Hallelujah! A 15 second montage of "previously on Buffy the Vampire Slayer" that did not include the impotent Spike and Willow scene. What we did get, for all those who hadn't watched Buffy before this season (yes, you Cory) were scenes from season three where we see the rise, corruption and fall of Faith. This is our first clue (well, beside BUFFY.COM and the TV Guide) that Faith is back. Then we get a Buffy beating up Riley, Riley telling Buffy he likes his woomins strong and Adam skewering Maggie.
We cut to the dream. Buffy and Faith are in Buffy's bedroom at Joyce's house making the bed. Buffy comments that she likes the smell of clean sheets, reminds her of summer. Faith says she wouldn't know and Buffy said she forgot. To which Faith agrees. You get the idea that they may be having two different conversations. Buffy says she has to go but makes no move to go. Buffy says she really has to go, things to do and Faith snaps, so go. Blood splatters down onto the clean white sheets and they both look down at the knife sticking from Faith's stomach. "Aren't you ever going to pull that thing out?" Faith asks. Buffy reach outs and pulls and we return to reality - a hospital room with thunder and lightning and a very coma like Faith.
Opening credits and song. Commercials and then we are back to my very staticy and barely audible copy of BVS. So I'm likely going to be missing some of the lines and will have to catch it on the repeat.
Okay, the show proper starts in Scooby Central. Scooby Central use to be the high school library (a split level large room with shelves and shelves of books and a steel cage full of weapons) and then was Giles' flat (a tastefully decorated two story apartment with an antique chest full of weapons) and is now the basement of Xander's parental abode (a disco ball decorated pit with no weapon stash to speak of). My how the mighty have fallen.
Xander is trying to repair the defective taser that Maggie issued Buffy in the failed murder attempt. Right away it becomes apparently that Xander is going to get all the good lines that don't go to Faith for, when Willow suggests that experimenting might be the way to go, Xander replies that the thing is called a blaster which sort of suggests *not* experimenting. However, if it were called the Orgasmator...
While Xander is trying to repair the taser Buffy, Willow and Giles have a heart to heart about Buffy pushing herself so hard to find Adam while worrying about Riley. Riley's buds are telling her that Riley is okay but Buffy is not finding that very comforting. As is the way of TV shows we now break to where Riley is, well to look at, rather okay and playing with Buffy's scarf. Riley dresses himself (very gingerly; his lower body is covered in bandages) and proceeds to check himself our of the GIJoe Ward. His former second in command and the other guy who is always hanging around try to dissuade him with the "when the going gets messy we all band together; not go running to the girlfriend's who's fault it is anyway". Riley does not buy this argument and leaves.
Back to Fantasy Island. Faith and the Mayor are having a picnic on a beautiful summer day when along comes Buffy and cuts the Mayor's throat with the knife she took from Faith's stomach in the previous dream. Faith runs from Buffy.
The Scooby Gang go patrolling, looking for signs of Adam. They find a flayed and splayed (looks like a grade 10 dissection project) demon. Bingo. Back at Scooby Central they reavow their need to capture Adam but first, they have to rescue Riley. Buffy comes up with a military style plan involving Willow's hacking ability, Xander's military ability, her Slayer ability and a healthy dose of explosives. From behind them Riley asks if he's worth it. Buffy and Willow are glad to see him but Xander is a bit more reserved. As he says, "There's no polite way of putting this. Did they put a chip in your brain." Riley apologizes for giving them a hard time when he was in DTs and promises to help catch Adam.
We break to Fantasy Island again. Faith is running in the rain followed by a walking, emotionless Buffy carrying the knife. Faith falls into a grave and Buffy drops in after her. There is a slight pause and then Faith slowly claws her way out to stand defiant in the thunder and lightning.
Faith opens her eyes.
Back after commercial Faith takes stock, pulls off the monitoring equipment and heads out into the corridor where she finds a young woman who, with a teddy bear, is looking for the third floor. From her Faith finds out that it's Feb. 24, that Sunnydale High blew up real good and that the Mayor is dead. Last shot is of Faith walking out of the hospital wearing the girl's clothes.
