Can't even shout, Can't even cry,
The Gentlemen are coming by,
Lookin' in windows, Knockin' on doors,
They need to take seven and they might take yours,
Can't call to mom, Can't say a word,
You're gonna die screaming but you won't be heard
A pack of demons known as The Gentlemen steal the voices of everyone in Sunnydale. Buffy and Riley find out about each other.
This is the first appearance of Tara. Also, the only episode of the show that was ever nominated for an Emmy, for its script; ironic for something with so little dialogue.
- All Psychology Is Freudian
- Almost Kiss: Buffy and Riley; unusually for this trope it's Buffy, not a third party, who acts as Moment Killer.
- Am I Just a Toy to You?: Anya wonders this about Xander, until he proves his love by beating up Spike.
- And I Must Scream
- Badass in a Nice Suit and Slasher Smile: The Gentlemen
- Badass Princess: Only the scream of a princess can kill the Gentlemen. Buffy never questions that she's the princess concerned.
- Blatant Lies: Buffy's and Riley's cover stories. Buffy will be patrolling—- uh... "petroleum". Riley will be "grading papers". What papers? Uh... late ones.
- Broken Heel: Tara trips and drops her books; as she is gathering them up we see the Gentlemen gliding up behind her.
- Can't You Read The Sign?: Riley and Forest take the elevator down to the Initiative, but can't provide the voice ID and the elevator starts to fill with Deadly Gas. They're rescued before they asphyxiate; after letting them out, Professor Walsh points out the sign that reads "In case of emergency, use stairs".
- Cannot Spit It Out: An underlying theme — various characters only start communicating once their voices have gone.
- Clark Kenting: Humorously referenced by Forrest, though the Initiative's full body and face mask suits are far more convincing than Superman's non-disguise.
This is the burden we bear, brother. We have a gig that would inevitably cause any girl living to think we are cool upon cool, yet we must Clark Kent our way through the dating scene, never to use our unfair advantage. Thank God we're pretty.
- Coincidental Broadcast: The Scoobies are all grouped around a TV showing a news broadcast from LA regarding everyone in Sunnydale losing their voices. A strong argument could be made that this example is justified — an entire freaking town losing their voices simultaneously is bound to get through at least one person's Weirdness Censor.
- Also the Scoobies were already watching TV; Xander simply calls attention to the broadcast at the appropriate point.
- Crash into Hello: A High Octane Nightmare Fuel when Tara meets Willow (they'd seen each other earlier at a Wicca group but not talked). Tara is pounding on doors trying to escape the Gentlemen when she literally runs into Willow, knocking them both over and giving her a Twisted Ankle which slows them in fleeing from the floating horrors.
- Creepy Children Singing
- Cut Apart: Tara hammering one of the dorm room's doors, and Willow waking up from the noise. The door opens...to reveal one of The Gentlemen holding a bloody heart. This was actually hinted, since Tara had previously found Willow's room number (which isn't the number on the door).
- Dreaming of Things to Come
- Erotic Dream / Daydream Surprise: Buffy's prophetic dream has Riley kissing her in front of the entire class.
- Fan Dumb: Played with in Willow's Wicca group, where Willow is called out as such for asking about actual spells (as she probably would be in Real Life), since the others are not in on The Masquerade and don't know about actual non-Clap Your Hands If You Believe magic. She later calls them "a bunch of wanna-blessed-bes".
- The Other Wiki alleges that this very episode coined the term "fluffy bunny", but since it does not appear in the transcript, this is possibly apocryphal.
- First Kiss: Buffy/Riley
- Flipping the Bird: Spike doesn't need a voice to communicate.
- Flying Broomstick: A non-empowering stereotype for Wiccans.
- Funny Background Event: Forrest holding up COME ON, COME ON on his notebook as Riley struggles to deactivate the Deadly Gas.
- Double Entendre: Xander confusing Willow's "heart" gesture for breasts. And Anya — oh Anya!
- Gas Leak Coverup: Apparently the Mayor's demise has not ended Sunnydale Syndrome — the authorities blame the sudden loss of everyone's voices on "flu vaccinations".
