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{{Episode
{{buffyepisode
 
| season = 2
+
|season = 2
| number = 5
+
|number = 5
| image = Reptile_Boy_Main.png
+
|image = 2x05 006.jpg
| airdate = October 13, 1997
+
|airdate = October 13, [[1997]]
| writer = [[David Greenwalt]]
+
|writer = [[David Greenwalt]]
| director = [[David Greenwalt]]
+
|director = David Greenwalt
  +
|code = 5V05
| previous = "[[Inca Mummy Girl]]"
 
| next = "[[Halloween]]"
+
|series = ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]''
 
|previous = "[[Inca Mummy Girl]]"
| cast = {{CastList
 
  +
|next = "[[Halloween]]"
| starring = {{CastGroup|{{CastActor|name=Sarah Michelle Gellar|character=Buffy Summers|billed=Buffy}}
 
  +
|stars = [[Sarah Michelle Gellar]] — [[Buffy Summers|Buffy]]<br />[[Nicholas Brendon]] — [[Alexander Harris|Xander]]<br />[[Alyson Hannigan]] — [[Willow Rosenberg|Willow]]<br />[[Charisma Carpenter]] — [[Cordelia Chase|Cordelia]]<br />[[David Boreanaz]] — [[Angel]]<br />[[Anthony Stewart Head]] — [[Rupert Giles|Giles]]
| {{CastActor|name=Nicholas Brendon|character=Xander Harris|billed=Xander}}
 
  +
|gueststars = [[Greg Vaughan]] — [[Richard Anderson|Richard]]<br />[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0044859 Todd Babcock] — [[Tom Warner|Tom]]<br />[[Jordana Spiro]] — [[Callie Anderson|Callie]]
| {{CastActor|name=Alyson Hannigan|character=Willow Rosenberg|billed=Willow}}
 
  +
|costars = [[Robin Atkin Downes]] — [[Machida]]<br />[[Danny Strong]] — [[Jonathan Levinson|Jonathan]]<br />[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0197000 Christopher Dahlberg] — Tackle<br />[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0692662 Jason Posey] — Linebacker<br />[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0068117 Coby Bell] — Young Man
| {{CastActor|name=Charisma Carpenter|character=Cordelia Chase|billed=Cordelia}}
 
  +
|uncredited = [https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0244781 Scott Duthie] — Frat Brother #2<br />[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0808902 Kavan Smith] — Man
| {{CastActor|name=David Boreanaz|character=Angel}}
 
| {{CastActor|name=Anthony Stewart Head|character=Rupert Giles|billed=Giles}}}}
 
| gueststarring = {{CastGroup|{{CastActor|name=Greg Vaughn|imdb=0891042|character=Richard Anderson|billed=Richard}}
 
| {{CastActor|name=Todd Babcock|imdb=0044859|character=Tom Warner|billed=Tom}}
 
| {{CastActor|name=Jordana Spiro|imdb=0819079|character=Callie Anderson|billed=Callie}}}}
 
| costarring = {{CastGroup|{{CastActor|name=Robin Atkin Downes|imdb=0235960|character=Machida}}
 
| {{CastActor|name=Danny Strong|character=Jonathan Levinson|billed=Jonathan}}
 
| {{CastActor|name=Christopher Dahlberg|imdb=0197000|billed=Tackle}}
 
| {{CastActor|name=Jason Posey|imdb=0692662|billed=Linebacker}}
 
| {{CastActor|name=Coby Bell|imdb=0068117|billed=Young Man}}}}
 
| uncredited = {{CastGroup|{{CastActor|name=Scott Duthie|imdb=0244781|billed=Frat Brother #2}}
 
| {{CastActor|name=Kavan Smith|imdb=0808902|billed=Man}}}}}}
 
 
}}
 
}}
   
'''"Reptile Boy"''' is the fifth episode of the [[List of Buffy season two episodes|second season]] of [[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]], and is the seventeenth episode altogether. It was directed by [[David Greenwalt]] and also written by David Greenwalt and [[Joss Whedon]]. It was originally brodacast on October 13, 1997.
+
"'''Reptile Boy'''" is the fifth episode of the [[Buffy the Vampire Slayer season 2|second season]] of ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'' television show, and the seventeenth episode in the series. It was written by [[David Greenwalt]] and [[Joss Whedon]], and directed by David Greenwalt. It was originally broadcast on October 13, [[1997]] on [[The WB]].
 
Fed up with [[Rupert Giles|Giles]] constantly pressuring her to train and [[Angel]]'s refusal to go on a date with her, [[Buffy Summers|Buffy]] defies both and goes to a fraternity party with [[Cordelia Chase|Cordelia]]. However, things turn out badly for the two when the [[Delta Zeta Kappa]] fraternity brothers turn out to be a cult that sacrifices young women to a [[Machida|demon]] in exchange for wealth and power.
 
