LIFE SERIAL
The Good;
Buffy in the workplace, funny...
The Bad;
... but ultimately a bit depressing
Best line;
Spike; "C'mon, someones got to stake me"
Women good/men bad;
The guys on Xander's building site are pretty sexist towards 'Little Britney' even though she saved their lives.
Jeez!;
Shouldn't Buffy make sure she rescues all the kittens?
Kinky dinky;
About the weirdest fanfic I ever read had Buffy having sex with the mummy hand. In the follow up story she lures it out of her using a magic charm then smashes it to atoms with her troll hammer (although surely all she needed to do was go upstairs and start the cycle again?). Buffy thinks that the candle buyers' girl isn't going to sleep with him whatever scent he chooses. Anya pictures HERSELF naked when selling, talk about 'sales figures' (the corset top Buffy wears to university would certainly do the trick! And check out the stripper heels she crushes Giles' specs with). Andrew thinks that Scully from the X-files 'Wants him so bad' and envies Jonathon that Buffy 'touched him'. The Nerds find free porn at the end. Lots of gags about Jonathon's 'magic bone'.
Captain Subtext;
Willow is a 'breast girl'. Andrew is hesitant to hold hands but as Warren observes you know what ***phobia REALLY means. Spike tells Buffy she's a creature of the night, we'll later find that's true. Anya and Dawn dance together.
Apocalypses; 6
Scoobies in bondage:
Buffy: 8
Giles: 4
Cordy: 5
Will: 3
Jenny: 1
Angel: 4
Oz: 1
Faith: 3
Joyce: 1
Wes: 1
Xander; 1
Dawn; 3
Scoobies knocked out:
Buffy: 16
Giles: 11
Cordy: 6
Xander: 9
Will: 5
Jenny: 2
Angel: 6
Oz: 3
Faith: 1
Joyce: 3
Wes: 1
Anya;2
Dawn; 1
Kills: 3 demons for Buffy
Buffy: 96 vamps, 40 demons, 6 monsters, 3 humans, 1 werewolf, 1 spirit warrior & a robot
Giles: 5 vamps, 2 demon, 1 human, 1 god.
Cordy: 3 vamps, a demon
Will: 6 vamps + 1 demon +1 fawn.
Angel: 3 vamps, 1 demon, 1 human
Oz: 3 vamps, 1 zombie
Faith: 16 vamps, 5 demons, 3 humans
Xander: 5 vamps, 2 zombies, 1 a demon,
Anya: 1 vamp and 1 a demon
Riley; 18 vamps + 7 demons
Spike; 3 vamps and 2 demon
Buffybot; 2 vamps
Tara; 1 demon
Scoobies go evil:
Giles: 1
Cordy: 1
Will: 2
Jenny: 1
Angel: 1
Oz: 1
Joyce: 1
Xander: 4
Anya; 1
Dawn; 1
Alternate scoobies:
Buffy: 6
Giles: 3
Cordy: 1
Will: 2
Jenny: 2
Angel: 3
Oz: 2
Joyce: 2
Xander: 3
Recurring characters killed: 10
Jesse, Flutie, Jenny, Kendra, Larry, Snyder, Professor Walsh, Forrest, McNamara, Joyce
Sunnydale deaths;
89;
Total number of scoobies: 6
Xander, Willow, Buffy, Anya, Tara, Spike, Giles
Xander demon magnet: 5(6?)
Preying Mantis Lady, Inca Mummy Girl, Drusilla, VampWillow, Anya (arguably Buffy & Faith with their demon essences?), Dracula?
Scoobies shot:
Giles: 2
Angel: 3
Oz: 4
Riley; 1
Notches on Scooby bedpost:
Giles: 2; Joyce & Olivia, possibly Jenny and 3xDraccy babes?
Cordy: 1?
Buffy: 3 confirmed; Angel, Parker,Riley, 1 possible, Dracula(?)
Angel: 1;Buffy
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; good or bad?
