42A) Lovers Walk. MUSICALLY SPEAKING: "Title: from a song by Elvis Costello. The lyrics have a certain relevance:
I won't walk with my head bowed
(Be on) Beyond caution where lovers walk
My love walks where three's a crowd
Beyond caution where lovers walk
Lovers walk, lovers scramble
Beyond caution where the lovers walk
Lovers step, shuffle and gamble
Beyond caution where lovers walk
Lovers trip, lovers stumble
Lovers dip, lovers fumble
Lovers lip where love has crumbled
Beyond caution where lovers walk
Lovers strut, lovers stroll, lovers leap
Lovers late, lovers wait
Making promises that they can't keep
Lovers link up arm and arm
Lovers slink up, lovers charm
Lovers drink up and come to harm
Beyond caution where lovers walk
Love is gone and it's no one's fault
Love has stopped here, lovers halt
Lovers don't walk, lovers run
Will you look what love has done
Will you look what love has done
Will you look what love has done
Beyond caution where lovers walk
Now love's limping on a lover's crutch
Looking for a hand with a personal touch
Beyond caution where lovers walk."--KdS, Sat 02/28/04 at 06:54:25
Teaser
42B) "This is a nightmare. This is...My world is spinning." STATING THE OBVIOUS: Of course, Willow's world is always spinning, but I digress...
42C) "740? Verbal?!" S.A.T. SCORING: This score obviously isn't nearly as bad as Willow is making it out to be. In fact, it is very impressive. See 42J.
42D) "I'm Cletus, the slack-jawed yokel." POP CULTURE TIME/RELIGIOSITY: "Cletus the Slacked Jawed Yokel: A character on [the long-running and popular animated sitcom,] The Simpsons...but also, a worthy comparison for Willow because CLETUS is also an acronym for CIT Lab (Imaging/Authoring/Scanning) at UCSF. Interesting because in I, Robot...You, Jane, Willow is the one who scanned Moloch to life...Anacletus [was also a] saint...[and a] pope (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04054a.htm). Also, the Feast of St. Cletus is celebrated April 26 and this was the original date for the viewing of Earshot but was postponed due to the Columbine killings."--Ann, Mon, 02/23/04 at 11:23:18
42E) "That's right. And the fact that your 740 verbal closely resembles my combined scores in no way compromises your position as the village idiot." GOOD POINT: Xander's remark is kind in how it expresses his feelings through humor, even though he could have acted insulted, had he chosen to, since Willow's entire world is in turmoil for a grade exponentially better than Xander's.
42F) Xander instantly lets go of Willow... FROM THE ORIGINAL SHOOTING SCRIPT: "How fast can a man remove his hand from a shoulder?"--"Lovers Walk" by Dan Vebber, available through Pocketbooks, Inc. as Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Script Book, Season Three, Volume 2 See 41D.
42G) "Please. I have *some* experience in covering these things up." SMARTY PANTS: "For some reason in high school its important not to let anyone actually know that you have any academic skills. People who perform well in school are called 'brains' and tend to be thought unpopular. So if you are doing well, you cover it up. In The Gift Xander will say to Anya, 'Smart girls are so sexy.' And Willow will ask why he didn’t figure that out in 9th grade. This is twelfth grade, and he seems to be in transition. I never understood this when I was in school, but it sure is true. You should all go to grad school if you haven’t yet been. Its finally a place where people, upon getting their papers back, don’t say, 'heh heh. I godda "D".'"--manwitch, Sun, 02/29/04 at 11:41:29
42H) "You know it sounds a lot like your regular voice." AUDITORY CLARIFICATION: Since Oz always speaks in the same tone of voice--when he is happy, when he is sad, when he is enjoying himself, when he is surprised, when he is upset, etc. etc.--he has to clarify when he is speaking sarcastically.
42I) "By the look on your face, I'm guessing you and I are gonna be manning the drive-thru window side by side." ISN'T IT IRONIC?: "Of course, in the sixth season, Xander will be the financially successful one and Buffy working in fast food."--KdS, Sat 02/28/04 at 06:54:25
42J) "1430! Buffy, you kicked ass!" SWEET WILLOW: It is very touching how proud and excited Willow is of Buffy's high grades. When Buffy gets a higher grade than Willow in Wild at Heart, Willow will first say, "This is so unfair!" and then realize what has just happened and excitedly say, "You made me jealous of you academically! Buffy!" She is so proud of Buffy that she gives her a hug.
S.A.T. SCORING: For those of you who live outside the U.S., some information on the S.A.T.s, to put the scores in context: "The SAT is divided into two sections: Math and Verbal. Each section is worth 800 points for a grand total of 1600 points. The minimum score is 200 verbal, 200 math (basically points for knowing how to fill in the bubbles for your name).
According to the College Board's website, 'SAT scores are reported on a scale from 200 to 800. Your scores tell college admission staff how you did compared with other students who took the test. For example, if you scored close to the mean or average-about 500 on SAT verbal and 500 on SAT math-admission staff would know that you scored as well as about half of the students who took the test.'
'First, your "raw score" is calculated. This is the number of points you earned, based on the number of questions you answered correctly, minus a fraction of the number answered incorrectly. Questions you skipped are not counted and no points are subtracted for incorrect Student Produced Response math questions (grid-ins) on the SAT I.
