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Context Recap / BuffyTheVampireSlayerS7E5Selfless

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1->''"Vengeance is what I do. I don't need anything else."''
2-->--'''Anya Jenkins'''
3
4[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/screenshot_20190219_045445_video_player.jpg]]
5[[caption-width-right:350:''"Never go for the kill when you can go for the pain."'']]
6
7Directed by Creator/DavidSolomon
8
9Written by Creator/DrewGoddard, Creator/RebeccaKirshner, & Creator/DrewZGreenberg
10
11Dawn helps Willow move into her new room at Summers house while giving her advice on how to fit in with the people at school. Buffy and Xander contribute to the effort too as they talk about Anya. Buffy wonders about Anya's evil intentions, but Xander thinks she's getting better and is no longer a threat. Meanwhile, at a fraternity house, male bodies litter the floor; all have their hearts ripped out. Anya sits in the corner, covered in blood and rocking back and forth, seemingly shocked by what she's just done.
12
13Flashback to Sjornjost, Sweden. It's 880AD. A pre-demon Anya, originally named Aud, cares for her Viking mate Olaf. He has returned from a hard day of fighting trolls, although Aud doubts him. She waits on him, promising the requested sex after he's eaten and rhapsodising about the 'sense of accomplishment that stems from selflessly giving yourself to others'. She worries that Olaf has been unfaithful.
14
15In the present day, Spike talks to Buffy about his mental struggles and remembers Drusilla. Buffy is warm and reassuring but it's shown that it's not the real Buffy. The delusion disappears when Buffy actually enters the room. She tells Spike he needs to get out of the school basement and away from whatever is making him so crazy down there.
16
17On the college campus, Willow talks to an old professor about rejoining his class and sees Anya leaving a fraternity house. She's dressed in a trench coat and seems wary, saying that she's dating one of the fraternity boys when Willow asks. Willow spots a streak of blood on Anya's wrist as she quickly leaves. She goes into the fraternity house to investigate and finds the room of corpses. There's a young student whimpering in a closet that she 'takes it back'. She tearfully explains to Willow that she made a rhetorical wish about having their hearts ripped out after the boys played a cruel trick on her. A giant spider demon appeared and did just that. The spider is still around and attacks Willow and the girl. Willow uses magic to keep it bay, making a nasty comment to the girl (reminiscent of Dark Willow) before tossing the spider through the window. She comforts the girl, seemingly back to her normal self again.
18
19In another flashback to Sweden, Aud watches Olaf as he's magicked into a troll after he cheated on her. He's running away from a mob trying to kill him. D'Hoffryn watches her and praises her magical skill and vengeful resolution. D'Hoffryn insists that Aud's true self is Anyanka, a natural born vengeance demon and offers to make her one in reality. She accepts.
20
21At work, Buffy receives a call from Willow about the fraternity house and the spider demon. Meanwhile, Halfrek is in Anya's room praising her return to enthusiastic vengeance while Anya seems regretful. Willow barges in and orders Halfrek out. Anya rejects Willow's assistance and considers Willow poorly qualified to judge considering her brush with darkness. Buffy and Xander search the woods for the spider demon and are surprised by it as they inspect another one of its victims. It nearly kills Buffy before she takes it out with an axe. Buffy and Xander return to the Summers house and find Willow, waiting with an explanation about where the demon originated and the damage it's caused. Xander shouts at Willow but realises she's delayed telling them as it means Buffy will have to kill Anya.
22
23In a flashback to 1905, Anyanka and Halfrek drink champagne at a banquet full of massacred men in Russia. The city of St. Petersburg burns outside the window. Anyanka accepts Halfrek's compliments for starting the Russian Revolution[[note]]No, the other one. The one of - you guessed it - 1905[[/note]] but rejects her offer to celebrate as her work is all she is and all she wants.
