Lies My Parents Told Me

Season 7, Episode 17, Aired
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Episode Summary

Giles returns with a device that may be able to deactivate Spike's trigger. To rob the song of its power, Spike must step into his own past and relive one of the most traumatic experiences of his unnaturally long life. Meanwhile Robin makes plans to deal with Spike in case the device doesn't work. Or possibly even if it does.moreless
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Fan Episode Reviews (13)

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  • Oedipus calling

    10
    "Perfect"
    By joxerlives, Jan 21, 2012 Report Abuse
    The Good;
    All the flashback sequences are wonderful. Great to see the real Dru on the show again, love her expression when Spike talks of bringing his mum with them. Possibly the worst introduction of any new girlfriend to a prospective mother-in-law in the history of the world? The powerful scenes between Wood and Giles and the face off between Spike and Wood are awesome.

    The Bad;
    Spike just deciding to leave Nikki alone for a while after finding her beggars belief, couldn't they have had a police car pull up or something? Or was Spike worried about messing up his hair? No real comparison between Joyce and Nikki, Joyce died of natural causes, although heartbreaking for Buffy and Dawn there was no one to blame, it was just her time. Unsouled Spike hunted down and murdered Nikki for fun!

    Best line;
    Buffy (to Giles); "I think you've taught me everthing I need to know" Ooooohhhhhh!

    Women good/men bad;
    At the end of the ep Buffy shares a moment of intimacy with Dawn in bed then closes the door on Giles. The implication is that she chooses her literal and metaphorical sister(s) over her father figure?

    Jeez!;
    Spike's mum remarks that he wants to 'get inside her' again, yeeeesshhh! Her rejection of him is heartrending. The mindworm is also nasty, reminiscent of Star Trek 2. Spike's goading of Wood over his mother choosing slaying over him is nasty and very possibly not true as we learn in 'Damage'. Nikki sacrifices herself to save Robin and millions like him just as Buffy does in The Gift with Dawn, she loved him but she just couldn't be with him. Nikki just didn't bump into Spike on patrol, he hunted her down off-duty, she tells Robin he can't go home because she fears Spike will find them there. She never volunteered to be the Slayer and she couldn't quit. She dies trying to save him. Wood's knuckledusters are pretty vicious but you'd think useful in a fight.

    Kinky dinky;
    Spike tells Nikki he's going to 'ride her hard'. She responds that he's 'wet and limp'. Xander bemoans the fact that Spike's chains weren't there last week when he and Anya had their breakup sex. Dru refers to Spike as 'sweet Willy' whilst he describes her as saucy.

    Captain Subtext;
    Needless to say a lot of people speculate on an incestuous attraction between Spike and his mum. I don't buy that, I think William is just a devoted son to his loving mother, even soulless Spike is horrified when she makes her incestuous suggestion. I'm quite prepared to accept Connor having sex with Cordy, that Ares is Xena's dad, that Beatrice in Kill Bill might actually be his daughter, even that Dawn and Buffy may have found solace with one another at the end of 'Forever' but not this. One reason Spike's mum might be so mean to him once sired is that she's jealous of Drusilla whom she refers to as 'That trollop'. Note Dru calls herself Spike's 'Other mummy'. Check out her little look as Spike stakes her, almost of relief/affection? Could she have been goading Spike into killing her?
    Speaking of Oedipal implications as we suspected Wood tells Buffy that she reminds him of his mother. Interestingly whilst most girls would consider that a turn off, she seems to rather like the idea. According to the commentary Spike's mum is called 'Anne' which of course is Buffy's middle name. And upon seeing Spike's relationship with his own mother I think we all understand his apparently genuine affection for Joyce a lot better.
    Andrew takes the call from Fred whom he thinks sounds 'effeminate'. Buffy substitutes 'prophylactic' for 'prokaryote' in regard to Spike which is a Freudian slip if ever there was one.

    Guantanamo Bay;
    Giles acts as a calculating general and wishes to kill Spike out of logic. Wood by contrast know's it's wrong but acts because his love for his mother is more powerful than all reason. Giles has actually started acting like Travers and the rest of the Watcher's Council but then so did Buffy in Potential, giving her girls their own Cruciantenam.

