"Tough Love"
On the first day of May in our world, we find Buffy Summers withdrawing from
classes in hers. I won't ask too much. For we all know, it's to take care of
young Dawn, even if the Slayer really did enjoy that poetry class. Fret not, for
Buffy claims she hopes to return next semester. Just a thought, but I'm not real
concerned. Unruly fornication with promiscuous frat boys never really came up as
much as I had hoped . . . err, expected.
Our good friend Ben arrives at work to find he has been replaced. How can
this be, you ask? Well, it turns out Ben has been absent from duty for nearly
two weeks. In his locker room area, Ben yells at nobody in particular, though
I'll go out on a limb and guess he's expecting Glory to be listening. Ben goes
into that crazy little paranoia we've seen him do before, reassuring himself,
"I'm Ben. I'm Ben." We see his hand morph, and suddenly we're looking
at Glory. "I'm hungry," she says.
Glory takes a bubble bath with her minions kneeling tubside and wearing
blindfolds. Glory still seems a little bitter about her boys wasting her
time with Spike, so she asks for her mimosa (I thought gods had better taste,
but maybe it's Dom Perignon or something) before demanding them to tell her
everything they saw. This way, she'll sort out the mess herself.
Back at the happy Summers' residence, Buffy scolds Dawn for not attending
school. This scene leads to a visit with the principal, who says that Dawn is a
talented, blah, blah, blah – you've been in a principal's office with your
parents before, haven't you? Dawn is asked to leave the room, presumably so the
principal can lecture Buffy even more.
At the Magic Box, Anya gives a long speech about patriotism, applying the
store and its customers to the economy and American way. Buffy and Dawn arrive,
where the "suddenly oversensitive nice guy of late" Xander gives his
support to Buffy on dropping out.
Buffy talks to Giles in private about how both Summers girls seem to be
messing up. Buffy asks Giles if he'd be willing to be the authority figure in
the girls' lives. Instead, Giles reassures Buffy that she can be an adult. The
Slayer does her best to convince herself of the same, re-entering the shop to
find Dawn horsing around with Willow and Xander. Buffy orders Dawn to get her
books together so she can study at home. Willow passes it off as learning
geometry physically or something, but Buffy refuses to back down. Willow asks
Buff not to be so stern with Dawn, but the Slayer explains she's been very
stressed out lately. Willow kindly invites her friend to tag along with Tara and
herself as they visit the "World Culture Fair." Buffy passes (I
couldn't imagine why), telling Willow not to worry. "It's not like I don't
have a life. I do. I have Dawn's life."
"So it's her!" Glory says in delight, while speaking to her
minions. "Under our nose all this time!" Glory and her minions go out
to collect the key, though I think with three episodes left, the big showdown is
still yet to come.
Willow and Tara discuss Buffy being hard on Dawn. Willow's point of view is
that Dawn will only become more rebellious by these means. Tara applies this
scenario to herself, saying that after her mother died, rules and discipline
were what she needed. Somehow, this turns into a conversation about witchcraft
and acting important before becoming a lover's quarrel. Tara says how she's
worried by how Willow is changing all the time and so fast. Willow, assuming
this as Tara believing her lesbian tendencies are just a college phase (if so,
when does this phase hit Buffy and Anya?), is deeply hurt and decides to leave.
Sounding like as much of an adult figure as she can, Buffy talks to Dawn
about forming some kind of homework schedule. Dawn says she just wants a normal
life, asking why she should care about any of this. "Because they'll take
you away," Buffy says, "From me." That's what the principal told
her when Dawn left the room – that Buffy would be seen as unfit to be a legal
guardian. Dawn is curious as to where she'd end up. Buffy says maybe dad
(wouldn't that be interesting) or foster care. Either way, she didn't really
ask. "You could've told me that," Dawn says. Buffy stops folding
towels. "I just did."
