Kennedy is really annoying, but even she can't completely ruin "The Killer in Me." It isn't the most thrilling BTVS episode, but it does have some important moments in it. It finally gets that chip out of Spike's head and it gives Willow a chance to address some of her unresolved issues surrounding Tara's death. Plus, it proves that Giles isn't the first. (Although, he does act weird this whole season. I'm still half-way convinced that he's a robot. It happens. See "Angel" season five's "Lineage.") Basically, you could skip this episode and not miss a lot of the story arc. But, it will play into some character development stuff later on.
"The Killer in Me" revolves around Spike and Willow. Spike's chip is malfunctioning. It keeps misfiring, shocking him even when he's laying perfectly still. Buffy is concerned that Spike might die. She tries to contact Riley, thinking that he and the government can help. Meanwhile Giles takes that Potentials out on that First Slayer vision quest thing. (He took Buffy on one, too, back in season five's "Intervention.") And Willow and Kennedy end up on a date together. When Kennedy kisses Willow, though, Will turns into Warren. She looks just like him and she panics. After telling all the Scoobies to let her fix the problem her way, she goes to UC Sunnydale's Wicca group for help. (They were last seen in season four's "Hush.") Bufy and Spike head to the Initative to look for pain killers for his chip problem. Riley's men find them there and offer Buffy a choice: take the chip out or repair it.
Meanwhile, The Scoobies to worry that Giles might really be the First. No one can remember him touching anything recently. Anya, Xander, Dawn and Andrew head out into the desert to investigate. They find Giles and tackle him, proving that he's Giles. Willow sinks deeply into Warren, taking on his personality traits. Kennedy realizes that Amy is behind the spell and tries to fight her. Amy teleports Kennedy into the Summers' backyard, just as Willow storms up with a gun... Just like Warren did in season six's "Seeing Red." She threatens to shoot Kennedy for killing "her" and it soon becomes clear that this is all about Tara. Willow feels guilty for finally accepting Tara's death and Amy's spell is feeding off of it. Kennedy comforts Willow as she dissolves into tears.
There are some good parts to this episode. I think Warren and Willow switching back and forth works really well. The two of them do a great job of sounding and acting alike. It's especially fun when "Warren" is trying to deal with Andrew, Xander and Buffy all at once. And I'm glad to see Amy again. It's a shame that she and Willow don't get a real show down in this episode, but it's cool that the show brought her back. Too bad she didn't recognize "Warren," since they all went to high school together for a semester. Maybe Warren enrolled during the time Amy was a rat. I also like Anya, Dawn, Xander and Andrew going on a car trip together. I wish that Xander and Andrew had more scenes together. Because their shared interests in comics and sci-fi movies is just funny. Xander tries to ignore Andrew, but the kid is winning everybody over. "If you don't take me along, I'm going to do something evil." And when they finally tackle Giles and realize that he's corporeal, you just have to laugh. "You think I'm evil if I take girls camping and DON'T touch them?" Finally, I'm REALLY happy that Spike finally got his chip-ectomy.
On the down side, the Initative never gave Spike any pain killers for the chip in his head. He didn't even know that he HAD the chip until he attacked Willow in her dorm room in season four's "The Initative." If there had been pain killers that allowed him to bypass the shocks, wouldn't Spike have gone looking for them before now? Like back when he was desperate to remain evil and kill the Scoobies? Also, didn't the general guy in "Primeval" say that the Initative's whole facility was going to be covered in cement? What happened to that plan? Why can Spike and Buffy just walk right in? And where is this entrance suppose to be? It isn't the back way into the Initative that Spike and the Scoobies used in "New Moon Rising" or the front way through the frat house that Riley and the guys always used.
Also, I just don't like Kennedy. She's a pushy, annoying and know-it-all. Willow could do better. Honestly, I don't think that Willow should have relationship at all this season. Tara was her life. Their connection was so deep that Willow's grief nearly destroyed the world. And now this bratty Potential comes along and Willow just starts dating again? I'm not buying it. Tara and Willow got each other's jokes, shared an interest in magic, adored each other completely, and it would take more than a few months for Willow to recover from her death enough to even notice another woman..
