Buffyverse Wiki
Register
Advertisement
Buffyverse Wiki

"Entropy" is the eighteenth episode of the sixth season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the 118th episode in the series. Written by Drew Z. Greenberg and directed by James A. Contner, it was originally broadcast on April 30, 2002, on the UPN network.

Synopsis[]

Still smarting from being jilted at the altar by Xander, Anya seeks advice from Halfrek; Buffy tries to bond with Dawn while avoiding Spike; Andrew, Jonathan and Warren experiment with a talisman; Willow asks Tara out for coffee.[1]

Summary[]

At Sunnydale Cemetery, the Trio chase after some vampires on ATVs, but they crash into each other, giving the vamps a chance to escape. Buffy shows up and attacks the vampires, forcing one to drop a disk it was holding. Warren snatches it and the Trio escapes, unseen by the Slayer. Buffy takes on two of the vampires, but receives some help when Spike shows up. He 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 denies it and acts indifferent to his threat of telling them himself.

Xander mopes alone at his apartment and eventually leaves. As he walks away, Anya watches him from behind some bushes.

The next day, in UC Sunnydale, Willow waits for Tara outside of her classroom; 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 can work to remedy the problem.

Elsewhere, Jonathan works on a project involving the disk they stole as Warren watches over it, eager for the project to be completed. While Jonathan finishes his work alone, Warren and Andrew talk about their inability to trust Jonathan and how it'll be soon before they wouldn't need him anymore.

That evening, Xander comes home from work and finds Anya at his apartment. Xander tries to apologize for walking away from their wedding. He tries explaining his feelings about wanting to stop the wedding before it happened. Taken aback, Anya asks Xander what he meant. Xander tries to change the subject until Anya cuts him off by asking if he still wants to marry her. Xander admits to loving her dearly and wanting to be back with her, but says that he's still too afraid of himself to marry her. With her back turned to Xander, she reveals her vengeance demon face and wishes him physical harm. Frustrated that her attempts to grant her own wish were unsuccessful, she leaves. The next day, Anya has coffee with Halfrek, and the two talk about Anya's attempts at vengeance. Halfrek informs Anya that she couldn't grant her own wishes, and that she has to get someone else to wish Xander harm.

At the Summers house, Buffy makes pancakes for Dawn. Dawn realizes that Buffy's trying too hard to make up for what happened when she was crazy. She proposes the idea of joining Buffy on patrol so the two could spend some time together, but Buffy doesn't allow this.

On their coffee date, Willow fills Tara in on all of the supernatural activities that she has missed over the past months. Anya interrupts them and wants to talk about her pain and how Xander caused it. She also talks to Dawn and Buffy in attempt to get one of them to wish something horrible on Xander, but none of them go along with it. While talking with Buffy, Xander shows up at the house, and Anya leaves in a huff. Buffy talks him out of going after Anya and he takes his aggression out on a lawn gnome. When Buffy doesn't recognize the decoration as something she put there, Xander checks it out and discovers it had a small camera inside.

Buffy goes to Spike in his crypt and presents him the small camera, asking whether he had anything to do with it being on her lawn. He's offended that she would even accuse him of such a thing. Buffy reminds him that it's not like he hadn't done anything like this in the past, but Spike tells her he doesn't want to hurt her since she fell in love with her, which Buffy acknowledges. He then tries to convince her that what existed between them was real. Buffy knew it was, but only for him. She tries to convince Spike to forget about everything that happened between them and opines that he should move on, but he interrupts Buffy telling her to get out.

At the Magic Box, Anya and Halfrek continue to talk about getting vengeance on Xander. Anya realizes that she needs to find someone who hates Xander to make the wish. Spike walks into the shop, looking for some spell to ease his pain. As Halfrek leaves, Anya offers Spike a bottle of whiskey.

Willow works on her computer to try and trace the camera found in the gnome. At the same time, Jonathan finally completes his work with the disk and performs a ritual that highlights a spot on a Sunnydale map. The Trio's happy to locate the target, but the map abruptly catches on fire. Meanwhile, Anya and Spike are drinking together and complaining about their respective relationship problems. Spike sympathizes with her over the way Xander treated her, so Anya tries to use that to her advantage, but Spike doesn't actually make a wish.

Willow finally taps into the source of the camera and discovered that there are cameras all over town in most of the Scooby Gang's hangouts. The gang realizes the Trio were responsible, which galvanizes Buffy.

At the Magic Box, Spike compliments Anya, and the two start to see a common tie between them. She feels guilty about what happened with Xander, and Spike consoles her. The two kiss and undress. Andrew realizes someone's tapped into their video feeds. Willow stumbles upon the Magic Box feed, just as Spike and Anya are having sex on a table.

