Top 5 Episodes- BTVS

In this new blog series, we will write about our top five favorites of stuff. Today's Top 5 is all about TV and all about Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Which episodes are my favorites? Read on!

I’ll be the first to admit, I’m a little biased when it comes to Buffy. You’ll see what I mean in a moment. I can admit what episodes I think are the most “epic” or truly groundbreaking, but some of my favorites stray from that a tad.

These characters created by Joss Whedon are truly some of the most real characters that have ever been on TV, despite the fact that they live in a fictional, supernatural world.

But as my favorite show of all time, Buffy the Vampire Slayer has taught me things about life, love and how you should never kill a boy on the first date.

5. Tabula Rasa- 6x8- A simple forgetting spell goes awry. What could be more entertaining than the Scoobies not knowing who they are?

         

Synopsis: Tara has discovered that Willow cast a spell on her to make her forget a fight they’d had about magic and warns her that if she doesn’t stop using magic… for one week… Tara will leave. So the obvious solution to that is to cast another spell to make Tara forget all about the first spell. But something goes wrong with Willow's new spell (shocker) and the gang, who have all conveniently ended up at the Magic Box, wake to find they cannot remember who they are. Hilarity ensues as they try to piece together their lives.

               

Willow wakes up next to Xander, wearing his jacket. They logically conclude they are a couple. They decide Tara and Willow are study buddies since they go to the same college. Anya and Giles find papers saying they own the magic shop together and since Anya is wearing an engagement ring, they must be engaged. Since Giles and Spike are both British, they deem themselves father and son, with Spike, wearing a stolen suit, appalled that his name is Randy Giles. Buffy and Dawn keep bickering and realize they must be sisters (at least they solved one mystery correctly). Everyone seems to have some form of identification except Buffy, who names herself Joan.

When they are attacked by vampires who say Spike owes them money, Buffy discovers she is some sort of “super hero or something”. She and “Randy” head out to chase the remaining vamps while the others try to find a way out of the shop. Whilst fighting the vamps, Spike discovers he is a vampire but realizes that since he’s fighting other vampires and doesn’t want to kill Buffy that he must be a vampire with a soul. Obviously. To which Buffy responds, “How lame is that” which should be followed by ‘conclusion’.

Anya and Giles have a mini make-out session whilst looking through spell books, after Anya has created a room full of bunnies and Giles finds a one way ticket to England in his pocket. “Alex”, Tara, Willow and Dawn go into the sewers to escape. Willow begins to realize she might be gay after she and Tara share some personal space. They run into a vamp and manage to kill it but in the process destroy the crystal that Willow was carrying, which breaks the spell.

In the end, Tara leaves Willow, Giles leaves for England, and Buffy and Spike make out.

I love this episode because of the humor aspect. It was fun to see the characters be free from the burdens of their real lives, even for a short time. It kept me laughing until the end, which was a tad bit depressing. However, we got to see some hot kissage at the end and I am not complaining about that. This episode was also a turning point for the season. (Not necessarily a good turning point, mind you, but a turning point nonetheless.) As the TV promo said, “New beginnings, even bigger endings. This is the episode where everything changes.”

4. Something Blue- 4x9- Giles is blind, Xander is a demon magnet, Buffy is marrying Spike… what? This episode is in the running for the funniest Buffy ever.

Synopsis: Willow is depressed because Oz broke up with her and left town. Buffy is too busy with slayer duties to watch Steel Magnolias and eat junk food with Willow and her broken heart, so the witch turns to magic to solve her problems. She decides to cast a spell to have her will done. She is going to will her heart to be unbroken. She thinks the spell is a failure when she’s still sad.

Whilst talking to Giles, who is upset about her magic usage and behavior, Willow tells the former librarian, “You don’t see anything.”

Spike, who has been tied up in Giles’ bathroom, missing Passions, manages to escape and Buffy must go after him. Willow, bitter that her friend is abandoning her in her time of heartache to find the vampire, calls out, “You’ll find him in two seconds.” Two seconds later Buffy finds herself face to face with the vampire, both confused as to how they ran into each other. But they both seem to get over it disturbingly fast. I guess when you live in Sunnydale… Anyway, Spike is determined to find the Initiative so they will remove the chip from his head that prevents him from hurting humans and starts yanking up grass from the college campus lawn (that is probably frowned upon).

Willow goes to seek comfort from Xander but he’s in no mood for down-in-the-dumps Willow either. Xander tries to explain that Buffy had to go after Spike (because…because he’s evil and…no that’s not it…cause he’s hot? Yeah, that’s legit…) so Willow insists, “Why doesn’t she just go marry him?”

Cut to Giles’ apartment. He’s having trouble with his vision, but can see just well enough to realize Spike is down on one knee. “Giles, you’ll never believe what’s happened,” Buffy says with a smile.

