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Buffy found its true momentum during the second season, as geeky Xander (Nicholas Brendon) fell in love with popular girl Cordelia (Charisma Carpenter), Willow (Alyson Hannigan) gave up her crush on Xander in favor of werewolf boy Oz (Seth Green), and watcher Giles (Anthony Stewart Head) began a sweetly tentative relationship with computer teacher (and witch) Jenny Calendar (Robia LaMorte). Mayhem came to Sunnydale, though, in the form of evil vampires Drusilla (Juliet Landau) and Spike (drolly wicked James Marsters), who were more than ready to aid and abet Angel as he turned bad. It all sounds like horror-action mayhem (and there are great fight scenes), but Buffy took on its plotlines with amazing depth, intelligence, and humor. And oh, man, the love story! Buffy and Angel's tragic relationship is one of the most heartbreaking you'll ever find. Buffy's final dilemma finds her having to save the world at Angel's expense, and Gellar (who deserves a passel of Emmys for her work) is phenomenal at telegraphing Buffy's swirling conflicts between love and duty. This is some of the best TV ever made, period. --Mark Englehart
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The story arcs in the second season are brilliant. The romance between Angel and Buffy reached gothic heights with Surprise/Innocence (Surprise is astonishing). When Angel turns bad, David Boreanaz manages to do a sensational job of acting the transition (the episodes "Passion" and "I Only Have Eyes For You" are incredible in detailing this, and Buffy's reaction). Willow's romance with Oz is wonderful, and Giles attachment to Jenny Calendar a welcome addition.
This show still manages to be surprisingly funny (as seen in Halloween, and Bewitched Bothered and Bewildered) and packs a wallop (the two part season ender, Becoming I & II, are essential viewing for any Buffy fans. They are incredibly moving). Yes, there are some clunkers (Killed by Death, Bad Eggs), but they are more than redeemed.
My favourites are: Becoming I & II, Surprise/Innocence, I Only Have Eyes for You, Passion, School Hard, When She Was Bad, and Lie To Me
For a show set in high school, the writers have neatly side-stepped making a caricature of Anthony Stewart Head's librarian/Watcher Giles. His befuddled sexiness is immensely appealing. Alyson Hannigan's performance as wallflower Willow blooming into a witch (her growing powers are smartly charted by writers all the way through season six) is strong, and having the animosity between Xander and Cordelia boil over into lust was a masterstroke. Finally, we have to give the star her due. Sarah Michelle Gellar proved with this season that she's actually a capable actress, both with comic timing (Halloween) and pathos (Surprise/Innocence).
The second season was an immense improvement over the first season (a solid debut) and the quality continues. In my mind, the second and third season need to be bought together (or at least both bought). Story arcs introduced in the second season are wrapped up in the third season. Buy this set, you won't be disappointed.
Love continues to be a very painful thing for the Scooby Gang, as Cordelia ("Some Assembly Required"), Xander ("Inca Mummy Girl") and Joyce ("Ted"), find out. Then again, prospects look much better for Willow ("Phases"), although we never really do take the Cordelia-Xander romance ("Go Fish") to be anything more than a cosmic joke, which does offer up the delightfully twisted "Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered" as the exception that proves the rule (footnote: Buffy spends most of the episode as the Buffy rat because Sarah Michelle Gellar was hosting SNL that week). Of the off-arc stories, "Halloween" and "Ted" are clearly the best of the bunch. But when it comes to romance, Buffy and Angel are truly on the road to hell paved with the best of intentions.
It is clear in the season premier episode, "When She Was Bad," that things are different. When Buffy dances seductively with Xander, taunting him with her sexuality, the ante has been upped considerably. The pivotal point in the season comes with episode 13 (of 22), "Surprise," when Buffy unknowingly undoes Angel's curse on the night of her 17th birthday by making love to him. Why the gypsies put in the Faustian (in the Goethe sense) escape clause via the moment of true happiness and contentment is debatable, but the galvanizing effect on the show is truly impressive. When Angelus brutally slays Jenny Calendar in "Passion," leaving her body in a grotesque display for Giles to discover in his bed (while opera music soars in the background), it is the symbolic Hellmouth of the show opening up. The audience is shocked into realizing how bad things can get, only the worst is yet to come. Giles's anger buys him one shot at Angelus, but Buffy has to rescue him. They turn on each other in anger, and Buffy actually slugs him to the ground before they collapse weeping in each other's arms. Buffy tells him, "I can't do this alone," but this proves to be most ironically incorrect.
Clearly Whedon constructs each season around two half-season story arcs. The first half of Season 2 heralds the arrival of Spike and Dru, and the quick departure of "The Annoying One." Of course now we look back and are amazed at what James Marsters has done with the role of Spike, but at this point it is Juliet Landau's ditzy psychotic vampire who provides the flair of the dark side. Whedon brings the first half to a climax in "What's My Line?," the show's first two-parter, where we are introduced to Kendra the Vampire Slayer. It seems Buffy's brief moment of death at the hands of the Master in "Prophecy Girl" has some long reaching implications we only begin to appreciate at this point. But with the return of Angelus everything changes. Spike and Drusilla are trying to reassemble the Judge, a grotesque who cannot be killed "by any weapon forged." Then everybody learns the truth about not only Angel's transformation but also Jenny's betrayal. Thus begins the deadly game of cat and mouse between Angel and his former allies, which culminates in the two parts of "Becoming."
