Line #52 Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS6E1BargainingPart1


1	->'''Xander:''' This is deep stuff, Willow. We're talking about raising the dead.\
2	'''Willow:''' It's time we stop talking. Tomorrow night, we're bringing Buffy back.
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4	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/screenshot_20190210_011329_video_player.jpg]]
5	[[caption-width-right:350:''"Come forward, blessed one. Know your calling."'']]
6
7	Directed by Creator/DavidGrossman
8
9	Written by Creator/MartiNoxon, Creator/RebeccaKirshner, & Creator/StevenSDeKnight
10
11	The Scoobies patrol in the absence of the Slayer, who has been dead for five months. Willow and her growing powers lead the efforts and the gang with telepathy and other magic from a perch on top of a crypt. The gang are helped by the Buffybot, who helps the group slay several vampires -- and helps keep Buffy's death a secret from both the regular and the supernatural world. Willow has tried to make the robot behave more normally, but her tuning never really goes quite as planned. Although the Buffybot is doing its job fine, it also serves as a painful reminder of the friend they've lost.
12
13	The next morning, Willow and Tara (who have moved into Buffy's house and are secretly acting as Dawn's guardians) prepare for the day, getting Dawn ready for school as Dawn prepares to take a phonecall from her father who they are also trying to keep Buffy's death a secret from. At one point the Buffybot, acting on its programming, hugs Dawn creating an awkward and uncomfortable moment, knowing that the robot is a pale imitation of the real Buffy. The Buffybot is sent to attend Parent's Day at Dawn's school. She behaves oddly, but the other parents hear her comments in Ms. Lefcourt's class as expressing concerns similar to their own and the Buffybot doesn't draw any suspicion. At the Magic Box, Giles and Anya are going over paperwork however Anya is angry at Giles, since he has announced his intention to return to England and leave her in charge of the store, but has yet to go through with it leading to an argument. Xander arrives, and diffuses the situation before taking Anya aside, as she admits that she wants to announce their engagement to the gang, but Xander doesn't want to go through with it while everything is still 'up in the air' in regards to the issue that they're discussing with Willow and Tara that evening.
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15	That night, Spike stays with Dawn while the rest of the gang have a meeting. Dawn suggests that Spike can leave, but he steadfastly refuses, still feeling guilt that his failure to protect Dawn lead to Buffy's death. The two then start a card game. The Buffybot hunts a vampire, but gets hit with a bottle and her motion skills are impaired. The vampire realizes the Slayer is a robot and quickly leaves.
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17	Anya has found — on eBay of all places — the last Urn of Osiris. Willow's pleased and announces their plans to bring back Buffy the next night. Xander, Anya and Tara are all feeling unsure that bringing Buffy back to life is the right thing to do, as something could go wrong. Willow insists however, and stresses that Giles, Spike, and Dawn cannot know, and that because Buffy was killed by mystical energy, they have a chance of bringing her back. She then tells the others of her worry that Buffy is suffering eternal torment in a hell dimension like Angel did and refuses to leave her there, and this makes them promise their support.
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19	Willow returns home to find Spike keeping a wounded Buffybot out of trouble, the Buffybot having been programmed to return to Willow if damaged. Spike angrily leaves when the Buffybot innocently compliments him on his physique – a programming remnant from her sexbot days – and Buffybot confides in Willow about Spike's constant shame in her presence. Without her real sister, Dawn tries to find comfort from the Buffybot, but doesn't get much. The next day, Giles engages the Buffybot in training to make sure she's ok after being damaged. He also attempts to get her to practice her breathing and to release her 'chi', but Anya points out that teaching this to a robot is pointless. Giles realizes he's trying to teach the Buffybot as if she were human, and the Buffybot responds that 'every Slayer needs her Watcher'. Giles notes that, like any good Watcher, he got his slayer killed in the line of duty and that all slayer-watcher relationships end the same way, and now his job is done. The Buffybot innocently asks why Giles is still there, and Giles finds himself unable to come up with a reason.
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21	At a demon biker bar, the vampire that hit the Buffybot with a bottle brags about it to several "Hellions" — a gang of biker demons. Although the Hellions are uninterested at first as the vampire embellishes the story, he gets them interested when he mentions that the slayer is a robot. The leader of the Hellions, Razor, decides that the gang is going to head to and trash Sunnydale. The vampire suggests that he be allowed to join as a thanks for passing on the information, only for Razor to behead him with his bare hands before the gang departs.
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23	In a forest glade, Willow invokes Adonai during a summoning spell and a baby deer approaches her. She suddenly stabs it in the throat, collecting its blood for the resurrecting spell. She returns to the Magic Box, claiming she got the "vino de madre" from the black market.
