Season 6, Episode 18

Written by Drew Z. Greenberg

Directed by James A. Contner

Original Airdate: 29 April 2002

"Can we just skip it? Can you just be kissing me now?"

Tara

REGULAR CAST

• Sarah Michelle Gellar as Buffy Summers

• Nicholas Brendon as Xander Harris

• Emma Caulfield as Anyanka

• Michelle Trachtenberg as Dawn Summers

• James Marsters as Spike

• Alyson Hannigan as Willow Rosenberg

GUEST CAST

• Danny Strong as Jonathan Levinson

• Adam Busch as Warren Mears

• Tom Lenk as Andrew Wells

• Kali Rocha as Halfrek

• Amber Benson as Tara Maclay

CO-STARRING

• Edie Caggiano as Mother

SYNOPSIS

• The Trio chase after some vampires on ATVs, but when a collision occurs, the vampires are given an opportunity to escape. Buffy shows up and attacks the vampires, forcing a disk one was holding to be thrown out of the way. Secretly, Warren snatches it and the Trio escape, unseen by the Slayer. Buffy takes on two of the vampires, but receives some help as Spike shows up and holds one of the vampires out of the way while he starts up a conversation. He raises the issue of Buffy telling her friends about them, but she's not interested in sharing. Xander mopes alone at his apartment but eventually can't stand it anymore and leaves. As he walks away, Anya watches him from behind some bushes.
  
  Willow waits for Tara outside of her classroom and the two talk and plan a coffee date. Buffy and Dawn shop together, but have a difficult time as Dawn has a shoplifting record at most of the stores. They chat about all of the things Dawn stole and how they're working to remedy the whole problem. Jonathan works on a project involving the disk they stole as Warren watches over, eager for it to be complete. While Jonathan finishes his work alone, Warren and Andrew talk about their inability to trust Jonathan and how soon it will be before they won't need him anymore.
  
  Xander finds Anya at his apartment and tries to apologize for his wrongful behaviour. There is a glimmer of hope for them until Xander says the wrong thing and Anya questions whether he still wants to marry her. He admits to loving her dearly and wanting to be back with her, but he's still too afraid of himself to marry her. With her back turned to Xander, she reveals her vengeance demon face and begins to wish him physical harm. Her attempts to grant her own wish are unsuccessful and upset that her powers didn't work, she leaves. The next day, Anyanka has coffee with Halfrek and the two demons talk about Anyanka's attempts at vengeance. Halfrek informs her she can't grant her own wishes and must get someone else to wish Xander harm.
  
  At the Summers house, Buffy makes breakfast in the form of pancakes for Dawn. Dawn realizes she's trying too hard to make up for what happened when she was crazy and eventually Buffy catches on to that reality too. Dawn proposes the idea of joining Buffy on patrol so the two can spend some time together, but Buffy isn't remotely interested in that. On their coffee date, Willow fills Tara in on all of the supernatural activates that Tara has missed over the past months.
  
  Anyanka interrupts them and wants to talk about her pain and how Xander caused it. She also talks with Buffy and Dawn and attempts to get them each to wish something horrible on Xander, but none of them fall for her tricks. While talking with Buffy, Xander shows up at the house and Anyanka leaves in a huff. Buffy talks him out of following after Anyanka and Xander takes his aggressions out on a lawn gnome on Buffy's front lawn. When Buffy doesn't recognize the decoration as something she put there, Xander checks it out and discovers it has a small camera in it filming Buffy's house.
  
  Buffy presents the small camera to Spike and questions whether he had anything to do with it being on her lawn, and he's offended that she would even accuse him of such a thing. He reminds her that he loves her and doesn't hurt her and then tries to convince her that what exists between them is real. Buffy knows it is, but only for him. At the Magic Box, Anyanka and Halfrek continue to talk about getting vengeance on Xander. Anyanka realizes she needs to find someone who hates Xander to make the wish and fortunately, Spike walks into the shop at that moment. He's looking for something to ease his pain and instead of something magical, she offers him a bottle of alcohol.
  
