Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Recap/S5/E12 Checkpoint

The Watchers Council comes to Sunnydale to tell Buffy what they know about Glory, on condition that she proves herself worthy. A Knight Templar order called The Knights of Byzantium also arrive to destroy The Key.

"Watcher: The boy? No power there.
 * A Glass in the Hand: Giles is so angry over Travis' threats he breaks his glasses while cleaning them.
 * Anachronism Stew: The Knights of Byzantium dress as medieval knights, with swords, quarterstaffs and chain-mail armour.
 * Awesome but Impractical: The physical test involves Buffy following Travis' martial arts instructions, given in the original Japanese. Things aren't going well and Travis asks, "How have you been training her?" Giles snaps back, "I've trained her to win."
 * Badass Normal: Buffy re Xander.

Buffy: "The boy" has clocked more field time than all of you combined. He's part of the unit."

""Allo, Buffy; here's some stuff we know, pip pip.""
 * Blatant Lies: A Watcher asks Willow and Tara if they're registered as witches. They answer "Uh... sure." He then asks what level they're registered as, and Tara blurts out "Five!" As he writes it down, we see Willow mouth "Five?!?" and Tara responds with the internationally recognized Shrug Of I Have Absolutely No Idea What I Just Said.
 * Brief Accent Imitation: Xander talking English instead of plain Buffy-Speak.

"Buffy: Mr. Giles will stay here as my official Watcher, reinstated at full salary...
 * Cough-Snark-Cough

Giles: (cough) Retroactive.

Buffy: ...to be paid retroactively from the month he was fired."

"Giles: Buffy's come very far recently. She's acquired a remarkable focus.
 * Chekhov's Gag: Ben asks Jinx how Glory knows something. Jinx smirks and says, "I do not know; I was not there."
 * Damn With Faint Praise: The Watchers Council M.O.
 * Description Cut

(Cut to Buffy yawning in class)"

"Spike: Maybe your beauty's fading. The stress of slaying, aging you prematurely. Things not as high, not as firm."
 * Did You Just Have Tea With Cthulhu: Joyce watches Passions with Spike.
 * Double Entendre

"Glory: Had a long day at work, sweetie?"
 * Draco in Leather Pants: An In-Universe version where a female member of the Council is a Spike fan.
 * Dramatic Unmask: Buffy is surprised to find the knights attacking her are human.
 * Enemy Mine: Buffy entrusts Joyce and Dawn to Spike's care.
 * Finishing Each Other's Sentences: Willow and Tara during their interview.
 * Foe Yay: Buffy comes home and finds Glory there.

"Glory: I'll kill your mom, I'll kill your friends ... and I'll make you watch when I do."
 * Forced to Watch

"Glory: Buffy, if I were here to fight, you could tell by the being dead already. So play nice, little girl."
 * Gory Discretion Shot: Ben tells Jinx he has a message for Glory. When we next see Jinx, he's got severe bruising on his face.
 * Hannibal Lecture: Buffy gets these from Spike, her history professor and Glory, but she refuses to take it from the Watcher's Council.
 * If I Wanted You Dead...

"Travers: Uh, Rupert? When we inventoried your shop, we found a bottle of single malt scotch behind the, uh, incense holders.
 * I Need a Freaking Drink: Quentin Travers does the Stuffy Brit version after Buffy reads him the riot act.

Giles: Well, it's, it's not, you know, during working hours...

Travers: I think I could use a glass."

"Buffy: 'Some of us are here to learn, professor!' 'Maybe you'd like to teach your own class!'
 * Leaning on the Fourth Wall: After the mailman gets mind-sucked, he looks in the direction of the camera and says, "I know you're all always looking at me. I can tell."
 * Not Helping Your Case: The physical test involves a blindfolded Buffy protecting a training dummy from an axe-wielding Watcher. She ends up breaking the Watcher's ribs and axing the dummy herself.
 * Percussive Therapy: After being publically humiliated by her history lecturer, Buffy takes out her frustrations on a random vampire.

Vampire: (confused) Who are you talking to?"

"Nigel: Well, I need to know a little bit more about the Slayer. And about both of you. Your relationship, whatever you can tell me.
 * Rasputin the Mad Monk and Certain Prussian Generals Were Vampires: Buffy hints at this; her history lecturer is not impressed.
 * Rescue Romance: Spike 'saves' Buffy from a vampire, clearly hoping it will warm her attitude towards him. It doesn't.
 * Sarcasm Mode: Buffy's history lecturer.
 * Saying Too Much: Willow's and Tara's interview.

Tara: O-ou-our relationship?

Willow: We're friends.

Tara: Good friends.

Willow: Girlfriends, actually.

Tara: Yes, we're girlfriends.

Willow: We're in love. We're... lovers. Lesbian, gay-type lovers. [She puts her hand on Tara's leg.]

Nigel: [Deadpan] I meant your relationship with the Slayer."

"Quentin: Excuse me miss? Do you work here?
 * Shame If Something Happened: Quentin Travis threatens to have Giles deported if Buffy doesn't co-operate with their review. Glory threatens to kill Buffy's loved ones if she doesn't hand over the Key.
 * Shaped Like Itself: Glory complains that Ben drives her insane; "Do you know what I mean?" Jinx thinks about it and suggests, "He drives you insane?"
 * Shut UP, Hannibal: Buffy delivers one back to Travis for all the Hannibal Lectures she's been getting recently.
 * Spy Speak: "Clocked field time" is Riley Speak.
 * Super Senses: Dawn enters the room behind Glory, then tries to sneak out when she realises who Glory is. She's almost out the door when Glory asks her to join them.
 * Suspect Is Hatless: Jinx describes the Slayer thus; "She's short, symmetrical, hair on top?"
 * Suspiciously Specific Denial: Anya is definitely not an ex-demon.

Anya: Yes I do. Ever since I moved here from South-Eastern Indiana where I was raised both by a mother and a father!

...

Anya: (in a later interview) Anya Christina Emanuella Jenkins, twenty years old. Born on the fourth of July, and don't think there weren't jokes about that my whole life, mister, 'cause there were. "Who's our little patriot?" they'd say, when I was younger, and therefore smaller and shorter than I am now.

Watcher: (taking notes) So, you spell it A-N-Y-A, yes?

Anya: (sheepishly) Yes.

Watcher: Fine, now we can get to the questions."

"Nigel: This is beyond insolence--
 * Terrible Interviewees Montage
 * That Came Out Wrong
 * Tara says the Watchers Council is like a group of "Giles-es". Buffy blurts out, "Yeah, they're scary and horrible!"
 * Xander tells of how last year the Scoobies "combined our essences with Buffy...which isn't as weird as it sounds."
 * Throwing Your Sword Always Works

(Buffy hurls a sword into the wall by his head)

Buffy: I'm fairly certain I said no interruptions."

"Glory: Oh. Sweet lumpy minion. You're the only one that understands. Probably cause I haven't sucked your brain out yet."
 * Villainous Demotivator

"Quentin: Well, that's the thing, you see. Glory isn't a demon.
 * Weird Trade Union: Nigel asks Willow and Tara if they're registered witches.
 * Wham! Line

Buffy: What is she?

Quentin: She's a god.

Buffy: Oh."

"Ooh, I like her. She's sassy."
 * When the Planets Align: Glory is told that the "signs of alignment" are moving faster, so she has to speed up her search for The Key.
 * You Got Spunk: Glory on Dawn.