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Season 5, Episode 10
Written by Marti Noxon
Directed by Marti Noxon
Original Airdate: 18 December 2000
In Memory of D.C. Gustafson
"You make me feel like I've never felt before
in my life. Like a man. I just thought you might wanna know."
Xander
REGULAR CAST
GUEST CAST
CO-STARRING
SYNOPSIS
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At the hospital, the Scooby Gang awaits news from
the doctor about Joyce's surgery and they are all relieved when the
surgery is a success. Dawn spends the night with Xander and Anya. With
the house to themselves, Buffy and Riley spend a romantic evening
together. In the middle of the night, Riley sneaks out of the house.
Spike, who has been standing outside the house, secretly follows Riley
to an old building.
Buffy spends the day with her mother in the hospital discussing Joyce's
wig options and Buffy's relationship with Riley. Spike wakes Buffy from
sleep that night to show her what Riley has been doing. Buffy is shocked
to find him in the arms of a female vampire, being fed upon. Graham has
persuaded his commanding officer to seek Riley's help in destroying
demons for the government. They offer Riley a place on their team.
Buffy and the gang go after the nest of vampires only to find the
building empty. Buffy sets the building on fire, leaving her friends in
the dark about what's truly bothering her. Riley is furious that Spike
allowed Buffy to see the truth and after throwing the vampire around a
bit, he stakes him. Fortunately for Spike, the stake is plastic. Spike
and Riley talk and find that they both love her, but she doesn't return
the feeling to either of them.
Buffy releases her aggressions on a punching bag in the training room
until Riley shows up determined to talk to her. He tells her he started
it because he wanted to know what Buffy felt when she was bitten. Riley
tells her that the vampires needed him and Buffy didn't. After Buffy
tries to convince him that she's given him everything she has, Riley
tells her about the offer to return to the government. He is going to
leave unless she can give him a reason to stay.
The vampires from the nest surround Buffy as she's leaving the shop. She
stakes every single one of them. Xander witnesses this and confronts
Buffy, not willing to let her hide from her problems. He shows her the
truth that she's been ignoring, and tells her that she has to decide if
she's really willing to lose Riley for good. She runs as fast as she
can, but Buffy is unable to get to the airport fast enough to stop Riley
from leaving. The helicopter takes off with Buffy on the landing pad,
calling after Riley.
After his talk with Buffy, Xander realizes that he needs to tell Anya
how much he loves her and he does. Still shocked, Buffy returns home
while Riley leaves Sunnydale, not looking back.
TRIVIA
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Marc Blucas left Buffy the Vampire Slayer
in this episode, but appeared again in
As You Were for one episode. Bailey Chase also plays Graham Miller
for the final time in this episode.
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Marti Noxon, who wrote and directed this episode,
said about Riley's departure, "Sunnydale romance just rarely goes well.
Buffy with a boyfriend is not as interesting as Buffy in some kind of
romantic strife. Riley, by his nature, was such a good and constant
character that we were at risk of things getting a little dull."
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The "In Memory of D.C. Gustafson" at the end of
the episode refers to Gustav Gustafson, who was the Leadman for the show
during seasons one and two. Gustav was apparently a close friend of
Sarah Michelle Gellar, and died in November 2000 at age 41 after
fighting cancer and AIDS.
CONTINUITY
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Giles mentions his 'Ripper days' which we learned
about in The Dark Age.
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Riley uses Buffy's encounter with Dracula as an
excuse for letting the vampire's feed on him. Dracula appeared in
Buffy Vs.
Dracula.
GOOFS
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After Spike is 'staked' by Riley, we can
see that there's no hole in his shirt.
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At one point in his scene with Riley, Spike
reaches for his wine bottle and starts to open it. The camera cuts away
and in the next shot of Spike, he has his hand on his chest and then
starts to open the bottle.
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Riley didn't tell Buffy what time he'd be
leaving (he just said "tonight"), yet she tells Xander he's leaving at
midnight. She also knew where he was leaving from, though Riley never
gave her this information.
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When Buffy is angrily punching the bag, the
tape around her right hand disappears when Riley walks in.
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We saw Riley getting bitten by a vampire on
his neck in Shadow, but he has no
mark there in this episode. Buffy would have seen this when they were
making love in this episode.
Buffy Vs.
Dracula | Real Me |
The Replacement |
Out of My Mind |
No Place Like
Home
Family |
Fool for Love |
Shadow | Listening to Fear |
Into the Woods | Triangle
Checkpoint
| Blood Ties |
Crush | I Was Made to Love You |
The Body |
Forever
Intervention
| Tough Love |
Spiral | The Weight of the World |
The Gift
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