This isn't the most important episode of the season. But it does introduce and clarify some things for later in show. (1) Raising the dead is against the codes of wicca magic. (2) That Doc guy knows a lot. This episode also brings Angel back to town, which is always a good thing. You could skip "Forver" and not miss much story wise, but it's still worth a look.
"Forever" revolves around Joyce's funeral. Dawn is becoming more and more sullen as Buffy and the Scoobies plan the service. She can't deal with the loss of her mother. After the funeral, Dawn asks Willow and Tara to help her bring Joyce back. Tara is horrified and tells Dawn that witches don't do things like that. It violates their codes. Willow feels bad for Dawn, though, and gives her a book that will give her information on the history of witchcraft. Meanwhile, Angel comes back to town to support Buffy. And Giles' sits alone playing to the song that he and Joyce listened to in season three's "Band Candy." (In my opinion, Giles' 15 second scene just steals the whole episode.) And at the hospital, Ben accidentally tells one of Glory's minions that the key is in human form.
Dawn begins investigating her spell. She steals from the Magic Shop and starts getting the ingredients she'll need. For instance, dirt from her mother's grave. Spike sees her. (I guess he was at Joyce's grave to pay his respects, since he'd been turned away from the house by Xander earlier in the episode.) In any case, he agrees to help Dawn get her mother back. They go to a demon guy, Doc, for more advice. He tells them that they can bring Joyce back, but there's no guarantees that she'll be "right." Dawn says that she doesn't care. After stealing a demon egg, Spike and Dawn split up. She preforms her spell just as Buffy comes home. Buffy is horrified and she and Dawn argue. But when "Joyce" knocks on the door, Buffy forgets about her earlier complaints. She rushes towards the door willing to accept any kind of mother she can get. Dawn, finally seeing how wrong she's been, stops the spell. Buffy and Dawn collapse in each arms crying and really mourning their mother for the first time.
At first, I didn't know why Spike and Willow helped Dawn in this episode. Anytime someone's trying to raise the dead in good old SunnyD, you should probably anticipate badness. Plus, it's Dawn. Not to pick on her, but seriously, has the girl EVER come up with a good idea? After seeing seasons six and seven, though, I have a better understanding of Willow and Spike's actions. Willow is starting to move beyond the recognized rules of magic. As she become more powerful, she thinks that she can push boundaries. In fact, she's not even SEEING the boundaries anymore. She thinks that she can control whatever happens. Plus, in helping Dawn she's taking the easy way out of the argument. In season six, choosing short cuts over real work and emotional effort will land Willow in hot water. This episode is one of the first examples of her confronting a difficult situation, in this case Dawn's anger and grief, with the easiest solution she can think of. I don't think that she intended for anything bad to happen. She just wanted give Dawn something to ease her pain, whether it was good for her or not.
As for Spike, if anyone in the Buffyverse should know that this is a bad idea it's him. His own experiences with his mother (Which will explored in season seven's "Lies My Parents Told Me,") his repeated insistence that magic always carries a price, his knowledge that Buffy wouldn't want her little sis bringing back their mother as a zombie... All of this SHOULD be cluing him in on the possible problems with this plan. So why does he help Dawn? He says that he just doesn't like to see Summers' women "taking it on the chin," but I think it goes deeper than that. He's always liked Joyce, has seen her a maternal figure. In bringing Joyce back, it's almost like he's trying to fix the mistakes of his past. To try again to save his own mother. It's completely illogical, but it's as if a part of him is hoping that in helping Dawn, he'll be helping himself.
On the down side, I sort of wish that Buffy and Dawn had opened the door before ending the spell. Just to check to see if Joyce really had come back. Also, couldn't we have had a scene with Spike and Angel?
My favorite part of the episode: Angel coming back to town for Joyce's funeral. It's not like he doesn't have his own problems out in LA. But he still came to support Buffy... **sigh** How can you not love him?
"Forever" revolves around Joyce's funeral. Dawn is becoming more and more sullen as Buffy and the Scoobies plan the service. She can't deal with the loss of her mother. After the funeral, Dawn asks Willow and Tara to help her bring Joyce back. Tara is horrified and tells Dawn that witches don't do things like that. It violates their codes. Willow feels bad for Dawn, though, and gives her a book that will give her information on the history of witchcraft. Meanwhile, Angel comes back to town to support Buffy. And Giles' sits alone playing to the song that he and Joyce listened to in season three's "Band Candy." (In my opinion, Giles' 15 second scene just steals the whole episode.) And at the hospital, Ben accidentally tells one of Glory's minions that the key is in human form.
Dawn begins investigating her spell. She steals from the Magic Shop and starts getting the ingredients she'll need. For instance, dirt from her mother's grave. Spike sees her. (I guess he was at Joyce's grave to pay his respects, since he'd been turned away from the house by Xander earlier in the episode.) In any case, he agrees to help Dawn get her mother back. They go to a demon guy, Doc, for more advice. He tells them that they can bring Joyce back, but there's no guarantees that she'll be "right." Dawn says that she doesn't care. After stealing a demon egg, Spike and Dawn split up. She preforms her spell just as Buffy comes home. Buffy is horrified and she and Dawn argue. But when "Joyce" knocks on the door, Buffy forgets about her earlier complaints. She rushes towards the door willing to accept any kind of mother she can get. Dawn, finally seeing how wrong she's been, stops the spell. Buffy and Dawn collapse in each arms crying and really mourning their mother for the first time.
At first, I didn't know why Spike and Willow helped Dawn in this episode. Anytime someone's trying to raise the dead in good old SunnyD, you should probably anticipate badness. Plus, it's Dawn. Not to pick on her, but seriously, has the girl EVER come up with a good idea? After seeing seasons six and seven, though, I have a better understanding of Willow and Spike's actions. Willow is starting to move beyond the recognized rules of magic. As she become more powerful, she thinks that she can push boundaries. In fact, she's not even SEEING the boundaries anymore. She thinks that she can control whatever happens. Plus, in helping Dawn she's taking the easy way out of the argument. In season six, choosing short cuts over real work and emotional effort will land Willow in hot water. This episode is one of the first examples of her confronting a difficult situation, in this case Dawn's anger and grief, with the easiest solution she can think of. I don't think that she intended for anything bad to happen. She just wanted give Dawn something to ease her pain, whether it was good for her or not.
As for Spike, if anyone in the Buffyverse should know that this is a bad idea it's him. His own experiences with his mother (Which will explored in season seven's "Lies My Parents Told Me,") his repeated insistence that magic always carries a price, his knowledge that Buffy wouldn't want her little sis bringing back their mother as a zombie... All of this SHOULD be cluing him in on the possible problems with this plan. So why does he help Dawn? He says that he just doesn't like to see Summers' women "taking it on the chin," but I think it goes deeper than that. He's always liked Joyce, has seen her a maternal figure. In bringing Joyce back, it's almost like he's trying to fix the mistakes of his past. To try again to save his own mother. It's completely illogical, but it's as if a part of him is hoping that in helping Dawn, he'll be helping himself.
On the down side, I sort of wish that Buffy and Dawn had opened the door before ending the spell. Just to check to see if Joyce really had come back. Also, couldn't we have had a scene with Spike and Angel?
My favorite part of the episode: Angel coming back to town for Joyce's funeral. It's not like he doesn't have his own problems out in LA. But he still came to support Buffy... **sigh** How can you not love him?
