History Recap / BuffyTheVampireSlayerS3E11Gingerbread

** The U.S.A.'s real-life [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Satanic_panic ''Satanic panic'']] of the 1980s managed to ruin lives while at the same time directing attention away from the most common perpetrators of child abuse: self-directed relatives and family friends, whose tropes have more recently been repurposed into the QAnon cult.

* FunWithAcronyms: Mothers Opposed to the Occult, or MOO. You can guess what their [[JustForPun beef]] is.

* MeddlingParents: Joyce turns up with a thermos and snacks while Buffy is patrolling. She just wants to support her daughter at work. Then she decides to rally the other parents in defiance of SunnydaleSyndrome after finding the bodies of the two children.

* CallBack: To "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS3E9TheWish The Wish]]" with Buffy wondering if she's making any difference in Sunnydale. In turn Angel reminds her of what she said in "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS3E10Amends Amends]]", of the need to keep fighting regardless of the prospects of victory.

...and later...

* ForcedTransformation: After seeing Amy turn herself into a rat, Willow and Buffy try to frighten the mob into letting them go.
-->'''Buffy:''' Yes! You will all be turned into vermin. And some of you will be fish! Yeah, you in the back will be fish!* {{Goth}}: Michael wears dark clothing and makeup, which makes him look a bit like [[Music/{{The Cure|Band}} Robert Smith]].

* BalefulPolymorph: After seeing Amy turn herself into a rat, Willow and Buffy try to frighten the mob into letting them go.
-->'''Buffy:''' Yes! You will all be turned into vermin. And some of you will be fish! Yeah, you in the back will be fish!

* {{Goth}}: Michael wears dark clothing and makeup, which makes him look a bit like [[Music/{{The Cure|Band}} Robert Smith]].

* BuffySpeak: As expected, there's Willow's magnificent line that Jane Espenson says she is ''very'' proud of on the Special Features.

* BrainwashedAndCrazy: The demon influences the minds of humans ignorant or hostile to the supernatural, turning the hostility UpToEleven.

* WitchHunt: Both [[MonsterOfTheAesop literally and metphorically]].

Later, Michael (a warlock), Amy, and Willow (both witches) are shown performing a protection spell in a circle that surrounds the symbol Buffy found on the children's hands.

* BullyHunter: When a group of {{Jerk Jock}}s pick on Michael because he's a warlock Amy tries to intervene. When they start on her Buffy steps in, [[PsychoticSmirk all smiles]]. At the very least she's known to have burnt down the gym at her previous school, pulled a stake on Cordelia, has a known history of violence and been suspected of murder/manslaughter on more than one occasion, so the group quickly scampers.

** Michael, the AmbiguouslyGay warlock. Witchcraft[=/=]magic will be used as a metaphor for homosexuality from Season 4 onwards.

* YouCanPanicNow

* {{Goth}}: Michael wears dark clothing and makeup, which makes him look a bit like [[Music/TheCure Robert Smith]].

* RedHerring: Willow, Amy and Michael are shown performing a ritual that uses the symbol of the episode. 5-10 minutes later Willow explains that it’s only a protection spell.

However, when she finds the book, Buffy also finds the witch symbol in one of Willow's notebooks. Before Willow can explain, a search of all the school lockers begins in order to find any material that may be witch-related, with students found with anything questionable being taken away. Willow tells Buffy that the symbol is harmless and that she was not doing anything wrong, just making a protection spell for Buffy's upcoming birthday (which is now useless because Buffy knows about it). Amy and Willow are taken to Principal Snyder's office for questioning. Also, all of Giles' books are confiscated by the police, which leaves the Slayer and Watcher without their resources.

* AdultFear: Exploited by the demon, whose raison d'etre is to scare the adults with this into becoming an ugly mob.

* AbsenteeActor: Where's Faith when Buffy needs her?