Restless: Buffy the Vampire Slayer 4x22 Reaction
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- Опубликовано: 12 июл 2023
- Restless: Buffy the Vampire Slayer 4x22 Reaction
#buffy #reaction #dakara
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what a finale!!! Total head scratcher! Hope you all enjoy, please let me know what your reaction to this ep was like in the comments!! That cheese man am I rite???!! Hahaha
P.S Angel will be uploaded next Thursday guys x x x
The cheese guy is fafh ngl
Remember they are watching a movie on tv. The scene with principle Snyder is a scene from Apocalypse Now. The movie they are watching. I think the Cheese guy is just random comic relief. Probably just a cheese commercial during the movie that got into their dreams. hahaha Willows dream was her struggle with coming out. You missed Zanders joke about "doing spells" It was a euphemism for getting off/sex. lol 😁
Love your channel! If you're interested in an in depth analysis of this episode, ThePassionoftheNerd's channel does a spectacular job of it! He has both a non-spoiler version and a spoiler version, and I recommend you watch the non-spoiler version until you're past the middle of season 5, just to be safe = but the spoiler version is definitely the best, because this episode has a lot of foreshadowing for season 5 and points out other foreshadowing for season 5 events as far back as season 3! I can't recommend watching it enough!
You have to re-watch this episode after season 5, you will be stunned how mush you missed in the first watching
🎵...and try not to bleed on my couch, I've just had it steam cleaned.🎶 Who else cracked up laughing at that part?
“This is gonna be a deep one, isn’t it?”
You can say that again. ‘Restless’ practically has its own life. It never tires as far as what you can get out of it even after 20 years later. It’s a masterpiece.
In season 3 Oz asked Willow: "You ever have that dream where you're in a play and it's the middle of the play and you really don't know your lines?"
The scene with Xander talking to Snyner is based on Apocalypse Now.
I've always assumed it's because the film is playing in the background while they're sleeping
"Be back before dawn."
NEVER gets old!!
Restless: Ostrasizing, secluding, and isolating.
Buffy: “You are alone.”
Xander: “You are left behind.”
Willow: “You are worthless.”
Giles: “You are redundant.”
I would love to do a character study for this whole episode. Explaining in-depth the way I interpret it.
I know we say this one every 4 episodes or so, but "this is where it gets good" 😂
"You think you know. What you are, whats to come. You havent even begun". This episode is kinda of the bridge between two halves of this show. Now welcome to season 5 ❤
When Willow took off her "costume" she was dressed in her outfit from the pilot episode. How she was before she met Buffy.
This episode sets up season 5 of Buffy, THE greatest season of television ever. Can't wait to see you react to it.
Definitely stresses me out the most out of all of them 😩
Not the best season
My top two are season 6 and the final season. Season 5 is third best season for me. Great season tho.
Season five feels like a book. It ties together so perfectly
Season 5 is a great season from the emotional/character development stand point, and of course for paying off some well written foreshadowing, but it falls short of seasons 2 and 3 in overall tone and solidification of the series' themes and growth for the full cast. It's main villain, while fun, is also on the weaker side. Not Adam bad mind you, but no where near as impactful as Angelus, Spike, Dru, Mayor Wilkins, or Faith. I understand why some in the fanbase rank season 5 so high (I'd say it is the 3rd best season overall), but it lacks the cohesion and core themes of the show overall, and instead leans too heavy on big drama and emotion to sell itself. If someone wanted to ask me what is the overall tone of Buffy, the answer would be found watching in the high school years, not in the later seasons, imo.
To be clear, this is not a tear down of season 5. Again, I'd rank it as the 3rd best seast, and definitely the most emotional, but having watched the how dozens of times through since the original airing (I'm a true OG fan, having started watching in March of 97 with episode 1, and even being one of the few that went out of his way to watch the Buffy movie when it first hit theaters, just intrigued by the concept alone) season 5 trades a lot of the important themes that make Buffy the series, well Buffy, and instead goes too far into family drama. Even poor episodes from the earlier seasons, like Bad Eggs, feel more true to the overall series than say something like Fool for Love, which in undoubtedly a much better and more important episode, but lacks the key elements that I would define as core for BtvS.
This episode though, Restless, is a masterclass though. One of the top 5 in the series, imo. It is simultaneously a character study and prophetic fore shadowing, something key to Buffy from the very beginning, and balances the elements of horror, mystery, and comedy perfectly. Something that increasingly becomes rare starting with next season. I know this post won't be too popular, as their are a lot of season 5 fanboys for some reason, but sadly as an OG fan, I just think it is a good season, not great. And to add even more hate directed towards me, I'd say Angel season 5 is better than Buffy season 5, and is only trumped by Buffy season 2, the best season overall in the Buffyverse (and yes S2 has more weak episodes then S5 overall, but again, it feels more true to the core themes that the series was aiming for, which should always be given more weight when trying to objectively view a work of fiction).
The writers intended Angel to be the narrator of the episode but he wasn't available so they gave the role to Tara. I think it was a fine choice.
Ooooooohhhh that would’ve been a trip though!
I much prefer it being Tara, the role of a voice and mystery fits her so much better here than it would Angel.
um i dont know, i loved the narrative voice he uses in Passion is pretty befitting.@@Ana-yc5ox
@@Ana-yc5oxnah
“Be back before dawn” ooooooo nice detail to miss retrospectively.
