Entertainment
The Buffy Episode That Secretly Fixed The Show’s Most Frustrating Mistake
By Chris Snellgrove
| Published
Buffy the Vampire Slayer is one of those shows I have watched until nearly every frame is burned into my brain. That’s because the series is borderline perfect: it features a killer premise, brilliant actors, and some of the best writing in television history. Even with the excellent writing, however, there are occasional mistakes that, once you notice them, will bother you forever.
For example, when Angel loses his soul and becomes evil, he wrecks Jenny Calendar’s computer, ostensibly destroying the information on how to restore his soul. However, all we see onscreen is the vampire destroying her computer monitor, which geeks like Willow know is not where the information is stored. Fortunately, season 2’s 19th episode, “I Only Have Eyes for You” fixes this mistake, revealing that Willow was still able to get information off Calendar’s computer and that the non-tech-savvy Angel didn’t really know what he was doing.
Breaking Vlad
Part of what made Buffy the Vampire Slayer so effective is that the show explored the real threats faced by young people through a fantasy lens. For example, countless young women have had the negative experience of a boy turning into a jerk after they have sex. But it was so much worse for Buffy: after she and Angel did the nasty, he lost his soul, becoming the scariest vampire of the modern age.
Once he became Angelus, this violent vamp didn’t want to simply kill Buffy: instead, he wanted to torment her by torturing and killing her friends. In “Passion,” he really takes this malevolence to the next level by killing Jenny Calendar and displaying her body for Giles to find when he shows up for a date. He initially attacks her at the school, where Angel takes the time to destroy the computer containing instructions for restoring his soul.
Talk About A Firewall
At least, that’s his goal: while he comments on how far technology has advanced, he slams her computer monitor to the ground, damaging it before setting it on fire. It makes for a very scary moment, one that underscores how horrifying it is for this teacher to be attacked in her own classroom by a ruthless vampire. But what always frustrated me as a young nerd was that “Passion” implies that Angel successfully destroys the information on the PC, which is absurd: destroying a computer monitor (even a chunky ‘90s monitor) would do nothing to actually destroy all of the information in the hard drive, housed safely in the undamaged body of the PC.
Fortunately, the later episode “I Only Have Eyes For You” fixed this mistake, though this was likely by accident. In the wake of Jenny Calendar’s death, Willow (her star pupil) becomes the new computer science teacher. When Giles comments on how well the young student has adapted to teaching, Willow points out that she had access to “good lesson plans…Ms. Calendar had them on her computer.” Furthermore, she also “found a bunch of files and Internet sites on paganism and magic and stuff.”
Finally, A Good Retcon
From a narrative standpoint, this helps to set up later plot points, including Willow discovering how to restore Angel’s soul (Calendar kept the spell on a floppy disk) and her eventually becoming a full-fledged witch. However, this throwaway line also confirms that Angel’s attempt to destroy the teacher’s computer and all of the information on it was a complete bust. That may seem disappointing, but it makes sense: the centuries-old vampire has never been good with technology, so it makes sense that he would just destroy the biggest, most visible part of the computer without realizing he’s damaging the wrong thing.
As all Buffy the Vampire Slayer fans know, “Passion” is a killer episode, one filled with high emotion, crazy action, and the unforgettable death of a major character. For this fan, though, the episode’s implication that destroying a computer monitor would affect the hard drive. While it would take the Scoobies a little while longer to figure out how to restore Angel’s soul, “I Only Have Eyes For You” managed to restore something else entirely: my faith in the writers!
Entertainment
Stay prepared for anything with the Growatt Helios power station — now $400 off at Amazon
SAVE $400: As of March 12, get the Growatt Helios portable power station for just $1,199. That’s $400 off the power station’s $1,599 list price.
$1,199
at Amazon
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Save $400
Portable power stations are essential devices whether you spend most of your time indoors or outside. Not only can it serve as a back-up power source in the case of an emergency power outage, but it can also accompany you on all your adventures. If you’re headed out on a camping or RV trip this summer, a power station might just be the companion you need for keeping your devices charged.
If you’re looking for a great power station, let us steer you in the direction of the Growatt Helios portable power station. As of March 12, it’s on sale at Amazon, saving you $400 on its $1,599 list price. That brings it down to $1,199 for 25% off. It’s not quite the power station’s lowest-ever price of $1,099, but it’s close.
Mashable Deals
The Growatt Helios portable power station with 3,600W output and 3.6kWh. Let us translate that. It can power heavy duty devices including air conditioners and refrigerators. When fully charged, the Growatt Helios generator can power your fridge for 24 to 72 hours. It supports USB, DC, and AC power so you can charge multiple devices at once. Plus, you can power it up fast with solar.
