Never Kill a Boy on The First Date
Original Airdate: March 31,
1997
Writers: Dean Batali & Rob Des Hotel
Director:
David Semel
I
realize that I was really harsh in the previous episode's review. I assure
those who are a little sensitive that there will be plenty of good reviews
coming. I wouldn't pick a show to review just to trash it all the time. It's
just some of these early episode weren't indicative of what the brilliance we'd
see later. This episode is a marked improvement from last week. It is much less
silly and the writing is certainly tighter.
Like
in "Witch", Buffy attempts to live the normal teenage girl life. She
wants to go out with guys like any girl her age. She has a little crush on Owen
and wants to spend time with him, regardless of the ascension of the Anointed
One. Not to have Buffy come off as flaky is definitely a major problem with
this story line. It would be hard to sympathize with someone who was worrying
over a boy when a major piece of The Master's plans is about to come into
fruition. Luckily they pull it off, as Buffy steps up and learns a serious
lesson in the process.
The
episode starts with the first in the typical opening scenes where Buffy fights
and dusts a vampire. It's interesting that what many expect in a typical
episode Giles criticizes for being over dramatic. He does have a point (pun not
intended); Buffy should just stake her prey and move on to the next one. Why
isn't explained fully until season five. It's doubtful that much was to made out of this observation, but in the scheme of the
series it works well.
While
the body and clothing of a staked vampire turn to dust, apparently some parts
manage to survive. In this case, it is a ring indicative of The Master's cult,
called The Order of Aurelius. While some may argue of the convenience of the
ring surviving, it is the impetus of this week's plot, and deepens our
understanding of The Master and his business. Is Aurelius a reference to Marcus
Aurelius, the Roman Emperor of the 2nd century? It wouldn't be hard
to believe that Joss Whedon would fuse some real life
events to his history. The Order must predate The Master, as he isn't made
until the late 14th century and the Order was founded in the 12th,
but Joss claims to be bad at math, so that may be overlooked. It fits for The
Master, who is an "old school" monster, and his minions (especially
prophesy quoting Luke) to have this kind of history and invest this much in
prophesy.
Andrew
was a clear red herring for the Anointed One. His bizarre quotation of
scripture on the bus and the fact that he's on the run for murder would make
him fitting for the Order of Aurelius. Of course, we know he isn't because the
prophecy states that Buffy won't know who it is and he'll slip by her unnoticed.
That piece of information is conveniently kept away from our heroes. Having it be a child is an interesting choice, but this appears to be
more of the shock value of having it be a kid. What good does having a kid be the key warrior for The Master? The kid can't age after
this point.
On
that note, there is only one funeral home in all of Sunnydale?
Perhaps Buffy should look into that considering the high body count in the town
is likely to draw a lot of business. They could be the most powerful business in
town. Of course, the number of cemeteries is another sign to why houses in Sunnydale are probably very cheap.
Owen,
in retrospect, was probably Buffy's most normal love interest. Many of the guys
she became involved with had far too many issues and their relationships were
bogged down in drama that kept them from being successful. Of course, Owen was
only in one episode, hardly enough to be seriously complicated.
The
actor was miscast as a brooding guy who read poetry (Angel has that market
cornered). The role would've been better if the character was written more as a
nice, sensitive, albeit a little thickheaded, guy. Cordelia's
attraction to Owen is weird, but maybe this is hinting at some depth to her
that we don't know yet. Her little swooning over Angel and his ignoring her is
consistent with that. And did they get away with a bodily fluid joke (that
fluid) on network TV?
Xander's behavior and Buffy's reaction to it is certainly
reminiscent of my high school years. The crush that you can't act on directly
that the other person is oblivious to is a rite of passage for every teenager.
It's not clear whether Buffy is aware of Xander's
feelings and dismissing them because she thinks he isn't serious or not. I
personally can't explain this, and this segment, while it may be frustrating,
rings true.
It's
an interesting contrast to have Giles resenting having to do his librarian work
while Buffy grows restless over full time slaying. For their operation to be
successful, their covers need to work. Buffy's identity as the Slayer needs to
be kept low profile, and Giles shouldn't arouse
suspicion as her Watcher either. This would be a good argument for her to
socialize with other kids and create the illusion of a normal teenage life.
However, the scene in The Bronze with Angel and Xander
& Willow trying to keep their story straight from the unassuming Owen
illustrates how hard and messy that will be for Buffy. It also has a nice bit
of foreshadowing that could easily be overlooked.
This
episode is an improvement over "Teacher's Pet", largely because of
the lack of obvious plot holes and shoddy writing. It also deals with the
slayer's role in her personal life, a topic that would be central to the show
until the end. That's something a she-mantis can't claim!
Score:
7/10