Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Becoming (Part 1)

"And every creature living on this planet will go to hell. My friends, we're about to make history ... end."

- Angelus

"Becoming (Part 1)" is the twenty-first episode of season two of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the 33rd episode of the series overall. It was written and directed by series creator Joss Whedon and first aired on the WB Network on Tuesday, May 12th, 1998. This episode reveals the origins of both Buffy Summers as well as Angel and his vampire brood, re-imagining events that were first chronicled in the 1992 film Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Appearances

 * Buffy Summers
 * Cordelia Chase
 * Rupert Giles
 * Willow Rosenberg
 * Xander Harris


 * Daniel "Oz" Osbourne
 * Joyce Summers
 * Kendra
 * Merrick
 * Whistler


 * Acathla undefined
 * Angelus
 * Darla
 * Drusilla
 * Spike


 * Doug Perrin
 * Gypsy man
 * Gypsy woman
 * Hank Summers
 * India Cohen
 * Jenny Calendar


 * Sunnydale Police Department


 * Humans
 * Vampires
 * Horses


 * Ireland
 * Galway


 * England
 * London


 * New York
 * New York City
 * Manhattan


 * California
 * Los Angeles County
 * Los Angeles
 * Hemery High School
 * Sunnydale County
 * Sunnydale
 * Sunnydale High School
 * Sunnydale High School library
 * Crawford Street Mansion


 * Wooden stake


 * 18th century
 * 1753


 * 19th century
 * 1860
 * 1898


 * Curse
 * Disintegration
 * Impalement
 * Fangs
 * Police officer
 * Priest
 * Slit throat

Allusions

 * Flashback scenes involving Buffy and Merrick take place in the year 1996 - less than a year before Buffy left Los Angeles for Sunnydale. These scenes are presented as a quasi re-interpretation of events from the Buffy the Vampire Slayer feature film.


 * Whistler tells Buffy that she is "prettier than the last one", meaning the previous Slayer. Buffy's predecessor was India Cohen. She sacrificed her life in 1996 to save her family.


 * The man arguing with Joyce Summers in the 1996 flashback is her husband, Hank Summers. They will divorce each other soon after this event. Dean Butler provides the voice for Hank Summers, but he does not actually make an appearance.

Body Count

 * Kendra - Has her throat slit by Drusilla's finger-nail.