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With that being said, let’s get started, shall we?
• After the emotional upheaval that was “Amends”, I’m looking forward to a nice, funny, happy episode of “Buffy The Vampire Slayer” that doesn’t involve Joyce finding two dead children. Oh, wait...this episode actually does centre around the ‘deaths’ of two children. This leads to the persecution of witches (and warlocks), due to no reason other than fear. At 24 years old, I’m from a generation where some of my friends are Wiccan and happily talk about and discuss magic, so this episode was rather difficult to watch for me personally. The second plot point is mothers. This episode explores Buffy’s relationship with Joyce now that Joyce has a good understanding of what it’s like for Buffy being the Slayer. We also get to see Willow’s mother for the first time (took bloody long enough!) and get a glimpse into how Sheila treats Willow.
• I like “Gingerbread”. The problem is that it comes after three amazing episodes, so it always feels slightly disappointing. “Lovers Walk”, “The Wish”, and “Amends” is one of the strongest three-episode runs of “Buffy The Vampire Slayer”, so it’s no surprise that “Gingerbread” can’t quite live up to that high standard.
• Words cannot describe my sheer joy at Joyce cheering Buffy on during the vampire fight and her subsequent recognition of the vampire as Mr. Sanderson from the bank. What are the odds that the first time Joyce goes patrolling with Buffy, Joyce knows the vampire. I wonder if she’d let this one sit in her kitchen and drink hot beverages with her like she did Spike three episodes previously (“you got any of those little marshmallows?”)?
• Then this episode takes a sinister turn as Joyce discovers the dead bodies of two little children. When I first saw this episode, I was shocked. One of the biggest no-no’s for a show that is aimed at the demographic that “Buffy The Vampire Slayer” is that they don’t kill children. It’s such a rarity! Not only are these children dead, but Joyce, on her first time patrolling with Buffy, is the one to discover them. Of all the nights to choose, Joyce!
• Unsurprisingly, the episode jumps from uncomfortable to more uncomfortable, as Oz and Xander are making small talk. I believe it’s their first one-on-one conversation since Oz saw Xander and Willow kissing in “Lovers Walk”. I’m surprised at just how cordial they become with each other again by the end of this season. You could argue that by the end of this season they’re closer friends than they ever were before Xander kissed Willow.
• Buffy: “She picked last night of all nights for a surprise bonding visit.”
Willow: “God, your Mom would actually take the time to do that with you?...that really wasn’t the point of the story, was it?”
This remark from Willow is foreshadowing Willow’s strained relationship with her mother that we get to see a little later on in the episode.
It only took two and a half years, but we finally meet Sheila Rosenberg. I suppose I shouldn’t be too upset. It takes five and a half years to meet Xander’s mother and father. Bluntly, Sheila is a terrible mother. Her daughter is practically invisible to her and it makes my heart ache for Willow. However, we finally get to see a part of Willow’s life that we’ve been missing for a long time. Willow’s mother helps explain why Willow is such a perfectionist when it comes to her school work and witchcraft and why Willow is so intelligent in general. Willow’s mother is a very intelligent person who puts a lot of emphasis on being smart and orderly. Willow has grown up in a household where she has to try and live up to her mother (and perhaps Father)’s high expectations. It could also help to explain why Willow’s self-esteem was so low before she received Buffy’s influence in her life. If Buffy has the weight of the world on her shoulders, Willow has the weight of the world on her shoulders from an academic standpoint. All those times where Willow said she couldn’t go out because she had to study, all those times where Willow was freaking out about a test, they all make sense now.
Sheila Rosenberg: “Willow, you cut off your hair?! That’s a new look.”
Willow: “Yeah, it’s just a sudden whim I had…in August.”
Terrible, terrible, terrible parent! I’m surprised that Willow hasn’t become Marcie Ross when she’s at home.