'Second, your raw score is changed into a "scaled score" by a statistical process called equating. Equating adjusts for slight differences in difficulty between test editions and ensures that your score does not depend on the specific test edition you took or how well others did on the same edition you took. Your raw score is converted to a scale score that ranges from 200, the lowest, to 800, the highest. If you took the ELPT™ (English Language Proficiency Test™), your raw score is converted to a scaled score that ranges from 901, the lowest, to 999, the highest.'
Supposedly a 1430 would put Buffy somewhere around the 85th percentile. Her actual percentile score would very however. The questions on the SATs are adjusted every year or so based on the scores of the previous year (the idea being that 500v/500m should always be the average score). The year I took the SAT, a total score of 1350 would be enough to be considered for "test only" admission at UCLA and Berkeley. So, yeah, 1430 is extremely good."--Sheri, Mon, 02/23/04 at 17:13:41
"A total of 1430 would be about mid-range for most top 25 or so colleges (that is, half the students admitted would score above 1430 and half below) (a). The top .25% represents an IQ of 145, which is 3 standard deviations above the mean. That's roughly where Buffy's score would put her. If Willow did indeed get 800 on the math, her combined score would have been 1540. That converts to an IQ of 160, 4 standard deviations above the mean."--(a) Sophist, Mon, 02/23/04 at 16:59:49; (b) Wed, 02/25/04 at 20:08:11
42K) "I don't know. I guess...my future. I never really thought about it. I wasn't even sure I was going to have one." THE TRUTH ABOUT SLAYERS: "Slayers die young. There’s some weight to this when you think about it. Buffy kind of assumed she wouldn’t live long enough to go to college."--manwitch, Sun, 02/29/04 at 11:41:29
42L) "Well, I think this is great! Now you can leave and never come back!" THE HONESTY OF CORDELIA: "It's Cordelia's usual sensitivity, but it's also an important part of the happy ending of season seven and the series."--Cactus Watcher, Mon, 02/23/04 at 08:38:09
FORESHADOWY GOODNESS: Cordy's enthusiasm at the prospect of Buffy leaving Sunnydale forever foreshadows her wish in the next episode, The Wish, that Buffy had never come to Sunnydale at all.
42M) A classic 1958 Dodge Desoto FireFlite crashes through the 'Welcome to Sunnydale' sign and screeches to a halt. FROM THE ORIGINAL SHOOTING SCRIPT: "A shot-by-shot recreation of Spike's arrival in School Hard (see 15J). There's that 'Welcome to Sunnydale' sign. And here comes SPIKE'S CAR, crashing into it as it screeches to a stop. Growling rock cue as the door opens. Except instead of one boot, an entire Spike falls bodily out of the car. A clatter of empties, bottles and cans, accompanies him. Our boy's bombed."--"Lovers Walk" by Dan Vebber, available through Pocketbooks, Inc. as Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Script Book, Season Three, Volume 2
PICK YOUR POISON: "In the first appearance, Spike is smoking, while in this one he is drunk. What does the change in drug symbolise? For one thing, Spike is no longer a character in control. In School Hard he is cool, pragmatic and competent, seriously attacking Buffy and displacing Colin as the local head vampire. His tobacco habit shows more a sense of style than anything else (as a vampire, he doesn't risk his health, and it's debatable whether, since he doesn't breathe, he gets much of a hit from the nicotine--see 11DDD). In this first showing, he doesn't seem to have an alcohol habit.
The drunkenness here, though, shows a serious lack of cool, lack of control, propensity to emotional abandon rather than pragmatism. Cordelia has just said 'What kind of moron would ever wanna come back here?', referring to Sunnydale, so Spike is instantly identified as that moron, less of a threat and more of a comedy figure (though still violent and dangerous), a characterisation that will continue to develop until the end of S5, after which the pathetic/comic aspect will be played down as he becomes the foil for Buffy's self destructive urges."--MsGiles, Fri, 02/27/04 at 07:35:31
GREASED LIGHTNING: The car, a 1958 Dodge Desoto FireFlite, was designed by Carl Breer, Fred Zeder and Owen Skelton (sometimes called the Three Musketeers--see 13AA).--Ann, Mon, 02/23/04 at 11:23:18
42N) "Home, sweet...home." MUSICALLY SPEAKING: "The words to the song Home, Sweet Home were written by the American John Howard Paine for his play Clari, the Maid of Milan when it was changed to an opera for performance in England."--Cactus Watcher, Mon, 02/23/04 at 08:38:09
Act One
42O) Spike's old burned-out factory. The place is a shambles, although the great table where Giles started the fire is essentially intact, if scorched. CONTINUITY CHECK: "This destruction was at the end of Passion, in S2. After Angelus killed Jenny, Giles came after Angelus, and set fire to the factory in which he was residing with Spike and Dru (see 29Mx4). In I Only Have Eyes For You, they moved to the mansion found by Angelus, signalling the returned dominance of Angelus in the threesome (see 31EE). This resulted in Spike allying with Buffy to defeat Angelus' apocalypse plans and recover Dru, at the end of S2 (see 34U). In visiting the factory, Spike is revisiting the relationship he had with Dru before the return of Angelus. The implication is that the rift between them was not resolved. In addition, Dru seems to have left many of of her dolls behind (see 38WW). Although this might just be because they are damaged, it might also imply that Spike had been part of a pattern of infantile role playing: leaving Spike and the dolls, she returned to a more independant lifestyle, dating chaos demons."--MsGiles, Fri, 02/27/04 at 07:35:31
42P) ...singing a few bars from "My Way". MUSICALLY SPEAKING: "My Way is probably considered Frank Sinatra's signature song, though other artists have covered it with varying success--Elvis Presley, for example, and of course, the Sex Pistols (as performed by Gary Oldman as Sid Vicious in the film Sid and Nancy at the end of Lovers' Walk). Marti Noxon has said in several interviews that Spike and Drusilla were originally conceived as 'Sid and Nancy,' so the song and the version used was certainly chosen intentionally (see 15R).
