Episode 2.12: Bad Eggs. Original Airdate 1.12.98
"Buffy and her friends encounter even more trouble than expected when the eggs they are given in health class turn out to be prehistoric parasites that take over their lives."
Zelda's Thoughts:
- "But a thin streetwalker!" The Joyce/Buffy rapport in the mall is adorbs.
- Haha Buffy getting rid of the schmuckbait by pretending to be his girlfriend. Hilariocity.
- "This ain't over." *disappears in a puff of cartoon smoke* Well said. Wasn't that well said?
- So is this mall in Sunnydale proper? Or out of town limits? Our mall was in the next town over. And we didn't have a Starbucks. Or a whole lot of town. But we did have a university. Quite a good one. With possibly a covert government demon-fighting organization run in the bowels of campus. Basically I grew up in Sunnydale.
- "Saving the world from vampires?" Aw Buffy just came out.
- Okay, so I've been reading other Buffy-watching blogs lately and the consensus seems to be that Xander is completely awful. I know Daniel won't argue. And actually, this response really surprised me at first. Yes, Xander is not the best thing ever, but I always just sort of accepted him, as is. With his flaws and such. And so I didn't really question his behavior outside of "he's a hormone-driven teenage boy." And I'm still willing to give him some slack, because I don't hate him. But watching his closet scene with Cordelia, I have to say: This coupling is gross. He doesn't want her to talk, she doesn't want to see his face. I'm glad they end up liking each other later, because right now this is just uncomfortable.
- Willow has multiple - MULTIPLE - fluffy pink sweaters. I just want to point this out:
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| I'm Willow and I've seen the softer side of Sears |
- We did the egg thing in middle school, not high school. Did you guys do the egg thing? But they drained our eggs so they were hollow shells.
- "My egg is Jewish." I love ya, Willow.
- Xander thinks the egg experiment is pointless. Because he is a stupid hormone-driven teenage boy.
- "...Why do you all have eggs?" I love ya, too, Giles.
- Buffy named her egg Eggbert. I want to be her friend.
- Props to SMG for not giggling as the tentacles get all up in her face.
If SMG was ever in a blooper, this might be one - SHENANIGANS that Buffy doesn't get possessed. Unless that tentacles scene was supposed to be a prophetic dream? Unclear.
- I mean, cowboy vamps are entertaining and all, but do they have an actual point?
- An egg is behind Giles's books! Like Easter!
- "I resent that! Or possibly thank you."
- "Presumed dead." // "Presumed by whom?" // "By me!" At first I was charmed by Cordelia wanting there to be a mystery for the scoobies to get on. But then it was actually about making out with Xander in a closet.
- "Are they getting weirder? Have you noticed the weirdness of them?" // "They're weird."
- "Angel, when I look into the future, all I see is you. All I want is you." We'll revisit this "future" thing more next season.
- Gah. This all reminds me of when you find a roach in the apartment, go get something to smash it with, and when you turn around it's gone, but you can't relax because THERE'S A GIANT ROACH IN YOUR APARTMENT. Except it doesn't want to possess you. Daniel had this thought at the same time. #NewYorkers
- It has blue blood. Cool.
- So Buffy calls Willow about her egg. She should call Xander and Cordy too, no? No, apparently. Oh, she did call Giles at least.
- Cordy's backpack is a bear. I'm so excited.
- I'm sure the soundtrack here is supposed to be epic and scary but I kept laughing and making up lyrics.
- Shenanigans - Giles turns a civilian (Joyce) when she shows up. Cordy and Willow just knock Buffy and Xander out? And leave eggs with them. How come Giles had a bezoar all ready and wriggling?
- It upsets me so much when Giles is evil. This is like that dream in "When She Was Bad" all over again.
- They're really incompetent at digging. I guess they have to be gentle to not damage all the eggs or the giant sweaty eye thing?
- I'm glad they gave us Jonathan. Sure, he's almost always a victim of some magical nonesuch, but it gives a face to the rest of the extras in the school. Also it means a really nice payoff in Earshot and The Prom. He's been there the whole time.
- Man, for a group of drones being controlled by one central mind, this is a really inefficient operation.
- Ah, so the Gorches function to just make things inconvenient for the Buffy. Though Lyle Gorch is fighting on Buffy's side for like 2 seconds. It's cute.
- Buffy killed the giant sweaty eye. Buffy emerges from underground covered in tar-y blood. Lyle runs away. That's the math.
- Poor Buffy. She saved the day, and she's still in trouble with mom.
Daniel's Thoughts:
- What mom takes her teenage daughter to the mall and only buys things for herself? Worst. Mom. Ever.
