Episode Trivia
Binding spell
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Along with the handy ‘Locator spell’ the ‘Binding spell’ is one of the most commonly used plot devices spells in the Buffyverse. It is used in 1.08 I Robot, You Jane (on Moloch the Corrupter), 3.03 Faith, Hope And Trick (Giles pretends he needs to do one on Acathla), 3.13 The Zeppo (on the hellmouth demon) and 6.22 Grave (used on Evil Willow by Giles). The spell is seen in Buffy’s spin-off show Angel too. In 2.20 Over The Rainbow Wesley has the idea of using a binding spell on himself, Angel and Gunn to get them into another dimension, Pylea, and in 5.07 Lineage, Wesley suggests that the pattern on a cyborg could be some kind of binding spell.
Copernicus
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Lorne references Nicolaus Copernicus in 2.20 Over The Rainbow:
Wesley: “Well, it is another dimension. Perhaps their sun…”
Lorne: “Back up, Copernicus. (Points to the sky) That’s suns. Plural.”
Nicolaus Copernicus (February 19, 1473 – May 24, 1543) was the first European astronomer to formulate a scientifically based heliocentric cosmology that displaced the Earth from the center of the universe. His epochal book, De revolutionibus orbium coelestium (On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres), is often regarded as the starting point of modern astronomy, as well as a defining epiphany in the history of science.
Cordelia’s surnames
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Cordelia has a habit of giving people sarcastic new surnames.
She has called Angel:
- “Mr. I Was Alive for 200 Years and Never Developed an Investment Portfolio” in 1.01 City of.
- “Mr. I can’t tail the suspect during the day because I’ll burst into flames Private Eye” in 1.15 The Prodigal.
- “Mr. ‘oh, you’re my big, fat hero!” in 3.05 Fredless.
- “Mr. Distance” in 1.17 Eternity.
- “Mr. Killing Spree” In 3.02 Dead Man’s Party.
- “Mr. ‘I’m so tortured’” in 1.11 Somnambulist.
- “Angel? Mr. Bumpy-face? Hello?” in 4.04 Slouching Toward Bethlehem.
She has called Gunn:
- “Mr. I don’t take orders - now where do I stick my axe?” in 2.11 Redefinition.
- “Mr. Rationalization” in 2.03 First Impressions.
She has called Lorne:
- “Mr. Big Mojo-guy” in 2.11 Redefinition.
- “Mr. Green-Mojo-Guy” in 2.20 Over The Rainbow.
She has called Wesley:
- “Mr. Fussy Pants” in 2.05 Dear Boy.
- “Mr. Grouchy Pants” in 1.16 The Ring.
- “Mr. Don’t Talk to Me Before I’ve Had my Flagon of Oatbran in the Morning” in 1.16 The Ring
- “Mr. Star-schmoozer” in The 2.08 Shroud Of Rahmon.
- “Mr. Too-much-cologne” in 1.14 I’ve Got You Under My Skin.
Others have also been named by Cordy:
- To Xander: “Mr. Excitement” in 3.13 The Zeppo.
- To Devon: “Mr. I’m-the-lead-singer-I’m-so-great- I-don’t-have-to-show-up- for-my-date-or- even-call” in 2.06 Halloween.
- To Xander: “Mr. Faithful” in 3.01 Anne.
- To Wesley and Gunn: “Mr. and Mrs. Bickerson” in 3.05 Fredless.
- To Pierce: “Mr. Armani” in 1.07 Bachelor Party.
- To Barney: “Mr. Emotional Radar” in 1.10 Parting Gifts.
- To Kate and Angel: “Mr. and Mrs. Spock” in 1.06 Sense And Sensitivity.
Cordelia has also thrown in a few Misses in her name calling. She has called Buffy:
- “Little Miss Likes-to-fight” in 3.22 Graduation Day (Part Two).
- “Miss Not-Over-Yourself-Yet” in 3.07 Revelations.
- “Miss Save-The-World” in 2.13 Surprise.
Cordelia has even called herself a name:
- “Miss one-foot-in-the-grave” in 5.12 You’re Welcome.
Daniel Dae Kim
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Daniel Dae Kim played W&H lawyer Gavin Park in Angel. Born in Pusan, Korea, his family immigrated to the US when he was two years old, and he grew up in Pennsylvania. Daniel earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Haverford College in Theatre & Political Science, and spent a semester studying at the National Theatre Institute at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center in Waterford, Connecticut. In 1993, Daniel started the MFA acting program at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, and graduated with a Masters in Acting in 1996. While in New York, he performed in original comedies that he co-wrote and performed in while part of an improv group.
After moving to Los Angeles in 1997, he has appeared in Lost, Crash, Spider-Man 2, 24, ER, Enterprise, Miss Match, Hulk, Cradle 2 the Grave, CSI, Charmed, Star Trek: Voyager, For Love of the Game, Party of Five, Seinfeld, The Jackal, Beverly Hills, 90210, Addicted to Love and Law & Order.
Daniel is married and has one son.
