Conversations with Dead People

by Jerry

In "Conversations With Dead People", co-written by Jane Espenson and Drew Goddard, we follow several of the characters through separate storylines, as most, if not all, of them encounter manifestations of what appears to be the primary villain of the season. In the process, we learn a little about some of them, and a lot about others, and we start to get a handle of what the apparent Big Bad is all about.

We open on shots of a band setting up and starting to play at the Bronze. Surprisingly, the episode title then appears, something that has only happened once before ("Once More, With Feeling"). Then we get an X-Files-style time stamp - November 12, 2002, 8:01 PM. I would assume it's important to establish that for some reason. As the song begins, we see Buffy, wandering alone in a graveyard. Then Spike, sitting at the bar in front of a half-empty bottle of Jack Daniels. We see Buffy find the headstone she's looking for, and settle in to wait. Then we cut to Willow, studying drowsily in the UC Sunnydale library. Then, to Dawn, who arrives home to an empty house, with a note from Buffy and some money to buy dinner (No Pizza!). A hand claws out of the grave Buffy is watching. "Here we go", she says, as we cut to the credits.

Credit highlight du jour : Xander in a hardhat, on one of the rare days he actually had to do his job. That's pretty much all the Xander this week.

Post credits, there's an old car circling the streets of Sunnydale. It's Jonathan and Andrew, trying to warily reenter the town. Andrew accuses Jonathan of being afraid. Jonathan says of course he's afraid - he doesn't want to be flayed alive like Warren was. He thinks they should have stayed in Mexico. Andrew notes that he didn't like Mexico - "everybody spoke Mexicoan". Jonathan notes that Andrew had no problem learning Klingon. They've both been having nightmares - Jonathan recites the Spanish version of "From beneath you, it devours", which in Andrew's Mexicoan-to-English dictionary comes out as "It eats you starting with your bottom." This raises the question of why the great ominous evil can't broadcast English-language dreams into Mexico - perhaps it's a NAFTA thing.

They are back in town to try to make things right, ("We're outlaws with hearts of gold", according to Andrew) and they need to do something good to present to Buffy to prove they've redeemed themselves.

Back in the graveyard, Buffy is mixing it up with her newly risen opponent, a tall, well-dressed young man with unusually developed fighting skills for a newbie vampire.

At the house, Dawn has spent Buffy's money on pizza, and is wallowing in her own irresponsibility. "Anchovies, anchovies, you're so delicious, I love you more than all the other fishes!" - if she'd gone with that last week, she might have made the cheerleading squad. She gets pizza sauce on Buffy's clothes ("She'll think it's blood"), and tries out weapons she's probably forbidden from, causing a bit of property damage in the process. In other words, she acts like she's sixteen. In the kitchen, Dawn has the radio on, tuned to music I wouldn't bet many sixteen-year-olds listen to - Latin-flavored instrumental stuff that sounds a lot like what Buffy was listening to as she cried in the kitchen in "Listening to Fear". Dawn is paying the music little mind, though - she's blowing up a marshmallow in the microwave, and what can compete with that ?

Willow is idly making notes in the library, half-awake and surrounded by heavily highlighted texts. Suddenly a voice chimes in. It's Cassie (from "Help"), who doesn't seem willing to let her deadness keep her from getting out and about. Willow recognizes her from her picture, though they haven't met before. Cassie explains that she is really there, and is also really dead. She notes the irony, that for all her death-as-the-end poetry, she's made it to the other side and is still hanging around Sunnydale. Cassie explains "She asked that I come talk to you." Willow is confused. "She says she still sings," Cassie notes, referencing Tara's song to Willow in the musical. Willow gets that she means Tara. She tears up a bit at the thought of getting to talk to Tara.

Dawn's watching a horror movie on TV, and talking on the phone to Kit (for a change, she doesn't get entirely new friends this week). Suddenly a loud banging noise interrupts her conversation. Still talking, she approaches the front door, which bursts open amid howling winds. Dawn forces it closed. She tries to turn off the TV, but it won't go off, even after she pulls the plug. As a rule, that's a bad sign, unless you're trying to reduce the electric bill.

Meanwhile Buffy is mixing it up with the vampire, who's giving her a really hard time. As he seems about to bite her, he stops in recognition. "Buffy? Buffy Summers?" He explains that he's "Webs" - Holden Webster, and he went to school with her. Buffy doesn't seem to recall.

