Episode Trivia
Batman
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The comic Batman, by DC Comics, is mentioned several times in Buffy.
- In 2.02 Some Assembly Required, Buffy alludes to the ‘Bat-Signal’ in Gotham city which is used to alert Batman that he is needed when she says to Willow:
“Sorry to interrupt, Willow, but it’s the Bat-Signal.”
- In the Batman comics, Catwoman is a cat-burglar, and the alter ego of Selina Kyle. In 2.06 Halloween, Xander says to Cordelia:
“Catwoman, you’re with me.”
- The Batcave was Batman’s high-tech base and Alfred was his loyal butler. In 4.20 The Yoko Factor, Xander says:
“You and Willow go do the superpower thing, I’ll stay behind and putt around the Batcave with crusty old Alfred here.”
- The nerds’ freeze ray gun in 6.09 Smashed may have been inspired by Batman’s Mr Freeze, who used a similar device.
- In 7.02 Beneath You, Spike refers to the 1960s TV show Batman in which Batman and Robin would slide down poles to the Batcave when they were needed when he says:
“A little touchy-feely, and you’re off to the Batpoles?”
- In 7.10 Bring On The Night, Andrew mentions Batman’s foe The Riddler:
“You think I’m a super-villain like Dr. Doom or Apocalypse or The Riddler. But I admit I went over to the dark side but just to pick up a few things and now I’m back. I’ve learned. I’m good again.”
- Vincent Schiavelli, who played Jenny’s uncle in 2.13 Surprise and 2.14 Innocence played the Organ Grinder in the movie Batman Returns.
- In the Angel episode 1.02 Lonely Hearts, Doyle refers to the Bat-signal, saying:
“It’s not like you have a signal folks can shine in the sky whenever they need help, you know?”
- In 1.03 In The Dark, Spike says of Angel:
“Quickly to the Angelmobile, away.”
- In 1.05 Rm W/A Vu, Cordy says:
“They gave it to a blonde that showed up in a skintight leather cat suit. She is supposed to be a housewife. She looked ridiculous. She looked like cat-woman taking out the cat-trash.”
- In 1.12 Expecting, Cordelia smudges her lipstick across her face and says (referencing Batman’s nemesis):
“And now I look like the Joker.”
- In 3.21 Benediction, Lilah says of Connor (referring to the name often given to Batman’s sidekick, Robin):
“Who’s the boy wonder?”
- In 4.02 Ground State, when the gang are climbing the gates to get into the auction house, Gunn says:
“This is so much harder than it looks on Batman”.
- In 5.19 Time Bomb, Hamilton says:
“It’s a business, boys, not a Batcave.”
Bob Fimiani
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Bob Fimiani played Mr. Ward, the head of the Initiative in 4.20 The Yoko Factor and 4.21 Primeval, who ordered the Initiative to be closed down and the earth salted over. Bob also played ‘Grounds Keeper’ in the Angel episode 1.15 The Prodigal and ‘Codger Demon’ in the Angel episode 3.01 Heartthrob. He played ‘Elder Gamman’ in Joss Whedon’s show Firefly, in the episode ‘Our Mrs. Reynolds’.
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.
Dorm phone
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Buffy and Willow’s phone in their dorm room keeps changing. In 4.02 Living Conditions it was a white one with an answering machine, then it changed to a different design in 4.10 Hush, and in 4.20 The Yoko Factor, it’s a small, blue phone.
Encrypted discs
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In the Angel season one episode 1.21 Blind Date, Cordelia calls Willow to get some help decrypting discs that Angel stole from Wolfram & Hart:
Cordelia: “Okay, I’m back to the desktop, Willow. What do I do now? Okay, done that. Back to life list. Yeah. Yeah.”
Wesley: “Any luck?”
Angel: “She’s been on the phone for an hour and 45 minutes.”
Cordy: “Hey, guess what they’ve been doing all day?”
Wesley: “Uh, saving the world?”
Cordy: “Well, yeah. But they’ve been breaking encrypted computer files, too!”
Angel: “What are the odds, huh?”
This is a reference to the files that Spike stole from the Initiative in 4.20 The Yoko Factor which Willow was trying to decrypt.
Entertainment station
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In 4.20 The Yoko Factor, Spike has a new TV in his crypt to replace the one Forrest broke in 4.14 Goodbye Iowa. He also has a video, a microwave and an old Nintendo - but no obvious sign of electricity.