   
 
==Synopsis==
 
==Synopsis==
  +
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST — [[Buffy Summers|Buffy]] and [[Cordelia Chase|Cordelia]] become unlikely party pals when at a fraternity bash they are offered as [[human]] sacrifices to [[Machida]], a horrible half-man, half-snake creature.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20010609162143/http://www.buffy.com:80/slow/mortuary/index_anno2.html "The Mortuary"]. ''Buffy The Vampire Slayer''. Archived from [http://www.buffy.com:80/slow/mortuary/index_anno2.html the original] June 9, 2001.</ref>
A girl jumps out of a second-floor window of a frat house and is chased into a cemetery, where she is caught. Meanwhile, Buffy's gang are happy with the apparent lack of activity at the [[Hellmouth]]. Giles presses her to train harder, but she just wants to be a teenager. Meanwhile Cordelia tries to look and sound sophisticated, because she has started dating a college guy, part of her plan to become rich and elite. She demonstrates her efforts at laughing uproariously at anything that such a guy might say to her.
 
   
  +
==Summary==
The next day at school, Cordelia's [[Richard Anderson|boyfriend]] comes by the school, and a [[Tom Warner|friend]] of his becomes interested in Buffy and insists that unless she comes to the frat party with Cordelia, Cordelia can't come at all. She introduces Buffy to the two guys, and one guy invites her to the party. She turns him down, claiming she is involved with someone. When Buffy goes on patrol, she meets Angel, who smells blood on a bracelet Buffy finds on the ground. Angel tells Buffy that their age difference is a problem and that she does not know what she wants in life. She runs off.
 
  +
A girl jumps out of a second-floor window of a frat house. She is chased into a cemetery, where she is caught.
   
 
Meanwhile, Buffy and gang are happy with the apparent lack of activity at the [[Hellmouth]]. [[Rupert Giles|Giles]] presses her to train harder, but she just wants to be a teenager. Meanwhile, Cordelia tries to look and sound sophisticated, because she has started dating a college guy, part of her plan to become rich and elite. She demonstrates her efforts by laughing uproariously at anything that such a guy might say to her.
Upset at being rebuffed by Angel, Buffy decides to go to the frat party with Cordelia. She chooses not to tell Giles or Angel about her date. Later that night, Giles and Willow discover that the bracelet is from [[Kent Preparatory School]], just outside of [[Sunnydale]]. Several girls are missing from the school, which is located near where Buffy is partying. Angel appears and asks about Buffy. Willow tells the two men where Buffy is and why Buffy lied to them. They then rush off to save Buffy and Cordelia.
 
   
  +
The next day at school, [[Richard Anderson]] comes by the school to see Cordelia, and his friend [[Tom Warner]] becomes interested in Buffy. Cordelia introduces Buffy to them, and Tom invites her to the party, but she turns him down claiming she is involved with someone.
At the party, Buffy tries to look mature and sophisticated, but discovers lots of immature behavior by drunken frat guys. [[Xander Harris|Xander]] has sneaked in to protect Buffy, but other party-goers recognize him for a crasher and force him into another room where he must put on some women's clothing and a gigantic bra, act like a girl, and dance. Meanwhile, Buffy decides to accept a drink after a lot of offers by the college guys. The drink is drugged, and she stumbles her way up to a bedroom to lie down. One of the frat guys comes in and starts touching her, until another guy pulls him off, saying that the girls are not for him, but for he who they serve. Cordelia, meanwhile is lying unconscious in the same room. When the girls wake up, they find themselves chained in a basement as an offering for a reptile god named [[Machida]], along with one of the other missing girls. Cordelia is chosen to be the first victim, but Buffy distracts the demon and breaks out of her chains just in time.
 
   
  +
At night, during patrol, Buffy encounters [[Angel]]. He smells [[blood]] on a bracelet Buffy finds on the ground. Angel tells Buffy that their age difference is a problem and that she does not know what she wants in life. She runs off. Upset at being rebuffed by Angel, Buffy agrees to go to the frat party with Cordelia. She chooses not to tell Giles or Angel about her plans.
[[Willow Rosenberg|Willow]], Angel and Giles head to the frat party and meet up with Xander. They enter the house and beat up the frat guys. Buffy kills the demon, and the frat guys are arrested. Though Giles is still not entirely happy that Buffy lied to him, he nonetheless realizes that he pushes Buffy too hard, and promises to take it easy on her from now on.
 
