Bwah! "Get your hands off of her." "But she's evil!" All of Xander's romantic relationships, summed up in that exchange.

I've been kibitzing the W&P while watching Nip/Tuck and I'm like, how can Buffy be over already, I'm still watching N/T? Then I remembered, no commercials.

But the living eyes of the trophy? Even creepier.

Except for how awfully fake it looked.

How did she get in there, exactly?

Every time there's a shot in Buffy's room, I look for Mr. Gordo.

I think I've done the Buffy perky at 2am , for no good reason.

Every time there's a shot in Buffy's room, I look for Mr. Gordo.

Awww.

Shallow fashion note: I loathed Buffy's hair in that last scene.

But I did love the exchange between her and Joyce.

xander-shaped friend

ha - one of the barbies is wearing gogo boots

I love the way, even so early on, all roads lead to Innocence, and to Becoming.

Here, she's still trying for a "normal" life outside of slayerdom -- and learning that slayerdom is going to involve a lot more than vampires. Later we'll see the girl she was in L.A., before she was called -- and she's in no way that girl here. Witness her early assessment of Cordelia, her taking to Willow and Xander. One layer of innocence has already been stripped away -- or, alternately, one layer of wisdom has been gained.

Innocence strips away another layer, and Becoming leaves her with the truth -- what's left is her, her choices, her strength.

Even here, when she tells Joyce that she loves her, when she seems grateful that Joyce has her own life, and understands (in a vague, non-understanding but natural way) that Buffy is still discovering hers, she's realizing that she is "becoming" Buffy.

I did aerobics to the cheerleading music