Resting up after their fierce battle to beat Adam, Buffy, Giles, Xander and Willow find themselves plagued by nightmares that could finish them off in their weakened state.
I was under the impression that this episode was meant to bring the gang back together as a group after their tribulations. However, Primeval seemed to have that one sorted out on its own. Episodes written and directed by Joss Whedon are usually cause for celebration, but I just can’t see the point in this one. There’s clearly a deeper subtext to what is happening, but if it’s impossible to work out what that subtext is, why put it there?
Willow’s nightmare is clearly about her newfound lesbian identity, but there’s not really any pay-off to it. She seems happy with what she is, but she is concerned about her friends’ reactions. Xander’s nightmare is completely incoherent. He has job concerns, army worries, problems with Anya and nips off for a threesome with Willow and Tara only to be attacked by the same monster Wilow has been attacked by. Giles fares little better as he recognizes the creature and is unable to stop it, and Buffy simply refuses to be intimidated and beats the creature up.
At the end of each nightmare, there’s no sense of story progression, just unpleasant images, and the explanation for it all is very simplistic, not to mention the fact that Buffy beats it with ease, seemingly unsusceptible to having her dreams messed with.
There are, of course, always positives. It’s great to see some ‘missing’ characters making a reappearance, as well as George ‘Adam’ Hertzberg out of make-up, and there are some hilarious scenes, mainly Giles’ song and his talk to the cast of Willow’s play. The way the episode is shot is wonderful with all manner of stylistic techniques making it look fantastic. So it’s not all bad, even if you feel you’ve just accompanied Joss on a particularly powerful trip. Whether this will have some bearing on next season is open to debate, but there are definitely loose ends to be tied up here, especially the man offering everyone cheese slices. What the hell was that about?
***
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