Writer:

David Greenwalt

Director:

James A. Contner

Regulars:

Sarah Michelle Gellar as Buffy Summers

Nicholas Brendon as Xander Harris

Alyson Hannigan as Willow Rosenberg

Charisma Carpenter as Cordelia Chase

David Boreanaz as Angel

Seth Green as Oz

Anthony Stewart Head as Rupert Giles

Guest Stars:

Kristine Sutherland as Joyce Summers

Fab Filippo as Scott Hope

K. Todd Freeman as Mr. Trick

Eliza Dushku as Faith

Armin Shimerman as Principal Snyder

Cast:

Jeremy Roberts as Kakistos

John Ennis as Manager

Buffy is still having dreams about the love of her life, Angel. Meanwhile, Scott Hope, a boy from school, is showing interest in her. Buffy has little time to think about this, as she meets Faith, a new Slayer with a lot of secrets. Faith has been followed to Sunnydale by two deadly vampires, Mr. Trick and Kakistos, the latter having killed her Watcher in Boston. After coming to terms with her fears, Faith stops Kakistos from killing herself and Buffy, and Buffy finally accepts Scott's date invitation — unaware that Angel has returned from Hell. — Short synopsis by Anthony C. Blade.

More vampires. Kakistos is so old his hands and feet have become cloven. Joss Whedon says, "Kakistos was OLD, that causes the clovenness. Remember the Master? He looked like a bat — a LOT like a bat (with fruitpunch mouth). The idea is that the older they get, the more animalistic — but not necessarily the same animal. They devolve. That's my theory." Giles says that Kakistos is Greek for "the worst of the worst."

Happy Burger Employee

Drained by Mr. Trick at the drive-thru window.

Anonymous Vampire

Staked by Faith outside of the Bronze.

Pizza Delivery Boy

Presumably drained by Mr. Trick at his hideout.

Anonymous Vampires (3)

Staked by Buffy while she's on patrol.

Motel Manager

Presumably killed by Kakistos at Faith's hotel.

Anonymous Vampire

Staked by Buffy at the hideout.

Kakistos

Staked by Faith at the hideout.

Total: Nine

Willow tells Buffy about Scott Hope: "He wanted to ask you out last year, but you weren't ready then. But I think you're ready now. Or at least in the state of pre-readiness to make conversation. Or to do that thing with your mouth that boys like. (Buffy glares at her) Oh! I didn't mean that bad thing with your mouth, I meant that little half-smile thing that you... (to Oz) You're supposed to stop me when I do that."
Oz, shaking his head: "I like when you do that."

Mr. Trick is the first to note Sunnydale's strange racial monotony: "I mean, admittedly, it's not a haven for the brothers... you know, strictly the Caucasian persuasion here in the 'Dale, but... you know, you just gotta stand up and salute that death rate."

Joyce to Principal Snyder: "I think what my daughter's trying to say is, 'nah nah-nah nah nahh.'"

Faith: "Isn't is crazy how slaying just always makes ya hungry and horny?"
Buffy, as everyone looks at her: "Well... sometimes I crave a non-fat yogurt afterwards."

More quotes from this episode...

• "When did you become Martha Stewart?"  Martha Stewart is a frighteningly perky and omnipresent homemaking expert, writer, and television personality whose name has become synonymous with domestic expertise.

• "Makes D.C. look like Mayberry!"   D.C. refers to Washington, D.C., the U.S. capital, known as the Murder Capital of the World for its extremely high murder rates. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Mayberry, North Carolina, was the amazingly wholesome setting of the amazingly wholesome sitcom The Andy Griffith Show, which ran from 1960 to 1968, as well as its spin-off series Mayberry R.F.D. (1968-1971) and the 1986 TV movie Return to Mayberry.

• "What was the last thing that guy danced to, K.C. & the Sunshine Band?"  K.C. & the Sunshine Band were one of the biggest stars of the disco era in the late 1970's. They had a string of #1 hits (most of which seemed to have the word "boogie" in them — "Boogie Shoes" and "I'm Your Boogie Man" among them), and were nominated for nine Grammy awards. Although they still record and tour, they remain best known for their 70's hits "That's The Way (I Like It)" and "Get Down Tonight."

• "All I'm sayin' is, we stay local—where the humans are jumpin' and the cotton is high—but we live global."  Mr. Trick is misquoting "Summertime," the lullaby sung by Clara to her baby in the beginning of George Gershwin's 1935 "folk opera" Porgy & Bess. The actual lyrics are as follows:
  

  Summertime and the livin' is easy. Fish are jumpin' and the cotton is high. Yo' daddy's rich and yo' mama's good lookin'. So hush little baby, don't you cry. One of these mornin's, you're gonna rise up singin'. You're gonna spread yo' wings and take to the sky. But til that mornin' ain't nothin' can harm you. With yo' daddy and mammy standin' by.

• "But I'm the one getting Single White Female'd here."  In the 1992 movie Single White Female, Bridget Fonda plays a woman whose roommate, played by Jennifer Jason Leigh, starts to copy her lifestyle and her look, and eventually tries to kill her in an insane attempt to completely take over her life.

