The Puppet Show
Written by: Dean Batali & Rob Des Hotel
Directed by: Ellen S. Pressman
Cast : Sarah Michelle Gellar as Buffy Summers, Nicholas Brendon as Xander Harris, Alyson Hannigan as Willow Rosenberg, Charisma Carpenter as Cordelia Chase, Anthony Stewart Head as Rupert Giles.
Guest stars : Kristine Sutherland as Joyce Summers, Armin Shimerman as Principal Snyder, Richard Werner as Morgan, Burke Roberts as Marc, Tom Wyner as Sid¹s voice, Krissy Carlson as Emily.
Original broadcast date : May 5, 1997
Giles is sitting in the auditorium, unwillingly directing a rehearsal of the talent show that the new school principal, Mr. Snyder, has imposed on him. Buffy, Xander and Willow have fun teasing him about it, until Principal Snyder orders them to be in the show. The smiles quickly fall.
The rehearsals turn to tragedy when a participant, Emily, is found dead with her heart removed. The gang suspects a serial killer at work, but Giles mentions to Buffy the existence of a group of demons called the Brotherhood of Seven In order to remain in their human form, these demons must take a young human¹s heart and brain every seven years. As the Scoobies try to quickly find the murderer before there are other victims, everyone suspects Morgan the ventriloquist, a weird student who seems to possessively guard his wooden dummy and talks to it, and with it, even in class. When Buffy questions him about the murder, he gets a splitting headache, which rises more suspicion.
That night, Buffy is jolted awake by a visit in her room by Sid, the dummy. But when she turns on the light, he¹s gone. The next day, Morgan is found dead at school, with his brain ripped out. Buffy suspects Morgan’s dummy Sid, and goes to look for him. But he attacks her and traps her, having mistaken her for a demon. Sid explains that he¹s a demon hunter, imprisoned in the dummy¹s body while he was hunting down the Brotherhood of Seven.
As they team up, they find Morgan¹s brain on a catwalk: it¹s been discarded by the demon. Willow finds out in Morgan¹s record that he had brain cancer, which means that the demon still needs a healthy brain. Meanwhile, an unsuspecting Giles is helping another student, Marc, with his latest talent show trick: a guillotine. Marc straps Giles into it, obviously trying to obtain a brain the hard way. Buffy arrives and saves Giles, while Sid kills Marc. Just at that moment the curtain opens, revealing the gang the scene. “ I don’t get it,” says a confused Principal Synder.
Which doesn¹t mean that Buffy, Willow, and Xander are off the hook. The next scene shows them badly acting out Oedipus Rex, quite nervous and stiff. When Willow buckles under the pressure and runs off, Buffy and Xander skittle closer together to fill the gap and continue as if nothing had happened.
Summary by OttsFiveByFive.
Episode Ratings
Mac -
“If I were a puppet, I’d want to be Sid. Hillarious episode, with the extra ending being one of the Buffy classic moments.”
DJ Angelus -
“Very funny episode.”
Quotes
(B=Buffy, G=Giles, X=Xander, W=Willow, C=Cordelia, S=Sid, PS= Principal Snyder)
G: Oh. You three.
G: …Our new fuhrer, Mr. Snyder.
W: I think they call them Principals now.
G: He thought it would behoove me to have more contact with the students. I did try to explain that my vocational choice of librarian was a deliberate attempt to minimize said contact…
B: Giles, to every generation is born one who must run the annual talentless show. You cannot escape your destiny.
G: If you had any shred of decency, you would have participated, or at least helped.
B: Nah! I think I’ll take on your traditional role, and watch.
X: And mock.
W: And laugh.
PS: My predecessor, Mr. Flutie, may have gone in for that touchy- feely relating nonsense, but he was eaten. You’re in my world now. And Sunnydale has touched and felt for the last time.
PS: I know the three of you will come up with a wonderful act for the school to watch… and mock… and laugh. At.
W: I think dummies are cute. You don’t?
B: Eww. They give me the wig. Ever since I was little.
W: What happened?
B: I saw a dummy, it gave me the wig. There really wasn’t a story there.
S: You call those jokes? My jockey shorts are made out of better material. And they’re edible.
X: I have my pride. Okay, so I don’t have a *lot* of my pride, but I have enough so that I can’t do this.
B: What am I gonna do, slay vampires on stage?
W: Maybe in a funny way.
X: What ever happened to corporal punishment?
S: How about you and I do a little rehearsing on our own, honey? You know what they say: Once you go wood, nothing’s as good.
B: You might want to consider getting some new shtick, unless you want your prop ending up as a duraflame log.
PS: That’s the kind of wooly-headed liberal thinking that leads to being eaten.
G: Her heart was removed.
W: Yikes!
B: Does that mean anything to you besides, “oohh!” *shudders*
W: The creep factor is also heightened. It could be anyone. It could be me. *pause* It’s not, though.
C: All I can think is, “It could have been me.”
X: We can dream.
PS: There are things I will not tolerate: Student’s loitering on campus after school, horrible murders with hearts being removed, and also smoking.
B: I’m not just some crazy person. I’m the Slayer.
X: The dummy slayer?
W: Once again I’m banished to the demon section of the card catalog.
B: Whoever’s out there, I’m going to hurt you! Badly! If you’ll just give me a minute.
S: Lets just say there was me, there was a really mean demon, there was a curse, and the next thing I know, I’m not me any more. I’m sitting on some guy’s knee, with his hand up my shirt.
S: Look at you, you’re strong, athletic, limber… nubile… I’m back.
B: So that horny dummy thing really isn’t an act, is it?
S: Nope.
B: Yuck.
X: So the dummy tells us that he’s a demon hunter, and we’re, like, fine, la la la la. He takes off, and now there’s a brain. Does anyone else feel like they’ve been Keyser Soze’d?
B: This means whatever’s out there still needs a healthy, intelligent brain.
X: In other words, I’m safe!
G: I must say, all of you, your t- timing is impeccable.
PS: I don’t get it. What is it, avant-garde?
X: Madness, and… madness, and stabbing pain…