Episode Trivia
Amber defends herself
details | 21 comments | suggested by Jess
After the episode 4.19 New Moon Rising aired in America, some fans where extremely pissed off that Willow chose Tara over Oz. They were unkind towards Tara, and especially towards her weight. Amber Benson was naturally upset about this and bravely went online on May 4th, 2000 with the following message:
“I’ve been thinking a lot about what people said about Tara on the internet after the last episode aired. At first, I was very hurt. I tried to disassociate myself from feeling bad by saying: This is Tara that they are talking about, not me. But I couldn’t. I guess it hurts when someone calls you ugly or makes nasty comments about your weight whether or not it is really YOU they are referring to. I am just a human being and I feel like I deserve to be treated as such. I also feel that Tara deserves to be treated with a little more kindness and compassion.
Yes, I am not a STICK. I am a NORMAL, HEALTHY (I was gonna say Girl, but…) WOMAN. I have breasts and hips and I am very happy that they are part of me. I weigh 118 and I am 5′4. If you saw me in real life, you would think I was on the thin side. But on tv, next to my very petite costars, I do like heavier. I am PROUD to be NORMAL. A body is a beautiful thing to waste. Believe me, I have seen enough of my friends and peers waste away to NOTHING so that they could work in this industry. So that they could perpetuate the LIE that ANOREXIA is Beautiful. IT IS NOT. YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL. ALL OF YOU. Just for being.
You all can judge me and Tara for being ‘fat’, ‘gay’ and ’shy’. I suppose that my being on tv gives you that right. But I DO NOT have to read what you say. I have enjoyed being a lurker. But my feelings just can’t take the criticism. Those of you (you know who you are) with sensitivity will understand. Thank you for sticking up for us. Tara and I both appreciate it. I think that being a beautiful, heavy, lesbian witch rocks! No matter what happens I’m glad I get the chance to walk in Tara’s shoes. All you girls and guys out there who think that starving, binging and purging and exercising yourself to DEATH is gonna change how you feel inside - It’s NOT. Don’t buy inot all the media crap. Love yourself for who you are, not what others THINK you should look like. It’s DEFINITELY more important in this life to love each other despite our imperfections.”
Come outside
details | 3 comments | suggested by samuelf
In 4.19 New Moon Rising, when Oz turns up at Willow’s room, Willow asks if he would like to come in, to which he replies:
“actually I’d like you to come outside.”
A sly little reference to the theme of this episode perhaps?
Conor O’Farrell
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Conor O’Farrell played Colonel McNamara in 4.19 New Moon Rising, 4.20 The Yoko Factor and 4.21 Primeval. He also played Darren Leopold in Port Charles, and has appeared in many films and TV shows including Stir of Echoes, Dark Skies, NYPD Blue, Enterprise, 24, The X Files, Ally McBeal, ER, Chicago Hope, Desperate Housewives, Party of Five, Murder One and Matlock.
Crazy fun plan
details | 1 comment | suggested by Jess
Jape was Adam’s vampire henchman in the latter part of season four. The following line of his was deleted from 4.19 New Moon Rising:
“Yeah! Count me in for the crazy fun plan! I’m gonna feed the minions.”
Devil Doll
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The Devil Doll song ‘Faith in Love’ played in the episode 4.03 The Harsh Light Of Day as Harmony tempted Spike into bed.
Oz looks at a campus board which advertises the band in the episode 4.19 New Moon Rising.
In 7.04 Help, we see that the locker to the left of Dawn’s has a Devil Doll sticker on the door.
Emma’s promotion
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Emma Caulfield was listed with the regulars in the script for the first time in 4.19 New Moon Rising, though she was not yet added to the opening credits. She had signed a contract confirming this though. Emma was finally added to the opening credits montage in 5.01 Buffy Vs Dracula.
James M. Connor
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James M. Connor played the Initiative scientist in 4.18 Where The Wild Things Are, 4.19 New Moon Rising and 4.22 Restless. He played Jack in The Yard Sale, and was Randall’s Best Man in About Schmidt. He has also been in Gilmore Girls, Scrubs, The X Files, and The Drew Carey Show.
Keeping your cool
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In 4.19 New Moon Rising, Oz returns to Sunnydale having discovered the secret of not turning into a werewolf. This apparently includes keeping his cool (which must be hard), some meditation, herbs ‘and stuff’, and some chanting.
Marvellous speaking tube
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In 4.15 This Year’s Girl, Giles uses the new phone he got in 4.12 A New Man, after his old one was destroyed. Buffy also uses the phone in 4.19 New Moon Rising.
Miss Kitty Fantastico
details | 27 comments | suggested by Jess
Miss Kitty Fantastico was a black and white kitten belonging to Tara and Willow. The girls discussed getting a cat in 4.19 New Moon Rising. She appeared in 4.20 The Yoko Factor, 4.22 Restless and 5.06 Family then disappeared for three seasons. Her absence was finally explained in 7.21 End Of Days, when Dawn implied that Miss Kitty had died:
“Xander, my crossbow is not out here. I told you, I don’t leave crossbows around all willy-nilly… Not since that time with Miss Kitty Fantastico.”
