Angel is born

Joss Whedon says in his commentary for I Only Have Eyes For You that it was David Boreanaz’s performance in that episode which made him realise that the actor was strong enough to pull off a spin-off series on his own.

Public Service Announcement

When the episode I Only Have Eyes For You was originally screened in America, it was followed by a public service announcement about teen suicide. The announcement, co-sponsored by Cedars Sinai Medical Center’s TeenLine and the American Association of Suicidology, was voiced by Sarah Michelle Gellar.

Brian Poth

Brian Poth, who played ‘Fighting Boy’ in I Only Have Eyes For You, went on to play Tyler Jensen in CSI: Miami. He starred in Dean Quixote, which also featured Christopher Gorham, who played the doomed James Stanley in I Only Have Eyes For You.

Brian Reddy

Brian played Police Chief Bob in School Hard and I Only Have Eyes For You. Brian has also been in O Brother, Where Art Thou?, Dante’s Peak, The Birdcage and Casino.

Christopher Gorham

Christopher Gorham played 50s student James Stanley in I Only Have Eyes For You. He starred in Jake 2.0, a show ran by Buffy’s David Greenwalt. Christopher also played Harrison John in Popular, Trevor O’Donnell in Felicity, and appeared in the movie A Life Less Ordinary as Walt. In an interview with Zap2it (August 2003), Christopher Gorham talked about his time on the Buffy set:

Gorham’s compliments also extend to Buffy’s creator, Joss Whedon:

Heath Castor

Heath Castor played various characters in the episodes Dead Man’s Party, I Only Have Eyes For You, The Freshman, Living Conditions and Beer Bad. He was in the Angel episode ‘Untouched‘.

James Lurie

James Lurie played the teacher Mr. Miller at Sunnydale High in the episodes I Only Have Eyes For You, Anne and Graduation Day (Part 1). You might remember him as the teacher who plays hangman with his class in Graduation Day (”They always go for the ‘E’”). James has also been in Picket Fences, Law & Order and Cowboy Up.

James Whitmore Jr.

James Whitmore Jr. was a Buffy director. He also directed the Angel episode ‘Reprise‘ and episodes of Dead Like Me, 24, Cold Case, Melrose Place, Quantum Leap, The X-Files and The Pretender. James played Bernie Terwiliger in Hunter.

Meredith Salenger

Meredith played doomed teacher Grace Newman in I Only Have Eyes For You. Meredith’a name was misspelled in the Buffy credits as “Meredith Salinger.” Meredith appeared as Amy Lloyd in Dawson’s Creek, as Michelle Goldstein in L.A. Firefighters and in an episode of Tales from the Crypt called ‘House of Horror’ (1993). She appeared in Lake Placid and Larry David’s Sour Grapes.

Miriam Flynn

Miriam Flynn, who played Ms. Frank in I Only Have Eyes For You, was the voice of Maa in Babe.

Ryan Taszreak

Ryan Taszreak, who played Ben in I Only Have Eyes For You, played a soldier in Joss Whedon’s Firefly movie, Serenity. He also played Charlie in Undressed.

Ben

Ben was a student at Sunnydale High who asked Buffy out whilst in the Bronze in I Only Have Eyes For You (the first of the Bens to be let down by Buffy!). She refused as she wasn’t over Angel yet. Ben described himself as “We had Algebra II together last year… Ms. Jackson? Second period? You sat in the seat three over and one behind.”

Bob, the Police Chief

Sunnydale’s Police Chief aided Principal Snyder to cover up Spike’s vampire attack in School Hard (blaming the event on gangs on PCP). He also helped to cover up the incident in the school when cafeteria spaghetti turned into snakes in I Only Have Eyes For You.

George

George was the janitor at Sunnydale High School who was temporarily possessed by the spirit of James Stanley. He shot and killed Miss Frank, but had no memory of this after the incident in I Only Have Eyes For You.

James Stanley

James Stanley was a student at Sunnydale High in 1955 who had an affair with his teacher Grace Newman. He shot and killed her then killed himself. His spirit possessed people in the school, seeking redemption in I Only Have Eyes For You.

Miss Frank

Miss Frank was the teacher at Sunnydale High who was shot and killed by George when he was possessed by James Stanley in I Only Have Eyes For You.

Mr. Miller

Mr. Miller was a teacher at Sunnydale High. He appeared in the episodes I Only Have Eyes For You, Anne (”Slow down, people. Summer is over. Be somber.”) and Graduation Day (Part 1) (Playing hangman: “They always go for the ‘E’”).

Angelus’s Claddagh ring

In Surprise when Angel gives Buffy a Claddagh ring he tells her to wear it with the heart pointing inwards to show that you belong to somebody - like he is wearing his. If you look closely at Angelus’ hand in I Only Have Eyes For You (when he is touching Buffy’s face in the music room when they are posessed by Grace and James) you can see that he has turned his ring back round with the heart pointing out. He obviously doesn’t belong to anyone anymore.

