"We can't save the world in jail."
-Faith
James Bond has a license to kill. Batman will ignore extradition law and hack your phone in the name of the greater good. Commander Shepard has authority to do pretty much whatever (s)he wants if it helps get the job done.
So, at least in fiction, the question "Is Superman above the law?" isn't really the right question to ask. Rather, there are three underlying questions that deserve more of our attention. Specifically:
The Watcher's Council has no such luck. If a Slayer goes rogue, you have to spend resources hunting her down, because the next Slayer cannot be called until the current one dies. Recall the opening monologue from the first two seasons: "She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons, and the forces of darkness." (Emphasis added.)
The police are not equipped to deal with vampires and demons (and there's enough evidence in Season 3 to suggest that this was deliberate in Sunnydale on the part of the Mayor, but that doesn't explain why the LAPD is no better over on Angel). So, does it make sense to constrain the only person who can deal with them? The pragmatic answer is "only if that person has gone off the deep end and is more of a threat than the one they're stopping," but... well, watch and see.-Faith
James Bond has a license to kill. Batman will ignore extradition law and hack your phone in the name of the greater good. Commander Shepard has authority to do pretty much whatever (s)he wants if it helps get the job done.
So, at least in fiction, the question "Is Superman above the law?" isn't really the right question to ask. Rather, there are three underlying questions that deserve more of our attention. Specifically:
- Can we force Superman to obey the law?
- Should we force Superman to obey the law?
- Should Superman obey the law in the absence of such force?
The Watcher's Council has no such luck. If a Slayer goes rogue, you have to spend resources hunting her down, because the next Slayer cannot be called until the current one dies. Recall the opening monologue from the first two seasons: "She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons, and the forces of darkness." (Emphasis added.)
Of course, Faith herself is an anomaly. There aren't supposed to be two Slayers at once. From "End of Days" (7.21):
Faith: There's only supposed to be one. Maybe that's why you and I can never get along. We're not supposed to exist together.
Buffy: Also, you went evil and were killing people.
Faith: Good point. Also a factor.
Buffy: But you're right. I mean, like... I guess everyone's alone, but... being a Slayer? There's a burden we can't share.Only for a while in Season 3, they were sharing that burden. And then Faith went evil and was killing people.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to my favorite episode of Season 3.
It's debatable how much the events of "Revalations" actually affected Faith's arc, rather than just proved that she wasn't going to play by Buffy's rules. A huge chunk of "Bad Girls" is the complete opposite: Buffy starts playing by Faith's rules. I tend to think (and there's more evidence later on) that Faith wanted validation from Buffy: "I am the way I am, and if I can make Saint Buffy behave this way too then it can't be wrong."
The episode begins in the cemetery, with Buffy and Faith fighting vampires, and Faith wondering if Buffy and Xander have ever boinked. (This may or may not tie in to the whole "Faith takes everything of Buffy's" thing, or it could just be an extension of the whole "slaying makes you hungry and horny" thing. Or, perhaps, because this is Joss Whedon we're talking about, it could be both.)
The vamps were wielding swords, which Mr. Trick recovers from the scene and brings to the Mayor. The assistant mayor is here as well, just to kinda remind you he exists. Nothing significant there. The Mayor also says "the dedication" is coming up, and that it's the final step before his Ascension. He then tells Mr. Trick that he wants the Slayers and the sword-vamps to fight.
New watcher! Wesley Wyndham-Price, up there with Elim Garak and the Fourth Doctor as my favorite television characters ever, but it's going to take him a while to get there. Right now, as the script so aptly puts it, "he thinks he's Sean Connery but he's actually George Lazenby." Somehow, Wes is able to figure out who the sword-vamps are simply because they had two swords, "one long, one short." They're part of a cult that doesn't sound like "Illuminati" at all, why do you ask? Anyway they worship a demon named Balthazar, and they're after his amulet. Theoretically Balthazar is dead and the amulet is useless, but that's Wesley's theory which automatically means it's wrong. Buffy, Faith and Giles all shun the new guy in their own way.
Faith scoffs at the idea of taking orders from Wes. "We're Slayers, girlfriend, the chosen two." Furthermore, Buffy can't deny that slaying a vampire doesn't get her "a little bit juiced." (See "hungry and horny," above.)
Buffy goes to the crypt where the amulet is supposed to be, but before she can recover it a horde of vamps come in. Now, okay, there are about six of them, and Buffy's a superhero, but she has to be "the cautious Slayer" this episode because Faith is in the picture. The other Slayer arrives, refuses to stop and think, and makes Buffy follow her down the rabbit hole. It's a sewer, yes, but symbolism. After a comedy scene with Giles and Wes, the Chosen Two take out the vampires, but not before Buffy is "baptized," or in mortal-speak, nearly drowned. However, unlike the battle at the beginning of the episode, where she ragged on Faith for endangering her by not thinking things through, this time she... doesn't. When Faith says "tell me you don't get off on this," Buffy doesn't.
Wesley tries to put his foot down when Buffy keeps treating Giles like her watcher, which accomplishes nothing (he'll be this useless for the rest of the season).
