Episode Trivia
Al Gore
details | 2 comments | suggested by becsug
In 4.17 Superstar, Buffy interrupts Anya reading Jonathan’s autobiography. Anya complains that she was just getting to the part where he “invents the internet”. This is a deliberate prod at Al Gore, who was getting a lot of flack at the time for allegedly making the very same claim. In a 1999 interview he is quoted, “During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet”.
All flued up
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When Danny Strong performed the scene in the Bronze in 4.17 Superstar where Jonathan sings, he was apparently very sick with the flu.
Alpert tomb
details | 1 comment | suggested by Jess
The Alpert tomb is a memorable tomb which can often be spotted when the Scoobies are wandering through Sunnydale’s graveyard. The tomb is named after Buffy producer Marc David Alpert. The tomb can be seen in 2.21 Becoming (Part One) (Angel comes out from behind it to fight Buffy when the other Scoobies are being ambushed), 3.07 Revelations, 3.13 The Zeppo, 2.16 Bewitched, Bothered And Bewildered, 2.18 Killed By Death, 4.09 Something Blue (when Buffy wants her wedding photos taken there), 4.17 Superstar, 5.02 Real Me, and 6.22 Grave.
Augmentation spell
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An augmentation spell is a spell which allows someone to change the world for their own good. In 4.17 Superstar, Jonathan created an augmentation spell, providing him with the ability to make an alternative universe in which he seemed to be everyones ideal. The downside of the spell is that it creates a demon to balance the new force of ‘good’ (i.e. Jonathan), with an equal force of evil. If the monster dies, the force of good loses its power, and the spell is broken.
Baby poster
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When the world returns to normal in 4.17 Superstar, one of the Jonathan posters on a wall changes into a poster of Oz’s band, Dingoes Ate My Baby.
Being John Malkovich
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The movie Being Jonathan Levinson, mentioned in 4.17 Superstar, is clearly based on Being John Malkovich.
Betty
details | 3 comments | suggested by wheelchairFight
Spike calls Buffy “Betty” in 4.17 Superstar, either to tease her or because he might not know her name (since she gets so little limelight in the Jonathan-centric alternative universe). Given his special interest in hunting Slayers, however, one could certainly argue Spike knows her name and is razzing her. In 5.02 Real Me, Buffy refers to herself as a betty. “This betty’s ready,” she tells Giles, assuring him she is ready to start training again. In 4.01 The Freshman, she says:
“Yeah, I’m Betty Louise Plotnick of East Cupcake, Illinois. Or I might as well be”.
A “betty” is usually defined as a laid back woman, although other (UrbanDictionary.com) definitions include, “someone who is pretty (but not sexy)” and “slang for police”.
Billowy
details | 1 comment | suggested by Jess
In the credits for 4.17 Superstar, Jonathan walking with his billowing coat is an obvious nod towards the Buffy spin-off show Angel.
Brad Kane
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Brad Kane, who played Tucker in 3.20 The Prom, was the singing voice of Aladdin in the Disney movie. He also provided the singing voice for Jonathan’s rendition of ‘Serenade in Blue’ in season four’s 4.17 Superstar. He is sometimes credited as ‘Caleb Kane’.
Brad is married to Sarah Thompson, who played Eve in Angel.
Butcher’s blood
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We see in 4.17 Superstar that Spike now has to buy blood from the butcher, just as Angel used to (such as in 3.20 The Prom).
Competitive slaying
details | 3 comments | suggested by Meghann
In 4.17 Superstar, Buffy makes a joke about if slaying were a competitive sport:
Buffy: “Now if slaying was a competitive sport, then I’d have a chance. You know we could have figure staking and speed staking.”
Buffy and Faith previously made a reference to this at the start of 3.07 Revelations:
Buffy: “Synchronized slaying.”
Faith: “New Olympic category?”
Crap catch
details | add a comment | suggested by Jess
In 4.17 Superstar, Jonathan throws a stake at Buffy and she catches it, when they’re in Giles’s apartment. Originally, Buffy was to fumble with the catch and drop the stake - to highlight how much of an affect Jonathan’s spell had on her, but that scene was changed during editing, for some reason.
