And Starring Amy Adams as Cousin Beth

Family

Episode 5.6: Family. Original Airdate 11.7.10




When relatives arrive in Sunnydale, to celebrate her birthday, Tara uses a magic spell on her friends to keep them from learning her "secret." Meanwhile, Glory unleashes a hoard of demons to hunt down Buffy.





Happy 100th Post!  Zelda and I would like to thank all our readers for following us, reading us, and sharing in our Buffy love.  To celebrate, here are a bunch of dancing gifs.

Zelda's Thoughts:

• "This is a very upsetting story." I use that a lot.
• "Yes, many dolphins at the pound."
• Willow and Tara cuteness.
• Aw Tara still doesn't feel like she belongs in the Scoobies.
• "You are. You're essential."
• I'm glad Buffy's grown up enough to at least tell Giles about Dawn, even if the rest of the Scoobies and Joyce (and Dawn) aren't clued in yet.
• "When [Hank] bailed on us, I remember Dawn cried for a week. Except she didn't. She wasn't there ..."
• Bless Buffy. She recognizes she has to take care of Dawn. She wants to take care of her. The monks did it right. Buffy is not only obligated to protect an innocent human, she's emotionally bound to this helpless teenager and will give up (as we'll see) everything to keep her.
• Giles: "Lots of pointing and scowling." *proceeds to point and scowl at Xander and Riley.*
• Awkward Tara is awkward.
• Ugh. Ben. Fuck off, Ben.
• Ah hey sneaky scene where Ben turns into Glory but we don't know it unless we know it!
• "I have a place in the world now. I'm part of the system. I'm a working gal!" Anya is wonderful. Also note thematic relevance to today's plot.
• Buffy, re: Tara's birthday party. "It's not the most thrilling event of the season." Buffy, come on, she's the only character on the show whose name isn't Buffy who gets to celebrate her birthday.
• "Your definition of narrow is impressively wide."
• They're kind of overpainting how much the Scoobies don't really understanding Tara, but it's mostly for the point that they will stand up for her against her awful family, because she's Willow's girlfriend and she is therefore family.
• "Tara, I just know she likes Willow, and she already has one of those."
• "Do something to work off the tension." Transition to Buffy and Spike fighting. Except it's actually Spike's fantasy while having sex with Harmony ewwwwwww.
• Also can we talk about Spike's fantasy is Buffy kicking the crap out of him?
• "I'm coming right - " // "Now!" I'm impressed they got away with that line.
• "I saw a really cute sweater at Bloomie's but I think I want me to have it." I have this problem at Christmas but with books.
• "I think you're both profoundly stupid."
• Ew I hate you Tara's brother. You're awful. Also why are you vaguely southern and Tara isn't? Just curious.
• Tara looks so scared. Either that or she's out of breath.
• Her stutter's back. Fuck you, Donny.
• No!!! Fuck you, Tara's dad too.
• Tara's family is awful. They haven't shown their full colors yet, I'm just preemptively hating them.
• BUT IT'S COUSIN BETH. IT'S AMY ADAMS.

• So I am curious why Cousin Beth is here. Like if this whole thing is about subjugating the women of the family with this lie, is Beth already of age or not yet? Also how exactly is said subjugation achieved? Like what exactly did they do to Tara's mom? I assumed it eventually ended with her dying, but like what actually did they do? Did they make her take "pills" that repressed her "demonness" or something and it eventually poisoned her to death? Did she die when she turned 20? (edit: no, because Tara was 17 when her mother died, per The Body) There's so much they don't ultimately tell us. I don't think she killed herself.
• "A lot of young people these days are experimenting with shortness." In this cast, I'd say Riley is the only one who's not.
• Sigh. The end of Buffy/Riley. I can see it. We all can.
• "I suppose you wanted me to see all these ... toys. You don't even try to hide it anymore." It's a metaphorrrrrrrrrrrr for gaaaaaaaaaaay.
• Poor Tara. Your father is the worst.
• "It doesn't feel evil ... sir."
• He's the worst.
• "If I had friends and they heard about this ..."
• Noooooooooooo Tara don't curse your friends!
• Why are we in Willy's place if he's not here? Sadface.
• Harmony wants to give a gift basket to demons who kill the Slayer. That's ... sweet?
• HI AMY ADAMS.