  Willow works at Buffy's house on her computer to try and trace the camera found in the gnome. Jonathan finally completes his work with the disk and performs a ritual that highlights a spot on a Sunnydale map. They are happy to have located their target, but suddenly the map catches on fire and has to be put out, dampening the excitement. Meanwhile, Anyanka and Spike are working their way through the Jack Daniels and complain to each other about their respective relationship problems. Spike sympathizes with her over the way Xander treated her and Anyanka tries to use that to her advantage. Unfortunately, Spike doesn't actually make a wish.
  
  Anyanka and Spike continue to drink and rant about their struggles with love. Willow finally taps into the source of the camera and discovers that there are cameras all over town at all of the Scooby Gang's hangouts and places of work. At the Magic Box, Spike compliments Anyanka and the two start to see a common tie between them. While Willow continues to search for all of the cameras, Spike and Anyanka search for comfort in each other's arms. She feels guilty about what happened with Xander and Spike consoles her, which leads to something much more. The two kiss and undress as Andrew realizes someone has tapped into their video feeds. Willow stumbles upon the Magic Box feed as Spike and Anyanka are having sex on a table.
  
  Warren directs Andrew to shut down the videos, but they are suddenly distracted by the action on the Magic Box camera. Back at the Summers house, Buffy, Dawn and Xander also see the computer screen and what's going on at the shop. Xander is infuriated while Buffy is hurt and goes outside. Dawn follows Buffy and finds out the truth about Buffy and her relationship with Spike. Their bonding moment is cut short as Willow informs them both that Xander is gone and he left with an axe. Spike and Anyanka get dressed and both act awkwardly and embarrassed about their impulsive behaviour. Spike leaves the shop, but doesn't get far as Xander attacks him outside.
  
  Just before Xander can stake Spike, Anyanka comes outside and tries to stop Xander and manages to distract him long enough for Buffy to knock him out of the way. Xander and Anyanka yell at each other angrily about each other's rights to vengeance and moving on with their lives. Xander is disgusted she would even touch Spike and Spike quietly comments that he was good enough for Buffy. Xander and Anyanka put the pieces together and realize the truth about Buffy and Spike. It is all too much for Xander to handle and he storms off. Buffy also walks off mad at Spike and as she leaves he starts to make a wish to Anyanka, but she stops him and they part ways. Tara goes to Willow in her bedroom and gives a speech about all they have to do to rebuild their relationship. She's willing to move past that and get on with the kissing.

TRIVIA

• Marti Noxon talked about this episode in SFX: "The Spike-Anya thing really worked. Those two characters have a real chemistry together and it's fun to say, 'Oh, that works.' Also we were just trying to put the knife in a little bit deeper." The pair had a chemistry in season four's Where the Wild Things Are. Fan speculation was rife that the two would get together then.

• Entropy is the second law of thermodynamics. It basically means that the more you try to put things together, the more they fall apart.

CONTINUITY

• When Anyanka is trying to get revenge on Xander, she says that she wishes he had "tentacles where your beady eyes should be!" In Once More, With Feeling she stated that she thought he had beady eyes in more than one song.

• Willow's dress from Once More, With Feeling can be seen hanging in her room.

• Xander's former feelings for Buffy come out again in this episode. This hasn't been mentioned since season two.

• While catching up, Willow tells Tara about the penis-shaped demon from Doublemeat Palace, the invisible-Buffy from Gone and the eggs in As You Were, which were the only episodes where Tara did not appear so far this season.

GOOFS

• The length and height of Anya's curls changes throughout this episode.

Bargaining (Part 1) | Bargaining (Part 2) | Afterlife | Flooded | Life Serial

All the Way | Once More, With Feeling | Tabula Rasa | Smashed | Wrecked | Gone

Doublemeat Palace | Dead Things | Older and Far Away | As You Were | Hell's Bells | Normal Again

Entropy | Seeing Red | Villains | Two to Go | Grave