• “Gingerbread” is deliciously awkward, isn’t it? I’ve noticed that Jane Espenson is a master at awkward episodes or awkward dialogue. We’ve had the discovery of the dead children, we’ve had the uncomfortable small talk between Oz and Xander, and now we arrive at more uncomfortable small talk between Giles and Joyce. This is their first interaction since their shagathon in “Band Candy” on the hood of a police car.
• Joyce: “How many of us have lost someone who just disappeared? Or got skinned? Or suffered neck rupture? And how many of us have been too afraid to speak out? I was supposed to lead us in a moment of silence, but silence is this town’s disease. For too long we’ve been plagued by unnatural evils. This isn’t our town anymore. It belongs to the monsters and the witches and the Slayers. I say it’s time for the grown-ups to take Sunnydale back.”
Oh, boy, there’s a lot to say about Joyce’s little speech here. She’s taken the socially acceptable ‘Sunnydale Syndrome’ (a phrase I created for when everyone knows something weird is going on, but ignores it or magically forgets about it entirely) and dropkicked it out of the room. While this causes a lot of problems for the Scoobies for the remainder of this episode, it’s so refreshing to see someone actually talk about the fact that Sunnydale is different to other cities. I can’t believe it took this long! Jonathan also does this before the end of the season when he gives Buffy the ‘Class Protector’ award in “The Prom”. I was sat there in stunned silence when I first saw this scene.
• When it comes right down to the essence of the episode, it’s all about fear or persecution of the people that do something other than the norm. Amy and Michael are bullied by other students of Sunnydale High after the discovery of the two dead children because they practise witchcraft. I swear, it gives me Vietnam flashbacks of my time at school. In my school days I was bullied terribly for four years just because I was ‘different’. I was the Goth kid who hung out with all the other ‘weirdos’. I had black painted nails (which I still do from time to time), long hair, wore as much black clothing as I could get away with, and a little eyeliner too. As you can imagine, this didn’t make me the most popular child in school and didn’t open a lot of doors for friendships. Even at a young age, my belief was that if they didn’t want to be friends with me because of the way I dressed, they didn’t deserve my friendship in the first place. Ironically, I’ve been out of school for 8.5 years now and my friendship group is still completely intact whereas all the other groups have drifted apart or disbanded entirely. That’s why Buffy saving Amy and Michael from the bullies makes me love her even more than I did before. I just wish I’d had a Buffy around during my school years.
• Buffy: “What is this?”
Willow: “A doodle. I do doodle. You too, you do doodle too.”
One of my favourite Willow lines. I encourage each and every one of you to try and say that ten times fast when you’re drunk. I tried it last year and apparently what came out was something that sounded like “Poodle. I poodle. You poodle poo.” Not my finest moment.
• Xander, why do you have Playboys AT SCHOOL? The scene where the school search everyone’s lockers is probably the most uncomfortable moment of the episode. All of these students having their privacy ignored like that is really difficult to watch. It’s just another instance of persecution. Then, M.O.O. have the audacity to take the poor, defenceless books.
• Snyder: “Lift a finger against me and you’ll have to answer to M.O.O.”
Buffy: “Answer to M.O.O.? Did that sentence just make some kind of sense that I’m not in on?”
Snyder: “Mothers Opposed to the Occult, a powerful new group.”
Buffy: “And who came up with that lame name?”
Snyder: “That would be the founder. I believe you call her ‘Mom’.”
• Willow: “I worship Beelzebub. I do his biddings. Do you see any goats around? No because I sacrifice them. All bow before Satan! Oh prince of the night, I summon you. Come fill me with your black, naughty evil.”
Three years later, she is filled with black, naughty evil magic. Oh, the irony. Poor Willow, though. She can barely get her mother’s attention when she’s talking about goat-slaying and worshipping Satan...she has no chance. However, there’s a time and a place to try and get your mother’s attention. I don’t think saying these things when everyone is paranoid about witchcraft is the time to try and get that attention, Willow.