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25	The gang finds a note from Giles, stating that he's already left and isn't one for goodbyes. Not about to accept a silent escape, the Scooby Gang tracks him down at the airport and he gets a proper farewell with presents, signs, balloons, and tears. After Giles departs, Willow, Xander, Anya and Tara return home for final preparations and then head to the cemetery. They prepare the ritual, sitting around Buffy's grave and Willow begins the spell. While performing the spell, Willow's skin is cut by invisible blades, large insects appear to crawl underneath her skin, and a large snake is produced from her mouth, but Tara insists that they can't stop.
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27	Meanwhile, Spike is watching Dawn when the demon bikers arrive ready to tear Sunnydale apart. Buffybot tries to stop them, but the leader, Razor, wounds her and she runs away to find Willow. The bikers following her reach the cemetery and interrupt Willow's spell by breaking the Urn of Osiris and scattering the gang's circle. One of the bikers tries to take Anya away, but Tara uses magic to get her back. Xander tells Willow that the spell didn't work, and the two continue to run. However, below the ground and inside the coffin, mystical energy surrounds Buffy's decomposing body before she is restored to life and awakens, very confused and frightened.
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29	----
30	!Tropes:
31	* AccidentallyBrokeTheMacGuffin: Demons interrupt the spell, and the last-of-its-kind urn gets dropped and broken, but it turns out the resurrection was completed moments before that.
32	* ActuallyADoombot: Buffybot stands in for Buffy; a vamp catches wind of it
33	* AndStarring: For most of the show's run, Anthony Stewart Head was last in the titles, with an "and...as Giles", because he was by far the most accomplished and famous actor in the series at that point. When he dropped from regular cast member to recurring guest star, the "and" went to Creator/AlysonHannigan, whose career had recently taken off thanks to the ''Film/AmericanPie'' movies.
34	%%* AllBikersAreHellsAngels: The Hellions.
35	* TheArtifact: Dawn points out that her status as "The Key" doesn't really amount to much anymore, as the portal she was meant to open has been closed and Glory is dead, meaning there's no one left to target her specifically. None of this makes Spike any less steadfast in protecting her.
36	* AttackHello: Our introduction to the Buffybot.
37	* ArmorPiercingQuestion: The Buffybot to Giles. "Then why are you still here?"
38	* BaitAndSwitch: The Buffybot is introduced in the middle of the teaser fight, as if the real Buffy is somehow alive.
39	* {{Bambification}}: Willow pets a fawn in a green garden... before slitting its throat to use its blood as a spell ingredient in order to resurrect Buffy. One of the first clues to the wrongness of said resurrection and the dark path Willow's on. It's specifically noted to be "blood of the innocent" or some such.
40	* BillBillJunkBill: Spike's description of Giles' life: "Cup of tea, cup of tea, almost got shagged, cup of tea."
41	* BilingualBonus: The incantation Willow uses to call forth the fawn is in Hebraic. It is stated in canon that she is Jewish. The two first words are "adonai elohe", translated as "the lord God". Thus, Willow cannot be directly blamed for using BlackMagic, as she summones the biblical creator god himself. (As a matter of FridgeLogic: usually, the power of demons and ancient gods are summoned when casting spells -- but ''this'' incantation summons the attention of GOD! It should be pointed out that this would not sit well in a Jewish, let alone a Christian, community.)
42	* BlackMagic: Willow even uses innocent blood, the blood of a fawn, in her resurrection spell for Buffy. Kinda of a trade-off, one must die for another to live.
43	* BloodMagic: Willow uses deer blood in her magic to resurrect Buffy. Specifically, she sits by a creek until a baby deer comes along, before she draws a knife and kills it for its blood.
44	* BondOneLiner: The Buffybot never quite gets it right.
45	-->'''Buffybot:''' That'll put marzipan on your pie plate, bingo!\
46	'''Willow:''' I was trying to program in some new puns and I kind of ended up with word salad.
47	* BroughtDownToNormal: Dawn is no longer the Key, so she only has to worry about being eaten by some random MonsterOfTheWeek.
48	* BuffySpeak:
49	-->'''Xander:''' It's time? Like, "time" time? With the... timeliness?
50	* BuriedAlive: Creator/JossWhedon has Creator/SarahMichelleGellar go through her greatest fear. [[{{Jerkass}} Again]].
51	* CallBack:
52	** When persuading the Scoobies, Willow assures them that it's not like Dawn trying to raise Joyce from the dead in "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS5E17Forever Forever]]" and plays on their fear that Buffy might be trapped in a hell dimension like Angel was at the beginning of Season 3.