Buffy, Xander and Willow are supposed to be taking a chem test, but Buffy keeps talking about the religious experience she had in the sewer. Willow is a bit upset that Buffy blew her off to hang out with Faith, and there's no jealousy there. Buffy notes that Xander's eye twitches every time she says Faith's name, and there's no jealousy there either. And just in case you think I'm reaching with the lesbian subtext, Faith comes along and does this:
Buffy blows off school to go Slaying (with Faith), and then dancing (with Faith). Also, she has a cut on her arm pretty much exactly where Faith's tattoo is. Again, because this is a Joss Whedon show, I refuse to believe this is a coincidence.
Angel shows up and says that "word on the street" is Balthazar's not actually dead. (Again, he's going to be a lot less "ear to the ground guy" or "knowledge guy" when he gets his own show.) Wesley shows up, and Buffy takes the amulet from him and gives it to Angel. Because letting Angel hang on to the McGuffin of the week the last time Faith got a new Watcher turned out great, right?
Next we meet Balthazar, and he is, well, second only to Jabba the Hutt in terms of sci-fi/fantasy villain girth. That's really the only way to put it. Buffy and Faith stake the place out. Faith thinks two Slayers can take out 10 vamps easy, and Buffy, who expressed concern about 6-to-2 odds earlier, merely says the need more firepower. So they break into a sporting goods store, where Faith explains her philosophy in three simple words: "Want, take, have." Local law enforcement disagrees. Then Faith shows Buffy how to break out of a police car.
The next morning, Buffy is scanning the paper for news of the crime, a habit she'll be continuing in the next episode. Buffy's mom wonders what she and Faith were up to last night, and Buffy clearly has a guilty conscience, but Joyce's momdar is badly miscalibrated (although that's hardly anything new).
One of the Eliminati, Vincent, attacks the Mayor in his office, and the Mayor lampshades the fact that mortal security is godawful (this might be important later, again). Then Balthazar gets a line that I swear was written by someone who'd read A Game of Thrones: "Vincent made a noble effort, man to man as befits a true warrior. He had courage. He had honor. And I have jack to show for it!" Gee, Balthy, I think you and Faith might share a common viewpoint in at least one respect.
Willow turns out at Buffy's and continues to express resentment about getting dumped for Faith. Man, this episode's got Fuffy and Billow in it! Something for everyone!
Out on the streets, Faith has the bow she was stealing last night; evidently she went back for it. And Buffy stood by again, despite that whole guilty conscience thing. You know, Buffy, you're just digging yourself deeper and deeper here, and unless you get a wake-up call soon...
Faith and Buffy are ambushed by vamps in the street. Faith stakes one, Buffy stakes one, Faith stakes... the deputy mayor.
Who is very much human. And now dead.
Well, oops.
Faith is freaked by this, but her survival instincts kick and and she runs like hell rather than stay and face the music. Buffy also splits, and runs into Angel, who notices the blood on her hands. (This will be... drink.) Angel tells her that Balthazar has captured Giles and Wesley. After some more of Alexis Denisof (Wesley) demonstrating that he has no ego whatsoever, we get our ginormous fight scene, although we're back to noticeable stunt doubles. Balthazar is dispatched the same way the guy at the beginning of Goldfinger was, but he lives long enough to tell Buffy that, when the Mayor ascends, she'll wish Balthazar killed her.
Speaking of His Cheeriness, the Mayor spouts off a considerably more convincing spiel of Latin than Angel did in "Revelations," and then proves that he is now invincible (obligatory comment that the next thing on his "to-do" list after "become invincible" is "get a haircut," when it should really be the other way around).
Buffy visits Faith's place, where she finds Faith obsessively washing her hands (hello, Lady MacBeth). Despite this extremely obvious guilt imagery, Faith insists that everything is perfectly fine (although not "five by five" - that catchphrase is noticeably absent); she got rid of the body. And the episode ends with this exchange:
Buffy: You don't get it. You killed a man!
Faith: No, you don't get it. I don't care.9 out of 10. Massive props to writer Douglas Petrie, who only wrote one episode for the show before this ("Faith, Hope & Trick"). This is a huge arc episode, and every note is nailed perfectly. Faith tried doing the right thing back in "Revelations," but that didn't play out, so now she's going to do things her way. And if Buffy's not on board with that, too bad. Of course, if Buffy can be brought around the Faith's way of thinking, so much the better. And even after it's clear that Faith is out of the Scooby Gang, Faith is still going to be trying to corrupt Buffy, to the point where she approves of Buffy's attempts to kill her in 3.21 "Graduation Day, Part 1."
So we're at a critical juncture for our girl Faith. Regardless of all her tough talk about Slayers being above the law, she is clearly unnerved by the fact that she's just taken a life. The question is, who can save her at this junction? She has nothing but contempt for Wesley, doesn't care for Buffy's holier-than-thou posturing, and barely has any connection to the other Scoobies (sorry, Xander). So they'll make their best attempt next week, but the stars are very much aligned against them.
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