When Giles goes completely blind, Buffy heads to the magic shop to buy ingredients for a spell to fix him leaving Giles in the care of his future vampire-in-law. On her way, she runs into Riley. Hilarity ensues when she tells him about her engagement. “Who is this guy, does he go here?” Riley asks. “Spike? No, he’s totally old.” “Old?” “Well, not as old as my last boyfriend was…” True story, bro.

After Xander doesn't do much to comfort her, Willow, still upset, tells him he’s a demon magnet since the only women attracted to him are demons. (Hey, now that’s not fair. Willow herself was in love with him for at least two seasons!) After she leaves, Anya comes over but, much to Xander’s dismay, so do a whole lot of other demons. They chase him all the way to Giles’ where he finds the older man on the couch, blind, and Buffy and Spike making out. Xander: “Can I be blind, too?” He manages to remember what Willow said about the two getting married and everything starts to click. Well, for him and Giles. Buffy: “And you two were affected. I probably only escaped because I’m the slayer. Some kind of natural immunity.” Xander: “Yeah, you’re marrying Spike because you’re so right for each other.” Buffy: “Xander!” Spike: “That’s it. You’re off the usher list.”

Once they realize Willow has cast a spell, they set off to find her. But she’s been taken

by D’Hoffryn, Anya’s ex-boss, who offers to make her a demon. (Then Xander really would be a demon magnet for real.) After she refuses, he disappointedly sends her back to her friends so she can stop the spell. But by now the gang all bear the scars of a mini demon battle and Spike is left with the taste of Buffy in his mouth.

Another hilarious episode with lots of Spike. What could be better? Since I am and always will be a Spuffy fan, this is one of my favorites. I still laugh when I watch it. It was also really sweet to see Buffy ask Giles to give her away. I’ve seen this episode a few too many times.

3. Hush- 4x10- “Can’t even shout, can’t even cry. The Gentlemen are coming by. Looking in windows, knocking on doors, they need to take seven and they might take yours. Can’t call to mom. Can’t say a word. You’re gonna die screaming but you won’t be heard.” The only episode ever nominated for an Emmy (which is bs because there were lots of Emmy worthy Buffy episodes…stupid Emmys).

Synopsis: The Gentlemen have descended upon Sunnydale; a new kind of demon that enjoy silence. (They must have been kindergarten teachers in a former life.) With their magic box, they manage to steal the voices of every Sunnydale resident. While Buffy and the gang try to figure out what is happening, the creatures are busy stealing the hearts of college students. Literally. It’s gross.

At one point, Tara, who is strolling around the campus in the middle of the night for some reason, gets chased by Gentlemen minions, which look like humpbacked zombies in strait jackets, and runs into Willow. They realize that if they use their magic together, it is stronger. I sense the beginning of something here.

Thanks to a slayer dream, Buffy has an idea of what the Gentlemen look like and Giles is able to find them in one of his books. Time to hold Gentlemen 101.

How do we kill them? *cue staking motion* Nope, can’t stake them. The only way to kill them is with noise. They must find a way to get everyone’s voices back. The team manages to figure out where the demons are hiding and Buffy goes to kill them.

Meanwhile, Riley and his Initiative mates are also trying to solve this mysterious no-voice dilemma. He also goes to find the Gentlemen and runs into none other than Buffy, both holding weapons and ready to strike. They both have some splaining to do since neither knows the other knows all the supernatural stuffs. After a scuffle with the minions, Riley manages to destroy the box and Buffy’s scream blows the heads off of the Gentlemen. Literally. Also gross.

For an episode that was almost completely without dialogue, this one was pretty awesome. It really said something about the cast that they could be funny and communicate without saying anything. Brilliant episode and worthy of a spot on my favorites list.

2. Fool For Love- 5x7- “What can I tell you, baby? I’ve always been bad.”

Synopsis: Buffy gets stabbed through the stomach while fighting a regular vamp and starts to realize that she really could die… again. And at the hands of a regular, unimportant vampire. Obsessed with this fact, she turns to Spike, determined to figure out how he managed to kill two slayers.

While Spike is telling his story, we finally get to see what he was like as a human. A gentle, mousy haired poet as it turns out.

After being rejected by the woman he loves (biotch!), he ventures out into the dark streets and meets a lovely, mysterious lady who wants to help him. Seems legit. Her name… Drusilla. (Gasp) We see him being turned into a vampire.

(Note- He was not afraid. He just said ow a bunch.)

“Lesson the first: A slayer must always reach for her weapon. I’ve already got mine.”

He then tells the tale of seeking out a slayer during the Boxer Rebellion, after being told by Angelus to beware the chosen one (Angelus is such a baby). Spike gets the upper hand on the girl and that’s that. Bless her heart.

In the present day, he teases Buffy and even flirts with her a little as they eat wings and

play pool. Up until the end of the episode there is a lot of tension between the two characters. One could almost say it was sexual. (It definitely was!)

“Lesson the second: Ask the right questions. You wanna know how I beat 'em? The question isn't how'd I win. The question is, why'd they lose?”