53	** Also evokes Buffy being buried alive in "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS1E10Nightmares Nightmares]]".
54	** The BetweenMyLegs BaitAndSwitch was used previously in "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayer Anne]]", Season 3's opening episode.
55	* CharacterDevelopment: Spike, in regard to his feelings for Buffy. In addition, to keep helping the Scooby Gang, he, who originally had the Buffybot made to be a version of Buffy who would be in love with him to satisfy his lust and/or admittedly misguided fantasies, now refuses to take compliments from it, or even look at it.
56	* ComicallyMissingThePoint: Anya does lots in this episode.
57	-->''"I tried being patient, but it took too long."''
58	* TheConfidant: Giles ends up discussing his feelings of guilt with the Buffybot.
59	-->'''Giles:''' I just can't help but wonder if... she would have been better off without me. Buffy.\
60	'''Buffybot:''' I don't think that's true. You were very helpful to her.\
61	'''Giles:''' Right. Yes, I was a perfect Watcher. I did what any good Watcher would do. Got my Slayer killed in the line of duty.
62	* ConvenienceStoreGiftShopping: {{Justified\|Trope}}: the Scoobies have to buy Giles' goodbye gifts at a gas station while they're racing to intercept him at the airport.
63	* CoolAndUnusualPunishment
64	-->'''Anya:''' "You know, I used to punish people like this when I was a demon. I made them double-check spreadsheets for all eternity."
65	* CreatorInJoke: Marti Noxon said that the marzipan comment by the Buffybot was a ShoutOut to Creator/JaneEspenson, who always thought the word marzipan was funny.
66	* CreditsGag: Homaged with Tara's finger monster. Grrr. Arrgh.
67	* DarkerAndEdgier: Sets the template for the whole season.
68	* DeathIsCheap: Willow can resurrect Buffy after she's been dead for months because she died a supernatural death. {{Downplayed\|Trope}} and/or {{Justified\|Trope}} due to the resurrection being significantly [[BuffySpeak un-cheap]]
69	* DefconFive: Averted.
70	-->''[Taking refuge at The Magic Box]''\
71	'''Xander:''' This place is NORAD when we're at Defcon 1.\
72	''[Tara, Willow and Anya stare back at him blankly]''\
73	'''Xander:''' Okay, I so need some male friends.
74	* DeclarationOfProtection: Spike is living up to his promise to Buffy to protect her little sister.
75	* DescriptionCut / TemptingFate:
76	** "Nothing can go wrong tonight." Cut to the Hellions roaring past a Welcome to Sunnydale sign.
77	** "You don't think they'll cause a lot of damage, do you?" Cut to the Hellions chucking {{Molotov cocktail}}s about with abandon.
78	* DidntThinkThisThrough: It apparently never occurs to any of the Scoobies to dig up and open Buffy's coffin 'before' performing the resurrection spell. As a result, Buffy is restored only to find herself buried alive and having to dig her way out of her own grave.
79	* DissonantSerenity: Spike appears to be unconcerned that Giles is being choked by a huge vampire.
80	-->'''Willow:''' What are you doing? Help him!\
81	'''Spike:''' ''[calmly lighting a cigarette]'' I just did.\
82	''[The back of the vamp's shirt goes up in flame, followed by the rest of him]''
83	* DontSplitUsUp: Even though Buffy's father could take in Dawn and either move back to the States or take her to Spain, Dawn would rather stay with the Scoobies. She agrees to the Buffybot ruse so as to stay in Sunnydale.
84	* ElephantInTheLivingRoom: The reaction of the Scoobies when the Buffybot hugs her "sister".
85	* EverythingIsOnline: Including the Urn of Osiris -- Anya bought it on eBay.
86	* FamilyOfChoice: The Buffybot charade is being kept up not only to fool demons, but also so Dawn won't be put into foster care; it’s implied that Willow and Tara have taken on parental roles for her.
87	* FantasticRacism: Arguably {{justified\|Trope}}: vampires aren’t allowed in the Hellions because of their [[WeaksauceWeakness vulnerability to sunlight]].
88	* FiveStagesOfGrief: Bargaining is the third stage of grief.
89	* {{Foreshadowing}}
90	** Xander has been putting off announcing his engagement to Anya all summer, implying that he has second thoughts.
91	** The distortions moving over Willow's body when she's being 'tested' are the same as the malevolent spirit in "After Life".
92	** Willow killing a fawn shows this season is going to be DarkerAndEdgier, not to mention foreshadowing for Dark!Willow.