    Missing scenes;
    12 minutes of extra footage according to the commentary? We must have entire movies of deleted scenes available for special edition DVD releases! One scene I think we'd all like to see is Giles confess to Buffy about killing Ben.

    Apocalypses; 7,

    Scoobies in bondage: Spike in chains
    Buffy: 9
    Giles: 4
    Cordy: 5
    Will: 4
    Jenny: 1
    Angel: 4
    Oz: 1
    Faith: 3
    Joyce: 1
    Wes: 1
    Xander; 3
    Dawn; 4
    Spike; 4

    Scoobies knocked out: Poor Dawn although nothing is broken (at least Willow hopes so)
    Buffy: 21
    Giles: 12
    Cordy: 6
    Xander: 16
    Will: 10
    Jenny: 2
    Angel: 6
    Oz: 3
    Faith: 1
    Joyce: 3
    Wes: 1
    Anya;7
    Dawn; 6
    Tara; 1
    Spike; 2
    Kennedy; 1

    Kills: 2 vamps for Spike (excluding his mum) and 2 for Buffy if we assume she finished off the vamp in the alley at the start
    Buffy: 125 vamps, 62 demons, 6 monsters, 10 humans, 1 spirit warrior & a robot
    Giles: 8 vamps, 2 demons, 2 humans/1 god.
    Will: 6 vamps + 3 demons +1 fawn+1 human.
    Oz: 3 vamps, 1 zombie, 1 werewolf,
    Faith: 16 vamps, 5 demons, 3 humans
    Xander: 6 vamps, 2 zombies, 1 a demon, 2 humans
    Anya: 1 vamp and 1 a demon
    Riley; 18 vamps + 7 demons
    Spike; 11 vamps and 7 demons+1 human
    Buffybot; 2 vamps
    Tara; 1 demon
    Dawn; 1 vamp + 1 demon
    Kennedy; 1 human+1 vampire
    Amanda; 1 vampire
    Woods; 5 vamps and 2 demons

    Scoobies go evil:
    Giles: 1
    Cordy: 1
    Will: 4
    Jenny: 1
    Angel: 1
    Oz: 1
    Joyce: 1
    Xander: 4
    Anya; 1
    Dawn; 1
    Buffy; 1
    Spike; 1
    Wood; 1

    Alternate scoobies:
    Buffy: 8
    Giles: 4
    Cordy: 1
    Will: 6
    Jenny: 2
    Angel: 3
    Oz: 2
    Joyce: 2
    Xander: 4
    Tara; 1
    Dawn;1
    Spike; 1
    Anya; 2

    Recurring characters killed: 15,
    Jesse, Flutie, Jenny, Kendra, Larry, Snyder, Professor Walsh, Forrest, McNamara, Joyce, Katrina, Tara, Quentin Travers, Chloe, Jonathon.

    Sunnydale deaths;
    105

    Total number of scoobies: 30 or so
    Xander, Buffy, Dawn, Willow, Anya, Spike, Giles, Kennedy, Molly, Vi, Rhona, Amanda, Chao-Anh, Wood, Andrew plus an indeterminate number of potentials, at least a dozen or more.

    Xander demon magnet: 6(7?)
    Preying Mantis Lady, Inca Mummy Girl, Drusilla, VampWillow, Anya, Lissa (arguably Buffy & Faith with their demon essences?), Dracula?

    Scoobies shot:
    Giles: 2
    Angel: 3
    Oz: 4
    Riley; 1
    Buffy; 1
    Tara; 1

    Notches on Scooby bedpost:
    Giles: 2; Joyce & Olivia, possibly Jenny and 3xDraccy babes?
    Buffy: 4 confirmed; Angel, Parker, Riley, Spike. 3 possible, Dracula+RJ+Shadowmen's demon(?)
    Joyce: 1;Giles, 2 possible, Ted and Dracula(?)
    Oz: 3; Groupie, Willow & Verucca
    Faith:2 ;Xander, Riley
    Xander: 2; Faith, Anya
    Willow: 2;Oz and Tara
    Riley; 3; Buffy, Sandy and unnamed vampwhore
    Spike; 2 Buffy and Anya
    Anya; 2 Spike and Xander