The poem Willow wrote on Tara's back was "Ode to Aphrodite" by the poet Sappho from Lesbos. Sappho was the first known female poet writing in Greek.
Her poems are mostly interpreted in a lesbian way - hence the term “lesbian” from her home island.
Aphrodite, subtle of soul and deathless, Daughter of God, weaver of wiles, I pray thee Neither with care, dread Mistress, nor with anguish, Slay thou my spirit!
But in pity hasten, come now if ever From afar of old when my voice implored thee, Thou hast deigned to listen, leaving the golden House of thy father
With thy chariot yoked; and with doves that drew thee, Fair and fleet around the dark earth from heaven, Dipping vibrant wings down the azure distance, Through the mid-ether;
Very swift they came; and thou, gracious Vision, Leaned with face that smiled in immortal beauty, Leaned to me and asked, "What misfortune threatened? Why I had called thee?"
"What my frenzied heart craved in utter yearning, Whom its wild desire would persuade to passion? What disdainful charms, madly worshipped, slight thee? Who wrongs thee, Sappho?"
"She that fain would fly, she shall quickly follow, She that now rejects, yet with gifts shall woo thee, She that heeds thee not, soon shall love to madness, Love thee, the loth one!"
Come to me now thus, Goddess, and release me From distress and pain; and all my distracted Heart would seek, do thou, once again fulfilling, Still be my ally!
For me, this is THE dream episode. Joss is the only showrunner I've ever seen who has managed to capture both the flow and the absurdity of dreams while also keeping them grounded in the dreamer's innermost wants and fears. This was perfect.
Not everything will make sense or have a context as dreams tend to have those elements that are just nonsense, or people who you've met just fill in random roles.
In this ep I love the way Giles visualises Buffy and of course his solo, "try not to bleed on my couch I've just had it steam cleaned". 😂
I like how they have Buffy's voice quieten down while the men in suits are talking to her finding her voice at the end.
The moment with Xander and Buffy in the toy box where you hear the clear definition of his transistion to brother (from his mind). Also the corridor scene when Giles is about to tell him something important and everyone suddenly starts speaking another language he doesn't understand.
Really nice to have Tara in this episode as this calming voice even though she was 'borrowed'. And to see Oz again!
And i think it's interesting that Buffy's the one that 'unmasks' Willow, as i think Willow is always afraid of losing her friendship and that Buffy won't see her as useful or accept her as she really is, and that was spread across this season.
When it comes to the Cheese Man, Joss Whedon mentioned in an interview that dreams always have aspects that are meaningless and just don’t make any sense at all, and that was what the figure that has become known as the Cheese Man was supposed to represent, just a meaningless aspect of their dreams. He also pointed out that funny enough, the extreme meaninglessness of the character when it comes to the shows fandom, has actually given the character meaning.
This is the "dream" episode of all episodes. No other show can do justice to dreams like Buffy does, and this one knocks it off the park.
One thing's for sure, you'll never forget the man with the cheese. 😆🤣
Someone in the comments may have said this already, but the cheese man is supposed to represent the random parts of our dreams that don’t make sense. Joss said because not everything in a dream means something. Also he provided comic relief of course.
This whole episode was a dream brought on by the spell that they cast last episode. They were all confronted by images of themselves that they are still coping with. For Willow that was the straight laced "nerd". For Xander, it was a lack of direction. A sort of trying to find himself, but not knowing were to look. For Giles, it was the sense of responsibility conflicting with his need to be himself. He doesn't fell at home in his own skin...yet. Buffy was the most complex, simultaneously she feels that she can't trust anyone, but needs to make these connections. Also there's the point of her meeting the first slayer, sort of reinforcing the belief the slayers can never have friends. It shows that the characters have grown and changed in subtle ways throughout the show, and will continue to do so. Actually, when you get to the series finale you should do something like a retrospective, seeing how they started, and comparing it to what they become. That would be interesting. BTW, the mud was sort of a primitive warrior mask. Often hunters would mix it with ash and berries to make a kind of paint.
Oh Dakara... you sweet summer child...
You really didnt get the "Xander does a spell" joke from Willows dream? 😜
I don’t think she’s picked up the magic = sex metaphor yet to be honest.
@@Girl4Music Which really is the most common metaphor throughout the entire show.
@@SmartVandelay apart from the other one involving magic.
With the clay, I always saw it as a bit of Buffy tapping into that First Slayer primal attack/warrior energy, applying it to her face like war paint... only she ends up spreading it all over her face like a mask. Perhaps she's not willing to see herself as a slayer the way the First Slayer does, as a killer, so it feels like a mask to her?
Dakara, you’re the first reactor I’ve seen reacting to ‘Restless’ that has mentioned that the character’s perception is still there even when they’re not present in the scene. That is extremely important.
Like you talked about how Willow perceives of men but why Buffy is the one being outspoken about it in her dream. You also talked about how Giles perceives Anya as a comedian. All this is exceptionally observant detail for a first time watcher. I’m actually amazed. Most people don’t even think about this at all no matter how many watches despite Joss explaining in the commentary he did for it how important it actually is.
