Lessons

**Kris settles into her Comfy Chair of Musings with Spike the Amazing Eskie pup at her side, and toasts everyone with her Diet Coke. "Here's to the kickoff of a great season!"

Wow. I've been waiting, and waiting, and WAITING for this day to arrive ever since oh, I don't know, MAY of this year. Sheesh. And I don't know about you, but this sure didn't disappoint me, even if we didn't get as much Spike!Time as I hoped for...

But in the grand scheme of things, that's okay. How about if we get right to the Yays and Yucks?

Yay: As always, Joss is the master of playing with our minds. I think that I had my jaw hit the ground at least three times during this ep... and I was completely spoiled. My husband, on the other hand, is adamantly spoiler-free... and he was just as amazed as I was.

Yuck: The zombies/ghosts/evil things. Ick. <shudder>

Yay: Action!Buffy is back! With the bouncy golden hair and everything! And she's even Quippy!Buffy at the same time! Yahoo! And she even gave Dawn a sincere compliment! Wow!

Yuck: It's a personal issue, but our feed came in all fuzzy, dang it. I think I'm going to be calling our cable company to complain... ("You evil people! You obscured my vision of Spike!")

Yay: Giles. On Horseback. 'Nuff said.

Things That Make You Go Hmmmm....: Did anyone else notice that Giles was wearing his version of a duster? Veddy veddy interesting...

Yay: Anya. Oh, I do love her... and the new look is quite nice. I feel badly for her, though... it doesn't sound like she's really all that happy being a vengeance demon again.

Big Yay Commercial Moment: James. On top of the headstone. <happy sigh>

Whimper Inducing Moment: The first appearance of Spike. <whimper> He just looks so confused (I know, that's the point), and broken. It's painful to watch this man/vampire who was so full of self-braggadacio become this fear-filled, crazed man. *Major* kudos to JM for his portrayal of his character in this ep. Funny that Buffy would tell Dawn on the cell phone that she's "Damage Bound" - Spike's in the room with her at this point, and he's the one who's clearly damaged. And after the William-esque lines, did anyone else notice that JM's hair almost looked at times like his hair in the "Fool For Love" flashbacks to the time of his turning?

Things that make you go HUH?: Istanbul. What in the heck were we watching, and what were those people in robes doing chasing that girl? And was it just me, or did they remind you of the Knights of Byzantium?

Another Big Yay : Buffy declaring that Spike is a "Hottie." I know - everyone else is saying it - but it did my heart good.

Painful-To-Watch-Moment: Buffy, embarrassing the heck out of Dawn. My husband was laughing the whole time, and I didn't know if I should laugh or cringe. Ouch.

Look-Who's-All-Grown-Up-Now Moment: Well, Dawn sure learned a lot in three months, didn't she? And she's *much* better with verbal recoveries than Buffy. Hmmm... 3 Dead Dogs vs. A Bee In My Eye. Which one is more believable? And her improv with weapons is pretty darned impressive as well...

And lastly...

Giles. Synchronized Swimming. The mind boggles.

The directing in this episode is absolutely first-rate, and you can definitely tell that Joss wrote it. From the interaction between the characters to the cutting away from scene to scene, so many things were conveyed without words that it's more than likely that I missed some key points watching this ep for the first time. Heck - I was so enthralled by the final scene that I couldn't take any notes - I couldn't tear my eyes away. Again, JM is marvelous as Spike, and the writing makes it near impossible to figure out if we're seeing hallucinations of Spike's tortured mind, or if we're truly seeing a demonic presence. My husband (the unspoiled one) just about fell off the couch when Warren appeared (HEY! He's supposed to be dead!), and then he was just gaping as Glory, Adam, The Mayor, Drusilla, The Master, and then finally Buffy made their appearance. Wow.

So many things struck me about this episode... and some of the dialogue just *screamed* foreshadowing. Having Xander pull up in a car that is the newest generation of the Cordy-Mobile immediately after Giles pronounces that “...In the end we all are who we are, no matter how much we may appear to have changed...." is just a "Wow" inducing moment. Don't get me wrong - I'm happy that Xander seems to have found some success that gives him a sense of self-worth... but you just have to wonder about what this line means for everyone...

Willow feeling the Hellmouth open - that's just eerie. As Buffy said earlier in the episode (and at the end): It's about power, and who's got it. Willow's definitely got some serious mojo going - serious enough to scare the coven members, apparently - and for her to feel the Hellmouth opening half a world away just warns us to buckle our seatbelts. I have a feeling that Uncle Joss is gonna take us for a ride.

What else? Ah, yes... that little thing of Spike's return from Africa, and Buffy's accidentally stumbling onto him. We clearly see that the zombies did *not* want her to get into the room... and I'm wondering how Spike got there in the first place. It's obvious from his mutterings that he's been seeing the demon presence prior to Buffy's arrival... or is it? I can't wait to see what happens between the two of them... and the fact that Buffy, who was in the light, was reaching out to Spike (who was cowering ashamedly in the dark) just gives my shippery heart some hope. She seems to have forgiven the-scene-that-shall-not-be-named for the time being... and the fact that she forgot everything else going on to concentrate on Spike and actually be *concerned* about him speaks volumes. Wow.

“The stake is not the power. You’ve got the power.” It sounds like Buffy finally took the lessons that Giles was trying to teach her for so long to heart. It's rather interesting to see her in the role of Watcher for Dawn, isn't it?

Everything is connected… is that a theme for the season as well? Willow is connected to the earth, and to Giles as well. Buffy is connected to Dawn, Xander is connected to Buffy and Dawn... and Buffy is still connected to Spike (especially based on what we heard from the villainous monologue at the end of the ep). Between this, and the statement that at the *core,* people never change... this just makes me positively giddy over what we'll probably see this season.

The title of this week's ep was "Lessons." Watching the episode, we see that all of the characters are learning lessons of life, not just of books, at this period in time in their lives. Anya is learning that you can't always go back to what you were, because what made you happy even a year ago could be utterly unfulfilling now. Xander seems to have learned to take responsiblity for himself, and to some extent, his actions (although the jury is still out on that one from my point of view). Buffy has learned to accept the fact that she *is* the grown-up of the house, and she needs to show a good example for Dawn to follow. Dawn, aside from learning how to use the pointy end of a stake, has learned to quit whining about things and *do* something about them. Willow seems to be learning that you don't necessarily have to be punished to atone for past sins, especially if the people who love and care about you are willing to forgive and/or forget your transgressions. And poor Spike seems to be learning warped lessons, thanks to the company he's keeping in the basement. The fact that he's flinching away from being called an agent of evil is cause for hope, though... and hopefully, Buffy and company will be able to help him out of the darkness soon.

The fact that I've yammered on for as long as I have should tell you how much I loved this ep. My hubby and I can't remember an ep being as creepy as this one at any time in recent memory... the dialogue was top notch, and I thoroughly enjoyed watching all of it. I most likely will wind up watching it again, if for no other reason than to try to figure out what Spike is muttering to himself during the demonic presence's monologue (could it have been a prayer?).

From this end, Spike the Amazing Eskie Pup gives this episode four paws up and a wag of the tail. Return of Spike, Action!Buffy, Willow repentance, Wise!Giles, Absence of Whiny!Dawn, and oh, did I mention the return to the Hellmouth?

I can't wait to see the rest of the season. Next Tuesday can't get here fast enough.

Hugs to all,

---

Kris
(And Spike the Amazing Eskie)