    Dawn in peril; 14

    Dawn the bashful virgin; 9

    Questions and observations;
    Buffy says she is now willing to sacrifice Dawn to save the world. Because she's older or because Buffy knows there's a heaven? Probably the latter as it's only after Giles remarks about what she's been through (death/afterlife) that she says it. She regards death as the reward for being human, the big dessert at the end of the meal. Or because Dawn is no longer her sole focus? She comments here that Dawn is 'tough'. Spike retains some of his humanity as a vampire (as the Judge senses in Becoming pt1), perhaps because of Dru's link to the PTB? When his mum is sick Spike suggests fetching Dr Gull which was also the name of Queen Victoria's physician and a popular suspect for Jack the Ripper but we've no proof it's the same guy. Willow recieves her phonecall from Fred in the Angel ep 'Orpheus'. Buffy still feels bad about how she treated her family and friends in 'Get it done', her punishment at the hands of the Shadowmen has actually benefitted her by bringing her to her senses in that regard, she's not so hardass any more. We really do have bad boy Spike back here, from now on he's the guy we know from seasons 2-4 but playing for the good guys. But deep down we know he'll always be William the Bloody (awful poet). He knew Buffy was in the light and he was always in the darkness. If he pulled her into the darkness he wouldn't love her anymore so he pulls himself into the light instead (with thanks to White Avenger from Buffyboards)
    Nikki speaks of Robin liking playing with the 'Spooky doodas' at her Watcher's house. Does she mean the Shadow puppets we see in 'Get it Done'?
    It speaks of Buffy's prowess as a Slayer that she can toy so effortlessly with the vamp whilst Giles talks to her. Does Spike mean what he says about not caring for Nikki or is this just revenge for his beating? Note both Spike and Angel(us) killed their mothers. Also although we don't see her use it Spike's mum has a wheelchair, no wonder he so hated being stuck in one for most of season 2.
    So who's right? You've got to understand Wood's point, imagine if Spike had killed Joyce and went around wearing her coat as a trophy? Would anything on earth stop Buffy staking him? Or would he wake up on fire as Dawn promised? Again Wood is very similar to Holtz on Angel or Callisto on Xena. Note that Wood realises that souled Spike ISN'T the man who killed Nikki, he has to play 'Early one morning' to bring him out. Rare to have 2 eps with such a similar theme (Andrew and Spike's flashback filled redemption) in a row but it works fine.

    Marks out of 10; 10/10 brilliant!
    moreless

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  • "He has a trigger, a soul and a chip?" - Wood "You wanna bring your mum wiv us?" - Dru

    9.5
    "Superb"
    By rachel_london, May 02, 2011 Report Abuse
    On Buffy's 18th birthday, just as Hank let her down and failed to take her to Icecapades, her father figure, Giles, also betrayed her by injecting her with muscle relaxants and hypnotising her at the bequest of the council. That was Buffy's introduction to adulthood. Now at 22, we see her wash her hands of parental interference and we also see that the other characters need to do the same.

    Spike is back in black and, for one last time only, we are once again treated to William The Bloody (awful poet). Previously, in Fool for Love, we saw the three women: Cecily, Drusilla and Buffy, who made Spike into the vamp he is today. Now we see the origin of his strange love/hate relationship with women, his mother. Spike was excessively fond of his old mum (and liked to battle with his (grand)sire Angel) yet he ended up killing her. Spike's murderous love for Buffy suddenly makes a lot more sense; indeed his mother's Christian name, Anne, is Buffy's middle name. However, the Oedipal theme is expanded by including Dru who claims she gave birth to the new VampSpike. Spike sees it more of a sexual awakening: "Something has happened....She has made me what I am". He tells his mother, when he wants to turn her, that "it only hurts for a moment". He intends to save his mother from a consumptive life and death but she sees it somewhat differently: "All you ever wanted was to be back inside. You finally got your wish, didn't you? Sank your teeth into me. An eternal kiss." Unlike some mothers who want to keep their sons with them forever, vamp-mum seems glad to be rid of William and certainly doesn't want to spend the rest of her vamp-life with him. Unlike Angel who killed all of his family, Spike still feels love for his mother and he has to kill her twice, first as a human, then as a demon. Cecily was the first woman to hurt him, Dru the third and in between there was this woman. Dru may have taken his virginity but VampAnne took his childhood with her cruel, loveless words. Both mothers in the story, Anne and Nikki, tell Spike that he's limp, which sounds like a sexual insult. Spike spars suggestively with Nikki as they fight ("Got the moves, don't you? I'm gonna ride you hard before I put you away, love"), and little Robin sees everything hidden behind the bench. One could infer that Wood wants to kill the father figure, the sexual aggressor of his mother. Buffy also appears to be Oedipally attracted to Principal Wood, eight years older than she, the ultimate patriarch in form of the School Principal (and her boss), but by the end of the ep, she makes sure he knows who is in charge, indeed, he has already said that she reminds him of his mother and in this ep, she echoes Nikki's catchphrase). Unlike her last parent substitute (Professor Walsh), Giles gets along with Wood although Rupert shows how hopelessly out of touch he is by complaining about the computers in the new school library. As we see later, when Wood downloads and plays an mp3 of the folk/trigger song, an iMac can can be as deadly as a stake for a weapon.

