The Initiative (Buffy episode)
Encyclopedia
"The Initiative" is the seventh episode of season 4 of the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Written by Doug Petrie
Doug Petrie
Doug Petrie is an American screenwriter, director, and producer. Best known as a writer, director, and co-executive producer on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. He co-wrote the screenplays for the Fantastic Four film and Harriet the Spy. He has also written for the television shows Angel, The 4400 and Tru...

 and directed by James A. Contner
James A. Contner
James Atwater Contner is an American television and film director and cinematographer. His work includes episodes of such television series as Miami Vice, Angel, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly and Star Trek: Enterprise...

, it originally aired on November 16, 1999 on the WB network
The WB Television Network
The WB Television Network is a former television network in the United States that was launched on January 11, 1995 as a joint venture between Warner Bros. and Tribune Broadcasting. On January 24, 2006, CBS Corporation and Warner Bros...

. In "The Initiative", Spike is imprisoned in an underground demon-research facility, and Riley realizes he has a crush on Buffy.

Plot

Riley
Riley Finn
Riley Finn is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Portrayed by Marc Blucas, Riley was introduced in the 1999 season four premiere episode, "The Freshman", and Blucas was part of the series credited cast for the second part of season four...

 and a couple of friends, Forest and Graham, watch Buffy
Buffy 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...

 as she manages to make a mess of the soda machine and yogurt machine. They comment on what a catch she is, and how interested they all are, but Riley is reluctant to make fun.

Giles
Rupert Giles
Rupert Giles is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The character is portrayed by Anthony Stewart Head. He serves as Buffy Summers' mentor and surrogate father figure...

 and 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...

 discover the commando guys are human and that their help will not be needed, again. Buffy arrives and while Giles tells her to patrol, she says she's going to party with 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 hopefully cheer her up.

Spike, having been knocked out by a Taser
Taser
A Taser is an electroshock weapon that uses electrical current to disrupt voluntary control of muscles. Its manufacturer, Taser International, calls the effects "neuromuscular incapacitation" and the devices' mechanism "Electro-Muscular Disruption technology"...

 at the beginning of the previous episode, wakes up in a facility where various types of demons are held captive behind electrically charged barriers. A packet of blood drops from the ceiling into Spike's cell but before he drinks it, a vampire in the next cell - Tom, captured in "The Freshman" - warns him that doctors starve the vampires and then feed them drugged blood before doing experiments on them. Spike is quick to blame the Slayer for his misfortune.

In class, Willow asks about Oz but Riley says he dropped out. After Willow tries to tell him that Oz will return, Professor Walsh
Maggie Walsh
Professor Maggie Walsh is a fictional character in the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The character is portrayed by Lindsay Crouse.-History:...

 informs her that he won't be back to her class, whereupon Willow abruptly leaves, saddened. Buffy approaches the professor, and tells her off, prompting Walsh to comment to Riley that she likes her.

Forrest asks Parker about Buffy, and when Parker vulgarly brags about having sex with her, Riley punches him. Riley then realizes he likes Buffy. He visits Willow and asks her advice in wooing Buffy; Willow, still emotionally distressed, questions his motives, but eventually relents, listing some of Buffy's likes and interests.

Spike lies on the floor of his cell, pretending to have drunk the drugged blood, and when the doctors come to get him he attacks. He escapes the Initiative and returns to Harmony
Harmony Kendall
Harmony Kendall is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spin-off Angel. The character is portrayed by Mercedes McNab...

's lair, telling her he's "back for good" - then immediately leaves to kill the Slayer. Xander later discovers Harmony crying, burning some of Spike's things. The two get into an inept slap-fight, and then mutually agree to stop. Harmony lets Xander know that Spike is back.

At the party, Willow tries to help Riley flirt with Buffy, but his attempts are thwarted when Xander arrives to inform Buffy that Spike has returned. Riley is also called away; he and Forest break away from the party and, after passing through several electronic checkpoints, go down a hidden elevator to the underground facility where Spike had been held. The operation's head, Professor Walsh, informs them that "Hostile 17" (Spike) has escaped, and the guys suit up. Riley gives orders to three teams that he sends out all over Sunnydale to find Spike.

Riley's team spot Buffy sitting on a bench. Riley refuses to allow the team to use her as bait and goes out to get rid of her. Each unaware of the other's secret identity, Riley and Buffy try to send each other out of harm's way.

Meanwhile, Spike has found Buffy's dorm through the school computer system. Willow, moping in her room, hears a knock on the door and invites the person in without thinking. Spike swaggers through the door and attempts to bite Willow, but is stopped by an intense pain in his head. After a short, calm dialogue with multiple metaphorical references to impotence (ex: "I know I'm not the kind of girl vamps like to sink their teeth into. It's always like 'Ooh, you're like a sister to me,' or 'Oh, you're such a good friend.'" "Don't be ridiculous. I'd bite you in a heartbeat."), Willow hits him with a lamp and runs out just as Riley and friends cut the power and then work their way up to the dorm room. They capture Spike but, while they consider whether to take Willow or not, Spike breaks free. Buffy arrives and fights Riley and his friends while Spike manages to escape through a window. Unable to make out the identity of their attacker, Riley orders them to retreat.