   
 
Later that night, Giles and Willow discover that the bracelet is from [[Kent Preparatory School]], just outside of [[Sunnydale]]. Several girls are missing from the school, which is located near where Buffy is partying. Angel appears at the library and asks about Buffy. Willow reveals to the two men where Buffy is and her reasons to have lied to them. They rush off to save Buffy and Cordelia.
Afterward, everyone gathers at the [[The Bronze|Bronze]], where Cordelia, because of her experiences at the party, has changed her standards and is now advocating dating younger men. Holding a newspaper, Xander reveals that the Delta Zeta Kappas have been sentenced to consecutive life sentences, and that the bodies of their past victims dating back fifty years have been found. Additionally, many corporations founded by former Delta Zetas have suffered a massive decline due to this failure. At that moment, Angel appears and asks if Buffy would like to get coffee with him sometime. Playing it cool this time, Buffy happily agrees.
 
   
 
At the party, Buffy notices immature behavior by drunken frat guys. [[Alexander Harris|Xander]] has sneaked in to protect Buffy, but other party-goers recognize him for a crasher They force him into another room where he must put on some women's clothing and dance. Meanwhile, Buffy decides to accept a drink after Tom calls her "too mature." The drink is drugged, and she stumbles her way up to a bedroom to lie down. Richard comes in and starts touching her, until Tom pulls him off, saying that the girls are not for him, but for he who they serve. Cordelia, meanwhile, is lying unconscious in the same room. When the girls wake up, they find themselves chained in a basement as an offering for a [[demon]] named Machida, along with one of the other missing girls, [[Callie Anderson|Callie]]. Cordelia is chosen to be the first victim, but Buffy distracts the demon and breaks out of her chains just in time.
==Continuity==
 
*This episode has Cordelia reiterate her belief that older boys are the ones she wants to date. This was first mentioned in "[[The Harvest]]".
 
   
 
[[Willow Rosenberg|Willow]], Angel and Giles head to the frat party and meet up with Xander. They enter the house and beat up the frat guys. Willow realizes the girls are in the basement, and they enter as Tom and Buffy fight. Buffy kills the demon, and the frat guys are arrested. Though Giles is still not entirely happy that Buffy lied to him, he nonetheless realizes that he's been pushing Buffy too hard, and promises to take it easy on her from now on.
*Buffy and Cordelia will once again find themselves targeted together by demons in "[[Homecoming]]".
 
   
 
Afterward, everyone gathers at the [[The Bronze|Bronze]], where Cordelia has changed her standards and is now advocating dating younger men. Holding a newspaper, Xander reveals that the Delta Zeta Kappas have been sentenced to consecutive life sentences, and that the bodies of past victims dating back fifty years have been found. Additionally, many corporations founded by former Delta Zetas have suffered because of the fraternity's inability to feed Machida. At that moment, Angel appears and asks if Buffy would like to get coffee with him sometime, and she agrees.
*Giles asks Buffy how many people her age can say that they have a purpose, a commitment in life. Although she answers "none", a few years later in season 7 episode "[[Potential]]" she says a similar thing to the [[Potential Slayer|potentials]] - that although most people have no idea why they exist, the potentials do - they have "a mission, a reason for being here".
 
*When Willow, Xander, Giles and Angel storm the fraternity, Angel goes into the household without being invited, despite being a [[vampire]]. This is because the fraternity brothers are only temporary residents.
 
   
 
==Continuity==
*At the end of the episode, Buffy agrees to have coffee with Angel, which marks the beginning of their formal dating relationship.
 
  +
*The term "patrolling" is first used in this episode. Prior to this, Buffy's graveyard exploits are referred to as hunting. Furthermore, this marks the first time that she patrols with no specific purpose. From this point on, she will patrol nightly.
 
*This episode has Cordelia reiterate her belief that older boys are the ones she wants to date, as first mentioned in "[[The Harvest]]".
 
*Giles asks Buffy how many people her age can say that they have a purpose, a commitment in life. Although she answers "none," five years later in episode "[[Potential]]", she says a similar thing to the [[Potential Slayer|Potential Slayers]] — that although most people have no idea why they exist, the potentials do: they have "a mission, a reason for being here."
 
*Buffy and Cordelia will once again find themselves targeted together by demons in "[[Homecoming]]". They were tied together as well and about to be victimized in "[[Out of Mind, Out of Sight]]".
  +
*A similar worshiping scenario is seen in episode "[[Help]]", when another group of young men attempt to sacrifice a girl to the demon [[Avilas]] to improve their success in life.
 
*Buffy agrees to have coffee with Angel, marking the beginning of their formal dating relationship. They will ultimately break up one year later in episode "[[The Prom]]".
   
  +
==Appearances==
*This episode also marks the first incident of students using magic to better their situation in life. A similar situation is seen in the season 7 episode "[[Help]]".
 