Back with Dawn, who still can't stop the TV. The music restarts in the kitchen. Dawn messily silences the TV with an axe, then does the same to the stereo. Really, leaving the house until it gets less Amtyville-ish might have been a better plan. In the kitchen, she takes the same approach to the microwave, sending broken glass everywhere (a problem as she's barefoot). As she retreats to the corner, suddenly we hear a voice come through the radio amidst the music. "Dawn?" it asks. It's Joyce.

After the commercials, Holden is reminding Buffy of their past experiences, which Buffy doesn't remember. She explains that she doesn't recognize him in demon-face, plus he's added all kinds of muscle. Holden explains that he did Tae Kwan Do at Dartmouth. Buffy asks politely what he's been up to. "Well, apparently, dying." Buffy humors him with a laugh. He explains that he is (was) a psych major. He worked at the Sunnydale mental hospital, which is obviously a busy place. As Holden talks, his face shifts out of vampiness. Buffy explains that he can do that. She feels bad about his situation. Holden likes it. "It's like I'm connected to a powerful all-consuming evil that's going to suck the world into a fiery oblivion." Buffy can take that in stride. She responds that she isn't so connected. Holden wants to know why she's out there trying to stake him. Buffy explains about her calling. Holden comments on Buffy's mystique back in school, which pleases her, at least briefly. He explains that people gossiped about her - Scott Hope even said she was gay. Buffy's not so fond of that. Holden explains that Scott says that about a lot of girls, but that ultimately, he's the one who was gay. I can't say I've expended much thought on what became of Scott Hope, but I guess this is of interest to someone. Buffy muses about he choice in men - perhaps she thought Scott was the normal one.

Holden wonders at Buffy being the Slayer. "The, as in the only one?" Buffy says "pretty much" - I guess she's got Faith relegated pretty far into the recesses of her mind. Holden picks up in her solitude, noting that her lack of connectedness is telling. Buffy insists she is connected, to lots of people, as her cell phone (her connection to Dawn) rings unheeded in the foreground.

Back at the house, Dawn is freaking out, admitting she doesn't know what to do. She picks broken glass out of her foot, and tries to get the radio to talk to her again, as we see Joyce's corpse sprawled on the couch behind her. Dawn senses something creepy, but when she turns around, the couch is empty. The lights flicker, and suddenly the furniture is rearranged in odd patterns. Dawn turns and see's a message on the wall in blood - "Mother's Milk is Red Today". I'd guess that would suggest that the motherly influence isn't a good one, but it could mean a lot of things. The lights flicker some more. "Why are you doing this?", Dawn demands. She gets shreiky as only Dawn can. As even malevolent spirits can only take so much of that, this seems to get a response. Once for yes, twice for no, Dawn announces. She asks if the spirit is Joyce, and gets a single knock. Asking if Joyce is okay, however, gets two. "Mommy ? Are you alone?" yields another two, and the house starts to shake violently. Either there's a major struggle going on, or something is putting on quite a show.

At the high school, Jonathan descends from the ceiling "Mission Impossible"-style. As he looks around, Andrew crashes to the ground behind him with a thud. The master criminals start to explore the school. They hear a noise, and are obviously jumpy. Jonathan wants to go get Buffy, and tell her what they know about the "Seal of Damzathar". Andrew points out that they need to give Buffy a reason not to put them in jail. Instead, they need to save the day first. "We save Sunnydale. Then we join her gang, and possibly hang out at her house." That works for Jonathan. "Do you really think they'll let us join their gang?", he asks wistfully. They split up to search for the principal's office. Suddenly, Warren appears from around the corner to talk to Andrew. "There you are," Andrew says, indicating he's not all that surprised to see his dead friend. Andrew has clearly been carrying out a plan for Warren, and he's nervous about it. "Calm down. All specs are within parameters", Warren answers. "One time you died and I ended up a Mexican", Andrew answers. Warren explains that that was all part of the plan. He quotes Obi Wan Kenobi - "If you strike me down, I will become more powerful than you can possibly imagine." That works for Andrew. Warren notes that if Jonathan does his part, they'll both become gods. "That boy is our last hope," Andrew notes in his Obi Wan voice. Warren echoes in Yoda-mode that "there is another". When Andrew questions this, Warren admits he was just playing along with the gag - Jonathan is in fact their last hope.