One thing that always bothers me regarding this is how people completely ignore the fact that when Xander says what he does about two women doing a spell that it is WILLOW’S DREAM he says it in. Not his own. Therefore it is how WILLOW perceives Xander thinking about her and Tara as a lesbian couple. I mean she’s not off-base as Xander’s dream proves to us, but at the same time, this is a perception of hers about him about them. And that shouldn’t be ignored.
It shouldn’t be ignored how the Scooby characters are depicted in each individual Scooby’s dream.
This is especially relevant when it comes to how Willow perceives Buffy but unfortunately I cannot explain why yet. You’re not off-base though. Yes, Willow perceives Buffy as being more confident in her sexuality compared to her but it goes much deeper than that. When you get there I’ll go in depth with what I mean by this. For now, I can say that it has less to do with sexuality and more to do with erotic power but the sexuality side of it is a big deal.
Notice how Xander and Oz are not in the play. Nor is Tara. She’s backstage. Reason for this is because Willow knows these 3 people intimately. She doesn’t have to perceive them a certain way to identify and understand them. She already knows who they are.
Which is kinda sad considering Buffy is very much apart of this “play”. A lead character in it even. But what’s even sadder is that Willow is the main one and she doesn’t even know how to “show up” for it but yet is wearing precisely the perfect thing for it.
Showing that her sense of identity is so unclear and confusing that anything seems to be sufficient enough to “perform” in for a “play” she doesn’t even “know the lines” to. Think about this in metaphor only and it basically amounts to imposter syndrome. Or rather… her believing of it as imposter syndrome.
Thats really interesting. Xander view of Buffy in his dream also shows how he matured as a chadacter, he sees her like a little sister to protect in that scene in the park. And the willow dream has so many interesting character foreshadows that I wont say here but I did understand were you were going with your comment about how she sees buffy
@@AnatoleVGC it definitely is interesting how the only women Xander does not sexualise in his dream is Buffy and Anya. Buffy because, like you said, he sees her as a little sister now. And Anya because she’s currently his girlfriend so there’s no “mystery” left for him to explore and satisfy his curiosity on. Of course he would immediately sexualise Willow and Tara. It’s the whole “lesbian porn” thing. And Joyce - I just assume that’s a teenage male thing but obviously can’t attest to whether all teenage males are attracted to older women and mother figures at that. He is a complicated guy that Xander. What I find even more interesting however is how sexualised Willow’s dream is. I know she’s always suppressed her sexuality due to “I’m so evil and… skanky… and I think I’m kinda gay”, which does tie into how she perceives Buffy - but again - Dakara is not there yet. But truth be told, Willow’s always been a horny lass regardless whether she’s attracted to a man or a woman. She is a redhead after all. It’s just a part of her that she feels ashamed of. That’s why the likes of Faith and Veruca bother her. Their uninhibitedness when it comes to sex is something she’ll have a problem with Anya as well. But now that she knows that she’s attracted to women this will be less of an occurrence for her character. Instead her problem becomes something else when the metaphor changes which is why I’d rather refer to it as erotic power and not sexuality. It’s still very much to do with sex but not to an obvious level.
About Buffy being in the play -- she is, and I wouldn't expect less from Willow's subconscious. Willow really does think of herself as a secondary character in a show called 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer'... wait, did the fourth wall just break? But she's pretty much said exactly that, and while she does resent and kick against it sometimes (as in 'Fear, Itself' : "I'm not your sidekick!") she also believes that Buffy's stuff is important, and she wants to help.
So yes, Willow dreams about Buffy being in the play. But Buffy also appears outside the play, like Tara -- she's the one who rescues Willow from the first First Slayer attack. So Buffy can be in two places at once in Willow's dream. And the fact that Willow dreams about both Tara and Buffy appearing with her in that red tunnel of billowing curtains may or may not mean something else as well...
@@stormwreath well it certainly means that for Tara. It’s not clear whether Willow feels that way for Buffy as well.
Donnie Darko is my favourite film of all time!!!!!!!! ❤❤❤❤❤
My favourite psychological thriller.
"What is happening??" should have been the title of this episode. 😉🤣 There's really no way of predicting the events of this episode. It's so trippy.
The scene with Xander and Snyder is taken from the movie "Apocalypse Now" with Snyder playing the Marlon Brando character Col. Kurtz, and quite well if I might say. "Apocalypse Now" was the movie they were all supposed to be watching instead of sleeping.
It wasn't until my 3rd viewing of this episode when I realized the 1st Slayer was killing the Scoobies according to the role they played in the enjoining spell in the previous episode.
I'm sure someone has already told you about The Passion of the Nerd and his deconstruction of this episode.
The mud on the face thing was just because that's what the first slayer did - - painted her face with mud to look scarier.
"Is she in the big sandbox now?"
I think that's called a desert. ;)
At 4:30 Xander's "Sometimes I think about two women doing a spell, then I do a spell by myself", "What?" This is just Joss making explicit the very rough metaphor he was forced into by the studios and the network affiliates - a metaphor which you have already picked up on quite a bit (episode 4x16, 13:30 "Why does this seem so sexual?"). They wouldn't let BtVS show Tara and Willow kissing or being otherwise intimate (even in Xander's dream in this episode they have to just heavily imply it with noises), so whenever Tara and Willow are alone, "doing a spell" or "exploring magic", it is a heavily implied metaphor. This metaphor will continue and go further in the coming seasons.
