Oz, Don't You Love Us?

Because we choose to remember the happier times

Episode 4.6: Wild at Heart. Original Airdate 11.9.99

"Oz finds himself unable to control his attraction to Veruca, a sexy singer who just happens to be a werewolf."

Zelda's Thoughts:

• Actual quotation from me as the episode loaded: "No! Noooo! Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!"
• Poor Buffy's puns go unappreciated.
• Spike's back! To make villain speeches until nope oops abducted by the Initiative. And we laughed so much.
• I'm going to keep tracking Willow's pink sweaters because I cannot let go.

#9

• AHAHHA GILES IN THE BRONZE I LOVE IT.
• "I'm ... down with the new music." Poor Giles.
• For the record, Giles is looking pretty attractive right now as they all mock him.
• Willow, grabbing Oz's hand territorially while he watches Veruca sing, STOP IT'S SO SAD.
• Buffy's in good observant friend mode, seeing that there's a problem, trying to help distract Oz.
• GODDAMMIT SHOW WHY ARE YOU GIVING US CUTE OZ AND WILLOW IN BED WHEN YOU KNOW WHAT YOU'RE PLANNING TO DO TO US.
• So Willow's going to a Wicca group thing tonight ... but we don't see it. Does that mean we actually miss Willow and Tara's first meet?
• "Bring them up with one of the TAs" ONE of the TAs? There's more than Riley?
• Aw Willow, both jealous and thrilled for Buffy's academic success.
• GO AWAY, VERUCA.
• Ugh it's so awkward. Veruca is awful. Poor Willow trying to follow the conversation.
• And then Oz bails. STOP IT, OZ.
• Parking lot! Do a shot.
• TAWIST! Two werewolves! No waiting!
• TAWIST! Veruca's the other wolf!
• Sorry guys, I'm just trying to distract from my despair.
• Gosh, that was lucky Veruca was able to find matching underwear and bra that fit while she and Oz pilfer other people's laundry.
• Veruca, you are wrongface about this "wolf all the time" nonsense. I'm just saying, if you're a wolf only three nights a month, and human the rest of the time, I'm gonna go with the majority of the time wins for identity.
• She has the same "we're better than human" arrogance that Faith had.
• Heh the conversation of Walsh telling Riley is well-cut so we don't see that she was probably telling Riley it was wolves and switched to wild dog when Buffy showed up. I SEE WHAT YOU DO, SHOW.
• Oh Willow no please don't it makes me sad.
• Also Oz it would be super helpful if you were honest right about now. I get that you're scared, but this moment here is when you decided to not save the relationship. Willow probably would have eventually forgiven werewolf cheating, since he was in wolf-mode at the time, but this next night, since he didn't tell her, since he invites Veruca to his cell and has more of the sex, that's a choice he made, and with it he threw away the relationship. Even though he's the one who officially breaks it off two days later, he threw it away in this moment.
• Xander, with the good advice - ask Oz about it. It's too late, but good for Xander again (HI DANIEL HI)
• OZ WHY ARE YOU LYING TO BUFFY. WEREWOLVES ARE DANGEROUS.
• I'm sure Oz thought this was a good plan, but I'm also very sure he's deliberately not thinking about the other part of his motivation - he is attracted to Veruca, and this is a way for him to cheat without thinking of it as cheating, since it's as the wolf. But guess what, Oz, it's still cheating.
• Nooooooooo Willow my heart.
• Alison Hannigan has the biggest saddest cryingest eyes in the history of television.
• And Veruca's not the least bit guilty or embarrassed, because she thinks she's above human morality.
• "But you did! You coulda told somebody!"
• "I knew, you jerk."
• "I know how it feels. I remember." // "What happened with Xander, it doesn't compare. Not with what you and I had. Not with whatever you've been doing with her."
• I'm too sad to even yell about doing a shot about the parking lot graveyard oh oops.
• Aw I like Riley right now hey. That was nice of him to save Willow and tell her nothing was worth hurting herself over.
• Fucking Veruca. I hate you so much. It's partly the actress's fault, in all honesty. The only fleshing out of not-mustache-twirling villainness we get, is her superiority complex mentioned above, but when we get to her actual attack on Willow, she's just full on evil.
• CGI, you are not good and you are distracting from good episode. 