Back to the past, he reveals how he killed the second slayer in the 1970’s on a subway train in New York. (It is also revealed that this is how he obtained his black coat.) There are flashes between a fight with Buffy in the present and his fight with the other slayer, Nikki Wood (as we discover later on). He tells Buffy he was able to kill the slayers, not because of his skills or theirs, but because they wanted to die. “Every slayer has a death wish. Even you.”

I loved this episode because we got to delve into the past of William the Bloody. Spike is one of the most interesting characters on the show, and I’m not just saying that cause he’s my favorite. I enjoyed looking into his past, learning what made him who he was when he first came to Sunnydale. Also, Spike was looking his finest in this episode. We got to see Buffy feel weak for once; she seemed to get a bit of a wakeup call. And learned a thing or two.

“Here endeth the lesson.”

1. Once More With Feeling- 6x7- Did anybody… burst into song? A musical event to remember.

Synopsis: Morning, Summers’ Residence- The alarm clock dings. Everyone is starting their day as per usual; jaunty music is playing in the background.

 

Night, Cemetery- Buffy is patrolling. She sings about the monotony of slaying demons and her desire to feel alive again. Right now she’s just… going through the motions.

Morning, Magic Box- Buffy confronts the gang about the singing and they realize there must be evil afoot. They all sing about their theories: demons, witches, bunnies… but ultimately decide it doesn’t matter because they can face anything together.

Afternoon, park- Willow and Tara have escaped the research to enjoy the weather and each other. Tara sings about being under Willow’s spell (though she doesn’t realize how literal that song is) and they end up at home in their bedroom and… sing… they probably sing.

Afternoon, Magic Box- Dawn comes in, excited about singing at school. But is it only the Scoobies who are affected? Nope, another guy belts out a tune about the Laundromat getting the mustard from his shirt. Amazing.

Morning, Xander and Anya’s apartment- The couple sings a duet and both realize they have reservations about marriage. But it’s okay, cause they won’t ever tell each other...wait…

Night, crypt- Buffy pumps Spike for information on the singing. He tries to run her off but ends up singing about her letting him rest in peace unless she plans to get naughty with him. (Buffy: challenge accepted.)

Still night, house- Dawn inadvertently tells Tara that Willow cast a spell on her to make her forget a fight. Then gets kidnapped. Way to go, Dawn.

The Bronze- Dawn dances with some puppets and then gets sung to by a nameless demon (we shall call him Sweet) about how he knows what she feels and that she’s going to be his queen cause she summoned him. When Dawn reveals that her sister is the slayer, Sweet sends his minions to inform Buffy he has her sister.

Magic Box- Giles sings to Buffy about how he has to leave because he standing in her way. Somehow she’s too busy doing backflips to hear him.

Still Magic Box- Tara arrives and researches the flower Willow gave her and discovers that she was indeed spelled by her girlfriend. She and Giles sing about how they wish they could stay but can’t. Then Spike shows up with a minion in his grasp and they find out Dawn was kidnapped. Must be Tuesday. Giles tells Buffy she must go fight alone.

Multiple places- The gang all sing together about walking through fire to help the people they love.

Bronze- Buffy arrives to save Dawn and impressively manages to fight off minions and sing about needing something to sing about at the same time. The Scoobies show up and Anya and Tara provide much needed backup… dancing. Buffy then accidentally reveals to her friends that they pulled her out of heaven. She almost catches on fire dancing but Spike saves her (apparently everyone else was cool with just letting her burn). He tells her she must go on living so one of them is living (great line). When Dawn claims she did not summon Sweet, Xander admits that he is the guilty party. Sweet, not wanting Xander as his queen for some reason, decides to leave, saying he’ll see them all in hell.

So where do they go from here? They decided to sing one more song but Spike leaves in the middle. Apparently, he’s had enough.

Alley- Buffy follows the vampire, presumably to apologize or something, but ends up singing a brief duet with him… like a coda really. They slowly walk toward each other… they’re both in frame… the singing stops… and a very intense kissing session begins.

Cue the closing curtains… literally.

Like so many other fans of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Once More With Feeling is my favorite episode. I own the soundtrack (signed by James Marsters himself)

and know all of the songs. TV musicals are often disastrous but Joss Whedon managed to make this episode logical and amazing. It was great from start to finish and moved many of the story lines along nicely. Epic episode. Epicsode! Yeah, okay, that was lame.

Despite its main character being a slayer of vampires, Buffy is a show that dove into the realities of human nature and real life problems. From losing your mother to having your heart broken to being broke and unemployed, Buffy and the gang faced many life challenges. All fans of the show would agree that Buffy is about much more than slaying demons and saving the world. I personally learned a lot from watching this show and it has stuck with me in the ten years since its final episode aired in 2003. Some episodes made me laugh, others made me cry, and some just made me sit back and say, ‘that was a good hour of television.’ I know I’ll never forget these characters and what they taught me about life.

After all, the hardest thing in this world is to live in it.

~Mallory