  

• Buster Keaton (1895-1966) was, along with Charlie Chaplin and Harold Lloyd, one of the biggest names in comedy during the silent film era. He wrote, directed, and starred in a large number of comedy films, both short and long, in the 1920's (The General (1927), Steamboat Bill Jr. (1928) and The Cameraman (also 1928) are among the best known and loved), and his innocent charm and brilliant slapstick style made him one of the most popular and influential comedians of all time.

• When Faith asks Buffy about her hardest kill, Buffy is about to tell her about the Three (who attacked her at the beginning of "Angel"), but in fact Buffy didn't kill the Three. Buffy and Angel ran back to her house, and then Darla killed the Three for failing the Master.

• At the end, as Angel lies naked on the floor, it looks like the tattoo on his back is missing.

• Seniors at Sunnydale High School are allowed to leave school grounds for lunch.

• Mr. Trick says "Makes D.C. look like Mayberry," implying that he and Kakistos have come to Sunnydale either from Washington, D.C., or from Dawson's Creek. (Just kidding about Dawson's Creek... but wouldn't that be cool?)

• There is a Watcher's Retreat every year in the Cotswolds in England, attended by invitation only. Hiking, horseback riding, kayaking, conferences and discussions are some of the activities. Giles was not invited this year. On that topic, Joss Whedon says, "Giles was not invited BEFORE because he was a rebel. He's not invited NOW cuz he's too busy. There are Watchers all over the world because although there are potential Slayers all over the world, it is never known until the last one dies which one will be called. Sometimes a Watcher can find a potential and train her, sometimes they cannot interfere in her life — sometimes they don't find them (like Buffy) until after the other has died."

• In their tour of the school, Willow and Xander mention the snakes in the cafeteria (from "I Only Have Eyes for You"), Angel's attack on Willow (from "Innocence"), Spike's siege of the school (from "School Hard") and Willow nearly getting sucked into the floor (again from "I Only Have Eyes for You").

• Sunnydale has a fiberoptic network.

• Faith's Watcher is the first female Watcher to be mentioned on the show since Giles' grandmother in "Never Kill a Boy on the First Date."

• More Sunnydale locations: State Street, which has a movie theater on it, and the Downtowner Apts. Motel.

• There is a Watchers Council.

• The Brian Jonestown Massacre - "Going to Hell" (From Strung Out in Heaven, TVT Records, 1998)
  This song plays in the background during the first scene, where Willow musters the courage to leave campus.
  
  
• Third Eye Blind - "The Background" (From Third Eye Blind, Elektra/Asylum Records, 1997)
  Buffy and Angel dance to this song in the Bronze in Buffy's dream.
  Official Site
  
  
• Darling Violetta - "Cure" (From The Kill You EP, Opaline Records, 2000)
  Darling Violetta is the band playing on stage at the Bronze. "Cure" plays when Scott Hope asks Buffy to dance and as they follow Faith and her date out of the club.
  Official Site
  
  
• Darling Violetta - "Blue Sun" (From BathWaterFlowers, Opaline Records, 1998)
  This song is heard in the background as the gang listens to Faith's tales of slaying.
  Official Site

Brian:

The third season continues its upward progress. In addition to a marvelous episode that advanced the story of Buffy's re-integration into her life in a satisfying way, we got not one but two highly enjoyable new recurring characters. Joss has created a third recurring vampiric adversary in the hip, high-tech Mr. Trick who, unbelievably, manages to be thoroughly entertaining and completely different from his predecessors, Spike and the Master. And Faith's sexy, sassy personality was like a ray of light into a group dynamic that was becoming dominated by Buffy's gloom (not that that was a bad thing, but change is good). With Faith's issues with Kakistos now seemingly worked out, I look forward to seeing how her relationship with Buffy and her clique changes in future episodes — 'cause ya know we'll be seeing more of her, what with her "staying in Sunnydale indefinitely" and all. The character of Joyce continues to get stronger and stronger (nyaah nyaah to the naysayers who pooh-poohed the idea of her learning of Buffy's calling), and Kristine Sutherland continues to rise to the occasion. I can't wait for the truth about the Mayor (subtle hints of which have been dropped for a year now) to come out, and judging from his comments in the limo, I'll wager Mr. Trick has something to do with that. Overall, a strong, entertaining episode. And now that Angel's back... whoo boy, now the fireworks are gonna start... (8/10)

Will:

You would think that I would be going over-the-edge crazy for an episode that introduces a new villain, a new Slayer, and has Angel come back. You would be wrong. I felt like I was rushed through this episode, and I experienced too much potentially good stuff that ended up being mostly disappointing. Firstly, I am glad that my comments about the recurring Angel dream sequences will now end seeing that he has returned. I am sure that there will be many interesting twists in his personality seeing that he has been vacationing in Hell. It was an interesting way to be sure that we all tune in next week to experience the reunion and to find out how it happened. It seemed a bit rushed, and there was no real hinting that it would happen when it did. I am not too disappointed at the moment, but I will wait to pass judgement until I hear about his trials in Hell. Secondly, I like Faith. She is neat... not great, just neat. We didn't learn enough about her in this offering, but I am assuming that she will be around for a while. Lastly, our newest villain doesn't even come close to living up to the likes of Spike or the Master. It is true that we don't know much about him, but that seems to be the theme of this entire episode. Greenwalt tried to jam way too much stuff into one hour, and I left feeling unfulfilled. I want more answers and more information in my Buffy episodes. I am hoping that they're just getting warmed up. (6/10)