Ted
5V11
"Beg to differ, little lady!" - Ted
Buffy's mom Joyce's new beau, Ted seems too good to be true. He cooks and he's a computer specialist -- making him an instant hit with both Xander and Willow. At school, Giles awkwardly chats with Jenny Calendar, but she says his concern about her well-being (since she's recovered from being a demon) is getting on her nerves. Ted continues to charm the gang, until he talks to Buffy alone at the mini-golf course and reveals a decidedly dark side. Buffy puts on her Angela Lansbury hat and checks out Ted's place of business. She finds out from a co-worker that he's engaged. She asks Joyce and Ted at dinner if this is true, and Ted denies it -- but he's certainly hoping to ask Joyce to marry him if all goes well. Buffy leaves and returns through her window as usual, only to find Ted snooping through her things. He sees her slayer journal, and threatens to show it to Joyce if Buffy doesn't toe the line. She talks back to him, and he pummels her. A fight ensues and one of her blows knocks him down the steps -- killing him.
Buffy goes to school in a daze -- she's never killed someone who wasn't already undead. Knowing Buffy wouldn't have tangled with someone just because he was dating her mom, Xander, Willow and Cordelia try to figure out what Ted was up to. Xander's extremely concerned, but suddenly says, "Don't sweat it." This is a big, honking clue to Willow, and she realizes what's caused Xander's change of attitude -- he's eating one of Ted's homebaked cookies. Analysis shows the cookies contain a tranquilizer. Then Cordelia investigates further and finds out Ted has had four wives. Meanwhile, at the cemetery, Jenny apologizes to Giles for being short with him, but their warm fuzzy moment is interrupted by a vampire who attacks Giles. Jenny tries to shoot the demon with Giles' crossbow, but hits Giles by accident. Giles removes the bow and kills the demon. Buffy discovers the dead Ted in her room, looking remarkably healthy. She stabs him with a nail file and discovers he's a robot. Xander, Willow and Cordelia continue their sleuthing and stumble upon what's left of Ted's ex-wives in his closet. Back at the Buffy's, Ted approaches Joyce, who is freaked to see him, then glad to see him, then completely wigged when he starts short-circuiting and revealing his intent to dominate her. Buffy whacks him with a frying pan, exposing his robot face and killing him (although on this show you never know...). At school, it's just another ordinary post-slaying day at Sunnydale, until the gang discover Giles and Jenny making out.
More Information
'Ted' taps into some dark territory, and explores the feelings of alienation and betrayal experienced by many children whose divorced parents start dating someone new. Or, as Buffy more succinctly puts it: "Seeing my mother Frenching a guy is definitely a ticket to Therapyland!" Buffy's dislike and distrust of Ted runs counter to her friends' experience of him, which effectively isolates her from them, too, so it's hardly surprising that she runs straight to Angel when she needs a sympathetic ear! There are plenty of sly hints about Ted's true identity in Greenwalt and Whedon's fully developed script, an uncomplicated mystery story - albeit one with the usual 'Buffy' slant - packed with events that conjure interesting emotional responses from the main characters. As well as Buffy struggling to come to terms with her Mother's new partner and her role as "the dutiful daughter", we have Giles rebuilding his fragile relationship with Jenny, following her possession in The Dark Age.
Ted's apparent death is an excellent plot twist, and for a while it seems that Buffy's judgement is highly questionable. Joyce's reaction, and the subsequent police investigation, which raises some serious real-world issues about domestic abuse, both provide rich dramatic potential that the writers are able to casually discard without detriment to their robust story.
'Three's Company' star John Ritter seems strangely miscast as Ted, and oddly out of sync with the series' established tone. It's a role that requires the range to convey rapid mood swings and subtle nuances, and would have proved a challenge for even the most experienced actor.
Trivia
Pop culture: the conversation about The Captain and Tennille refers to a famous pop duo whose career began as backing singers for the Beach Boys. In 1975 their Neil Sedaka-penned song "Love Will Keep Us Together" became their first hit as a duo, selling more than a million copies. Their singing career flourished for nearly five years before they moved into television, where they had their own series.
Pop culture #2: The "Stepford" mention refers to 'The Stepford Wives', the story about a town in Connecticut where all the women, who lead lives of blissful domesticity, turn out to be robots. Ira Levin's novel was turned into a film in 1975, starring Katherine Ross and Paula Prentiss, which spawned two awful TV movie sequels.
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