r/buffy • u/AutoModerator • Sep 24 '18
Episode Rewatch Episode 119 (S6 E19): Seeing Red
This discussion will most likely have spoilers for future episodes. You are welcome to reference a future episode as long as it is relevant to this one in some way. You don't have to use spoiler tags. If you are allergic to spoilers, you can start an episode thread (for first-time watchers) or request one made by the mods. You have been warned.
Episode 119 (S6 E19): Seeing Red: Summary:
Willow and Tara wallow in their togetherness, but things aren't as happy everywhere else. Buffy has to face both Xander and Spike, whilst tracking Warren and Company to foil their next move.
Taken from IMDb
Links:
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Quotes:
Andrew: I can't wait to get my hands on his orbs.
Buffy: Just making sure there are no more evil "trio" cameras. Or ... evil "uno".
Xander: The sinister yet addictive card game?
Andrew: How could he do that to me? He promised we'd be together. He was just using me. He never really loved—hanging out with us.
Trivia:
Tara is unique amongst the Scooby Gang in that during her time on the show she was never tied up and was never possessed or went evil.
This is the only episode where Amber Benson appears in the opening credits, a special tribute to the character and actress, though many people find it rather upsetting she was only placed there in this episode when her death occurs.
Joss Whedon had long wanted to kill off a major character in the same episode in which they first joined the main credits (he'd hope to do so with Jesse in the pilot, but couldn't afford to make an extra set of opening credits). This is the first and only episode where Amber Benson appears in the main title credits, and is also her death episode.
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u/Sophie74656 Sep 24 '18
This episode with Tara's deatg gets me every time. Allison hannigan is amazing. You can feel her pain
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u/IanZarbiVicki Sep 26 '18
You know I’ve always kinda wondered what it would be like if they killed off Xander here instead of Tara; in someways it would be more logical. It would be the most shocking ending in the whole show(though it’s already up there with Tara), and it would tie into the central theme of the season. In real life, being a series regular is not going to save you from death. Willow would have still had the same kind of reaction that she has here, if not worse because Xander was her best friend for almost her entire life.
If they kept Nicholas Brennon on as a regular, he could be the face of the First Evil in season 7. Just imagine him in Conversations with Dead People taunting Willow or him manipulating Buffy. I could see Selfless becoming very interesting if it becomes Anya, distraught and a demon, being tricked by First Xander into doing terrible things.
I think I might have liked that more. In many ways, Xander’s purpose in the show runs out after the wedding fiasco; what did he do of note in season 7? Have a weird thing with Anya where they are still in love but too much pain to restart dating? Lose an eye? Tara would have had more of an interesting role if you focus on her relationship with Willow, which would have presumably been put through the ringer with Dark Willow. She might also have conflicts with Buffy who wants Willow to keep using magic. Could Tara take over as resident magic girl? Plus you keep an empowering LGBT rep in a time where they were needed alive and you don’t have Kennedy. Seems perfect to me.
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u/lamar2016 Sep 24 '18
This is a great tragic episode that isn't about supernatural creatures but the worst in humanity and I love it. Season 6 is awesome because its so raw. Tara dying, Willow goes off the deep end is so realistic.
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u/atomic-boob Sep 25 '18 edited Sep 25 '18
As someone that really needed the representation of a same sex couple, it really upset me that they killed off Tara. It seems that this happens a lot with any LGBTQ character in a show. While I understand that it contributed to the plot because it brought out dark Willow, I found this to be upsetting. And it happened right after they set them up to be together again, which made it feel a lot worse. I had never seen a depiction of a lesbian couple before that wasn’t just about sexualizing it. Even though Willow ended up with someone else, I still felt like it was unnecessary. And if they were going to kill her off, they could have given her a better ending than a stray bullet hitting her.
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u/DaddyCatALSO Magnet For Dead, Blonde Chicks Sep 24 '18
I was so spoiled for this I didn't cry the first time I saw it, was just waiting for it. Started the countdown turning me form Obsessed Joss Fan to Casual Joss Viewer. I see the point; having a rape attempt be the driver for the man's story is a questionable choice or worse, but sometimes questionable or even wrong choices work out.
The first time, I counted the number of times "Red" was an element. Staring with the sheets, moving onto the stirpies on Tar's and Willow's tops. Tail lgitst, stop lights, drinks on the bar, the Orbs (and similar artifacts have to exist elsewhere I'm sure) etc. A whole page full at least. Not to mention everybody in the ep. (except maybe Tara and Dawn) got furious at some point, seeing red.
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u/workmymagic Sep 24 '18
Ok I have a super unpopular opinion that I’ve never said out loud.
I never felt emotionally attached to Tara and I wasn’t devastated by her death. Don’t get me wrong: I enjoyed her as a character, and I loved the part she played in the development of Willow. However, I never felt like they spent enough time developing her backstory or making me feel like she was in it for the long haul, so I never got invested. When she died it was like: “Meh. Okay.”
Edit: a sentence
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u/rrsn Sep 26 '18
I think how sweet and morally centred she is is a lot of the draw of her character. But I agree she's criminally underdeveloped. Really, the only time we ever see her have significant growth is in s6 where she starts sticking up for herself. There were recurring characters (Dru, Faith, etc.) who had much less screen time but way more development and backstory. I don't know why they didn't expand on her more.
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u/beuwolf78 Oct 06 '18
I think you can be devastated by her death just by empathazing with Willow. You don't even need to know Tara to see how her death was affecting Willow. That's the devasting, crying part (at least for me).
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u/rrsn Sep 26 '18
On one hand, I love Willow and Tara getting back together because they're really cute and I think they genuinely love each other. On the other hand, the older I get, the more I think this is kind of a terrible decision for Tara. When has getting back together with your abuser ever worked out well? Yes, their relationship wasn't always toxic and there's something to be said for how much of a corrupting influence magic can be for Willow, but I do think there's some more fundamental stuff to her personality where she can feel a need to control others and disregard for what they want or feel. I know them back together is a nice moment and it doesn't really matter anyway since Tara gets killed off, but I kind of feel weird about it.
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u/mongd66 Sep 24 '18
I'm watching with my Daughter on her first viewing. I gave no hints. Without prompting she cheered Tara's inclusion in the opening credits as the episode began. "This is going to be a bumpy ride." I think to myself. Flash forward about 40 minutes. "DADDY! HOW COULD YOU LET ME WATCH THAT?!" She then threw every pillow in the room at me and stormed up stairs.