Authority in the know

After a few previous hints (such as in School Hard), it’s revealed in I Only Have Eyes For You that Principal Snyder knows that the school is on a Hellmouth, and is in collusion with the Mayor and the authorities. Snyder flinches when he hears the Mayor’s name - and we discover in season three that he has every right to. Principal Snyder was given the job of Sunnydale High Principal because the City Council thought he could help keep the Hellmouth’s existence a secret.

Cordy’s diet

Cordelia asserted in Teacher’s Pet that she eats her own special lunch but in I Only Have Eyes For You, she is seen eating spaghetti from the school cafeteria. Maybe finding the headless body of Dr. Gregory put her off her special food?

Hey, it’s like a metaphor

The flower jasmine has been compared to vampires twice in the Buffyverse. In I Only Have Eyes For You:

Drusilla: “Wow! Look. Jasmine.”
Angelus: “Night blooming.”
Drusilla: “Like us.”

And then in Angel’s The Trial, Darla says of the jasmine in the courtyard at the Hyperion Hotel, “Hmm, jasmine. It blooms at night. I remember what that was like.” Season four’s entity Jasmine was named after the same plant looked at by Darla.

Jenny’s computer

In I Only Have Eyes For You, Willow refers to Jenny Calendar’s lesson plans “on her computer” - Angel destroyed her computer before he killed her two episodes earlier in Passion.

Jenny’s ghost

In I Only Have Eyes For You, Giles says that the ghost is Jenny as she died there under tragic circumstances, but Giles found Jenny at his house, so how did he know that she was killed at the school and not at his home? The broken computer might have given it away, but there was no definite evidence that Jenny actually died at the school.

Nuking the school

In I Only Have Eyes For You, Willow states that the only way to stop the ghosts is to perform “the final solution”. Xander replies, “Nuke the school? I like that.” They gang destroy the school in Graduation Day (Part 2).

Old lovers

In the Angel episode ‘Waiting In The Wings’, Angel and Cordelia are taken over by the spirits of old lovers. In the episode Angel says: “Look, I’ve been possessed by the spirits of old lovers before. Never goes well.” This is a reference to the Buffy episode I Only Have Eyes For You when Angel and Buffy were possessed by the spirits of James and Grace.

Rose quartz

In the episode I Only Have Eyes For You, whilst Giles is mourning Jenny’s death, Willow gives him some rose quartz (which has healing powers) that she found in Jenny’s desk. Willow says, “I thought she’d want you to have it.” Later in the episode when Giles is researching (when he hears the janitor shouting) he is holding the rose quartz in his hand.

Sadie Hawkins Dance

The Sadie Hawkins Dance was an annual dance at Sunnydale High School (though only mentioned in I Only Have Eyes For You) where the girls had to ask the boys for a date, and pay for the evening. Cordelia did not approve.

Something to fall back on

Willow taught Jenny’s computer science after she died in Passion and continued to do so in I Only Have Eyes For You, Go Fish and Becoming (Part 1).

Tara’s detentions

In Passion, Willow asked Jenny if she could have the power to give detention and it seems she does. In I Only Have Eyes For You there is a detention list at the bottom right hand corner of the chalkboard. The list includes Lisa D., Dayton, Ericka, and also Tara x 2. Tara was the name of Willow’s girlfriend in seasons 4 to 6.

William variants

The writers of Buffy seem to love the name William and all its derivatives. Here’s a list of all the William variants used on the show:

• William the Bloody (Spike’s human name and original title)
• Liam (Angel’s human name)
• Billy Fordham: (Buffy’s friend from LA who sold her out to Spike)
• Billy Palmer: (the little boy in the coma who caused nightmares to come to life)
• Billy Crandal: (chained himself to a snack machine in I Only Have Eyes For You)
• Billy (an unclassified demon in Angel, who brought out the worst in men with a touch)
• Willy the Snitch (demon bar tender)
• Wil or Will: the name sometimes given to Willow (yeah, this was a bit of a stretch)

Splendid

Splendid play their track “Charge” in the Bronze in I Only Have Eyes For You. In The Freshman Splendid perform “You and Me” in the Bronze. Their unreleased song “Tomorrow We’ll Awake” plays during Xander and Anya’s bedroom scene in Forever.
Angie Hart, the lead singer of Splendid, co-wrote the song “Blue” with Joss Whedon. This song played at the beginning of the episode Conversations with Dead People.
Angie’s ex-husband Jesse Tobias, who was also in Splendid, helped Joss and Christophe Beck to arrange Joss’s songs for the musical episode Once More, With Feeling.

The Flamingoes

It’s been reported erroneously that James and Grace could not have listened to the song “I Only Have Eyes For You” in 1955 as it was not written until 1958-59. This is incorrect. Harry Warren and Al Dubin wrote “I Only Have Eyes For You” in 1934 for the film Dames. It is sung by Dick Powell on a ferryboat, and is reprised by Dick Powell, Ruby Keeler and the chorus in the movie’s Broadway show. It’s also often played throughout the movie as background music.
The Flamingos parlayed the song into a Top Ten hit in 1959, which is when it became hugely popular. But there is no reason why James and Grace could not have listened to a record of the song prior to that.