Warren directs Andrew to shut down the videos, but they're 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's infuriated, while Buffy's hurt and goes outside. Dawn follows Buffy and finds out the truth about Buffy and her relationship with Spike. Willow then informs them that Xander is gone and left with an axe.

Spike and Anya get dressed silently. Spike leaves the shop and Xander attacks him just outside. Goading him to fight back, Spike reminds him that it is not possible due to the chip. Xander proceeds to further thrash the vampire. Just before he can stake Spike, Anya comes outside and tries to stop Xander. She manages to distract him long enough for Buffy to knock him out of the way. Xander and Anya yell at each other about each other's rights for vengeance and moving on with their lives. Xander is disgusted that Anya would even touch Spike. Spike then adds that he was good enough for Buffy. With this, Xander and Anya discover the truth about Buffy and Spike. Xander storms off, so Buffy also walks off. Spike begins making a wish against Xander, but Anya stops him and they part ways.

Tara goes to Willow in her bedroom. She gives her a speech about all they have to do to rebuild their relationship, but is willing to skip all that. She asks Willow to just kiss her, which she promptly does.

Continuity[]

  • Buffy mentions having tried to kill her sister and friends in the previous week, referring to when she acted under the Glarghk Guhl Kashmas'nik's influence in "Normal Again."
  • Tara asks Willow about the aftermath of the events from "Normal Again" as well. As Tara clarifies about her friend seen in the same episode, Willow gains courage to ask her out as she planned at the time.
  • At university, Tara wears the leather jacket Dawn gave to Buffy in "Older and Far Away."
  • Jonathan mutters about being "deader than an ex-girlfriend," in reference to Warren having killed Katrina Silber in "Dead Things."
  • Anya and the Scoobies see each other for the first time since the cancelled wedding in "Hell's Bells."
  • Anya said to Xander that she wished tentacles where "his beady eyes" were. Anya previously stated that Xander's eyes are beady in "Once More, with Feeling."
  • Halfrek explains to Anya that vengeance demons are unable to enact wishes on their own behalf. In Own It, Part Four, D'Hoffryn will attempt to remove this limitation from their powers.
  • Dawn asks Buffy so they'd patrol together; she'll only allow her in "Lessons," after they fight together in "Grave."
  • Dawn argues that the Scoobies patrolled since they were her age (16), which Buffy says it's true ("Anne") but claims Dawn is technically one and a half years old, since she was first created as a human in "Buffy vs. Dracula."
  • In their conversation at the coffee shop, Willow recalls the Wig Lady ("Doublemeat Palace"), the invisibility ray ("Gone"), and the Suvolte demon eggs ("As You Were").
  • Anya claims that Xander likes to watch "girl on girl action;" in "Restless," he dreamed about watching Willow and Tara kiss.
  • Dawn says she doesn't use the "w-i-s-h" word anymore, in reference to the accidental wish she made in "Older and Far Away."
  • Anya mentions to Buffy her former lovers, but Buffy counters with that "there have only been four— three! Three! Three guys." This line refers to Buffy's past sexual partners Angel ("Surprise"), Riley Finn ("The I in Team"), Parker Abrams ("The Harsh Light of Day"), and (secretly) Spike ("Smashed").
  • Buffy jokes that, if Willow had put the "creepy" lawn gnome in her home while she was dead, she'd have crawled from her grave sooner, in reference to having done so in "Bargaining, Part Two."
  • Xander describes Spike as obsessed with Buffy and hanging out in her yard to keep an eye on her; Spike's love for Buffy became public knowledge in "Crush," and she first saw him lurking in front of her house in "No Place Like Home."
  • When Buffy tells Spike she suspects him to be spying on her with the camera, Spike strongly denies it because he has changed. Before he fell in love with her, Spike had recruited a minion to spy on her with a camera in "Halloween."
  • The Trio's efforts to locate something in Sunnydale are revealed in "Seeing Red" to be so they get to the Orbs of Nezzla'khan and be able to physically fight the Slayer. Warren and Andrew's mistrust on Jonathan discussed in this episode will be put in practice as well.
  • Anya and Spike bond talking about their common situation among the Scoobies with their evil pasts, as they had done in "Where the Wild Things Are."
  • The Scoobies discover they are under surveillance from the Trio, which they have been doing since "Life Serial."
  • Buffy's relationship with Spike becomes general knowledge among Willow, Dawn, Xander, and Anya. Riley discovered in "As You Were" and Buffy told Tara in "Dead Things," but Giles will only know in "Grave."
  • The dress hanging at Willow's door is the one she wore during her song with Tara in "Once More, with Feeling."
  • Willow and Tara resume their relationship, having been separated since "Tabula Rasa."

