I Only Have Eyes For You

Season 2, Episode 19, Aired
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Episode Summary

As the Sadie Hawkins Dance nears, Buffy faces inner demons as she feels responsible for the loss of Angel's soul. Meanwhile, Sunnydale High is even more dangerous than usual as students and staff begin spontaneously reliving an old Sunnydale tragedy.
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Fan Episode Reviews (36)

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  • The show that got DB his own series

    6.0
    "Fair"
    By joxerlives, Jan 19, 2012 Report Abuse
    The Good;
    Lovely romance, lovely analogy of Buffy and Angel, Gile's mourning Jenny and a great tribute to the power of forgiveness. Wonderful scenes with Spike, Angelus and Dru too

    The Bad;
    Fairly little, a good ep although not a great one. Some pretty dodgy zombie makeup to be truthful

    Best line;
    Buffy; Something weird's going on!
    Xander; Isn't that our school motto?

    Character death;
    The teacher, another SDH faculty member bites the dust

    Shot;
    Angel(us) by Buffy

    Women good/men bad;
    Buffy's anger is focused at James, an obvious substitute for Angel. Cordelia is outraged at the idea of the Sadie Hawkins' dance, not a huge fan of gender equality, obviously.

    Questions and observations;
    Whenever a gun appears in Buffy it's never good. Always nice to see Shakespeare paraphrased in a US teen show. What happens to the janitor who shot the teacher? Presumably without Giles' testimony and no gun the charges against him are dropped. We have the first confirmation that Snyder and the police are in on the conspiracy regarding Sunnydale and first mention of the Mayor. Spike getting out of the wheelchair at the end speaks of great things to come.

    6/10 good ep without being brilliant,
    moreless

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  • Season 2, Episode 19.

    10
    "Perfect"
    By Wanted23, Oct 19, 2010 Report Abuse
    Sunnydale High staff and students begin reliving a tragedy that once struck the school.

    I loved this episode so much! It is my favorite episode of the series so far. "A person doesn't just wake up one day and stop loving somebody. Love is forever." The first sequence of that was awesome, although it was a little weird and confusing. Then as I was watching, I just figured it was going to be a boring episode with everybody doing that and the person would either get saved or die. But I was wrong. I LOVED seeing Buffy and Angel in that sequence. Sarah Michelle Gellar's performance was very powerful. I loved that scene so much! The best scene in the whole series! Then, she went up to the music room to kill herself like the original person did and Angel stopped her. The episode was perfect. Buffy and Angel even shared a passionate kiss. Awesome episode. Best episode of the series so far.moreless

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  • I Only Have Eyes For You

    8.5
    "Great"
    By TrueTvWatcher, Oct 14, 2010 Report Abuse
    I Only Have Eyes For You was a great episode of Buffy revloving around ghosts or spirits stuck in their eternal loop. The story is of a woman teacher having a relationship with a male student. Things turn deadly as the ghosts relive their past while possessing current people in the school. This was an interesting story, and it was neat to see Angel and Buffy play out the scenario. It was also interesting to note that this is the first time, I believe, that the Mayor is mentioned and reacted to with fear. This episode also is the begining of Willow entering into the practice of magic. Another entertaining side story is Angel continually tormenting Spike by playing with Druscilla.moreless

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  • Old lovers reunite...wth deadly consequences

    10
    "Perfect"
    By fatfreeoreos, Feb 28, 2009 Report Abuse
    I have to admit, this is one of my all time favorite episodes of the season and of the series. The acting is really well done. David B and Sarah Michelle really pushed themselves here, especially David, who played a woman quite convincingly, and not at all over the top.

    This episode is also extremely important in the story arcs yet to come. It's the episode that convinced Joss Whedon that David Boreanaz could hold his own in an eponymous series, thus creating Angel; it sets up Spike wanting to get back at Angelus and Drusilla, making him decide to help Buffy in Becoming, and marking his beginning as a good guy; Willow is first warned about magics, or first uses them, can't quite remember. Either way, that becomes her major arc. I didn't really like all the poltergeist-ish stuff, like the bees and snakes, but I can easily get over that. It's not so bad that I wouldn't watch this episode again and again.moreless

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  • Old lovers never die.

