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<Kris curls up in her comfy chair with her fuzzy blankie, and pats the space next to her for Spike the Wonder Pup to come up and join her...>

Well, it's the fourth show of the season, gang... and that usually means that things slow down a bit, doesn't it? This week was no exception, in terms of the Monster-of-the-Week and the pacing of the ep... but there sure were some important themes being driven home (some more often than not).

So... let's get right to the quick impressions, shall we?

What-the-huh? moment of the night: Who's the dead woman? And why are Xander and Buffy hiding in coffins? Ewwww... And leaving Dawn locked up in said coffin? Ewwww again...

I-can't-believe-it-moment: It's cube dweller Buffy! Wearing somewhat normal -dare I say, professional - clothing! Wahoo!

I-can't believe my husband figured this out first... It's the kid from Home Improvement!!! And when did he become such a slimeball? And that mouth! Geez! His mom should wash his mouth out with soap, and then make him go clean his dad's garage! Oh, I'm sorry... wrong show... <Arrr, arrr, arrrrrrrrrrr.....>

Cliche in action moment: Buffy learned that assuming makes an - well, you-know-what out of you and me... "The hood?" <snort>

This reviewer is feeling old moment: Mike is a cutie? And here I thought he really needed a decent hair cut... <sigh>

Nice touch of the night: Including the reference to the surly teenager being worried about his brother joining the Marines - especially the part about "what if he gets blown up?" This is the closest we've seen the Buffyverse come to acknowledging the state of our real world since last fall, isn't it? And part of me wonders... does this have a parallel between Dawn being worried about Buffy? Or, for that matter, Joyce having been worried about Buffy once she found out about the truth of Buffy's existence? Or am I reaching here?

What-in-the-world? moments of the night: How did they get a hold of Cassies's doctor's records? Why did Xander go along for the ride (well, to the porch, anyway)?

Things-to-learn-moment: Buffy the counselor needs to learn some tact, especially when dealing with student's parents... don't you agree?

Plot hole so big that the starship Voyager (the ship from the show that mastered plotline holes) could fly through it: how did Peter not recognize Buffy before she ripped off the hood?

You'd-better-not-be-drinking-anything moment: Doogie Howser fanfic! BWAHAHAHAH!

Gratuitous 80's reference: Blue Clam Cult and heavy metal music. BWHAHAHA again!

Okay... time to get into the deep thoughts. I didn't have many last week... but this week, even though the show had a much slower pace than we've become accustomed to this season, there were a lot of important themes and/or ideas presented (in my crazed mind, at least)...

First off: did anyone else catch that after the repeated conversations between Amanda and Buffy about the bully, and how Amanda was just "... really tired of everyone being so insecure," that we segued directly to Willow talking about how she wished that Buffy weren't so insecure about her new job? And then Willow went right into talking about how *she's* feeling insecure right now... these are the two characters who were some of the biggest bullies on the show last season, if you think about it. Hmmm... And did anyone else notice that Firm!Buffy came dangerously close to Bullying!Buffy when she couldn't get Coin-Guy to spill the goods? Interesting, that. The only reason I'm bringing this up is that we kept hearing about the bullies over and over again, didn't we? Makes one tend to think that maybe something important is being brought to the surface...

I also found it rather interesting that Mike was studying Egyptian history, considering all that Spike went through to get his soul. Coinky-Dink, or something that might come in handy later in the season? Enquiring minds wanna know! And what was the significance of Cassie reading Slaughterhouse Five? I *think* I read it when I was in college... or maybe I was supposed to read it, but just never did... <Sigh>

And then, there's Spike. Poor guy... he's having a hard time keeping it together, isn't he? I don't think I've ever seen him portrayed as being this *focused* before... it's rather unnerving, when you think about it. You can obviously see that he's been crying, and the tenuous grip that he has on his self-control is just so frayed... I know that Buffy came off as being a bit umsympathetic in this scene, but I think that she is still recovering from having her world rocked by everything that's happened. Add on the fact that she's *definitely* worried about Cassie, and I'm really not upset at all with the scene. If anything, think about the progress she's made from 2 years ago... 2 years ago, Buffy would have barged in on Spike, punched him first, and then demanded assistance. Tonight she did her best to keep him from hurting himself - and I'm not going to complain about that. She really does feel that she's just making him worse - and she doesn't seem to be very happy about that fact.

Other parallels between Buffy and Spike were presented in this episode as well, even if they weren't heavily advertised. At the end of the episode, when Buffy asks how to go on when there's nothing you can do to change a situation... the unspoken answer is: You just do. You pick up the pieces that you can, and you keep going, trying to make the world a better place. As Cassie told Buffy, "And you will." Remember what the First Slayer told Buffy: she needs to Love, Give, and Forgive. Perhaps we're finally seeing Buffy taking the first steps towards that mission since her return from the dead. And yet... we saw the return of Action!Spike tonight as well. Just as Buffy is struggling at the end of the episode with how to deal with all that has happened, Spike is trying to deal with his new reality as best he can. In this case, his best course of action is to prevent "him from hurting the girl" - and we see him fight through the pain to teach Brad Taylor - I mean Peter - a lesson. And just to prove that the soul really does have an effect on Spike, he doesn't use the meat cleaver on Peter... he just waves it menacingly at him before he goes to help Cassie. Another good step for Spike, in my not-so-humble opinion. He's trying to do good where, and when he can... and he's trying to do his penance for "hurting the girl." He knows that he did something monstrously wrong, and it's not something that he can undo - now he's doing his best (when he can) to make things better - not just for Buffy, but for everyone.

And... did anybody else notice that the same camera angles were used on Buffy and Spike during the fight scene? I know, I know, I'm reading too much into things... but it grabbed my attention.

Quotes of the week:

"Right. Ouch." - Xander talking to Willow about Willow's fears of what she could do if her powers aren't controlled.

"I'm over you now, sweetie." - Willow dashing Xander's hopes after he hears about her luv-poems...

"And you will…" - Cassie reassuring Buffy that Buffy can indeed make a difference in the world...

And last, but certainly not least:

"She'll tell you. Someday, she'll tell you."

B/S Shippers, start those engines...

That's it from here all... all those analytic energies just finally hit tonight. Hopefully the Musings made some sense...

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Kris