Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking: Buffy lecturing "Diego" and the other cultists.All There in the Script: The script refers to the blonde vampire as "Julia".Acting Unnatural: When Willow investigates the past of Buffy's newly-arrived old friend and early crush, she feels guilty about it and tries to act naturally around Buffy - failing spectacularly, but Buffy shrugs off her squeaking high-pitched panic as the result of too much coffee.Above Good and Evil: Buffy calls out Ford on his double-crossing lies, but he merely shrugs, "Everybody lies.".Abandoned Playground: A lonely swing set in the Cold Open, with the usual Rule of Symbolism in an episode about leaving your childhood illusions behind.As they walk off together, Buffy asks Giles if life gets any easier, and Giles endearingly lies his ass off. He barely gets to blink before Buffy matter-of-factly kills him. Ford pops out from his grave, now a vampire. Sure enough, Buffy reenters the club the next day and finds Ford lying dead at her feet.Īt the cemetery, Buffy and Giles lay roses on Ford's grave, waiting to see if he'll rise or not. Xander wonders why, and Buffy clarifies, "For the body." Buffy knows that the vamps will get out eventually, so she'll come back when they're gone. Outside, the kids limp off as Angel, Willow, and Xander arrive. Spike attempts to pursue her- then stares at the door in bemusement. Buffy sidles over to the exit, then pushes Dru into Spike's arms and runs out, slamming the door shut again. At Buffy's order, he orders his crew to let the humans go, which they do. Spike is alarmed and orders everyone to halt. Buffy leaps over the rail, grabs Dru and holds a stake to her heart. Buffy spies Dru on the balcony observing the feeding frenzy. If Spike's gang comes in and starts feeding, she promises she's going to kill Ford before he gets to reap his reward.Īt sunset, Spike and his vamps spread out and start chowing down. Buffy apologizes, but doesn't buy into his solipsistic diatribe.
Ford bitterly goes on that he's got at most six months to live. When she pleads that these kids don't deserve to die, Ford blurts out that neither does he- but he has terminal cancer and vampirism would save him, though without a soul "he'd" be dead in either case. Privately, Buffy works out that the rest of the kids aren't going to be changed they're just fodder. Ford quickly spills his entire scheme, gloating that the club entrance is "rigged up special," and can only be opened from the outside. Ford signals his toady, who sidles away and locks the door.
Ford returns to his club to finish the arrangements, but Buffy's already lying in wait. They make plans to meet at this spot at nine. The next day, Ford catches Buffy and tells her he had a blast the previous night. Ford offers him a deal: "You make me a vampire, and I give you the Slayer." Cue the female vamp handing Spike a book, which he admits will be very useful (as groundwork for a later episode). Ford knows who Spike is, and he's offering a token of goodwill. Ford crashes the place and geeks out, saying that the place is "so cool," to which Spike rhetorically asks if he has anyone on watch. Buffy recognizes the vamp and realizes Ford lied to her.
In the library, the blonde vampire that Ford set free barges out of Giles' office with one of his volumes and escapes through the stacks. She asks where the other vamp is, but Ford says he dusted her. Buffy stakes her foe, and comes running back to Ford, who's now alone. In the resulting melee, Ford grabs the second vamp - a female - and menaces that he'll let her live if she tells him what he wants to know. Buffy looks askance at that, but tells Ford to stay frosty. (They don't look particularly spent.) Seeing a pair of vampires prowling the school, Buffy hands a cross to Ford, who draws a stake of his own. Buffy and Ford have just finished a walking tour of Sunnydale. They notice everyone inside is Pro-Vampire. The rest of the Scooby gang tracks Ford's whereabouts to a place called the Sunset Club. Willow does a search and finds no record of him enrolling at Sunnydale High. Meanwhile, Angel pays a visit to Willow and asks to do a background check on Ford. He's let in, and tells a group of teens inside that in two days, they will be immortal. Ford knocks on the heavy metal door of a nightclub.