Episode 6: Halloween

Season Two, Episode Six

"Halloween"

We open this episode with Buffy fighting some vampire while another one lurks in the shadows, filming the fight to put on his vlog. This seems a bit odd but whatever, for right now we'll go with it and just assume that vampires enjoy YouTube as much as the rest of us.

Snyder is (shocker) making some very weird decisions. Just as it was stupid putting your worst students in charge of parent's night, why would you put Buffy in charge of young, impressionable, children if you think she’s such a bad person?

I'm going to continue rushing through most of the beginning because the end is where the episode really picks up. Basically, Buffy and Willow are discussing how they wish they could learn more about Angel but they can't get the Watcher's journels and read through them. So, obviously, they decide to break into Giles office to steal said books. However, their plan looks to be blown because Giles never leaves the library.

"I live in the library, Buffy, don't you know that?"

Buffy is very bad at covering while Willow gets the books and says how Ms. Calendar said that he was "a hunk of burning something or other."  Her lack of skillz don't really matter though because Giles is even worse at noticing that he's being played so Willow and Buffy score the book.

They each look through the book and see all these pictures of high class women and assume they're Angel's "type." Willow, once again, shows me why I love her so much by saying she thinks she prefers being able to vote.

Stuff happens with Cordelia saying how she's the slayer of dating and I get very confused by her comment so we're just moving on to things I'm interested in. Buffy teaches Willow about the true purpose of Halloween (which is apparently not getting free candy!) Halloween is come-as-you-aren’t night and Willow needs to not dress up as a ghost. This costume covers her hot body with a sheet and isn’t exactly the way she’ll be able to bring boys to the yard.

We learn now what's up with the vlogging vampire: he was filming footage for Spike to study. I must say, Drusilla and Spike are adorable in such a creepy way and never realize how much I miss them together until I rewatch this season. They make season two awesome, in my opinion.

Anyway, back to Willow and Buffy. Willow ends up picking out a sexy costume and Buffy tells her how awesome she looks. However, she goes down to let Xander in and then Willow comes down the stairs dressed as a ghost! This makes Sarah sad...

While everyone is taking kids trick or treating, Buffy comes to a house that gave the kids a toothbrush instead of candy. WHO DOES THIS?! A) it’s evil and B) that would cost so much more money! A huge bag of candy costs as much as two toothbrushes and the huge bag satisfies one teenager with a sweet tooth dozens of children

This part of the episode reminds me of Halloween Town 2 when everyone at the party starts turning into their costumes because everyone here is…starting to turn into their costumes. Come to think of it, I think that movie may have stolen the idea from Buffy! Everyone steals ideas from Buffy!

The important thing is that sexy Willow is back! Yay for sexy Willow!

Basically, everyone is insanely helpful from this point forward. Buffy thinks it’s 200 years in the past and believes cars are demons while actual demons are running around. Xander thinks he’s a soldier which is actually pretty interesting since things from this transformation stick with him throughout the series. I’m not necessarily sure what makes this happen with him since the others don’t remember shit from their transformations. However, I’m not really irritated by this since I don’t feel like it needs explaining due to the things that everyone else changed into. Willow can’t remember being a ghost and Buffy can’t really remember being a woman from the past. Xander can remember his transformation, though, because he actually needed to learn stuff. Buffy very well could still know some old-timey speech but we never would know because when the hell would you need to talk as if you’re from the eighteenth century? Xander got lucky since he chose to be a soldier with skills that would become useful to saving the world.

Willow is still herself, just a sexy ghost version, so she goes to try and figure out what's happening from Giles who has an awesome reaction to sexy Willow. He asks what she was and Willow smooth subject change from her sexiness to discussing what Cordelia was wearing helps crack the case of how everyone turned into their costumes: they all bought their costumes from Ethan’s shop. The interesting thing about this episode’s big bad is that he apparently is buddy buddy with Giles, whom he refers to as Ripper. More on this in a later episode.

Another interesting little thing about their transformations are subtle indications that they actually contain part of themselves. Xander feels a strange sense of closure while beating up the pirate (who is Larry.) I’m going to make myself sick for suggesting this but it seems Freudian, delving into the unconscious self. What makes this interesting is the fact that Buffy is scared of Angel, which could prove to be some clever foreshadowing to what he does later on when she lets her guard down to him.

Anddd then Buffy wakes up right before Spike kills her (sound like a certain event from season six?) Knowing Joss, these parallels could have been intentional but I kind of doubt it. They’re probably just coincidental (or at least most of them probably are) The Angel bit could be, but I doubt the Spike part was.

The end is my favorite when Willow tosses aside the ghost costume and walks down the street confident in her hotness self. And Oz sees her and notices her hotness. They are going to make an adorable couple. 

Favorite Line: “I can’t wait for the boys to go non-verbal when they see you” – Buffy

-Sarah

Kali’s Notes:

- I have to point out again; Spike is smart, at least for a vampire. He has someone go out to record The Slayer fighting to study her, and then only attacks when he finds out she’s in a weakened state. And again, he runs when he loses the upper hand.

- Although at some points Xander is a complete badass in this episode, this is the beginning of the never-ending “Xander has Army training” crap. Seriously writers, you kept this going way too freaking long. Poor Xander and his lack of real skills.

- I like the Larry/Xander scene mostly because it reminds me of Xander/Angel and they totes have the hots for each other.

- I really, really love Oz. Anytime he opens his mouth, awesomeness comes out. "You're like a great big cat" "Why can't I meet a nice girl like that?" and his same line he keeps asking about Willow “Who is that girl?!”

- I really love the message in this episode about the differences between being yourself and trying to be something you're not. Even when just dressing up for Halloween, the characters get punished for being what they’re not. Buffy gets turned into a whimpering, girly idiot and Xander gets turned into a super-manly soldier guy. This episode is great at showing that Buffy defies gender roles and while she can be “girly” but still be tough and takes on the stereotypical male roles. I’m annoyed when Xander thinks that Buffy shouldn’t have stopped him from getting the crap beat out of him. From this, we come to the conclusion that it’s better to be yourself. Willow is uncomfortable dressing as something she’s not, but with her new found confidence feels better in her own skin. Buffy tries to be something different for guys (specifically Angel) to like her, but finds out that it’s who she really is that attracts him.

- Let’s not forget, Giles has a secret DUN DUN DUNNNNNNNN.

Favorite Line:

Drusilla: "Do you love my insides, the parts you can't see?"

Spike: "Eyeballs to entrails, my sweet"

Is there something wrong with me because I find that romantic?