    Wood believes he is carrying on the mission: by killing Spike he will have avenged his mother whereas in reality it is more likely she would have come to the same conclusions as Buffy. He sees himself as a fair man: "Just trying to do what's right..make a difference" and he uses the trigger to make Spike vamp out, so he will be fighting the superstrength Spike, not the one in human form. He sees Spike as less than human: "An animal like you..." and doesn't understand that by triggering him, he is taking away his free will. Once Spike is free of the trigger, he is able to make choices and he chooses to let Wood live. Wood is unable to see the grey areas, he is too focussed in his view of the world as black and white. By the end of the fight, he admits that he was looking for vengeance rather than following the mission: "She was all I had, she was my world". Instead of killing him, Spike delivers a killer blow: "And you weren't hers". Buffy talks to Wood about her mother and we see that like Anne, Joyce (apart from that blip at the end of S2) gave unconditional, forgiving love to the two people, Buffy and Dawn, who were her world. Spike was very fond of Joyce and Buffy is becoming like her, like Anne. Unlike Nikki, she may never reproduce but her new adulthood means a kind of motherhood, she has a whole host of young women to look after.

    Giles talks to Buffy about making hard decisions, about acting as a General in a war. He claims Buffy's feelings for Spike have clouded her judgement about his danger to them, but his negative feelings make him misjudge the situation. Spike is an important ally and his past deeds - the killing both pre and post soul, the attempted rape - no longer matter to Buffy, "You're looking for revenge on a man that doesn't exist anymore", she tells Wood. Spike's present self and the mission is what matters: fighting the FE. Giles understands the mission; his murder of Ben was to stop Glory coming back and creating an apocalypse. He tries to father Buffy by taking the decision about Spike away from her. He is trying to protect her by sheltering her from the decision. But Buffy know this already. She knows there's more to being a General than making inspirational (and tedious) speeches she tells Wood that she will let Spike kill him if he tries "anything again" and she turns her back on Giles when he tells her what she "need[s] to learn" with the devastating riposte: "I think you've taught me everything I need to know." She rejected the Watchers' Council the last time Giles betrayed her in Helpless, and she rejected the proto-watchers in Get It Done. She is now her own woman, she is La Generalissima, the matriarch. The macguffin prorokaryote stone is more like a psychiatrist for Spike. He replaced his mum with Cecily, Cecily with Dru and then Dru with Buffy (and briefly Buffy with Anya) but coming to terms with his mother's two deaths ("it was the demon talking; not her") breaks the spell and then the First's hold. Not only is Spike free of the First's trigger and his mother issues, he is no longer love's (and Buffy's) b*tch the two can move forward as strong allies. Moreover, Buffy saves Wood from doing the FE's work and she has saved Spike with kindness and her belief in him. Buffy was right when she refused to become part-demon to battle the FE. She is fighting using the forces of good.moreless

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  • Lies My Parents Told Me

    10
    "Perfect"
    By TrueTvWatcher, May 02, 2011 Report Abuse
    Lies My Parents Told Me was a perfect and entertaining episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. This episode showed a lot of character growth both for Spike and Robin Wood. I liked the flashbacks Spike had of his mother. Robin's own mother was beautiful and a great Slayer. Her inspiring words, "Always work the Mission" have stuck with Wood his whole life. This episode touched upon human nature and how much parents can influence their children. Buffy had some growth as her own, as she closes the door on Giles after learning he stalled her so Robin could kill Spike. This was an exciting episode and I look forward to the next episode!!!!!!!moreless

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  • A Spike episode.