- Getting Crap Past the Radar / Visual Innuendo: Buffy's hand signal for "staking" which looks just like A Date with Rosie Palms.
- Anya's gesture to Xander, on the other hand, leaves absolutely no room for ambiguity.
- High Octane Nightmare Fuel: Getting your heart cut out and not being able to scream.
- Holding Hands: Buffy and Willow walking through Sunnydale after everyone has been struck dumb.
- Ho Yay: Xander/Spike
Xander: Don't even think of biting me.
Spike: Sure, you're just a yummy treat.
Xander: Course, I am. I'm moist and delicious.
- Intertwined Fingers: Willow and Tara casting the spell to move the soda machine.
- Ironic Nursery Tune
- Irony: When Buffy and Riley get their voices back and have something really important to talk about, they can't think of anything to say.
- Professor Walsh re Buffy during her lecture: "A typical college girl, one assumes."
- Last-Second Word Swap
Riley: So, what have you got going on tonight?
Buffy: Patrolling.
Riley: Patrolling?.
Buffy: ...petroleum.
- Little Dead Riding Hood: Tara; although she wears blue, Joss Whedon referred to it as The Lost Woods scene.
- Lecture As Exposition: Lampshaded and subverted when Giles is forced to this without his ability to speak.
- Love At First Spell: Tillow is born.
- Love Cannot Overcome: Giles's Temporary Love Interest Olivia. At the end of the episode after Olivia learns of the existence of demons, she says, "Scary." Giles asks, "Too scary?" and Olivia responds, "I'm not sure." Since we never see her again after that, we can presume that it was indeed too scary for her.
- Make Me Wanna Shout: Buffy's scream kills the Gentlemen.
- Mission Briefing: Without any spoken dialogue.
- Mood Whiplash: From wacky misunderstanding (see Not What It Looks Like) to romantic kiss (Xander and Anya) to dramatic chase scene (Willow and Tara).
- Mooks: Also a High Octane Nightmare Fuel version — the shambling Footmen in their Bedlam House straightjackets.
- Morning Routine: Buffy brushing her teeth before she realises she can't speak.
- Newspaper Thin Disguise: Willow hides behind an open writing pad to spy on Buffy flirting with Riley.
- No Dialogue Episode
- Not What It Looks Like: Xander sees blood on Spike's lips as he's bent near a sleeping Anya — cue Berserk Button.
- Organ Theft: The Gentlemen must take seven hearts for an unknown purpose.
- Pass the Popcorn: Anya reacts this way to Giles' mimed overhead-projector lecture about the Gentlemen.
- Pretender Diss: Willow dismisses most of the neo-pagans at her college as a "bunch of wannablessedbes". Fortunately for her, Tara turns out to be an exception.
- Riddle For The Ages: Why do the Gentlemen need those hearts?
- Screaming Woman: A horrifying aversion.
- Secret Identity: Buffy and Riley discover the truth about each other.
- Shipper on Deck: Willow for Buffy/Riley. "Do I have to tie you two together?"
- Static Stun Gun: Riley's taser blaster.
- Twisted Ankle: Willow running from the Gentlemen, but played more subtly than other examples of this trope.
- "Shut Up" Kiss: Inverted Trope — Buffy complains to Willow that every time she sees Riley, she just starts babbling and feels awkward. When Riley/Buffy meet for the first time after having lost their voices, they First Kiss right away.
- Silence Is Golden: "Hush" is without dialogue for over 27 minutes straight, nearly two thirds of the episode.
- Too Much Information: Giles having to listen to the Scoobies discuss their sex lives. Spike mixing his blood with Weetabix.
- Two Scenes, One Dialogue: Repeatedly done between the Scoobies and the Initiative:
Buffy: (to Willow) I wish I could just come clean.
Forrest: (to Riley) Well, you can't.
..
Buffy: (writes) Keep researching. I should be in town tonight.
Giles: (mouthes) Why?
Walsh: (computer voice) Because there will be chaos.
- Your Door Was Open: Anya barges into Giles' home as per usual.
- You Squared: Done silently between Buffy and Riley.
- Your Head Asplode: What happens to the Gentlemen when Buffy screams.