Forrest Gates
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Forrest Gates was a friend of Riley Finn and a fellow member of the Initiative. He didn’t approve of Buffy’s relationship with Riley. Forrest was killed by Adam in 4.20 The Yoko Factor and reanimated to work for Adam in 4.21 Primeval. He fought Riley, who blew him up.
Freebird
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In 4.20 The Yoko Factor, Giles sings “Freebird” until Spike interrupts him. The song was originally written and recorded by Lynyrd Skynrd in 1973. The lyrics Giles sings are:
“If I leave here tomorrow, would you still remember me?
For I must be travelling on now,
’cause there’s too many places I’ve got to see.
But if I stayed here with you, girl, things just couldn’t be the same.
‘Cause I’m as free as a bird, now, and this bird you cannot change.”
Freebird foreshadowing
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In 4.20 The Yoko Factor, Giles is seen singing “Freebird”. He sings the lines:
“If I leave here tomorrow, will you still remember me?”
Clearly, leaving is on his mind, as three episodes later it becomes clear of his intentions to leave Sunnydale, in 5.01 Buffy Vs Dracula. However, he lets his plans go when Buffy tells him she wants him to be her Watcher again.
Giles plans to leave don’t stop there, though. He gets on a plane to England in 6.01 Bargaining (Part One). Though he does make a short return to Sunnydale in 6.04 Flooded, he flies off for England again in 6.08 Tabula Rasa.
Giles makes a brief teleportation back to America in 6.21 Two To Go, to stop Willow’s rampage, and returns shortly thereafter to England with a very depressed Willow in tow.
Finally, his plans to stay in England die hard when he returns to Sunnydale for the duration of the series in 7.10 Bring On The Night.
Giles’s bathroom
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In 4.20 The Yoko Factor, Giles seems to have been doing some redecorating. When Anya and Tara are in his bathroom, it’s different from how it was when Spike was chained up in it earlier in the season (4.09 Something Blue). It actually looks a lot like the bathroom from the house in 4.18 Where The Wild Things Are.
Heading to L.A.
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The Buffy episode 4.20 The Yoko Factor follows on from the Angel episode 1.19 Sanctuary, where Buffy turns up in L.A. to find Faith. She’s disgusted to find that Angel is helping her nemesis, despite what she did to Buffy. Angel and Buffy argue, and she leaves. He arrives in Sunnydale in 4.20 The Yoko Factor to apologise to Buffy. Xander calls Buffy “LA Woman”, referring to her visit to L.A.
King of pain
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In 4.20 The Yoko Factor, Riley calls Angel “Mr. Billowy Coat King of Pain”. Angel’s long black coat billowing as he walks away mysteriously is a trademark of his.
Miss Kitty Fantastico
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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.”
Near Amish
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The following line of Spike’s was deleted from 4.20 The Yoko Factor:
“Now that you’ve turned Super Wicca and you’re damn near Amish. All candles and hand-ground herbs…”
Red
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In 4.04 Fear, Itself, Xander calls Buffy “Red”. Spike called Willow “Red” in 7.03 Same Time, Same Place and 4.20 The Yoko Factor, and Faith called Willow this in 4.15 This Year’s Girl. Kennedy also calls Willow “Red” in 7.22 Chosen, when they’re in the Principal’s office getting ready for Willow to work her mojo.
Roomies
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In 4.20 The Yoko Factor, Willow asks Tara about housing for the following college year. The two end up living together in a dorm as Buffy moves home to be with her mother in season five.
Slayer killer
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Spike tells Adam in 4.20 The Yoko Factor that he killed two Slayers. We heard this first in 2.03 School Hard, and see Spike relate his story to Buffy in Fool for Love.
Taser blazer
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In 4.15 This Year’s Girl, Xander tries to repair the faulty taser-gun which Maggie Walsh gave to Buffy in The I in Team:
“Sure. As soon as I get my master’s degree in advanced starship technology.”
Riley finally fixes it and Buffy uses it in 4.20 The Yoko Factor.
The Beatles
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In 1.08 I Robot, You Jane, Xander refers to the Beatles song “With a Little Help from My Friends” when Buffy says that Dave’s death looked like suicide. The song is from the 1967 album Sgt. Pepper’s 1.02 Lonely Hearts Club Band Band.
