Line callbacks: Which are intentional? Important?

[tkts]

Several times throughout the series, a line from a past episode will be repeated in a way that seems like it must be significant. But in some cases it might even have been accidental. Which of these cases is significant? Or even intentional?

"One down, one ... gone." The exact same line is said by Buffy in both "What's My Line, Part 1" and "Earshot." Significance? Hard to see. Intentional? I can't decide. Is it possible the writers simply forgot they'd used that gag already?

"Dawnie, I have to." Used by Buffy on two occasions, right before committing an act of self-sacrifice ... and also right before, in one way or another, abandoning Dawn. Used in "The Gift" and "Dead Things." The line's use in "Dead Things" has to have been intentional, to drive home the fact that Buffy's on the verge of abandoning her sister again, almost as much as if she were dead.

"The hardest thing in this world is to live in it." Said by Buffy in "The Gift," and parroted back to her by Dawn in "Once More With Feeling." Definitely both intentional and significant.

"Live. For me." Again, said by Buffy to Dawn in "The Gift," and by Dawn to Buffy in "Bargaining, Part 2." A beautiful juxtaposition -- Buffy telling Dawn to live on for her sake after she's dead, and Dawn telling Buffy to live because she can't continue to live without her.

"Bored now." By Vamp Willow in "Doppelgangland" and by Evil Willow in "Villains," in both cases just before doing something sadistic to somebody. Has to have been intentional. Perhaps intended, in "Villains," to drive home the point of just how far gone she is.

"These things? Never useful" and "These things? Never helpful." Said by Buffy in "Flooded" and "As You Were." In both cases, referring to guns. In both cases, according to DVD commentaries, intended to foreshadow Tara's death at the hands of a man with a gun. But no apparent significance relative to each other.

"Get out get out GET OUT!" Dawn, in "screechy, difficult teenager" mode, in both "Blood Ties" and "Older and Far Away." Can't think of any particular significance to the repetition; I guess it's just intended to be a phrase indicating that Dawn is having major issues in that episode.

[Miss. Rogueh]

Oct 2, 2010 23:12:19 GMT -5 tkts said:

"Get out get out GET OUT!" Dawn, in "screechy, difficult teenager" mode, in both "Blood Ties" and "Older and Far Away." Can't think of any particular significance to the repetition; I guess it's just intended to be a phrase indicating that Dawn is having major issues in that episode.

I think this was more to play the teenager angle, what teenager hasn't said this...

[buffyfan21]

Wow, never realized so many lines had been repeated throughout the series. Very interesting.

[Randi Giles]

"You always hurt the one you love." I brought this up in another thread. It was said by both Buffy and Spike in Dead Things. It was intentional but I can't figure...*brain fart* Time for another re-watch.

[iigreenii]

Oct 7, 2010 18:43:44 GMT -5 Randi Giles said:

"You always hurt the one you love." I brought this up in another thread. It was said by both Buffy and Spike in Dead Things. It was intentional but I can't figure...*brain fart* Time for another re-watch.

The crazy thing is that I remember this line from a song in a Angel episode. I believe it was the episode where Cordelia had just moved into her apartment and the ghost was trying to get her to leave. The radio came on and the exact words You always hurt the one you love were being sung. Seems to be a big theme in the Buffyverse.

"Get out get out GET OUT!" Dawn, in "screechy, difficult teenager" mode, in both "Blood Ties" and "Older and Far Away." Can't think of any particular significance to the repetition; I guess it's just intended to be a phrase indicating that Dawn is having major issues in that episode.

I'm watching The Weight of the World & I noticed Glory says Get out get out GET OUT! as well haha. Of course no one does it quite as loud or annoyingly as Dawn but still...


Just a Girl seems to be another line used more than once. It was used by that army guy and Adam/Spike in Yoko Factor and again by the boy in the alley in the beginning of The Gift. Both times, each character was referring to Buffy.

I'm not getting any older this line was said by Angel in Consequences & Chosen.

And I think I'm kinda gay was said by Willow in both Doppelgangland and Tabula Rasa.

[Inappropriate Starches]

Some of them I think are call backs largely used for humorous inside jokes for the die hard viewer such as "I think I'm kinda gay". Some of course are a big deal like "The hardest thing in this world is to live in it" and others seem to be accidental like "One dead, one gone" Sometimes they do just use the same joke without realizing it.

[Miss. Rogueh]

I have to say the, "The hardest thing to do in this world, is live in it." just annoyed the crap out of me, and every time someone said it I just wanted to smack them, and say "get over it... this is your life... no running away, just deal with it and move on!"

[nl197]

This one relates to ANGEL but it's important here:

If you watch the ANGEL season 3 episode "Offspring", just before Darla comes into the hotel, the group is sitting around talking about "what if's", specifically "what if Angel was human?"