Professor Walsh is not happy with what happened or with Riley's report on the event. It is revealed that Spike cannot harm a human without feeling pain in his head thanks to an implant they placed there. Riley catches up with Buffy and they talk. Buffy tells him he's a little peculiar, which he says he can live with.

Production details

The vast set for the Initiative, revealed for the first time in this episode, was filmed at a Skunk Works
Skunk works
Skunk Works is an official alias for Lockheed Martin’s Advanced Development Programs , formerly called Lockheed Advanced Development Projects. Skunk Works is responsible for a number of famous aircraft designs, including the U-2, the SR-71 Blackbird, the F-117 Nighthawk, and the F-22 Raptor...

 facility, in a location where stealth aircraft have previously been manufactured. When describing the set, writer Doug Petrie
Doug Petrie
Doug Petrie is an American screenwriter, director, and producer. Best known as a writer, director, and co-executive producer on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. He co-wrote the screenplays for the Fantastic Four film and Harriet the Spy. He has also written for the television shows Angel, The 4400 and Tru...

 said he was told by Whedon to "go big. Use your imagination. Do it, go there. This is a big budget movie."

In the commentary for this episode, Douglas Petrie reveals that after Spike attacks Willow in her dorm room and the scene immediately cuts to commercial after a fleeting glimpse of the corridor outside with people who fail to hear Willow's screams, he wanted viewers to believe that Willow had actually been killed.

Actress Mercedes McNab says the hair-pulling, shin-kicking fight with Xander was "actually one of my favorite on-screen fights." When asked if she had a stunt double, she responded "No, it was all me", but "we wore knee pads and shin guards... which was kind of ridiculous seeing it was just such a cheesy fight."

Cultural references

  • Both Spike and Riley saying that they 'Had to see about a girl' may be a reference to the final line of Good Will Hunting
    Good Will Hunting
    Good Will Hunting is a 1997 drama film directed by Gus Van Sant and starring Matt Damon, Robin Williams, Ben Affleck, Minnie Driver, and Stellan Skarsgård...

    .

  • When Xander sees Harmony burning Spike's belongings, one of the items is a Sex Pistols
    Sex Pistols
    The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band that formed in London in 1975. They were responsible for initiating the punk movement in the United Kingdom and inspiring many later punk and alternative rock musicians...

     CD.

  • Buffy, holding a flare gun, imitates the "Dodge this" scene from The Matrix
    The Matrix
    The Matrix is a 1999 science fiction-action film written and directed by Larry and Andy Wachowski, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Joe Pantoliano, and Hugo Weaving...

    , which was released earlier that year.

  • While Buffy & Riley are talking in the park, she says, "Who died and made you John Wayne
    John Wayne
    Marion Mitchell Morrison , better known by his stage name John Wayne, was an American film actor, director and producer. He epitomized rugged masculinity and became an enduring American icon. He is famous for his distinctive calm voice, walk, and height...

    ?"

Continuity

  • While captive, Spike asks a fellow prisoner who their captors are, specifically asking if "the government" or "the Nazis" are involved. It is later revealed in "Why We Fight" that during World War II
    World War II
    World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

     Spike was captured by Nazis who intended to make an army of vampire slaves to win the war. Ironically, in that same episode, Spike claimed, "I'm not getting experimented on by his (the American) government."

Arc significance

  • The existence of the Initiative is established.
  • This episode marks the first of many references to Spike as a neutered animal, or an impotent man, now that he has the Initiative-installed inhibitor chip in his brain. Willow tries to comfort Spike after he tries unsuccessfully to bite her, telling him they could "try again in half an hour."
  • This episode marks the second time that Willow sits next to a distraught Spike on a bed and tries to comfort him; the first time is when Spike returns to Sunnydale in Season 3
    Lovers Walk
    "Lovers Walk" is episode 8 of season 3 of the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Sound Editing in a Series.- Plot synopsis :...

     and kidnaps her to perform a love spell. He threatens and menaces her, but then sits next to her and they discuss the pain of his breakup.
  • With this episode, James Marsters (Spike) replaces Seth Green (Oz) in the opening credits.
  • Willow's words to Riley come true in "Into the Woods", where Riley leaves Sunnydale and Buffy.
  • Oz's full name, Daniel Osborne, is mentioned for the first and only time.
  • This episode marks the first appearance of Forest and Graham, Riley's teammates in the Initiative, and the final appearance of Parker Abrams.

Trivia

  • Although Spike's chip is implanted at the time, he fights three of the Initiative soldiers while escaping from the containment cells.
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