Episode Report Card Ace: A+ | 20 USERS: A YOU GRADE IT The Harvest (2)
By Ace | Season 1 | Episode 2 | Aired on 03.09.1997
Speak of the demon! Luke and Darla manhandle Jesse into the Master's underground lair, where the Master waits beside his pool of red Jell-O. Somebody should tell him you have to refrigerate the stuff to get it to set. I'm afraid he has a long wait. The Master is excited to see his little snack, but gets rather irritated when Darla admits she's already had a nip, or, as she puts it in her own words, "Hish blood ith pure." Damn plastic teeth. Anyway, the Master gets pissy about his henchpeople's behavior and I giggle, 'cause I love a petty villain. Darla and Luke make excuses, mentioning they encountered a powerful girl, possibly a Slayer.
Back in the library, Giles gives Xander and Willow the abbreviated story of Buffy: "The Slayer hunts vampires. Buffy is a Slayer. Don't tell anyone." Hee. I feel much differently about Giles now than I did when I saw my first episode of Buffy way back when. I was visiting my sister and we watched the first-ever airing of the second-season episode "Halloween." I recall being confused by Giles and asking my sis what the stuffy boring guy had to do with anything. I've grown a lot as a person since then. Xander wants to know how to kill vampires, but Buffy insists that any killing be left up to her. Swinging around her cleavage (what ever happened to that tasty accessory?), she vows to save Jesse. Willow suggests calling the police, but Giles and Buffy shoot that idea down. The gang deduces that the vampires are hiding in a system of tunnels underneath the town.
In his lair, the Master and Luke discuss stopping the Slayer before she ruins the Master's plans to ascend. They decide that Buffy will come for Jesse, and Luke grabs Jesse by the throats and gloats that he's now "bait." In a reaction shot, Jesse seems to be going for "terrified" but ends up with a face that just screams, "Ewww, Luke had knockwurst and garlic knots for lunch."
Willow is demonstrating her computer skills by hacking into city plans for the tunnels under the town. I loved Willow's computer skills, and I'm going to take this opportunity to soap-box that I'm actually quite upset that the writers have abandoned Willow's intellectual abilities for something fuzzy-wuzzy and emotional like spell-casting. The plans don't show any access into the tunnels, and Buffy snits around bemoaning the situation until she realizes that Luke came out of nowhere to attack her, and this would seem to indicate that the tunnels can be entered through the mausoleum. Xander asks what the plan is, and Buffy tells him that he can't come along. Tossing the non-Slayers a bone and thereby establishing the beloved Scooby Gang, Giles offers Xander and Willow the opportunity to assist by researching the upcoming Harvest. Buffy leaves the library and, sporting funny bug-eyed sunglasses, starts to leave the school grounds through a gate. As she does, Principal Flutie stops her and warns her that leaving school grounds could get her into trouble. Buffy tries to explain that Mr. Giles told her to fetch a book, but Flutie repeats she shouldn't leave and locks the gate. After he tromps away, Buffy leaps over the fence and runs off. I read some complaints on the boards about Buffy's high heels in season four, and I must be honest and admit that I didn't notice them because my eyes were always smarting too much from getting poked by SMG's pointy collarbones, but this last shot contained proof that Buffy's heels have been high since the very beginning.