The Pack

The Pack
Written by Matt Kiene & Joe Reinkmeyer
Directed by Bruce Seth Green

Original Airdate: April 7, 1997

Plot: When Xander starts acting more aggressive than normal after a trip to the zoo, Giles chalks it up to hormones. But as not only his behavoir but the behavoir of five other students continues to get more and more animal like, Buffy suspects something else is going on...

Review

Warning: Do not let the SPOILERS find out your name or else they will call to you late at night....

In short: A great episode

I'll be completely honest here--with the exception of Welcome to the Hellmouth/The Harvest, I haven't been too overjoyed with the first season of the show that I've seen so far. (And before you hit the R button and start to tell lecture me, let me add I've not yet seen Angel or Prophecy Girl!) The last two weeks have been good, don't get me wrong. They just haven't been as spectacular as some of the second season stuff I enjoyed so much.

It's kind of how I feel about the first two seasons of Happy Days in a way. I like them, yes, but they don't quite have all the characters acting in the ways I know and love. And at times that's been a bit off-setting for me. And I've tried to look past that in my comments on the episodes, choosing to judge them on thier own merits and trying to see them as I would have had I been watching in season one.

That won't be a problem with the Pack.

Becuase I loved it. Easily the best season one episode I've seen so far, for a number of reasons.

For one, the Scooby gang is really beginning to gel as a complete unit. Yes, Xander is out of the action on this one, but seeing the team spirit that Willow, Giles, and Buffy use in this one to confront and solve the problem is nicely done. Also, seeing some conflict on just what the problem with Xander is, if any, was nicely done. Of course, being an X-Phile, any reference to that show done well wins little, warm fuzzy kudos from me. :-)

Another strength was how well the storyline flowed. This was easily one of the more riveting Buffy's I've seen. I was constantly on the edge of my season during the second, third, and fourth acts. As we watch Xander and the rest of the crew become more and more vicious was nicely done. Also, I love the parallel structure of how the two Packs worked. It was nice to see the original Pack pick on the nerd guy in teh beginning by separating him and then moving in for the kill, much as they would later when possessed by the hyeneas. A very, very nice touch.

Finally, I've got to admit that I loved the fact that the monsters were so effectively portrayed without the use of make-up effects. It was nice to see normal looking people be monsters--especially Xander, whom we've come to know and love in the past few weeks. Nicholas Brendan deserves high marks for not only making Xander funny in the beginning but also a chilling monster. His scene with Willow when he called her pasty faced was just great as well as his scenes when he was verbally sparring with Buffy. Also, just the way he carried himself when he was possessed by the hyenea really worked quite well. It was enough to know that it wasn't really our Xander in there but that it was enough of him to still be famiilar. A very, very good performance by NB.

But, what didn't work for me was two major things. One was that whole zoo guy plotline. I realize that this plot was given the short end of the stick to develop the Pack plot and I appreciate it. But I honestly felt that had we been given a bit more background or insight into this guy, it might have worked more. Why was he behind it? What did he hope to gain from having the hyena spirit in him? What was his motive for doing this? These are some questions that I left the epiosde with.

Finally, I didn't really like the way he was disposed of. It was too neat, clean, and cliched. Who didn't see it coming that the hyenas would make short work of him when they went into the caged area at the end. His disposal was far too quick an easy for my liking. I'm not saying I wanted to see him attack anyone as the Pack did Principal Flooty, but it would have been interesting to see him with the combined spirit of all five of the Pack's powers. I guess five or so extra minutes at the end might have made a big difference.

But, I've got to say the episode was strong enough that the last few minutes being weak didn't really bug me as much as it usually would. Namely because the whole thing was so darn rivetting up until that point that you can almost forgive a weak ending.

I say, almost.

Well, that's about it for now, except for a few small things...

--The Pack's attack of Principal Flooty was one of the most chilling scenes of the year. And then, finding out what the did to him....chills.

--Outside of Joss Whedon, I think Bruce Seth Green is the show's best director. His camera work here was nicely done and really added some texture to the show.

--Sunnydale has a zoo? I got the impression the zoo was out of town at first. But then when Buffy is leading the pack to the zoo at the end I wondered if it was in town.

--I liked the final scene where we learn Xander remembers it all. A good coda. -

-Dodge ball can be deadly. Seeing the Pack turn on their own was nicely done. Also, did it seem to anyone else that Xander wasn't yet ready to confront Buffy, with the knowledge that since she's the Slayer she could wipe the floor with him...dodge ball or otherwise?

Well, that's about it for now. Of all the season one episodes I've been (a grand total of five!) I've got to give the Pack the nod as the best of them, so far. But I've yet to see Angel or Prophecy Girl. So, hang on to your seats....

My rating: 8.5 (out of 10.0)

Next up: On Tuesday, Xander gets the girl...only problem. She's a mummy who wants to suck the life out of him...

"I can't believe you of all people are pulling a Scully on me."

--Buffy.