Lyrics for My Way (which appeared on at least 6 Frank Sinatra albums):
And now, the end is near;
And so I face the final curtain.
My friend, I’ll say it clear,
I’ll state my case, of which I’m certain.
I’ve lived a life that’s full.
I’ve traveled each and ev’ry highway;
And more, much more than this,
I did it my way.
Regrets, I’ve had a few;
But then again, too few to mention.
I did what I had to do
And saw it through without exemption.
I planned each charted course;
Each careful step along the byway,
But more, much more than this,
I did it my way.
Yes, there were times, I’m sure you knew
When I bit off more than I could chew.
But through it all, when there was doubt,
I ate it up and spit it out.
I faced it all and I stood tall;
And did it my way.
I’ve loved, I’ve laughed and cried.
I’ve had my fill; my share of losing.
And now, as tears subside,
I find it all so amusing.
To think I did all that;
And may I say - not in a shy way,
No, oh no not me,
I did it my way.
For what is a man, what has he got?
If not himself, then he has naught.
To say the things he truly feels;
And not the words of one who kneels.
The record shows I took the blows -
And did it my way!
You may be surprised to learn that the song was actually written by a French pop star, Claude Francois, with the title Comme d'habitude. To hear a little of the French version, and about how fans still congregate at Francois' grave--evidently he's the French Elvis! Check out this recent NPR story: http://www.npr.org/features/feature.php?wfId=1690503 The site includes sound files of Sinatra, Francois, and Vicious singing, so you can compare!"--MaeveRigan, Tues, 02/24/04 at 11:45:07
42Q) "Drusilla! I'm home!" POP CULTURE TIME: See 18Hx4.
42R) From there he sees those members of Drusilla's doll collection that didn't survive the fire piled on her dresser, all badly scorched. CONTINUITY CHECK: See 38WW.
42S) "Why did you do it, baby? Why did you leave me? We were happy here." REAL LIFE: "According to widely-circulated reports, this episode was originally intended to feature both Spike and Drusilla, but Juliet Landau was unavailable. If so, it is amusing that this piece of pure chance initiated what, for better or worse, was one of the major plot lines of the next four years."--KdS, Sat 02/28/04 at 06:54:25
42T) "YOU...STUPID...WORTHLESS...BITCH! Look what you've done to me." LOVERS' QUARREL: "As we'll see again later, Spike's One True Love mode is undercut by a lot of resentment if he feels his One True Love doesn't respond in the way he feels entitled to."--KdS, Sat 02/28/04 at 06:54:25
42U) "What's classier than bowling?" POOR XANDER: Another example of Xander addressing his family's money issues in an upbeat manner, trying to persuade his friends to choose a less expensive activity. See 39C.
42V) "Hey, those are from the pier." OFF SCREEN: "A moment that tells us that on occasion, these people do have normal experiences, brief respites from the life or death struggles they seem engaged in every Tuesday."--manwitch, Sun, 02/29/04 at 11:41:29
42W) "There's pictures. Of me. In your locker. I never knew I was locker door material." FROM THE ORIGINAL SHOOTING SCRIPT: In the original script, Cordy said more than her "Uh, I just got them developed" excuse: "I put them there because I want to see your face between classes, get it? So thinking of us together makes me...I don't know...HAPPY, okay? Is that such a big deal?" Although this is a sweet line, it was most likely deleted because Cordy has only told Xander how deeply she cares for him when he or she are in danger (see 32Hx4), and besides being uncharacteristic, it is a bit too much of anvil-sized foreshadowing and irony, considering the end of this episode (see 42Dx4).
LOCKER DOOR: "Inside of locker door: traditional place for pasting pictures for private enjoyment."--MsGiles, Fri, 02/27/04 at 07:35:31
42X) "I'm really good. Or I used to be...when they had the inflatable things in the gutters." BOWLING: When young children go bowling, many alleys have the option to have the gutters be covered with inflatable blocks, because otherwise very few if any balls would ever reach the pins.
42Y) Wrapped in the paper is a PEZ candy dispenser with a green witch's head on top, complete with red hair and black hat. POP CULTURE TIME: "PEZ the candy is basically a small semi-hard block of flavored sugar with cheapening binders. This unimaginative treat is promoted with and frequently sold with a variety of imaginative, decorative, plastic dispensers. Some people collect the dispensers as a hobby."--Cactus Watcher, Mon, 02/23/04 at 08:38:09
42Z) "I like...I-I *more* than like. Oz, this is probably the sweetest..." WILLOW'S GUILT: See 39HHH.
42AA) "I don't think they make a werewolf PEZ. You might have to settle for a wacky cartoon dog." POP CULTURE TIME: In most likelihood, Oz is referring to Scooby Doo, which would link this joke to the kids being labelled "the Scooby Gang" (see 21Rx4). Other possibilities are the Disney characters Pluto (Mickey Mouse's dog) or Goofy, or other Hanna-Barbera canines such as Droopy Dog, or Astro from The Jetsons.