  +
===Individuals===
  +
*[[Callie Anderson]]
  +
*[[Richard Anderson]]
  +
*[[Angel]]
  +
*[[Cordelia Chase]]
  +
*[[Rupert Giles]]
  +
*[[Alexander Harris]]
  +
*[[Jonathan Levinson]]
  +
*[[Machida]]
  +
*[[Brittany Oswald]] {{Om}}
  +
*[[Kelly Percell]] {{Om}}
  +
*[[Willow Rosenberg]]
  +
*[[Buffy Summers]]
  +
*[[Tom Warner]]
  +
===Organizations and titles===
  +
*[[Anderson Cosmetics]] {{Om}}
  +
*[[Anderson Farms]] {{Om}}
  +
*[[Anderson Textiles]] {{Om}}
  +
*[[Delta Zeta Kappa]]
  +
*[[Scooby Gang]]
  +
*[[Slayer]]
  +
*[[Watcher]]
  +
===Species===
  +
*[[Demon]]
  +
*[[Human]]
  +
*[[Vampire]]
  +
===Locations===
  +
*[[Sunnydale]]
  +
**[[Bronze]]
  +
**[[Crestwood College]]
  +
**[[Grant High School]] {{Om}}
  +
**[[Kent Preparatory School]] {{Om}}
  +
**[[St. Michael's High School]] {{Om}}
  +
**[[Sunnydale High School]]
  +
***[[Sunnydale High School library]]
  +
===Weapons and objects===
  +
*[[2GPU947]]
  +
*[[QUEEN C]]
  +
*''[[Sunnydale Press]]''
  +
===Rituals and spells===
  +
*[[Invocation of Machida]]
   
==Body Count==
+
==Death count==
*many unidentified young girls, devoured by Machida (only mentionned)
+
*Unknown number of girls, including Brittany Oswald and Kelly Percell, devoured by Machida (only mentioned).
*[[Machida]], cut in two by [[Buffy Summers]] at the [[Delta Zeta Kappa]] cult lair
+
*Machida, cut in two by Buffy Summers.
  +
 
==Behind the scenes==
  +
[[File:"Reptile Boy" promo|thumb|200px]]
   
== Behind the Scenes ==
 
 
===Production===
 
===Production===
*In his DVD commentary for this episode, writer/director [[David Greenwalt]] says that when he wrote the episode he thought that he had invented a great demon name, Machida. He later realized that he had seen "Machida" written on a piece of filming equipment used on the show. Machida is also the name of a city in Japan.
+
*In his [[DVD commentaries]] for this episode, writer/director David Greenwalt says that when he wrote the episode he thought that he had invented a great demon name, Machida. He later realized that "Makita" was the brand of some of the equipment used on the show. Machida is also the name of a city in Japan.
 
*In "A Buffy Bestiary," a special features video packaged with the Season Two DVD set, Marti Noxon acknowledged the "phallic imagery" in this episode and confessed, "Yes, it's a metaphor."
 
*This episode is one of the few times someone other than [[Joss Whedon]] both wrote and directed the episode.
 
 
*In "A Buffy Bestiary," a special features video packaged with the Season Two DVD set, Marti Noxon acknowledged the "phallic imagery" in this episode and granted, "yes, it's a metaphor."
 
 
===Pop Culture References===
 
*Buffy says "There's a kind of hush all over Sunnydale", paraphrasing the song "[[Wikipedia:There's a Kind of Hush|There's A Kind Of Hush]]" by Herman's Hermits in 1967, and The Carpenters in 1976.
 
   
  +
===Broadcast===
*Xander's line, "Ok boots, starta walkin'," paraphrases the song "These Boots Are Made For Walking" by [[Wikipedia:Nancy Sinatra|Nancy Sinatra]] in 1966.
 
  +
*"Reptile Boy" had an audience of 3.5 million households.
   
  +
===Pop culture references===
*Cordelia taunts "You could belong to a fraternity of rich and powerful men. In the Bizarro world." References DC Comics [[Wikipedia:Bizarro World| fictional planet]]
 
 
*Buffy says "There's a kind of hush all over Sunnydale," paraphrasing the song "[[Wikipedia:There's a Kind of Hush|There's A Kind Of Hush]]" by Herman's Hermits in 1967, and The Carpenters in 1976.
 
*Xander's line "Okay, boots, start-a walkin'." paraphrases the song "These Boots Are Made For Walking" by [[Wikipedia:Nancy Sinatra|Nancy Sinatra]] in 1966.
 
*Cordelia teases Xander by saying, "You could belong to a fraternity of rich and powerful men. In the Bizarro world." This is a reference to DC Comics' [[Wikipedia:Bizarro World|fictional home planet]] of the Superman enemy Bizarro; also, in "[[The Wish]]," Cordelia refers to the [[Wishverse]] as "Bizarro World."
   
===Goofs, Bloopers & Continuity Errors===
+
===Goofs, bloopers & continuity errors===
  +
*When Buffy is fighting Machida, her shoes are black flats. Her shoes are chunky black heels when she is finished talking with Giles and walking up the stairs.
 
*Even though the frat boys were just caught, Xander reads in the paper that "they've all been sentenced to consecutive life sentences."
 
