Reviewed By: Monica Medina
Rating: 8/10
This episode begins with the Mayor giving Faith an incredibly huge knife (just what a Slayer-turned-Psycho needs). In return, Faith must go pick up a “very important” package from the airport. The package contains ingredients that are important to the Mayor’s Ascension. With high hopes of still attending an out-of-state college (the Buffster got accepted to Northwestern!), Buffy decides to go on the offensive and stop the Mayor's Ascension. She stakes out City Hall and learns that the package is actually the Box of Gavrok. The Box contains creatures the Mayor must devour before his Ascension. With this information and some trusty blueprints, the Scoobs devise a plan to break into City Hall to steal the box. Thanks to Wesley, the Scoobs figure out the box may have some magical protection. Willow goes along on the retrieval effort to provide magical help.
While the gang manages to steal the Box of Gavrok, they also manage to lose Willow in the process. Why Willow was left alone is still unclear to me. But now the Mayor and Faith have a hostage. Back at Scooby Central (aka the library), the gang fights over whether or not to turn over the Box for Willow. It’s mainly Wesley who wants to think of an alternative to giving up the Box. Everyone else thinks Willow’s life is more important. Oz makes the decision for everyone by smashing a big ceramic pot with herbs and toads and stuff that was going to be used to destroy the Box. Back over at City Hall, Willow manages to do a cool floaty trick with a pencil and dusts the vampire guarding her (Hasn’t the Mayor seen any movies to know you never leave some unknown guy to watch over your hostage? They always get away…). But instead of leaving, Willow spies the Books of Ascension and sits down for a cozy read. Of course, this is when Faith decides to check on Willow, and an awesome verbal battle ensues, with Willow getting in some choice comments about Faith’s stupidity (okay that’s the way I see it). Just when it looks like Faith’s hostile side is going take over and kick Willow’s butt, the Mayor returns and informs them of an interesting telephone conversation. An exchange will be made with the Scoobies– the Box for Willow.
So the Mayor and Faith, along with their vampy group, bring Willow to the school afterhours to make the trade. Of course, the Mayor can’t just take his darn Box and leave. No, he has to mess with Buffy’s and Angel’s head, reminding them of the impossibility of a happy future together – after all he is a vampire and she is the Slayer (just in case you forgot). Just when it looks like the Mayor is finally going to leave, in walks Snyder with several police officers ready to break up what he is sure is a drug bust. He gets a little snively and whiney when he spots the Mayor. Then the expected happens, one of the cops lets out several of the inhabitants of the Box. Faith and Buffy are left to dispense of the nasty creatures, and in the process, Faith leaves her new gift, the knife, behind. Next day dawns with the gang having Willow back, having more knowledge about the Ascension from Willow’s little reading break (she actually managed to steal a few pages of the book), and Buffy and Angel trying to deny to themselves that the Mayor’s words actually made sense.
It seems that plans for the future are the order of the day in this episode, as the Scoobies review their options – Buffy could maybe have a real life by leaving Sunnydale, Willow has several colleges to choose from, including Oxford (Go Willow!), and Xander has decided to take a summer road trip. But by the end of the episode, we realize that Buffy ever leaving her role as the Slayer is just a dream. There is also intense focus on Buffy’s and Angel’s relationship, and their refusal to accept the futility of them being together. Obviously, at this point, we are being set up for their imminent break-up.
There were some terrific moments in this episode, especially the scene between Willow and Faith. Finally, Willow gets to tell the rogue slayer just what she thinks of her bitching and whining. “It didn’t have to be this way. But you made your choice.” Willow says to Faith. I think Willow calling Faith a "selfish, worthless waste" was a little low of her, and Faith is clearly hurt by this. Maybe just maybe, Faith is finally realizing how far she’s sunk. Course, she then punches Willow, so maybe not. But I do think that Faith is starting to question her choices, with is evident in her last look back at the Scoobies in the school.
Everyone made mistakes in this episode. Buffy should have exercised more caution before going off half-cocked and without a backup plan. And again, why was Willow alone? She put herself in some many dangerous situations, and I just wanted to shake her! Oz literally ruined any chance of them destroying that Box by shattering the pot, though I love him for it. And why was Giles so ambivalent about the whole thing to begin with? The only person exercising any common sense was Wesley, yes Wesley, when he tried to point out that there must be a better way to get Willow back without giving back such a powerful weapon to the Mayor. If they’d just destroyed the Box, maybe there wouldn’t have been an Ascension. I mean, how easy is it to replace those creatures? FedEx probably wouldn’t deliver those things, at least not with a guarantee.
Great Buffy Moment: I’ve got two for you: Willow dropping a bombshell of her own – Willow tells Buffy she’s staying in Sunnydale to keep fighting evil. Buffy giving Willow that tackle-style hug at the end was great. AND Seeing Cordelia as a working woman now. Cordelia eyeing that pretty formal dress made me actually feel sorry for her, which hasn’t happened since "The Wish".
In A Nutshell: Overall, I think we are supposed to focus on the characters mistakes, and they work well to provide us an interesting story. The writers are preparing us for what’s to come – Buffy and Angel breaking up, the Ascension, and the ultimate battle between Faith and Buffy. Definitely a great episode.