• Has anyone else noticed that every character from “Buffy The Vampire Slayer” and “Angel” has a troubled childhood? Fred is the only exception to this rule that I can think of. We never learn much about Cordelia or Riley’s relationships with their parents or what their childhood was like. Everyone else seems to have had a rough time. While I appreciate the fact that this helps make the characters feel relatable, I think it’s unrealistic that so many characters would have such a shitty childhood. Can’t anyone ever be happy in the Buffyverse?!
• Sheila doesn’t know her daughter’s best friend’s name! She called Buffy “Bunny Summers”. I really don’t like Sheila.
• Joyce raises the point of if Sunnydale is better with Buffy there? Are they running out of vampires? No, they aren’t, but just look at how Sunnydale would have been without Buffy in “The Wish”. This adds to my ‘someone should have remembered the events of “The Wish”’ theory. Nobody remembering it means that it’s all redundant. Buffy is having serious self-esteem issues about this and nobody can help put her mind at rest because nobody remembers. We, the audience, know all too well what Sunnydale would have been like without Buffy, and it sucked.
• At this point the episode was interesting and plodding along just fine, but the moment those kids appeared to Joyce looking all pale and China doll-like, the episode picked up. How are those children alive and why is Joyce talking to them like it’s a perfectly normal thing to do?!
• After all the drama at the end of “Amends”, it’s nice to see that Angel seems to have found the will to fight again with Buffy by his side as his girlfriend. You’ve got to squirrel these happy moments, people! You’ve got to gather them up and keep them safe for the long winter of emotional turmoil that is bound to happen soon in a Joss Whedon show. They are what sustains you during all the death and tears.
• I adore Giles yelling at the computer in frustration. He should do that in every episode. Giles should resist technology forever. Like Oz, I was so disappointed in Giles for having a TV next season.
Xander: “Frisky Watcher’s chat room? Why, Giles!”
• The Hansel and Gretel approach was a nice touch. I quite like the idea that Hansel and Gretel were actually real and were demons. The whole “Fairytales are real” concept comes up again in “Hush” (The Gentlemen).
• Giles is unconscious again. I believe that’s the sixth time in season three so far. He should see the Sports Legacy Institute about brain trauma.
• I know they’re possessed, but Sheila and Joyce JUST SET FIRE TO THEIR DAUGHTERS (and Amy)! They are going to BURN THEIR DAUGHTERS ALIVE because they deem them to be ‘”evil”, due to their involvement in supernatural activities. So. Damn. Disturbing. Imagine if they’d succeeded! How would they have been able to live with themselves after the possession wore off. Also, they casually make plans to stay in touch and have lunch together while their daughters are burning.
• Amy is now a rat for the next three years (except two seconds in “Something Blue”).
• Cordelia: “It doesn’t look like a toad.”
Giles: “No reason it should, it’s from inside the toad.”
Cordelia: “I hate you.”
Giles and Cordelia together is comedy gold. Why is it such a rarity that they have scenes together just the two of them?! This episode and season two’s “Killed By Death” are perfect examples of Giles and Cordelia being hilarious.
• I also prefer the two little ones to the one big ugly one, Cordelia. Luckily, we don’t have to wait too long before one of the most spectacular deaths in the history of the show – “Did I get it?! Did I get it?!”
• Xander and Oz falling through the ceiling and saying “We’re here to rescue you”, after all the drama had been resolved, was brilliant. This episode completely centred around female characters (Buffy, Willow, Joyce, Sheila), so it’s nice that the females resolved the issues before the male cavalry arrived.
Quote Of The Episode
Cordelia: “…and found you all unconscious…again. How many times have you been knocked out anyway? I swear, one of these times you’re going to wake up in a coma.”
Giles: “Wake up in a...oh never mind.”
Just three episodes ago we learned that Cordelia tests well. Apparently they don’t test for general intelligence. Wake up in a coma...
