School Hard, Halloween, What's My Line

In the latest episodes of Buffy, a few new themes are introduced or emphasized. One of these, the repeated, gratuitous shots of a shirtless, brooding Angel, will with any luck continue. However, other themes that a bit more to the story arc are introduced in this segment of Season 2.

In School Hard, we see for the first time how complacently oblivious Buffy’s mother Joyce and the entire town of Sunnydale are. Even with evil staring them in the face, or chasing them down the hallways of Sunnydale High, the parents and students seem more than willing to accept the flimsy cover up of Principal Snyder and the police. While of course reflective of people’s general tendency to notice only the things they’re comfortable with, the cluelessness of townspeople is also a convenient tenant for Whedon to develop this early in the series. He wouldn’t want too many vigilant citizens interfering with future plots.

Halloween and What’s My Line Part 1 both serve to develop Buffy’s issues with her dual identity. Interestingly, vampires and demons are said to avoid Halloween, though no substantial reason is ever explored thoroughly. However, this makes sense, if we think of the vampires as a metaphor for our inner demons or desires. As Buffy says, Halloween is a night to “come as you aren’t.” Our inner selves are already on display, so there’s no place for the vampiric metaphor. It’s interesting how each of the characters manifest this. Xander, who has lost face in front of his testosterone-drenched peers, is turned into an impressively manly soldier, while Willow is forced to shed her demure ghost-costume and reveal her inner temptress, and consequently takes charge for most of the night. Buffy, on the other hand, who has been forced to take care of a heard of children and forced to take care of Sunnydale through her Slayer duties, is turned into a princess who not only wants to be taken care of, but is incapable of fending for herself. I think it’s worth noting that Cordelia is the only one who doesn’t change, possibly because she has nothing to hide. The overly-seductive cat outfit she wears is not much different from her everyday attire. Cordelia admits openly to being the “dating Slayer” and so she’s not fighting with a split identity like the other characters.

This problem of identity continues in What’s My Line. Buffy feels limited by her destiny as Slayer, but it seems clear from this episode that her friends are also influenced by situations outside their control. Both Giles and Kendra are subject to the same powers that Buffy is, but they have embraced their fates rather than fighting. Angel, too, is constricted by his nature. He, however, has learned how to get by: “I lurk.” In a more mundane sense, Willow’s and Xander’s futures are also controlled by their own natures- Willow’s by her unusual intelligence and technical abilities, Xander’s by his innate slackage. Buffy doesn’t seem to recognize the constrictions they are all under. In Halloween, Drusilla asked “Do you love my insides? The parts you can’t see?” For Buffy, the answer is not yet, and we’ll have to make through a few more seasons before she truly comes to accept her inner self.