One of us
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Tara attends her first Scooby meeting in 4.19 New Moon Rising.
Radiohead
details | 1 comment | suggested by Jess
Oz tells Willow in 4.19 New Moon Rising that he swapped his Radiohead CD for a gift for her.
Remembering Willow
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In 4.19 New Moon Rising, Buffy tells Riley how broken up Willow was when Oz left, and he says he remembers. Riley saved Willow from being hit by a car in 4.06 Wild At Heart, when she was walking in a daze.
String Cheese Incident
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String Cheese Incident are a band whose posters can bee seen all over UC Sunnydale. Oz looks at a SCI poster on a notice board in 4.19 New Moon Rising.
Vampires and sunlight
details | 3 comments | suggested by Jess
We first learn that vampires can be killed by direct sunlight in 1.02 The Harvest, when Buffy says:
Xander: “So, what else?”
Buffy: “What else what?”
Xander: “For vampire slayage.”
Buffy: “Oh, fire, beheading, sunlight, holy water, the usual.”
Of course, this doesn’t mean that the actors who play vampires can be destructed using sun beams. There are several occasions when direct sunlight lays on vampires in the show without them being destroyed.
- When Angel is sitting on Buffy’s bed in 3.18 Earshot, sun is shining in but he doesn’t burst into flame.
- In 4.19 New Moon Rising Adam confronts Spike in his crypt during the daytime. There’s lots of sunlight around, yet Spike doesn’t dust.
- In 5.18 Intervention, Spike’s face is in direct sunlight when Glory pulls him up by his lip. She then throws Spike on the bed, and his left arm is also in direct sunlight - he doesn’t burn on both these occasions.
- In the scene with Spike and the mannequin in 5.03 The Replacement, Spike has a tan line on his arms, where his t-shirt has been, though it may be possible to tan in indirect sunlight.
- During the Angel episode 1.03 In The Dark, there are quite a few incidents where sunlight is laying directly on vampires without them burning. This can be seen in particular during the warehouse torture scenes, and when Angel is in the van, about to attack Marcus.
- When the demon attacks Angel in his office in 1.08 I Will Remember You, Angel is clearly standing in direct sunlight.
As Harfang says in the comments section of this trivia - vampires’ resistance to sunlight appears to be directly dependent on their importance to the story.
Another point to note is that only direct sunlight harms vampires - and it just kills them. In 2.10 What’s My Line? (Part Two), Angel is seen being weakened by sunlight which is actually nowhere near him.
William Burroughs
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In 4.19 New Moon Rising, Buffy says she’ll “pull a William Burroughs” on Colonel McNamara’s head and is disappointed that no-one gets her reference. William Burroughs (1914-1997) was a writer whose most famous work was Naked Lunch. Burroughs was addicted to drugs and alcohol and in September 1951, he did a “William Tell act” (William Tell could shoot an apple placed on top of his son’s head). His wife, Joan Vollmer Adams, placed a glass on her head and he killed her with one shot.
Willis
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Willis was a member of Graham’s team in the Initiative who was killed by a werewolf in 4.19 New Moon Rising.
Willow and the full moon
details | 1 comment | suggested by rhetorica
In 4.19 New Moon Rising, Oz takes Willow outside to see that the full moon no longer transforms him into a werewolf. It seems strange that Willow, as a fully-fledged Wicca, no longer pays attention to the moon’s cycle. Granted, it no longer affects her in an immediate sense (as in her boyfriend won’t try to eat her) but the moon is an important element in the mystical world and she would most likely keep an interest in it. It’s possible that the shock of Oz’s return made her forget the cycle.
Willow’s coat
details | 1 comment | suggested by Jess
In 4.19 New Moon Rising, Willow wears the same sheepskin coat that she wore when she was attacked by Harmony in The Harsh Light of Day.
[Goof] Oz’s necklace
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In the scene after Willow and Oz have been up all night in 4.19 New Moon Rising, Oz’s necklace keeps moving around, even when he’s not moving.
[Goof] Tara’s hair
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At the beginning of 4.19 New Moon Rising, Tara tells Willow she has to leave as she’s late for study group, after Oz’s sudden appearance. Tara’s hair changes in quick shots from being over her ear to tucked behind it.
[Goof] The dart
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When Tara throws the chair at Oz-wolf in 4.19 New Moon Rising, Riley nails him with a tranquilizer dart at the same time. Oz-wolf falls to the floor, with no dart in his back. Riley steps over him, and the dart is now in his back.
[Goof] Willow and Tara
details | add a comment | suggested by Jess
When Willow leaves her dorm room to brush her teeth in 4.19 New Moon Rising, hardly any time passes between when she leaves and when Tara knocks on the door. They should have seen each other in the hallway.
[Goof] Willow’s radio mic
details | add a comment | suggested by Sty
In 4.19 New Moon Rising, towards the end of the epsiode when Oz and Willow are hugging on Oz’s van, you can see what appears to be a radio mic pack that Willow is wearing attached to the back of her waistband.