Welcome to Rewatching Buffy, the part of the blog where I rewatch Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Each Tuesday evening, you’re invited to join me as I attempt to rediscover what made me love this show 20 years ago.
The Wish
- We start with a daytime slaying. Some kind of demon that doesn’t go poof when killed. Leaving the Scooby Gang on burial detail.
- Xander and Willow are still dealing with the fallout of their indiscretion which led to their break-ups with Cordelia and Oz, respectively.
- Xander keeps trying to call Cordelia. It’s kind of stalkery.
- Cordelia is burning pictures of Xander. It’s kind of witchcrafty.
- And probably catharticky.
- She returns to school after recovering from her injury. She’s dressed to kill.
- Her friends introduce her to the new girl, Anya.
- Then they openly mock her for having dated Xander for so long.
- Oz, on the other hand, just tells Willow to leave him alone to figure things out for himself.
- Being that stoic kind of allows him to have a good head on his shoulders.
- Buffy tries to talk to Cordelia and they’re attacked by a vampire. Buffy slays, but not before Cordelia gets knocked into a pile of trash.
- Anya is being super nice to Cordelia.
- …and kind of manipulating her into making a wish for some reason.
- Which she does… After making the logical leap that things would be better for her if Buffy Summers had never moved to Sunnydale.
- So let it be written. So let it be done.
- As it turns out, Anya is a demon that grants wishes. Like an evil genie.
- It’s a new world, kids. Buffy never came to Sunnydale. And only a handful of teenagers still survive on the Hellmouth.
- Because the undead have pretty much taken over.
- And they’re not a secret to the general population. Cloves of garlic and crosses hanging all over the school… there’s a monthly memorial at school… the town is under curfew…
- Cordelia asks about Xander and Willow… they’re dead.
- She’s warned to get inside before the sun sets. Of course, she doesn’t.
- And then she runs into Xander… huh? And Willow… huh?
- Oh, so they’re not dead. They’re undead. And they’re this reality’s version of Spike & Dru.
- Cordelia is saved by Giles, Oz, and a crew of student vampire hunters.
- The Bronze has become vampire central.
- And the Master is in charge. Makes sense, since Buffy never arrived two years ago to stop him from opening the Hellmouth.
- But why isn’t Darla around? Did Angel still kill her in this world, too?
- Xander and Willow track Cordelia back to the library and trap Giles in the book cage while they kill Cordy.
- The Master is pleased with his pets’ kill, which they believe will stop the Slayer from being called to Sunnydale.
- But Cordelia was able to tell Giles about her wish and the way things were supposed to be before she was killed.
- In this world, Angel is chained up and constantly tortured by Willow. Like she’s his plaything.
- Giles kept the necklace that Anya gave Cordelia and recognizes it as the symbol of Anyanka.
- Vampires are rounding up people for their factory. Whatever that is.
- Giles, trying to stop a group from being abducted, is nearly killed. But then Buffy shows up and slays a handful of vampires.
- This is not the Buffy we all know and love. This is a hardened Slayer who has clearly been doing this gig all these years without the support of friends or family.
- Buffy decides to go after the Master while Giles tries to figure out how to reverse Anyanka’s granted wish.
- When Buffy gets to the Bronze, she only finds a chained up Angel. She doesn’t recognize him or care that he’s caged.
- But he recognizes her. He expected her to come to Sunnydale, but she never came.
- She lets him go so he can show her how to get to the Master’s factory.
- It’s basically bloodletting on a mass production scale.
- Meanwhile, Giles summons Anyanka. She’s less than pleased at being summoned by a man.
- Buffy and Angel arrive at the factory. Pretty much everyone dies.
- Xander kills Angel. Buffy kills Xander. Oz kills Willow. The Master kills Buffy.
- Giles destroys Anyanka’s necklace and everything returns to normal. Anya loses her powers.
- All deaths that occurred in the alternate reality don’t count. So I’m not counting them. Because they never happened.
- Body Count: Demons – 1; Vampires – 1
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