42BB) "Yeah, you do." THE WONDER OF OZ: Oz's extreme sweetness and devotion to Willow set up the emotional fallout that will occur at the end of this episode and in future ones.
42CC) "Where is this retreat thingy, the Yukon?" INTERNATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC: "Since the Klondike gold rush in 1898, this Canadian territory has been a symbol of the wild and 'roughing it' in North America." The fact that the retreat is actually only 45 minutes from town continues the show's running gag that everything the Scoobies need (golf course, international airport, desert, docks, etc.) is located in or around Sunnydale (see 19PP).--Cactus Watcher, Mon, 02/23/04 at 08:38:09, with additions by Rob
42DD) "It's the site of some fascinating druidic rituals." DRUIDY: "Druidic rituals are effectively lost in the mists of time. This didn't put off 18th and 19th Century antiquarians, who re-invented a whole range of supposedly Druidic beliefs and practices. These were based partly on fragmentary Roman evidence (the Druids formed a focus of resistance to the Roman invasion of Britain, so naturally they took a - rather unfriendly - interest) and partly on remnants of pre-Christian traditions and legends in Ireland, England and Wales.
The 19th Century 'celtic revival', which was mainly based around Irish celticism and Irish nationalism, also fed into the revival of Druidism and the establishment of 'Neodruidism'. Modern druidism imports its core beliefs and rituals from a wide range of sources, including Native American beliefs, and generally favours an eco-friendly, harmony with nature type slant. Magic can be a part of the mix, but the human and animal sacrifices recorded by the Romans are not generally used. After all, those mean Romans might have been making it up.
As ancient Druidism as such is only recorded in Britain (though it may, and probably did, have had some relation to Celtic traditions on the continent), we can take it that Giles is referring to Neodruidism here, either 19th Century or contemporary."--MsGiles, Tues, 03/02/04 at 02:37:39
SNEAKY GILES: "Most people should know this, but given that we're in the USA Giles must be talking about eavesdropping on existing Druid Revivalist rituals."--KdS, Sat 02/28/04 at 06:54:25
42EE) "Yeah. She saw these scores, and her head spun around and exploded." POP CULTURE TIME: "In the film The Exorcist (1973) head-spinning was used to indicate possession. Heads exploding became a common trope in horror films after Scanners (1981) where it featured as a result of battles between psychics."--MsGiles, Fri, 02/27/04 at 07:35:31
42FF) "I-I've been on the Hellmouth too long. That was metaphorical, yes?" METANARRATIVE HUMOR: On one level, Giles is (probably facetiously) wondering whether Buffy is speaking metaphorically or literally here. On a metanarrative level, all monsters and supernatural happenings in Sunnydale are metaphors for teenage and social problems.
42GG) "I know, I said that you were gonna have a goat." POP CULTURE TIME: A riff on Bart Simpson's "Don't have a cow, man!" See 21WW.
42*1)"Okay. Be kind, rewind." POP CULTURE TIME: "Thinking ahead to the future, when VHS tapes will have become completely obsolete, I feel we must provide annotation for this line. In the ancient days before DVDs, oh best beloved, rented VHS tapes often had labels with a message such as this one, in vain hopes of saving customers from the annoying experience of putting in a tape, only to find that the previous customer had left the movie at the end of the tape, instead of rewinding it to the beginning. But Buffy is really asking for more of an instant replay, which is a whole other thing."--MaeveRigan, Tues, 02/24/04 at 11:45:07
Having held the esteemed position of second head Customer Service Representative (CSR) for a year at a Blockbuster Video corporate store (yeah, yay me), I would like to add that rewinding is also a polite thing to do for the poor video store workers, who, at least at Blockbuster, are forced to check every incoming tape and rewind it if the customers weren't kind enough to do it themselves, before putting it back on the shelf. ;o)
42HH) "With scores like these, Buffy, you could have a first-rate education. I'm, I'm not suggesting that you...ignore your calling, but, um...you need to look to your future. And with Faith here, i-i-it may be that you can move on. For a-a time, at least." SLAYER IN CHARGE: "It's interesting that this is proposed by Giles as a real possibility. Even when Faith turns to the dark side, and is subsequently packed off to do her time for her evil deeds, Buffy remains the official Slayer (assuming that the rules are mystical rather than bureaucratic), as was Kendra. It's not stated how the Watcher's Council normally coped with rogue Slayers, but it must have happened every now and again. They don't seem to have had a protocol for resuscitated Slayers either, and yet that must have been increasingly common as the 20thC wore on."--MsGiles, Fri, 02/27/04 at 07:35:31
This is also an indication of the caring Giles has developed for Buffy, that he holds the possibility that she could go to a good school above what should be (according to the Council) her most important duty, slaying. The Council will later refer to this as a "father's love."
42II) "Look, but there's not gonna be any rash. Anywhere." THAT'S PUNNY!: "Ah the joys of Buffy-speak. What she means is they aren’t going to have a boy-friend girl-friend relationship, but what she says is that the sex they have will be disease free. Not exactly what Giles wanted to know."--manwitch, Sun, 02/29/04 at 11:41:29
42JJ) "I-it's a double date, with all of us, and they're gonna know!" GUILT: See 39HHH.
