Killed by Death (Buffy episode)
Encyclopedia
"Killed by Death" is episode 18 of season two of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
After flu lands Buffy in the hospital, she rescues fevered children from Der Kindestod, a demon that turns out to have killed her cousin when she was younger and which gave her a phobia of hospitals.
patrols the cemetery. Xander
, Willow
, and Cordelia
surprise her and she nearly stakes Xander. They urge her to go home, but the damage that Angelus has done so far continues to fuel her fire. Angelus appears behind her and attacks Cordelia. Buffy and Angelus fight until Angelus pins Buffy down. Willow throws a coat over his head and he is scared off by crosses that they all carry. Buffy collapses and the gang rushes her to the hospital. After being stabilized, she is admitted to the hospital for a few days against her will. Her mother reveals that Buffy has always hated hospitals ever since she saw her beloved cousin, Celia, died in one when she was eight years old.
That night, Buffy dreams of seeing a strange man follow after a young child. As she follows the man down the hall, flashbacks of her cousin's time in the hospital bring nightmares to mind. She awakes suddenly in the middle of the night and takes a walk down the hall. Two men exit the children's ward with a child that died that night. At the door, Buffy overhears an argument between Dr. Backer and Dr. Wilkinson about the doctors' experimental treatments on the kids. As she begins to leave, she encounters two children, who tell her that "Death
" comes at night.
Angelus comes to visit Buffy, with flowers; but Xander defies him, pointing out that Angelus might not be able to kill him and the armed guards. Rather than fight, Angelus gives the flowers to Xander and leaves.
The next morning, Buffy tells her friends about the conversation she overheard. The doctor was trying experimental treatments on the kids in the children's ward that Dr. Wilkinson didn't exactly agree with. Since she is forced to stay at the hospital, she plans to find out what the doctor is up to and Xander volunteers everyone's help.
That night, Cordelia and Xander sneak into the hospital's record room and search for records on the girl who died in the night. Meanwhile, Giles and Willow search for information at the school library. Cordelia flirts with a security guard to distract him while Xander escapes with the records. Once outside, Xander expresses jealousy about the flirting, while Cordelia retorts with jealousy about Xander's loyalty to Buffy.
Buffy takes a walk and finds the little boy. He is drawing a picture of the man she saw in her dream. Willow digs up information on Dr. Backer at the library with Giles. She finds that he has a long history of controversial experimental treatments and investigations into his practices.
Dr. Backer goes to the children's ward with his latest experimental treatment. Before he can do anything, the evil creature kills him. Buffy tries to stop him, but is thrown aside.
In the morning, Buffy informs everyone that Dr. Backer is not the suspect and shows them the drawing that Ryan drew of the creature. Giles and Cordelia head back to the library while Xander remains on guard against Angelus. At the library, Cordelia finds a picture of Ryan's monster on the cover of a book; they learn that it is called Der Kindestod (German
: 'the child's death'), a demon that absorbs the life force of sickly children, making it seem that they died of their illness. They report to Buffy by telephone, and she realises that Backer was murdered because he was curing the children and depriving the monster of food. Buffy also recognizes to her horror that this monster is what invisibly killed her cousin, whilst Buffy watched helplessly.
Buffy and Willow go to Dr. Backer's office, where they find that he was giving the children injections of the virus they already have, to stimulate their immune response. Buffy realizes that only sick people can see the demon, so she decides to infect herself with the vials of virus that the doctor was using on the children. Willow stops her, warning her that the vials are 100% pure and would kill Buffy instantly if she drinks them. Willow then dilutes the pathogen in some water so Buffy can drink it "safely". Buffy's fever rises sharply.
She stumbles to the children's ward but finds all the children are gone. They have gone to the basement to hide from Der Kindestod. After a few moments, Buffy sees Der Kindestod in the room and watches as he heads down to the basement. The door is locked, so Buffy and Willow rush to find access to the basement. Dr. Wilkinson summons guards to stop them; Willow feigns insanity so that they seize her rather than Buffy, who escapes. Buffy finds Xander and he helps her down to the basement. The children hide quietly, but Der Kindestod finds them and attacks Ryan. Buffy arrives just in time and fights off Der Kindestod. Just as he is about to kill her, she snaps his neck and she leaves, leaning on Xander.
Buffy finishes her rehabilitation at home with her friends. Her mother reluctantly waits on them all. Buffy receives mail from Ryan — a drawing of Buffy triumphing over a dead monster.
After flu lands Buffy in the hospital, she rescues fevered children from Der Kindestod, a demon that turns out to have killed her cousin when she was younger and which gave her a phobia of hospitals.
Plot synopsis
Weak with flu but reluctant to stay at home, BuffyBuffy Summers
Buffy Summers is a fictional character from Joss Whedon's Buffy the Vampire Slayer franchise. She first appeared in the 1992 film Buffy the Vampire Slayer before going on to appear in the television series and subsequent comic book of the same name...
patrols the cemetery. Xander
Xander Harris
Alexander LaVelle "Xander" Harris is a fictional character in the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, as well as in numerous items in the series Expanded Universe, such as comic books, tie-in novels and video games...
, Willow
Willow Rosenberg
Willow Rosenberg is a fictional character created for the fantasy television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer . She was developed by Joss Whedon and portrayed throughout the TV series by Alyson Hannigan...
, and Cordelia
Cordelia Chase
Cordelia Chase is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer; she also appeared on Buffy's spin-off series Angel...
surprise her and she nearly stakes Xander. They urge her to go home, but the damage that Angelus has done so far continues to fuel her fire. Angelus appears behind her and attacks Cordelia. Buffy and Angelus fight until Angelus pins Buffy down. Willow throws a coat over his head and he is scared off by crosses that they all carry. Buffy collapses and the gang rushes her to the hospital. After being stabilized, she is admitted to the hospital for a few days against her will. Her mother reveals that Buffy has always hated hospitals ever since she saw her beloved cousin, Celia, died in one when she was eight years old.
That night, Buffy dreams of seeing a strange man follow after a young child. As she follows the man down the hall, flashbacks of her cousin's time in the hospital bring nightmares to mind. She awakes suddenly in the middle of the night and takes a walk down the hall. Two men exit the children's ward with a child that died that night. At the door, Buffy overhears an argument between Dr. Backer and Dr. Wilkinson about the doctors' experimental treatments on the kids. As she begins to leave, she encounters two children, who tell her that "Death
Death (personification)
The concept of death as a sentient entity has existed in many societies since the beginning of history. In English, Death is often given the name Grim Reaper and, from the 15th century onwards, came to be shown as a skeletal figure carrying a large scythe and clothed in a black cloak with a hood...
" comes at night.
Angelus comes to visit Buffy, with flowers; but Xander defies him, pointing out that Angelus might not be able to kill him and the armed guards. Rather than fight, Angelus gives the flowers to Xander and leaves.
The next morning, Buffy tells her friends about the conversation she overheard. The doctor was trying experimental treatments on the kids in the children's ward that Dr. Wilkinson didn't exactly agree with. Since she is forced to stay at the hospital, she plans to find out what the doctor is up to and Xander volunteers everyone's help.
That night, Cordelia and Xander sneak into the hospital's record room and search for records on the girl who died in the night. Meanwhile, Giles and Willow search for information at the school library. Cordelia flirts with a security guard to distract him while Xander escapes with the records. Once outside, Xander expresses jealousy about the flirting, while Cordelia retorts with jealousy about Xander's loyalty to Buffy.
Buffy takes a walk and finds the little boy. He is drawing a picture of the man she saw in her dream. Willow digs up information on Dr. Backer at the library with Giles. She finds that he has a long history of controversial experimental treatments and investigations into his practices.
Dr. Backer goes to the children's ward with his latest experimental treatment. Before he can do anything, the evil creature kills him. Buffy tries to stop him, but is thrown aside.
In the morning, Buffy informs everyone that Dr. Backer is not the suspect and shows them the drawing that Ryan drew of the creature. Giles and Cordelia head back to the library while Xander remains on guard against Angelus. At the library, Cordelia finds a picture of Ryan's monster on the cover of a book; they learn that it is called Der Kindestod (German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
: 'the child's death'), a demon that absorbs the life force of sickly children, making it seem that they died of their illness. They report to Buffy by telephone, and she realises that Backer was murdered because he was curing the children and depriving the monster of food. Buffy also recognizes to her horror that this monster is what invisibly killed her cousin, whilst Buffy watched helplessly.
Buffy and Willow go to Dr. Backer's office, where they find that he was giving the children injections of the virus they already have, to stimulate their immune response. Buffy realizes that only sick people can see the demon, so she decides to infect herself with the vials of virus that the doctor was using on the children. Willow stops her, warning her that the vials are 100% pure and would kill Buffy instantly if she drinks them. Willow then dilutes the pathogen in some water so Buffy can drink it "safely". Buffy's fever rises sharply.
She stumbles to the children's ward but finds all the children are gone. They have gone to the basement to hide from Der Kindestod. After a few moments, Buffy sees Der Kindestod in the room and watches as he heads down to the basement. The door is locked, so Buffy and Willow rush to find access to the basement. Dr. Wilkinson summons guards to stop them; Willow feigns insanity so that they seize her rather than Buffy, who escapes. Buffy finds Xander and he helps her down to the basement. The children hide quietly, but Der Kindestod finds them and attacks Ryan. Buffy arrives just in time and fights off Der Kindestod. Just as he is about to kill her, she snaps his neck and she leaves, leaning on Xander.
Buffy finishes her rehabilitation at home with her friends. Her mother reluctantly waits on them all. Buffy receives mail from Ryan — a drawing of Buffy triumphing over a dead monster.
Cultural references
- The title of this episode may be a reference to the song Killed by Death by the heavy metal band Motörhead.
- When Buffy reveals to the Scooby Gang that she may have seen some kind of avatar of Death, Xander jokingly warns her not to take it on in a game of chess, this most likely being a reference to The Seventh SealThe Seventh SealThe Seventh Seal is a 1957 Swedish film written and directed by Ingmar Bergman. Set during the Black Death, it tells of the journey of a medieval knight and a game of chess he plays with the personification of Death , who has come to take his life. Bergman developed the film from his own play...
, or possibly Bill & Ted's Bogus JourneyBill & Ted's Bogus JourneyBill & Ted's Bogus Journey is a 1991 American science fiction comedy film, and the directing debut of Peter Hewitt. It is the second film in the Bill & Ted franchise, and a sequel to Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure . Keanu Reeves, Alex Winter and George Carlin reprise their respective roles...
. - When Xander says 'If I see a floating pipe and a smoking jacket, he's dropped!' he is referencing The Invisible Man (film).