Re: 'The Pack' Discussion

["Howard Russell" <howardrussell2000@xxxxxxxxx>]

Hello Everybody!

I know I'm very late but I've had serious computer troubles.  (i.e. dead computer for almost two weeks.)  Yikes!  Anyways, I'm back and more twisted than ever.

So I'm going all the way back to 'The Pack' and will work my way up to 'I, Robot-You, Jane' in short order.  Again, my apologies.


Canon Cop Facts:
Buffy, Willow, and Xander all are in the same gym class.  Previously, in "The Witch" and "Teacher's Pet," it was shown that all three are in science together as well.

Xander knows!  He mentions Willow's crush to Buffy.  He's not oblivious; he's just cruel.

The last appearance of Principal Flutie.  He will be missed.  Super guy.

Buffy is, once again, the supernatural cop of Sunnydale.  I just mention that because she's charged with demons and vampires but humans are supposed to be dealt with by human laws.



General Stuff:

Does the way she dumped Dr. Wierick into the hyena feeding area count as killing him?  I mean, technically the hyenas killed him but isn't Buffy accountable for that?  Legally, she would be.  My Big Book of Buffy Trivia doesn't count him as a slayer kill, but I'm forced do.



Wiffiness:

Look at the way Willow and Xander interact.  I noticed it in this episode but, thinking back, it was in earlier ones as well.  Except during the scenes where Willow's crush on Xander is directly referenced, there are no signs of it.  Willow doesn't act like a girl in love when around him except when it's mentioned or it's part of the plot.  Now, this is good for us.  Either she really does play her cards close to her chest (meaning she could have a huge crush on Buffy and show it as little) or the whole Xander love thing is just a beard (when Buffy saw the love in her eyes, Willow panicked and blamed it on Xander.)  Either way you take it, it's good for our cause.  Honestly, there's a lot more chemistry between our girls than in the canon crush.

Willow and Buffy in gym together leaves the entire first season wide open for Wiffy locker room naughtiness.  I mean, come on, Willow's gotta look sometime.  You know she would.  I would, wouldn't you?  And maybe, sometime, she could catch Buffy looking at her too...

Xander verbally attacks Willow and Buffy jumps right to her defense.  No trying to mediate between her friends, she goes straight...er, directly to counter-attacking Xander.  Once again, Buffy leaps between Willow and any threat.

Buffy tells Willow that Xander attacked her.  Not only does Willow instantly believe her, she then proceeds to kick the man she supposedly loves into the book cage.  I mean, three good, solid kicks to the unconscious boy on the floor.  Even if she believed that Xander was possessed and that the hyena spirit, and not Xander, did all that he'd done, she still kicked the body of the boy she loves.  She would be expecting that they'd eventually restore Xander to his body, yet she still kicked his carcass while he was down.  Not the most loving of actions.

When a hurt man is dragged into a room, it's traditional for his love interest to leap to his aid.  But Willow asked questions first and made no attempt to help carry Xander.  When told that he attacked Buffy and that Buffy hit him with a desk, she worried about Buffy's safety, not his.  I think this clearly identifies Willow's true love interest.

And my favorite Wiffy bit, the hand holding!  When Buffy's ready to leave at the very end, she simply holds out her hand for Willow to take.  Then they walk off together, hand in hand.  Definite 'wow potential' there!  Very couple-y.  I love it.



General Slash Stuff:

The pack, itself, is very slashy.  First off, the two girls are very touchy-feely at the zoo before they get possessed.  It's slash encouraging.

And the Xander Slashers have got to love the scene where the pack rescues him.  Tor-that's the dirty-blond winged-monkey-cuddles up to Xander and rubs his face against him.  Then leans against him and looks up at him adoringly.  Very slashy...and very creepy.



Wiffy Fic Possibilities:

This episode is rife with untapped potential Wiffy.

The relationship heart-to-heart that our girls have in The Bronze is a good place to start something.  Willow's pushing and prodding at Buffy to get her to admit to an attraction.  What if Buffy were to reveal one that wasn't a two hundred and fifty year old master vampire?  Oh, say, someone a lot cuter, perkier, and closer at hand, perhaps?  Or she could just allude to an unnamed object of affection and the fic take longer.

Then, after Xander's attack on Willow, when the girls are chatting on the balcony, Willow's feeling very unloved.  Buffy could choose to reveal her own crush then.  It's a good place to launch a hurt/comfort fic.

After the sexual assault, Buffy could turn to Willow.  I'm not saying she should be all, "I just got attacked by a man so now I'm suddenly a lesbian," but she could use this to reevaluate her attraction to dangerous men.  If she is bi already, she could decide to forego social acceptability in favor of personal safety.

Or the two, each having experienced an attack by Xander, could get together for a bitch session.  As they're bonding, one of them could slip and make an accidental confession.  Which leads to the other confessing and so on and so on.

Buffy killed a man.  Okay, not with her own hands but, legally and morally, she's responsible.  There's a prime hurt just waiting for a Wiffy comfort.

Here's an idea.  Giles could decide that keeping the secrets of the man that assaulted his slayer isn't the wisest choice.  Once the girls know, anti-Xander sentiments could lead to something more Wiffy.  See the above bitch session comment.



I enjoyed reviewing this episode, hope you did too.  I'm hoping someone will rewrite this one with the Wiffy.

Your fellow 'shipper,
Howard

Simulcast on BWW and The WD.

http://www.wiffy-dreamverse.com/
--
I had nothing to offer anyone but my own confusion. -- Jack Kerouac

http://www.geocities.com/howardrussell2000/


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Willow: "It's a good fight, Buffy, and I want in."
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                     --'Choices'

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