93	* GeographicFlexibility: Sunnydale has a regional airport with flights to Los Angeles. And apparently big enough to have airplanes large enough to fly to England, after refueling in L.A.[[note]]which given that Sunnydale is heavily implied to be in Southern California raises all kinds of aviation questions. In real life none of the Southern California airports has flights to London that refuel in LAX[[/note]] (Giles' flight has continuing service to Heathrow.)
94	* GoryDiscretionShot: The camera doesn't show Willow actually killing the fawn. Hannigan, a vegan, insisted.
95	* GrievousBottleyHarm: A vampire damages the Buffybot when he hits it in the head with a bottle.
96	* HalfTruth: "Wine of the mother" (the fawn's blood)
97	* HeroicBSOD: Anya goes into a minor one when she realizes, just after getting the Magic Shop, the Hellions are damaging stores in Sunnydale.
98	* HideYourLesbians: Averted -- Creator/JossWhedon celebrates the new freedom of UPN by having Willow and Tara kiss [[SweepsWeekLesbianKiss casually]] and [[AnywhereButTheirLips on the lips]].
99	* IdiotBall: While planning the resurrection spell, the Scoobies leave the Buffybot unsupervised, not even telling Spike and Dawn to keep an eye on it in order to distract them. It gets attacked and damaged, thus setting up an attack by the gang that disrupts the spell.
100	* KnockKnockJoke: The Buffybot makes one at the end of the ColdOpen, serving as both a QuipToBlack and a reminder of [[RidiculouslyHumanRobot her true nature]].
101	-->'''Willow:''' I got her head back on, didn't I? And I got her off those knock-knock jokes.\
102	'''Buffybot:''' Ooh, who's there?\
103	'''Xander:''' You know, if we want her to be exactly--\
104	'''Spike:''' She'll never be exactly.\
105	'''Xander:''' I know.\
106	'''Tara:''' The only really real Buffy is really Buffy.\
107	'''Giles:''' And she's gone.\
108	'''[[ComicallyMissingThePoint Buffybot]]:''' [[DramaticallyMissingThePoint If we want her to be exactly she'll never be exactly I know the only really real Buffy is really Buffy and she's gone]] who?
109	* LiteralMinded: The Buffybot making sandwiches ad infinitium.
110	-->'''Tara:''' Oops, um ... she wanted to help, and I got her started, but then I forgot to un-start.
111	* {{Malaproper}}: The Urn of Cirrhosis...Osiris.
112	* ManHug: Between Xander and Giles.
113	* MoodWhiplash: Dawn is trying to talk Spike out of babysitting her when he suddenly slams a pack of cards down on the table.
114	-->'''Spike:''' No. I'm not leaving you... to get hurt. ''[softly]'' [[TheAtoner Not again]].
115	* MoralityChainBeyondTheGrave: Spike protects Dawn because it's what Buffy would have wanted.
116	* MultiPartEpisode: Type A.
117	* MyLifeFlashedBeforeMyEyes: Spike after Giles nearly gets throttled by a vampire.
118	-->''"Oh, poor Watcher, did your life flash before your eyes? [[BritsLoveTea Cuppa tea, cuppa tea]], [[BritishStuffiness almost got shagged]], [[RuleOfThree cuppa tea?]]"''
119	* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: The Hellions knock the Buffybot to the ground and proceed to kick and stomp the shit out of it.
120	* NotSoDire: "Buffybot is about to face her most dangerous challenge ever." Cut to a banner proclaiming "Welcome to Parent Teacher Day."
121	* OnlyAModel: Buffybot admires a model "City of the Future" at a science fair, but notes that she's never seen people that small.
122	* OrificeEvacuation: Willow's resurrection of Buffy is accompanied by her choking out a large snake, apparently as a trial by Osiris.
123	* OurZombiesAreDifferent: When Xander worries that they might be raising a brain-eating Buffy, Anya reassures him that it's a myth -- zombies only [[BrainFood eat brains]] if they're instructed to by the person who raised them.
124	* OutOfCharacter: Willow has to collect the last item, blood from an innocent fawn. Pretty dark stuff for her, until later.
125	* OutOfFocus: Buffy is almost completely absent from this episode, [[CharacterDeath for obvious reasons]]. Creator/SarahMichelleGellar spends the episode playing the Buffybot, who doesn't get much screen time neither.
126	* PreviouslyOn: An extended version summarizing all previous seasons for the benefit of UPN viewers who had never seen the show before.
127	* PromotedToParent: Willow and Tara now sleep in Joyce's room and act as Dawn's parents.
