Hush Little Baby Don't Say a Word: I mean you can try but...

In class this past Tuesday we watched the Buffy episode "Hush" and I was ridiculously freaked out by the demeanor as well as the appearance of the "Gentlemen". The entire episode was disorienting to me, although it was still entertaining, because of the lack of verbal speech used in the episode. The lack of spoken speech was still really effective and showed to me the importance of communication (strongest particularly between the Gentlemen, and weakest between the characters of the "scoobies"). After watching this episode I was able to distinguish the difference between talking between people and communication. When one talks with another individual, they just exchange words, which doesn't necessarily mean that those in the conversation understand what is being said. When people communicate, like in the case of the Gentlemen, with their hand gestures and head nods, the individuals in the conversation not only understand the words being said but the intent of their conversation.

Week 3: "Well, I guess we have to talk."

Riley: "Well, I guess we have to talk."

Buffy: "I guess we do."

-- "Hush," 4.10

First of all, I'm glad I saw this episode before class so I was prepared for the creepiness and could practice not jumping at certain moments (particularly the scene where Olivia is at the window and one of The Gentlemen floats by).

I hadn't heard much about the most acclaimed episodes of Buffy before watching "Hush," so during my marathon over break, I was caught off guard since it seemed quite different from most other episodes. After a little time on Google, I had my "a-ha!" moment when realizing how skillfully crafted the episode is -- the perfect mixture of scary, funny, and productive as far as plot development. "Hush" is the complete package.

Aside from the relationship developments which notably occur during the silenced portion of the episode, I kept thinking about why The Gentlemen seem to be arguably the worst (as in scariest/most dangerous) villains from Buffy. Silence scares us. The inability to communicate creates obstacles we don't even realize exist until the very moment; the unpredictability is the most unsettling part of quietness.

For example, The Gentlemen float above the ground -- they don't even "communicate" with any surface, so no one can hear them coming. When the victims do see them coming, it's impossible to get help. Sounds create verbal context for us which then create reason, followed by a feeling of ease.

Furthermore, most villains on Buffy are famous for their one-liners or grand speeches delivered to Buffy explaining why they need to kill her (but she kills them anyway). The Gentlemen provide no real reason to target Buffy. The explanation for their actions (the fairytale) only comes through Giles in the awesome projector scene. Therefore, viewers are only put in the position of the victim. Though The Gentlemen communicate with each other, they all wear the same huge grin, so even more information is lost about any insight the viewer could obtain from something like facial expressions.

The final lines of the episode are great: "I guess we have to talk." After all of the chaos with The Gentlemen, Buffy and Riley fall into a true silence since at that moment their relationship is unpredictable, too.