Same Time Same Place

Review by Heather V. Long

UPN marketed this week's Buffy as "Ewwww" and it was apropos. Again, the cast of Buffy delivers a tour de force of acting. This episode reminded me of The Twilight Zone with a little bit of Outer Limits thrown in for seasoning. Willow's arrival in Sunnydale is filled with trepidation and fear on all sides. That she couldn't see Buffy, Xander or Dawn and they couldn't see her increased the tension and seemed anticlimactic all at once.

I watched the episode with only a vague sense of puzzlement, easily figuring out that the reason no one could see anyone else was Willow's fault. While spooky in its own right, I question the wisdom of letting her return (needed or not) when she created such a powerful effect out of her own nervousness and fear.

But, let's talk about the characters, which are what I like most, and then tackle the story.

Giles -

MIA in this episode, I'd rather hoped he would have flown with Willow to Sunnydale. It seemed out of character for him to put her on the plane alone and not worry about it. Yes, she needs to learn to stand on her own two feet again, but I thought Giles was done with the throwing the baby out with the bathwater scenarios.

Buffy -

Honestly, this Buffy is so together and self-aware, that I feel like all the suffering we did in 6 is worth it, if this Buffy is the end product. Willow's wandering around the house allowed us to see Buffy's home and she's definitely reinvented the sense of warm home in the house that appeared vacant last year. I like that she's moved into Joyce's bedroom, she's captured what made it warm when her mother lived there and added her own touches as well. The photographs are very Buffy. I like that Buffy didn't hesitate to seek out Spike; her nervousness at dealing with his "craziness" and "insanity" didn't carry the flavor of distaste or disdain. Her quips seemed more designed to offset her own nervousness rather than to insult. Willow was very right when she said Buffy was the slayer, it's her job to be suspicious and worried about the potential bad behaviors based on her experiences. I agree, where Willow and Spike are both concerned. Buffy is showing concern for Spike and for Willow, but she's also trying to maintain a small sense of distance to not let her own emotions cloud the issue. Is she being perfectly successful? Of course not, but that she is trying is very important.

Xander -

Yep, I like this Xander. He is still himself. His self-deprecation and intense belief in Willow doesn't waver. He is the loyal puppy dog. I giggled when Spike called him "her boy" as in Buffy's boy. But the description is apropos. He belongs to Willow and Buffy, for all his judgmental behavior at time, his loyalty to the two of them remains his absolute strength. I like watching the interaction between Xander and Dawn, as well. He takes her teasing, but not with the same grace that he accepts it from the others. There is the hint of younger sibling to older sibling, not to mention mild tolerance. He also reiterated Spike's statement from last week as Dawn excitedly pursued the research and described in gross detail all about the demon they were looking for. Still, my favorite line of the show was delivered about Xander.

"I know I'm insane. What's his excuse?"

Dawn -

Is she growing up? Is she growing on me? A little. The lack of whininess is going a long way to making Dawn tolerable. I did not, however, care for her being the one to deliver the statement: "Okay, so it's Giles' fault and it's our fault, when does it become Willow's fault?" A profound statement, I agree, but it seemed inappropriate coming from Dawn. It hints at an insight and her own blind spots. But, paralyzed and posable Dawn, that was funny!

Anya -

I adore Anya. Emma Caulfield suffuses the character with such potent irony, innocence, and fear and of course, confusion. Her interactions with Willow at the Magic Box, even though Willow was painfully distracted by her own confusions, opened up another door to Anya's personality. We've seen her discomfort with the demon world and her regret at the hasty decision she made in the wake of being dumped. We're also seeing Anya deal with it in mature fashion. The repercussions of reversing a vengeance spell cost her the teleport on command, but while she is hesitant about it all, I don't see regret for her decision to undo the spell. Anya's worry that she will become the uncaring person who enjoys dishing out the vengeance again increased her endearment factor. She is an outsider, once again and she knows it. Anya is alone, but she shows that core of strength she possesses by forging ahead with her life and not lashing out at everyone. I didn't care for Xander's smack down the week before about that excuse only working for so long, but then again - Anya seems to be doing pretty well on her own.

Spike -

What can be said? I don't think there are words to describe the power of James Marsters abilities? Is Spike crazy? Is he sane? Is he William? Is he Spike? Is he haunted? Will he survive? Will he die? Will he ever deliver a line that isn't so double-edged it could slice off an appendage? I have no idea, even with all my theories, but I am definitely staying around to watch. Spike owns the screen when he steps into a scene. I thoroughly loved his confusion as he conversed with Willow, Xander and Buffy and the two parties couldn't see each other. Bewildered by it, he figured it out with utter simplicity. He doesn't look for the complex, but sees what is there. He lead them right to the demon and who could help but giggle painfully as he turned his head to look at Xander and regarded him with an expression usually reserved for nitwits. While his scenes were brief, they brimmed with power! If they play this story out with the strong writing they have shown so far, I have no doubt that Marsters will carry it above and beyond.

Willow -

The jury is still out here. I share the worries of the rest of the gang and maybe of Willow herself. I know there is no way she can ever apologize or make up for what has happened, the best she can do is forge ahead and make her own path. She is going to have to deal with the consequences. She's off to an okay start (but don't get me started on the accidental invisibility spell because she was not ready to face Xander and Buffy as well as Dawn.) There's a lot to deal with here and with her, I'll be interested to see where it goes. I did like seeing Buffy and Willow's friendship make a tentative step forward. I also have to wonder, on some level, if part of the reason Willow is staying with Buffy isn't so much about their friendship as it is about what they are. Willow is a force to be reckoned with and Buffy is the slayer. Definitely food for thought.

Overall:

I thought the story intertwined nicely, gift-wrapping the invisible Willow/Xander/Buffy storyline neatly with Anya and Spike as well as the absolutely repugnant skin-eating demon. Kudos to them for putting the horror back in. They managed it with the haunting at the school and now Mr. Ewww. But I never want to watch the eating scenes again, that turned my stomach and the slurping noise. Ugh.

What do ya know? UPN ads got it right this time. I can't wait for next week and like the title says, Same Time, Same Place.

Rating: Four stars out of Five - it rocked, but this might change as we see where this episode leads us and frankly, I subtracted part of the star because we didn't see a girl running for her life in the beginning!

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Heather Long