Dawn in peril; 4
Dawn the bashful virgin; 1
Questions and observations;
The woman who asks for the mummy hand reminds me of Elle McPherson. The introduction of Clem, here unnamed. If I ever write a TV show I'm going to include a box of kittens in every script (I understand Marish Carey does the same thing?). The Nerds testing Buffy is reminiscent of 'Lois and Clark'. For my money Roger Moore is the greatest James Bond and Dalton the 3rd best after Brosnan. The foreman refer to 'Gidget' as did Joyce in Prophecy Girl. Britney of course, huge now, all conquering at the time. Warren's right about the o'clock thing. Connery is Warren's favourite Bond, interesting that he has a reputation for being misogynist?
Marks out of 10; 8/10
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Episode Summary
EDIT
Buffy decides that in order to take care of herself and Dawn she must get back to college and find herself a job. This all becomes much more difficult when the nerd Trio decide to present the Slayer with a series of challenges to determine the extent of her abilities.moreless
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GUEST STAR
Paul GutrechtTony
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GUEST STAR
Noel GuglielmiVince
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GUEST STAR
Enrique AlmeidaMarco
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Emma Caulfield
Anya
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James Marsters
Spike
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Sarah Michelle Gellar
Buffy Anne Summers
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Nicholas Brendon
Alexander 'Xander' Harris
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Alyson Hannigan
Willow Rosenberg
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Michelle Trachtenberg
Dawn Summers
Watch Online
Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions
See All-
TRIVIA (14)
ADD TRIVIA-
When Spikes is in the crypt with Buffy there is clearly some brown under his bleached hair, but in the bar shortly after his hair is completely blond.
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Buffy kicks the Jonathan "demon" in the chest, yet Jonathan in the van later says he was hit by her fists. Its possible Jonathan was just making a general statement about being on the receiving end of a confrontation with Buffy and not intending to be taken literally.
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The mummy hand is mobile and aggressive yet it is left lying out in the open in the basement. It's odd that it isn't kept in some sort of box.
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As Buffy walks away from Xander and the construction crew after the fight with the demons Xander is seen from behind shifting back and forth. The shot changes to face Xander and he's standing still.
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When Willow and Tara are seen immediately after Warren runs into them Tara's right hand is gripping the strap on her handbag about three or four inches above the bag itself. The shot reverses to show them, plus Buffy, and Tara's right hand is now open and resting on the bag.
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It seems odd that neither Warren nor Jonathan are aware of Andrew's airbrush project until they see it. Air brushing an image as large as the Deathstar on the side of the van would take much more than a few minutes, also the air compressor needed to operate the air brush makes noise.
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At the beginning of the episode as Warren is showing Jonathan the van's interior Jonathan walks right up to the side of the van. The camera angle reverses and Jonathan walks up to the van a second time.
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This is the first time it is mentioned (or shown) that some demons and vampires play cards for kittens (as for money).
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When the trio are watching Buffy on their monitors, you may notice that the program is a bit like Quicktime. And at the bottom of the monitor, it is obvious that they are watching a saved file because there is a time tracker which shouldn't be seen if they were watching a LIVE feed.
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LOOK CLOSE: When Andrew, Jonathan, and Warren are using binoculars to watch Buffy at the construction site, you can see the camera crew in the reflection at the end of the binoculars.
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Buffy says she left school when her mom got sick, but she actually didn't do it until "Tough Love", which was after Joyce died.
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In the scene that takes place in Spike's crypt (when him and Buffy share a flask of whiskey), James Marster's accent slips upon saying "You're not a shop girl".
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When Warren speeds the life around Buffy, no one seems to notice Buffy standing still in slowed time, yet they manage to hit her- which means she is really there.
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When the camera cuts to Buffy and Spike clearing away the smoke left by Jonathan (disguised as a demon), you can see James Marsters smiling for a bit.
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QUOTES (13)
ADD QUOTES-
Spike: (to Buffy) You're not a schoolgirl. You're not a shop girl. You're a creature of the darkness, like me. Try on my world. See how good it feels.
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Buffy: I guess I could've been been blacking out, but...there was this thing on my sweater, you know, and then it just blew away or went poof. Maybe it was lint. Maybe it was evil lint!
