No.10: “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” Episode 6

Today I watched the sixth episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 1. It is called The Pack. I think this is a weird episode. Buffy’s school went on a field trip in a zoo. Xander, following a pack of four bad students, went into the hyena house, which was originally closed. Inside the hyena house, Xander and the pack got charmed by the hyena. When they got back to school, Xander started to hang out with the pack and started to bully other students, even including Willow. Buffy noticed the trouble was serious when the pack of five ate the school pig and the principal. No doubt, the pack was turning into hyenas. Buffy, Willow, and the Watcher decided to get the pack to the hyena house and let the zookeeper perform a ritual to change their own mind back. However, the zookeeper was the bad guy and he attacked the Watcher and Willow. At the end, the pack was changed back and the zookeeper was thrown into the hyena cage and became the meal.

One thing I didn’t understand about this episode was that the zookeeper was supposed to be the bad guy, then how come he changed the pack’s mind back? He did this when his dagger was still pointed at Willow’s neck! I just think it’s weird. I think this episode is to teach us to follow instructions. The hyena house was marked closed, so no one should go in there. The pack ignored the warning and lost their human mind, and that was totally their fault. They couldn’t blame it on anybody.