Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Lie to Me

Lie to Me
Season 2, Episode 7
Airdate	November 3, 1997
Production Number	5V07
Written by	Joss Whedon
Directed by	Joss Whedon
← 2x06 Halloween	2x08 → The Dark Age
Buffy the Vampire Slayer — Season Two

Lie to Me is the seventh episode of the second season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and the nineteenth episode overall.

Sarah Michelle Gellar (Buffy Summers), Nicholas Brendon (Xander Harris), Alyson Hannigan (Willow Rosenberg), Charisma Carpenter (Cordelia Chase), David Boreanaz (Angel)

and Anthony Stewart Head (Giles)

Guest Starring: Robia La Morte (Jenny Calendar), James Marsters (Spike), Jason Behr (Billy "Ford" Fordham), Jarrad Paul (Diego), Juliet Landau (Drusilla)

Co-Starring: Will Rothhaar (James), Julia Lee (Chanterelle)

Uncredited: Julie Michaels (Julia), Todd McIntosh (Sunset Club Greeter)

Plot Overview

Buffy is visited by Ford, an old friend from her old high school. While she is relieved that she doesn't have to hide her Slayer identity from him, a jealous Angel, along with Willow and Xander, discover that Ford is himself hiding something from Buffy.

Notes

Monster of the Week

The Sunset Club is a cult made-up of regular people who are obsessed with becoming vampires. However, most of the members are apparently just goth or industrial types who are infatuated with the idea of vampirism. A select few, Billy Fordham included, however either know that vampires exist or are willing to believe that they do. The club romanticizes vampires into "creatures above us" based mainly on what they've gleaned from popular culture.

Angel considers the club to be dangerous and is a side-effect to "children" making up stories about friendly vampires to make themselves feel secure in the dark. He also remarks that he's seen similar instances of vampire cults over time and believes that they're all more or less the same. This particular club is disbanded when all of the members nearly wind up as food for the vampires.

Body Count

#	Whom	By Whom	How	Where
1	Vampire	Buffy	Staked	The Bronze
2	Vampire	Buffy	Staked	Sunnydale High
3	Ford	Spike	Sired	Sunset Club
4	Ford	Buffy	Staked	Cemetery

Music

• Creaming Jesus - "Reptile"

• Shawn Clement & Sean Murry - "Blood of a Stranger"

• The Sisters of Mercy - "Never Land"

• Willoughby - "Lois on the Brink"

Arc Advancement

Happenings

• Prophecy: One of the vampires that serves under Spike steals a book for him out of Giles' library. Spike comments on how useful the book is, but he doesn't mention any of the details of why it's useful or what exactly it is.

Characters

• Drusilla: Angel levels with Buffy and tells her about Drusilla, namely his history with her. As a young vampire, Angel became obsessed with her innocence and piety. He killed everyone she loved in an effort to drive her insane and sent her into the arms of a nunnery. On the day before she took her Holy Orders, he turned her into a vampire.

Referbacks

• 2x03 - School Hard: As mentioned in their first appearance, Drusilla and Spike were run out of Prague. What wasn't known is that she was thought killed by an angry mob and that's why they fled. The reason why she's so weak now is because she was badly injured by the mob.

Trivia

The Show

• Timeline: If sunset was at 6:27PM, as Ford said, then this episode would have to take place in early-to-mid October. But, considering that the previous episode took place on October 31, 1997, that would be impossible.

• Cameo: The Sunset Club member who says "Hi" to Xander and Willow, the one lying upright in a coffin, is actually the show's make-up supervisor, Todd McIntosh.

Behind the Scenes

• International: Buffy the Vampire Slayer has been dubbed into many different languages and the title translated for each different international version. Some international translations of this episode's title are:
  • French: "Mensonges" ("Lies")
  • Italian: "La verità fa male" ("The Truth Hurts")
  • German: "Todessehnsucht" ("Death Wish")
  • Japanese: "ウソつき" ("Usotsuki" - "Liar")
  • Portuguese: "Mente-me" {"Lie to Me")

Allusions and References

• Dracula: The move that Ford quotes lines from as it's playing in the background is the 1973 telefilm adaptation of Dracula (1973), starring Jack Palance as the titular character. The film was notably directed by Dark Shadows creator Dan Curtis. Dark Shadows was a supernatural soap opera that prominently featured vampires.

Quotes

• Cordelia:' And I know the peasants were all depressed...

Xander: I think you mean oppressed.

Cordelia: Whatever. They were cranky.

• Xander: (mocking Buffy) "This is Ford, my bestest friend of all my friends!" Jeez, doesn't she know any fat guys?

• Buffy: So. What'd you do last night?

Angel: Nothin'.

Buffy: Nothing at all. You ceased to exist?

• Ford: Oh. I thought you were just slaying a vampire.

Buffy: What? Whating a what?

• Willow: Oh! Angel, what are you doing here?

Angel: I wanted to talk to you.

Willow: Oh, well... Well?

Angel: I can't. Unless you invite me, I can't come in.

Willow: Oh! Well, okay, I invite you. To come in.

• Angel: I guess I need help.

Willow: Help? You mean like on homework? No, 'cause you're old and you already know stuff.

Angel: I want you to track someone down. On the 'Net.

• Giles: A book! It took one of my books!

Jenny: Well, at least someone in this school is reading.

• Ford: I want to be like you - a vampire.

Spike: I've known you for two minutes and I can't stand you. I don't really feature you living forever. (to Drusilla) Can I eat him now, love?

• Xander: Angel was in your bedroom?

Willow: Ours is a forbidden love.

• Buffy: It'd be simpler if I could just hate him. I think he wanted me to. I think it made it easier for him to be the villain of the piece. Really, he was just scared.

Giles: Yes, I suppose he was.

Buffy: Nothing's ever simple anymore. I'm constantly trying to work it out. Who to love or hate, who to trust. It's just, like, the more I know, the more confused I get.

Giles: I believe that's called growing up.

Buffy: I'd like to stop then, okay?

• Giles: You mean life?

Buffy: Yeah. Does it get easy?

Giles: What do you want me to say?

Buffy: Lie to me.

Giles: Yes, it's terribly simple. The good guys are always stalwart and true, the bad guys are easily distinguished by their pointy horns or black hats, and, uh, we always defeat them and save the day. No one ever dies, and everybody lives happily ever after.

Buffy: Liar.