My favorite part of the episode: Spike and Buffy's "Who ya gonna call?" conversation. "God, that phrase is never gonna be usable again is it?" I just like the idea of a 120-something vampire and the Slayer both having seen the movie "Ghostbusters."
"The Killer in Me" revolves around Spike and Willow. Spike's chip is malfunctioning. It keeps misfiring, shocking him even when he's laying perfectly still. Buffy is concerned that Spike might die. She tries to contact Riley, thinking that he and the government can help. Meanwhile Giles takes that Potentials out on that First Slayer vision quest thing. (He took Buffy on one, too, back in season five's "Intervention.") And Willow and Kennedy end up on a date together. When Kennedy kisses Willow, though, Will turns into Warren. She looks just like him and she panics. After telling all the Scoobies to let her fix the problem her way, she goes to UC Sunnydale's Wicca group for help. (They were last seen in season four's "Hush.") Bufy and Spike head to the Initative to look for pain killers for his chip problem. Riley's men find them there and offer Buffy a choice: take the chip out or repair it.
Meanwhile, The Scoobies to worry that Giles might really be the First. No one can remember him touching anything recently. Anya, Xander, Dawn and Andrew head out into the desert to investigate. They find Giles and tackle him, proving that he's Giles. Willow sinks deeply into Warren, taking on his personality traits. Kennedy realizes that Amy is behind the spell and tries to fight her. Amy teleports Kennedy into the Summers' backyard, just as Willow storms up with a gun... Just like Warren did in season six's "Seeing Red." She threatens to shoot Kennedy for killing "her" and it soon becomes clear that this is all about Tara. Willow feels guilty for finally accepting Tara's death and Amy's spell is feeding off of it. Kennedy comforts Willow as she dissolves into tears.
There are some good parts to this episode. I think Warren and Willow switching back and forth works really well. The two of them do a great job of sounding and acting alike. It's especially fun when "Warren" is trying to deal with Andrew, Xander and Buffy all at once. And I'm glad to see Amy again. It's a shame that she and Willow don't get a real show down in this episode, but it's cool that the show brought her back. Too bad she didn't recognize "Warren," since they all went to high school together for a semester. Maybe Warren enrolled during the time Amy was a rat. I also like Anya, Dawn, Xander and Andrew going on a car trip together. I wish that Xander and Andrew had more scenes together. Because their shared interests in comics and sci-fi movies is just funny. Xander tries to ignore Andrew, but the kid is winning everybody over. "If you don't take me along, I'm going to do something evil." And when they finally tackle Giles and realize that he's corporeal, you just have to laugh. "You think I'm evil if I take girls camping and DON'T touch them?" Finally, I'm REALLY happy that Spike finally got his chip-ectomy.
On the down side, the Initative never gave Spike any pain killers for the chip in his head. He didn't even know that he HAD the chip until he attacked Willow in her dorm room in season four's "The Initative." If there had been pain killers that allowed him to bypass the shocks, wouldn't Spike have gone looking for them before now? Like back when he was desperate to remain evil and kill the Scoobies? Also, didn't the general guy in "Primeval" say that the Initative's whole facility was going to be covered in cement? What happened to that plan? Why can Spike and Buffy just walk right in? And where is this entrance suppose to be? It isn't the back way into the Initative that Spike and the Scoobies used in "New Moon Rising" or the front way through the frat house that Riley and the guys always used.
Also, I just don't like Kennedy. She's a pushy, annoying and know-it-all. Willow could do better. Honestly, I don't think that Willow should have relationship at all this season. Tara was her life. Their connection was so deep that Willow's grief nearly destroyed the world. And now this bratty Potential comes along and Willow just starts dating again? I'm not buying it. Tara and Willow got each other's jokes, shared an interest in magic, adored each other completely, and it would take more than a few months for Willow to recover from her death enough to even notice another woman..
My favorite part of the episode: Spike and Buffy's "Who ya gonna call?" conversation. "God, that phrase is never gonna be usable again is it?" I just like the idea of a 120-something vampire and the Slayer both having seen the movie "Ghostbusters."