Danny Strong
details | 8 comments | suggested by Angelus
Danny Strong played Jonathan Levinson. His first appearance in Buffy was in 2.04 Inca Mummy Girl, though he had previously had a small part in the unaired pilot. Danny’s character Jonathan became a fan favourite and he appeared in many episodes. Danny is 5 feet, 2 inches tall. He was born and raised in Manhattan Beach, a little borough south of Los Angeles. Danny first began acting on stage in high school and was instantly smitten with it. He attended the University of Southern California as a theatre major with numerous scholarships he had won. He was nominated for the prestigious Irene Ryan/Kennedy Center Award and USC awarded him the James Pendleton Award for Acting. He then began acting with small roles in numerous TV shows which included Boy Meets World, Saved By The Bell: The New Class (which starred Bianca Lawson, who played Kendra), Gilmore Girls and Third Rock From The Sun. Danny has been in the movies Seabiscuit, Perpetrators of the Crime, Pleasantville, Shriek If You Know What I Did Last Friday the Thirteenth (along with Julie Benz, who played Darla) and Behind the Mask. His first professional acting job was for a Doritos commercial when he was 15. Dean Cain (Superman in Lois & Clarke) played his older brother.
Dark Horse Comics
details | 1 comment | suggested by Jess
The Jonathan comic books in 4.17 Superstar were made by Dark Horse comics, the same company that makes the Buffy and Angel comics. In 4.05 Supersymmetry, Gunn slams the comic shop clerk into a rack holding Dark Horse comics.
Eye opener
details | 4 comments | suggested by Jess
The opening credits were redone temporarily in 4.17 Superstar to include lots of Bond-style shots of Jonathan interspersed with those of the regulars. One shot, of Jonathan disabling a bomb, could be considered a parody of Xander’s bomb scene in 3.13 The Zeppo. A few days before filming, Danny Strong was brought into the studio to film all these shots, as well as having photos taken of him playing basketball etc. Apparently he had no idea what was going on.
Fantasies are fun
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In 3.18 Earshot, when the Scooby gang is trying to find out who the potential killer is, Willow questions Jonathan:
Willow: “Fantasies are fun, aren’t they Jonathan?”
Jonathan: “I guess…”
Willow: “We all have fantasies where we’re powerful and respected, where people pay attention to us.”
Jonathan: “Maybe.”
Willow: “But sometimes the fantasy isn’t enough, is it Jonathan? Sometimes we have to make it so people don’t ignore us… make them pay attention. You know what I’m talking about, don’t you?”
Later, in season four’s episode 4.17 Superstar, Jonathan performs a spell to make his fantasy of being rich and powerful true.
I’m just kidding!
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According to Jane Espenson’s DVD commentary for the episode 4.17 Superstar, Buffy is supposed to say “I’m just kidding!” over the credits at the end of the episode. Espenson wrote the line in the script but it was cut later and she didn’t realize it.
John Saint Ryan
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John Saint Ryan, who played the Initiative Colonel in 4.17 Superstar, played ‘Fergus’ in the TV show Roar, ‘McBride’ in General Hospital and ‘Charlie Whelan’ in Coronation Street. He played a ‘Troublemaker’ in the Babylon 5 episode ‘A Day in the Strife’.
Jonathan Levinson
details | 14 comments | suggested by Jess
Jonathan was a shy, quiet, nerdy boy who attended Sunnydale High. He tried to kill himself at school, but was saved by Buffy. After a brief stint in a psychiatric ward, where he learnt some interesting spells, Jonathan returned to Sunnydale and cast a spell on the town to make the residents believe he was their ideal person. After being found out by Buffy, Jonathan left Sunnydale but returned to team up with Warren Meers and Andrew to take over Sunnydale. The three nerds got up to a lot of trouble, which resulted in Jonathan becoming increasingly shunned by his friends. He and Andrew escaped to Mexico when Willow tried to kill them, but returned to open a Seal underneath the school. Unbeknownst to Jonathan, Andrew was being visited by the First in the body of Warren who forced Andrew to kill Jonathan.
Jonathan merchandise
details | 3 comments | suggested by Jess
Jonathan items in 4.17 Superstar include Jonathan-Os cereal, a variety of posters, an I Heart Jonathan t-shirt, an autobiography (Oh, Jonathan), an advertisement for training shoes, trading cards, comic books, and a swimsuit calendar. A lot of items are referred to but not seen: at least one CD, two movies (Being Jonathan Levinson and The Matrix). Instead of his usual ‘balls’ poster on the back of his bedroom door, Riley has a poster of Jonathan playing basketball. The writer for this episode, Jane Espenson says she collected as much of these products as she could, to keep as a memento.
Jonathan the Protector
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In 4.17 Superstar, Jonathan claims he was presented with the Class Protector award by Buffy, except he wasn’t really. Buffy got the award in 3.20 The Prom - a sparkly toy umbrella.
Julie and Chanie Costello
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The actresses who played Jonathan’s girlfriends - the twins from Sweden - in 4.17 Superstar are actually from Kentucky, USA. Their names are Julie and Chanie Costello, and they have previously appeared in Dumb and Dumberer, When Harry Met Lloyd, The Italian Job, Spanish Fly, The Drew Carey Show and as ‘Juggy Dancers’ in The Man Show.
