(Season 2, Episodes 12-14)
Things certainly didn’t slow down in the middle of the second season. I’d say the game changer presented here must have been a real blow to many fans of the show at the time. It certainly came as a surprise to me, though one that just deepens the emotional impact of the series, and the Slayer’s life on poor Buffy.
In a way, these three episodes sync up well, even if the latter two are the only ones explicitly linked. In “Bad Eggs,” the class is asked what some of the negative consequences are of having sex and in the next two episodes we find out in the worst possible way.
2.12 – “Bad Eggs”
(Original Air Date: January 12, 1998) All in all, I found “Bad Eggs” to be a little underwhelming. As a continuity buff, I can’t help but wonder what happened to the creature that was beneath the school. How big it was, how long it was there, and how they got rid of what was left of it.
On a less major note, Buffy gets grounded to her room here, but that didn’t seem to last into the next episode. I guess her mother never specified how long. My sister was once grounded for a whole month for bad behavior until she whined that she wanted to go out the next night and my mother caved. Maybe Buffy’s mother is a caver, too.
It was pretty awesome that Xander was able to avoid being pod-personed by being a terrible father/student. Apparently the baby octopus-monsters can’t survive a good boiling. Too bad it left him and the Slayer alive to deal with the monster.
And the cowboy vampires. I liked the idea of them, because they were such relics of the Old West, but they seemed almost afterthoughts here. It was cool seeing Buffy having to reluctantly fight side-by-side with one of them, as well as against him, during the big battle with the pod people.
The final battle, however, was very anticlimactic and more than a bit stupid. Buffy gets dragged into the creature with a pick-axe and then manages to kill it … somehow … with a pick-axe, thus killing all the little pods. Convenient, that. It just screamed filler episode.
2.13 – “Surprise”
(Original Air Date: January 19, 1998) There’s a real tragedy in these next two episodes. We got a foreshadow of the importance of sex in the last episode, and then we got Angel and Buffy with the petting getting heavier and heavier. It seemed an inevitable romp in the hay was forthcoming.
I absolutely did not see Ms. Calendar’s connection to Angel and the curse that plagues him coming, which lead to some very confusing scenes with her. When she was bringing Buffy to the party, I was worried she had other plans.
Ultimately, Whedon played it right. Calendar may have this familial obligation, but it doesn’t change the character as we’ve already met her. She’s a generally kind and decent person who cares about the kids. Basically, she’s conflicted, which a lot of our characters are.
Not so conflicted is Drusilla’s birthday present, the Judge. I couldn’t help but think of Judge Dredd when he was revealed, though I’m not sure why. He was ultimately a kind of stupid character, easily led around and ultimately not as threatening as he must have been centuries ago.
In a rather clever move, The WB transitioned Buffy from Mondays to Tuesdays with a two night event, playing this episode on Monday cliffhangering directly into the conclusion the next night. This virtually ensures the audience no choice but to follow the show to its new night.
2.14 – “Innocence”
(Original Air Date: January 20, 1998) It was a pretty slick idea having Xander remember all the soldier knowledge he gained back on Halloween. It certainly adds a depth to the Scoobies that wasn’t there. Speaking of adding depth, how seamlessly has Oz been pulled into the gang.
One minute he’s pining after Willow and the next he’s driving the whole gang to a military facility so they can swipe some weapons. Cordelia’s integrate was much more forced, and still feels a bit strange at times.
Kudos to Oz, also, for giving one of the most impressive teenage boys rejecting a chance to make out speeches I’ve ever heard. It was heartfelt and beautiful. In fact, I’ll give props to Whedon for both writing and direction here.
The pain and suffering Buffy was enduring having turned Angel into a monster by giving herself to him was so raw and real it was difficult to watch. Equal props are due Sarah Michelle Gellar for a very strong performance, but the writing for every part was so strong through this entire episode.
Angel, by the way, kicks ass as a bad guy even while it’s difficult seeing him that way. With Spike somewhat incapacitated, Angel and Drusilla seem to be having a hell of a time, all the while tearing Buffy’s heart out over and over again with every look.
Both closing moments of this episode were just beautiful. Giles telling Buffy that all he’ll be able to offer her is support (which you can read as fatherly love) and her much emptier moment with her mother. “I’ll just let it burn,” she said about the candle on her birthday cake, rather than have to make a wish, before lying on her mother’s chest. A parent just aches watching that.
Previously on Diary of a Buffy the Vampire Slayer Virgin
(Now you can just click the show title under TV Shows over there on the right for all our previous installments. Handy, isn’t it?)
Clacked by Jason Hughes 
on Jul 07, 2009 @ 13:00 EST5EDT
