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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