejournal.com]

Thanks. I bookmarked the page and will check the entries when I've finished watching season 5.

[spikeylover.livejournal.com]

Or better yet, if you don't want to be spoiled, wait till you finish both series, and then you can join in the discussion. They only average about one or two episodes a week. (and lately due to the holidays, less than that) so you'll be finished long before we will.

[thalia-seawood.livejournal.com]

Yep, makes sense.

[likeadeuce.livejournal.com]

I love the Anya/Willow conflict in this ep; it absolutely makes sense, even though it doesn't come out a lot otherwise. Also remember that Anya & Willow didn't get acquainted on the best of terms, either! Spike's part in this one is also terrific -- Spike particularly cracks me up in the restaurant scene, when he clearly doesn't care about the whole situation and just wants his bloomin' onion.

But when Buffy is crying her heart out on two occasions, I had to smile both times. I also wanted to give Buffy a hug.

You're nicer than I am! I *did* want to give Buffy a hug, but I also wanted to give the writers a slap. After Into the Woods which is so grownup and moving, having Buffy descend into adolescently girlish tearfulness annoyed me quite a bit. I can understand her being upset, but the characterization in this ep just seemed weirdly off of what we see before or after. (there's something similar in AtS season 3, with a female character you haven't met yet, that sets my teeth on edge as well). And since there is a lot of fandom complaint about Buffy being whiny and man-obsessed, and this is one episode in which I think it's at least slightly deserved, it's one of my truly less favorite eps.

[thalia-seawood.livejournal.com]

I didn't mind Buffy's tearfulness. Her first scene with Giles and her last scene with the Scoobies felt in character, the second scene with Tara was a bit much. But then I really needed a break from all the dark, angsty episodes. I expect that darkness to come back soon enough.

[selenak.livejournal.com]

Previous tension between Anya and Willow: out of my head, Pangs comes to mind, where Willow tells Buffy they could not invite Anya for Thanksgiving. And there are some other examples I remember, though come to think of it, they're post-Triangle. Plus, of course, Dopplegangerland.

I think this is one of the first times, though, when Willow's capability of being catty to Anya is given that much of a focus.

Buffy crying played for comedy: I think the writers deliberately didn't want to go for a repetition of her reaction post-Angel and even post-Parker where this was played for genuine, and as opposed to karabair, this worked for me.

More info about Anya's past - we'll meet Olaf the troll again.

[spikeylover.livejournal.com]

It works for me, too. I actually love this episode, in retrospect. As in many of Jane's episodes, things come back (even years later) that will bite you in the butt. It's also extremely funny.

Yes, we definitely meet Olaf again and I think I will note that the Troll hammer is very significant.

I never saw Anya/Willow as being that friendly with each other, and as you stated, there was Pangs and the season three episode. Anya was a vengeance demon, and so even if there is politeness, I'm sure it would cross Willow's mind (who is his best friend) that she could hurt him. (and Good on Anya for remembering that in SOMETHING BLUE--Willow was almost made one)

[thalia-seawood.livejournal.com]

Yes, we definitely meet Olaf again and I think I will note that the Troll hammer is very significant.

Beyond smashing Giles's counter, you mean? *g* Good!

[thalia-seawood.livejournal.com]

Oh, and I'm curious: Is the icon pic actually a scene from Buffy or a neat photo manipulation?

[spikeylover.livejournal.com]

I wasn't sure which icon..lol. It's a GONE WITH THE WIND Manipulation.. (using a scene from Buffy) I think the challenge was to manip BTVS couples into other stories.

[ruuger]

The scene with Spike and the mannequin is one of my favourite funny scenes on S5. It's just so very Spike.

(and did you know that there's actually at least one NC-17 Spike/mannequin fic around...)

[thalia-seawood.livejournal.com]

Didn't know that, but I'm neither surprised nor shocked.
I spent some time in the HP fandom which is probably the fandom with the craziest pairings ever a la Dumbledore/Sorting Hat. :-)

[ruuger]

Oh, Spike can do much better than Dumbledore with his fling with the Sorting hat :) The mannequin story was a part of a Spike/Inanimate object ficathon - because Spike can have sexual chemistry with absolutely everything - and I seem to remember the other stories included at least Spike/his car, Spike/duster, Spike/Giles' Kiss the Librarian mug, Spike/lollipop and Spike/Vanilla scented lip balm :) Not all of them NC-17, though (which is a good thing, I think).

(and I think I've read the Dumbledore/Sorting Hat... althought it might have been Snape/Sorting Hat)

[spikeylover.livejournal.com]

What, no shipping of Spike and his crypt door? I'm deeply disappointed.

[selenak.livejournal.com]

Exactly! Spike/crypt door is canon! *points to Dead Things*

[spikeylover.livejournal.com]

LMAO! That's funny.

[ruuger]

Well, the mannequin was a lot nicer to Spike than his other girlfriends. Never left him or beat him up or burned his possessions... It was true love and there really should be more fic about their short but unforgettable affair :)

[spikeylover.livejournal.com]

I personally shipped Spike and his clipboard for an episode in season five ATS.

[thalia-seawood.livejournal.com]

You could also ship Spike and the box of chocolate - their's is a love/hate relationship...