24
25Back at the Summers home, Xander denounces Buffy's plan to kill Anya but she remarks that his lingering feelings for Anya are clouding his judgement. He insists Buffy always protects demons she loves and she reminds him that she killed Angel even though she loved him more than anything because it was the right thing to do. Her judgements as the Slayer are absolute. Xander insists there must be another way and rushes off when Buffy tells him to try finding one. She takes weapons and goes to find Anya alone, Willow pleading that she can't bear to accompany or help her.
26
27Left alone, Willow runs to her room and uses the summoning talisman that D'Hoffryn gave her three years earlier. D'Hoffryn is pleased that Willow called him as he was impressed by her flaying of Warren Mears and her surrender to hatred as Dark Willow. He assumes Willow has called to accept the role of vengeance demon but she insists she's called him to discuss Anya's recent actions. He agrees to talk.
28
29Xander finds Anya at the frat house. Anya rejects his help, claiming he breached his promise of marriage, a point that Xander thinks is no longer an excuse. Buffy arrives and Anya changes to her game face, throwing Xander aside and attacking Buffy. They seem matched until Buffy shoves a sword through Anya's chest. In a sudden flashback to the musical episode, we see events that would have happened during Sweet's enchantment of Sunnydale. Anya sings her solo number about being Xander's 'Mrs' and the centrality of the role in defining who she is now. Anya comes to and is immune to her injury. She pulls the sword out. Buffy fights the sword away and gets another shot to use it before Xander tackles her away from Anya.
30 Suddenly, D'Hoffryn appears interrupting the battle. He first approves the carnage caused in the house by Anya and reminds Buffy that attacking him would do nothing. D'Hoffryn compliments Xander's gallantry and asks Anya what she wants to do. Anya asks to undo her last act of vengeance which is possible as her victims died of 'mystical deaths'. D'Hoffryn warns that he can do it but will the sacrifice. The life of a vengeance demon. Anya is willing to die to undo her actions despite Xander's passionate pleas. D'Hoffryn makes Anya confirm she's willing to pay the price due, then casts a spell which summons Halfrek. Anya realises what's about to happen as D'Hoffryn kills Halfrek, painfully by burning her from the inside out. Anya is devastated at seeing her friend die and feels guilty at her being the cause of her death. D'Hoffryn reminds her of who she's dealing with before turning Anya human again. Anya claims that she should have been the one to die to which D'Hoffryn says there is plenty of time. He teleports away as the frat boys begin waking up.
31
32Hurt and scared, Anya leaves alone but Xander follows. She claims that she's dreading facing her life without a role to lose herself in like vengeance demon or girlfriend or even a shopkeeper. Xander argues with her and tries to comfort her but backs off regretfully. Anya walks away in the opposite direction to face her life on her own, like she wants.
33----
34!!This episode has the following tropes:
35
36* ApologeticAttacker:
37-->'''Buffy:''' Anya, I'm sorry.
38-->'''Anya:''' You're apologizing to me. What fight are you watching? Or is this like one of your little pop-culture references I don't get, 'cause I'm a vengeance— ([[TalkToTheFist Buffy stabs her through the chest]]).
39* ArtisticLicenseHistory: In the flashback to 1905, Halfrek credits the Russian Revolution to Anya, an event which actually happened. However, in "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS3E9TheWish The Wish]]", Giles states that destroying her power center will reverse all wishes she had granted. There was an abortive revolution in 1905 which, though ultimately unsuccessful at toppling the Tsar, did force some needed reforms and a new constitution. The Russian Revolution which brought the Communists into power didn't happen until 1917.
40* AsLongAsItSoundsForeign: There is a sequence that takes place in Viking-age Scandinavia somewhere, with the extras speaking gibberish and Anya and Olaf speaking ''almost'' completely incomprehensible Swedish. According to the behind the scenes extras on the DVD they had been told that their dialogue would be dubbed over by native Swedes, but the actors went and actually learned their lines in Swedish, which was used for the final episode since they had gone to so much effort. Unfortunately, despite learning the ''words'', their pronunciation and rhythm is terrible, so only parts can be understood by a native Swede.
41* AssholeVictim: The frat boys who humiliated the girl with a PrankDate. Subverted in that we never see this event, only the DisproportionateRetribution.
42* BalancingDeathsBooks: The only way to resurrect the victims of the demon. Smashing Anya's amulet would've just made the demon disappear.
43* BeautyIsNeverTarnished: Averted; at one point during her argument with Xander, Buffy turns and walks away from him, and we see the bloody slashes on her back from her fight with the spider demon earlier.
44* BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor: The girl who was pranked at the frat party and Anya end up less than satisfied with the outcome of their various wishes. The whole point of vengeance demons, of course, is to either convert the WomanScorned into an unfeeling and monstrously inhuman dispenser of cruelty or to answer the spurned woman's wish in a way that they really, ''really'' end up regretting. [[AnAesop Don't give in to vengeance so quickly, kids.]]
45* BeethovenWasAnAlienSpy: Anya had a hand in causing the [[UsefulNotes/RomanovsAndRevolutions 1905 Russian Revolution]].
46* BeingEvilSucks: Having been human for so long, Anya takes no pleasure in granting the wish at the frat party and is left traumatized.
47* BigBeautifulWoman: Olaf assures Aud that he's not interested in the bargirls with their large load-bearing hips, but prefers Aud, who has the hips of a woman from a more arid region of the Baltic.
48* BilingualBonus: Sorta. In the flashback Olaf and Aud speak real but rather bad [[UsefulNotes/{{Sweden}} Swedish]]. Some parts are understandable, some not so much. The original plan was for the scene to be dubbed by native Swedes, but the actors actually learned their entire dialogue in Swedish, so it was decided to use the live take.
49* BrickJoke: In "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS2E22BecomingPart2 Becoming]]", Xander refused to tell Buffy that Willow was attempting to ensoul Angel, instead telling her that Willow said to "kick his ass." ''Five seasons later'', this comes out as Buffy brings it up in front of Willow.
50-->'''Willow''': I never said that!
51* BuffySpeak: Xander volunteers for some {{Side Kick}}ing when Buffy is tracking the spidery demon thingy.
52* CallBack:
53** To "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS5E7FoolForLove Fool for Love]]" -- a socially inept person becomes a demon in a moment of emotional pain, reinvents their image to strike out at what hurt them, eventually surpassing a mentor in their enthusiasm (don't forget that Cecily/Halfrek was heavily involved in both cases).
54** Olaf says that Aud's logic is insane and happenstance, like that of a troll (hearkening back to season five's "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS5E11Triangle Triangle]]" ("I'm not going to choose between my best friend and my girlfriend! That's insane troll logic!")
55** Buffy brings up the events of "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS2E22BecomingPart2 Becoming Part 2]]", notably her killing Angel and Xander urging her to do it, allegedly at the behest of Willow. Ironically Willow's denial appears to pass under Buffy's radar.
56* CallForward:
57** "I'm so hungry I could eat a small child." -- in "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS5E11Triangle Triangle]]" Olaf the Troll demands [[EatsBabies babies to eat]]. There's also a reference to InsaneTrollLogic which [[TropeNamer was first mentioned]] in that episode.
58** In the flashback to "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS6E7OnceMoreWithFeeling Once More With Feeling]]", Xander is [[TalkingInYourSleep muttering in his sleep]] about just wanting a happy ending, his motive for summoning the [[TheMusicMeister dancing demon Sweet]]. Anya asks if "the song with the coconuts" (mentioned in the opening Magic Box scene) was strange. [[CreatorCameo David Fury and Marti Noxon]] can be heard singing about getting mustard on a shirt; the next day Fury's character will sing joyfully about having got the mustard out. Anya also references her duet with Xander, "I'll Never Tell," in "I'll Be Mrs."
