Reception
Reviewer Mikelangelo Marinaro, giving the episode a B (8 out of 10), deemed the episode "downright hilarious a large portion of the time" and full of "succulent-for-the-ear dialog," but faulted the scene of the bullying professor - it "ended up feeling like a manipulative way to get us to feel sympathy for Buffy and that's not very fair to the viewer." Marinaro also writes,
Her first days at college aren't that traumatic and just back in The Prom (3x20) she says to Giles, "kicking ass is comfort food." ... When moping at the Bronze, Xander asks her, "Ok, Buff, what's the 'what' here?" She responds, "It's just, what if I can't cut it? ... Slaying, everything." I can completely understand why Buffy has doubts about making it in university, but making it in slaying? Earlier in this episode she says that it was a slay-heavy summer! She's fought the Master, Spike, Angelus, a Slayer, and a giant snake. Where in the world is this doubt about slaying coming from?Another reviewer also faulted Buffy's characterization on this issue, writing that, while it was understandable for Buffy to feel "a bit overwhelmed, it all came across as just too much when she's being ignored and ostracized on all sides. Plus, she's always been "Can Do Girl". It all seems a bit silly when you remember she plotted and organized the entire high school to kill the giant, demon mayor just three months ago. Where did all that self-confidence go?"
Reviewer Chris Monigle thought the hectic college scenes "pitch-perfect," saying, "Joss Whedon's praised for his depiction of high school, but continues to be ignored for the way he depicted college. There are reasons people overlook the college years of Buffy. The college setting lasts less than a season. After Hush, the focus is directed on The Initiative, thus the fun college stories disappear. The few episodes dedicated to depicting a college setting were quite good and entertaining and very true to the college experience... Whedon succeeds in portraying three different emotions about one's entry into college. Buffy is overwhelmed by the size of the campus, the people, and the classes. Willow is excited about the size of the campus, the people, and the classes. Oz feels normal about the size of the campus, the people, and the classes."
Monigle concludes,
The Freshman isn't a popular Joss Whedon episode. I wonder if people remember Joss wrote and directed it... Whedon's magic in The Freshman is his ability to transform college into a scary and imposing prospect for Buffy. Buffy fought a giant snake at high school graduation, sent her boyfriend to hell, and defeated a centuries old vampire, but college scares her more than any of the others. That's why Buffy worked. The Big things, like saving the world, were just as important as the little personal things like fitting in in high school and college or wanting to impress a girl or boy or just wanting to be kind to people who were in pain."Read more about this topic: The Freshman (Buffy The Vampire Slayer)
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