The Most Iconic Episode of Buffy Was Set Up Five Years Earlier (And You Didn’t Notice)

Joss Whedon’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer is full of legendary moments, many featuring Sarah Michelle Gellar battling blood sucking demons, but none have had the lasting impact of the musical episode, “Once More, With Feeling.” Widely regarded as one of the best episodes of the series, the hour is chock-full of both in-world and pop culture references. Yet, even some longtime fans haven’t noticed an unlikely Easter egg that ties the episode all the way back to Season 1.

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“Nightmares,” which aired near the end of Buffy’s first season, revolves around a demon that causes people’s worst fears to take shape in the real world. One particular line in “Nightmares” eerily precedes the setup of “One More, With Feeling,” laying the groundwork for the future musical extravaganza.

The Most Iconic Episode of Buffy Was Set Up Five Years Earlier

In Season 6’s “Once More, With Feeling,” a mysterious demon compels the people of Sunnydale to break into song and expose their deepest secrets. Buffy reveals she was pulled from heaven. Giles (Anthony Head) admits he needs to step away. Tara (Amber Benson) realizes Willow’s been manipulating her with magic. Xander (Nicholas Brendon) confesses he summoned the demon in the first place.

But it’s during the ensemble number “I’ve Got a Theory” that Alyson Hannigan’s Willow sings: “I’ve got a theory; some kid is dreaming and we’re all stuck inside his wacky Broadway nightmare.” It’s a near-perfect mirror of something Giles says in “Nightmares.” When Xander tries to figure out what’s happening, he asks, “Our dreams are coming true?” Giles replies, “Dreams? That would be a musical comedy version of this.” Whether intentional, subconscious, or retroactive, the seed for “Once More” was planted in this S1 exchange.

And it’s not just one line that the musical references. Anya’s (Emma Caulfield) bunny song: “What do they need such good eyesight for anyway?” harkens back to yet another moment in “Nightmares” when Willow asks of spiders, “What do they need all those legs for anyway?” For fans, the onslaught of deep-cut references in “Once More, With Feeling” is part of what earned it its place in the Buffy hall of fame.

Beyond “Nightmares,” the musical has plenty of callbacks to other Buffy episodes. Xander’s decision to summon a demon ties directly to his previous magical meddling in Season 2’s “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered.” Anya brings up Xander’s illnesses just as she did in the S4 episode “Pangs.” During the final confrontation, Dawn (Michelle Trachtenberg) repeats Buffy’s last words from “The Gift,” in Season 5, saying, “The hardest thing in this world is to live in it.” And Tara’s realization that Willow altered her memory links back to their fight in the previous episode, “All the Way.”

The Hidden Layers of “Once More, With Feeling”

In addition to all the meta-textual references and internal callbacks, “Once More, With Feeling” is densely layered with nods to other musicals, classic films, and pieces of pop culture. For example, Spike’s (James Marsters) line, “Someday he’ll be a real boy,” is an unsubtle reference to Pinocchio. “Anya’s line, “Look at me, I’m dancing crazy,” pays homage to a moment from Anchors Aweigh, specifically Jerry the Mouse’s chaotic dance sequence. After their number “I’ll Never Tell,” Xander and Anya collapse into giggles in a moment that mirrors the trio’s laughter after “Good Morning” in Singin’ in the Rain. Spike’s sarcastic reference to “seventy-six bloody trombones” is lifted from The Music Man, ironically mocking the ridiculous bombast of musicals. And the line “That’s entertainment!” is ripped straight from Scorsese’s Raging Bull.

The influences of The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and Snow White also ripple throughout the episode. The character of Dawn, in particular, sings a song called “Dawn’s Lament” that evokes Ariel’s longing and Belle’s lonely curiosity. What’s even better is that while they took inspiration from Disney classics, Whedon and his writing team also threw in a few explicit references, including one allusion to an R-rated Tom Cruise line in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Magnolia.

“Once More, With Feeling” is such a deeply satisfying episode because it’s both extremely cathartic for all of the characters and the ultimate pay-off for loyal fans who watched the show in its infancy. It’s a culmination of years of character development and world building that allows us to bask in the full glory of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. When the highly anticipated Buffy reboot is finally released, it might be a good idea to watch closely, as the show could be planting seeds right from the start.

You can stream Buffy the Vampire Slayer on Hulu.