Nightmares (Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode)
Encyclopedia
"Nightmares" is the tenth episode of season 1 of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode's teleplay was written by David Greenwalt
, with a story by Joss Whedon
, and directed by Bruce Seth Green
. The episode originally aired on May 12, 1997, attracting 2.4 million viewers. When students at Sunnydale High begin experiencing aspects of their worst nightmares while awake, the Scooby Gang's investigation leads them to a young boy with a secret. However, before they can get to the bottom of things, they must face their own nightmares, which are rapidly taking over reality.
having a nightmare about going to The Master's lair and being choked by him. Her mother
shakes Buffy awake, and as Buffy wakes up, she remembers that she is excited to be spending the coming weekend with her father. Buffy confides to Willow
that she thinks she might have something to do with her parents' divorce. In a class, when the teacher asks Wendell to read from the text book, tarantula
s crawl out of it. Buffy sees a boy standing in the door way, saying that he is sorry.
The next day, as the Master explains to Collin, the Anointed One
, how wonderful he finds fear, Buffy is nervous about being picked up by her father after school, and her mother calms her down. At school, Willow and Xander
are worried about the spiders, and want to talk to Giles
about it. Giles mutters that he "got lost," seemingly in the stacks of books. Giles has no information on the spiders so the gang goes to talk to Wendell, who explains he has been having recurring spider nightmares.
In the meantime, Cordelia
lets Buffy know about a history test that Buffy has not studied for. Buffy has a hard time even finding the class, and the test is over in what feels like a moment; Buffy has not even filled in her name. She once again sees the same boy outside the classroom. As break-time begins, a girl named Laura takes a smoking break in the basement. An ugly man comes out of the shadows and says, "lucky nineteen" before assaulting Laura.
Later, Buffy and Giles interview Laura in the hospital, where they hear about "lucky nineteen." They also find the young boy from before (Billy), in a coma due to a similar attack. More nightmarish instances start to occur, starting with Xander losing his clothing while stepping through a classroom door. Giles now cannot read but he finds a picture of Billy. Buffy realizes that she had been seeing Billy at school while he was still in a coma at the hospital. Giles theorizes she might have been seeing Billy's astral projection
.
Buffy's father shows up and immediately blames her for the family's troubles, then scolds her for crying at his hurtful accusations. The Scooby Gang quickly figures out that their nightmares are coming true. Buffy finds Billy's astral body, and then they are both found by the man who assaulted Laura. Nightmares plague everyone and Buffy learns Billy has experienced some sort of punishment for poor baseball skills.
Meanwhile, Willow, Xander and Giles find Buffy's grave. Giles explains that it is his worst nightmare to let Buffy die on his watch. Buffy crawls out of the grave — a vampire. The gang decides that they must wake up Billy from his coma to stop the nightmares. In the hospital, they find Billy's astral body near Billy's comatose body. As the ugly man finds him, Buffy confronts him. After knocking him out, she encourages Billy to face him. Billy wakes up and everything is back to normal.
Billy's Little League
coach shows up, and it becomes obvious from his chatter that he is the "ugly man" who put Billy into a coma after they lost the game. He tries to run after Buffy confronts him, but is stopped by Giles and Xander and put into jail. The episode ends when Buffy and her real father leave for their weekend together.
David Greenwalt
David Greenwalt is an American screenwriter, director and producer.He was the co-executive producer of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and co-creator of its spinoff, Angel. He is also co-creator of the short-lived cult television show Profit...
, with a story by Joss Whedon
Joss Whedon
Joseph Hill "Joss" Whedon is an American screenwriter, executive producer, director, comic book writer, occasional composer and actor, founder of Mutant Enemy Productions and co-creator of Bellwether Pictures...
, and directed by Bruce Seth Green
Bruce Seth Green
Bruce Seth Green is an American television director.His credits include Knight Rider, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, Babylon 5, Buffy the Vampire Slayer , Angel, Dawson’s Creek, Gilmore Girls, Law & Order, Diagnosis Murder, Baywatch and other series.His last directorial credit...
. The episode originally aired on May 12, 1997, attracting 2.4 million viewers. When students at Sunnydale High begin experiencing aspects of their worst nightmares while awake, the Scooby Gang's investigation leads them to a young boy with a secret. However, before they can get to the bottom of things, they must face their own nightmares, which are rapidly taking over reality.
