Ted

Buffy Episode Review

In which Mrs. Summers has crap taste in men.

What Happened

Joyce starts dating again, thus proving that the Summers women have the worst luck when it comes to relationships. Buffy discovers that her mom's new love, despite his killer chocolate chip cookies, is a psychotic robot.

The Good

• "How is Angel?" Xander asks. "Pretend I care." Ha.
• "Vampires are creeps." "Yes, that is why one slays them." Buffy venting to Giles, and later on to Angel.
• "Freud would have said the same thing ...except that he might not have done the little dance." Buffy remains convinced something is wrong, despite skepticism from her friends. And I suppose I have to excuse their cluelessness as a mix of real issues (child-of-divorce) and drugged cookies.
• "You make me feel bad that I don't feel better. I don't want that kind of responsibility." Jenny is a much better character when she's allowed to extend past the uber-perk.
• "Right is right." Okay, he's all kinds of creepy. Are you sure this is John Ritter?
• Buffy, at least for a little while, deals with the repercussions of a real fight and a real death of a real person, rather than vampires who just go "poof." The scenes between her and the cop and her and Joyce are so good.
• "You are the best human ever. I adore you. That's the cookies talking, but you rock." Xander to Willow; the hopeful look on her face is so... then, Cordelia walks in.
• "That's right, little lady. You killed me. Do we have anything to say about that?" Ted's return. Good for Joyce for putting Buffy first and then for realizing that something's not right.

The Bad

• I thought we'd have to go through the part where Joyce falls back under Ted's spell, but then she remembered she had a spine...
• The slap-stick with Giles and Jenny grated. I always had my issues with him being just that helpless.

The Cliche

• "This is Ted." This is John Ritter; even before this episode I would have said that anyone who makes such a show of being harmless cannot be trusted.
• Robots are evil. Men are evil. Robot-Men are evil.
• Bluebeard's Closet issues: guys who just wants docile little wife. Like, there have to be easier ways of doing this than transforming yourself into a machine and baking drugged cookies for your date.

Best Lines

Buffy, walking in on Giles and Jenny kissing in the library: "I give up. Do I have to sound an air-horn before I walk into a room? What is it with grown-ups these days?"

What Did I Think?

Consistent use of the real (a child's fear of a parent remarrying) and the fantastic (creepy killer robots), with a seriously cool performance from John Ritter as Ted.