128	* {{Pun}}: A sticker in the Magic Shop says "Life's a witch and then you fly." After the Buffybot malfunctions and keeps running into the furniture, Spike decides not to let it out as there's already enough ThingsThatGoBumpInTheNight.
129	* ReplacementGoldfish: Dawn [[CradleOfLoneliness curls up in bed next to the recharging Buffybot]]. Giles finds himself teaching the bot Eastern martial arts philosophy until Anya calls him on it. Averted with Spike who refuses even to look at it.
130	* ReptilesAreAbhorrent: Willow vomits up a live snake during the ceremony, shocking the Scoobies who are unaware just [[BlackMagic how dark the magic]] she's using is.
131	* RhetoricalQuestionBlunder:
132	-->'''Xander:''' ''[to Willow]'' Excuse me? [[YouAreInCommandNow Who made you the boss of the group]]?\
133	'''Anya:''' You did.\
134	'''Tara:''' You said Willow should be boss.\
135	'''Anya:''' And then you said "let's vote," and it was unanimous...\
136	'''Tara:''' ...and then you made her this little plaque, that said "Boss of Us," you put little sparkles on it...\
137	'''Xander:''' Valid points all.
138	* RoboticReveal:
139	-->'''Vampire:''' You're... You're a machine!
140	** [[spoiler: Inverted in the next episode when Buffy shows up just when the Hellions tear the Buffybot apart.]]
141	-->[[spoiler: '''Razor:''' Another one!]]
142	* SeeminglyProfoundFool:
143	-->'''Buffybot:''' "School is where you learn." Preach it, sister.
144	* SocialServicesDoesNotExist: Justified; the main characters are actively hiding Dawn's lack of a guardian from them in order to ensure that Dawn doesn't have to go live with her long-neglectful father.
145	* SpannerInTheWorks: The Buffybot is programmed to return to Willow if damaged. As a result it leads the Hellions directly to the Scoobies in the midst of their raising ceremony.
146	* StatingTheSimpleSolution: It's mentioned that if Buffy and Dawn's father knows that his second "daughter" has no guardian, he'd return to take her into his custody, and Dawn is no longer in danger anyway since no one can use her to open portals. The Scoobies, Dawn included, veto that; her father abandoned her and didn't even return to the States when Joyce died so there's no guarantee he'd be a good parent. Dawn would rather stay in Sunnydale with the demons, unstable living situation, robot replica sister, and people who actually care about her than risk abandonment again.
147	* {{Stiff Upper Lip}}py: The Scoobies try to avoid tears while saying farewell to Giles.
148	-->'''Xander:''' My face was getting sore from all that faux smiling.
149	* StandInParents: The Buffybot for the real Buffy, so Dawn still appears to have a guardian at home.
150	* TalkAboutThatThing: The Scoobies discussing their plan around Giles, Spike or Dawn.
151	-->'''Willow:''' Oh. I, uh, had to get that thing.\
152	'''Xander:''' Giles isn't around, you can dump the cryptic.
153	* {{Telepathy}}: [[TheLeader Willow uses this to direct the Scoobies]] in the teaser where they run down a vampire.
154	* ThatCameOutWrong:
155	-->'''Xander:''' House o' chicks, relax. I'm a man and I have a tool! ''[sees Dawn]'' Tools. Lots of plural tools. In my toolbox.
156	* TragicBromance: Willow has always been eager to test her abilities earlier than Giles or Tara would like, but with Buffy's death all bets are off. Her "success" will further convince her that magic really can solve all her problems, until she learns otherwise the hard way.
157	* VerbalBackspace: Spike trying to be a father figure to Dawn.
158	--->'''Spike''': That’s all schools are, you know. Just factories, spewing out mindless little automatons. ... Who go on to be very... valuable and... productive members of society, and you should go. Because Buffy would want you to.
159	* VisibleBoomMic: During Giles' training session with the Buffybot, after Anya enters the room, a microphone pole is briefly visible in the upper right corner of the screen.
160	* WeirdnessCensor: The Buffybot is regarded as an example for all parents.
161	-->'''Tara:''' She did great; she impressed all the teachers.\
162	'''Xander:''' And [[BookDumb they still thought it was Buffy]]?
163	* WhiteShirtOfDeath: When Willow gets her 'blood of the innocent', [[spoiler: which also counts as foreshadowing for "Seeing Red"]].
164	* WimpFight: Giles and Anya get into a slapfight.
165	-->'''Xander:''' Okay -- when ''I'm'' marveling at the immaturity... be scared.
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Context Recap / BuffyTheVampireSlayerS6E1BargainingPart1