Summary
The episode begins with BuffyBuffy Summers
Buffy Summers is a fictional character from Joss Whedon's Buffy the Vampire Slayer franchise. She first appeared in the 1992 film Buffy the Vampire Slayer before going on to appear in the television series and subsequent comic book of the same name...
having a nightmare about going to The Master's lair and being choked by him. Her mother
Joyce Summers
Joyce Summers is a fictional character in the fantasy television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer . Played by Kristine Sutherland, Joyce is the mother of the main character, Buffy Summers . Joyce appears regularly from the first episode until the character's death in the fifth season episode "The...
shakes Buffy awake, and as Buffy wakes up, she remembers that she is excited to be spending the coming weekend with her father. Buffy confides to Willow
Willow Rosenberg
Willow Rosenberg is a fictional character created for the fantasy television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer . She was developed by Joss Whedon and portrayed throughout the TV series by Alyson Hannigan...
that she thinks she might have something to do with her parents' divorce. In a class, when the teacher asks Wendell to read from the text book, tarantula
Tarantula
Tarantulas comprise a group of often hairy and often very large arachnids belonging to the family Theraphosidae, of which approximately 900 species have been identified. Some members of the same Suborder may also be called "tarantulas" in the common parlance. This article will restrict itself to...
s crawl out of it. Buffy sees a boy standing in the door way, saying that he is sorry.
The next day, as the Master explains to Collin, the Anointed One
Anointed One (Buffyverse)
The Anointed One is a fictional character in the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The character is played by Andrew J. Ferchland.-Character history:...
, how wonderful he finds fear, Buffy is nervous about being picked up by her father after school, and her mother calms her down. At school, Willow and Xander
Xander Harris
Alexander LaVelle "Xander" Harris is a fictional character in the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, as well as in numerous items in the series Expanded Universe, such as comic books, tie-in novels and video games...
are worried about the spiders, and want to talk to Giles
Rupert Giles
Rupert Giles is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The character is portrayed by Anthony Stewart Head. He serves as Buffy Summers' mentor and surrogate father figure...
about it. Giles mutters that he "got lost," seemingly in the stacks of books. Giles has no information on the spiders so the gang goes to talk to Wendell, who explains he has been having recurring spider nightmares.
In the meantime, Cordelia
Cordelia Chase
Cordelia Chase is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer; she also appeared on Buffy's spin-off series Angel...
lets Buffy know about a history test that Buffy has not studied for. Buffy has a hard time even finding the class, and the test is over in what feels like a moment; Buffy has not even filled in her name. She once again sees the same boy outside the classroom. As break-time begins, a girl named Laura takes a smoking break in the basement. An ugly man comes out of the shadows and says, "lucky nineteen" before assaulting Laura.
Later, Buffy and Giles interview Laura in the hospital, where they hear about "lucky nineteen." They also find the young boy from before (Billy), in a coma due to a similar attack. More nightmarish instances start to occur, starting with Xander losing his clothing while stepping through a classroom door. Giles now cannot read but he finds a picture of Billy. Buffy realizes that she had been seeing Billy at school while he was still in a coma at the hospital. Giles theorizes she might have been seeing Billy's astral projection
Astral projection
Astral projection is an interpretation of out-of-body experience that assumes the existence of an "astral body" separate from the physical body and capable of traveling outside it...
.
Buffy's father shows up and immediately blames her for the family's troubles, then scolds her for crying at his hurtful accusations. The Scooby Gang quickly figures out that their nightmares are coming true. Buffy finds Billy's astral body, and then they are both found by the man who assaulted Laura. Nightmares plague everyone and Buffy learns Billy has experienced some sort of punishment for poor baseball skills.
Meanwhile, Willow, Xander and Giles find Buffy's grave. Giles explains that it is his worst nightmare to let Buffy die on his watch. Buffy crawls out of the grave — a vampire. The gang decides that they must wake up Billy from his coma to stop the nightmares. In the hospital, they find Billy's astral body near Billy's comatose body. As the ugly man finds him, Buffy confronts him. After knocking him out, she encourages Billy to face him. Billy wakes up and everything is back to normal.
Billy's Little League
Little League
Little League Baseball and Softball is a non-profit organization in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania, United States which organizes local youth baseball and softball leagues throughout the U.S...
coach shows up, and it becomes obvious from his chatter that he is the "ugly man" who put Billy into a coma after they lost the game. He tries to run after Buffy confronts him, but is stopped by Giles and Xander and put into jail. The episode ends when Buffy and her real father leave for their weekend together.
Production details
A line of Xander's and an exchange between Giles and Buffy was cut from the original script due to length:
Xander: Okay, despite the rat-like chill that just crawled up my spine, I'm going to say this very calmly: Helllppp...
Giles: Are you all right? You look a bit peaked.