59* CeilingCling: Willow asks where the giant demon spider is; we see it crawling across the ceiling toward her before a CommercialBreakCliffhanger.
60* ChekhovsBoomerang: From Season 4. The [[MyCard talisman]] D'Hoffryn gave to Willow in "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS4E9SomethingBlue Something Blue]]" is used to summon him.
61* ClothingReflectsPersonality: Spike's sympathetic fantasy Buffy (white blouse) vs. the terse real-life Buffy (black blouse).
62* ComfortingComforter: In the flashback to when they were engaged, Anya spreads a striped blanket over a sleeping Xander during her song.
63* ComicallyMissingThePoint: Olaf is attacked by the villagers after being turned into a troll.
64-->'''Olaf:''' Stop! I am Olaf!
65-->'''Villager:''' The troll is doing an Olaf impersonation!
66* ConspicuousTrenchcoat: Anya trying to hide her blood-splattered dress from Willow. Unfortunately she missed some blood on her inner wrist.
67* ContinuityNod:
68** Xander's lie to Buffy in "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS2E22BecomingPart2 Becoming, Part 2]]" is exposed, though it's not clear if Buffy picks up on it. Willow had told Xander to pass on the message that she was trying again to restore Angel's soul. Instead Xander told Buffy, "Willow says kick his ass", either due to hatred of Angel(us) or because he thought Buffy's reluctance to kill her former lover was putting the whole world in danger.
69** The OverlyLongName Anya made up for when the Watchers' Council was investigating Buffy's TrueCompanions, and she was afraid they would find out she used to be a demon ("[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS5E12Checkpoint Checkpoint]]").
70-->''I will be his Missus / Mrs. Anya 'Lame-Ass-Made-Up-Maiden-Name' Harris.'' ♫
71** Spike telling how Drusilla would see the stars even while she was inside a building ("[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS2E14Innocence Innocence]]").
72** A vengeance demon can't be killed by a sword through the chest ("[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS6E14OlderAndFarAway Older And Far Away]]").
73** D'Hoffryn mentions someone called Lloyd with a "sketch over his wall" of Warren's flaying. In "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS6E20Villains Villains]]" the cave has a painting of a man who has seemingly been flayed.
74* ConvenientlyTimedAttackFromBehind: Xander tackles Buffy just as she's about to plunge her sword into an unresisting Anya.
75* DaydreamSurprise: An apparently sane Spike pours out his troubles to a sympathetic Buffy, only for the real Buffy to walk in, whereupon we realise Spike is seeing people again.
76* ADayInTheLimelight: Anya.
77* DealWithTheDevil: Aud/Anya with D'Hoffryn, twice. First in flashback, when she gave up her humanity to serve him as a vengeance demon in the first place. Second in the episode itself, when she offers him her life to resurrect the people she's killed. Subverted in the second deal when he takes Halfrek's life instead.
78* DeathGlare:
79** Aud does a KubrickStare when Olaf mentions visiting the bar with its [[FanserviceWithASmile large-hipped barmaids]].
80** Willow glares at Xander when the lie from "Becoming, Part 2" is mentioned. "I never said that!"
81* DoubleEntendre: ''What's the point of loving (AsideGlance) I mean except for the sweaty part.'' ♫
82* EdibleAmmunition: "Hit him with fruits and various meats!"
83* ExactWords: Anya begs the demon D'Hoffryn to revive the people she's slaughtered, and even agrees to sacrifice herself for it when he tells her that will require the life and soul of a vengeance demon. There is protest by Xander, lots of teary angst...right up until the point D'Hoffryn summons Anya's best friend Halfrek, also a vengeance demon, and immolates her right in front of everyone.
84* FauxAffablyEvil: D'Hoffryn finally [[BitchInSheepsClothing drops his facade]] and shows why he's one of the Lower Beings.