My interpretation?
The first Slayer is attacking using each of their greatest fears in the dream dimension.
Willow- Her new identity is clashing with her old one, not just her sexuality is changing, but her power and magic is growing as well. It's causing her to feel as if she's wearing a costume, while everyone else is comfortable in their long established roles. She is struggling to define herself and be secure in who she is becoming as well as how that is different then who she was.
Xander- He worries that he is just another nameless soldier destined to die as cannon fodder. He is struggling to find purpose and meaning beyond the physical, while Anya effortlessly, in his mind, handles life without hassles. His relationship with Anya is more mature then he can handle, and so he is distracting himself with other women, a mother figure for comfort, unavailable attractive women for emotional needs. He also struggles with the feeling that he is destined to be an abusive person like his father.
Giles- A struggling father figure unsure if he can ever truly let go of Buffy, or if she will ever be mature enough to handle life on her own. He fears becoming useless, and while he desires a real family, he knows his recent 'mature friendship' is destined to end badly.
There is no more complicated or brilliant episode of character insight that's ever been aired. I've seen it probably 40 times, I've read essays and books about it, studied the script of it...there's so much more to it than anyone can catch on one or even ten watches.
Joss says this is his favorite episode and the one he worked the hardest on and you can really see why. It has an insane amount of callbacks AND foreshadowing and the entire episode is just deep diving inward on the characters to show who they are, how they feel about themselves, how they fit in the world and in the group and all in the backdrop of the most convincing portrayal of a dream that's ever been put to film.
And there's more that we can't even talk about because it foreshadows things countless episodes ahead as well but know that Joss knew the arc for every character from here to the end of the show when writing this one and incorporates the path of every single character in here in some way as well.
Really just one of the best episodes of television ever created and a true exercise in creative brilliance.
makes for a better reaction when people don't warn you that something different is coming up. i wish people would just let the reactors experience the show naturally. it's like telling someone they have a surprise for you. that stops it being a surprise!!
Fuck yeah! Restless. Let's be confused!
restless is WONDERFUL to watch once you’ve finished the whole series. Things click way easier!
You need to rewatch this masterpiece then the show is over
All I can say is to anyone reacting to buffy, passion of the need does a really deep dive of this episode
I am very hyped for you to be onto season 5. My favourite season by far.
One of the best season finales of the entire series, and that is saying something since most were pretty great. A tour de force in film, an examination of various film genres wrapped into a distorted dream episode of masterful proportions. Oh yea and Buffy, "I'm not saying it's the key to her heart, but Buffy, she likes cheese." :-)
couldn't help but giggle at your comment "I think this can be taught in film class" - this episode and the series as a whole is studied in various universities across North America, some even have it as it's own stand alone class
OMG! Season 5 soon! It's the best one!
Omg I cannot wait for Season 5!!!!
Ahhhh, Restless. After the worst season, we get the best episode! This one has sooo much detail! So much foreshadowing and endless stuff to dig into. It’s an all-time favourite.
Was NOT expecting a double post today ^^
The episode of total confusion.
Sadly, I actually missed most of season 4 when it first aired, so I jumped straight from season 3 to season 5, only catching a handful of season 4 eps between. On tape, no less. I binged the whole thing :P
Meant that my first view of this episode made more sense than it does for most.
A very special, very experimental episode you will be mining for meaning after finishing the show. Definitely an episode MADE to drive people insane with "literary analysis"
An even better reaction than I'd hoped for :D
I honestly don't think I've enjoyed any other reaction to a Buffy episode as much as this one. Completely adorable, loved the attempts to make connections and analyse the chaos and every time a jump scare got you my grin broadened. Does that make me a psycho now? >
Season 5 was ment to be the last season so they tied up as much as the writers could story wise.this episode was actually amazing after watching season 5. Tara at the end talking to buffy be back before dawn. And buffy looking into the empty room and it flashes out like a dream.the lesson here magic always has consequences and we will see this a lot like we have when zander done the love spell.
Very astute observations! You've really been resonating with the characters and themes of the show.
I think the mud was supposed to represent the animalistic and primal side of the slayer. The "killer". She is a hunter and vampires/demons are her prey.
I could talk about the episode ‘Restless’ forever really because that’s an episode that will never tire or get old for me. I’ll always find and pick up more from it each time I watch it. It’s absolutely my favourite episode. But I want to talk about something specific. That is Tara’s significance to Willow/Xander/Buffy and her use and representation in their individual dreams.
For Willow: a guide for moving forward.
For Xander: a sexual fantasy along with Willow.
For Buffy: a means of identifying and communicating with the deepest parts of herself.
Tara’s significance to Willow would obviously be the most overt as her girlfriend and her soulmate. For Willow, Tara represents a new way forward in life. There’s not really much to explain here as watching the show will reveal to you how significant she is.
Tara’s significance to Xander is controversial and nauseating for the audience watching. He can only think of her in regards to her sexual relationship with Willow, making him address his own sexuality in how he perceives women loving women. There’s not much to think about. It doesn’t go any deeper than that.