In 1.11 Out Of Mind, Out Of Sight, most of Marcie’s text book at her new school is not actually about ‘Infiltration and Assassination’, as the chapter suggests. Most of it is either nonsense or devoted to the Beatles’ “Happiness is a Warm Gun”.
In 2.10 What’s My Line? (Part Two), Xander says:
“I am the bug man, goo goo g’joob.”
This is a reference to The Beatles’ psychedelic song “I Am The Walrus” (1967) which contains the line, “I am the eggman, they are the eggmen, I am the walrus, goo goo g’joob.”
The episode 4.20 The Yoko Factor is named after John Lennon’s wife Yoko Ono, who was widely believed to have been the catalyst for breaking up The Beatles. In that episode, Spike explains this to Adam, who replies, “I like Helter Skelter” (a Beatles song).
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?”
Vampire invitation rule
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In vampire mythology (and the Whedonverse), a vampire cannot enter a person’s home unless it has been invited. This is first seen in the Buffy episode 1.07 Angel:
Angel: “It’s all right. A vampire can’t come in unless it’s invited.”
There has been some debate as to whether Buffy actually invited Angel into her home in that episode, but she does quickly say to him, “Get in! C’mon!” as they’re being chased by vampires. When Angel first became a vampire he returned home to kill his family. From 1.15 The Prodigal:
Father: “Be gone, unclean thing! A demon can not enter a home where it’s not welcome. He must be invited!”
Angel: “That’s true. - But I was invited.”
Angel looks to the doorway. His father turns and sees Angel’s sister slumped against the wall.
Dad: “Och!”
Angel: “She thought I returned to her – an angel.”
A vampire can enter a public place such as a school or hospital (this is seen in 2.17 Passion and 2.18 Killed By Death). In 2.17 Passion Angel says the sign outside the school says ‘Romatia transicara edicatorum’ which translates to ‘Enter all ye who seek knowledge’. Vampires can also enter hotel rooms, which are considered public. In 2.09 The Trial, Angel says to Gunn after he has entered a motel room:
Angel: “Oh, Motel, public accommodation. She didn’t live here.”
Another vampire invitation rule is clarified in 5.02 Real Me: only someone who lives in a residence can invite a vampire in:
Xander: “Yeah, actually, she– Harmony– kind of happened to sort of get an invite.”
Buffy: “You guys can’t invite her in. I mean, only someone who lives here can…
If the owner of a house is dead, a vampire can enter. This is seen in 3.21 Graduation Day (Part One) when Angel enters the home of the dead Professor. It is also seen explicitly in 1.15 The Prodigal (Angel can only enter the home of Kate’s father after he has been killed) and in 2.04 Untouched (Angel enters when a victim on life support dies). In the latter example we see a visible barrier ripple when Angel tries to enter.
When a vampire is invited into a home once, it can enter again at any point, unless a reversal spell is done. The spell was first seen in 2.17 Passion, after Angel lost his soul and started stalking Buffy. The last words of the incantation (read by Willow at Buffy’s house) are “Hicce verbis consensus rescissus est,” which translates into English roughly as “By these words permission is rescinded.” Buffy uninvited Spike from her home in 5.14 Crush, Harmony was uninvited in 5.02 Real Me, and Dracula was uninvited in 5.01 Buffy Vs Dracula.
There have been several goofs/continuity errors concerning vampires and invitations in the Whedonverse:
- When Angel and Buffy are running from the Three in 1.07 Angel, they take refuge in Buffy’s house. As they close the door, one of the Three gets his arm through the door before Buffy forces him back out. But he was a vampire and also uninvited, so how did he get his arm in?
- A similar event occurs in 2.16 Bewitched, Bothered And Bewildered - when Drusilla pushes Buffy’s door down, her hands go into the house - but Drusilla was never invited in.
- Angel says that he needs an invitation to enter Buffy’s dorm room in 4.20 The Yoko Factor, but Sunday and her gang didn’t need one in 4.01 The Freshman. This doesn’t count only for Buffy - the vamps are able to access Eddie’s room as well, and presumably they can get into the rooms of the other students they killed. How do they do that?
- In 1.17 Eternity, how can Angel jump through the window into Rebecca’s apartment to save her from the intruder? He was never invited in, and Rebecca only said to him to “Stop by”. Is this enough of an invitation?
