It's a Babble-Fest

Never. Sleep. Again.

Episode 4.10: Hush. Original Airdate 12.14.99

"A group of murderous creatures straight out of a fairytale steal the voices of Sunnydale."

Zelda's Thoughts:

• omg you guys omg it's time for Hush.
• I'm kind of afraid my commentary here will just be me going "IT'S SO GOOD. IT'S SO CREEPY. CAMDEN TOY, YOU GUYS."
• aaaaaaaaaaaaaaah
• seriously i'm so excited
• "Talking about communication. talking about language. Not the same thing."
• Even though it's a dream, this is the first time I believe Maggie Walsh as an interesting leader and a teacher.
• Buffy's dreams are awesome. They state our theme, they're kinda sexy, and then SCARY DEMON PROPHETIC DREAM.
• So their first onscreen kiss is just a dream. But they'll have their first real kiss this ep, too, so it's okay.
• I love the nursery rhyme. It's such a good comprehensively-constructed villain, you know? The Gentlemen. It's not actually a real fairy tale, but it seems like it could be.
• Willow's wearing a pink sweater because she enjoys my pain.

Pink Sweater #11

• Willow ships Buffy/Riley. That much is clear.
• Petroleum.
• I love that Giles with a chainsaw is in the credits. So very much.
• So I guess Spike is allowed to wander around unchained now? How come? He tried to escape last episode and was tied up again at the end of it. 
• "Thank you for knocking." Giles, this has happened like 12 times. Lock your damn door.
• "Oh, we're not your friends. Go on."
• "Oh, you mean an orgasm friend?" // "Yes, that's exactly the most appalling thing you could have said."
• bicker bicker bicker
• aaaaaaaaand pretentious wicca-ness. So my question - this isn't Willow's first time going to a wicca group, right? She mentioned going to one when Oz was still here. Did she just decide to wait a bit to bring up doing actual magic instead of bake sales? Also was Tara not at the first few meetings?
• Such a weak putdown, but somehow amazing in its stupidness: "Oh yeah, then we can all get on our broomsticks and fly around on our broomsticks"
• Tara, girl, your hair. What even is it.
• "Bunch of wanna-blessed-bes"
• I feel like Buffy's and Willow's dorm room gets bigger every time we're here. Did they always have a sink? I definitely just saw a sink.
• Oh hey. Riley in a tank with glistening sweat, I can get behind this plan.
• "Yet we must Clark Kent our way through the dating scene, never to use our unfair advantage. Thank god we're pretty." Forrest is not a great actor, but he gets some good lines. [And yet, still a billion times better than Graham -D]
• meh, no one in the Initiative is a great actor.
• Spike-as-Anya. One of the best things ever. "Xander, don't you care about me? We never talk.
• I love the clocktower set. I love the tiny voice-stealing box. I love every fucking thing about the design of this episode. ALSO THE GENTLEMEN BEST MAKEUP AND BEST PHYSICAL PERFORMANCE EVER.
• Seriously even the hands are perfect.  ---->
  
• So why is Buffy brushing her teeth in the bathroom sink if there's a sink in her dorm room I KNOW THERE IS I SAW IT. That's it, I'm officially calling a shenanigan.
• The quietly unnerving music under Buffy and Willow realizing their voices are gone is amazing. The entire soundtrack to this episode is amazing.
• I warned you my notes this time would just be me gushing.
• Also I adore that they got away with Spike flipping someone off on tv because he did it British style.
• Oh hey momentarily shirtless Riley. You can stay. No, take your shirt back off.
• Shenanigans! Forrest writes the note "It's all over town." How would he know that? They're going down the secret elevator, which is located in their fraternity house.
• Shenanigans! While the "In case of emergencies use stairway" is a great sightgag ... does that mean there's a staircase down to the Initiative that DOESN'T have the same kind of voice ID thing that the elevator does? Cuz ... isn't that kind of ... not secure?
• Okay back to enjoying the show.
• Anya's face when Xander jumps up immediately when Buffy and Willow enter Giles's (unlocked) apartment.