85* FauxFluency: There is a sequence that takes place in Viking-age Scandinavia somewhere, with the extras speaking gibberish and the two main characters speaking almost incomprehensible Swedish. According to the behind the scenes on the DVD they had been told not to worry, and just say Norse-sounding things, but then the actors went and actually learned their lines in Swedish, so they used it. The pronunciation is, however, so terrible that a Swedish person would be hard-pressed to even recognise they are speaking Swedish, and understanding it would take quite a bit of effort.
86* {{Flashback}}: Sjornjost, 880 (showing how Anya became a vengeance demon), St. Petersburg, 1905 (showing how Anya started the Russian revolution), and to last year's MusicalEpisode.
87* {{Foreshadowing}}:
88** Some of the demon's resin drips over Xander's eye, foreshadowing the loss of it at the end of the season.
89** The difference between what a WomanScorned wants and what a vengeance demon gives them means Anya should have known D'Hoffryn wouldn't kill her.
90** D'Hoffryn in regards to not killing Anya: "Oh, I wouldn't worry about that. From beneath you, it devours. Be patient. All good things in time."
91** Spike says he can't move out of the basement because he doesn't have anywhere to go. In the next episode Buffy has talked a reluctant Xander into letting Spike stay at his place.
92* FunnyBackgroundEvent: The scene where Anya's conversing with D'Hoffryn while in the background the villagers chase around her ex, Olaf (whom she turned into a troll) eventually leading to a large pine tree falling down and crushing a building.
93* FunWithSubtitles: For all the problems with the bad Swedish, the dialogue is hilarious!
94* GetOut: Willow to Halfrek, who isn't impressed. Anya, who's more familiar with Willow's dark side, tells her to leave.
95* GiantSpider: The Grimslaw demon.
96* GoodIsNotNice: Fantasy!Buffy (presumably the First) offers sympathy to a suffering Spike; the real Buffy tells him bluntly that he's got to get out of the basement.
97* GoryDiscretionShot: The fraternity massacre victims aren't shown after a lingering pan in TheTeaser, just their {{Bloody Handprint}}s.
98* HappyFlashback: To last year's "Once More With Feeling" -- Anya sings of her happiness over becoming Xander's wife.
99* HeroicSafeMode: Lampshaded by Xander who recognises that Buffy is shutting them out emotionally so she can kill Anya.
100* HellBentForLeather: Buffy wears the Black Leather Jacket Of VigilanteExecution when she goes to kill Anya.
101* HeroesPreferSwords: Buffy selects a sword as her weapon, after making a reference to the events of "Becoming", where her duty as the Slayer meant she had to kill one of their own, using a sword.
102* [[HesBack She's Back]]: Halfrek says this is how most of the vengeance demon circuit views her frat house incident.
103* HistoricalDomainCharacter: Writer Drew Goddard chose the name Aud for Anya's original human name because while researching Viking names he found a Viking king named Olaf who had a wife named Aud, known for her sense of humor and her ability to manage money. The description of Aud fit Anya so well that he had to use the name.
104* HugeGuyTinyGirl: Aud and Olaf (even before he becomes a troll).
105* {{Hypocrite}}:
106** When Willow went dark, Buffy insisted on helping her and talking her down, but when Anya, now a vengeance demon again, kills several people in granting a wish, Buffy jumps right to MurderIsTheBestSolution; when Xander points this out, Buffy replies that it's not the same thing because Willow is human and Anya is a demon. In the same conversation, she states that when it comes to demons, she is the law and her word and judgment is absolute, when previously, she specifically told Faith that Slayers ''aren't'' the law or above it--however, Faith claimed that they were also above the laws of non-supernatural, ''human'' society.
107** Xander yells at Buffy for wanting to kill Anya, who is back on a vengeance demon killing spree, and she reminds him that she killed Angel to save the world.
108* IAmTheNoun
109-->'''Buffy:''' I am the law.
110-->'''Anyanka:''' Vengeance is who I am.