*Even though the frat boys were just caught, Xander reads in the paper that "they've all been sentenced to consecutive life sentences."
   
 
===Music===
 
===Music===
*[[Wikipedia:Louie Says|Louie Says]] - "She" <small>(Plays when Buffy and Tom have their slow dance at the party and later on at The Bronze when Angel asks Buffy out for a cup of coffee.)</small>
+
*[[Wikipedia:Louie Says|Louie Says]] "She"
  +
*Act of Faith — "Bring Me On"
*[http://www.myspace.com/actoffaith88 Act of Faith] - "Bring Me On" <small>(Plays when the frat brothers force Xander to dance as punishment of him crashing the party.)</small>
 
*Shawn Clement & Sean Murray - "Graffiti Sound"
+
*[[Shawn Clement]] & [[Sean Murray]] "Graffiti Sound"
*Shawn Clement & Sean Murray - "Devil's Lair"
+
*Shawn Clement & Sean Murray "Devil's Lair"
*Shawn Clement & Sean Murray - "If I Can't Have You"
+
*Shawn Clement & Sean Murray "If I Can't Have You"
*Shawn Clement & Sean Murray - "Wolves"
+
*Shawn Clement & Sean Murray "Wolves"
*Shawn Clement & Sean Murray - "Secrets"
+
*Shawn Clement & Sean Murray "Secrets"
===International Titles===
 
*'''Finnish:''' Liskomies'' (Lizardman)''
 
   
===Other===
+
===International titles===
  +
*'''Czech:''' "Hadí chlapec" (Snake Boy)
*[[Greg Vaughan]], the actor who played Richard Anderson in this episode, was also in the short-lived series "''[[Wikipedia: Malibu Shores|Malibu Shores]]''" with [[Charisma Carpenter]]. He also was also on Charmed as Dan Gordon, which Charisma later starred in as Kyra (the Seer).
 
 
*'''Finnish:''' "Liskomies" (Lizard Man)
  +
*'''French:''' "Dévotion" (Devotion)
  +
*'''German:''' "Der Geheimbund" (The Secret Society)
  +
*'''Hungarian:''' "A hüllőember" (The Reptile Man)
  +
*'''Italian:''' "Festa macabra" (Macabre Party)
  +
*'''Japanese:''' "気持ち悪い男の子" (Disgusting Boy)
  +
*'''Polish:''' "Gadopodobny"
  +
*'''Portuguese (Brazil):''' "Garoto Réptil" (Reptile Boy)
  +
*'''Romanian:''' "Băiatul Reptilă" (Reptile Boy)
  +
*'''Russian:''' "Парень-рептилия" (Reptile Boy)
  +
*'''Spanish (Latin America):''' "El Réptil" (The Reptile)
  +
*'''Spanish (Spain):''' "El Demonio Serpiente" (The Snake Demon)
   
  +
===Adaptations===
*This episode deals with allegories of date-rape, spiked drinks and not judging people by their appearances. This is yet another Hellmouth metaphor.
 
  +
*The book ''[[The Angel Chronicles, Volume 1]]'' includes a novelization of this episode.
  +
*The episode script was included in ''[[The Script Book: Season Two, Volume 1]]''.
  +
*David Greenwalt provided the DVD commentaries for this episode.
  +
*An illustration of the scene of Machida being summoned was included in the ''[[Big Bads & Monsters Adult Coloring Book]]''.
   
  +
===Other===
*The attempted sacrifice in this episode takes place on October 10th (the 10th day of the 10th month, as stated by Tom Warner).
 
  +
*[[Robin Atkin Downes]], the actor who portrays Machida in this episode, returns in ''[[Angel (series)|Angel]]'' to portray an [[unidentified Pockla demon]] in episode "[[Dead End]]".
   
  +
==Gallery==
*Since 1897, offerings were given to Machida in a cavern beneath Sunnydale, in exchange for wealth and power.
 
  +
===Promotional stills===
 
  +
<gallery widths="120" spacing="small" orientation="portrait">
*Cordelia's licence plate is "[[QUEEN C]]"
 
  +
2x05 001.jpg
*It's quite interesting that Indian movies were a motif in this episode, because half-human, half-snake serpent people called [[Wikipedia: nagas (ancient people)|nagas are]] prominent in Indian mythology. Like Machida, the nagas were believed to live underground, and in fact some, especially in southern India, still worship the nagas as bringers of fertility.
 