In the dorm room Buffy and Riley are having a heart to heart about his goals and purpose in life now that he isn't a order following, zombie soldier. Buffy says that she quit the council and he can either do the same or try to change the Initiative from within. But regardless, take away the soldier and you still have a good man. With that mushy thought she begins looking for brain implants which are apparently only visible sitting on the patient's lap and using your mouth.
Back at the hospital cops are yelling at doctors about how could a patient wanted in several murder investigations simply walk out and doctors are yelling back that she was in a one way coma and walking was last thing after waking that they expected. Cops and doctors go rushing out when they find out about Faith's mugging victim leaving the nurse to call unknown persons to inform them that "it has happened."
Faith wanders the strip for awhile before going to Giles to eavesdrop and get the current composition of the Scooby Gang. While she is listening she overhears Buffy get the phone call to tell her that Faith has awakened. (Sorry, not clear on who called Buffy here. Also, it looks like Faith leaves but my copy really did suck). The Scooby Gang decide on Plan A - Find Faith with a healthy dose of Plan B - kick ass on the side. Riley is in the dark about who Faith is.
Next day Willow and Buff are walking and talking about Buffy's briefing of Riley and what she did and didn't tell him. (I'm betting she left out the part where Angel is a Vampire and the part where she tried to kill Faith. Just a guess on my part.) Buffy says that if she were Faith, she'd get out of Dodge. Faith turns to face them and says "You're not me."
This is known as foreshadowing. It's also a running gag this season where you say something isn't going to happen and they walk in the door.
Anyway. Buffy tries reason. Faith puts the Faith spin on the events of last June and a fist fight insues. The cops show and Faith runs with Buffy following but Faith escapes. Willow briefs Tara on the homicidal maniac recon and Tara tells Willow she's not into violence. Willow says not to worry, they find her and get help.
That night Xander and Giles (on patrol with the taser) run into Spike. Xander briefs Spike about Faith, gives description and that she's a bad apple. Spike says good. How about he finds her, tells her where they are and watches her kill them? Seems everyone but Spike keeps forgetting that he's a bad guy.
Helicopter full of Men In Black arrive and are met by the nurse but it's pretty much a throw away scene.
Back to Faith who is again walking the strip. A demon shows and Faith kills him and then takes the parcel that he was delivering to her. She saves a ton of money by avoiding tips this way. She takes the gift (a video) and discovers that the Mayor made plans in case he failed. He tells her that she's living on borrowed time but he hopes that his little gift will help her go out with a bang.
Back on the Love Boat Buffy is having a hard time convincing Riley that Faith is dangerous. Riley says that Buffy is holding out on him (which she is). Buffy says that Faith will stop at nothing to hurt her or the people she loves.
Speaking of Joyce. Door knocks, Joyce opens, Faith says hi and knocks her out. When Joyce awakens she is in her bedroom and Faith is trying on the makeup. Joyce says Buffy will come and kick you ass. Faith says from the amount of mail Buffy hasn't picked up that's really unlikely. Buffy (of course) arrives and a fight (of course) breaks out. Buffy and Faith start destroying Joyces living room, trading blows and insults with casual ease.
The fight is then interrupted to show Giles returning home to find the Men In Black camped in his living room.
Back at the fight Buffy says the cruelest, bitchiest and nastiest thing she can possibly say. "Maybe we forgot about you because we wanted to." Faith goes nuts and looses all fighting style and starts throwing anything she can get her hands on and coming after Buffy with the silver meat fork (which leads to the Freudian thing that Faith wants to fork Buffy) in great wind mailing hay maker swipes that *I* could avoid. Faith knocks Buffy back long enough to put on the Mayor's gizmo over her palm and catch Buffy's hand - sort of like when you swear blood brother by cutting your palm. There is a crackle of energy and a play of emotion across both faces which I will not even try to explain and then Buffy knocks out Faith who apparently does have a glass jaw.
Joyce arrives and Buffy stomps on the gizmo and says that the cops can take Faith now. Joyce asks how Buffy is and she replies, "Five by five."
Random thoughts