42KK) "It's a very intimate situation. It's all sexy with the smoke and the sweating and the shoe rental..." SEXY BOWLING: "Compare Willow's view of bowling with Xander's comments on linoleum in Innocence--'I'm seventeen. looking at linoleum makes me want to have sex (see 26TT).' Teenage hormones are equal-opportunity offenders."--MaeveRigan, Mon, 03/01/04 at 08:16:19
42LL) "Carnegie Mellon..." EDUCATION: "Carnegie Mellon (http://www.ce.cmu.edu/GreenDesign/)--Their goals are not unlike Buffy’s: 'Our strategy is to form partnerships with decision-makers in companies, government agencies and non-governmental agencies to solve the most important current and future environmental problems. From our conception, the formation of strong collaborative relationships between diverse interested parties has provided strength and relevance to our research.'"--submitted by Ann
42MM) "Oh, and Brown University's history program is...You like history, right?" EDUCATION: "Brown University History Department: 'In the broadest sense history entails the comparative study of chronologically and culturally diverse societies. The aim of the concentration is to give students an appreciation of different approaches to the study of the past and to encourage them to develop an understanding of the way in which societies and cultures change through time.' Interesting because Buffy lives in a universe where diversity exists amongst demons with long histories and is the norm. History, and its understanding, has helped the Scoobies and Giles learn, and be able to participate in Buffy’s calling."--submitted by Ann
CONTINUITY CHECK: Although Giles, in Angel, told Joyce that she has trouble in history class because "she lives very much in the 'now', um, and, uh, history, of course, is, is very much about the, uh... the 'then'," this is not necessarily a continuity error, because Buffy started to slowly develop more of an interest in history throughout the years, as she learned that it could help her deal with her current life. As a Slayer, she has to come across a great deal of history, as ancient demons, curses, etc. have a way of entering her life on a constant basis. In the fourth season, we see her take her own approach to history, theorizing that Rasputin might have been a vampire, and in the fifth season, she is very eager to learn about the origin and history of the Slayers, which she finally does in the seventh season's Get It Done. See 7*4.
42NN) "It's just you belong at a, a good old-fashioned college with, with keg parties and boys, not here with Hellmouths and vampires." JOYCE'S WISH: "Joyce is still hoping at this stage that there is some way that Buffy can escape her Slayer status, although subsequent developments in Angel would suggest that occult activity is far more widespread in the world in general than BtVS at this point implied."--KdS, Sat 02/28/04 at 06:54:25
42OO) "Not really seeing the distinction." CONTINUITY CHECK: Buffy has experience in not seeing the distinction between college keg parties and Hellmouths, particularly since at her first frat party, in Reptile Boy, she was almost sacrificed by the frat brothers to Machida, a snake demon who provided them wealth and power. See 17EE.
42PP) He's sitting by the fireplace quietly reading "La Nausee", by Jean Paul Sartre. EXISTENTIALISM: "While Spike is spying on him in the Garden Mansion, Angel is reading Jean Paul Sartre's La Nausee. 'Nausea' is the reaction of Sartre's protagonist, Antoine Roquentin, to life, his environment, and the 'human predicament' as Sartre sees it--that life is meaningless. In the novel, Roquentin lifts away the pre-conceived world-views that others around him hold and faces this 'fact' dead on. According to Sartre, realizing that life is meaningless is supposed to supply an individual with freedom--if there is no meaning and purpose, there are no constraints. Angel's reading of La Nausee represents his struggle to come to terms with what, if anything, his return to the Earthly realm is supposed to mean. It is a step on his journey from his return from hell to the moment in Amends when he decides not to take his un-life."--Masquerade, "Lovers Walk" Analysis from http://www.atpobtvs.com
QUOTAGE: A passage from La Nausee that Angel would definitely relate to: "I live alone, entirely alone. I never speak to anyone, never; I receive nothing, I give nothing...When you live alone you no longer know what it is to tell something: the plausible disappears at the same time as the fiends. You let events flow past; suddenly you see people pop up who speak and who go away, you plunge into stories without beginning or end: you make a terrible witness. But in compensation, one misses nothing, no improbability or, story too tall to be believed in cafes. [14-5]'"--Jean Paul Sartre, "La Nausee," submitted by Ann
THEME FROM "LOVERS WALK": "One of the themes of this episode is different ways of dealing with emotional stress. Angel has agreed that his relationship with Buffy is inappropriate, because of his age and because he can't have sex with her. He still wants her, and she him. He is responding to this stress by discovering a new thoughtfulness in himself, practising Tai Chi (see 40FF) and reading philosophy. His original interest in Buffy pulled him out of a self-absorbed, self-destructive phase, and now it seems he's revisiting the self-absorption, but with the aim of finding some sort of harmony or understanding with the world. Spike on the other hand is responding to his split with Dru by going to pieces as messily as possible, reacting to the situation without thought or planning, so out of control he nearly accidently fries himself (see 42SS). As the episode progresses, however, the seesaw tips the other way. Spike works through his depression and comes up with a way forward (see 42Gx4), while pointing out that Buffy and Angel are locked in an emotional holding pattern that is going nowhere (see 42Cx4)."--MsGiles, Tues, 03/03/04 at 04:04:01
42QQ) Spike spies on him... CONTINUITY CHECK: Not the only time we will see Spike spying on Angel. The motiff is used to extremely humorous effect at the start of the Angel episode, In the Dark.
42RR) "We were happy! You brainwashed her. I could just..." TRIANGLE: See 26VV.
42SS) The new light source shines into Spike's face, and he wakes and sees his hand aflame. VAMPIRE MYTHOLOGY: See 1ZZ.