The Green Screen means something's about to change

• God, poor Willow. Oz saved her from Veruca, but in his feral state, he would have attacked Willow too. This is so sad, you guys.
• Oh good, Buffy is finally telling Giles about the commandos.
• So the continuing question I have, since Oz is the one to ultimately do the leaving, rather than Willow telling him to go (she in fact begs him to stay), is would Willow have forgiven him? How long would it have taken? He hurt her deeply, and she points out it's way worse than when she hurt him by kissing Xander. Would they have been able to reconcile if he had stayed? Or would she have broken up with him? I seriously don't know.
• "That's your solution?" // "That's my decision." // "Don't I get any say in this?"
• SHE'S CRYING AGAIN, NOT OKAY
• As exit episodes go, this is one of the best written ones, but THIS IS SUPER NOT OKAY WITH ME.
• They even do that last moment of manipulation. He looks back at the house, we cut to her crying, and you think for one second, maybe just one second, that he's about to come back in the door. And then he drives away.

Daniel's Thoughts:

• Ha! Sunnydale University is so crowded that it’s hard to find a good place to slay.
• Spike posturing and then getting cut off by…tasering…is kind of awesome.
• Is Buffy drinking beer? I'd consider it a slap in the last episode's face if we actually got to see what was in the cup.  Could be soda...
• Giles is a Scooby in his mid-life crisis-ness
• First mention of the wicca group that we’ll only see a couple of times…
• I love when Willow gets excited about academics.  And Alyson plays it so well.
• You know what sucks in TV shows and movies?  When women are like, “I love to eat! I hate chicks who diet and stuff”.  Except they’re skinny and the types that actually can eat whatever they want without consequences.  The same is true for the men who are like, "I love women who eat and don't diet!" except the women they're talking about are either supermodels or Gwyneth Paltrow. [I'm ... confused that this is Daniel's rant and not mine. - Z]
• Oz has to bail…even though he had lunch plans with Willow.  Why? Just to make it awkward with Willow and Veruca.
• Where is that cage?  Sunnydale U parking lot?
• Veruca is a werewolf! What a surprise!
• Oz has got some pretty sick abs.
• Wild dogs?  If she’s the leader of the Initiative – wouldn't she have a better idea of what she was dealing with?  Z has a theory up there but...I'm not sure I buy it.
• Oh, Giles.  He should…open up a magic shop or something.
• It’s nice that Oz has welding skills.
• Veruca sings like she’s constipated.
• While I think this story line is valid for conflict, I think it’s lame for an exit.
• And its also lame for Oz to bring up the thing with Xander.
• Poor Willow.  She does crying well.
• Riley saved the day!
• “Oz, now may be a good time for your trademark stoicism.”  Mmm hmm.
• I don’t like Willow beginning to use magics irresponsibly.
• There’s just really absolutely nothing to like about Veruca.  She’s just awful.
• You know the transformation is coming when you see the bad green screen…
• The continuity on this show is fantastic.  The writers obviously see and study their coworkers’ episodes.  I love that Buffy brings up the military guys she saw on Halloween.
• Again – lame reason to leave. “The wolf is inside me all the time”.  Except this is the only real evidence of that.  What was I just saying about continuity?
• Bye, Oz , don’t forget to come back when your girlfriend realizes she’s a lesbian.

Favorite Lines:

Zelda: I don't have one. I'm too sad. Daniel suggested one from the alternate universe where Oz doesn't leave, so we're going with, "You're right, it's unfair of me to make all the decisions. I'm gonna stay here and meditate and whatnot and we're gonna try to work this out oops Tara's here."

Daniel: "People? Kind of an epidemic." ~Willow

Arc/Continuity Stuff:

• Recurring: Spike, commandos, fucking Veruca, Walsh, Riley
• Giles still has a TV - with rabbit ear antenna - but now he keeps it on his table so he can watch while he eats.
• Willow goes to her first college Wicca group meeting, but no sign of Tara yet.
• Oz refers to when Willow cheated on him with Xander.
• Willow continues her pattern of using magic to solve her emotional distress, with her attempted spell against Veruca (the first time was trying that delusting spell with Xander).
• Buffy refers to her heartbreak coping mechanisms of running away and going to Hell.

Stats:

Oz's Hair - red

Dead Humans - 0

Dead Undeads - 2

Giles Unconscious - 0

Giles Cleans His Glasses - 0

Buffy Breaks a Door - 0

Evil Reveal - 0

Unevil Reveal - 0 

Werewolf Reveal - (because it doesn't count as her being evil til she tries to kill Willow) 1 (Veruca)

Shenanigans Called - 0

Apocalypse Called - 0