  +
B2x05 Machida 01.jpg
  +
Machida.jpg
  +
2x05 007.jpg
  +
2x05 006.jpg
  +
</gallery>
  +
===Behind the scenes===
  +
<gallery widths="120" spacing="small" orientation="portrait">
  +
B2x05 Crawford Gellar.jpg
  +
2x05 002.jpg
  +
2x05 003.jpg
  +
2x05 004.jpg
  +
2x05 005.jpg
  +
</gallery>
   
 
==Quotes==
 
==Quotes==
 
{{QuoteBlock
 
{{QuoteBlock
|Buffy|"I-I was... just thinking, wouldn't it be funny some time to see each other when it wasn't a blood thing. Not funny ha, ha."
+
|Buffy|"I was... just thinking, wouldn't it be funny some time to see each other when it wasn't a blood thing. Not funny ha, ha."
 
|Angel|"What are you sayin', you wanna have a date?"
 
|Angel|"What are you sayin', you wanna have a date?"
 
|Buffy|"No."
 
|Buffy|"No."
 
|Angel|"You don't wanna have a date?"
 
|Angel|"You don't wanna have a date?"
|Buffy|"Who said 'date'? I-I-I never said 'date'."
+
|Buffy|"Who said 'date'? I never said 'date'."
|Angel|"Right. You just wanna have coffee or somethin'."
+
|Angel|"Right. You just wanna have coffee or something."
 
|Buffy|"Coffee?"
 
|Buffy|"Coffee?"
 
|Angel|"I knew this was gonna happen."
 
|Angel|"I knew this was gonna happen."
Line 116: Line 178:
 
}}
 
}}
 
{{QuoteBlock
 
{{QuoteBlock
|Angel|"This isn't some fairytale. When I kiss you, you don't wake up from a deep sleep and live happily ever after."
+
|Angel|"This isn't some fairy tale. When I kiss you, you don't wake up from a deep sleep and live happily ever after."
 
|Buffy|"No, when you kiss me I wanna die."
 
|Buffy|"No, when you kiss me I wanna die."
 
}}
 
}}
 
{{QuoteBlock
 
{{QuoteBlock
 
|Willow|"Buffy!"
 
|Willow|"Buffy!"
|Giles|"W-w-we don't know that it's concrete. Uh, let's not disturb her until..."
+
|Giles|"We don't know that it's concrete. Uh, let's not disturb her until..."
 
|Willow|"Is there! With Cordelia. They went to a party at the Zeta Kappa house."
 
|Willow|"Is there! With Cordelia. They went to a party at the Zeta Kappa house."
 
|Giles|"She lied to me?"
 
|Giles|"She lied to me?"
 
|Willow|"Well..."
 
|Willow|"Well..."
|Angel|"Did...she have a date?"
+
|Angel|"Did... she have a date?"
 
|Willow|"Well... Well, why do you think she went to that party? Because you gave her the brush-off! And you [Giles] never let her do anything except work and patrol! And I know she's the Chosen One, but you're killing her with the pressure! I mean, she's sixteen going on forty! And you [Angel]! I mean, you're gonna live forever! You don't have time for a cup of coffee?! Okay, I don't feel better now, and we've gotta help Buffy."
 
|Willow|"Well... Well, why do you think she went to that party? Because you gave her the brush-off! And you [Giles] never let her do anything except work and patrol! And I know she's the Chosen One, but you're killing her with the pressure! I mean, she's sixteen going on forty! And you [Angel]! I mean, you're gonna live forever! You don't have time for a cup of coffee?! Okay, I don't feel better now, and we've gotta help Buffy."
 
}}
 
}}
 
{{QuoteBlock
 
{{QuoteBlock
  +
|Buffy|"I told one lie, I had one drink."
|Xander|"One day I'll have money. Prestige. Power. And on that day they'll still have more."
 
  +
|Giles|"Yes, and you were very nearly devoured by a giant demon snake. The words 'let that be a lesson' are a tad redundant at this juncture."
  +
|Buffy|"I'm sorry."
  +
|Giles|"So am I. I... I drive you too hard because I know what you have to face. From now on no, no more pushing, no more prodding. Just, uh, an inordinate amount of nudging."
 
}}
 
}}
 
{{QuoteBlock
 
{{QuoteBlock
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|Cordelia|"You did it! You saved us! I've never been so happy to see anyone in my whole... You guys. I just... hate you guys! The weirdest things always happen when you're around! And you! You're going to jail for fifteen thousand years!"
|Xander|"Says here that they've all been sentenced to consecutive life sentences. Investigators found the bones of missing girls in a huge cavern beneath the frat house. And older bones dating back fifty years. A surprising number of corporations whose chairmen and founders are former Delta Zeta Kappas are suffering from falling profits, IRS raids... Ooo, and suicides in the boardroom. Hmm. Starve a snake, lose a fortune. Boy, the rich really are different, huh?"
 
 
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==References==
|Xander|"Angel, Angel, Angel. Why does every conversation have to include that freak?"
 