Gavin Park
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Gavin Park was transferred from the Real Estate Division of Wolfram & Hart to the Special Projects Division, much to the surprise of Lilah Morgan. Parks decided to fight Angel his own way - by burying him in bureaucratic red tape, and building code violations. In the guise of showing interest in buying the Hyperion Hotel once its lease was up, he had the hotel checked for termites - and bugged. When Linwood was executed by his rival Lilah, Gavin began to grudgingly work for her. Gavin was turned into a zombie when The Beast rose from the ground and slaughtered all in Wolfram & Hart. He was killed by Gunn.
Kvetching
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The following scene with Lorne was cut due to length from Over the Rainbow:
Constable: “Krevlornswath of the Deathwok Clan, you and the cow trash are not to speak.”
Host: “Aw, debunch your panties, Narwek. We weren’t speaking, we were just kvetching.”
Constable: (suspicious) “Ka-vatching? What is this?”
The Host opens his mouth, then thinks better of it,
Host: “Forget it.”
Marie Claire
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Marie Claire is a women’s magazine that is distributed monthly. From 2.20 Over The Rainbow:
Cordy: “I wanna go home. I wanna be in my bed. I wanna - order some Thai food and read the latest issue of Marie Claire. I wanna be doing anything but shoveling demon horse poop!”
Michael Phenicie
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Michael Phenicie played the Pylean head priest Silas in 2.22 There’s No Place Like Plrtz Glrb, Through the Looking Glass, and Over the Rainbow. He has also been in Alias, Ghosts Never Sleep, The Shield, Judging Amy, The Pretender, Gentleman’s Bet, Knots Landing and Desperate Moves.
Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood
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In 3.11 Gingerbread, Willow and her mother discuss the Mister Rogers puppet show, and one of the show’s characters, King Friday. This is a reference to Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, a children’s show that has been running since 1965.
Lorne referenced the show in Over the Rainbow:
Angel: “Can everyone just notice how much fire I’m not on?”
Lorne: “Yeah, it’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood alright.”
The theme song was titled Won’t You Be My Neighbor and went as follows:
It’s a beautiful day in this neighborhood,
A beautiful day for a neighbor.
Would you be mine?
Could you be mine?…It’s a neighborly day in this beauty wood,
A neighborly day for a beauty.
Would you be mine?
Could you be mine?…I’ve always wanted to have a neighbor just like you.
I’ve always wanted to live in a neighborhood with you.So, let’s make the most of this beautiful day.
Since we’re together we might as well say:
Would you be mine?
Could you be mine?
Won’t you be my neighbor?
Won’t you please,
Won’t you please?
Please won’t you be my neighbor?
On the left
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In 2.20 Over The Rainbow, Gunn, Angel, Wesley and Lorne are surrounded by demons in the town square in Pylea, when Gunn says, “I’ll take the twenty on the left, you take the fifty on the right.” At the end of 5.22 Not Fade Away, Gunn says “You take the 30,000 on the left…”
Persia White
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Persia White played Aura, one of Cordelia’s friends in 1.01 Welcome To The Hellmouth who discovered the “extreme dead body”, and Aggie in the Angel episode 2.20 Over The Rainbow. Persia once appeared with Charisma Carpenter in an episode of Malibu Shores called ‘Hotline’ in 1996. Persia appeared in an episode of the TV show Goode Behaviour, which starred Bianca Lawson (Kendra). Persia has played Lynn on UPN’s Girlfriends for six seasons.
Selling Cordy
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Cordelia has been sold twice in Angel. In 1.10 Parting Gifts, Barney kidnaps her to sell at auction, where Wolfram & Hart buy her for $30,000. In 2.20 Over The Rainbow, she is captured in Pylea and sold into slavery for a pig and a pint. In both cases, Cordy is unhappy with the bidding: in 1.10 Parting Gifts, she says:
Cordy: “Not that he didn’t have it coming. He was a horrible, evil monster.”
Angel: “Hmm, he did kill a lot of people.”
Wesley: “Viciously mutilated their corpses.”
Cordy putting the picture in a frame: “Plus he started the bidding on me at a paltry 2,000 dollars.
In 2.20 Over The Rainbow she says:
“Okay. Okay. Look. First of all - I’m a human being - not a cow. You can’t just barter a human being! Second of all: one pig? One measly pig?”
Silas
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Silas was the head priest of the Covenant of the Tromboli in Pylea. He ruled Pylea with racial and religious persecution. He appointed Cordelia as the princess of Pylea, because of her visions. He planned to kill her after she had mated with the Groosalugg. Silas ordered that the The Host be beheaded and was ironically beheaded himself by Cordelia during the human revolt.
Sky Bar
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The following is from Over the Rainbow:
Lorne: “It makes a certain kind of sense, no? - Anyway, this is where Aggie said it was. And Aggie is never wrong when it comes to hotspots. She was doing Sky Bar way before Brad and Jennifer.”
