The Yoko Factor

The Yoko Factor
Written by
Directed by

Original Airdate: May 9, 2000

Plot: Adam makes Spike an offer he can't refuse--help him destroy the Scooby gang and weaken Buffy and he'll remove the chip from Spike's brain...

Review

Warning: If you think reading SPOILERS will ruin your overall relationship with the rest of the group, I strong suggest you turn back now. There are major SPOILERS just ahead for the latest episode of Buffy, "The Yoko Factor."

In short: Strong in spots.

I can't really envy any writer on Buffy who has the dubious task of following an episode written by either Joss Whedon or Marti Noxon. Invariably, while their work is still excellent, it will, usually, suffer on comparison to the work that these two fabulous writers are able to consistently put out.

But there are exceptions to every rule, I suppose and "The Yoko Factor" is one of them. While it's certainly not as strong as last week's superlative "New Moon Rising" it certainly did a lot of things extremely well and had them all make sense in and interesting and intelligent way. And, of course, as I always say in the beginning of two part stories, it's hard to really judge the episode too much becasue we haven't yet seen how all of the storylines set into motion here will play out in the next episode.

Not that I'm not really, really intrigued and already counting down days until next week. (Thank the stars I've got my new X-Files DVDs to try and tide me over).

But I have to admit, it's going to be a long week. (Heck, even Angel seemed longer than an hour last night simply because I wanted to see part two IMMEDIATELY, if not sooner!)

"The Yoko Factor" clicked on a lot of different levels. The biggest level that it clicked on was the character level. My biggest complaint all year long is that the supporting cast of Buffy has been given too little to do, making such once rich characters as Xander and Giles seems superflous to the overall plot of the season. And last night, it all hit the proverbial fan and it did so in such a natural and entertaining way that I was compelled to watch.

First of all, it was nice to see the Spike and Adam coallition pay such immediate dividends in terms of impacting the plotline. I like the fact that while Adam is able to rally the troops in the form of a demon army and be a strong leader in that way, he's not as well versed in the subtle art of psychological warfare. Instead, he leaves that to Spike, who excells in that.

James Marsters really shone last night as Spike, making evil just seem to drip off him at every turn. It was, in many ways, like getting a glimpse of the old Spike we knew and loved from season two. Spike has always been a bit of the watch and wait before attacking villains and it's nice to see that his inside knowledge of the group this year paid off in tearing them down and putting them at odds. Marsters did especially well in his scenes with Giles and Willow respectively, playing off their fears. In fact, it seems that this year's earlier story, "Fear Itself" is rearing its ugly head as the gang is forced to face up to some of the fears they had in that episode. But while in that episode it was a fear demon that was forcing them to look inside themselves, this time there is not easy way out. The gang is going to have to face their fears and realize how this will bond them together as a stronger unit in order to stop Adam.

The thing that really made sense about all of this was that Spike played off fears each one has. Giles being afraid of not being a good Watcher (foreshadowed all the way back in season one's "Nightmares" with his fear of Buffy being killed under his watch), Xander's not really being part of the Scooby gang and Willow's new found lifestyle. I loved the way Spike manipulated Willow by not coming out and blatantly saying that everyone in the gang will have a problem with her romantic attachment to Tara but instead using the overtone of Tara and Willow both being wicca to make his point and allowing Willow to fill in the rest of the details. The barely contained glee on Spike's face as he drove the emotional stakes into the gangs hearts worked exceptionally well and I liked that.

I also liked the fact that Spike didn't approach Buffy in his pyschological warfare game. I found that interesting as well. It makes you wonder if Spike doesn't on some level fear that if he did that that Buffy would be clued into his plan. Buffy has shown to be a bit more intituitive about what Spike is really up to at times and it's nice to see that carry over here.

But, while Spike's manipulation of the Scooby gang was nicely done, the results of it were even better. The final ten minutes with the Scooby gang at each other's throats was some of the best character scenes we've had all year. I liked that fact that on some level, every character in the arguement had a valid point. And I'm also glad that it got as heated and as personal as it did without someone saying, "Well, Spike said..." thus ruining the overall drama of the moment. The issues brought out here are not any that are going to go away any time soon, nor should they. And I'm glad to see the writers are willing to take a chance on the conflict not being resolved easily or in a convient way for the characters. Just as with Buffy's running away or her harboring of Angel after his return, I get the feeling this is going to have long-term consequences for the Scooby gang, not only in the final two episodes of season four, but also as season five begins next fall.

I also liked the part where the loose lips on the show were n't just confined to Spike. Certainly, it was coincidental that Xander spilled the beans to Riley on just how Angel feel from grace, but it worked well here. I liked the fact that there was some tension between Riley and Buffy on this issue and that while Buffy told him most of the story she left some details out. To see how this impacted them was interesting and I certainly hope that this plotline doesn't end with a "I love you too much to be with you" type of thing. We've already had that with Angel and it'd be a bit trite for Buffy and Riley to end up the same way. (Though odds are they're going to stay together....

And speaking of Angel, it was nice to see him show up on Buffy. Certainly the tension between Angel and Riley was superbly done and very nice to see. I loved seeing Angel and Riley go toe-to-toe, though I think that given a fair fight, Angel would wipe the floor with Riley. Also, seeing Riley's over the top jealousy of Angel and his attempts to keep him from talking to Buffy was nicely done. And to see Angel's rather standoffish attitude also worked on a lot of levels.

As for the Buffy and Angel apology, it worked pretty well, I suppose. It's nice to see that the two can talk without fighting. And to see that there is still some bond of friendship between them. I couldn't help but think how Angel's not being in Sunnydale would be an asset to Adam's plan. Namely because Angel brings a good back-up in a fight for Buffy and might have been instrumental in helping to take Adam down. Indeed, his decision to leave Sunnydale to help ease tensions between himself and Riley was certainly an unintended consequence for all sides. It'll be interesting to see how this plays out not only next week but in future episodes.

Overall, from a character stand-point, this one clicked on just about every level.

But on the action side, it was hit and miss. I liked seeing Buffy forced to go up against Adam and not winning. That worked pretty well, as did Forrest's death. You've got to wonder why Forrest didn't call for back-up or at least report Adam's presense. For a group that has spent the last few weeks looking for Adam non-stop, this seems a bit lax.

Also, seeing the the Iniatitive is being depleted in numbers was nice as well. I have a feeling the Initiative will end up needing Buffy and the Scooby gang more than the Scooby gang needs them in the near future.

But, the biggest shock of the episode had to be Riley's "reporting" to Adam. It certainly casts a lot of doubts on the character and it makes me wonder some things. First of all, Riley seemed to change after he found out about Forrest's death. It makes me wonder if Walsh put some kind of trigger in him to make him help Adam in the event of Forrest's death. Or does Adam have some kind of control over Riley? Certainly just having the ending we did opens an entire can of worms that will spark a great deal of debate over the next week (and it will certainly give fuel to the fire of those Riley haters out there).

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

--I wonder if Adam is playing Spike and not really planning to remove the chip....

--I loved the scene with Anya and Tara in Giles' bathroom.

--Xander worked well. I loved his being upset when he spilled the beans on Angel and Buffy to Riley.

So, there are still a lot of balls being juggled at this time and it will be interesting to see how they all play out next week. But for now, I'm suitable impressed...

My rating: 9.0 (out of 10.0)

Next up: Buffy goes "The Matrix" on Adam....