Seeing Red (Buffy episode)
Encyclopedia : S : SE : SEE : Seeing Red (Buffy episode)
"Seeing Red" is episode 19 of season 6 of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. See also List of Buffy the Vampire Slayer episodes.
Plot synopsis
Summary
Tara and Willow are cuddling in bed after their reconciliation. Tara tells Willow that Spike and Buffy have been sleeping together, even though Buffy asked her to keep it a secret.
Meanwhile, Buffy enters the lair of the Nerds and is almost killed by giant saw blades. She manages to escape the trap with blueprints and other documents. The Nerds have left for a cave and killed a demon for its skin. This allows them to steal the Orbs of Nezzla'khan, which make their owner both strong and invulnerable. While Jonathan gets the gems, Warren and Andrew are shown to be plotting against him.
While Xander is in The Bronze drinking away his sorrow over Anya and Spike, the Nerds enter. Orb-enhanced Warren hits on a former schoolmate's girlfriend. He proceeds to beat up a number of other men before Xander steps in. Xander is spared when the Nerds leave for an appointment.
Buffy, sore from a fight with a vampire, is preparing for shower when a drunk Spike enters the bathroom. After she rejects his advances, he attempts rape. Buffy fights him off and he flees in horror. He turns his crypt over to Clem and leaves Sunnydale on his motorcycle, apparently on a mission to remove the chip. Xander finds a bruised Buffy in tears on the bathroom floor.
By now, Willow and Tara have figured out the Nerd's plans for large-scale theft and Buffy stops them from robbing a money transport in an amusement park. Warren is about to best her when Jonathan surreptitiously reveals to her the source of his power. After she smashes his orbs, Warren takes off with a jetpack. Andrew tries to follow him, but literally hits a roof. A jetpack-less Jonathan realizes that the two were about to betray him. Buffy takes Andrew and Jonathan to the police.
The next day, Buffy and Xander are discussing the events of the past few weeks in the backyard. They apologize to each other for not sharing their thoughts when Warren storms towards them. He shoots Buffy in the chest. A stray bullet takes a route through the upstairs window and kills Tara almost instantly, her blood splattered all over Willow.
Xander frantically tries to stop Buffy's bleeding while Tara lies dead in Willow's arms. Willow's face is contorted by pain and shock, her eyes glowing deep red.
Expanded overview
Willow and Tara snuggle after spending time in bed together and talk about Buffy and the possibility that something's going on between her and Spike. Tara confirms Willow's suspicions and talks about Buffy's relationship with Spike and her feelings of shame because of it. Willow's hurt that she was never told about it. Willow goes to check on Buffy, but instead encounters Dawn, and the two talk about the struggle Buffy must be going through with Spike. When Tara appears wearing just a sheet, Dawn gets very happy to see they are back together again. Buffy breaks into the Trio's lair, but finds the place deserted and dangerous traps waiting for her as the guys expected her arrival. She escapes and manages to take a few items with her as several large saw blades tear apart the house and her leather jacket.
Buffy, Dawn, Willow and Tara gather to go over the few items Buffy managed to steal from the Trio's lair and they all realize that the rest of the group won't be helping since they all have other priorities or lack an interest to help. Anya sits with a young scorned woman who wants to wish vengeance on her cheating boyfriend, but Anya is too busy talking about her own relationship problems to notice the young woman's wish. Meanwhile, in a cave, the Trio subdue a large Nezzla demon they need for their plan to become unstoppable. Dawn visits Spike at his crypt and lets him know that she knows about what he did with Anya and his relationship with Buffy. She lectures him about hurting Buffy when he supposedly loves her and leaves him pondering the thought of how he shows his love to her.
Back at the cave, Jonathan puts on the skins of the Nezzla demon they took out and crosses a barrier that can only be passed by one of the demons. While Jonathan's away, Warren and Andrew talk of their plans to conspire against their partner. Jonathan returns with a box that contains two red orbs--the key to their ultimate powers. Warren tests the power of the orbs on another demon and is quite pleased with the results when he kills the demon easily. Buffy visits a distraught and angry Xander at his apartment. He can't believe that she could have been involved with Spike and the two argue about it until Xander storms out. He walks the streets alone, pausing briefly to secretly look in on Anya as she works at the magic shop.
At the house and in bed, Willow reviews some files on her laptop, but is quickly distracted by Tara. Xander sits at the bar at the Bronze and the Trio show up to test out the powers of the orbs. Buffy patrols and fights with a couple of vampires and before turning to dust, one manages to kick her back into a tombstone, injuring her. At home, Buffy sets up a bath for herself to soothe her aching back. Spike shows up uninvited and starts to talk to her about how he knows she loves him and just needs to admit it. She protests as he forces himself on her, an attempt to make her feel love for him again. With her back injured, Buffy struggles against him and ultimately kicks him across the room, stopping him from going too far. Spike's stunned by his behavior and tries to apologize, but Buffy knows he only stopped because she made him. During this scene the camera angle is different, pointed downwards and unmoving. It makes it all the more powerful and realistic.