Sky Bar, located at the Mondrian Hotel in West Hollywood, is a popular night spot for celebrities. Lorne makes reference to the couple that was, Jennifer Anistion and Brad Pitt.
The Wizard of Oz
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The movie The Wizard of Oz, made in 1939, in mentioned several times in Buffy the Vampire Slayer:
- Buffy refers to the hyena-possessed bullies in 1.06 The Pack as the “winged monkeys”. The phrase comes from the scene in The Wizard of Oz in which the Wicked Witch of the West sends her loyal winged monkeys to collect Dorothy and the ruby slippers.
- In 6.04 Flooded, Andrew says he trained flying demon monkeys to disrupt the school play.
- In 1.10 Nightmares, Billy Palmer awakens from his coma and, seeing the Scoobies around his bed, says, “I had the strangest dream. And you were in it, and you”. This is a reference to when Dorothy wakes in her bed and sees her friends around her.
- In 2.10 What’s My Line? (Part Two), Xander says, “Welcome my little pretties”. In The Wizard of Oz, the Wicked Witch of the West called Dorothy her “pretty”.
- Dorothy kills the Wicked Witch of the West by throwing water on her. The following dialog is from 1.17 Eternity:
- In 4.20 The Yoko Factor, Willow says, “If ever a whiz there was.” This is a line from the song in the film ‘Follow the Yellow Brick Road’ / ‘We’re Off To See the Wizard’.
- The episode 5.05 No Place Like Home takes it’s name from Dorothy clicking her heels together and repeating the phrase, “There’s no place like home” in order to get back to her Kansas home.
- A similar reference to this phrase is in the Angel episode 2.22 There’s No Place Like Plrtz Glrb. In that episode, Lorne also sings the song ‘Over the Rainbow’.
- In 6.22 Grave, Willow says, “Fly my pretty…fly!” when she sends her ball of fire to find Andrew and Jonathan. This is what the wicked witch says to her flying monkeys when she sends them off.
- In 7.19 Empty Places, Rona says, “Ding, dong, the witch is dead.” This is from a song in The Wizard of Oz.
- A similar reference to this phrase is in the Angel episode 4.13 Salvage. Lorne says, “Well, ding-dong, the Beast is dead!”
- The title of the Angel episode 2.20 Over The Rainbow is another reference to The Wizard of Oz, in which the land of Oz is said to be ‘over the rainbow’. In that episode, Cordelia clicks her heels three times (as Dorothy does in the film) and says, “Worth a shot.”
- In 4.15 Orpheus, Cordelia says, “You want to go, Glinda?” This is a reference to Glinda, the Good Witch of the South.
- In 5.02 Just Rewards, Angel says, “To see the wizard”, is a reference to The Wizard of Oz song called “We’re Off to See the Wizard”.
- In 5.21 Power Play, Lorne says, “And what if he’s skipped too far down that evil brick road?” This is a reference to the yellow brick road which Dorothy and the others follow to Oz.
(Cordy pulls off the top of a water container.)
Cordy: “Back off!”
Angel: “What are you going to do? Melt me?”
Cordy: “One more step and you’ll find out. You think this is just water?”
Tower of London
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The following dialogue is from 2.20 Over The Rainbow:
Wesley: “I was always horrified by those stories about the Tower of London.”
Angel: “Wasn’t that bad.”
(Wes and Gunn turn to look at Angel.)
Wesley: “Yes? - Well, compared to this place I’m sure the tower takes on a certain - nostalgic glow. I wonder if they’re treating the host any better.”
The Tower of London was built by William the Conqueror in 1078. It is located in central London, England on the north bank of the River Thames.
The Tower’s primary function was a fortress, a royal palace, and a prison (particularly for high status and royal prisoners). The phrase “sent to the Tower” meant being imprisoned. It has also served as a place of execution and torture.
Xena: Warrior Princess
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In the season two episode 2.06 Halloween, a spell by Ethan Rayne turns everyone into their Halloween costumes. Buffy is dressed as an eighteenth century noblewoman and loses her memory of being the Slayer. A frustrated Willow sarcastically asks:
“She couldn’t've dressed up like Xena?”
Xena: Warrior Princess was a TV show which ran for six years (1995-2001). Set in ancient mythical lands, the show followed the tales of Xena, played by Lucy Lawless. There are many similarities between Buffy and Xena. Both lead characters are strong women who fight the forces of evil and help people in need. Like Angel, Xena is trying to atone for her past evils. Buffy the Vampire Slayer is referenced in the Xena episode ‘The Play’s the Thing’. Two theatre critics discuss which play to see and one says, “There’s the opening of Buffus, the Bacchae Slayer across the street.” Like Buffy, Xena had a musical episode.
In 2.20 Over The Rainbow, we hear the following conversation:
Host: Just remember, keep your heads down. Xenophobia kind of a watchword where I’m from.
Gunn: I don’t get it. Why are they afraid of Xena? I think she’s kinda fly.
Wesley: Xenophobia. Fear of foreigners.
Gunn: Oh. Then can we pretend I didn’t just say that?