The Initiative

The Initiative
Written by
Directed by

Original Airdate: November 16, 1999

Plot: Spike is captured by the Initiative--a mysterious commando like group who is doing experiments on vampires. Meanwhile, Riley realizes he has feelings for Buffy and turns to Willow for advice....

Review

Warning: If seeing SPOILERS for the current episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, "The Initiative" will put you in a bad mood, I suggest you turn back now....

In short: Some parts good, some parts just OK.

On paper, "The Initiative" had a lot going for it. Namely it had Spike, it had the beginning of what could prove to be the arc storyline for this year, it had the fallout of Oz's departure and it had a movement forward in the Buffy/Riley plotline. On paper, it looked really, really good.

However, in exceuction, the storyline, while interesting, had its moments, but overall it just didn't all add up to a complete Buffy-viewing experience.

That's not to say that at the end of the sesaon, the Initiative couldn't and won't jump a bit in my estimation. It's just for now I've got to admit I'm a bit disappointed.

I think part of it is that I've come to expect a lot from Buffy--and in most cases it delivers. This time, however, it didn't.

And there was certainly a lot to like here.

For one thing, we had the continued fall-out of Oz's departure last week. I think that of all the many various plotlines that were out there in this episode, this one was handled the best. It certainly was the one that help my interest for the the majority of the episode. Seeing Willow's dark turn was nicely done and Alyson Hannigan should be commended yet again for making Willow angry but still giving her an edge of vulnerability. Yes, at times Willow was in a witchy mood in this one, but it never made her unsymapethic.

Also, I loved seeing Buffy come to her defense with the Professor after pyschology. That really worked for me. Part of it is that it's such a similar type of act that we saw Willow take for Buffy a couple weeks ago in confronting Parker. Another is that it's nice to see Buffy really stand up for herself and her friends. It makes you wonder, based on what we discovered about the Professor how this might affect things in the weeks to come. I can only hope that this scene proves to be pivotal to the long-term plotline and not just the Buffy/Riley long-term plotline.

Speaking of the Buffy/Riley plotline, I'm of two minds about it.

The first one is that I like seeing Buffy move on past Angel and try to start anew. And the chemistry with Riley has been pretty good all year. However, at times last night, it seemed like it was a bit forced. I liked the slow nature the relationship had developed, unfolding over a couple of weeks. At times last night, it really seemed to have been forced into high gear. I can understand that Riley wants to strike while the iron is hot, so to speak, but there were times when the plotline tried too hard...

Of course, that may have been part of the point, since we saw how much Riley struggled with admitting he had feelings for Buffy and then acting on them...

However, I think that overall, it could have been handled a bit more effectively in terms of what we actually saw taking place on screen.

Not that I didn't like parts of it.

I did like Riley punching out Parker (who has deserved it for weeks!) and his consulting with Willow. Those scenes worked. Seeing him make a complete ass of himself at the party also delivered some of the biggest laughs of the night. But otherwise, the plotline just didnt' really click for me.

And with Riley, we get to the real heart of the episode--namely the Initiative.

I've liked the mystery surrounding them all sesaon long and the slow, gradual build-up to just what exactly this group is. I think that finding out a lot about them at one fell swoop was interesting and while it ruined some parts of the mystery, it brought up a whole new set questions, which I hope will be answered.

Seeing Spike captured by them was interesting enough. And seeing his reaction to it was well done. I like the fact that our ever impulsive Spike leaped from point A to D without thinking it through--someone is out to hurt vamps, so it must be the Slayer. Also, seeing Spike be able to elude the Initiative and escape, even though he needed Buffy's help to do so, was nicely done and works well into what we know of Spike as a villain on the show. Also, seeing Spike's obsession with Buffy was nicely done. I think these two make the best hero/villain combination out there right now--namely because they play so well off each other.

And that was my biggest complaint last night--the lack of interaction between Buffy and Spike. That's been a trademark of the show for a while now and when it's not there, I miss it. Especially when you now have James Marsters as part of the opening credits.

I did, however, find the Spike/Willow interaction nicely done. It certainly goes along with the sexual nature of vampirism (esp. as seen in Anne Rice novels) and it was handled well here. I loved seeing Spike so upset that he couldn't feed on Willow. It was a nice change of pace rather than having Buffy come in and save Willow, which would have been a bit cliched. That scene also reminded me a lot of the conversation between Spike and Joyce in the Becoming, Part 2.

As for the Initiative, I'm of two minds about it. For one, I'm glad to see the plotline move forward a bit, but I'm not so sure I find it interesting who is in charge. I think that the number of revelations was a bit forced. We should either have found out Riley's in it or that Maggie in in charge of it...not both really. Save some of the surprises for later. I guess I'm just too much of an X-Files fan since I don't like all the answers to come out at once. Make me wait and guess, as that's half the fun...

However, the whole Initiative brings up a whole bunch of questions..

--Is that Initiative part of the Councils? It could be so since you've got one Slayer gone rogue (in their eyes) and the other one in a coma. You can't call a new one, so there's got to be a way to fight the vamps....which would explain whatever has happned to Spike.

--Why Riley? How was he recruited? What special traits does he bring to his role?

--When will Riley figure out who Buffy is...or do they already know? (I doubt he does, but I have a feeling Prof. Watkins knows more than she's letting on...)

--What force is behind the Initiative? And why? I can only hope that these are some plot points that get some attention later this year...but this is Buffy and Joss, so I can pretty much say they will be...

All in all, that's about it for the major plot points with this episode. There are a few small things that niggle at the back of my mind...

--Will Angel fall into the hands of the Initiative? That might be interesting to see...

--Xander and Giles, while having a bit of screen time this week, still seem like they're being forced into the plotlines. These are two interesting characters--USE THEM!!!!!

--It was intersting to see Harmony back. Not sure how much longer it should be until they slay her...but I have a feeling her time is quickly coming.

Well, that's about it for now...I'm left with more questions than answers. I can only hope they are answered as the season goes along...

Rating: 7.0 (out of 10.0) (It could go up based on how the season unfolds)

Next up: Angel returns to Sunnydale....

"Remember that if you hurt her, I will beat you with a shovel..."

--Willow