FINAL SCORE: 7/10
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I vehemently disagree with Admin's opinion of Gingerbread. I LOVED this ep because it showed Joyce attempting to relate to Buffy as the Slayer. What with going on patrol with her and all. We also get a glimpse into ppl, besides the Scoobies and other students acknowledging that strange things do indeed happen in Sunnydale. Joyce's speech, concern and subsequent founding of MOO (love that name!) show this. We get our first glimpse of Richard Wilkins III, the best big bad in the series and get beaten over the head with the theme of the mob mentality and paranoia. Of course this ep represented the Salem witch trials what with the persecution of anyone different and the burning at the stake etc. Interestingly the paranoia spread by the demon robbed everyone but the Scoobies of their common sense. Just like in Band Candy the adults were acting more like kids than the kids themselves. No one but BUFFY asked about the kids' past, their school, their families, what they were doing alone in the park when they were killed? The adults were too busy trying to persecute anyone different. IMO this ep speaks to the innocence of the young, we are taught to hate by adults and taught to ostracize and bully anyone different from us even if that difference is based on looks (as in the case wit Michael) or if it is by group association (Amy) or interest which is how Buffy and Willow ended up tied to the stakes. Finally this ep was hilarious with Xander and Giles teaming up to try and be the heroes by crawling through the vents and ultimately falling with Oz saying, "We're here to rescue you." After of course Amy had already escaped (why didn't anyone try to catch her since she was just a mouse?) and Buffy killed the demon. One of the best kills in the history of the show btw and there have been some cool ones. Kralik and The Judge's death come to mind. Anywho anytime a fairy tale is incorporated into the ep I find it to be one I love. Nice touch with the Hansel and Gretel spin.
ReplyDeleteLiked anonymous one's review. Cordelia's parents (especially her father) are referred to in her buying habits. She is a daddy's girl to the max! When he gets sent to jail she is reduced to poverty because she has been given everything but an education. The adults are the reason Sunnydale is so open to vampires and demons. They are so busy trying to amass (includes Joyce) that they don't realize what is happening around them. I love Joyce because she finally gets a clue as to what Buffy is involved in but she is still open to criticism because she feels like she can control the situation. Unfortunately being a parent means bringing all your own personality traits into the mix. Baggage? Parents are just people. I agree that this was a 180 from the previous 3 episodes so it was disorienting.
ReplyDeleteLike the above reviewer I agree it seems many of the adults are so into themselves they ignore not only their kids and their feelings as in the case with Willow and Xander's parents but they ignore the world around them as well.You'd think one of them would pick up a newspaper, listen to the radio or watch the news once in a while. Even Giles was later revealed to have a TV. It seems he is the wise sage and apparently the only one not deluded by the la las of rose coloured glasses. Interestingly he is the only character (besides Wesley) who wears them. The other adults who DO know what is going on in Sunnydale are either vamps, (like Trick) evil (like Snyder) or caught up in the struggle (as we see with the Knights of Byzantium and Maggie Walsh however these adults are shown in later seasons when out heroes are starting to become adults themselves) But anywho while the adults are so caught up in their day to day denial and bringing their own personality traits into the mix, the kids are fighting their own battles and fighting to protect the very adults that are ignoring and or abusing them. Cordy's parents seem to use their abilty to provide (see spoil) their daughter as proof that they are worthy and competent parents. So much so that daddy Chase (as in chasing after that dollar) goes to jail and ironically ends up broke and unable to provide for even his daughter's college education Yes parents are ppl but in Sunnydale (as in the real world) some are not the best at parenting which is both a noun and a verb
ReplyDeleteI’m not sure if Snyder was actually evil.
DeleteI really like Gingerbread :) Now that I'm rewatching Buffy in a random order, I never think about the fact that it comes after Lovers Walk, The Wish and Amends, but rather, I just view it independently and I think it's a great episode.
ReplyDeleteI thnk every BTVS episode creates a very specific atmosphere that distinguishes it from all the other episodes, and yet every episode remains faithful to the general atmosphere of the show; for me, Gingerbread manages to create a very unique, magical (and very disturbing) mood.
