As this episode opens Buffy is fighting a pair of mouthless demons; she kills one of them but its blood gets on her hand and it soon starts itching. Research suggests that this infection will give her an aspect of the demon. She frets that she will become scaly or grow horns but she soon learns the aspect of the demon she acquired is the ability to read minds. At first it doesn't seem too bad, even if she is a little disturbed to hear boys' sexual thoughts! Then her friends start avoiding her and she 'hears' a plan to kill everybody during lunch the next day. She has no idea whose thoughts they were so her friends try to establish who amongst those present has a motive to kill. Meanwhile Giles tries to find a cure before the voices cause Buffy to go insane.
This was a really good stand-alone episode; the demons are suitably disturbing looking and Buffy's worries about how she will be effected were rather fun. Once it becomes established that she can read people's thoughts there are a good mix of amusing and disturbing thoughts to be heard. The way she used her skill to impress in her English class was good fun and the fact that they are studying 'Othello' nicely tied in with Buffy's jealousy of what happened between Angel and Faith... even though he was just acting. As Buffy and her friends close in on the person with deadly thoughts there is some nice misdirection before the would-be killer is finally exposed and confronted. Overall I'd say this was a really fine episode with some great ideas, and nice twists.