- In 1.18 Five By Five, Faith is torturing Wesley in the apartment of the man she injured previously in the episode. When Angel finds them, he walks straight into the apartment… no invite needed. If Faith had killed the man, Angel would not have required an invitation. However, in 1.19 Sanctuary, the following dialogue is heard between Kate and a fellow officer:
Kate: “So do we think she is the one who threw the party here?”
Kendrick: “The guy who lives here identifies her as the woman who mugged him. Put him in the hospital, stole his keys, his wallet. We’re lifting prints now. My bet is - we get a match.”It’s apparent he is alive, therefore Angel should not have been able to enter his apartment. (It’s possible that Angel called the victim to ask permission to enter but this would be a very strange conversation indeed!)
- There is some confusion over who invited Spike back into the home he shared with his mother in 7.17 Lies My Parents Told Me, but this could have been a servant who lived there.
- In 5.15 A Hole In The World, Angel and Spike enter Lindsey and Eve’s residence without an invitation.
Willow’s stage fright
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Willow gets stage fright, which was first hinted at in 1.09 The Puppet Show when she ran terrified from the stage during a talent contest. In 1.10 Nightmares, Willow was forced to sing a piece from Puccini’s Madame Butterfly on stage but when she opened her mouth, no sound came out. Her stage fright was also explored in the episodes 4.22 Restless (when she was in front of her class and everyone was laughing at her) and - to a lesser extent - in 6.07 Once More, With Feeling when she was the only main character not to sing a great deal.
In 4.20 The Yoko Factor, Tara suggested to Willow that she take sophomore Psych but Willow suggested drama instead. In 5.02 Real Me we saw Willow berate Buffy as the Slayer didn’t have the time to take drama class with her. In 4.22 Restless, Willow has a dream about having stage fright about the drama class, who are performing a play without actually having any classes.
WP (Widespread Panic)
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A black and white oval sticker with the letters “WP” can often be seen in Sunnydale. The sticker is for a band called Widespread Panic. Examples of episodes in which this is seen include:
- 2.04 Inca Mummy Girl: behind Xander when he says to Ampata, “Why’d you run away?”.
- 2.06 Halloween: next to Cordelia when she’s dressed as a cat and talking to Oz (on Oz’s locker door), and when Willow walks into the library when she’s a ghost, there is one on the bulletin board to her right. There is also a sticker on the bathroom wall, seen behind Buffy’s right shoulder when she an Willow look through the book.
- 2.05 Reptile Boy: at the beginning of the episode, behind Xander’s left shoulder in Buffy’s room.
- 2.12 Bad Eggs: behind Jonathan’s right shoulder on the locker when he is being attacked.
- 2.13 Surprise: on the locker behind Cordelia when she is talking to Xander and behind Xander when he calls Giles a party weasel. A colourful Widespread Panic poster can also be seen behind Joyce in Buffy’s dream.
- 2.15 Phases: when Buffy is in the Bronze looking for the werewolf, a WP sticker can be seen on a pillar behind her right shoulder.
- 2.16 Bewitched, Bothered And Bewildered: poster in Xander’s room and behind Xander when Harmony tells him he should learn a second language so more girls can reject him. A sticker can also be seen on the locker behind Cordelia when Harmony is telling her off for breaking up with Xander.
- 2.22 Becoming (Part Two): at the beginning of the episode, when the cop is arresting Buffy in the hall, you can see a WP sticker on the lockers behind her.
- 3.02 Dead Man’s Party: on a guitar case behind the drums during the party.
- 4.12 A New Man: behind Giles when he’s at Buffy’s party.
- 4.06 Wild At Heart: a colourful WP poster (not the sticker) can be seen to the right of Oz’s bedroom door.
- 4.20 The Yoko Factor: in Buffy and Willow’s dorm room.
- 5.03 The Replacement: on the payphone that Xander uses to call Buffy.
Yoko Ono
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The Buffy episode 4.20 The Yoko Factor is named after Yoko Ono. The artist married John Lennon, and was ultimately blamed for the break up of the Beatles. Her son Sean appeared in the Bronze band Cibo Matto in 2.01 When She Was Bad.
[Goof] Willow’s laptop
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When Buffy, Riley and Angel are arguing in Buffy and Willow’s dorm room in 4.19 New Moon Rising, Willow’s laptop is on her desk but Willow is supposed to have been decrypting the Initiative disks from Spike all day, on her laptop, at Giles’ house.