    9.9
    "Superb"
    By farscapefanuk, Mar 16, 2011 Report Abuse
    I really liked this episode, this one is probably my favourite episode this season. I think it was written really well. We learn more about Spikes relationship with his mother and how Robin Wood wants to kill Spike because Spike killed his mother Nikki many years again.

    Giles also turns on Spike in this episode something which was a real shock. Anyway by the end of the episode Spike is able to stop his trigger and Wood lets him live. At the end of the episode where Giles talks to Buffy and says 'you still need to learn this' she relplys 'i think you've taught me all i need to know' and she closes the door on him.

    Loved this episode and the music very catchy. Anyway if you are a fan of Spike this episode is for you.moreless

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  • Not really into Wood but Spike is my favorite character and I have like all the ones where we see his past so I particullarly liked this episode quite a bit.moreless

    10
    "Perfect"
    By chismo16, Mar 16, 2011 Report Abuse
    Ok this has to be the best episode in season 7, I hate how they are all together but this one is mainly about spike, my favorite character. We get to see why he goes so crazy when someone talks about his mom or Drusilla. He kickes Woods butt which is nice to see because I really dont like him. If I wrote it I would of had Spike kill him but I know they are going for his human side so that wouldnt really fit. Amazing episode though possibly my favorite of the show. Amazing fight scenes.moreless

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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  • Trivia

    ADD TRIVIA
    • When Wood is talking to Spike with his back to him, preparing to fight Spike, as he is putting on his hand and arm weapons, the bandage around his left hand disappears and reappears from scene to scene. Edit
    • Just after Wood tries to stake Spike and Spike pushes him away, the wire pulling Wood backwards is visible and his shirt is noticeably tented. Edit
    • Spike's flashback hair in this episode is very different from his flashback hair in "Fool For Love". Edit

  • Notes

    ADD NOTES
    • David Fury says in the DVD commentary that the original title of this episode was "Mother and Son". But Drew Goddard, the co-author, made him realize it was not only about the Woods, but Spike and his mother, Buffy and her father, Giles and the lies each parent told his/her son/daughter: Nicky said she loved Robin, but she didn't leave the slaying (as Spike mentions); Spike's mother was always the loving one, but when she was turned into a vamp she said all those things to him. Spike thinks it was the demon inside talking, but he couldn't be sure; and Giles, of course, the conspiracy to kill Spike Edit
    • Drew Goddard was asked by David Fury to co-write the episode since David was short on time to write the whole episode and prep for directing it. Edit
    • Buffy tells Wood "The mission is what matters," which is what Wood's mother told him before being killed by Spike. Edit

  • Quotes

    ADD QUOTES
    • Buffy: It was boring, old and English, just like you...ul Brynner. Yul Brynner. A British Yul Brynner. Edit
    • Buffy: Spike? What happened? (Spike opens the garage door, revealing an unconscious Robin Wood) Buffy: Oh my god! Spike: I gave him a pass... let him live... on account of the fact that I killed his mother, but that's all he gets. He even so much as looks at me funny again, I'll kill him! Edit
    • William: Yet his smell, it doth linger Painting pictures in my mind. Her eyes, bowls of honey Angel's heart's shall laugh. Oh lark, grant a sign If crooked be Cupid's shaft. Hark! The lark! Her name it hath spake. "Cecily," it discharges From twixt it's wee beak. Edit

  • Allusions

    ADD ALLUSIONS
    • Title: Lies My Parents Told Me This title is a twist on the 1960 movie Lies My Father Told Me, remade in 1975. Coincidentally, there is also an episode of Roseanne called Lies My Father Told Me (6x21). This is interesting because Joss Whedon was a writer for Roseanne (though he left the show some time before this episode aired). Edit
    • The Lost Boys:
      In the flashback at the beginning of the episode, when Spike jumps off the bridge and seems to disappear, it's reminiscent of a scene in The Lost Boys in which the gang of vampires jump off a railway bridge into the mist below. Edit
    • Buffy: It was boring, old, and British... like you... le Brynner.
      Yul Brynner (1915-1985) was a Russian/American actor most famous for his bald head and his role as the King in 1956's The King and I. Edit

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