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[[Category:Buffy-centric episodes]]
 
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[[es:El demonio serpiente]]
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[[Category:Buffy the Vampire Slayer episodes]]
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[[Category:Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 2]]

Revision as of 02:18, 29 January 2020

"Reptile Boy" is the fifth episode of the second season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer television show, and the seventeenth episode in the series. It was written by David Greenwalt and Joss Whedon, and directed by David Greenwalt. It was originally broadcast on October 13, 1997 on The WB.

Synopsis

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST — Buffy and Cordelia become unlikely party pals when at a fraternity bash they are offered as human sacrifices to Machida, a horrible half-man, half-snake creature.[1]

Summary

A girl jumps out of a second-floor window of a frat house. She is chased into a cemetery, where she is caught.

Meanwhile, Buffy and gang are happy with the apparent lack of activity at the Hellmouth. Giles presses her to train harder, but she just wants to be a teenager. Meanwhile, Cordelia tries to look and sound sophisticated, because she has started dating a college guy, part of her plan to become rich and elite. She demonstrates her efforts by laughing uproariously at anything that such a guy might say to her.

The next day at school, Richard Anderson comes by the school to see Cordelia, and his friend Tom Warner becomes interested in Buffy. Cordelia introduces Buffy to them, and Tom invites her to the party, but she turns him down claiming she is involved with someone.

At night, during patrol, Buffy encounters Angel. He smells blood on a bracelet Buffy finds on the ground. Angel tells Buffy that their age difference is a problem and that she does not know what she wants in life. She runs off. Upset at being rebuffed by Angel, Buffy agrees to go to the frat party with Cordelia. She chooses not to tell Giles or Angel about her plans.

Later that night, Giles and Willow discover that the bracelet is from Kent Preparatory School, just outside of Sunnydale. Several girls are missing from the school, which is located near where Buffy is partying. Angel appears at the library and asks about Buffy. Willow reveals to the two men where Buffy is and her reasons to have lied to them. They rush off to save Buffy and Cordelia.

At the party, Buffy notices immature behavior by drunken frat guys. Xander has sneaked in to protect Buffy, but other party-goers recognize him for a crasher They force him into another room where he must put on some women's clothing and dance. Meanwhile, Buffy decides to accept a drink after Tom calls her "too mature." The drink is drugged, and she stumbles her way up to a bedroom to lie down. Richard comes in and starts touching her, until Tom pulls him off, saying that the girls are not for him, but for he who they serve. Cordelia, meanwhile, is lying unconscious in the same room. When the girls wake up, they find themselves chained in a basement as an offering for a demon named Machida, along with one of the other missing girls, Callie. Cordelia is chosen to be the first victim, but Buffy distracts the demon and breaks out of her chains just in time.

Willow, Angel and Giles head to the frat party and meet up with Xander. They enter the house and beat up the frat guys. Willow realizes the girls are in the basement, and they enter as Tom and Buffy fight. Buffy kills the demon, and the frat guys are arrested. Though Giles is still not entirely happy that Buffy lied to him, he nonetheless realizes that he's been pushing Buffy too hard, and promises to take it easy on her from now on.

Afterward, everyone gathers at the Bronze, where Cordelia has changed her standards and is now advocating dating younger men. Holding a newspaper, Xander reveals that the Delta Zeta Kappas have been sentenced to consecutive life sentences, and that the bodies of past victims dating back fifty years have been found. Additionally, many corporations founded by former Delta Zetas have suffered because of the fraternity's inability to feed Machida. At that moment, Angel appears and asks if Buffy would like to get coffee with him sometime, and she agrees.

Continuity

  • The term "patrolling" is first used in this episode. Prior to this, Buffy's graveyard exploits are referred to as hunting. Furthermore, this marks the first time that she patrols with no specific purpose. From this point on, she will patrol nightly.
  • This episode has Cordelia reiterate her belief that older boys are the ones she wants to date, as first mentioned in "The Harvest".
  • Giles asks Buffy how many people her age can say that they have a purpose, a commitment in life. Although she answers "none," five years later in episode "Potential", she says a similar thing to the Potential Slayers — that although most people have no idea why they exist, the potentials do: they have "a mission, a reason for being here."
  • Buffy and Cordelia will once again find themselves targeted together by demons in "Homecoming". They were tied together as well and about to be victimized in "Out of Mind, Out of Sight".
  • A similar worshiping scenario is seen in episode "Help", when another group of young men attempt to sacrifice a girl to the demon Avilas to improve their success in life.
  • Buffy agrees to have coffee with Angel, marking the beginning of their formal dating relationship. They will ultimately break up one year later in episode "The Prom".

Appearances

Individuals

Organizations and titles

Species

Locations

Weapons and objects

Rituals and spells

Death count

  • Unknown number of girls, including Brittany Oswald and Kelly Percell, devoured by Machida (only mentioned).
  • Machida, cut in two by Buffy Summers.