Buffy: Hospital lighting. It does nothing for my fabulous complexion.
Giles: Are you... sleeping all right?
Buffy: I'll sleep better when we find this guy. Nothing like kicking the crap out of a bad guy to perk up my day.
Cultural references
- "Why is she so Evita-like?": Evita is a musicalMusical theatreMusical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
with music by Andrew Lloyd WebberAndrew Lloyd WebberAndrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber is an English composer of musical theatre.Lloyd Webber has achieved great popular success in musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of...
and lyrics by Tim RiceTim RiceSir Timothy Miles Bindon "Tim" Rice is an British lyricist and author.An Academy Award, Golden Globe Award, Tony Award and Grammy Award-winning lyricist, Rice is best known for his collaborations with Andrew Lloyd Webber, with whom he wrote Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Jesus...
. - The part Willow is playing on stage is Cio-Cio-San the title character of Giacomo PucciniGiacomo PucciniGiacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini was an Italian composer whose operas, including La bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly, and Turandot, are among the most frequently performed in the standard repertoire...
's opera Madama ButterflyMadama ButterflyMadama Butterfly is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. Puccini based his opera in part on the short story "Madame Butterfly" by John Luther Long, which was dramatized by David Belasco...
. - The Master's line "A dream is a wish your heart makes" is from Disney's CinderellaCinderella (1950 film)Cinderella is a 1950 American animated film produced by Walt Disney and based on the fairy tale "Cendrillon" by Charles Perrault. Twelfth in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, the film had a limited release on February 15, 1950 by RKO Radio Pictures. Directing credits go to Clyde Geronimi,...
. - Billy's line "I had the strangest dream. And you were there, and you" is a reference to the film The Wizard of OzThe Wizard of Oz (1939 film)The Wizard of Oz is a 1939 American musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed primarily by Victor Fleming. Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson and Edgar Allan Woolf received credit for the screenplay, but there were uncredited contributions by others. The lyrics for the songs...
. - Billy Palmer's name might be a reference to the character Laura Palmer from the show Twin PeaksTwin PeaksTwin Peaks is an American television serial drama created by David Lynch and Mark Frost. The series follows the investigation headed by FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper , of the murder of a popular teenager and homecoming queen, Laura Palmer...
.
Continuity
- Willow's fears of appearing on-stage were seen in the epilogue to the previous episode "The Puppet ShowThe Puppet Show"The Puppet Show" is the ninth episode of season 1 of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode was written by story editors Rob Des Hotel & Dean Batali, and directed by Ellen S. Pressman. The Scooby Gang becomes involved in the school talent show through the mechanations of new...
", are again touched on in Season Four's Restless. - Buffy's fear of being buried alive comes to pass in the episode Bargaining, part 2 when she is resurrected and awakes in her coffin.
- Buffy's tombstone shows her birthyear as 1981, contradicting both birthdates shown (in databases corrupted by a demon) in "I, Robot... You, JaneI, Robot... You, Jane"I, Robot...You, Jane" is the eighth episode of season 1 of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode was written by staff writers Ashley Gable and Thomas A. Swyden, and directed by Stephen Posey....
", two episodes previously. - Willow references this episode in "Once More With Feeling" when she sings in "I've Got A Theory": I've got a theory, some kid is dreamin' / And we're all stuck inside his wacky Broadway nightmare. Additionally, Giles mentions in this episode: "Dreams? That would be a musical comedy version of this. Nightmares. Our nightmares are coming true."
- Along with "WitchWitch (Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode)"Witch" is the third episode of the first season of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer . It serves as the show's first regular episode after the Pilot and originally aired in the United States on March 17, 1997, on The WB Television Network...
", "The Puppet ShowThe Puppet Show"The Puppet Show" is the ninth episode of season 1 of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode was written by story editors Rob Des Hotel & Dean Batali, and directed by Ellen S. Pressman. The Scooby Gang becomes involved in the school talent show through the mechanations of new...
" and "Inca Mummy Girl", this is one of only four Buffyverse episodes in which Cordelia appears but Angel does not. - We learn that GilesRupert GilesRupert Giles is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The character is portrayed by Anthony Stewart Head. He serves as Buffy Summers' mentor and surrogate father figure...
can read five languages - "on a normal day".
Arc significance
- This is the first appearance of Buffy's father, Hank Summers, who appears and is mentioned only occasionally throughout the series.
- This is the first time that Buffy and the Master have met face to face. Buffy could recognize the Master from her mystically prophetic dreams but the Master had never seen Buffy before (and accordingly comments on her appearance).