At the Bronze, Warren tries to pick up a girl while Andrew and Jonathan debate the appropriateness of Warren's plans. The woman's boyfriend steps in and a fight breaks out, but Warren's too strong and takes on the boyfriend and several others with great ease. Xander tries to intervene but is tossed aside and nearly takes a bad beating, but Jonathan reminds Warren they have to be elsewhere. Xander goes to Buffy and gets worried when he notices Spike's coat on the stairs. Upstairs in the bathroom, Xander finds Buffy on the floor, a large bruise on her leg and realizes what happened. Buffy refuses to let him go after Spike and instead focuses on Willow's new discovery regarding the Trio.
Willow and Tara tell Buffy they found plans that indicate the Trio are planning to steal a large amount of money and have narrowed it down to one scene that they're likely to hit that night. After Xander tells her of Warren's new strength, Buffy rushes off to stop the nerds. At the crypt, Spike thinks back on his actions earlier at Buffy's house and becomes infuriated. Clem stops by, wanting to hang out, but Spike is more focused on what he did and questioning what Buffy and the chip are doing to him. He realizes that something needs to be done to make things change.
An armored car is loaded up with money from a big weekend at an amusement park but as it tries to drive away, Warren stops it with his strength and overturns the vehicle. Buffy shows up and starts to fight with him, but he's able to handle himself fairly well against the Slayer. She knocks Warren down and he's buried under a mountain of broken rocks, but he recovers quickly. The fight continues and Warren taunts Buffy with his supposed mastery of her. Jonathan jumps on Buffy's back and appears to be fighting her, but he quietly informs her that she needs to smash the orbs in order to defeat Warren. Buffy returns to the fight with Warren and when she finds the orbs on his belt, she smashes them.
No longer strong, Warren takes his jacket off and reveals a jet pack on his back, which allows him to escape freely into the sky. Andrew reveals he too has a jet pack, but when he tries to escape, he only knocks himself out on the overhanging roof above him. The cops arrive and take Jonathan and Andrew to jail. On his motorcycle, Spike pauses and looks out over Sunnydale, promising Buffy that she's going to see a change soon before he takes off. Willow and Tara get dressed and while hugging, Tara notices Xander and Buffy out in the backyard together.
In the backyard, Buffy talks with Xander about what happened with the Trio and they touch on the subject of Buffy's relationship with Spike. Warren interrupts the bonding moment, and declares his intentions of revenge on Buffy for ruining his plans as he pulls out a gun. He fires directly at Buffy then shoots randomly over his shoulder as he runs away. Buffy and Xander topple to the ground as the window to Willow's bedroom is broken and a bullet strikes Tara in the back as she's facing Willow. The blood from her wound spills over Willow's shirt and Tara points the stain and says "Your shirt" before collapsing. Xander tries to stop the bleeding of Buffy's chest wound while in the house, Willow cries out as she holds Tara's lifeless body and her eyes suddenly turn magically dark with pain and fury.
Writing and acting
- Joss Whedon explained on the series finale DVD that he does not believe Spike should ever be forgiven for his attempted rape. He did want to show that eventually, Buffy would trust him enough to sleep alongside -- not with -- him.
- The episode continues the emphasis on the consequences of actions, including those of casual sex. Spike takes the time to explain to Dawn that what he and Anya did was wrong. Also, guns make another unwelcome appearance on the show.
Cast and crew
- Amber Benson as Tara Maclay
- Nicholas Brendon as Xander Harris
- Emma Caulfield as Anya Jenkins
- James Marsters as Spike
- Sarah Michelle Gellar as Buffy Summers
- Alyson Hannigan as Willow Rosenberg
- Michelle Trachtenberg as Dawn Summers
Quotes and trivia
- "It's Klingon. They're love poems." — Xander's Star Trek references prove again something he shares with the Nerds''
- This is the only episode where Amber Benson (Tara) appears in the main title credits, a special tribute to the character and actress.
- By the end of the filming of Tara's death scene, Hannigan and Benson [were crying].
- The Nerds' hideout has a bank of Apple flatscreens, the favorite computer company of the series. We later see Willow working with her iBook again.
- The figurine Buffy looks at with disgust in the Nerds' lair is a model of Vampirella, a sexy comic book figure who kills vampires.
- The Nerds' skinning of the demon foreshadows Warren's flaying by Dark Willow. Also, Andrew calls Jonathan a "skin job," probably a reference to the film Blade Runner. The show's obsession with skin will continue into the next season, where a Gnarl flays victims including a paralyzed Willow alive ("Same Time, Same Place").
- In North America the episode was trasmitted to UPN affiliates a week early by accident. Although none of them broadcast the episode by mistake, the episode was leaked onto the internet more than a week before it was meant to air.
- On the Jump The Shark site, Tara's death has the highest rating for the moment the show was considered to have jumped. However, a slightly larger number of people voted that the show never jumped.
- Both of Willow's great loves, Oz and Tara, leave at the end of seasons four and six, respectively, about two years apart.