Karen
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Karen was a fan of Jonathan whilst Sunnydale was under his spell in 4.17 Superstar. She asked him for an autograph (”Karen with a K”) and later ran to him when she was chased by the demon he created.
Karen with a K
details | 3 comments | suggested by Jess
“Karen with a K” is seen outside Jonathan’s mansion saying something of the lines of “come on, don’t you ever go home?” She’s then attacked by the monster and goes rushing to the Bronze to find Jonathan for help. If she was such a huge fan, surely she’d know he had a gig at the Bronze that night (which she obviously did) so why wasn’t she at the Bronze dribbling all over her hero rather than peering through binoculars in the rain outside his home?
Levinson
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We discover in 4.17 Superstar that Jonathan’s last name is Levinson.
Mary-Sue
details | 3 comments | suggested by Puja
It is widely believed in the fanfiction community that the episode 4.17 Superstar was a nod to the creators of Mary-Sue fiction. Mary-Sue’s are fan fiction stories where a new character (often an idealised version of the author) is crowbarred into the narrative, usually destroying the plot-continuity. This character is the best at everything, handsome, debonair, brilliant at everything he/she touches, comes in to save the day and gets the guy/girl. They’re named for ‘Mary-Sue who does everything right.’ 4.17 Superstar is even more entertaining if you’ve read a real-life Mary-Sue; you realise just how many nods and jokes there are about this type of fan fiction.
Memory trust
details | add a comment | suggested by Jess
In 4.17 Superstar, when referring to Jonathan’s fame, Buffy says, “I’m not entirely sure that we can trust our memories”, which is a little reference to the fifth season, in which the Scoobies memories are changed to accommodate Dawn.
Nimzowitsch Defense
details | 2 comments | suggested by Jess
Jane Espenson, who wrote 4.17 Superstar, says she realises that the chess puzzle is incorrectly set up. Give the girl a break though, how many of you know how to set the up Nimzowitsch Defense?
Rain, rain, go away
details | add a comment | suggested by Jess
In 4.17 Superstar, Buffy and Jonathan sit in the Espresso Pump talking about Riley. Originally, they were to be walking down the street but the scene had to be moved indoors as it was raining heavily all day. In that scene, Buffy stirs sugar into a cup then hands it to Jonathan. This was Sarah Michelle Gellar’s idea and was not in the script.
Robert Patrick Benedict
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Robert Patrick Benedict, who played Adam’s vampire lackey in 4.17 Superstar, appeared in The Hand Job, Come to Papa, My Dinner with Jimi, Two Days and Not Another Teen Movie. He voiced the character of Vin in the video game Jak II: Renegade. Robert was credited in the opening guest cast list for 4.19 New Moon Rising but his scenes were cut.
Royal Crown Revue
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In 4.17 Superstar, Royal Crown Revue play “Hey Sonny (Where’d You Go)” (before Jonathan comes on stage), “Trapped (In The Web Of Love)”, the trumpet solo mimed to by Danny Strong and Jonathan’s fanfare.
Saved me
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In 4.17 Superstar, Jonathan mentions the clock tower and the gun, referring to the time he was going to kill himself before Buffy stopped him in 3.18 Earshot:
Buffy: “Why did you do it anyway? No. I get why. How?”
Jonathan: “After the thing with the bell tower and the gun, I went to counseling.”
Serenade in Blue
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In 4.17 Superstar, Jonathan comes onstage at the Bronze and sings ‘Serenade in Blue’. His singing voice was provided by Brad Kane, who played Tucker in 3.20 The Prom. The backing band is Royal Crown Revue.
Shrimp
details | 1 comment | suggested by Jess
Shrimp have been a referenced many times in Buffy and Angel: In 5.20 Spiral, Anya says that Xander doesn’t travel well, like fine shrimp; in 3.21 Graduation Day (Part One), Willow finds a spell to “communicate with shrimp”; in 4.17 Superstar, Anya compares a parallel universe with shrimp; and in 5.11 Triangle, Anya mentions a ‘world without shrimp’, to which Tara replies that she’s allergic to them. In the Angel episode 5.17 Underneath, Illyria says she once visited a world populated with nothing but shrimp.
Southpaws
details | add a comment | suggested by Jet
“Southpaws” is mentioned a couple of times on both Buffy (4.17 Superstar) and Angel (3.18 Double Or Nothing). Buffy remembers advice from Jonathan to watch out for southpaws and Angel thought Connor would be left handed, “a real southpaws.” It’s just a fancy name for left-handed people, especially boxers.