Tara’s significance to Buffy. Well, since ‘Restless’ is full of foreshadowing, it’s easy to see why she is represented as a communication conduit for Buffy in understanding the First Slayer. It parallels with ‘Who Are You’ where she was also the method of exposing the Buffy/Faith body swap. Effectively conveying Buffy’s subtextual relationship to the Dark Slayer too. But it’s more so than that. Tara becomes a confidant to Buffy when she has to address her emotions going through the most tumultuous, scariest and darkest times of her life. Tara’s significance to Buffy is by far the most interesting. And as such - so is her use in Buffy’s dream. It deserves endless discussions because it really isn’t spelled (ha) out for the audience like it is with her significance to Willow and Xander.
But that’s another thing I love about the episode ‘Restless’. Tara’s use and representation in it. I have heard from some fans that the character really isn’t all that interesting away from her relationship with Willow. And as such gets neglected quite a lot. And while I do agree that she was abused and neglected... I don’t agree that she’s uninteresting as a stand-alone character. Tara has such a calming and comforting presence and that’s best depicted in the episode ‘The Body’ where she does act as a source of comfort to Willow, Buffy and Xander. This behaviour or quality about Tara is not uninteresting or boring…
It’s underappreciated. What ‘Restless’ does is foreshadows the true nature of Tara Maclay. And all it really shows when people refer to her as boring or uninteresting is that they can’t appreciate her.
Elle from Sunnydale made a great video about Tara, she's such an underappreciated character fr.😔
@@Itcouldbebunniesooo link me to it. I don’t think I’ve seen it.
@@ItcouldbebunniesAgreed such a good character study and love given to another character that doesn't get enough appreciation.
I remember hearing at the time that Angel was supposed to be the Spirit guide and Cordelia was supposed to be in the classroom. I think neither were available because of the filming of Angel.
Restless was a brilliant episode, but Series 4 I thought wasn't my favorite overall, but contained some brilliant individual episodes Hush, Something Blue, and Restless. Adam was the worst Big Bad throughout the whole show. This is however a very important episode with so many reveals for the closing seasons of the show. It definitely has a touch of 'Twin Peaks' about it. With regards the cheese, we have to remember in S2 Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered, Buffy remembering she 'felt a sudden need for cheese' and when Riley asked Willow in The Initiative episode in early S4, Willow said to Riley 'she likes cheese', and when Riley is trying to awkwardly talk to Buffy at the party, he says to Buffy 'cheese'. I think you can see how this show has developed over the Seasons, it's almost impossible after watching S1 to think that an episode of this quality could lead on from that, but that is the beauty of this show. The flashbacks and crossover plots with S2 of Angel and S5 of BTVS are just amazing! Series 5 of BTVS is so much better overall with terrific storylines, and characters, and contains a stunning finale unmatched in the whole show. Enjoy S5!
Season 4 to me is one of the weakest seasons in the series to me but definitely had a good season finale and some standalone episodes
@@angelaholmes8888 Totally agree great stand alone episodes but overall not as good as other Seasons
This is always a fascinating one. Will reaction viewers understand or just be confused?
She understood so much about the concept of what the dreams were about for someone who hasn't seen it but once or twice. The only thing she didn't get/talk about was how Buffy's overall dream theme was about loneliness as that is her core fear.
The cheese guy is the representation in dreams of the strange-ness dreams sometimes have, and has no meaning. Despite this people still try to make him mean something deeper. But I always thought him meaning nothing explained a lot about the nature of dreams themselves. The closest he comes to meaning anything is to directly tell Buffy she is dreaming. He makes her recognize she is dreaming and needs to wake up. I think it explained a lot about why he was in everyone's dreams. Buffy was the only one who understood what he meant, though.
It just depends on if someone actually thinks about the show as they watched it over the last four seasons, or if they just let it flow in one ear and out the other as something to fill time.
I always considered Cheese guy as the writers acknowledging and leaning into the occasional cheesiness of the show. Never think that Joss doesn't love his fermented dairy products.
Great reaction. I think it's always hard for first timers to react to this because there's so much in it that you're really not expected to "get" first time.
Thanks so much David. Very true! I'm sure on repeat viewings I will spot more and more
Giles just has to be the GOAT of this Season, not just for bringing his singing into the show but using his singing in this episode, to solve what's going on. 🎶
Having watched Buffy, what I took from this episode looking back, was the foreshadowing for the characters going forward, as well as highlighting what they've sacrificed... for example, Giles potentially having a future with Olivia, as his focus returned to Buffy.
I think Willow was afraid everyone would "find out" that she's still just a nerd and outcast beneath her "disguise".
I wonder if its imposter syndrome connected to being worthy of love? Willow tends to really fall to pieces when she loses (or appears to lose) love, as you saw when Oz left, and at times where Buffy or Xander pull away.
Makes sense considering how emotionally neglectful her mother appears to be as we saw in Gingerbread.
As I recall (I think from commentary track), they weren't allowed by the network to show Willow and Tara kiss. So they did the longest off-screen kiss with sound effects instead 😏
Because that’s not explicitly gay as it is. 😂
This is in a three way tie with me for favorite Buffy episode... the other two are Hush (earlier this season) and season 5's finale.
I'd suggest watching it again after season 5 and then again when you're done with the series.
Better then 7 seasons
I like to think of this as Whedon's art film, and i completely agree that it could be picked apart by grad students. I can't wait to see your thoughts once you've been through it a few times.