• SMG is all flexy flexy. I am not this flexy flexy. I guess we're not the same person after all. Even though we've both experimented with shortness.
• GASP! Willow opens a door to a bunch of demons and can't see them! This won't end well for our Scoobies!
• Buffy's Slayerhearing tells her danger is afoot!
• Seriously Buffy is the best, fighting invisible demons.
• Spike comes in for the fun, but then rolls his eyes and helps protect Buffy. His priorities are so beyond confused. I'd feel bad for him but meh.
• BEST SCENE IS ABOUT TO HAPPEN.
• "You want her, Mr. Maclay, you can go ahead and take her. You just gotta go through me."
• And Tara's face as she sees them all rise to her defense. It's beautiful.

• "Cept me."// "Cept Spike." // "I don't care what happens."
• "We are her blood kin. Who the hell are you?" // "We're family." I'm not crying you are.
• God how abusive was Tara's family? She's shaking when Donny steps closer to her
• And then Spike figures it out.
• And it matters here that Tara is not a demon, because demons are mostly evil in Sunnydale (less so in Los Angeles)
• DAWN GOT TARA A BROOM. And she looks so proud of her gift.
• Their outfits are so clashy I can't handle it. It's lucky they're being supercute right now.

Daniel's Thoughts:

• Tara-centered episode. Weird, since she’s recurring. Anya had a couple, sort of, while she was a guest star but never as a contract player until season 7.
• Miss Kitty!
• “Yes, many dolphins at the pound.” Hehehe.
• It’s interesting that they can show Tara and Willow in bed but can’t show them kiss yet.
• I’m so PROUD of Buffy for telling Giles right away about Dawn. And it is the same night because Buffy is in the same shirt as last episode.
• Established: Dad will never be an option.
• Hey, it's five time Oscar nominee, Amy Adams!!
• Anya’s entrance. Omg. She’s amazing. “Just a few days after we moved you in!” 
• Aww, Tara is so awkward.
• “That’s funny…if you’re a complete dork.”//”Then how come Xander didn’t laugh?” OMG, I want to see a Xander/Riley roadtrip.
• Ben has some amazing abs. And that’s all he’s good for.
• Ok, so I know Ben is Glory and the audience doesn’t know yet but I'm wondering if the writers or the director knew. The writer might have known because they’re in the same room together. But ten seconds after we see Ben, we see Glory. And the writer might know that but what bothers me is that Glory appears ten seconds later in a long black dress. Did she really get dressed that fast, run around the lockers. She can run fast…I just…It was such a quick scene, it may have made more sense if she had Ben’s scrubs on. But then he did take his shirt off. And she even had time to put on a necklace!  I'm not shenaniganing it, but I think it could have been done better.
• Anya, “Please come again for more purchases!” Heh.
• Anya is so excited about her job! She’s so sweet and funny.
• Cordelia mention!
• This is…it’s kinda mean girlish. The way Xander and Buffy are talking about Tara. I mean, I guess they’re trying – but they need to get to know their friend’s girlfriend. And what does Buffy know about Anya, for that matter? Get to know your friend’s mates, Buffy!
• Ugh,this obsession with Buffy, Spike. It’s just…gross.
• Tara’s brother is awful.
• Cousin Beth! Amy Adams!
• Story Idea: Anya’s great(x20) grandson comes to Sunnydale.  She's gotta have a relative somewhere. Maybe a granddad that got turned into a vampire?  
• NO! Don’t contact Graham, Riley! He will bring his boringness.
• Riley looks like he has the start of a mullet going…. 
• Our dorm doors locked automatically.
• Usually things happen to you [magically] when you turn 18 or 21, since they're numbers we know in America and other parts of the world as 'coming of age' ages...even though there's really not much of a justification for them beside the fact that This Is the Law.  20 seems like such a better round number.  Two even decades.
• “It doesn't feel evil.”// “Evil never does.” It’s such a religious conversation metaphor.
• That demon looks like a clown.
• “A vampire slayer? How unbelievably common.” Really? I mean there’s only one at a time. Usually. It feels like a cliché God or superior being trope line from sci-fi films like, “You’re all like insects to me” which I always thought was a stupid line/mentality.  I mean...we don't talk to insects.
• This bit where everyone gets the spell is very well directed; everyone's heads moving back at the same time.
• And we see the beginning of Riley’s destruction. Self-destruction? The writer’s destruction of Riley?
• “I don’t go out with Vampires. They’re never interested in my intellect.”  See? He's funny!
• It’s so well done. This fight scene with the demons they can’t see. It’s so well directed.
• That demon got American History X’d! [I hate you for reminding me of that scene. - Z]
• “The women in our family have demon in them.” It just…it makes no sense and I’m glad the scoobies see through it so quickly.
• “You just gotta go through me.” Fuck yeah, Buffy. Not…tearing…up.
• “We’re Family!” Buffy gets a point for saying the title of the episode.
• “Excuse me, what kind? What kind of demon is she?” Heh. Anya.  She's always helping.  She helps Buffy move in, she solves yet another dilemma. I should keep stats.
• Aww, Spike did something kinda selfless. This part, though. This part seems soooo believable in this world – telling the women that they’re demons to keep them in line…such a great metaphor for the women in ultra-religious families in our own world being told they’re dirty.
• I love this dance with Tara and Willow and the floating...
• ...although they both look like they’re wearing different kinds of wallpaper from the 70s. 