111* IDidWhatIHadToDo
112-->'''Buffy:''' ''I killed Angel.'' Do you even remember that? I would have given up everything to be with... (fights emotion) I loved him more than anything I will ever love in this life and I put a sword through his heart ''because I had to.''
113* IHaveManyNames: Aud to Anyanka to Anya Jenkins to almost Mrs. Anya Harris, as befits someone who is struggling with their identity.
114* IKnowYourTrueName:
115-->– My name is D'Hoffryn.
116-->– I am Aud.
117-->– Are you? I'm afraid you don't see your true self. You are Anyanka.
118* ImStandingRightHere
119-->'''Xander:''' This isn't new ground for us. When our friends go all crazy and start killing people, we help them.
120-->'''Willow:''' Sitting right here.
121-->'''Xander:''' I'm sorry. But it's true.
122* InLoveWithYourCarnage: D'Hoffryn tells Willow that the demon Lloyd has a picture of her flaying Warren alive.
123* InsaneTrollLogic: Olaf re Aud. "Your logic is insane and happenstance, like that of a troll."
124* InstantCostumeChange: Anya opens a door in her dressing gown and steps onto the verandah in her wedding dress during the "Mrs" song. Never mind that she hadn't actually bought the dress at this point; rule of musical likely applies.
125* ItSucksToBeTheChosenOne: Buffy kills dangerous, violent demons. By massacring a whole frat house, her friend Anya has proven to be a dangerous, violent demon. Anya even points this out, saying Buffy ''knew'' this day was coming.
126* InTheEndYouAreOnYourOwn: Xander (because he point-blank refuses) and Willow ([[EvilMeScaresMe because she's afraid]] [[DramaPreservingHandicap after her brief lapse into the]] DarkSide) refuse to go along with Buffy to kill Anya. Lampshaded earlier during Buffy's argument with Xander.
127-->'''Buffy:''' It is ''always'' different! It is always ''complicated'', and at some point someone has to draw the line and that is ''always'' going to be me! You get down on me for cutting you off, but in the end the Slayer is always cut off. There's no mystical guidebook, no all-knowing counsel; human rules don't apply! There's only me. [[IAmTheNoun I am the law.]]
128* IWillPunishYourFriendForYourFailure: Justified as D'Hoffryn is a vengeance demon. Inflicting emotional pain is what he's all about.
129* JumpedAtTheCall: Villainous version. D'Hoffryn is ready to slowly and carefully lure Aud to the DarkSide. Aud, having been betrayed by Olaf, really doesn't need that much pushing.
130-->'''Aud:''' What would I have to do?
131-->'''D'Hoffryn:''' What you do best. Help wronged women punish evil men.
132-->'''Aud:''' Vengeance.
133-->'''D'Hoffryn:''' But only to those who deserve it.
134-->'''Aud:''' They ''all'' deserve it.
135-->''*{{beat}}*''
136-->'''D'Hoffryn:''' That's where I was going with that, yeah.
137* LoveMakesYouDumb: Buffy believes that Xander's lingering feelings toward Anya are clouding his better judgement.
138-->'''Xander''': Buffy, I still love her.\
139'''Buffy''': I know. And that's why you can't see this for what it really is.
140* MadnessMantra: Willow finds the girl who [[BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor inadvertently caused the massacre of the frat house]] huddled in a closet babbling, "I take it back. I take it back. I take it back."
141* MeaningfulEcho: Faith also said re Slayers, "[[BewareTheSuperman We are the law]]" when justifying why she shouldn't be held accountable for accidentally killing an innocent bystander.
142* AMillionIsAStatistic: Xander cares more about Buffy intending to kill Anya - his ex girlfriend - when she's doing so in response to the deaths of twelve unnamed frat boys.
143* TheMindIsAPlaythingOfTheBody: Olaf’s behaviour changes very rapidly after he is turned into a troll.
