Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Dirty Girls

Dirty Girls
Season 7, Episode 18
Airdate	April 15, 2003
Production Number	7ABB18
Written by	Drew Goddard
Directed by	Michael Gershman
← 7x17 Lies My Parents Told Me	7x19 → Empty Places
Buffy the Vampire Slayer — Season Seven

Dirty Girls is the eighteenth episode of the seventh season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and the one-hundred and fortieth episode overall.

Sarah Michelle Gellar (Buffy Summers), Nicholas Brendon (Xander Harris), Emma Caulfield (Anya), Michelle Trachtenberg (Dawn Summers), James Marsters (Spike)

and Alyson Hannigan (Willow)

Special Guest Star: Anthony Stewart Head (Rupert Giles), Eliza Dushku (Faith), Nathan Fillion (Caleb)

Guest Starring: Tom Lenk (Andrew Wells), Iyari Limon (Kennedy), Indigo (Rona), Clara Bryant (Molly), Sarah Hagan (Amanda), Kristy Wu (Chao-Ahn)

and DB Woodside (Principal Wood)

Co-Starring: Mary Wilcher (Shannon), Dania Ramirez (Caridad), Rachel Bilson (Colleen), Carrie Southworth (Betty), Christie Abbott (Helpless Girl)

Plot Overview

Willow returns from L.A. with Faith in tow. Their arrival coincides with the emergence of a powerful ally to the First.

Notes

Monster of the Week

• There's no monster of the week in this episode, excluding Caleb who has emerged as a kind of co-big bad.

Body Count

#	Whom	By Whom	How	Where
1	Vampire	Faith	Staked	Graveyard
2	Diane	Caleb	Snapped Neck	Vineyard
3	Molly	Caleb	Stabbed	Vineyard

Arc Advancement

Happenings

• The First: The First's right hand man makes his first appearance in this episode. It is revealed that he is the one who was responsible for blowing up the Watchers Council and for bringing together the bringers.

Characters

• Buffy: Buffy is fired from her job at Sunnydale High because all of the students are leaving.

• Faith: Faith returns to Sunnydale after a long stint in prison. She previously appeared in Angel before coming back to Buffy.

• Xander: Xander's left eye is gouged out by Caleb.

Referbacks

• 4x15 - This Year's Girl: Faith refers to the long time she spent in a coma after the events of the Mayor's ascension. She awoke from her coma after eight months in the fourth season.

Faith: Spent way too much time in hospitals. We don't click.

• 7x16 - Storyteller: Buffy told Andrew to stop telling stories during the episode which he spent attempting to capture Buffy's attempt to save the world on video. He seemed to obey her request at the end when he turned the camera off without finishing his confession about killing Jonathan.

Molly: I thought you weren't supposed to be doing this anymore—making up stories.

• 7x09 - Never Leave Me: Caleb references the explosion that took out the entire Watchers Council in England. He takes credit for causing it.

• 4x16 - Who Are You?: Faith references the time when she and Buffy switched bodies and, using Buffy's body, she taunted Spike at the Bronze.

Faith: Not in the graveyard. Before that. I was kinda wearing a different body.

• 7x12 - Potential: Dawn tells Xander at the end of the episode that he was the one who sees things. This could possibly have been foreshadowing to this episode when Xander's eye was gouged out. Another possible foreshadowing moment occurred in "Same Time, Same Place" when he reacted in horror to Buffy gouging out Gnarl's eyes with her thumbs.

Caleb: You're the one who sees everything, aren't you?

Trivia

The Show

• Angel Crossover: Willow went to Los Angeles in "Orpheus", where she met Faith and filled her in on the details of the First and all the slayer killing. There are a few references to the story arc that was running in Angel. She also makes mention of a Bringer that attacked her in prison in the episode "Salvage" and her willingness to go to jail for her crimes in "Sanctuary".