42TT) He pulls the cork out with his teeth and pours a generous splash over his burned hand. He grunts loudly in pain and takes a good drink. OUCH!: "This is not only very painful, it's a bit strange. The idea among humans is to clean the wound and prevent infection. Do vampires even get infections?"--Cactus Watcher, Mon, 02/23/04 at 08:38:09
"I don't think so, but the alcohol as it evaporated would cool the hand down. Cooling a burn down may stop it getting worse for vampires as well as for humans (the heated flesh continues cooking if you don't cool it). Personally, I'd recommend immersion in cold water - but the only cold water available was in the fountain, which was in shady sun. Alcohol was all Spike had."--Pip, Mon, 02/23/04 at 10:52:08
42UU) "I...I know how to do a love spell, but this is more of an anti-love spell. Yeah. Uh, kind of a de-lusting." CONTINUITY CHECK: Amy performed a love spell in Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered, and in the fourth season's Something Blue, Willow will perform a spell that will cause Buffy and Spike to fall in love, even though it had not been intended as a love spell.
42VV) "Forget the book." MAGIC SHOP TALLY: "The second magic shop owner to meet a sticky end (after Passion--see 29PPP)."--KdS, Sat 02/28/04 at 06:54:25
Incidentally, this long history of killing off magic shop owners lead me to believe that Giles would be the one to die in the fifth season, when spoilers came out that a major character would die in the season finale.
Act Two
42WW) "I swear, I would sell my soul for a decent short game. Of course, it's a little late for that." SELLING YOUR SOUL SHORT: "It's possible that the Mayor did indeed give up his soul at some point - it would explain is often bizarre combination of amorality with conventional 'family values' prejudice, and we later see in [the first season] Angel [episode,] I've Got You Under My Skin, that soulless humans can survive."--KdS, Sat 02/28/04 at 06:54:25
42XX) "Police had a hell of a time covering it up." SUNNYDALE CONSPIRACY THEORIES: We see the Sunnydale conspiracy from the other side now. See 1Z, 6II, 9T, 15Lx4, 31QQ, 31PP, 34LLL, and 42YY.
42YY) "Well, yes, y'know, he was up to all sorts of shenanigans last year. We had a world of fun trying to guess what he'd do next." CONTINUITY CHECK: Confirmation that the Mayor was aware of Spike, Dru, and Angelus' goings-on in the second season. See 1Z, 6II, 9T, 15Lx4, 31QQ, 31PP, 34LLL, and 42XX.
42ZZ) "This year is too important to let a loose cannon rock the boat." SUNNYDALE CONSPIRACY THEORIES: One may wonder why, since he was aware of their activities (see 42YY) the Mayor didn't take a more active role in squashing Angelus and Dru's apocalypse plans of the last year, knowing that the next year would be so important for him. For possible reasons, see 34LLL.
42AAA) "Loose cannon. Rock the boat. Is that a mixed metaphor?" LINKAGE: A mixed metaphor is when one uses conflicting metaphors to describe the same subject. Another mixed metaphor joke surfaces in the sixth season's Smashed:
SPIKE: You're a tease, you know that, Slayer? (Buffy rolls her eyes, continues walking) Get a fellow's motor revving, let the tension marinate a couple-a days, then bam! Crown yourself the ice queen.
BUFFY: (still walking away) Need a few more metaphors for that little mix?
42BBB) "Boats did have cannons. And a loose one would cause it to rock." ROCK THE BOAT: "'Loose cannon' is indeed a naval metaphor, as a cannon inadequately attached to the deck could be a grave danger in a storm."--KdS, Sat 02/28/04 at 06:54:25
42CCC) "My mom was the one that got all these." FLOODED: "In the US of A, after taking the SATs you are deluged with these. It is truly unbelievable. The idea that Joyce had to go out and get these is ridiculous. They would have boxes and boxes of them that got filled higher and higher each time the increasingly angry mailman came by."--manwitch, Sun, 02/29/04 at 11:41:29
42DDD) "She's having enough trouble dealing with the Slayer issue. I don't think she's ready to process the information that...you and I are friends again." LACK OF COMMUNICATION: In another example of how hiding vital information from people you love can only lead to bad things, Buffy's decision to not tell Joyce about Angel's return and, more importantly, re-ensouled status could have ended very badly for her mother later in this episode, had Buffy not come home in time. See 42UUU and 42VVV.