144* MoodDissonance: Buffy receiving the news of the fraternity house massacre, then casually asking Willow how her class went.
145* MoodWhiplash
146** "I'm the Mrs.! I will be his Mrs.! I'll be..." SmashCut to Anya impaled on Buffy's sword.
147** Olaf hugging Anya in the past. "Fear not, sweet Aud, you will always be my beautiful girl." SmashCut to Anya in the present, washing blood off her hands.
148** "Behold, D'Hoffryn. Lord of Arashmahar! He that turns the air to blood and rains-- Miss Rosenberg. How lovely to see you again. Have you done something with your hair?"
149* MrsHypothetical: Anya sings a whole song about becoming [[OverlyLongName Mrs. Anya Christina Emmanuella Jenkins-Harris.]]
150* MundaneSolution: With a huge scary spider demon sneaking through the trees above them, Xander suggests going for [[MoreDakka more swords and a protection amulet too]]. Buffy just chucks her axe in the air. Spider demon drops dead at their feet.
151-->'''Xander:''' Or...
152* MurderIsTheBestSolution: Upon discovering that Anya, having become a vengeance demon again, was responsible for the deaths of a bunch of fraternity boys, she automatically jumps to the notion of "slay Anya," not even considering the idea of trying to reason with Anya and talk her down like they did with Dark Willow; when Xander points this out to her, Buffy simply states that it's not the same because Willow is human and Anya is a demon.
153* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Said by Anya almost word-for-word after the opening scene panning over the dead bodies of the fraternity.
154* TheNicknamer: D'Hoffyrn dubs Buffy "Lady Hacks Away".
155* NightmareFetishist: D'Hoffyrn;
156-->(re Anya's handiwork) Oh, breathtaking. It's like somebody slaughtered an Abercrombie and Fitch catalog.
157-->(re Willow's) The flaying of Warren Mears? Oh, truly inspired. That was water cooler vengeance. Lloyd has a sketch of it on his wall.
158* NoSocialSkills: After 3 1/2 seasons of everyone (including herself) blaming Anya's {{Literal Minded}}ness on having been a demon for 1,100 years, it turns out she was ''always'' like this. This doesn't explain how Anyanka fit so well with the Cordettes when she approached Cordelia.
159* OverlyLongName: Mrs. Anya Lame-Ass-Made-Up-Maiden-Name Harris.
160* {{Phlegmings}}: The giant spider demon drools over Buffy.
161* PleaseKillMeIfItSatisfiesYou: Subverted by D'Hoffryn. After becoming a vengeance demon again, Anya grants a girl's wish to kill a houseful of men and then regrets it (HumanityIsInfectious caught up to her, presumably). D'Hoffryn says he will reverse the wish but it will cost the life of a vengeance demon. Anya bows her head, completely willing to give her life... and D'Hoffryn summons up Anya's friend and fellow demon Halfrek and kills her instead. "Never go for the kill when you can go for the pain," indeed.
162* PunnyName: Aud (pronounced 'Odd').
163* {{Retraux}}: The flashback to Anya's life in Sweden takes the form of an Creator/IngmarBergman-type movie, including scratched film.
164* SeriesContinuityError: In the flashback to 'Once More With Feeling' Anya's hair is neither the same length, style nor shade of blonde. Granted, she is wearing a wig.
165* ShadowArchetype: Aud breeds rabbits, and plans to give them away for self-satisfaction and goodwill. She also declines sex with Olaf. Anyanka is a communist. Both contrast with capitalist, bunny-phobic, LoveableSexManiac Anya.
166* SpockSpeak: Anya's way of talking is spoofed via the overly-literal translations.
167* StartOfDarkness: We finally get the full story of Anya's start as a vengeance demon, including her first meeting with D'Hoffryn.
168* StealthPun: Anya telling her 'honey' to [[TheNeedForMead drink his mead]] (honey wine).