• Olivia drinks all the booze.
• You know, the Scoobies are pretty good at finding ways to communicate with each other sans talking. Because they are awesome and I love them.
• Aw look at all the chaos on the one block of outdoor set they have. Oh show. Oh budget.
• I always wince when Buffy breaks that dude's wrist. It's just all crunchy.
• See? When they stop talking they start communicating. Or snogging. Or. y'know, both.
• Oh god the shot of their feet just floating out that doorway goddamn these guys are creepy. Seriously. Best one-off villain ever. I've been thinking about the Angels on Doctor Who lately. They're so amazingly scary in Blink, but I grow more frustrated every time they return. I realize it's much more a Doctor Who thing, to have recurring villainy things like that than it is a Buffy thing, and I'm kind of grateful. Buffy has recurring vamps, sure, but most of the other types of demons either don't recur at all or DO recur, but as specific characters, specific personalities (Anya, D'Hoffryn, Turok-Han). I get that they're different shows. I'm just saying. Buffy is the best.
• Poor random guy getting killed. What an awful way to go.
• Olivia's a great artist. Giles should have had her draw his overhead drawings.
• Giles's lecture. Best sequence ever or best sequence ever?

• And we don't even see one of the bloody slides since he changes it offscreen. Giles, you psycho.
• And a handjob joke. Seriously, how the hell did Joss get away with the stuff in this episode?
• I love how mad Buffy is about Giles's portrait of her.

• Like seriously. He didn't need to draw her. That could have just been text. But he thought the presentation would go better if he drew on each card. So he drew Buffy. But like seriously wow he's a bad artist.
• I will say, Tara's starting off well. She's not passive - she's trying to solve the problem, looking up books of spells, looking up how to reach out to Willow, whom she now knows also does real spells.
• AAAAAAAAAH THE GENTLEMEN ARE AFTER TARA RUN TARA.
• See, now that Willow's stronger, she can't be our damsel in danger anymore. So we have Tara.
• I wonder what the significance is of the handmen of the Gentlemen - the scabby bandaged fellows in strait jackets. I wonder if they have a separate name.
• Ouch, we hurt Willow's ankle there when we fell on her.
• aaaaaaand oops Buffy and Riley know about each other now whaaaaat
• Such a good act break. Damn this episode is awesome.
• I guess the Kiss the Librarian mug is Spike's for always now - he was drinking out of it last episode too. Also I'm guessing Giles will never want to use it again ever.
• And then Anya makes a sex gesture with her fingers SERIOUSLY HOW DID NONE OF THE CENSORS CATCH ANY OF THIS.
• Amber Benson is so much more attractive than they ever let Tara be.
• Oh hey lurv feels.
• So I haven't really been snarking on Tara yet, even though I've mentioned before that I'm not a huge fan. She's fine in this episode and I still love the idea of her. I just don't love the performance.
• I wonder what would have happened if the Gentlemen had succeeded in getting seven hearts. World domination? A world without shrimp? Everyone starts singing their feelings?
• Mmm I take back my no-snarking-on-Tara comment. Her stuttering is badly done. And I just don't think she's an interesting actress.
• Tara: "No, you are." Daniel, his voice catching "Oh my god." he's really cute, you guys.
• Aw Giles. I'm sorry. He can tell Olivia probably won't be coming back.
• "I guess we have to talk."//  "I guess we do." silence
• BAM! Mr. Whedon, that episode was awesome.

Daniel's Thoughts:

• OMG.  I’m so excited for this episode!
• Andy Hallett, of Angel is an extra in this scene!