42EEE) "...de-lusting spell...for us. I thought it would go better if you didn't know." MORALLY AMBIGUOUS WILLOW: "Although Willow never gets a chance to perform her de-lusting spell due to Spike's appearance, it is, for Willow, an early sign of her morally questionable philosophy of witchcraft (see 23Cx5). In her desire to 'fix' her own emotional quandaries and relationships, Willow doesn't stop to consider the ethical implications of trying to control another person's feelings. It is tempting to want to make Xander's feelings 'go away' simply because they are difficult to deal with. But they are Xander's feelings, not hers. Magic is also the easy way out when dealing with her own feelings. Although the reprecussions would have been few in this case if her spell had succeeded, Willow needs to learn to deal with her emotions, to own them and take responsibility for the actions she takes based on them."--Masquerade, "Lovers Walk" Analysis from http://www.atpobtvs.com
CONTINUITY CHECK: "Season six is heavy with Willow again trying to use magic 'to help' others to forget the feelings that Willow doesn't want them to have."--Cactus Watcher, Mon, 02/23/04 at 08:38:09
42FFF) "Are you nuts, or have you forgotten that I tend to have bad luck with these sorts of spells?" CONTINUITY CHECK: "The first case of Willow turning to magic with dangerous rapidity to solve a personal problem. As Xander notes, it is ironic that she tries to trick him into participation, reversing his attempt to force Cordelia to love him last year [in Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered--see 28CC]. Given what happened then, one wonders what could potentially have gone wrong this time. Would the two of them have ended up seized with a homicidal hatred for one another?"--KdS, Sat 02/28/04 at 06:54:25
42GGG) "She wouldn't even kill me." TRUE LOVE: Spike's dangerous interpretation of true love as something that consumes a person and that makes life not worth living were it ever to end is consistent with James and Elisabeth, the vampire couple from Angel's third season premiere, Heartthrob, which took place recently after Buffy's death in The Gift. Angel kills Elisabeth, and later James confronts him, saying that he had not been in love, because if he had, "you wouldn't be standing here playing games with me. You wouldn't be able to - because once she died or some bastard killed her, it would have killed everything in you." This might perhaps be ME's ultimate statement regarding the difference between human and vampire love. It is certainly consistent with the obsessive nature with which Spike treats his crush on and later relationship with Buffy. Also interesting is that while Spike and Drusilla interpreted their relationship as love, Angel and Darla never did.
42HHH) "She didn't even care enough to cut off my head or set me on fire." ALL TOGETHER OOKY: "The macabre inversion of human concepts of love and romance when Spike discusses his relationship with Dru here owes a strong debt to the print cartoons of Charles Addams, and the television series and films based on them."--KdS, Sat 02/28/04 at 06:54:25
42III) "It was that truce with Buffy that did it." CONTINUITY CHECK: Although some have claimed that Drusilla, in the flashback to their breakup in the fifth season's Fool for Love, referring to Buffy as one of the reasons for her leaving him was retroactive continuity, we see here that this is not the case. She never forgave him for allying with Buffy against "her" apocalypse.
42JJJ) "I caught her on a park bench, making out with a *chaos* demon! Have you ever seen a chaos demon? They're all slime and antlers." CONTINUITY CHECK: We will see this "disgusting" chaos demon in Fool for Love, as well.
42LLL) "So I said, 'I'm not putting up with this anymore.' And she said, 'Fine!' And I said, 'Yeah, I've got an unlife, you know!' And then she said...she said we could still be friends." CONTINUITY CHECK: As we see in Fool for Love, the scene didn't play out this way exactly. Spike is exaggerating and misrepresenting to portray himself as the victim. See 42RRR.
42MMM) "Mmm. That smell...Your neck..." FROM THE ORIGINAL SHOOTING SCRIPT: "He holds onto her, letting the sobs subside -- and they do, his grasp becoming a little tighter, more sensual, his face in her neck advancing to nuzzlage. She begins to look increasingly alarmed."--"Lovers Walk" by Dan Vebber, available through Pocketbooks, Inc. as Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Script Book, Season Three, Volume 2
CONTINUITY CHECK: "This is later referred back to in Season Four, The Initiative when Spike will use this scene to reassure Willow that he finds her extremely biteable. He also remembers exactly what Willow was wearing! As a sidenote, I've always found it incredibly 'William-ish' that Spike would be worried about hurting a girl's feelings when he's also trying to murder her."--Pip, Mon, 02/23/04 at 14:28:54
A TID BIT NIPPLY: "It is, I believe, noticeable, that in the scene when Spike is threatening Willow, a scene which also plays up the double entendre of his 'having' her to imply a sexual conquest, that dear and darling frightened Willow has erect nipples. In the common parlance, erect nipples are considered a sign of sexual arousal. So there is a potential suggestion that Willow is aroused by this encounter. Normally I would argue against such a thing, but Willow has made clear that she is okay with force being used on her, as she said to Xander in Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered (see here). And she does seem mildly pleased to learn of Spike’s bloodlust later in The Initiative.
I would also think that this is not generally the sort of thing that would be done deliberately, but then I think of [the popular sitcom] Friends, and I’ve often said I would love to have the job of nipple tweaker on set for the three lovely actresses who invariably have erect nipples in every scene of that show. Even if I had to join a union. Of course, the job probably doesn’t exist, because I’ve heard they keep the temperature on the set extremely low, obviously for precisely this purpose. Buffy, on the other hand, is not known for this sort of thing. Characters on Buffy, while sporting appealing attributes, do not generally show erect nipples. Whereas it's mandatory on Friends.
Also, on
Friends, and even on most shows where you see erect nipples, the actresses
tend to be braless and wearing tight, thin, frequently lycra tops. On Buffy,
even when they are wearing those things, which is certainly rare in the first
three seasons, you don’t generally see nipples. But Willow is wearing
a sweater. So it stands out, so to speak. It just seems, well, conscious.
I am actually kind of thinking that we are supposed to suspect that Willow is
aroused by this encounter. Not that she wants to do it with Spike, necessarily.
But the situation excites her. The illicit relationship with Xander, the danger
and potential violence, the advance by Spike, and the chance to do some mojo
could all play into it.
I don’t know from Television production, but what is the likelihood that this sort of thing is planned on set? Seriously. I mean, they control everything you see, right? Or did they just get 'lucky' that a natural occurrence worked in with the dynamic of the character and the scene? When I used to do shows back in school, I mean, there was nothing that didn't get brought up and talked about in rehearsal. If you were a guy wearing spandex pants, whether you rode up or down was a topic of discussion, cuz it was what the audience was going to see. So I do think they're aware. It just seems so subtle an effect and yet so akward to 'make' it happen...
