Buffy the Vampire Slayer (3x01) - Anne

[fajrdrako]

Buffy the Vampire Slayer (3x01) - Anne
~ ~ ~

A change of pace: Buffy is out of her element, playing at being 'normal', which of course she can't manage. Not even briefly. But it gives her an almost-mythological break from her life as Slayer, time to recover and to sort out what she has become. Because of course the experiences of "Becoming" have changed her - though I haven't quite figured out what the title "Becoming" refers to: Angel's situation, or hers?

I missed the old situation, but I know I was supposed to. Things aren't the same any more. Can't be the same. Which is the whole point.

1. Fun to see Xander and Willow trying to be vampire-hunters. And Oz! They worry about their anti-vampire dialogue. Such amateurs.
   
   
2. And aware of it.
   
   
3. Good Xander line: "I can't wait to see Cordelia. (pauses) I can't believe I can't wait to see Cordelia." He still has this mixed-feelings problem.
   
   
4. And I love Willow's reply: "I wonder what our first homework assignment's gonna be... Hey, you're excited over Cordelia, okay? We've all got issues." Willow often reminds me of Hermione Granger, but I like her better.
   
   
5. So Buffy is in L.A. having high-romance fantasies about Angel. And, true to form, her fantasy isn't just a simple fantasy - it has ominous connotations:

   Buffy: How did you find me here?
   Angel: If I was blind, I would see you.
   Buffy: Stay with me.
   Angel: Forever. That's the whole point. I'll never leave. Not even if you kill me.

   And she did kill him, and he's still there in her head, and, I assume, will be back in person as well. This reminds me of Sting's "every breath you take".
   
   
6. Buffy doesn't seem happy as a waitress. She wanted a 'normal' life, but I'm sure she's hideously depressed, alone in a big city, having lost her mother and her friends, and having killed the person she loved most.
   
   
7. I didn't recognize Lily. I loved it when she said she was Chanterelle. And Buffy told her what "Chanterelle" means. Heh. Classic lost soul.
   
   
8. I like the exchange between Willow and Giles:

   Giles: For God's sake be careful. ...If anything should happen to you and you should be killed, I should take it somewhat amiss.
   Willow: You'd be cranky?
   Giles: Entirely.

   Yes. And Willow's reassurance: "That's part of our whole mission statement. 'Don't get killed.'" - it isn't very reassuring. It's a wonder the vampires haven't torn them to shreds or turned them already. But then, Angel and Spike are gone, so we're left with the vampire morons. (Even if some have athletic skills. Interesting implication, that they keep skills they had in life.)
   
   
9. The anticlimactic meeting of Xander and Cordelia is funny.
   
   
10. Oz never told Willow he was coming back to school? Didn't they talk ever?
    
    
11. "I'm no one" is a scary phrase, repeated.
    
    
12. Ken makes me think of a Firefly character. I can't think which Firefly character or why. He seems so well-meaning at first, he must be a monster or a demon.
    
    
13. Xander says, "We're losing half the vamps." If they're getting half the vamps - isn't that pretty darn good?
    
    
14. Good bit of dialogue:

    Giles: Joyce, you mustn't blame yourself for her leaving.
    Joyce: I don't. I blame you.

    Obviously she hasn't adjusted to the Vampire-Slayer knowledge.
    
    
15. Rickie goes missing. I can't help seeing the parallel: Lily without Rickie, Buffy without Angel.
    
    
16. So they check out the blood bank. This seemed like an odd digression to me, especially since it really isn't a story about vampires. Seems to me, story-wise, there'd be no difference if demons just grabbed people at random.
    
    
17. It's scary when Ken says, "Rickie's no more dead than I am." But Lily isn't the suspicious type.
    
    
18. Xander to Cordelia: "You don't hide. You're bait. Go act baity." And then he baits her into a fight. Or she baits him. Whichever.
    
    
19. Entrance to Hell: yucky black water. Seems funny to me that the entrance to Hell is here when the Hellmouth is in Sunnydale.
    
    
20. Ken's demon-face reminded me of Darth Maul. He's the most attractive demon we've seen yet. Not of the Jack Kirby type. No bull-face.
    
    
21. Interesting that they take away identity in Hell first thing. Cool.
    
    
22. Ken says "Humans don't fight back." I'd say that was something humans do all to readily. But Ken doesn't seem to be the most astute, clever and historically-aware demon possible.
    
    
23. Cute Buffy line:

    Buffy: Hey, Ken, wanna see my impression of Gandhi?
    Lily: Gandhi?
    Buffy: Well, you know, if he was really pissed off.

    Seems to me Joss Whedon probably had that quip on hand to use when appropriate.
    
    
24. Another good Buffy line when she takes Lily to her small apartment: "Let me give you the tour. This concludes our tour." And she decides to go back to Sunnydale. I wasn't sure how or why the events of "Anne" made her decide to return - glad she did, I don't particularly want to be watching "Buffy, the Waitress" for a few more seasons, but... was it that she realized demons have to be faced and you can't run from them? Does she see things differently, knowing that people can come back from Hell? Does she miss her family and friends? Is she coming out of her depression?
    
    
25. It's a good touch, that she pays her rent by the week not the month.
    
    
26. Home sweet home. I suspect all will not be calm.

Comments

[ceruleancat.livejournal.com]

I wasn't sure how or why the events of "Anne" made her decide to return

It's the identity thing. From the title onwards, this ep is about her wanting to be someone else, to have a regular life. The identity-stealing demons are the embodiment of that desire - abandonment of identity and losing one's self in mundane labour. That makes her aware of the part that makes her stand out of the crowd and able to fight them, the realization that Buffy the Vampire Slayer is WHO she is, is part of her identity. The natural conclusion, I suppose, is to embrace all of who she is and her destiny, and go back home to fight on the hellmouth.

Not too keen on that ep, although I love the glimpses of Rupert and the scoobies trying to cope without her.
And Joyce blaming Giles is exactly what he was worried would happen if she was told about the slayage.

Looking forward to 302. The second or third ep I saw (depending on whether you consider becoming 1 or 2 eps) and the first ep that hooked me on the show.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I like your interpretation here. Yes - it isn't anything specific except her ability to fight demons, which she really does know is important. "With great power comes great responsibility." Like it or not.

Not too keen on that ep

Nor am I, and I think it's because (a) it's not very exciting (especially after "Becoming"), (b) all the action more or less takes us back to where we started, (c) the interaction between Buffy and the characters that gives the show so much of its charm isn't there, (d) Buffy is so depressed, and (e) it's a digression.

The next episode hooked you - cool!