He's two behind Buffy

• Buffy, I’ve had this exact dream.  In the front of a classroom…with Riley…  I won’t elaborate more.
• Creepy girl and nursery rhymes = episode potential.
• OMG.  The gentlemen! SCARY.
• Well Willow seems better than last episode.  She’s teasing Buffy and now following her to make sure that her friend is happy. It’s so cute. ;)
• Petroleum.  That’s a great cover, Buffy.
• At least grading papers is a better excuse, Buff.  And he didn’t even question your whole crude oil excuse.
• Amber Benson!  First episode!
• Why is Spike not tied up?
• “All you care about is lots of orgasms.”  ANYA!
• These Wicca women are hilarious.  Especially the lead girl – she’s so good at being a douche.
• Mmm, Riley.  Mmm, Sweaty Riley.
• Forrest: “Thank god we’re pretty.”  Heh.
• And thus starts the Xander/Spike slash.

Note: I did not make this and I do not ship it.

• Olivia! The orgasm friend!
• Man, the gentlemen are so freaking scary.  And it’s the actors that really seal it.  The way they move, etc.
• And the silence begins…
• Why is that girl so upset that she can’t talk?  I mean, it’s just the beginning…for all she knows, she has a bug or something.
• This is such a great acting exercise for the actors.
• Such a good scene with the telephone – they’re so used to doing these things that they don’t think before they pick it up.  Texting would be good right now.
• I love how they’re disgusted by the guy selling message boards and…then proceed to buy them.
• I don’t understand why everyone’s so upset about this…I’d love if everyone just stopped talking.  Amirite?
• And all the creative ways to communicate – it’s kind of amazing.
• First kiss between Riley & Buffy because they stopped talking!
• I wonder how much Olivia knows about Giles and Sunnydale.  We never really get to explore her. It's "The Freshman," where she doesn't see anything, this, and then it's only Dream Olivia in "Restless".
• Man, they are so freaking scary.
• Giles is so proud of his presentation.
• I love that Anya brought popcorn.
• This: 

You can't take your eyes off it, can you?

• The buffy pic that Giles draws is awesome.  Buffy getting offended is even awesomer.
• Giles drew her with a  crossbow and now she’s carrying one to patrol.  That’s so cute!  Power of suggestion!  Not that it’ll do her any good.
• Tara and Willow will make a good couple because they share the same awful fashion sense.  At least they can share clothes.
• Those dorm doors should have peepholes.
• I like the idea of the gentlemen having those weird helpers.  It’s something Buffy can fight.
• Love the moment of recognition between Buffy and Riley.  So good.
• Is this the one with the misunderstanding, Jack, Janet & Chrissy?
• Though – it’s really cute that Xander would fight Spike for Anya.
• Also this: 

• How did you two meet?  We were in a wicca group together and then fought off monsters with our psychic energy.  We held hands and it was all awesome.  Meet-Cute!
• Nice electro-gun, Riley!
• Buffy's scream is kinda chilling.
• “I’m nothing special.”//”No, you are.”  OMG, Tara is so in love.
• Ahh, I guess Olivia did know a little bit, though she didn’t believe it until now.
• “I guess we have to talk.”  “I guess we do.”  Nothing.  Brilliant end.

Favorite Lines:

Zelda: "Can't even shout. Can't even cry. The Gentlemen are coming by. Looking in windows, knocking on doors. They need to take seven and they might take yours. Can't call to mom. Can't say a word. You're gonna die screaming but you won't be heard."

Daniel: “All you care about is lots of orgasms.” - Anya

**Note: Despite being a mostly silent episode, there were still so many brilliant lines to choose from.

Arc/Continuity Stuff:

Recurring: Walsh, Riley, Olivia, Anya, Forrest

First appearance: Tara

Buffy and Riley's first kiss.

Also, now Buffy knows Riley's a commando and Riley knows Buffy's a ... something fighty.

Tara inherited her witchy power from her mom.

Stats:

Anya's Hair - short and brown

Dead Humans - 2 (we know they collect more hearts, but we're only counting the deaths we see)

Dead Undeads - 7 (same for this)

Dead Flashbacks - 0

Giles Unconscious - 0

Giles Cleans His Glasses - 0

Buffy Breaks a Door - 0

Evil Reveal - 0

Unevil Reveal - 0

Shenanigans Called - 3

Apocalypse Called - 0