The First was awakened by the Enjoining Spell and affronted by Buffy's ordinary life, friends and family. She took something from Willow and Xander, perhaps to prevent them from joining with Buffy again.
The confrontation with Buffy didn't go as anticipated. Buffy is the strongest Slayer since Sineya precisely because of her friends and family. Now, having accessed Sineya's power...
The first time I saw this, the moment Buffy said "The Slayer?", my thoughts cascaded in a bunch of realizations and when Tara said "The First" it was like a light flared and I could see the thousands of generations of Slayers. Of COURSE there was a First! Suddenly Slayer lore extended across thousands and thousands of years into prehistory. I instantly thought of Cave Buffy...and that somewhat lame episode gained a lot of context.
We'll learn a lot about what exactly a Slayer is, and what it means in the next seasons.
You think you know...what's to come...
And not gonna lie, Sexy Joyce made me a little envious of Giles...
In this comment section: tons of spoilers and winks and nudges and people thinking they're cute (probably).
Do not worry if you are confused and don't get most of what happened. That's the way it's supposed to be. A fair amount of it won't make sense until much later in the show. I've seen some say it foreshadows season 5, but it actually goes beyond that. Really, it's the type of episode that makes more sense with each time you watch the series over again.
Some ot what was covered was the secret inner parts of the characters, the stuff never spoken of. In a way, you won't really understand the characters going all the way back to the beginning of the show until you've watched it to the end.
As an example, Joss always new right from the beginning of the show that either Willow or Xander were going to end up discovering they were gay. As such, there are hints of this in early episodes for both characters.
Similarly, there are things in later seasons that that are hinted at all the way back in the pilot episode. You'll never see them really until you know what ends up happening, so until you do, those hints are fairly invisible.
Same with this episode. Just enjoy the confusion and the discovery over time as you start to see the various elements covered here.
Also, a hint about the cheese. There's been a pretty big emphasis on cheese somewhere in the show and it kind of helps to understand what it means. Don't worry if you don't get it. It's really not obvious.
So...the cheese thing is 100 PERCENT a Joss Whedon thing to put into this episode.
You are about to start the FIFTH(and final) season of Buffy. At least to us that watched it back in the day. It was announced that this was the final season. So try to remember that when watching this season .......
Great reaction to the most confusing episode of Buffy. I know you’re far past this now, so now I know you can see all of the foreshadowing for season 5 here. 👍
Oh yeah, Spoiler, and spoiler. It's amazing how an episode that is so confusing has so much meaning going forward. Even words that seem meaningless now will be revealing.
I know the significance of the cheese man
Very astute analysis. I really enjoyed listening to your thoughts
Posting my BUFFY REWATCH recap for ‘Restless’. May contain spoilers.
I have been so anxious to get to this episode and write my meta. For all the time I’ve brought up Willow’s insecurities, this is the one and only episode that lays them all bare for everybody to see, if - and this is important -, you are clever enough to decipher the code of visual symbolism and possess the ability of interpretation. Pretty much all of the episode ‘Restless’ requires you to interpret what you see. You’re not told straight-forwardly what the dreams, each of the core 4 Scooby members have, are about and that’s precisely what I love about it and why it is probably my most favourite episode of the whole show.
Now, obviously, I’m only going to be talking about Willow’s dream in the episode because if I were to do an analysis of every character’s dream, I’d be here all day and this recap would be incredibly long. I would suggest watching RUclipsr Passion Of The Nerd’s analysis for it to get the whole picture. Much of what I will write here will draw from that as I agree with quite a lot of it and think it makes a lot of sense in understanding each character. Every character has fears, worries and insecurities, and that’s what these dreams are specifically about, but Willow’s go much deeper than can be witnessed in all of the show due to her “hiding” them under a “thinly-veiled” persona of who she wants to be. For the most part, you only get to see who she wants you to see. It is not until this episode that all of Willow’s real thoughts and feelings take center-stage - quite literally. There’s a reason why both her dreams in ‘Nightmares’ and ‘Restless’ have her performing on stage. The former, being more about stage fright and about wanting to go unnoticed. The latter, about acting like something she’s not and “putting on a show” of confidence and security to the other characters, who she fears knows about “the real her”, and the audience watching her. Now, “the real her” is as ambiguous as this entire dream sequence is - meaning: it depends on your point of view who Willow is. And this is why I clash with @confusedguytoo about Willow often regarding my views and opinions on Willow. They see something different to me. However, I’ll let them better explain that if they so wish to. I’ll only explain what I see - in Willow - and in this episode.
