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Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 4, Episode 11: Doomed

Written by Marti Noxon, David Fury & Jane Espenson; Directed by James A. Contner

Whenever I see a film or an episode of a TV series with multiple credited writers, and it turns out to be disappointing, I'm never sure how to react. On the one hand, it's tempting to question how the combined efforts of many people can result in such a mess. On the other, there is the old adage "too many cooks spoil the broth". All three writers of this episode are competent in their own right, but here they somehow turn what should have been two major events - a return to the ruined high school and an attempt to reopen the Hellmouth - into filler material for an episode that, I'm guessing, was churned out to fill the schedule. As with most of the episodes this season, there are little moments which advance the characters' storylines, so it's not as if you could cut it out completely and not miss it, but the main "case of the week" seems very much like an afterthought.

Overall rating: 5/10.

Next time: A New Man.

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