Willow is sitting talking to Cassie. She's trying to believe Cassie has a message from Tara. She wants to know why Tara didn't come herself. Cassie says it's because of what Willow did - she killed people, so she's not allowed to see Tara. Under other circumstances, this might have been a bit of a red flag for Willow that all is not quite kosher, but she really wants to believe she's communicating with her lost love, so she does, gushing tearfully to the unseen Tara about how much she misses her. Cassie says nothing. Willow asks what's wrong, and Cassie says that Tara is crying too. She wishes she could come to Willow, wishes she could touch her. Willow explains how much missing Tara hurts - "It's like a giant hole, and it isn't getting better." Cassie/Tara tells her it will get better, because she's strong - "strong like an Amazon."

Spike is at the Bronze, joylessly working his way through a bottle of Jack Daniels. A woman approaches him, placing a pack of cigarettes by his drink. They make eye contact, and he nods for her to join him. They speak no words that we can here.

As this scene progresses, we hear Holden continuing to talk to Buffy about her life. She's lying on a grave, and he's positioned like her therapist. As we cut from Spike's potential pick-up, Buffy is bemoaning the fact that relationships never last. Holden asks if she means hers or everyone's. Buffy explains about her parents divorce, which she thinks explains it. She thinks she seeks out men with whom relationships are doomed. Holden wonders if she does that intentionally, to protect herself. Buffy points out that she hasn't really been protected from much. Holden thinks she's afraid of commitment, but Buffy claims that's not true. He says then maybe it was the guys - something was wrong with all of them. "I think you're confusing me because you're evil," Buffy replies. Holden makes a good point, which is that at 21, Buffy doesn't really need to have settled down in a lifelong relationship. She says he really liked his college girlfriend, but he's not about to go vampify her and spend eternity with her. Buffy points out that the term is "sire". Holden is impressed to learn that. He thinks this vampire thing is cool - he and Buffy can become nemeses. Buffy's impressed that Holden can pronounce the word a lot better than Warren could. Holden realizes that they are going to have to fight to the death. Buffy ruefully notes that that is how it works. Holden sort of regrets that, but not much - the vampire thing is working for him. Buffy's less enthusiastic. Holden asks if she's sad because they are going to fight. Buffy explains that it's because she's going to win. Holden calls her on her sense of superiority. They bicker about that. "Don't issue me!" Buffy says. Holden suddenly brings up Hank and Joyce's divorce. He wants to know whose fault it was. Buffy hems and haws a bit over the question, but ultimately says it was her Dad. She says he cheated (then admits that she only thinks he cheated - we've heard other Hank-friendlier versions of this before). Holden brings out his conclusion - Buffy's experience with her father leads to her having a low opinion of men, and thinking she's better than them, which is why her relationships failed. Buffy gets defensive about that, and they resume their banter. Holden talks about how Buffy has carried the burden of destiny as the Slayer for seven years, so how could she not feel superior?

Of course, Buffy's not actually that big with the self-esteem, superiority or not, and she starts to explain how superior she isn't - the things she's done, the secrets she's kept from her friends, and of course how she acted in her last relationship. "I'm here to kill you, not to judge you", Holden interjects quasi-helpfully. Buffy reflects on her relationship with Spike, both the things she did to him ("I behaved like a monster") and the things she let him do to her. She gets a bit weepy, and apologizes to Holden. He says it's okay, as he spins on her and takes a swing at her head with a statue of the Virgin Mary. "Everyone's got issues". He moves in for the bite as we go to commercial.

Post-break, Buffy kicks him off of her. They fight. Buffy's really pissed at him now. Holden explains her just got caught up in the moment - he is a vampire, after all. They crash through a stained-glass window into a crypt.

Dawn is trying to deal with the forces wracking her house. She fears that the malevonet presence is keeping Joyce from communicating with her. There's a flash like lightning, and briefly we see Joyce's corpse, eyes white, lying on the couch. Dawn approaches, and in another flash, there's a demonic creature on top of Joyce, throttling her as she reaches out for help. Dawn demands that the creature leave and allow her to talk to her mother. As she searches for something on the floor, an axe flashes close by her head. She scrambles towards the door, which bursts open as a deep voice tells her "Get out!". Dawn doesn't take advantage of the offer, forcing the door shut. We get a look at how Dawn's often-petulant personality is evolving into a real force of will. "She's my mother," she announces. "I'm staying".

Jonathan and Andrew are in the labyrinth beneath the high school. Jonathan notes that he misses high school. Andrew observes that the walls seem to move around. "I feel like we're in Hellraiser. I HATE Pinhead." As Jonathan is examining the map, Andrew spies an especially creepy looking Warren, looking almost like he's suspended in the air in front of a doorway. Andrew tells Jonathan that this is what they were looking for. They enter a room with a dirt floor, and Jonathan agrees they are in the right place. Andrew starts to dig.

