The rest of this review revolves around an episode of Buffy that is later in the series. If you haven't seen the series in its entirety, you should probably stop reading now. If you don't care about spoilers, read on.
The Body is an episode of Buffy that centers around death. Now, the Scooby gang has regularly dealt with death*, but that doesn't mean they're prepared to deal with the death of someone they love. Willow completely loses it when Tara dies, but becoming an evil witch who skins someone isn't particularly realistic. When Anya dies, no one really seems to care. Joss Whedon doesn't always write realistic reactions to death, but when Joss Whedon penned The Body, he hit the nail on the head.
The Body is the episode where they find that Joyce, Buffy's mother, has died. Of course, they worry that there was something supernatural at fault, but Joyce died of natural causes. I think that made it harder for the crew to deal with, but it allows us to see how they deal with it.
Now, I'm not too experienced when it comes to death. It still scares me, but more than anything, I find it confusing. My paternal grandparents have both passed on, but I wasn't that close to them. My maternal grandfather has died, as well, and that was perhaps the hardest loss for me. Part of what made it so hard to deal with was seeing him at his worst. There is something so very sad when you see someone who was always so robust and funny reduced to a fraction of who they were. It's hard.
Death is different for all of us, as are our coping mechanisms. In the Body, you see each character struggle with both their role and what Joyce's death means. Each of their reactions is valid, and you can find someone in your life, maybe even yourself, who has reacted in the same way.
Willow focuses on simple things and their meanings. She spends a chunk of time worrying about what to wear just to meet Buffy at the hospital. While any rational person knows this is not the most important choice to be made, it is something she has some control over. She curses her clothes for not being adult enough and only wants the blue top that Joyce liked. Does any of this help the characters to accept what has happened? Of course not, but we need to feel like we can control something when the worst happens. Unfortunately, even this is too much for Willow, just as those simple choices are too much for us when we experience loss.
Xander has a more recognizable reaction, one that I would almost classify as male. Because females are just as capable of this type of reaction, I hesitate to make it gender based. Xander punches a wall and just wants to find someone to take his anger out on. He seeks to assign blame. Whether pointing the finger at Glory** or blaming the doctors, Xander doesn't want to deal with his anger; he only wants to let the hurt out.
I think at some point in time, we've all felt like Tara. She spends the episode just kind of being there for people. She wasn't very close to Joyce, but her friends were. She just kind of looks lost throughout the episode, as if she wants to help but can't. She does what so many do and offers to share Buffy's pain through her own. Tara was only 17 when her mother died, and she shares that with Buffy. It's hard to help someone going through something like that, and Tara even admits she still couldn't know what Buffy is going through. Regardless, people try to make you feel better by letting you know they're been there. At least it lets you know that they have survived; it will get better.
Dawn, Buffy's younger sister***, seems almost forgotten by the others in this story. Buffy mentions that Dawn almost seems as if she didn't believe her when she told her their mom had died. Denial is a real part of grieving, and we see Dawn sneak away to the morgue in an attempt to see Joyce's body. The episode actually cuts to black as Dawn is reaching out to touch her.**** When they say seeing is believing, they mean it.
Throughout it all, Buffy seems numb. I can only imagine that a shock like that would incapacitate you. I am lucky to have never had a loss like that, but I can only expect that my reaction would be similar, if not worse. There are some things that hurt to think about, and I couldn't imagine losing my mom. They say our brains will seek to protect us when it comes to things we cannot process; I hope to not find out for a very long time.
While most people would consider her the least important of the gang, Anya is actually the character I identify with in The Body. While each actor does an amazing job of conveying such sadness, it is Emma Caulfield who really brings it home. She has spent a great deal of her life as a demon, and she just doesn't understand what's going on. She asks if she should constantly change her clothes, like Willow. She wonders why Joyce can't just get back in her body. Ultimately, she wants to know what she's supposed to do, and I think that's what everyone wonders. When someone you love loses someone, you just want to help them, but you don't always know how. You try to take cues from those around you, but they're secretly just as lost as you are
Joss Whedon is a talented man. He created a show that inspired laughs as often as it did tears. He really shows the depth of emotion he and his actors were capable of when he wrote The Body. While it isn't an episode I can watch over and over again, it really helps you see just how confusing death can be. It isn't something to be used to manipulate your emotions in this episode. It is something that just confuses everyone.*****
*Buffy has died twice!
**She was the big bad this season.
***Whether her existence annoys you or not, she acts as Buffy's little sister in this episode. Key or not, pain is pain.
****Darkest. Time. Line.
*****Speaking of confused, I was somewhat surprised when I popped back on to write this. Some nights, when I'm not up for writing, I'll toss up a placeholder title. Sometimes, there are three or four views before I actually get my thoughts all written down. When I pulled this up to edit it, it had 29 views. I can only assume people were googling "Buffy the Vampire Slayer body" in an attempt to find sexy pis of Sarah Michelle Gellar. Boy are they going to be disappointed when they find my wall of text. Muahahahaha.
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