Tabula Rasa (Buffy episode)
|
|
"Tabula Rasa" is an episode of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer that explores the characters' "true" personalities. It was written by Rebecca Rand Kirshner and directed by David Grossman.
| Contents |
Plot Outline
Episode 8 of season 6, "Tabula Rasa" (Latin for "blank slate" - see also: tabula rasa), comes right after "Once More, With Feeling" where the main characters were forced to reveal the secrets they had been keeping from each other.
The group meets in the Magic Shop where Giles is about to announce he is going back to England when a costumed Spike rushes in begging for sanctuary from debt collectors — a loan shark demon with a real shark's head — who wants the 40 Siamese kittens from his gambling debt. Meanwhile, Willow has attempted another amnesia spell, but this time to make everybody forget the past events, not just Tara. The spell goes awry when a single spark from the fireplace ignites the whole bag of magical herbs that Willow was using: In the Magic Shop, everybody falls asleep, and are reduced to their "true selves" upon awakening. The main part of the episode deals with how they try to figure out who they are and what their relationships are while avoiding the loan shark's vampire henchmen.
Importance
Besides being one of the more funny episodes of the otherwise comparatively somber sixth season, "Tabula Rasa" foreshadows later developments and helps the characters develop depth. For example, Willow and Tara are attracted to each other even without their memories, while Xander and Anya pointedly are not. "Tabula Rasa" is the episode where Giles leaves the regular cast until the final showdown with Willow at the end of the season. Without his character to provide comic relief, the season turns even darker. Tara finally leaves Willow, who continues her downward spiral into magic addiction unchecked.
Writing and Acting
There are inconsistencies in the effects of the amnesia spell: while everybody remembers what a driver's license is, there is confusion what the spikes and other items in the Magic Shop are used for. Anya's fear of bunnies is intact, though based on a traumatic experience. Buffy and Xander revert to their more immature selves, but there is no sign of the Ripper side of Giles. While Xander is immediately attracted to Willow, she only seems to realize her lesbian tendencies over time. However, all of these points are used to further the plot or create funny situations.
It is arguable that memory-wiped Dawn's behavior is not consistent with her personality as shown during the rest of the series: When approached by slightly bubbly and rather non-threatening Buffy, she cringes and begs not to be harmed. However, when faced with Sweet, the demon in "Once More, With Feeling" and later threats, she in fact shows remarkable courage for her age and strength.
Quotes and Trivia
"Time is what turns kittens into cats" — The loan shark to Spike
Buffy's chosen name "Joan" is possibly a subconscious reference to Joan of Arc.
When Willow tells Dawn about her attraction to women, she uses the exact same words she did in episode 16 of season 3 "Doppelgängland" to describe her evil vampire self: "I think I'm kind of gay".
Cast
- Amber Benson as Tara Maclay
- Nicholas Brendon as Xander Harris
- Emma Caulfield as Anya Jenkins
- Sarah Michelle Gellar as Buffy Summers and "Joan"
- Alyson Hannigan as Willow Rosenberg
- Anthony Stewart Head as Rupert Giles
- James Marsters as Spike and "Randy"
- Michelle Trachtenberg as Dawn Summers
Other Languages
"Tabula Rasa" does not translate well. A sizeable part of the humor is the interplay between Giles and Spike, laced with British idiom and Americans' stereotyped views of England; the puns based on "Randy" are meaningless in other languages.
External links
- BBC episode guide to "Tabula Rasa" (http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/buffy/indetail/tabularasa/index.shtml)