If there's anything to it, it also makes me wonder how this would play into Willow's character as far as the force she uses on others. If she is excited by the thought of force being used on her in sexual encounters, would that have any impact at all on how she saw herself using force on others in non-sexual encounters? Is there a 'well, I'd let you do it to me,' aspect to what she does? Like it's no big deal, it's what people do."--manwitch, Sun, 02/29/04 at 11:41:29
In the original shooting script of The Wish, Vampire Willow, as she is torturing Angel says, "I know you like it when I come."..."ME possibly did want to show that Willow was aroused by violence, give or received. (How experimental did they want her sex life to get?) But it must have been an extremely small or sublimated desire, since there is no evidence that it was a part of her actual sexual relationships. [She, in fact, mocks the concept in Doppelgangland, where she sarcastically remarks, "Oh, yeah, me and Oz play 'Mistress of Pain' every night."] I wouldn't be too suprised if this was a deliberate decision, since they later did show Buffy in a violent sexual relationship."--Arethusa, Sun, 02/29/04 at 12:21:38, with additions by Rob See 43Ex4.
"Are you talking stereo-types of BDSM or the reality of BDSM? The whole Willow/Tara relationship had overt tones of Submissive and Dominant roleplay, that got stronger the longer they were together. Not all BDSM (which is BD=Bondage and Domination OR Bondage and Discipline depending on the individual you're talking to. SM=Sadism and Masochism) involves physical pain, nor even bondage of a physical variety. In a Dominator/Submissive relationship, there is not necessarily any corporal discipline or 'punishment' involved. It's one's will being subjugated to anothers. This is also termed as 'power exchange.' The power of the submissive is given to the Domina/Dom by CHOICE, and many times is the entire basis of the relationship 24/7. Even if the submissive and the Dominant may also have a 'normal' life outside of the home/relationship. Additionally, there are many forms of 'Power Exchange,' and much of it has nothing to do with physicality at all; Spiritual, Financial and Emotional Subserviance can also a play a part of D/S relationships.
Willow and Tara definitly had a D/S relationship. Tara was the 'yes dear, no dear' partner and Willow was the one who determined what would take place, when and how. We saw both Emotional and Spiritual Dominance in the W/T dynamic. Tara's religion evolved into worshiping Willow as well as the Wiccan religion they shared. She also allowed Willow to use her own power for Willow's spell casting as well as allowing Willow to lead her own aims and goals in her own. [Editor's Note: While as their relationship progressed, Willow would often be in the dominant position, this was not always the case, so I would argue that it is "arguable" rather than "definite" that they had a D/S relationship. There are also examples of Tara setting the rules, such as in "Forever," where Tara laid down the law, and told Dawn that they could not help her resurrect Joyce. True, Willow went behind her back, but this further shows how she was not the one with the power, or she would have confronted Tara about the issue to her face. This leads up to the fight in "Tough Love," which began by Willow feeling less knowledgable than Tara, regarding how to deal with the death of a mother, witchcraft, and lesbianism. Also, remember Willow's line in Once More, With Feeling, "Am I gonna have to fight to keep you? 'Cause I'm not big with the butch."--Rob] Likewise, Willow was rather the dominant in the Oz/Willow hook up as well. Oz served Willow. Willow rarely served Oz, unless you count her 'jailer' role during his Full Moon Moments, which you could say was also a form of BDSM play. She caged him and watched over him as he gave his will up to the Moon and to Willow, in his cohesive moments...
I have always seen Willow's character as a Domina. Not all Dominas are so out about their habits. Not all Dominants are harsh, cruel and obviously manipulative. Many are simply ladies and gents who expect their partners to serve them, and they will do as any good teacher or parent does: Use the tactic that works the best for each individual partner. Some need firmness and some like to be cajoled...[And] as you know, spellcraft can be a massive turn on, so I believe that Allyson Hannigan may have also been truly into character and getting off on the entire dynamic; 'Spike,' the character and the connotations of the entire scene."--Briar Rose, Mon, 03/01/04 at 15:09:26
ON THE OTHER HAND...: "Not to get too real-world here, but Buffy was filmed in a converted warehouse rather than a genuine studio, and they had very limited climate control. Therefore, it's likely that it was just cold that day."--Gyrus, Mon, 03/01/04 at 11:55:05
42NNN) "Now, now, hold on! I-I'll do your spell for you, and, and, and I'll get you Drusilla back, but, but there will be no bottle-in-face, and there will be no 'having' of any kind with me. Alright?" BRAVE WILLOW: "I think Willow showed great courage when she was dealing with Spike in Lovers Walk. Spike was very menacing, and the situation could have turned ugly. Willow was obviously terrified, but kept her head and talked him down. Reason doesn't always get you out of trouble. Panicing will certainly make it worse, and Willow is to be commended for staying calm, and waiting for a chance to get away from Spike (NuPhalanx, 13 Jan 1999)."--Masquerade, "Lovers Walk" Analysis, from http://www.atpobtvs.com
42OOO) "Now, I'm not a real witch, you know." CONTINUITY CHECK: It is interesting to note that Willow does not yet consider herself a full witch. This will change as the season progresses.
42PPP) "Well, if at first you don't succeed, I'll kill him, and you try again." CLICHE SUBVERSION: This may be overstating the obvious, but this is a riff on the phrase, "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again!" obviously a much more positive sentiment than Spike's version.