Appearances[]

Individuals[]

Organizations and titles[]

Species[]

Locations[]

Objects[]

Death count[]

  • Two vampires, staked by Buffy.

Behind the scenes[]

Production[]

  • While shopping, Buffy and Dawn walk along the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica.
  • The scene where Jonathan uses the disk to highlight a location on a map parallels a scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark, in which Indiana Jones uses a similar object to locate on a scale model where the Ark of the Covenent is kept.
  • Edie Caggiano was credited as Mother even though her scene was cut.

Broadcast[]

  • "Entropy" had an audience of 2.8 million households upon its original airing.[2]

Deleted scenes[]

  • This scene when Buffy and Dawn are shopping was cut:[3]
    Buffy: "And, you know, maybe in a couple of months they'll let us visit the leather birthday jacket."
    A young mother pushing a baby stroller calmly cuts across, about to bump into Dawn, who is looking at a store. Buffy takes Dawn's arm to steer her out of the way. Dawn jumps, ever so slightly at Buffy's touch, startled. They both stop, looking at each other, embarrassed, realizing what just happened.
    Buffy: "Oh. That wasn't— I was just— Sorry."
    Dawn: "No, no. I'm sorry."
    They walk for a moment in silence. The mood has changed, become strained.
    Buffy: "I would never—"
    Dawn: "I know. You weren't you."
    They walk for another moment. More silence. Then Buffy forces herself to snap out of it, tries to lighten the mood:
    Buffy: "Okay, you know what we need?"
    Dawn: "What?"
    Buffy: (re: food court ahead) "Warm chocolate chip cookies. Just as warm as puppies, and somewhat tastier."
  • Buffy and Willow's exchange about the Trio's lair was cut:[3]
    Willow: "Can't help thinking maybe you were closer than you thought that day you went out with the addresses."
    Buffy: "And they sent Psycho Demon to interrupt me."

Pop culture references[]

Goofs[]

  • In the breakfast scene, Buffy serves Dawn pancakes but then, when Dawn goes to sit down to eat them, they have disappeared from the plate.
  • Also in the breakfast scene, the corner of a lighting "flag" is visible in the upper right corner.

Music[]

International titles[]

  • Armenian: "Էնտրոպիա" (Entropy)
  • Czech: "Entropie" (Entropy)
  • Finnish: "Kaikki sekaisin" (All Messed Up)
  • French: "Entropie" (Entropy)
  • German: "Im Chaos der Gefühle" (In the Chaos of Emotions)
  • Hungarian: "Sorvadás" (Atrophy)
  • Italian: "Entropia" (Entropy)
  • Japanese: "エントロピー" (Entropy)
  • Polish: "Entropia" (Entropy)
  • Portuguese (Brazil): "Entropia" (Entropy)
  • Romanian: "Entropie" (Entropy)
  • Russian: "Энтропия" (Entropy)
  • Spanish (Latin America): "Entropía" (Entropy)
  • Spanish (Spain): "Entropía" (Entropy)

Gallery[]

Promotional stills[]

Quotes[]

Anya: "Actually, there is an eensy something I could use a little help with. You're lesbians, so the hating of men will come in handy."
Halfrek: "Anyanka. There's an easier way. Now, I know you have this whole female power, Take Back the Night thing. I think that's cute. But I've been telling you for decades — men need a little vengeance now and then, too."
Xander: "Oh! Okay... then you had to do it. Because he was there. Like Mt. Everest. Like I used to be."
Anya: "And then you weren't. You left me, Xander... at the altar. I don't owe you anything!"
Xander: "So you go out and bang the first body you can find? Dead or alive?"
Anya: "Where do you get off judging me?"
Xander: "When this is your solution to our problems. I hurt you, so you get me back? Very mature!"
Anya: "No, the mature solution is for you to spend your whole life telling stupid, pointless jokes so no one will notice you're just a scared, insecure little boy!"
Xander: "I'm not joking now. You let that evil, soulless thing touch you. You wanted me to feel something, congratulations. It worked. I look at you... I feel sick... 'cause you had sex with that."
Spike: "It was good enough for Buffy."
Spike: "Bloody Xander, mucking up everything. You know, I wish—"
Anya: "Don't."
Tara: "There's so much to work through. Trust has to build again, on both sides... you have to learn if you're even the same people you were, if you can fit in each other's lives, it's a long and important process and... can we just skip it? Can you just be kissing me now?"

References[]

  1. "Buffy Season 6." Craig's BuffyVERSE 4ever. Retrieved on May 29, 2020.
  2. "Nielsen Ratings for Buffy's Sixth Season." Nielsen Ratings for Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, & Firefly. Archived from the original on July 6, 2008.
  3. 3.0 3.1 "Entropy Script." BuffyWorld. Retrieved on May 30, 2020.
Advertisement