Given the amount of blows Giles must've taken over the years as Buffy's Watcher, it's a surprise that he never really sustained any major head injuries during the course of the show. Only, what if he did? It has been suggested that he did tragically suffer at least a degree of brain damage at some point, and this contributes to his character becoming increasingly Ripper-like throughout the show, using more and more magic. The culmination of this actually comes from the comics, when he uses a containment spell on a person, and makes their head explode. Of course, even with brain damage, Giles still manages to be the wisest person on the show.