Exorcism

Exorcism is a ritual performed to banish a ghost or poltergeist. The Scoobies unsuccessfully attempted an exorcism to banish the ghost of James Stanley from Sunnydale High School in I Only Have Eyes For You. They used the Mengas Tripod position, where one person chants on a ‘hot spot’ and three others chant at the same time in places nearby, forming a triangle around it.

Scapula

A scapula is a smelly pouch of herbs, worn around the neck as protection against evil spirits. Willow made them for the Scoobies in I Only Have Eyes For You, using sulphur.

JFK

In I Only Have Eyes For You, Snyder says, “I’m no stranger to conspiracy. I saw JFK“. He’s referring to the lengthy movie starring Kevin Costner which examines the murder of president John F. Kennedy.

Merchant of Venice

In Out of Mind, Out of Sight, Cordelia’s English class discuss Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice:

In The Wish, the Master asks Willow and Xander, “What news on the Rialto?” This is a line from Merchant of Venice. The Rialto is a bridge in Venice, and Salanio, who asks the question, is asking for the latest news on the local scene (gathered, in this case, from local gossips, who apparently hung out on the bridge).
In I Only Have Eyes For You, Xander quips “The quality of mercy is not Buffy…” This is a reference to the famous “Quality of Mercy” speech delivered by Portia in Merchant of Venice.

Network

Xander’s line “I’m dead as hell, and I’m not going to take it any more” in I Only Have Eyes For You is a reference to Peter Finch’s crazed news anchorman in Sidney Lumet’s Network (1973). The character Finch played was called Howard Beale.

O. J. Simpson

Buffy says, “You just went O.J. on your girlfriend” in I Only Have Eyes For You. This is a reference to former American Football superstar O.J. Simpson, who was tried for killing his wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her ‘friend’, Ron Goldman, in June 1994. He was controversially found not guilty in October 1995.
In the Angel episode I Fall To Pieces, Cordelia says, “I don’t get it, this guy has a lot to lose. What is it about Melissa that’s got him going all O.J. here?” In the same episode, Kate says “they’re the law firm that Johnny Cochran is too ethical to join.” Johnny Cochran was the lawyer who defended OJ Simpson.
In Sense and Sensitivity, the Wolfram and Hart lawyer, Mercer says, “…that will make Mark Fuhrman look like Gentle Ben.” Mark Fuhrman was a detective in the Los Angeles Police Department who found the bloody glove that linked O.J. Simpson to the murder of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson. During the 1995 murder trial of O.J. Simpson, the defense accused Fuhrman of being a racist and planting evidence.

Rear Window

The I Only Have Eyes For You characters Grace and James share their first names with the leading actors in Hitchcock’s fantastic 1954 movie Rear Window - James Stewart and Grace Kelly.

The Exorcist

The 1973 movie The Exorcist starred Linda Blair as a child named Regan who becomes possessed by a demon. The film was adapted from the horror novel by William Peter Blatty, and banned in the UK for more than fifteen years. It is referenced a few times in Buffy and Angel:

• In Teacher’s Pet, Buffy says that Miss French’s head did a “full-on Exorcist twist”, referring to a famous scene in the movie.
• In I Only Have Eyes For You, When Willow suggests an exorcism, Cordelia replies “Are you crazy? I saw that movie: even the priests died!”
• In Lover’s Walk, Buffy says of her mother, “her head spun round and exploded” (to which Giles replies, “I’ve been on the Hellmouth too long. That was metaphorical, yes?”).
• In Living Conditions, Xander says, “Are you saying that Buffy’s been doing a Linda Blair on us because Kathy’s been sucking her soul?” At the beginning of her possession in The Exorcist, Regan showed dramatic changes in her behaviour, just as Buffy did in Living Conditions.
• Buffy name-checks The Excorcist in Bring on the Night.
• In the Angel episode I’ve Got You Under My Skin, Cordelia says, “I’m wondering if I should put plastic down. Angel, are you expecting any big vomiting here? Because I saw the movie.” Large parts of this episode are a nod to The Exorcist - in the book and movie, a Catholic priest dies in much the same way as Angel’s Father Fredricks.

Seen at 06.32 minutes:

When the yearbook in Snyder’s office falls off the shelf, it lands open. When Buffy reaches down to pick it up, however, it is closed.

Seen at 13.56 minutes:

In the episode I Only Have Eyes For You, Giles hears the janitor and teacher arguing. When he looks through the window (just before the teacher is shot) you can see that the janitor’s lips are not moving with what he is saying.

Seen at 29.20 minutes:

The first time the Scoobies come out of the school and stand back to look at what has happened, you can see that Buffy is hugging Xander. Later on when Buffy has already entered the school, the rest of the gang gather outside and try to figure out what they are going to do. You can see Buffy’s legs there even though she is meant to be inside the school. They obviously used the same shot.

Seen at 39.01 minutes:

When Buffy and Angel are kissing Buffy is holding Angel at the waist but then in the next shot she is holding her hand by his neck.

Seen at 39.01 minutes:

In I Only Have Eyes For You, Angel stops Buffy raising the gun to her head and the two kiss. We see the souls of Grace and James leaving them in a long shot and then the kiss ends. In the close up shot of Buffy and Angel, we see their kiss end again.