Episode Trivia
Angel the puppy
details | 32 comments | suggested by Jess
Angel is referred to as a ‘puppy’ on a couple of occasions:
- In 3.09 The Wish, vampire Willow keeps Angel locked in a cage as her plaything, and refers to him as “Puppy”.
- In 4.03 The Harsh Light Of Day, when Parker asks Buffy about the scars on her neck, she replies that they they were caused by an “angry puppy”. They were actually from when Angel bit her in Graduation Day, Part Two.
Puppies are a recurring theme in Buffy and Angel:
- In 2.16 Bewitched, Bothered And Bewildered, Giles tells Buffy that one Valentine’s Day, Angel nailed a puppy to something (we don’t find out as Buffy stops him before he can finish).
- In 4.15 Orpheus, we see that Angel saved a puppy from being killed in early 1920s Chicago.
- In Enemies, Faith says that as a child she suffered because her mother didn’t let her have a dog before she kisses Angel.
- In 1.06 The Pack Willow regrets that Xander is not possessed by a puppy instead of a hyena
- In 7.02 Beneath You the puppy’s death is the only thing that seems to move Anya (and also Spike later on).
Batman
details | 5 comments | suggested by Jess
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.”
Beneath me
details | 6 comments | suggested by becsug
In 7.02 Beneath You, Buffy finds out that Spike has earned himself a soul in an attempt to be worthy of her. The title could hark back to the episode 5.07 Fool For Love, in which Spike is told by both Cecily and Buffy, “You’re beneath me”.
Benita Krista Nall
details | 4 comments | suggested by Jess
Benita Krista Nall, who played the girl talking to Anya in the Bronze in 7.02 Beneath You, has been in 13 Going On 30, Catch Me If You Can and Minority Report.
Buffy’s office
details | 3 comments | suggested by Jess
Why is Buffy’s private counselling office in such a public place? Kids who come to her can easily be overheard.
Eaten alive
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In 7.02 Beneath You, Buffy alludes to Principal Flutie, who was eaten alive by a group of hyena-possessed students in 1.06 The Pack:
Wood: “Okay by me. A little authority can be a wonderful thing. Just remember that while you are here to help, you’re not here to be their friend. Trust me, you open that door and these students will eat you alive.”
Buffy: “You heard about Principal Flutie, right?”
Wood: “Hmm?”
Buffy: “Forget it.”
Hallway etiquette
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The following line of Xander’s was deleted from the episode 7.02 Beneath You:
“I forgot the high school’s unwritten rules of hallway etiquette. Of course, no one ever explained them to me. They’d just stuff me in a locker till I drew my own conclusion.”
It’s got teeth
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In 7.02 Beneath You, Willow says to Giles:
“Well, for starters, the Hellmouth’s getting all rumbly again. And now I know it’s got teeth. And are those literal teeth?”
You could say that they are literal teeth - in 7.22 Chosen Buffy and the gang go into the Hellmouth and it is full of very toothy Turok-Han.
Kaarina Aufranc
details | 2 comments | suggested by Jess
Kaarina Aufranc played the third ‘Nancy’ in Buffy the Vampire Slayer - the girl whose dog was eaten in 7.02 Beneath You. The other two Nancys were the White Hat who helped Giles in 3.09 The Wish and the clever girl in Buffy’s English class in 3.18 Earshot. Kaarina has also been in Deadly Swarm, Purpose, The West Wing and CSI.
Nancy
details | 10 comments | suggested by Jess
Nancy was a Sunnydale High resident whose small dog was consumed by a giant subterranean worm-like demon in 7.02 Beneath You. She met Xander in the aftermath of this traumatic event, who took her to Buffy’s house to try and help her. It was later revealed that the worm-demon was actually Nancy’s ex-boyfriend Ronnie. Nancy had unwittingly wished he was a worm in front of newly-formed vengeance demon Anya (who exaggerated the actual size of the ‘worm’). Xander finally convinced Anya to change Ronnie back, although she said that she’d get in trouble for doing so. Having seen the bizarre love-twists of the Scooby gang, and getting freaked out by the whole ex-boyfriend and worm affair, Nancy decided she wanted nothing more to do with poor old Xander.
Niblet
details | 1 comment | suggested by Jess
Spike’s pet name for Dawn is “Niblet”, heard in 5.13 Blood Ties, 6.19 Seeing Red, 7.02 Beneath You and 7.17 Lies My Parents Told Me.
Run Lola Run
details | 1 comment | suggested by Jess
The punk girl scenes at the beginning of the episode 7.02 Beneath You could be an homage to the film Run Lola Run.
Sluggoth demon
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The Sluggoth demon is a large worm-like creature with sharp teeth, seen in 7.02 Beneath You. Spike says:
“It’s a very large, very nasty, natural predator who died around the crusades.”
The demon lives underground but comes out of the earth for food. It kind of looks like the penis-creature from 6.12 Doublemeat Palace.
Stillste Stund
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We hear the German techno song ‘Von Der Tiefe’ by Stillste Stund in 7.02 Beneath You, when the potential Slayer is murdered. The lyrics, “Von der Tiefe verschlingt es”, heard at the beginning of 7.02 Beneath You, translates roughly to “from the depth it devours.”
Teleportation
details | 1 comment | suggested by Jess
Teleportation is when someone or something moves instantly from one place to another. Willow and Tara did this spell in 5.13 Blood Ties to temporarily get rid of Glory, though they weren’t sure of where they sent her. Some demons (such as vengeance demons) have the ability to teleport. When Anya became a demon again she helped the Scoobies by teleporting (6.21 Two To Go), though her teleporting rights were taken away from her when she undid a vengeance spell in 7.02 Beneath You.
Tess Hall
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Tess Hall, who played the pink-haired punk girl in 7.02 Beneath You, also appeared in The Ring.
Tremors
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The sluggoth demon in 7.02 Beneath You looks as though it was inspired by the worm demon in the movie Tremors, which stars Kevin Bacon.
[Goof] Deaf Xander
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Xander seems surprised when Nancy runs into him, but he was walking in the direction of the hole and would have seen and heard all the commotion when her dog was eaten.
[Goof] Moving box
details | 1 comment | suggested by Jess
When Nancy tells the Scoobies about her ordeal in 7.02 Beneath You, there is a white first aid box on the table next to Buffy, on her left. In the next shot, it’s gone without her moving it. Later she picks the box up from her right and places it where we saw it originally.
[Goof] Pool table
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When Spike and Anya fight in the Bronze in 7.02 Beneath You, Anya throws Spike onto the pool table and the front panel of the table falls off, revealing pale wood. In the next shot of Spike on the table, the original dark panel has been replaced.
[Goof] Spike’s reflection
details | 1 comment | suggested by Jess
When we first see Spike in the basement in 7.02 Beneath You, moving toward the rat, his reflection can be seen on the side of a filing cabinet to the left of the screen.
[Goof] Sword and glasses
details | add a comment | suggested by Jess
In the Bronze in 7.02 Beneath You, Buffy puts her sword on Anya’s table. During the fight, the sword disappears and there are also fewer glasses on the table.