- Xander is the grossest gross of grossdom. "This would work a lot better for me if you didn't talk." Ew. Just ew. It wasn't even as if she was saying anything that would warrant that kind of misogynistic gross gross crap. And I partly blame line delivery because he could have said it in a 'joking' funny way...but he sounded like a complete ass. And people wonder why I hate Xander.
- Hey, I never had to do that egg carrying thing! *jealous*
- I like when Willow remembers her Judaism. It doesn't happen often.
- So it seems the first time the eggs attack, they just make you...sleepy?
- Except - SHENANIGANS - that's not always the case. It's very inconsistent. Joyce and Jonathan both get possessed the first time.
- "It's like a shortcut, when you're running a race." // "That would also be cheating."
- Zelda and I thought the same thing: All these Angel/Buffy smooches are leading up to "Surprise." Good job, show.
- Egg creature is gross!
- "It's an egg. It doesn't emote."
- Xander littered! Another reason to...aw, you get it.
- Worst. Mom. Ever. Again. Kids are burdens! Such burdens! Where's the schnapps? Someone get Joyce some schnapps!
- There are weird different levels of possession acting. Some act like there's no one around and they're sleep walking. Others seem amazingly cognizant. Very inconsistent story...
- And OK Shenanigans!, the egg creature is hatching out of Cordelia's backpack and attaching to her spine...so...why doesn't she react at all to this? When it happens to Jonathan and Joyce, they freak out.
- Giles has an egg creature all ready for Joyce - so why don't Cordy/Willow have them for Buffy/Xander?
- They're all so fake digging!
- Awww, see, as Dru will point out in a couple of seasons, Vampires can love. I like that Lyle is so protective over his brother.
- And another Xander hate: I really hate that Xander is so reactive by hitting Cordelia so quickly. And actually seems happy to do it.
- Ok, y'all - sorry for the Debbie Downer post on my end. There are so many inconsistencies with this episode and so much Xander hate. Suspending disbelief is fine - but when the episode lore contradicts itself, that's where you need to start from the drawing board.
Crossfire!
Buffy: And I'd say he found something.
D (mockingly): I'd say something found him.
Xander: I'd say something found him.
D: Shut up Xander.
Z: If you say it first, you don't get to say shut up to Xander. I get to say shut up to you.
Favorite Lines:
Zelda: "A bozo! Not a bozo." - Buffy
Daniel: "Why don't you just go to 'Muumuus are us?'" - Buffy
90s Factoid:
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| Double Earings on a boy? So 90s |
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| "I killed my Giga Pet. Literally, I sat on it and it broke." |
Arc/Continuity Stuff:
- First appearance of Lyle & Tector Gorch.
- They mispronounce Angelus too. All Spike's fault.
- Vampires can't have children. Except when they can.
- Sunnydale High has a security guard that stalks the halls of the school at night.
- First time Willow is "evil."
- Jonathan! He's our resident victim, isn't he.
Stats:
Voiceover - Giles
Dead Humans - 0
Dead Undeads - 2
Giles Unconscious - 1
Giles Cleans His Glasses - 1
Buffy Breaks a Door - 1*
Evil Reveal - 6 (Gorch, Eggbert, Mr. Whitmore, Willow, Cordelia, Giles)
Unevil Reveal - 0
Shenanigans Called -4
*Stat updated. Thanks Loopty Lue for pointing it out!
I really think Xander's comment about not wanting Cordelia to talk was more about the fact they still didn't really like each other that much and less about misogyny. Everyone always reaches so much when trying to criticize Xander.
ReplyDeleteWhile I agree that people reach when criticizing their least favorite characters, I stand by my statement. Xander's quote is simple: "Shut up. I don't care about you at all. I'm just using you as an object."
DeleteAgain, the whole meaning of the line could have been changed with a better actor making a choice and trying to find some sort of depth and different levels but Nicholas Brandon takes the line and runs it straight into the ground which will become apparent every time he has a love interest. There's no conflict there. Only a misogynist hatred.
Charisma, as Cordelia, at least attempts to find different levels in her deliveries that show her struggles about falling for such a geek. The line preceding his worrying about class shows this. And then she only becomes a bitch once he says what he has to say.
This is further evidenced later, when he doesn't even hesitate to hit her when she's possessed. And there's a definite trace of glee in it.
Yeah, I think that's total bs.
Delete"Okay, so I've been reading other Buffy-watching blogs lately and the consensus seems to be that Xander is completely awful. I know Daniel won't argue. And actually, this response really surprised me at first. Yes, Xander is not the best thing ever, but I always just sort of accepted him, as is. With his flaws and such. And so I didn't really question his behavior outside of "he's a hormone-driven teenage boy." And I'm still willing to give him some slack, because I don't hate him. But watching his closet scene with Cordelia, I have to say: This coupling is gross. He doesn't want her to talk, she doesn't want to see his face. I'm glad they end up liking each other later, because right now this is just uncomfortable."
