Doppelgangland
Doppelgangland
-- Quotes --
Fed up with life as a
mortal, Anyanka begs a demon named D'Hoffryn to create a temporal fold
that would allow her to retrieve her powercenter -- the necklace she wore
around her neck -- before it was destroyed. D'Hoffryn has no interest in
helping Anyanka and would rather see her live out the rest of her life
as a mortal. Anyanka pledges to find someone who will help her.
Outside of Sunnydale High,
Willow hones her pencil-floating skills while Buffy prepares for a traditional
Slayer evaluation which Wesley is conducting. Later, Willow is called to
Principal Snyder's office, where another student named Percy West is also
waiting. Percy is one of the star members of Sunnydale High's basketball
team who just so happens to be having trouble in history class. Principal
Snyder orders Willow to tutor Percy. Afterwards, Willow and Buffy go to
the library. While Willow heeds Giles' request to try to access the Mayor's
computer files, Faith returns with Wesley from the physical portion of
the tests. Faith takes note of Willow's computer search, and she later
reports it to Mayor Wilkins himself during a tour of Faith's new apartment.
Decked out with nearly everything she could ever want, the apartment leaves
Faith absolutely giddy. Back at Sunnydale High, Willow learns that Oz and
his band just returned from an out-of-town gig. Willow tells Oz that she
may have wanted to go. Oz replies with the expectation that Willow wouldn't
have wanted to miss a school day. Spotting Percy, Willow tries to arrange
a meeting time for their tutor session. However, Percy has a different
game plan which involves Willow doing all of the work for him. The last
straw for Willow comes when Buffy comments on her reliability. Tired of
being the goody-two-shoes of the group, Willow stalks off by herself. She
runs into Anyanka, who introduces herself as Anya, a friend of Cordelia's.
Willow's mood takes a turn for the lighter when Anya asks for her help
in performing a spell to create a temporal fold. Anya explains that she
wants to retrieve a lost necklace which was a family heirloom. When Willow
and Anya perform the spell, Willow sees visions of the alternate universe
that Cordelia visited when she told Anya that she wished Buffy had never
come to Sunnydale. Something goes wrong in the course of the spell. Instead
of pulling the necklace out of the alternate universe, the vampire Willow
is transported out just moments before Oz could dust her on the jagged
wood. While Anya futilely searches for the necklace, Willow leaves her
alone to try and figure out what she just saw.
Elsewhere, the Willow
from the alternate reality awakens. After night falls, she ventures out
onto the streets of Sunnydale. Quickly realizing the vast differences surrounding
her, Alterna-Willow heads to the Bronze. There, she draws stares from everybody
in attendance, including Percy West. Provoked by Percy's arrogance, Alterna-Willow
shoves him over the pool table, then grabs him by the throat and tightens
her grip. Xander pulls Percy away before noticing Willow's radical makeover.
Thinking he's the Xander of her reality, Alterna-Willow pulls him into
her arms, running her hands all over his body. It doesn't take long for
her to realize that Xander is still a living, breathing human. Buffy arrives
and can't believe her eyes when she sees Willow. When Alterna-Willow recognizes
Buffy as the Slayer who staked her beloved Xander, she turns and heads
for the Bronze's exit. Buffy tries to stop her, but Willow spins around
with vamp face on. She then takes off, leaving Xander and Buffy horrified
and speechless. Outside the Bronze, Alterna-Willow encounters two of Mayor
Wilkins' vampire henchmen, one of whom is named Alfonse. With the help
of a little sadistic brutality, Alterna-Willow convinces the vampires to
work for her and restore chaos to Sunnydale.
Giles gets the word on
Willow's untimely death from Buffy and Xander. During their lament over
the loss of their friend, the Willow of their reality enters the library.
Simultaneously confused and happy, Buffy, Xander, and Giles embrace Willow,
who by this point is simply confused. While they tell Willow about her
evil twin, Angel enters the Bronze in search of Buffy. As he talks to Oz,
Alterna-Willow and her newly-hired cohorts invade the Bronze. After Angel
leaves to get Buffy, Alterna-Willow kills and drinks from one of the customers.
Oz tries to make sense of what's going on, but Alterna-Willow only remembers
him as one of the human rebels from her reality. Anya clears up everything
for the lost vampire, telling her that the Willow of this reality is the
only one who can bring her back to where she belongs. Meanwhile, Angel
reaches the library and walks right up to Buffy, Xander, and Giles. He
doesn't notice Willow standing in the corner as he tells the gang that
their friend is dead. Willow makes her presence known, sending Angel into
the pits of confusion as well. Realizing they have to stop whatever's about
to go down at the Bronze, the group leaves the library. Willow, however,
is reluctant to kill her alter ago. Remembering the tranquilizer gun, Willow
tells the others to go ahead while she heads back into the library. Before
she can get the gun, Willow encounters her mirror image, who has sneaked
into the library unnoticed. Intrigued by the idea of occupying a world
with her double, Alterna-Willow gets uncomfortably cozy with Willow, who
retaliates with a cross. Alterna-Willow knocks her over the counter. When
the vampire circles around the counter, she is greeted by a tranquilizer
dart right in the stomach. Buffy and the gang return and lock Alterna-Willow
inside the bookcage. Buffy then comes up with a plan to take care of the
vampires in the Bronze.
Disguised in the outfit
of her other self, Willow prepares to infiltrate the Bronze and trick the
vampires into walking outside, one by one, and getting staked by her friends
waiting outside. As Willow enters the Bronze, Alterna-Willow wakes up in
her prison. While she notices her own change of clothes, Cordelia enters
the library. Alterna-Willow tries to talk her into opening the cage, but
Cordy opts to use this opportunity to talk about the secret affair with
Xander. After an eternity of rambling, Cordy finally opens the cage. Hungry
for blood, Alterna-Willow chases Cordy through the halls before cornering
her in a restroom. Before the vampire can close in for the kill, Wesley
appears and fends her off with a cross and holy water. Thwarted, Alterna-Willow
turns around and leaves. Meanwhile, Anya and Alfonse eventually see through
Willow's charade. Willow screams, signaling the others to storm into the
Bronze and battle the remaining vampires inside. During the fight, Alterna-Willow
arrives and pins Willow on the stage. After dusting Alfonse, Buffy leaps
onto the stage and drives a pool cue towards the vampire's heart. Willow
screams for Buffy to stop, and the Slayer is able to halt her weapon's
descent.
After all of the customers
evacuate the Bronze, Alterna-Willow and Anya prepare for another temporal
fold. Buffy does not agree with the idea of returning a demon to its own
reality where it can kill again. Willow responds by saying that she simply
can't kill her. Before Willow sits down to perform the ritual, she says
her goodbyes to Alterna-Willow, who says hers in a much more touchy-feely
way. Afterwards, Alterna-Willow is returned to the alternate reality...
only to be grabbed by Oz and dusted on the jagged wood. The next day, Willow
contemplates living up to her good girl reputation and never going out
for fun again. When Percy appears with the history paper completely typed
out, Willow decides otherwise.
~Episode Summary by: Alan Hufana