Both parts of "Becoming" are written and directed by Whedon, and represent the apex of his work on the series. When Angeleus opens the portal to Hell, only his blood can close it, but things are not going to be that easy for Buffy. The dramatic culmination contains the best fight sequence (with swords) in a show that prides itself on innovative staging of its fights, and is an ultimately emotionally shattering experience captured beautifully by Sarah Michelle Gellar's slow dissolve into tears while the haunting Sarah McLachlan song "Full of Grace" is played. Joss Whedon had set this moment up from the first episode of the series. It is a payoff usually reserved for the final episode of a series and not simply the end of the second season. "Becoming" is truly an astounding accomplishment in the history of dramatic television and when you watch the entire second season again you can appreciate how brilliantly this shattering conclusion is set up.
The original theatrical film was a teaser, the first season on television was an appetizer, but the second season of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" was epic and once you see this, whether again or for the first time, you are not going to want to stop here. It is especially nice to see that the extras have gone up a couple of notches for the Season 2 DVD collection which is clearly priced to be accessible to BtVS's loyal fans. Yes, we all appreciated having the entire first season, just like our Buffy brethren across the sea, but certainly we expected more goodies from Whedon and crew, especially given the high quality of "The Watchers Guide," the show's official companion volumes. Clearly there is a lot of thought put into this show, which means any and all insights and looks behind the curtain are greatly appreciated.
Season 2 was "Buffy"'s first full-length run of 22 episodes, up from 12 the previous spring. David Boreanaz (Angel) joined the cast full-time, and in his first episode, "When She Was Bad", it's clear that his feelings for Buffy have not gone away during the season hiatus. The romantic tension between the leads is intense in the season premiere, with Buffy challenging Angel to a fight (which would come back to be very important later), and Xander and Willow nearly kissing.
"School Hard" introduced the season's recurring villains, Spike and Drusilla, the "Sid and Nancy" of the vampire world. Spike hunts down Buffy through dark school characters, and Principal Snyder drops the first hint of the dark Sunnydale conspiracy of silence.
"Inca Mummy Girl" and "Reptile Boy" are two fun monster shows. David Greenwalt, later the driving force behind the "Angel" show, will give audio commentary to the latter story, and this is anticipated to provide a great glimpse of how he's influenced both shows.
"Halloween", "Lie To Me", and "The Dark Age" explore the characters of Giles, Angel, Spike and Drusilla much more thoroughly, each showing scary glimpses of their dark pasts. The first of these stories introduces the recurring warlock Ethan Rayne, an old "friend" of Giles. The second features Jason Behr, who appeared in every WB teen series ever.
"What's My Line?", a two-parter, here with audio commentary by executive producer Marti Noxon (another huge cog in the "Buffy" wheel), introduces the notion of the "second slayer", sends the Buffy/Angel romance to a new level -- and features a surprising coupling between two other regulars. It's the first of the season's three two-parters, and you'll be impressed to know that this is the weakest of the three.
"Ted" is notable for Special Guest Star John Ritter. At the time, this bit of casting was seen as a triumph for the show, just getting attention in the national media. He's a great psychopath, Jack Tripper-style.
"Surprise"/"Innocence" is the next two-parter, presented with Joss Whedons commentary. "Innocense" moved "Buffy" from Monday nights to Tuesday, getting out of the "Seventh Heaven" shadow and anchoring its own night on the WB. Buffy and Angel have their moment of true happiness; Xander and Cordelia give Willow a moment of true unhappiness, and suddenly Spike and Drusilla are no longer the only villains. These two hours are among "Buffy"'s greatest achievement.
"Phases" is a funny werewolf show, moving Seth Green's popular Oz into the inner-circle Scooby Gang. "Bewitched, Bothered and Wildered" is Xander's comic Valentine's Day nightmare, with another appearance by Amy the teen witch.
"Passion" revels again in "Buffy"'s ability to kill off regular characters. Many BtVS fans name this their favorite episode of all time.
The season ends with a final two-parter, "Becoming", and when part two aired, the four-month hiatus until Season 3 began, became unbearable. These two hours show, via flashback, the origins of Drusilla, Angel, and Buffy. The Buffy/Angel "forbidden romance of all time" comes to a shocking conclusion, and Spike comes to a sudden decision about his loyalties. Pay special attention to his fight with Buffy at the beginning of Part Two. Five years gone by, he's still with us.
The final episode changes every basic premise of the show, and if you haven't seen it before, you'll be left stunned. Indeed there's barely a rotten episode in the bunch, with only a couple of the 22 hours you won't watch more than once. With a sixth disc full of production featurettes, and hours of commentary from the production time -- and at an extremely reasonable price for a 6-disc set -- this is the must-buy DVD set of the year.
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