169* SubtitlesAreSuperfluous: "Ha ha ha ha!" "Aaaargh!"
170* [[SuicideByCop Suicide By Slayer]]: Anya doesn't press her advantage, despite having knocked Buffy down a couple of times. When Buffy gets the drop on her, she doesn't move out of the way and is only saved by Xander tackling Buffy.
171* SuperpoweredEvilSide: Anya puts up a serious fight against Buffy while in GameFace. Likewise when Willow is fending off the spider-demon with SomeKindOfForcefield, she gets BlackEyesOfEvil and snarls at the terrified SoleSurvivor to [[QuitYourWhining stop whimpering]].
172* SuspiciouslySpecificDenial: Willow aceing her finals like magic, despite her lapse the previous year.
173* SweetAndSourGrapes: A particularly sour example. Anya is prepared to reverse the wish and pay the price - the life and soul of a vengeance demon - to atone for what she did. D'Hoffyn ends up killing Halfrek instead...which does at least allow Anya a chance to earn her redemption.
174* SwivelChairAntics: Bored!Buffy in her cubicle, swiveling on her chair while balancing a container of pencils on her forehead.
175* TechnicolorDeath: Halfrek's death.
176* TemptingFate: Xander says that Anya isn't going back to her vengeance demony ways. Cut to the aftermath of the frat house massacre, with a blood-splattered Anya [[CornerOfWoe crouched in the corner]].
177* UnusuallyUninterestingSight: Anya and Halfrek have dinner while the 1905 Russian revolution occurs outside. They pay no notice, even when a ManOnFire comes barging through the door.
178* VillainsDyingGrace: D'Hoffyrn leaves Anya alive to agonize over Halfrek's death, assuming the BigBad uber evil will finish her off anyway. However in later episodes he sends demon assassins to finish the job, implying he's had second thoughts. Presumably D'Hoffyrn realised that having a former 'daughter' of his teamed up with an enemy of the First might not be good for his health.
179* VillainyDiscretionShot: Averted -- after her introduction in "The Wish", references to Anya's past vengeance murders were always PlayedForLaughs due to the uncanny punishments--until this episode, where we see the gruesomely fatal result of her wish granting firsthand in the present.
180* WeHaveReserves: After killing one of his own, D'Hoffyrn says there are many [[WomanScorned women scorned]] out there, so he will always have more vengeance demons.
181* WhamEpisode: Anya decides to sacrifice herself to revert a massacre that she had caused. However, D'Hoffryn kills Halfrek instead, and forces Anya to become mortal again.
182* WhatMeasureIsANonHuman: When Willow confesses that Anya killed the frat guys, Buffy [[MurderIsTheBestSolution decides that she has no choice but to slay Anya]]. When Xander calls her on it, reminding her that Anya is their friend and they should help her and reason with her like they did Dark Willow, Buffy shoots that possibility down, stating that it's not the same thing because Willow is human and Anya is a demon.
183* WhatTheHellHero: Xander is furious that Buffy is willing to kill Anya as opposed to a vampire she was sleeping with (Spike). Buffy is infuriated and reminds Xander of her killing Angel to save the world. Given his own efforts to ensure Angel's demise, Xander is noticeably thrown.
184* WhiteShirtOfDeath
185** Anya's white dress in the frat house slaughter.
186** Anya and Halfrek in HighClassGloves, sitting at a dinner table with all the other guests slaughtered.
187* [[WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes Why Did It Have To Be Bunnies?]]: Averted -- Aud is shown to be quite fond of rabbits before becoming a vengeance demon, implying her fear of them is a subconscious reminder of her innocent human past and her submission to Olaf.
188* YouFightLikeACow: Averted by Buffy, [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness as Anya notes while fighting her]].
189-->"C'mon, Buffy. Don't you have a clever retort for me?"
190* YourApprovalFillsMeWithShame: Willow's reaction to D'Hoffryn's praise about flaying Warren Mears.

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