Bargaining, Part Two

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"Bargaining (Part Two)" is the second episode of the sixth season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and is the one hundred second episode altogether. It was written by David Fury and directed by David Grossman. It originally broadcast on October 2, 2001.

The Scoobies try to regroup as the demon bikers ravage Sunnydale and Buffy tries to figure out where she is—and why.

Synopsis

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Spike: "Uh, oh, nothing, just, uh... looked like fun."

Xander carries a weakened Willow off toward the Magic Box, where Tara and Anya will meet them with Spike and Dawn. The Buffybot is in the possession of the demon bikers and getting beaten badly. Meanwhile, beneath the ground, the real Buffy desperately claws her way out of her coffin.

Xander stops on the way to the magic shop, and Willow breaks down into tears as she thinks her attempt to bring Buffy back failed. Tara and Anya pause on their way in time to hide from a few of Razor's followers and overhear their conversation about visiting some stores.

Spike prepares to leave the house with Dawn for a safer location. Buffy finally breaks out of her coffin and reaches the surface. Dressed in a black dress and pumps, Buffy roams the damaged streets of Sunnydale, confused by the mayhem occurring. Back at the Magic Box, Tara and Anya return to find that the store is still safe. Tara casts a spell to locate Willow and Xander. Xander questions Willow's directions back to the shop and the power of the spell she conducted. Tara's spell sends a small blue light to guide Willow and Xander back to the Magic Box.

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Buffybot: "Where did I go? I was here. Here. But then I ran away."

A disoriented Buffy bumps into a car, setting off the alarm and causing the owner to threaten her with a shotgun. Out in the streets, Spike knocks one of the demons off his moving bike with ease and takes it for him and Dawn to ride off on. The gang meets up at the shop to discuss their plans and how they're going to deal without Buffy, Spike, Giles, or a strong Willow. The real Buffy stumbles upon the demon bikers in the midst of celebration. Four demons on their bikes are chained to the limbs of the Buffybot and drive off in four different directions, destroying it.

The real Buffy draws attention to herself and is forced to run off, followed by the bikers. The Scooby Gang is armed and ready for battle, discussing the reasons for their failure when Buffy drops down from a fence in front of them. Willow recognizes her as the real Buffy, but scares her off.

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Buffy: "Is... this hell?"

The gang follows and Xander realizes to his horror that the spell brought Buffy back to life inside her coffin. Buffy is frightened and confused, but is motivated to beat the demons when Razor and his crew try to hurt her and her friends.

Dawn and Spike find the Buffybot's head and torso and while Spike looks for the rest of her, the robot hints that the real Buffy is back. Dawn takes off, leaving Spike to freak out when he doesn't know where she went. Buffy finishes off most of the demons before she runs off to Glory's tower, but Razor doesn't die. Willow, Tara, and Anya fight with Razor using various weapons and magic. As he is strangling Willow, Tara kills him with an axe. Dawn tracks Buffy to the tower and follows the Slayer as she heads to the top.

Buffy remembers what occurred the last time she was there until Dawn interrupts. Buffy questions if she's in hell and contemplates another jump. The tower starts to collapse as Dawn begs Buffy to come with her - she and the others need her. Buffy uses a rope and pulley to get partially to the ground. They fall the rest of the distance and Buffy cushions the fall and rolls them out of the way before the tower completely collapses. Safe, the girls hug, but Buffy's eyes don't reflect happiness.Template:Clear

Continuity

• Razor is Tara's first (and only) demon kill.

Body Count

• Buffybot, destroyed by four Hellions in bike
• Three hellions, killed by Buffy
• One hellion, killed by Willow
• One hellion, killed by Xander
• Razor, killed by Tara with an axe

Behind the Scenes

Production

• This episode is the first without Anthony Stewart Head as Giles.

Broadcast

• The 2-hour season premiere of "Bargaining, Parts One and Two" on UPN attracted 7.7 million viewers, the second highest viewership the show has ever received, only behind Season Two's "Innocence".

Pop Culture References

• Xander's worries that Buffy might eat their brains is a reference to zombie horror films such as The Return of the Living Dead series, in which the zombies eat their victims' brains.

• Xander also makes a reference to Peter Pan with this line:

"And how long have you known your girlfriend was Tinkerbell?"

Goofs, Bloopers & Continuity Errors

• It is possible to see multiple cameramen on the ground while Sarah Michelle Gellar is standing on top of the tower made by Glory.
• During the scene in the tower with Buffy and Dawn, a small microphone can be briefly seen above Dawn's head.

Quotes

Anya: "Already been looted! Sorry! Try the appliance store down the block! They've got great toasters!

Xander: "Oh, no."

Willow: "What?"

Xander: "No. How could we ... so stupid!"

Willow: "Xander!"

Xander: "Our spell. Our resurrection spell worked like a magic charm. We brought you back to life, Buffy. Right where we left her."

Willow: "Oh, God."

Xander: "In her coffin."

Xander: "Maybe they're on their way here. I mean, this place is NORAD when we're at DEFCON 1." (others give him odd looks) "Okay, I so need male friends."

Buffy: "Is this hell?"

Xander: "Demons. Ah, well, there's something you don't see every day. Unless you're us."

Razor: "I'd better back off or you might pull a rabbit out of a hat."

Anya: (anxiously) "Don't do that."