I dislike Willow's mother with a fiery passion...I am so grateful Willow grew up to be such a kind and lovely person (disregarding later events). I respect her even more after knowing that she had to grow up with that person as a mother...
“Poodle. I poodle. You poodle poo.” ahahaha. I laughed. :D
Nope, no one can ever be happy in the Buffyverse.
"Also, they casually make plans to stay in touch and have lunch together while their daughters are burning." yep, frickin insane.
And now to read ‘Helpless’!
<3 I also need to read Helpless. Then type up my comments.
DeleteI love that Joyce tried bonding with Buffy, but on patrol? No, Joyce. No! But then she was Buffy’s cheerleader and that is just too cute for words.
ReplyDeleteI think Spike is a special case for hot beverages and little marshmallows.
I couldn’t believe that they would show dead children, but it shows what kind of show BTVS is.
Oz is a pretty chill guy so I can't see him holding a grudge.
Poor Willow, yep, I can see why Willow and Xander love to hang out at Buffy’s – there’s Joyce!
Sheila is such a bitch. Poor Willow. So much makes sense now. Also, how in the flying fudge farm do you not notice that Willow had cut her hair?
I loved Joyce’s speech, up till “and the Slayers”, then I was angry with her – only Buffy really can solve this one people! Sheesh! I thought that Joyce was going to say “and the Slayer, my daughter, is the only one who can help!”
People don’t like the unknown. And some people just don’t like anything that is different to them. It’s sad. Your belief about people from a young age is awesome. I guess I had a Buffy friend in my friend Kyla. She is Native American and gorgeous as. She moved back to the US with her mum (who is a second mum to me) after high school but we are still close. She tended to stick it to people who teased me. If the gorgeous thin model girl (yep, she had a modelling contract) can be besties with the fat girl, the bullies back off a bit (honestly Ky is brilliant. We used to watch Star Wars (the originals) every weekend at her house during our high school years. If I wasn’t at her house I was at Nana’s – my life savers in high school.
Haha, I was so puzzled as to why Xander would have Playboys at school. Why Xander, why? Oh that’s right – looking at linoleum makes you want to have sex!
MOO – quite possibly the stupidest name ever. The books! The poor books! I feel your pain Giles. Oh, how I feel it!
Oh Shane. *shakes head* This is Joss’s world. Of course no one can ever be happy. If they by some miracle do find a happy, chances are it will be ripped away with great force in the next episode. I thought we covered this already.
Again, Sheila is a bitch.
It is annoying that no one remembers – why can’t Anya be around in this episode?!
*shivers* Those kids! Ok, there is something not so sunny in the dale happening here!
Haha, yep save up all the happy goodness.
Oh Giles. You and technology just don’t mix. You are doomed to me un-mixy. Makes me think of, oh crap, I can’t place it right now. It’s a scene from Angel where someone is holding a cellphone all funny. I’m thinking of the Pylean who comes to LA or Groo. But it reminds me of Giles. I like when he yells at technology. It’s so funny. I too was disappointed in him having a TV.
I can’t get over the parents/adults willingly burning the teens. You crazy parents – and they say young people do silly stuff!
Eww. The toad thing. Gross. I’m with you on that one Cordy! I love Giles and Cordy – they should have had more scenes together.
And again, with your Cordy. I too liked the two little ones rather than the one big one.
Xander and Oz – such handsome rescuers, a bit late, but the thought is there and isn’t that what counts?
Haha, “wake up in a coma”. Oh Cordy.
• After all the drama at the end of “Amends”, it’s nice to see that Angel seems to have found the will to fight again with Buffy by his side as his girlfriend. You’ve got to squirrel these happy moments, people! You’ve got to gather them up and keep them safe for the long winter of emotional turmoil that is bound to happen soon in a Joss Whedon show. They are what sustains you during all the death and tears. Thank you Shangel it is so true!
ReplyDelete