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Warren: W-what the hell is that? Andrew: Death Star, dude! Wicked, huh? Jonathan: (scornfully) Thermal exhaust port's above the main port, numb-nuts. Andrew: For your information, I'm using the Empire's revised designs from Return of the Jedi. Jonathan: That's a flawed design! Warren: Guys! (they shut up) Okay, the thing is, since we're messing with the Slayer, who could pummel the three of us into a sludgy substance, it might be a good idea for us to (yelling) NOT draw attention to ourselves!
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Spike: What's wrong, luv? Buffy (drukenly, struggling with her jacket) What's wrong?! You were gonna help me! You, you were gonna beat heads and, and, and fix my life! But you're completely lame! Tonight sucks! And, and look at me! Look at, look at stupid Buffy! Too dumb for college, and, and, and freak Buffy, too strong for construction work. And, and my job at the magic shop? I was bored to tears even *before* the hour that wouldn't end! And the only person I can even stand to be around is a ... neutered vampire who cheats at kitten poker. Spike (embarrassed): Oh, you saw the cheating, did you? Buffy: Also, I think you're drunk.
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Giles: Buffy, a word in your ear. If you think of the store as a library it'll help you to concentrate on service rather than selling. Buffy: Yes. And then I'm going to marry Bob Dole and raise penguins in Guam. Giles: (not listening) Yes, uh, quite, quite, yes.
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Jonathan: Unnnh, next time I do that spell, one of you guys has to look like the demon. Andrew: (in awe) The Slayer touched you. Jonathan: Yeah, it was sexy the way she touched me real hard with her fists. I only looked big. I actually had the proportional strength of, uh, me. Warren: Guys, think about this. We took on the Slayer. I mean, we've got all kind of stuff in the computer now: speed, strength, reaction time. We're getting what we need to really become a threat to her. We tested her, faced her, and we survived. Jonathan: Unless I have internal injuries that will eventually kill me.
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(Spike is playing cards with three demons while a somewhat drunk Buffy watches.) Demon #1: You're lucky today, Spike. Spike: Got my good-luck charm with me. Demon #2: You cleaned us out. No one's that lucky. Demon #3: Yeah, I'm starting to think you cheat. Spike: Me? Cheat? (pointing to Demon #2) He's got x-ray vision! Demon #2: Yeah, but, uh, I'm not using it.
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Jonathan: I need you to hold hands. Andrew: (recoiling) With each other? Warren: Well, you know what homophobia really means about you, don't you? (picks up a piece of bone with carvings on it) Jonathan: Stop touching my magic bone!
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(About Giles helping Buffy) Spike: Right, Because Giles works the mighty forces of library books.
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(Giles gives Buffy a loan to help her in a financial slump) Buffy: Thanks... for this. In a way, it' kind of like having Mom back. Giles: In your scenario, I'm your mother? Buffy: Would you rather be my shiftless absentee father? Giles: You don't have a handsomely rakish uncle, by any chance?
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(Spike is playing poker and can't provide the ante) Spike: C'mon, somebody's gotta stake me. Buffy: I'll do it. (Spike glares at her) What, did you think I was just going to let that lie there?
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Warren: Subject sighted at 4 o'clock. Johnathon: That's not 4 o'clock. Warren: Well it is if you're facing the front of the van. Johnathon: But we're not facing the front of the van, we're facing that way. That's twelve so she's at 2 o'clock. Warren: Look she's over there okay?
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Warren: Connery was the only actor in the bunch. Andrew: Timothy Dalton should get an Oscar and beat Sean Connery over the head with it!
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NOTES (8)
ADD NOTES-
The nerds have three clocks in their van (that can be seen after the Magic Box tasks). The clocks are labeled Toronto, Sunnydale and Moscow.
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Warren jokes about Andrew, saying, "You know what homophobia really says about you, don't you?", implying that Andrew might be gay. This ambiguity is a recurring theme throughout the rest of Andrew's character development on "Buffy", but on the final season of "Angel" is put to rest.
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The check that Giles gives Buffy (or a copy of it) later appeared for sale on the Internet auction site Ebay in August, 2004. It was eventually bought for $990.