• Foreshadowing: In his speech in this episode on where to attack what the potentials may face, Xander says to always go for the eyes because everything has eyes. This is likely foreshadowing for his eye gouging affair with Caleb.

Behind the Scenes

• Uncredited: The teaser for this episode (the scene before the credits) was actually written by Joss Whedon, who wanted to make sure to correctly set the tone of Caleb's introduction.

• Controversy: The comment that Caleb gives about drinking white wine at the Last Supper sparked some outrage with the PTC. In a statement to the press, a representative for the watchdog group said "In fact, the analyst that logs the show for us... was shaking, she was so upset about the content." The group called the show an anti-Christian bigotry that was especially offensive due to the episode first airing on Easter weekend.

• Continuity Error: Although Faith smokes in this episode, she has never smoked in any of her appearances on either Buffy or Angel. This error was noted in a magazine interview with Drew Goddard.

Allusions and References

• Vulcan: Andrew mistakenly thinks that Faith killed a Vulcan, the race of Spock, the alien science officer from the original Star Trek series. During the "flashback," you can clearly see the Vulcan attempt the Vulcan Nerve Pinch, an often used move by Spock. The Vulcan is also wearing a blue shirt, which is close to Spock's uniform.

• Glitter: Glitter was a movie starring Mariah Carey, a pop singer who gained popularity in the mid-1990s due to her relationship with Puff Daddy and her vocal range. The semi-autobiographical movie tanked at the box office and was universally panned by critics and movie-goers.

Faith: Last one was Glitter. I guess it couldn't have been worse.

• Godzilla: Amanda refers to the 1997 American remake of the classic Godzilla films made by Toei. Many devout Godzilla fans do not consider this to be a true Godzilla movie and refuse to recognize it as part of the mythos, which explains Andrew's response to Amanda's comment.

Amanda: Besides, if Matthew Broderick can kill Godzilla, how tough is he?

• Falcon Crest: Falcon Crest is a soap opera about an affluent and manipulative family who owns a vineyard. The series aired between 1981 and 1990. This falls in line with Spike's inexplicable love of soap operas like Passions.

Spike: Kind of like Falcon Crest.

• Cain and Abel: In the Bible, Cain and Abel were the sons of Adam and Eve. The story of Cain and Abel is about Cain's jealousy and his eventual murder of his brother. This is presumably a reference to when Faith was evil and tried to kill Buffy on several occasions.

Caleb: Well you're the other one. The Cain to her Abel. No offense to Cain, of course.

Quotes

• Caleb: Satan is a little man.

• Amanda: What the hell are you talking about? I thought Faith killed a volcanologist.

Andrew: Silly, silly, Amanda. Why would Faith kill a person who studies Vulcans?

• Xander: I've been through more battles with Buffy than you all can ever imagine. She's stopped everything that's ever come up against her. She's laid down her life — literally — to protect the people around her. This girl has died two times and she's still standing. You're scared? That's smart. You got questions? You should. But you doubt her motives, you think Buffy's all about the kill, then you take the little bus to battle. I've seen her heart and this time — not literally. And I'm telling you right now, she cares more about your lives than you will ever know. You gotta trust her. She's earned it.

• Caleb: So you're the Slayer. The Slayer. The strongest, the fastest, the most aflame with that most precious invention of all mankind - the notion of goodness. The Slayer must indeed be powerful.

(Caleb punches her, knocking her across the room)

Caleb: So, what else you got?

• Caleb: Now, it's a simple story. Stop me if you've heard it. I have found and truly believe that there's nothing so bad it cannot be made better with a story. And this one's got a happy ending. There once was a woman and she was foul, like all women, for Adam's rib was dirty — just like Adam himself — for what was he but human. But this woman — she was filled with darkness, despair, and why? Because she did not know. She could not see. She didn't know the good news, the glory that was coming. That'd be you. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and forever. You show up, they'll get in line. 'Cause they followed her. And all they have to do is take one more step and I'll kill them all. See? I told you it had a happy ending.