Production details
Music
- Alien Ant Farm - "Stranded"
- Azure Ray - "Displaced"
- Daryll-Ann - "The Leaves"
Translations
German title: "Warrens Rache" ("Warren's Revenge")
Continuity
Arc significance
- This episode takes a violent turn along the season's plot and sets the stage for its final episodes. The Nerds have appeared thus far to be the Big Bad, but they will be no match for Willow.
- Willow's withdrawal from magic fails spectacularly when she loses the love so recently regained. She will complete her turn to the dark side.
- Spike's attempted rape of Buffy pushes him to make a decision to change, apparently for the worse.
Timing
- Stories that take place around the same time in the Buffyverse:
| Location, time (if known) | Buffyverse chronology: January 2002 - Spring 2002 (non-canon = italic) |
|---|---|
| Sunnydale, 2002 | B6.13 Dead Things (Buffy episode)>Dead Things |
| L.A., 2002 | Angel book: Fearless (Angel novel)>Fearless |
| L.A., 2002 | A3.13 Waiting in the Wings (Angel episode)>Waiting in the Wings |
| Sunnydale, 2002 | B6.14 Older and Far Away (Buffy episode)>Older and Far Away |
| L.A., 2002 | A3.14 Couplet (Angel episode)>Couplet |
| Sunnydale, 2002 | B6.15 As You Were (Buffy episode)>As You Were |
| L.A., 2002 | A3.15 Loyalty (Angel episode)>Loyalty |
| Sunnydale, 2002 | B6.16 Hell's Bells (Buffy episode)>Hell's Bells |
| L.A., 2002 | A3.16 Sleep Tight (Angel episode)>Sleep Tight |
| Sunnydale, 2002 | B6.17 Normal Again (Buffy episode)>Normal Again |
| L.A., 2002 | A3.17 Forgiving (Angel episode)>Forgiving |
| L.A., 2002 | Angel comic: |
| Sunnydale, 2002 | B6.18 Entropy (Buffy episode)>Entropy |
| L.A., 2002 | A3.18 Double or Nothing (Angel episode)>Double or Nothing |
| Sunnydale, 2002 | B6.19 Seeing Red (Buffy episode)>Seeing Red |
| L.A., 2002 | A3.19 The Price (Angel episode)>The Price |
| Sunnydale, 2002 | B6.20 Villains (Buffy episode)>Villains |
| Sunnydale, 2002 | Buffy books: Wicked Willow (Buffy novel)>Wicked Willow |
| L.A., 2002 | A3.20 A New World (Angel episode)>A New World |
| Sunnydale, 2002 | B6.21 Two to Go (Buffy episode)>Two to Go |
| Sunnydale, 2002 | B6.22 Grave (Buffy episode)>Grave |
| L.A., 2002 | A3.21 Benediction (Angel episode)>Benediction |
| L.A., 2002 | A3.22 Tomorrow (Angel episode)>Tomorrow |
External links
| Buffyverse | ||
| Main | Canon | Index Chronology: Ancient | Modern | BS1 | BS2 | BS3 | BS4/AS1 | BS5/AS2 | BS6/AS3 | BS7/AS4 | AS5 | Future | Flashbacks | |
| Buffy | Characters (main) | Characters (minor) | Episodes | Plot | Comics | Film | Pilot (unaired) | Promo: History.. | Novels | Promos: Pre-"Bargaining" | |
| Angel | Characters (main) | Characters (minor) | Episodes | Plot | | |
| Spin-offs | Comics | Fan made productions | Fray | Novels | Spike movie | Undeveloped productions Buffy Animated | Card Game | RPGs | Tales of Slayer (prose) | Tales of Slayers | Tales of Vampires | Toys | Video Games Upcoming: Blackout | | | | | | Portal Through Time | Spike vs Dracula | | |
| Powers | Angel Investigations | Circle of the Black Thorn | Order of Aurelius | The First Evil | The Initiative | Monsters | Old Ones | The Powers That Be | Ra-Tet | Scooby Gang | Senior Partners | Watchers' Council | Wolfram & Hart | |
| People | Adam | Amy | Andrew | Angel | Anya | Buffy | Caleb | Connor | Cordelia | Dawn | Darla | Doyle | Dru | Eve | Faith | Fred | Giles | Glory | Gunn | Harmony | Holtz | Illyria | Jasmine | Jenny | Joyce | Jonathan | Kate | Kennedy | Lilah | Lindsey | Lorne | The Master | Mayor Wilkins | Oz | Professor Walsh | Riley | Spike | Tara | Warren | Wesley | Willow | Xander | |
| Places | L.A. | Sunnydale Bronze | Caritas | Hellmouth | Hyperion | Library | Magic Box | Pylea | Sunnydale High | |
| Music | Complete Tracklist | Use of Music in Buffy & Angel | Dingoes Ate My Baby | Film | | | Once More, With Feeling | |
| Key Terminology | "Demon" | "Slayer" | "Vampire" | "Watcher" | "Werewolf" | "Witch" "Child of Senior Partners" | Shanshu | Sunnydale Syndrome | Tro-Clon | |
From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.