I relate Willow’s insecurities to her accumulation of power and need for control. For me, much of what I interpret in ‘Restless’ ties in and very much foreshadows Willow’s magic addiction and ‘Dark Willow’ storyline in Season 6 because, to me, Dark Willow is less about the Magicks and more about power and rage, (Anya interjects here: “and vengeance, don’t forget vengeance”). So I will go through the meaning of Willow’s dream in ‘Restless’ from the way I interpret it and in my own words:
Starting off, we have Willow sat on Tara’s bed with Tara (well, actually Tara is laying down on it and Willow is sat on it.) Tara is turned away from Willow as Willow paints some writing on her bare back (see Passion Of The Nerd’s analysis to know what is being written because it’s very significant to the scene.) This part of Willow’s dream has more to do with Tara than Willow, but it’s important to remember that it’s all from Willow’s perspective. Willow worries that there’s something about Tara that Tara isn’t telling her. Something she’s not “facing her” with and letting her know bothers her. But other than that - she has no worries. She feels safest with Tara and, as I’ve previously mentioned in another recap, is much more invested in the relationship they share than Tara is at this point in it. And the scales don’t actually equal in that because Willow becomes uncomfortably and unhealthily invested in that she starts to abuse Tara in such a way where she wants to make sure Tara pays the most attention to her. And magic has always been the best way for Willow to have “her will be done” well before Tara entered the picture of her life. And so, she knows it’s her bread and butter to getting her way.
Moving on, we now see Willow walking the halls of Sunnydale high school and Xander and Oz are in the dream. No Tara. Meaning this part of the dream is something passed in her life but still very present in her mind. Although this is of the past, the dialogue between all 3 characters is about Willow’s then-future. There is mention of Tara and of the drama class they will take in college. I interpret this to mean that Willow can’t entirely let go of what was to focus on what is or what will be. Hence why Oz is in the scene and why he says “Oh, I’ve been here forever” when Willow asks him if he’s ever took the drama course - at which point we see Willow trying to take something out of her locker but can’t seem to get it open. I interpret this to mean she’s locked out and cannot access that part of her life anymore despite still thinking about it, and specifically Oz, in it. You see, Oz may have followed Willow to college, but he never stayed. Their relationship was only one that existed in high school and Willow has regretfully moved on from Oz and entered a new relationship that exists in college and will last beyond that. She cannot access her high school life anymore. She cannot access Oz anymore. Thus, their love affair was tied to their high school life and Willow no longer goes there.
At this point we see Willow walk out of the frame, leaving Xander and Oz behind, to stand backstage of a production in their drama class - of which Willow has never even rehearsed for and hasn’t even had her first drama class yet. And the characters of Harmony, Riley and Buffy are dressed up in costume ready to perform the play and tell Willow that she’s late but she’s “already” dressed in “costume” and “already” in “character”. Giles then enters the scene as the stage director and his dialogue in rallying his actors to get ready to perform reveals that this play is all about Willow. In fact - she’s the main character in it (go figure) and everybody in the audience, including the cast, is there to watch her perform.
“Acting is not about behaving, it’s about hiding. The audience wants to find you, strip you naked, and eat you alive, so hide.” - Giles.
Next Willow goes behind the stage curtains (which are red to represent a vagina, apparently, according to Whedon in the commentary track for ‘Restless’) and finds Tara among them with her who tells her that things aren’t going very well. Willow says that drama class is not being done in the “proper” way, she doesn’t know what to do, and the play’s starting soon. Tara then tells her that the play’s already started and that’s not the point anyway. Willow doesn’t understand. As the play happens without Willow, Tara disappears, and what was following Willow attacks her.
Buffy saves her and we go back to Sunnydale high school. This time we’re in a classroom. It isn’t clear which class but it’s presumably English as Willow reads out a book report on ‘The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe’. Before she does that though, Buffy tells Willow that the play is long over and asks her why she’s still in “costume”. Willow responds that it’s not a costume, she’s just in her outfit of the day. Buffy tells her that everybody already knows about her and to take her “costume” off, to which Willow panics and refuses. Buffy rips her “costume” off of her to reveal her wearing the clothes she was wearing on the very first episode of the show. Now, Willow stands in front of a full classroom of her peers (both from high school, college, and the Scooby Gang) mocking her for her appearance and her reaction to being totally exposed to what she believes everybody perceives of her as the truth of who she really is. Still a shy loser. The dream sequence ends with what was following Willow and attacked her throughout; the first Slayer sucking out her soul and leaving the real Willow paralyzed in her sleeping state. Unable to escape from her personal Hell.
So what does it all mean? Well, it really all depends on the way you interpret her dream. Some things about Willow and what she thinks and feels are clear, some are not. But how I’ve interpreted her dream in ‘Restless’ is that Willow, despite appearing a much more confident, secure and assertive person, doesn’t have any belief in herself when it comes to her value and requirement of her from her peers, friends and lovers… Or everyone that’s not her. Her need for validation in who she is and what she can do from everyone. Her worthiness in her work. Her ability and capacity to love. Her appearance to whoever perceives her. Especially the ones she loves. And her insecurities run so deep in this that even she doesn’t recognize them. She’s not aware to how much she’s acting like someone she’s not in order to please, in order to have attention, in order to feel of use to people. Now, it is not that she is still the loser. She’s definetly evolved into a much more worldly and well-rounded person since her high school days. Stronger, smarter, wiser, and more confident. It’s just she doesn’t believe in it and she absolutely fears no one else does either. In her mind she’s still the lonely nerd and she’s doing the most to make sure people don’t see that. Even though she has the belief that they do and always will. So her need for power and control all stems from these deep unconscious insecurities. Magic just happens to be the most effective tool for her to accumulate this. And she only becomes addicted to it in Season 6 because she relies on it to make her special. Even though she’s special as she is - with or without magic - to which Tara does her damnedest to make her aware of and believe. And she’s about the only person in the show that achieves it - until, of course, her death… Which, of course, triggers Dark Willow.