Superman
details | 6 comments | suggested by Jess
Comicbook hero Superman has been epitomised in many comics (by DC Comics), movies, TV shows (eg. Lois and Clarke, Smallville - in which James Marsters played Brainiac), cartoons (eg. The Adventures of Superman) and even a musical. He and the world he lives in have been referenced many times in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel:
- 1.05 Never Kill A Boy On The First Date: Buffy says, “even Clark Kent has a job”, alluding to Superman’s alter-ego.
- 2.05 Reptile Boy: Xander’s chances of ever belonging to a fraternity of rich and powerful men are rubbished by Cordy as likely only “in the Bizarro world.” The Bizarro world is a weird, back-to-front version of the real world in Superman.
- 2.11 Ted: Cordelia says of Buffy, “But she’s like this Superman.”
- 3.09 The Wish: Cordelia says to vamps Willow and Xander:
“No. No! No way! I wish us into Bizarro Land, and you guys are still together?! I cannot win!”
- 3.12 Helpless: Oz and Xander discuss which colour Kryptonite hurts Superman. Writer David Fury said in his DVD commentary for the episode that he wasn’t sure which Kryptonite was which so wrote this scene as such.
- 3.13 The Zeppo: there are a few references to Superman: Xander’s line, which he acknowledges as a “Jimmy Olsen joke”:
“But, gee, Mr White, if Clark and Lois get all the good stories I’ll never be a good reporter”
He also name-checks the Daily Planet’s editor Perry White, Superman’s alter ego Clark Kent, and his colleague Lois Lane. Cordelia’s jibe “You must feel like Jimmy Olsen” is another reference to the Daily Planet’s youngest photographer.
- 4.11 Doomed: Forrest says to Riley,
“Granted they’re a little rarer than the one’s you grew up with on that little farm in Smallville.”
Smallville, Kansas, was the small town where Clark Kent (Superman) grew up.
- In 4.17 Superstar, Xander mentions Kryptonite again.
- 5.02 Real Me: Xander says, “She can turn this place into the fortress of solitude again”. Superman built the Fortress of Solitude in the North Pole as a place where he could relax and keep his souvenirs.
- 6.11 Gone: Andrew mentions Superman’s nemesis Lex Luthor. Buffy also mentions Bizarro World again.
- 6.21 Two To Go: Andrew says:
“Lex Luthor had a false epidermis escape kit in Superman Versus the Amazing Spider-Man Treasury edition”.
- 7.10 Bring On The Night: Andrew says, “An evil name should be something like Lex” He’s referring to Superman’s nemesis Lex Luthor.
- 1.19 Sanctuary: While Faith flips through the channels, we briefly see a Superman cartoon.
- 1.21 Blind Date:
Wesley: “The human eye is only capable of registering a small portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. But if Brewer were somehow equipped to see outside that range…”
Cordelia: “She’d be Superman.” - 4.02 Ground State: Gwen says “what are you, Lex Luthor?” to Elliott when she finds out he’s double-crossed her.
- 5.10 Soul Purpose: Lindsay references Superman when he’s talking about Spike:
“I mean, he hasn’t sewn a big red S on his chest yet, but he’s getting there.”
- 5.12 You’re Welcome: Cordelia ends her seeming obsession with the Bizarro world when she says:
“What Bizarro-world did I wake up in?”
The Matrix
details | 5 comments | suggested by Jess
Joss Whedon is a big fan of the movie The Matrix, and it’s been referenced in Buffy a few times. In 4.17 Superstar, Jonathan claims to have starred in The Matrix. In 7.09 Never Leave Me, the butcher calls Andrew “Neo” because of the long, black leather coat he’s wearing (Keanu Reeves’s character Neo wore a similar coat in The Matrix). The final fight between Buffy and Adam in 4.21 Primeval was clearly inspired by the movie too.
In the Angel episode 3.11 Birthday, Skip says:
“Loved that flick. When Trinity’s all ‘Dodge this!’ and the agent goes and crumples to the…and I’m not really instilling any awe any more, am I?”
Uranium core
details | 2 comments | suggested by Jess
In 4.17 Superstar, Jonathan claims that Adam’s power source is a reservoir of uranium 235 in his chest. This information is actually true and helps Buffy to defeat her foe in 4.21 Primeval.
Worst kind of scum
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The following speech from Spike was deleted from 4.17 Superstar:
“You’re a bleeding idiot, you are, Jonathan. ‘Cuz you’ll be the first victim and you’ll be stone dead before you hit the ground.” (then to himself, proudly) “The worst kind of scum.”
[Goof] Dancers
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The same shot of Buffy and Riley dancing is used twice in 4.17 Superstar.
[Goof] Yellow cup
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When Buffy gives the yellow cup to Jonathan in 4.17 Superstar, the handle is turned in a different direction than the shot in which we see him receive it.