It's like grandma's bathroom.

Crossfire!

Tara: A half camel.
Daniel: That's a stupid line
Zelda: I didn't used to get it
Daniel: it's like the front half a costume.
Zelda: No, it's like an ice skating thing, isn't it?
Daniel: Is it?
Google: It's a yoga pose.
Daniel & Zelda: We get it, but it's still not funny.

Dawn: Only losers drink alcohol.
Everyone: *awkwardly puts down solo cups*
Daniel: Are they even 21?
Zelda: No! Well, maybe Riley and Giles. But Tara just turned 20, so ...
Daniel & Zelda: Shenanigans!

Favorite Lines: 

Zelda: 

It's all about the proud smile they share.

Daniel: “But it’s still not funny.” – Anya, following Tara's explanation of her 'joke'.

Arc/Continuity Stuff:

• Recurring: Miss Kitty (last appearance), Tara, Glory (not yet named), Ben, Harmony, Willy's Place (sans Willy)
• Mention of Buffy's father - he's in Spain with his secretary, "living the cliche." Shithead.
• Buffy compares Glory to Cordelia.
• Riley mentions Graham.
• The "reveal" about Tara fearing she's part demon explains when she sabotaged that spell in Goodbye, Iowa (and which Willow mentions here).
• Sandy, the vampire who hits on Riley in Willy's Place, was last seen as a human in Doppelgangland, where (presumably) Vamp!Willow turned her (even though we didn't see her suck anyone else's blood).
• Harmony shopped at April Fools, where Cordelia used to work.
• Spike's chip is what helps them figure out the lie in the Maclay family.

Stats:

Anya's Hair - shoulder length, curly, honey blonde
Dead Humans - 0
Dead Undeads - 3
Giles Unconscious - 0
Giles Cleans His Glasses - 0
Buffy Breaks a Door - 0
Evil Reveal - 0
Unevil Reveal - 1 Tara's not a demon after all!
Shithead Reveal - The Maclay family is awful
Shenanigans Called - 1
Apocalypse Called - 0