Doomed (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)

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"Doomed" is the 11th episode of season 4 of the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Plot[]

The morning after Buffy found out about Riley's role in the Initiative, Riley tells her that as much as he wants to tell her who he really is, he cannot, but Buffy is able to guess based on the evidence of the past several weeks. Riley is amazed by her talents and abilities, but when she confesses that she is the Slayer, he is confused on what that is. An earthquake hits and although it is mild, the memory of the last earthquake in Sunnydale disturbs Buffy.

Willow checks in with Buffy and informs her of the aftershock party that is taking place in one of the dorm buildings that lost power. Buffy goes to Giles, fearing that the world is going to come to an end, but he dismisses her worry, thinking that the earthquake was just a normal California occurrence. Riley pumps Forrest for information on the Slayer, which Forrest thinks is just a myth that monsters made up. A demon goes berserk and attacks Riley and Forrest. They manage to subdue it and wonder at the strange activity their demonic captives have been exhibiting since the earthquake.

At the party, Willow sees Percy, whom she tutored in high school. Laurie, Percy's date, objects to his talking with Willow and suggests that they go somewhere else. Meanwhile, a guy mixing drinks in one of the dorm rooms has his throat slit by a large demon. Willow overhears Percy trying to soothe Laurie by describing Willow as an "Egghead" and "Captain of the Nerd Squad". Depressed, Willow goes into one of the dorm rooms to lie on a bed, but when the lights come back on, she finds herself next to the body that was mutilated by the demon. Riley shoots baskets with Forrest and broods about Buffy when Graham walks in and tells them about the murder. Riley orders the others to report to Professor Walsh, while he checks the situation out for himself.

Willow fills everyone in about the body she found, and about Percy talking badly about her. After she shows everyone the symbol carved into the student's chest, Giles fears for the world's fate. Buffy hunts down this demon, and finds it at a mausoleum where it is collecting the bones of a small child. She fights with the demon, but it escapes and she runs into Riley. He tries to convince her to give a relationship between them a chance, but because of all the pain in her past, she refuses. Research leads them to find that the demon needs the blood of a man, the bones of a child, and the Word of Valios to perform a ritual called the "Sacrifice of Three", which will destroy the world. Riley talks to his team and sends them out to find and kill the demon. Out on patrol, Buffy runs into Riley again, who tells Buffy that she needs to be more positive, to not look for the bad in the situation. He tells her he does not care about her past and begs her to just take a chance on him, but she remains conflicted.

As Xander cleans up some of the earthquake damage in his basement, he tells Spike that if he is living there he will have to do some of the housework. Returning home, Xander finds Spike wearing a Hawaiian shirt and shorts because he shrunk his own clothes. When Spike tries to threaten him, Xander quickly loses his temper and tears Spike down verbally, harshly informing him that no one is scared of him anymore and that he is not even worth fighting. A depressed Spike attempts to commit suicide by falling on a stake, only for Willow and Xander to walk in on him, making him miss the stake. Pitying him, Willow insists that they take him along to help them stop the ritual, and Xander reluctantly agrees. Along the way to Giles' apartment, Spike taunts Willow and Xander about their unsuccessful love lives and their "uselessness" to Buffy, leaving them unsettled.

Giles discovers that the Word of Valios is actually a talisman that he has in his possession. The demons have already made their way to his apartment and they beat him up badly before taking the talisman. The gang finds Giles and they head off to the remains of Sunnydale High School after he informs them that the ritual is to open the Hellmouth. The gang makes it to the remains of the library where three demons are performing the ritual. A fight breaks out, and then one of the demons jumps into the Hellmouth, revealing that they are the sacrifice for the ritual.

A second demon attacks Spike, and after several hits, he finally hits back. He realizes he can hurt demons without the chip hurting him. Ecstatic about being able to fight again, Spike promptly beats the demon senseless, and proceeds to throw it into the Hellmouth. While the rest of the gang escape the tottering building, Riley shows up to help Buffy fight. The third demon makes its way into the Hellmouth and Buffy goes in after it. Thanks to a cable and hook Riley attached to her belt, Buffy is pulled out of the Hellmouth along with the third demon, saving the world again.

Afterwards, Riley tries to keep up his secret identity, but Buffy's friends already know who he is by his clothes, while Spike evades detection by posing as a "friend of Xander's". The next day, Buffy goes to Riley's dorm, where he says how upset he is at himself for allowing her and her friends to find out about him. Telling him that everything will be okay, she kisses him.

External links[]

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• "Doomed" at IMDb