Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Recap/S2/E15 Phases
A werewolf is loose in Sunnydale.
- Actually Pretty Funny: Giles is talking about how the phases of the moon exert a great deal of psychological influence, and the full moon "tends to bring out our darkest qualities." Xander quips, "Yet, ironically, also led to the invention of the moon pie." Buffy and Willow are unimpressed as always but Giles almost cracks up.
- Always a Bigger Fish: Oz in werewolf form follows a trail of blood until he finds Theresa's corpse, Angelus in vamp face standing over her. The two snarl and growl and piss at each other until Angelus decides he would not like to be torn limb from limb and withdraws.
- Armoured Closet Gay: Larry acts like a lecherous Jerk Jock to hide the fact that he's gay.
- Auto Erotica: Cordelia has this in mind, but Xander is too busy griping about Willow taking up with Oz.
Cordelia: Look around. We're in my daddy's car, it's just the two of us, there is a beautiful, big full moon outside tonight. It doesn't get more romantic than this. So shut up! |
- Bait and Switch Comment: Cordy the morning after she and Xander were attacked in their car by a werewolf.
Cordelia: It was so awful. (puts her head on Xander's shoulder) |
- Break the Cutie: "Angel sends his love."
- Broken Heel: Willow trips while fleeing the werewolf.
- Bully Hunter: When Larry is leering about doing self defense with Theresa, she stammers that there's several members of the group. Buffy; who had played Bully Hunter on Larry before, comes to her side, all smiles, and says, "And I'm one of the few." Willow has to spoil her fun and pull Buffy aside, telling her she can't go all Slayer on him.
- Call Back: Oz mentions how a cheerleader trophy's eyes appear to follow him around the room.
- Cat Fight
Willow: Great. I'll give Xander a call. What's his number? Oh, yeah, 1-800-I'm-Dating-A-Skanky-Ho. |
- Caught in a Snare: Buffy gets caught in Cain's net trap.
- Clothing Damage: We hear (but not see) some tearing sounds as Oz transforms.
- Coincidental Broadcast: This one via car radio.
- Comically Missing the Point: Xander uses his "hyena-sense" to work out who the werewolf is, and realises the answer is right in front of him. Oz looks alarmed as he's standing before Xander, who says...it's Larry!
- Delinquent: It appears not all of Buffy's bad reputation is from her Slayer activities.
Willow: There is one name that keeps getting spit out. Aggressive behavior, run-ins with authorities, about a screenful of violent incidents. |
- Distracted By The Smoochies: Buffy and Giles are patrolling the local Make-Out Point.
Giles: (quietly) Anything yet? |
- Evil Poacher / Straw Misogynist: Cain
- Fantastic Aesop: Werewolves are related to male behaviour...somehow.
- First Willow Kissage: Willow complains that she's not getting any smoochies from Oz; at the end of the episode she takes the initiative and kisses him herself.
- Fridge Logic: Where exactly did Oz wake up the first two times, that didn't arouse his suspicions?
- Getting Crap Past the Radar
Willow: But I guess none of that means anything, because instead of looking up names with me, here you are, all alone in your house, doing nothing but yourself! |
Buffy: What guy could resist your Willow charms? |
- IKEA Weaponry / Tranquillizer Dart: The tranquilizer rifle.
- Improvised Weapon: Xander stakes Vampire Theresa with an easel.
- It's Probably Nothing / Terror at Make-Out Point: Cordelia is clearly not Genre Savvy. Hearing strange noises while making out with your boyfriend in the woods -- it's obviously a monster!
- I Resemble That Remark
Xander: I just don't trust Oz with her [Willow]. I mean, he's a senior, he's attractive -- okay, maybe not to me, but -- and he's in a band. And we know what kind of element that attracts. |
Larry: Man! Oz, I would love to get me some of that Buffy and Willow action, if you know what I mean. |
- Last-Second Word Swap: Cordy is clearly more 'experienced' than Xander.
Cordelia: Excuse me? We didn't come here to talk about Willow. We came here to do things I can never tell my father about because he still thinks I'm a... good girl. |
- Master of the Mixed Message: Xander and Oz, according to their girlfriends.
- Mistaken for Gay: Inverted, then played straight, when Xander accuses Jerk Jock Larry of harboring a secret (he thinks he's a werewolf), and Larry comes out to him. Since Xander had tried to sympathize by saying he "had been there" (when he was possessed by a hyena), Larry then thought Xander was also gay.