Buffy gets the drop on Holden, and is prepared to stake him. "Is that enough of a moment for you?" she asks. Holden wants to know if she's killing him because he's evil, or because she opened up about her feelings. Buffy moves away in frustration. Holden smugly starts to rise, but Buffy kicks him in the face (anyone that smug can use a good kicking). He gets up as Buffy asks what's wrong with him. Holden answers that nothing is wrong - being dead, he's got no worries beyond whether an especially bitable classmate came to his funeral. "See, this is what I hate about you vampires", Buffy responds. "Sex, and death, and love, and pain - it's all the same damned thing to you." I'd venture a guess that given her experiences, they've become more or less the same thing to Buffy, too, or at least she fears that they have. Holden picks up on this. He tells Buffy he's got one question for her, and if he's right, she needs to open up and answer all his questions. She agrees, and he asks. "Your last relationship - was it with a vampire?"

On that, we cut to a shot of Spike, at a distance, walking along the sidewalk with the woman from the bar. They are taking, but we don't hear what they say.

Willow is still in the library, talking to Cassie now as though she is Tara. She asks if she knows what happened "after Warren shot you". Cassie says she does, but Willow was grieving. Willow says she lost herself ("the real me") and hurt many people. Cassie says that was the power. Willow replies, as Giles has taught her, that she is the power, so she's got learn to deal with it, and with the things she does as a result of it. Cassie tells her she's wrong - she has to stop. Willow says she has stopped using black magic, but she can't just give up magic completely. She won't let herself get out of control again. Cassie repeats what she claims Tara has to say - "You're not going to be okay. You're going to kill everybody."

In the basement, Andrew and Jonathan are almost finished with their digging. Whatever they've uncovered, Jonathan hopes that Buffy will know how to destroy it. He suddenly recalls his locker combination, which I guess has been bugging him for a while. Andrew doesn't get why Jonathan is suddenly nostalgic for high school when he was miserable while he was there. Jonathan says he misses it anyway. "Time goes by, and everything drops away. All the cruelty, all the pain, all the humiliation...I miss my friends, I miss my enemies, I miss them all." As if this isn't enough of an "I'm going to die" anvil, Warren appears hovering creepily over his shoulder. Jonathan says he wants to talk to those people, find out how they are doing. Andrew answers that they don't want to talk to him. They don't care about him. Jonathan admits that's likely true, but he still cares about them (I think what we're getting at here is that sure, high school is hell, but how does that make it different from the rest of life ? Cheery thought.) That's why he's back, doing what he's doing. And now, we can see what he's doing, as a large round seal with ominous looking-markings is uncovered beneath their feet.

Over at the house, Dawn sits determinedly, cross-legged on the floor, surrounded by candles. She's attempting a spell to cast out the evil presence, so she can talk to Joyce. I guess Dawn's been doing some reading when no one was looking. She begins the spell, and a force propels her against the wall. She's undeterred, and continues to work. Something lashes out at her, slicing open her right cheek. Windows burst open, wind howls, and Dawn, though freaked out, remains determined.

Buffy, meanwhile, is answering Holden's questions about her last relationship. She admits Spike loved her (in his "sick, soulless way", but she admits he did care). She says she didn't want to be loved. Buffy thinks she doesn't deserve all the power she has as the Slayer, so she suspects she seeks out punishment in other ways.

She's getting pretty personal, and asks if Holden wouldn't rather fight. He seems compassionate at the moment, and knows the fight will come anyway, so he says to go ahead.

Buffy gets to the root of the problem. She doesn't feel worthy of the power and destiny that comes with being the Slayer. She doesn't think she's good enough for her idea of what that means. So she beats herself up about it, and no one can make her feel otherwise, because no one else is in a position to judge. Unless they're the Slayer, they can't know what she knows. They're beneath her and unable to judge. As Holden wryly summarizes, she has an inferiority complex about her superiority complex. He thinks it makes plenty of sense. It just means she feels alone. "But everybody feels alone. Everybody is. Until you die." More cheeriness. But anyway, Holden figures he's done enough therapy, and it's time to fight.

Buffy agrees, and prepares to go at it. But she thanks Holden for listening. He replies that there are some things you can only tell a stranger. Buffy, having opened up to him, answers that he's not a stranger anymore. But, she adds, "that stuff about Spike-". Suddenly Holden stops, as this is the first time Buffy's mentioned his name. "Did you say Spike?", he asks.