    8.8
    "Great"
    By addict666, Jul 31, 2008 Report Abuse
    There is something about this episode that has always bothered me. It has all the characteristics of a great episode and it certainly qualifies as a series classic and on top of that it is one of Joss Whedon's favorite episode (and that man can really do no wrong) but watching it I just don't like the love story. It seems too much, the couples love passed on from passion to obsession and if he had really loved her he would not of wanted to kill but rather he would of been willing to let her go. But I suppose that is the point, the couples relationship is suppose to parallel the love of Angel and Buffy that was doomed from the start and destroyed by their mutual passion, but that type of love isn't healthy or realistic. Maybe because I'm a Buffy/Spike fan, but Buffy's and Angel's love always seemed like they wanted to be in love and have a relationship more than their relationship actually was. Neither one of them can let go of their love even if it becomes self destructive to both of them, they can't kill each other at this point and even though she does later, she can never let him go. And sometimes you have to let go of the things you love, because in it's perfection it is the absence of self and the refusal to let someone go is selfish and harmful. I don't know, I guess this episode makes one think and shows off the love of Angel and Buffy, but that type of love is just not for me.moreless

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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  • Trivia

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    • Willow says that Ms. Calendar had lesson plans saved on her computer, but we saw Angel smash it in the episode Passion. Edit
    • Buffy assumes that James decided to take over her body (instead of Angel's) because he related to her. It would make a lot more sense to assume that he knew what the scenario would be. It is mentioned at the beginning of the episode that James was an honor roll student, meaning he was a bright kid. Therefore you can tell he knew what would probably happen - Drusilla's vision that led to Angel coming to the school, the fact that Buffy would shoot Angel and also that Angel cannot die from a bullet, therefore allowing James to let go. Edit
    • The snake bite Cordelia has on her face is wrong for the type of snake that bit her. The wound is two puncture holes typical of a large fanged venomous snake such as a rattlesnake. However, the snakes that appeared in the lunchroom were nonvenomous kingsnakes and ratsnakes, which have numerous small teeth, not large fangs. Cordelia's bite wound should have been nothing more than a few tiny holes. Edit

  • Notes

    ADD NOTES
    • This episode is fourth in Joss Whedon's list of his top ten favorite episodes according to his personal letter included in the Australian Chosen Collection Box-set. However the episodes on this top ten list are not ranked, but rather put in order of which episode aired first, so that does not mean that this is his fourth favourite episode, it is just the fourth episode in air-date order. Edit
    • The idea of ghost lovers possessing people and having forgiveness and a kiss be the key to their passing on was present in The Real Adventures of Johnny Quest episode, "Ghost Quest" in which Johnny and Jessie are both possessed by lovers who killed each other out of jealous rage and cannot forgive each other even after death. Edit
    • The scene where Angel and Buffy get possesed by the spirits had to be re-shot several times due to Sarah Michelle Gellar. It was the last day of shooting "I Only Have Eyes For You" and SMG had a short break down because she was too tired. Edit

  • Quotes

    ADD QUOTES
    • Willow: So what do we do, Giles? About James? Giles: Well, he's obviously reliving the night of the Sadie Hawkins dance, when he killed Ms. Newman. It's common enough for a spirit to do this. To recreate a tragedy. Cordelia: Hey! If Sunnydale High School shuts down forever, do we automatically graduate? Xander: But why? What does he want? Actually... that's an interesting point. Edit
    • Xander: Something weird is going on. Isn't that our school motto? Edit
    • Giles: He's, he's trying to... resolve whatever issues are keeping him in limbo. What exactly those are, I'm not... Buffy: He wants forgiveness. Giles: Yes. I imagine he does. But when James possesses people, they act out exactly what happened that night. So he's experiencing a form of purgatory instead. I mean, he's doomed to kill his Ms. Newman over and over and over again, and... Forgiveness is impossible. Buffy: Good. He doesn't deserve it. Giles: To forgive is an act of compassion, Buffy. It's not done because people deserve it. It's done because they need it. Buffy: No. James destroyed the one person he loved the most in a moment of blind passion. And that's not something you forgive. No matter why he did what he did. And no matter if he knows now that it was wrong and selfish and stupid, it is just something he's gonna have to live with. Xander: He can't live with it, Buff. He's dead. (Buffy walks out of the room and into the kitchen) Cordelia: Okay. Over identify much? Edit

  • Allusions

    ADD ALLUSIONS
    • Willow: You came, you saw, you rejected Willow is probably referencing the famous quote of Julius Cesar, "Veni, Vidi, Vici" which means I came, I saw, I conquered. Edit
    • Xander: Yikes. The quality of mercy is not Buffy. This is a reference to the Shakespeare play The Merchant of Venice. The actual quote, from Act 4, Scene 1 is: "The quality of mercy is not strain'd, It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven Upon the place beneath. It is twice blest: It blesseth him that gives and him that takes." It is an allusion to how the quality of mercy is a natural and gracious quality and not a legal one and is directly the opposite of compulsion Edit
    • Title: I Only Have Eyes For You This is a reference to the famous song by Harry Warren and Al Dubin, which has been recorded by Frank Sinatra and many others, most famously by The Flamingos. Art Garfunkel had a hit with it in 1975. It was originally written in 1934 for 'Dames' a show with Ruby Keeler and Dick Powell. Edit

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