Killed by Death

Buffy Episode Review

In which there may be frogs.

What Happened

Stricken with the flu, Buffy winds up in the hospital, where she begins to suspect that a malevolent force is killing children.

The Good

• "She's sick. Make it better." While Willow and the others come up with stories for Buffy's state, Xander gets down to basics.
• Okay. I jumped the first time the soundtrack crashed. And the whole hospital set reminded me of a dimly remembered Twilight Zone.

The Bad

• Buffy swallowing the virus. Dumb. Dumb. In so many ways.
• Why is there an unlocked door marked Basement Access in the Children's Ward? And nobody watching to make sure they don't wander down there? And Ryan is going to need serious therapy.

The Cliche

• Buffy should know better than to follow creepy little kids down dimly lit hallways.
• Cordelia and Xander's argument. Boring. And pointless. And the guard is just a red herring, so why waste all this time talking to him?
• Of course it killed Celia. It's not enough that random kids are dying; Buffy's cousin has to have been one of the victims.

Best Lines

Giles: "Cordelia. Have you ever actually heard of tact?"
Cordelia: "Tact is just not saying true stuff. I'll pass."

Willow: "I'm good at medical stuff, since Xander and I used to play doctor all the time."
Xander:
"No, she's being literal.She used to have all these medical volumes, and diagnosed me with stuff. I didn't have the heart to tell her she was playing it wrong."

Cordelia: "What does this one do?"
Giles: "It asks endless questions of those with whom it is supposed to be working so that nothing ever gets done."
Cordi: "Wow. There's a demon for everything." They are so good together.

What Did I Think?

"No more frogs." Cute character moments in the service of a horribly pedestrian story.