Buffy the Vampire Slayer S1 EP3

Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Season 1 Episode 3
"Witch"
Original Airdate: March 17, 1997

Since the characters have been pretty well developed, we were able to dive right into the episode. This episode is one of my favorites of the season, granted there are only 12 episodes of the season so that’s really not that hard. In the episode, Buffy is trying to get on the cheerleading squad, along with several others. In the first scene we see one girl trying out and her hands catch on fire, then the credits role.

Buffy seems to be jealous of the girl Amy, who has a “close relationship with her mom.” When she talks to her mom about cheerleading, her mom doesn’t really pay much attention to her. She’s too busy getting everything ready for the gallery.

We find out that there is witchcraft among Sunnydale High School, and the gang has their suspicions that it might be Amy, a girl who is desperate to follow in her mother’s footsteps and get on the team. First Amber’s hands get burned up, then Cordelia goes blind, then another girl loses the ability to speak because her mouth is no longer there, and Buffy is hit with a vengeance spell. Once she is hit with the spell, the gang really gets to work, to save Buffy’s life.

When they get to Amy’s house, they find her mother alone and shocked to see Giles and very sick Buffy. Buffy comes to the conclusion that Amy’s mother switched their bodies because she wanted another shot at cheerleading so she could relive “her glory days.” The gang ends up saving Buffy, and reversing all the spells just in the nick of time to save Buffy (this is becoming a pattern.)

It’s a great episode of Buffy, that doesn’t have anything to do with vampires. I would say this is a classic episode. We Giles cast a spell, the gang comes together to help Buffy and all the others that were affected. The storyline is great, and we see that Xander has an infatuation with Buffy, and in a weird way we see Buffy get a little closer to her mother. The episode is very original, especially for when it first aired. I give this episode 6/10 stars.


Quote of the Episode:
Xander: I laugh in the face of danger, and then I hide until it goes away.