We see Spike walk the woman up to her porch. She seems to be asking him up to her apartment, and he seems reluctant, but we again can't hear anything.

Back to what's left of Casa Summers (judging by the living room, not much). Dawn continues to conjure amidst the howling winds. She's thrown back against the wall yet again. we see her crouched by the door, her mouth bloodied. "I cast you out with the strength of those who love me. I cast you out with the strength I have inside me. I cast you out into the void!" She hurls a bowl at where the entity seems to be. "Die, you bastard!" With a spattering of blood across the walls, the entity seems to withdraw. Dawn collapses on the floor as the room is bathed in golden light. Dawn looks up to see Joyce, in a white dress and glowing. "Mom?", she exclaims uncertainly.

Willow, meanwhile, is terrified by what Cassie/Tara just told her. She fears they can see her future and know she's doomed. Cassie says she has to stop using magic completely. Willow notes that Giles said that would be even more dangerous, as she could explode again. Cassie says she has to do it anyway. Willow freaks. "I'm not strong - I'm not an Amazon. I'm just me." Cassie calmly suggests that there is another way - one that would stop the danger AND allow her to be with Tara. "It's not that bad," she grins. "It's just like going to sleep." Willow intuitively knows that Tara would never urge her to kill herself. "Who are you?", she asks, rising from her chair.

Buffy wants to know how Holden knows Spike. "What do you mean, how?" Holden asks, assuming she already knew. "He was the guy that - oh, what's the word?" "Sired", Buffy answers unhappily. "Yeah. He was the guy that sired me." We cut quickly to Spike, bursting into game face to feed on the woman from the bar on the porch of her building.

Dawn is gazing in wonder on her mother, having (at least she thinks) vanquished the big evil things to see her. "Things are coming, Dawn" Joyce tells her. "I love you, and I love Buffy. But she won't be there for you. When it's bad, Buffy won't choose you. She'll be against you."

As Dawn calls after her, Joyce fades away.

As Jonathan is packing up his tools, Andrew approaches. As Warren looks on with a sick grin, Andrew stabs Jonathan.

Back in the library, Cassie notes that the suicide thing was pushing a bit too hard. She expected Willow would be ripe for it. Willow's had enough and gets tough with her, and Cassie gets tough back. "You don't know hurt. This last year is going to seem like cake after what I put you and your friends through, and I am not a fan of easy death. Fact is the whole good vs evil balancing the scales thing - I'm over it. I'm done with the mortal coil. And believe me, I'm going for a big finish." Willow realizes what she's dealing with. "From beneath you, it devours." "Cassie" answers that it's "Not it. Me." She grins an evil grin, which spreads to impossible dimensions, eventually swallowing up her head, and then her entire body, as she blinks out of existence. We see Willow left alone to ponder. Then Dawn, also alone in the shambles of her house. Andrew, with specter-Warren looking on approvingly, releases Jonathan's body. Jonathan sprawls on the unearthed seal, his blood filling it's crevices. Spike drops the body of the woman he's just killed, licking his lips of her blood. And finally, Buffy unhappily dusts Holden, left to contemplate the news about Spike.

So, when all is said and done, what have we learned about the Big Bad? Well, he (or she or it, but I'm going with he for the moment) can assume the forms of dead people. Possibly also live ones, but all the forms we've seen so far are the currently or (as with Buffy in Selfless) formerly dead. Not only assume their form, but know things they would know. In this episode, he takes the form of Warren and of Cassie, displays the knowledge of Tara, also arguably takes the form of Joyce, and may be influencing the behavior of Holden and Spike. Also, he can be in two or more places at once - all these events are simultaneous. And he needed a sacrifice (Jonathan) directly over the Hellmouth, and went to a great deal of effort to have Jonathan in particular be that sacrifice.

Intriguingly, Cassie talked about the balance of good and evil, as though that was something the new BB has advocated in the past. I wonder if perhaps the Scoobies have enraged some fundamental power by defying the laws of nature - Buffy rose from the dead, Willow raised her, Spike defied all normal rules by getting his soul, and Dawn is unnaturally in human form. These seem to be the targets, either for that reason or because they are the threats. Our Big Bad wants Willow dead or on the sidelines. He wants Spike evil or staked. And most intriguingly to me, he wants Dawn against Buffy. Xander and Anya were, I assume, not targeted. Either they have no role to play, or the fact that they have been overlooked will be pivotal.

All in all, a creepy and insightful look at all the characters, featuring some excellent guest-starring work, and setting up much to come.

-- Jerry

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