"Buffy the Vampire Slayer" Dead Man's Party (1998)

User Rating:

7.4/10   

Director:

James Whitmore Jr.

Writers:

Joss Whedon (creator)
Marti Noxon (written by)

TV Series:

"Buffy the Vampire Slayer" (1997)

Original Air Date:

6 October 1998 (Season 3, Episode 2)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Fantasy

Plot:

Buffy is back home, to her mother Joyce's great relief, which calls for a dinner invitation for the while gang...

Plot Keywords:

Heroine | Library | Female Protagonist | Demon | High School

Cast

Sarah Michelle Gellar	...	Buffy Summers
Nicholas Brendon	...	Xander Harris
Alyson Hannigan	...	Willow Rosenberg
Charisma Carpenter	...	Cordelia Chase
David Boreanaz	...	Angel
Seth Green	...	Oz
Anthony Head	...	Rupert Giles (as Anthony Stewart Head)
Kristine Sutherland	...	Joyce Summers
Nancy Lenehan	...	Pat
Armin Shimerman	...	Principal Snyder
Danny Strong	...	Jonathan Levinson
Jason Hall	...	Devon MacLeish
Paul Morgan Stetler	...	Young Doctor
Chris Garnant	...	Stoner #1

Runtime:

44 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

USA:TV-PG

Company:

Mutant Enemy

Trivia:

Pat mentions to Buffy that Joyce read "The Deep End of the Ocean" while Buffy was gone. It is a 1996 novel by Jacquelyn Mitchard about a suburban middle-class family much like Buffy's that is torn apart when the youngest son disappears, only to reappear at the front doorstep years later.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: As the zombies bust through the front door of Buffy's house, you can readily see that it is a break-away door barely an eighth of an inch thick.

Quotes:

Oz: We should figure out what kinda deal this is. I mean, is it a-a gathering, a shindig or a hootenanny?
Cordelia: What's the difference?
Oz: Well, a gathering is brie, mellow song stylings; shindig, dip, less mellow song stylings, perhaps a large amount of malt beverage; and hootenanny, well, it's chock full of hoot, just a little bit of nanny.
Xander: Well, I hate brie.
Cordelia: I know. It smells like Giles' cat.
Giles: It's not my...

Movie Connections:

References "Mr. Belvedere" (1985)

Soundtrack:

Sway

An excellent episode

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Being brutally honest this isn't the best episode ever of Buffy but having said that it still ranks alongside the greats like "Chosen", "Intervention" and "Lies My Parents Told Me." This is mainly due to the lightning fast dialogue and the total destruction of the Summers' living room. Giles imitating Joyce "Don't you like my mask? Isn't it pretty? It raises the dead? Americans!" and his confusing phone conversation with a stoner are the comedic high points.

On a more sombre note the episode is driven by the reaction of Buffy's family and friends to her summer spent away. Tension grows between Willow and Buffy, to the extent that Willow blows off a coffee meeting with Buffy. The arguments between Xander and Buffy turn violent to the point of Oz having to step between them to avoid them coming to blows (though Oz himself, ever the neutral guy gives Buffy a rather nasty look when she first meets the gang.) Another high point that deserves mentioning is anything that involves Principal Snyder. Okay sure he a meglomaniacal fascist with a huge superiority complex but it's just so great to see him, as Armin Shimerman is just such a foil to Buffy. Another thing is the noticeable lack of Angel (he only appears in a dream sequence) which i can say (I'm sorry) is only an improvement. I think Spike might have been an interesting investment in this episode but i don't see how they could've have fitted him in. But hey, that's up to the writers not me.

An excellent episode with only a couple of minor flaws.