Writers:

Ashley Gable

Thomas A. Swyden

Director:

Stephen Posey

Regulars:

Sarah Michelle Gellar as Buffy Summers

Nicholas Brendon as Xander Harris

Alyson Hannigan as Willow Rosenberg

Charisma Carpenter as Cordelia Chase

Anthony Stewart Head as Rupert Giles

Guest Star:

Robia LaMorte as Ms. Calendar

Cast:

Chad Lindberg as Dave

Jamison Ryan as Fritz

Pierrino Mascarino as Thelonius

Edith Fields as School Nurse

Damon Sharp as Male student

Mark Deakins as Moloch's Voice

Moloch the Corrupter is fictional, created by the writers, as is the practice of binding demons into books and the Circle of Kayless.

Well, every word uttered by Ms. Calendar was wonderful, especially her dressing down of Giles: "Wrong and wrong, snobby. You think the realm of the mystical is limited to ancient texts and relics? That bad old science made the magic go away? The divine exists in cyberspace same as out here."

Ms. Calendar: "You're here again? You kids really dig the library, don't you?"
Buffy: "We're literary."
Xander: "To read makes our speaking English good."

Giles ruminates on why books are better than computers: "Smell is the most powerful trigger to the memory there is. A certain flower or a whiff of smoke can bring up experiences long forgotten. Books smell... musty and rich. The knowledge gained from a computer is... it has no texture, no context. It's there and then it's gone. If it's to last, then the getting of knowledge should be tangible. It should be, um... smelly."

More quotes from this episode...

Ms. Calendar: "Will I be excited?"
Fritz: "You'll die."

• The title of the episode is a combination of two references: I, Robot is the title of a famous 1950 collection of short stories about robots by Isaac Asimov, and "Me Tarzan, you Jane," was a catchphrase made popular in the 1930's by the series of movies based on Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan novels.

  

• "My spider sense is tingling."  Marvel Comics' Spider-Man, in addition to his physical powers, has a "spider sense" that tingles when danger is looming. The phrase "My spider sense is tingling" has become an oft-repeated phrase in the Spider-Man comic books.

• Buffy: "Well, it looks like suicide."
  Xander: "With a little help from my friends?"
  "With A Little Help From My Friends" is the name of a song from the Beatles' 1967 Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album. Joe Cocker recorded a popular cover of the song in 1968 which was later used as the theme song to the television show The Wonder Years.

• On the screen as Moloch looks up Buffy's dossier (while the screen is still green and lists two others below her), her birthdate is shown as 10/24/80, her status as senior, and her GPA as 3.4. When the full dossier comes up, her status is shown as sophomore, and her GPA is shown as 2.8. Mere seconds later, when Moloch sends the dossier to Fritz, birthday is shown as 05/06/79, and her status is back to senior again. While Buffy is a sophomore at this point in the series, both birthdates are proven to be incorrect when Buffy celebrates her 17th birthday in January 1998 ("Surprise"), which means that she was born in January 1981.

• In the scene after the credits, as Buffy and Willow talk in front of Willow's locker, a photo of Willow and Giles can be seen stuck to the inside of her locker door.

• This is the first time we see the inside of Willow's house, and her bedroom.

• Buffy's assertion that Xander is jealous of Willow's new "boyfriend" ("Yeah, but you got used to being the belle of the ball") implies that Xander is aware of Willow's unrequited crush on him, and that his awareness is common knowledge among his friends.

• In the scene just after Willow is chloroformed, as Giles listens to the radio, the announcer is voiced by none other than BtVS creator Joss Whedon.

Brian:

Quite good. Willow's thoroughly engaging personality is well-showcased in this, the first episode to focus on her (as "The Pack" did Xander), and Alyson Hannigan takes the ball, runs with it, and scores a touchdown. Her assault on the mechanical Moloch at the end ("Hey, Malcolm...remember ME? Your GIRLFRIEND?!") was as satisfying a catharsis as I've ever seen in a TV show. SMG shows that she can function in a supporting role, not just as the star, and the introduction of Robia LaMorte as the absolutely delightful Ms. Calendar pushes this one over the top from a good episode to a great one. (9/10)

Will:

Everyone in this show gets a chance to fall in love. This time it is Willow's turn. Unfortunately her beau turns out to be a demon named Moloch. This episode also introduces Ms. Calendar (who I hope will become a regular). Giles and Ms. Calendar seemed to have a certain chemistry between them which leads me to believe something may happen in a later episode. This episode started with a great idea, but ended in a very silly and disappointing manner. Having Willow confront her demon "boyfriend" in the form of a robot was truly bothersome to me. The performances were all wonderful, but the conclusion left a bit to be desired. (5/10)