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This marks the first appearance of James C. Leary as "Clem" on the series although he is not called Clem in this episode it only refers to him as "loose skinned demon" in the end credits.
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David Fury wrote the teaser and the first two acts of the episode. Jane Espenson wrote the final two acts.
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Every act begins with Buffy saying "This is going to be great." She says so when she starts class, when she's a construction worker, when she begins as a sales clerk, and when she gets drunk with Spike. Each time, Buffy says it with a little less enthusiasm, except for when she gets into the alcohol.
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In one of UPN's promos Buffy is described as Buffy The Sales Clerk and Buffy The Construction Worker.
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This episode marks the third time Buffy gets drunk in the series so far. Buffy first touched alcohol in season 2's 'Reptile Boy' (which wasn't really her fault as it was spiked), and then 'Beer Bad' in season 4 is the first time she really drinks heavily. Here she drinks so much she can hardly stand up.
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ALLUSIONS (11)
ADD ALLUSIONS-
The animated mummy hand is very similar to the character "Thing" from The Addam's Family show and films.
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Van's Horn: Star Wars Theme When Andrew falls on the horn for the van, while they are watching the construction site, the horn plays the Star Wars Theme. The music for all the Star Wars movies was created by John Williams.
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Warren: What the hell is that? Andrew: Death Star dude! Wicked huh? Johnathan: The thermal exhaust port is above the main port,numbnuts. Andrew: For your information, I'm using the Empire's revised designs from Return of the Jedi. Johnathan: That's a flawed design. Return of the Jedi is the sixth part of the Star Wars saga created by George Lucas. The original Death Star was first seen as a schematic in Episode 3, Revenge of the Sith. This Death Star was destroyed in Episode 4, A New Hope by Star Wars hero, Luke Skywalker, of the Rebel Alliance. The Empire (the evil ruling class) created a second Death Star that was seen in Episode 6, Return of the Jedi, (as seen on the side of the van that Andrew was painting). This was also destroyed by the Rebel Alliance, by the end of the 6th episode, this time by Lando Calrissian.
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Woman: This hand is dead. The power is gone. I'm not giving you money for this.
Buffy: Oh, it's just playing dead. Little scamp.
This is yet another reference to the "parrot Sketch" on Monty Python. -
Tony the Foreman: Hang on, Gidget! The character of Gidget first appeared in the book Gidget, The Little Girl With the Big Ideas by Frederick Koehner, based on his daughter Kathy. The book inspired movies, sitcoms, telemovies and a cartoon. Also, "Gidget" quite often wore her hair in pony tails like Buffy had in that scene.
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Tony the Foreman: Why don't you put little Britney on haul duty?
This is a referance to Britney Spears. It is also ironic that Buffy did an impression of Britney Spears on Saturday Night Live. -
Tara: One time, when me and Willow were watching Spongebob Squarepants.
Tara is referring to Nickeledeon's very own yellow sponge, which strangely enough, seems to be a hit with university students. -
Warren: This mummy hand has ceased to be...
Andrew: It is an ex-mummy hand.
Refers to the Monty Python's "Parrot Sketch" wherein a customer complains loudly and vocally at a pet shop where he bought a parrot which turned out to be dead. -
Andrew: I just hope she solves it faster than Data did on that ep of TNG where the Enterprise kept blowing up
In the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Cause and Effect", the Enterprise is stuck in a "temporal causality loop" which ends with the destruction of the ship. They break the loop when Data is able to send a message between successive time loops and change the "ending" of the loop so the ship isn't destroyed. -
Title: Life Serial
A play on the breakfast food: Life Cereal. -
Warren: Or Mulder, in that X-Files where the bank kept exploding.
The X-Files season 6 episode 'Monday' features a woman who is trapped in a perpetual time loop repeating Monday as she tries to stop her boyfriend from blowing up a bank with Mulder and Scully inside.
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Chosen
S 7 : Ep 22
Aired 5/20/03 (43:43)
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End of Days
S 7 : Ep 21
Aired 5/13/03 (42:39)
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Touched
S 7 : Ep 20
Aired 5/6/03 (42:40)
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Empty Places
S 7 : Ep 19
Aired 4/29/03 (42:41)
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