- Even better, at this point Whedon still hadn't decided on whether to make Xander or Willow gay, and if he had picked Xander, this was going to be Foreshadowing.
- Mr. Exposition: Guess who.
Oz: I spoke to Giles. He said I'll be okay. I just have to lock myself up around the full moon. Only he used more words than that. And a globe. |
- Name of Cain: By killing werewolves Cain is also a killer of human beings.
- No Except Yes
Giles: Let's not jump to any conclusions. |
- The Not-Secret: After realising he's a werewolf, and that he'd been bitten earlier by his cousin Jordy, Oz gets on the phone.
Aunt Maureen? Hey, it's me. Um, what? Oh! It's, uh... actually it's healing okay. That's pretty much the reason I called. Um, I wanted to ask you something. Is Jordy a werewolf? Uh-huh. And how long has that been going on? Uh-huh. What? No, no reason. Um... Thanks. Yeah, love to Uncle Ken. |
- Not What It Looks Like: Giles is indignant when Cain assumes he's out in the woods with Buffy for some underage nookie.
- Nightmare Fetishist
Giles: Yes, I must admit I, I am intrigued. Werewolves, it's... it's one of the classics. I'm sure my books and I are in for a fascinating afternoon. (leaves) |
- Oblivious Mockery: Cain tells Giles he looks like someone auditioning for the job of librarian.
- One Dialogue, Two Conversations: The morning after Buffy finds out Oz is a werewolf and Xander discovers Larry is gay.
Xander: This is all so weird. I mean, how are we supposed to act when we see him? |
- Profiling: Spoofed when Willow determines the most likely werewolf candidate is Buffy due to her history of violence.
- Rise from Your Grave: Theresa turns during her wake and rises out of her coffin not shortly after Buffy and Xander come to examine her body.
- Saying Too Much: Both Played for Laughs and Played for Drama.
Willow: I don't want to be the only girl in school without a real boyfriend. (reaction Buffy) Oh, I'm such an idiot. I'm sorry. I-I shouldn't even be talking about... Do you want me to go away? |
- Scare Chord: "Why so jumpy, Larry?"
- Shaped Like Itself: Loads of this.
Willow: Well, last night was the night before the full moon, traditionally known as... 'the night before the full moon.' |
- A Shared Suffering: Cordelia and Willow bond by griping about their boyfriends. Xander is justifiably nervous.
- Ship Tease: Buffy gives Xander a long hug after he saves her life. Given that Angel is out of the picture, Xander is clearly hoping this will lead to something more, but Buffy just walks away.
- Shoot the Messenger: Theresa's death and turning was meant as a form of this to Buffy.
- Shout-Out: Xander and Cordelia are attacked by the Monster of the Week while making out in a car, in true horror movie tradition.
- Shrinking Violet: Theresa. Averted with Willow who's starting to get more assertive about what she wants.
- Silver Bullet: Cain is shown casting his own bullets.
- Special Effect Failure: The werewolf suit has been described as "looking like a gay possum."
- Staking the Loved One: Angelus turns a schoolmate of Buffy's, Theresa, into a vampire, knowing that she'll be forced to stake her when she goes to examine the corpse.
- Stating the Simple Solution
Coach: Sunnydale is becoming more dangerous all the time. And a full moon like tonight tends to bring out the crazies, but with some simple basics of self-defense each of you can learn how to protect yourself. |
- The Stoic: Oz upon realising he's a werewolf. "Huh!"
- Stuffed Into the Fridge: Theresa is a previously unseen "friend of Buffy's" introduced just so Angelus can turn her into a vampire to mess with Buffy's head. She even wears a red blouse!
- Super Strength: Buffy bends Cain's double-barreled rifle with her bare hands. Cain wisely decides not to make an issue of it.
- Super Window Jump: The werewolf escaping from the Bronze.
- Suspiciously Specific Denial: Buffy notices Larry is acting strangely.
Xander: What, it's not okay for one guy to like another guy just because he happened to be in the locker room with him when absolutely nothing happened and I thought I told you not to push? |
- Took a Level in Badass: First Xander, then Willow end up saving Buffy.
- Took a Level In Kindness: Larry accepts his gayness and stops acting like a Jerkass.
- What the Hell, Hero?: Cain tries to pull this on Buffy claiming she lets more people die then she does to save them.