When Angel hears Fred ask if it meant that it could happen some day, the camera goes in for a close up on him (he's standing outside the room listening in) and if you listen closely you can hear the first four notes of the Buffy theme song, right there in the score. Almost as if it were a callback to "I Will Remember You", when Angel was human for a day and spent it with Buffy.
Obviously she never got to remember it, but he still does.

[jellymoff]

Oct 2, 2010 23:12:19 GMT -5 tkts said:

"Bored now." By Vamp Willow in "Doppelgangland" and by Evil Willow in "Villains," in both cases just before doing something sadistic to somebody. Has to have been intentional. Perhaps intended, in "Villains," to drive home the point of just how far gone she is.

This is referred to again in Season 8 as well. Warren talks about it when he and Willow reunite. As her is about to cut her eye out, he says "Are you bored now?"

[The Night Lord]

Oct 15, 2010 13:41:31 GMT -5 Beaumonde said:

"Here endeth the lesson" said by both Spike and Buffy. Spike says it in Fool For Love and Buffy says it in (I think) Lessons.

I think Buffy says it later in season 7, when she's training the Potentials after rescuing Spike...I think...Also, the Master said this line first waay back in season 1. I think it's when he's reading from a book and comments on a vampire being an idiot and getting himself killed by Buffy

[iigreenii]

The earth is doomed was said by Giles in both The Harvest and Chosen.

[henzINNIT]

In Pylea, the gang are over-run by towns-people and Gunn says: "Okay, you take the 20 on the left, and I'll take the 30 on the right" or something to that effect.

At the end of the series the gang are again facing horrible odds and Gunn says "Okay, you take the 30,000 on the left..."

[Miss. Rogueh]

I don't think that line was very important, i think of it almost as a throwback to the old Gunn.

[tkts]

Oct 17, 2010 11:30:31 GMT -5 @iigreenii said:

The earth is doomed was said by Giles in both The Harvest and Chosen.

Definitely intentional. Indeed, the point of that whole scene was to bring the core four back together again, without anyone else, and have sort of a call back to the very beginning of their time together.

[afterthebattle]

I don't know if this is a stretch, but in the scene with Darla and Connor from S4 of Angel, Darla said: "As a vampire I killed without mercy or remorse because I didn't have a soul. What's your excuse?" It reminded me of the Spike/Buffy fight scene in S6 of Buffy when Spike tells Buffy: "Hello! Vampire! I'm supposed to be treading on the dark side. What's your excuse?" which kind of draws parallels between Connor and Buffy. Both were lost at some point and both indulged in morally questionable behavior.

"Poor little lost girl. She doesn't fit in anywhere - she's got no-one to love."

[Randi Giles]

I can't believe I forgot about this one.

From beneath you it devours.

I remember when I first heard that I was all spooked out. Until they kept repeating it, which seemed like a thousands times. I was happy when they got over that line.

[iigreenii]

Oh I forget the He is not my boyfriend line from Buffy. I lost count of how many times she actually said this line. It's funny how people constantly mistook Spike as being her boyfriend.

[afterthebattle]

^Oh, how could we forget? I remember at least 4 times:

Blood Ties
Glory: He wakes up; tell your boyfriend to watch his mouth.
Buffy: He is NOT my boyfriend.

Gone
Ms. Kroger: Um, Miss Summers, if you and your boyfriend would like to-
Buffy: He is NOT- ... not my, my boyfriend,

Seeing Red
Buffy: ... She was hurting and she did this really stupid thing.
Xander: With your boyfriend.
Buffy: He's not my boyfriend.

And of course, Chosen
Buffy: You're not getting the brush off. Are you just gonna come here and go all Dawson on me every time I have a boyfriend?
Angel: Aha! (points) Boyfriend!
Buffy: He's not. But...he is in my heart.

... Aaaaw <3

[Randi Giles]

She said it in Revelations too referring to Angel.

BUFFY
What are you guys talking about?

OZ
Oddly enough, your boyfriend. Again.

BUFFY
He's not my boyfriend. Really and
truly. He's… I don't know.

[afterthebattle]

Oct 24, 2010 15:30:17 GMT -5 Randi Giles said:

I can't believe I forgot about this one.

From beneath you it devours.

This reminds me of the church scene in Benath You where Spike says "it... the other, the thing beneath—beneath you. It's here too."
I've always thought it was such a wonderful line because it could refer to "from beneath you it devours" and to "you're beneath me" as well.

EDIT: I just remembered another one:
"Sorry, love - I don't speak Chinese" said by Spike in "Fool for Love" (BtVS 5x07) and in "Damage" (AtS 5x11)