Willow's need for power and control as Dark Willow is channelled through rage and pain and so no amount of it is enough. Willow isn’t enough without Tara. None of these fears, worries and insecurities are the truth of Willow. But getting her to believe in and trust in that is next to impossible. Tara is only capable of it because she’s the one thing in the show that Willow truly loves. Is truly committed to. Is truly invested in. And she feels like she means and is nothing without her, without her love, without her attention, without her validation, without her light. She abuses her the most because she’s the one person in all of the show that she covets the most. That she doesn’t want to be without, that she feels the safest and is the happiest with. That she won’t let leave her life. Yes, it’s unhealthy. But true love can be when there’s so much inner turmoil. When there’s such a storm inside threatening to be unleashed with every bad day. Every screw up. Every "spaz" feeling. That's what it stems from. A loser mentality.
That is Willow’s entire predicament throughout the whole show and why her character representation, development and evolution is the greatest, the most profound, the most detailed, the most poignant. This is a character that you absolutely fall in love with very early on. To see them go from that gentle-natured, quirky, inspiring and endearing person to one of the most abusive, frustrating, corruptive and destructive people is hard. Fortunately, they’re given the endgame they deserve and become the hero. They learn to balance both sides to who they are - the dark and the light - and they become exactly who they want to be. Someone of great power and control. Someone that is valued and loved. Someone that matters. Whether she believes it or not is up to you. 😉
The cheese thing is a recurring joke. In the episode where Buffy and Cordy battle for prom queen on the big board of thier competition one of the strengths of the girls was cheese. It comes up in Angel also.
I don’t think it is
Willow told Riley that Buffy likes cheese. I always wondered if that's because Buffy was turned into a rat in 'Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered'.
It's not cheese slices, it's slices of Chi; the essence they combined. Whedon's finest appalling pun.
When she says to the end there that she needs to have better hair care and think of what impression that might make in the work place "because".., it's an attack on people with deadlocks and probably on "black" people with dreads in particular as well (telling them to "get in line").
I have a different take on the cheese man than most. Joss has said he only represents the meaningless randomness of dreams, but Joss lies. I do think that's all he is within the world of the show, but in a meta way, he represents the show itself and its campy, cheesy humor.
Even in serious moments, the show "makes room" for humorous moments. Xander's role is often the comic relief, but as the cheese man warns, this won't protect him. But the show "wears" the cheese; the humor doesn't control the show. It serves to break up the serious and sometimes overly dramatic moments, and as the sight of the cheese man is the catalyst that breaks Buffy out of the dream, humor is a vital part of her ability to save the day.
I think you got slightly confused. Buffy didn't dream of making the bed with Faith, that was Faith's dream while she was in a coma. So how did Buffy know?
Sorry but I was cracking up when the first slayer kept jump scaring you!
I wear the cheese 🧀🧀🧀
I really enjoyed the season 4 finale 😊
The actress who plays joyce wanted to take time away from the show to spend time with her husband that's why she's not seen a lot in season 4
I think when your done with season 5 you should re watch this episode, it’ll ALL make more sense
bE bAcK bEfOrE dAwN
16:29
That's a spoiler.😉
@@obredaanps3just a hint I wanted her to wonder why I timed stamped it
Are you Jamie Tart's sister?
For your information.
Episode 21 was the actual season finale. This was more of a one off, lets go completely coo coo just for the fun of it, episode! Or is it just for fun? Noone knows... 😏
Btw... want some cheese?
@@Smido83 Dude, you know these reactors are like a season ahead on their Patreons, it even says so in the video description. If she hasn't figured out what I said above after watching season 5, then what i wrote isn't going to spoil anything.
@@jackmars931 Dude... you didnt only talk about season 5.
@@Smido83 I don't care.
@@jackmars931 Clearly you dont... morons never do
Dakara, did you ever get the After Show Reacts video to react to at the end of this season?
I got a Foriley video that I reacted to?
@@DakaraJayne that's the one!
In Willow's dream Buffy appears in the guise of 1930s actress Louise Brooks. She tended to portray women betrayed by their lovers and sometimes the wronged heroine would kill them. Sound familiar? Xander sees himself as an ordinary soldier facing battle after battle with no out. At one point we see him walking through what appears to be a boarded WWI trench as Kirk Douglas does in 'Paths of Glory.' The Paths of Glory lead only to the grave. Giles explains his own dream, he is very well read after all.
Cheese slices? No - slices of Chi, the spirit they combined to make super Buffy. A brilliantly appalling visual pun.
The cheese means nothing. It's entire purpose is to be weird and out of place.
Not nothing… it’s the key to understanding the whole concept of the episode.
That's exactly what the Cheese Man wants you to think, wake up sheeple!
The meaning of the cheeseman is twofold...
This episode would be meaningless without the cheese.
@@Itcouldbebunnies thank you! You get it (and a nice cheese platter awaits your nightmares)
Fun fact: The desert scenes were shot in Joshua tree national park, California. Joshua trees grow in only two places on earth. The other is in the middle east. The Koran states that these two places mark the gate into heaven and the gate to hell. Can you guess which is which?
Joshua trees only grow in the western US.
@@rfresa so it is. Mind virus detected.