ReplyDeleteI'm right there with you. Growing up with the show, Xander was always my favourite character, after Buffy of course. I was shocked when the seemingly major concensus was that he was loathed as a character. I liked him and still do even though he can be a dick sometimes. I never liked the Xander/Cordelia pairing, in season two at least. They grew on me in season 3 until...spoilery things happened.
Besides which, there's a way better reason to hate Xander forever in Becoming Part 2.
Delete[uhoh] I still didn't hate him then. I was one of very few people, if not the only person who kind of cheered. I was so sick of Angel and to be honest, I was on Xander's side with his opinion on the whole Angel/Angelus argument. The dude was evil and I could see Buffy holding back if she thought there was a chance she could get her boyfriend back.
DeleteI will admit that the way he said it and misrepresented Willow was stupid and mean and that really should have been addressed in the show. Well, addressed more in depth and way earlier than a throwaway-ish line in season 7. Anyways, while the way he went about it was stupid, I could always understand it.
I just find the betrayal of lying one of the more unforgivable behaviors of a "friend," and yes I fully admit to being influenced in that opinion by my own baggage. While I can sort of understand it, I'm in no way okay with it, because it means he didn't trust Buffy to be the hero we all know she is and make the difficult choice. THIS WOMAN DIED TO STOP THE MASTER. Trust her to make the choice.
DeleteI cheered so hard when it got brought up again in "Selfless," I can't even tell you.
Anyway, we'll get into that in a few weeks. :)
I can understand that. I think in his own way he was trying to protect her so that she would give it her all and not have to die again but that's just me. It was awful for him to lie to her though.
DeleteI cheered when it got brought up again too but I kind of felt let down by how quickly it was glossed over and still not really resolved. It really needed resolving but you're right, we'll get to that eventually.
Trust her to make the choice.
DeleteBut she doesnt. She has numerous times and reasons to kill Angelus throughout his entire arc, but she doesnt. She holds back, in a moralistic way, everyone Angelus killed after she lets him go each time, is her fault. She doesn't do her duty and she lets innocent people die because she wants her boyfriend back. Which, for a normal person might be fine, but when your "The Slayer" or even if your some other super powered being with a duty, it is your responsibility to put the lives of innocent people above your own.
I have always assumed that she doesn't kill Angelus not because he's her boyfriend, but because she knows he's a champion. She knows how much good he's done, and how much could he could still do if he gets his soul back.
DeleteMuch in the same way she knows that Spike could be a good man in season 7. She's The Slayer, she knows stuff.
I understand the hate for Xander. Especially in the high school seasons. He's a jerk and very selfish. But he's also very loyal and brave. That's why *I* don't hate him.
ReplyDeleteHe has flaws just like everyone. He judges, he's rude, etc. But then again, so is everyone. I like that as the show progresses, he matures and grows up a lot. He can be annoying, but you can't deny that he's very brave and loyal, always jumping into the fight even though he's a completely normal guy.
*raises hand* Proud Xander-hater here. He has moments of awesomeness, but for the most part, he bugs me. And yeah, a lot of it is because of the way he treats women in general and Buffy in particular.
ReplyDeleteTHAT SAID... I don't think the "it would be better for me if you didn't talk" was indicative of woman-hating on Xander's part. I always took it as Cordy-hating (which is also a reason to hate Xander, imo). However, I am not the Feminism Spokesperson, so I can see where it could be construed in a grosser manner than just Xander being a dick to Cordy.
I think, in this scene anyway, there's grossness on both sides. He doesn't want her to talk, she doesn't want to see his face. They're both making out with someone they loathe, which is basically a bit of self-hatred. Happy fun times.
DeleteRight, it was mutual grossness. Fun!
DeleteI agree with Zelda, I hate it when Giles is evil or acting against Buffy's better interest! especially in Helpless. I was soo mad at him!!
ReplyDeleteAlso, Buffy breaks a door after her and Xander get locked in the Janitor's closet.
Whoops, thanks for the heads up! We'll adjust the stats accordingly.
DeleteI loved Xander, of course that was in part because massive crush, but I mean he's the only normal guy after this season. Giles and Willow get all magical, buffys slayer-y, spike and angel are vampires, Anya's an exdemon, Dawns a thing, tara's a witch. I mean as the only normal guy there he has no reason to be fighting evil with the rest of them. But because he knows it the right thing to do, he risks his life to do his part, and no one appreciates him(see Zeppo and related episodes). I mean he doesn't even get the cool gay storyline, which would have given Nicky Brendon a reason to exist in the fourth and 5th season. I mean willow already had the magic arc did she really need the lesbian thing too?
ReplyDelete