A New Man

A New Man
Written by Jane Esponson
Directed by

Original Airdate: January 25, 2000

Plot: After attending Buffy's birthday party, talking to Professor Walsh and spending out night out drinking with Ethan Rayne, Giles wakes up a changed man.... changed into a demon.

Review

Warning: There isn't any magic here to protect you from SPOILERS for the latest episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, "A New Man." If you haven't yet seen it and want to go into the episode unaware of any plot details please turn back now....

In short: Some great ideas that don't hold together well.

I've never been a huge fan of Jane Espnonson's work on Buffy. Yes, she offered up the nicely done and well realized Thanksgiving episode this year, but otherwise who work has had a hot and cold affect on me. There are parts of her episodes I've absolutely loved and parts that left me feeling a bit disappointed.

Which is exactly what happened with "A New Man."

There were flashes of greatness in the story we saw on screen, but in the final analysis the parts didn't come together to make a coherent whole.

And that's a real shame, because there were a lot of really, really good ideas at work here.

The first, of course, being Giles continued role as part of the Scooby gang. I absolutely loved the first half in which Giles was forced to question his role in the gang. Indeed, Riley's comments about how he didn't take an older person like Professor Walsh would want to hang out with a bunch of young adults like Buffy, Willow and Xander was nicely done, especially the reaction on Giles' face.

And to see it extend beyond one isolated scene was nice. The sequence between Giles and Professor Walsh worked fairly well. It makes you wonder if there's something being set up for later this season--in which Buffy will be forced to choose between her old mentor in Giles and a new mentor in Maggie. Personally, I think Buffy's going to choose Giles, but it may be interesting to see how that conflict plays out. Also, to see Giles irritation that he's been fighting the good fight for years and demons don't seem to care but this Initiative comes along and "they're quaking in their boots" was interesting to see. I've got to wonder if this conflict or internal questioning will continue into future episodes.

I get the feeling that a lot of the character arc for the rest of the year has been set into motion by this episode. It will be interesting to see just how these events play out.

However, where the wheels began to fall off the wagon in this plotline was from the point at which Giles was transformed into a demon until the end. Not that I didn't like the plotline, mind you. It certainly had some amusing moments--Giles being able to only talk to Spike, his scaring the tar out of Professor Walsh (who let me just say deserved every minute of it!) and his first attempts at not knowing his own strength all worked so well. But what we never got was anything more than that. Giles suddenly was on the other side, quaking in his boots at the fear of the Iniatitive and Buffy. However, didnt' get much of a glimpse of this. Part of it was that the transformation took so long to get to, coupled with the wealth of other plotlines in place (which I'll get to a minute).

By no means did I want the plotline of Giles questioning his role as Watcher now to be resolved in just one episode. But it was brought up in the early going and then forgotten. And that really bugged me. I wanted the episode to work and it had potential to do so.

There were other parts I liked as well. The return of Ethan was nicely realized here. He certainly fared a lot better here than he did last year in Band Candy, character wise. And he did get the biggest laugh of the night with his line about how his plans are usually foiled by his need to gloat. That was absolutely a perfect line.

Also, you wonder if the Initiative might not have other plans for Ethan. I seriously doubt he's being taken to Nevada. I have a feeling he's behind that door Profesor Walsh went into in the end.

Which brings me to my biggest beef with the episode--namely how much the two sides know about each other. It all seemed so quick. Buffy only found out about Riley and vice-versa a couple of weeks ago (probably three to four in Buffy universe time). It seems odd that Professor Walsh was brought into the know so quickly, especially based on the fact that Riley seemed to be going out of his way to hide Buffy's identity from her last week. A bit of explanation of how she found out might have been nice. A line from Riley about it would have smoothed this over. Also, I'm not certain how Buffy found out. Yes, Buffy knows Riley is part of it, but why would he tell her that Professor Walsh is in charge? And before you bring up that whole--oh, they're having a relationship and he is being honest and telling her everything defense, let me say this. My father was career military and there were secrets that he wasn't allowed to tell a soul--even my mother. So, for Riley to spill the beans on what is supposed to be a secret military organziation to a civilian he's just met is wrong. He should be court martialed for this offense and drilled out of the Initatitive.

But I doubt that will ever happen.

Another interesting part of the episode was Willow and her new friend I have read several postings saying that scenes in hush had a bit of a lesbian vibe. I didn't really see it and I don't here. Maybe from the fact that Willow lied about who worked with her on the magic but otherwise I don't see it. And I can chalk the lying to Buffy as not wanting Buffy to get upset that there might be another magic user on the loose like Amy.

Speaking of which, are they ever going to change that poor girl back?

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

--Buffy and Riley's relationship seems to be moving a bit fast. For two people who wanted to take it slow, it sure has moved up a bit. I mean, it took Buffy and Angel almost a year to decide to sleep together. Now, Buffy is ready to jump in bed with Riley after dating three weeks. I don't buy it.

-- Xander and Spike continue to amuse. The moving out scene was a riot. Spike's line about Xander being suprised at Spike's stealing things was a classic. I wonder if Spike will inherit the crypt where we first saw Ethan....

--Ethan's speech in the crypt and Giles' interrupting it was classic.

--Professor Walsh and Anya were both wasted this week, IMHO. They added little to the overall episode. Especially Anya. Don't just have her in there to have her in there. Give her something to do!

--You've got to wonder how long it will be before the Watcher's Council steps in about the Initative. They've got to be less than thrilled at this development...

Well, that's it for now. Overall, there was some nice character work in A New Man, but a lot of things that just didn't work. I have to say I'm disappointed.

My rating: 6.5 (out of 10.0)

Next up: A repeat of "Fear Itself."