Mashable Deals
Get the Growatt Helios Portable Power Station at Amazon for $1,199.
Entertainment
Stephen King's Forgotten R-Rated 80s Hit Led By Star Trek's Most Evil Seductress
By Jonathan Klotz
| Published
There’s been a lot of Stephen King adaptations over the years. In the early 90s, King decided to write a story as a screenplay first, and the result was the insane Sleepwalkers, about a mother and son pair of vampiric werecats terrorizing a small town in Indiana.
It’s one of those films that has to be seen to be believed, especially for a pre-Borg Queen performance by Star Trek: First Contact’s Alice Krige as one of the sleepwalkers. The 1992 horror film recently arrived on Netflix, making it even easier to play “spot the famous horror director” from among the many cameos jammed into the brisk, 89-minute runtime.
Don’t Think Too Hard About Sleepwalkers
Stephen King has been very upfront about the copious amounts of drugs he consumed during the 70s and 80s, particularly cocaine, which helps explain Sleepwalkers’ plot. Alice Krige is Mary, the mother of Charles (Charmed’s Brian Krause), and the two happen to be energy-draining werecats who feed off the energy of female virgins. Tanya (Twin Peak’s Madchen Amick) is targeted by the two after Charles fakes his way into the local high school, but the elaborate plan, which consists of make out in a cemetery, is thwarted when Tanya fights back using a corkscrew.
The two sleepwalkers may be powerful night creatures, but they have one weakness, and it just so happens that Tanya’s bonded with one of the beings who can easily kill them in a fight: Clovis the housecat. Sleepwalkers is very simple in its storytelling, and absolutely insane with its bizarre face-morphing CGI (at the time, it was cutting edge), cats flying in off the side of the screen, cars blowing up with a single bullet, and an “interesting” mother-son relationship.
Sleepwalkers Was A Surprise Box Office Hit
Alice Krige manages to again be off-putting, terrifying, and charming at the same time, similar to her later performance as the Borg Queen, the original “hear me out” meme of the 90s. Her performance helped propel the off-kilter feature to top the box office the weekend it debuted on the way to earning $30 million, unadjusted for inflation, that still tops the 2025 box office for horror films Him and The Woman In The Yard.
One of the fun parts of Sleepwalkers comes from director Mick Garris’ mission to include as many horror directors as possible, leading to cameos from Stephen King himself, John Landis (An American Werewolf in London), Tobe Hooper (Texas Chainsaw Massacre), Clive Barker (Hellraiser, Scream), and Joe Dante (Gremlins). Mark Hamill and Ron Perlman also pop in for brief appearances.
Sleepwalkers was savaged by critics and still only has a 29 percent rotten rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with an equally low audience rating of 32 percent. Those people clearly don’t know how to have fun. King’s story may have, allegedly, been drug-induced, but it’s so weird and off the wall that the film is a blast. While it’s special effects aged like milk, Krause and Krig managed to create some great scares, and in an era of bloated runtimes, 89 minutes makes it feel like it’s ending as soon as it gets going.
Sleepwalkers is now available to stream on Netflix, and we suggest you sit down with your cat to watch it.
Entertainment
Ben & Jerrys Free Cone Day is back for 2026 — everything you need to know
TL;DR: On April 14, visit your nearest Scoop Shop and grab a free cup or cone of your favorite Ben & Jerry’s flavor.
It’s that special time of year when free ice cream becomes the norm. Hot on the heels of Dairy Queen announcing the date of its Free Cone Day, Ben & Jerry’s has done the same.
Ben & Jerry’s celebrates Free Cone Day around the globe every year, sharing the love with free cups and cones of your favorite flavors. There’s no catch. Simply visit your nearest Scoop Shop and grab a scoop for free. Ben & Jerry’s is giving away free ice cream at a host of locations between 12-8 p.m. on April 14. You can check participating locations here.
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Lego is giving away an exclusive Steering Wheel for free. Here’s how to get yours on March 9.
Ben & Jerry’s is aiming to spread more joy than ever before. They served up 1 million scoops in 2023, but they’re targeting more in 2026. And you can help out with that ambitious target, because unlike a lot of these free giveaways, there’s no limit on the number of times you can score a free cone. Can’t decide what flavor to order? Don’t worry — try them all.
Mark your calendars: Free Cone Day at Ben & Jerry’s takes place on April 14.
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Stay prepared for anything with the Growatt Helios power station — now $400 off at Amazon
