"Buffy the Vampire Slayer" Once More, with Feeling (2001)

Director:

Joss Whedon

Writers:

Joss Whedon (creator)
Joss Whedon (written by)

TV Series:

"Buffy the Vampire Slayer" (1997)

Original Air Date:

6 November 2001 (Season 6, Episode 7)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Fantasy

Plot:

Sunnydale is alive with the sound of music as a mysterious force causes everyone in town to burst into full musical numbers...

Plot Keywords:

Dancing | Song And Dance | Singing | Forbidden Love | Lesbian

Cast

Sarah Michelle Gellar	...	Buffy Summers
Nicholas Brendon	...	Xander Harris
Emma Caulfield	...	Anya
Michelle Trachtenberg	...	Dawn Summers
James Marsters	...	Spike
Alyson Hannigan	...	Willow Rosenberg
Anthony Head	...	Rupert Giles (as Anthony Stewart Head)
Hinton Battle	...	Sweet
Amber Benson	...	Tara Maclay
David Fury	...	Mustard Man
Marti Noxon	...	Parking Ticket Woman
Daniel Weaver	...	Handsome Young Man
Scot Zeller	...	Henchman / Tap Dancing Victim
Zachary Woodlee	...	Demon / Henchman
Timothy Anderson	...	Henchman

Runtime:

50 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

USA:TV-PG

Company:

Mutant Enemy

Trivia:

Alyson Hannigan hated her singing voice and asked not to have a song, or any major singing lines of her own. In "Nightmares", we see that Willow herself is terrified of singing in public.

Goofs:

Continuity: The demons that Buffy kills in the Bronze disappear and reappear, and change positions, between shots as she dances.

Quotes:

Sweet: [singing] What a lot of fun, you guys have been real swell. And there's not a one who can say this ended well. All those secrets you've been concealin', say you're happy now. Once more with feeling. Now I gotta run. See you all in hell.

Movie Connections:

References The Music Man (1962)

Soundtrack:

Rest In Peace

Another creative episode from Joss Whedon

Joss Whedon was very daring with Buffy, and this episode is no exception. I watched the episode on DVD as opposed to during its original run, and prior to watching it all I knew was that season 6 had a musical episode. I didn't know why, and I was happy to see how they explained everyone's lives in Sunnydale turning into a musical - Sweet was one of the best demons of the series.

If I could give the episode a 9.5, I would. The only reason a point was taken off was because of the singing during the episode; at times it got hard to listen to. Tony Head, Amber Benson, and James Marsters were all excellent for their respective musical styles that they sung during the episode. I've seen a lot of people criticize Marsters' singing, but his solo was rock and he did a great job with it. Sarah Michelle Gellar was decent; I've seen her criticized a lot, too, but I have no problem listening to her on the soundtrack, and I've been trained in music. Emma Caulfield was also decent, but the biggest problem I had with her vocals was that they wobbled sometimes. Nicholas Brendon and Alyson Hannigan were the ones I had the most trouble listening to, and I wish Michelle T. had taken a few lessons, because she has a good voice but the singing wasn't great.

As for the songs themselves, I love them, especially when you watch them in the episode (as opposed to simply listening to the soundtrack). The musical styles and lyrics all fit their characters perfectly. "I'll Never Tell" is a great duet, regardless of the singing exhibited in it. Other personal favorites of mine are "Rest in Peace" and "Walk Through the Fire," as well as "Under Your Spell." From the overture to the final scene (I won't spoil it for you), the episode parodies musical films in general, at the same time paying homage to them.

I also love various lines like "this is my verse, hello" when Anya interrupts Xander during "I'll Never Tell," or "first I'll kill her, then I'll save her - no, I'll save her, then I'll kill her" during Spike's portion of "Walk Through the Fire."

Everything is all very clever, and if I were given the chance to change anything I disliked about the episode, the only thing I'd change would be some of the vocals.