Behind the scenes

"Reptile_Boy"_promo

"Reptile Boy" promo

Production

  • In his DVD commentaries for this episode, writer/director David Greenwalt says that when he wrote the episode he thought that he had invented a great demon name, Machida. He later realized that "Makita" was the brand of some of the equipment used on the show. Machida is also the name of a city in Japan.
  • In "A Buffy Bestiary," a special features video packaged with the Season Two DVD set, Marti Noxon acknowledged the "phallic imagery" in this episode and confessed, "Yes, it's a metaphor."

Broadcast

  • "Reptile Boy" had an audience of 3.5 million households.

Pop culture references

  • Buffy says "There's a kind of hush all over Sunnydale," paraphrasing the song "There's A Kind Of Hush" by Herman's Hermits in 1967, and The Carpenters in 1976.
  • Xander's line "Okay, boots, start-a walkin'." paraphrases the song "These Boots Are Made For Walking" by Nancy Sinatra in 1966.
  • Cordelia teases Xander by saying, "You could belong to a fraternity of rich and powerful men. In the Bizarro world." This is a reference to DC Comics' fictional home planet of the Superman enemy Bizarro; also, in "The Wish," Cordelia refers to the Wishverse as "Bizarro World."

Goofs, bloopers & continuity errors

  • When Buffy is fighting Machida, her shoes are black flats. Her shoes are chunky black heels when she is finished talking with Giles and walking up the stairs.
  • Even though the frat boys were just caught, Xander reads in the paper that "they've all been sentenced to consecutive life sentences."

Music

  • Louie Says — "She"
  • Act of Faith — "Bring Me On"
  • Shawn Clement & Sean Murray — "Graffiti Sound"
  • Shawn Clement & Sean Murray — "Devil's Lair"
  • Shawn Clement & Sean Murray — "If I Can't Have You"
  • Shawn Clement & Sean Murray — "Wolves"
  • Shawn Clement & Sean Murray — "Secrets"

International titles

  • Czech: "Hadí chlapec" (Snake Boy)
  • Finnish: "Liskomies" (Lizard Man)
  • French: "Dévotion" (Devotion)
  • German: "Der Geheimbund" (The Secret Society)
  • Hungarian: "A hüllőember" (The Reptile Man)
  • Italian: "Festa macabra" (Macabre Party)
  • Japanese: "気持ち悪い男の子" (Disgusting Boy)
  • Polish: "Gadopodobny"
  • Portuguese (Brazil): "Garoto Réptil" (Reptile Boy)
  • Romanian: "Băiatul Reptilă" (Reptile Boy)
  • Russian: "Парень-рептилия" (Reptile Boy)
  • Spanish (Latin America): "El Réptil" (The Reptile)
  • Spanish (Spain): "El Demonio Serpiente" (The Snake Demon)

Adaptations

Other

Gallery

Promotional stills

Behind the scenes

Quotes

Buffy: "I was... just thinking, wouldn't it be funny some time to see each other when it wasn't a blood thing. Not funny ha, ha."
Angel: "What are you sayin', you wanna have a date?"
Buffy: "No."
Angel: "You don't wanna have a date?"
Buffy: "Who said 'date'? I never said 'date'."
Angel: "Right. You just wanna have coffee or something."
Buffy: "Coffee?"
Angel: "I knew this was gonna happen."
Buffy: "What? What do you think is happening?"
Angel: "You're sixteen years old. I'm two hundred and forty-one."
Buffy: "I've done the math."
Angel: "This isn't some fairy tale. When I kiss you, you don't wake up from a deep sleep and live happily ever after."
Buffy: "No, when you kiss me I wanna die."
Willow: "Buffy!"
Giles: "We don't know that it's concrete. Uh, let's not disturb her until..."
Willow: "Is there! With Cordelia. They went to a party at the Zeta Kappa house."
Giles: "She lied to me?"
Willow: "Well..."
Angel: "Did... she have a date?"
Willow: "Well... Well, why do you think she went to that party? Because you gave her the brush-off! And you [Giles] never let her do anything except work and patrol! And I know she's the Chosen One, but you're killing her with the pressure! I mean, she's sixteen going on forty! And you [Angel]! I mean, you're gonna live forever! You don't have time for a cup of coffee?! Okay, I don't feel better now, and we've gotta help Buffy."
Buffy: "I told one lie, I had one drink."
Giles: "Yes, and you were very nearly devoured by a giant demon snake. The words 'let that be a lesson' are a tad redundant at this juncture."
Buffy: "I'm sorry."
Giles: "So am I. I... I drive you too hard because I know what you have to face. From now on no, no more pushing, no more prodding. Just, uh, an inordinate amount of nudging."
Cordelia: "You did it! You saved us! I've never been so happy to see anyone in my whole... You guys. I just... hate you guys! The weirdest things always happen when you're around! And you! You're going to jail for fifteen thousand years!"

References

  1. "The Mortuary". Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Archived from the original June 9, 2001.