Synopsis:
Buffy, Xander, and Willow poke fun of Giles as he rehearses students for an upcoming school talent show. The threesome bump into the new principal, Mr. Snyder, who notes the group skipped classes the previous day and left the campus. As punishment Snyder instructs the threesome to participate in the talent show. Shortly thereafter Emily, a dancer, is found murdered in the girls' locker room. Giles tells the others that Emily's heart was removed from her body. Police discover a bloody kitchen knife nearby. Given the nature of the evidence, Giles concludes the perpetrator is a human being. Given the amount of mystical activity surrounding Hellmouth, Buffy is skeptical. She suspects the work of a demon.Xander, Buffy, and Willow interview students who knew Emily. They describe the strange behavior of a fellow classmate, Morgan, who is appearing in the talent show with his ventriloquist's dummy, Sid. Giles discovers a book that references a brotherhood of seven demons who take the form of young humans. Every seven years the creatures must harvest human organs to maintain their humanity. The demons, Giles notes, are preternaturally strong. Morgan, on the other hand, seems to be growing weaker by the day.Buffy discovers Morgan's brain-less corpse inside a prop room. A huge stage light rig suddenly crashes down, pinning Buffy to the floor. Sid springs to life. Wielding a kitchen knife, Sid slashes at Buffy. During the ensuing struggle, Sid and Buffy realize that each suspected the other of being a demon. In Giles' office Sid explains that once upon a time, he was a normal human being. He was transformed into a puppet after a demon placed a curse on him. Over the years Sid has managed to kill six of the seven demons that formed the brotherhood (as mentioned by Giles earlier). Now only one demon remains at large, but his identity remains a mystery. If Sid slays the demon, the curse will be lifted and his soul set free.Buffy and her friends contact everyone from the talent show, believing the demon is among them. When everyone from the talent show makes an appearance and forms a power circle, Buffy concludes that the demon is not a student after all. Sid suddenly disappears onto the catwalk above the stage. Buffy discovers a human brain on a shelf nearby. A check of the school nurse's file reveals that Morgan had terminal brain cancer, explaining why the (still unidentified) demon rejected the organ. The group realizes the creature will seek out another student with a healthy, intelligent brain.Minutes before the talent show begins, Marc the Magician tells Giles that his assistant became ill. Giles volunteers to perform in Marc's guillotine trick. Meanwhile Buffy realizes that the demon is one of the talent show performers after all. Marc instructs Giles to place the top of his head inside the stockade-type guillotine device. Locking Giles into position, Marc begins cutting the rope that holds the guillotine blade. Buffy and Sid arrive at the scene and a fight ensues. During the struggle, Marc stumbles into the guillotine. Xander releases the rope, and Marc is beheaded. Sid informs the others that the demon cannot be destroyed until its heart stops beating. He thrusts a knife down into Demon Marc's chest. A few moments later Sid collapses, his soul set free at last.
COPYRIGHT © (1997) Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation.