If you told someone back in 1997 how popular Buffy would get, you’d probably have been laughed out of the room, down the street, and into a taxi headed straight for a Hellmouth in SoCal.
But decades later, a titanic fanbase lives on, and an unending enjoyment of Buffy Summers and the rest of the Scooby Gang defending the world lives with it. So, of course, I felt that we should look back at some of the best Buffy episodes to rewatch in celebration of the big two-five!
I Robot…You Jane
When I pick an episode to casually rewatch, I usually choose one of two depending on what mood I’m in. I Robotembodies the show’s madcap creativity and humor, partially because of the very intentional camp in the episode and partly because it’s SUPER dated (it’s about an internet demon in the late 90s, what did you expect?). It also has one of my favorite creature designs, showing the costuming and makeup that became the gold standard for sci-fi and horror shows. Oft maligned for its goofiness, its tongue-firmly-in-cheek ridiculousness is still fun to watch today.
Hush
Meet the other one of the two. On the other end of the spectrum, Hush is the better script horror-wise and directorially; everybody in Sunnydale loses their voices to mysterious, floating, organ harvesting undead that look creepy as all hell. I’ve watched this episode with a fair share of people, and it has this truly disturbing factor in its premise and execution that resonates deeply with many people. By its end, it’s a relief to see the silence broken.
The Zeppo
One of the things Buffy did best was deconstructing a lot of the show’s characters and getting to the core of who they are, all in an hour. This episode has a funny conceit, but ultimately a surprising climax that brings a whole new range of depth to Xander, a character who is an admittedly small player on the show’s massive stage. The Scooby gangs most mundane member proves himself to be extraordinary and rises to the occasion, resulting in a lot of fun.
Fool for Love
Spike is such a compelling villain; between his despicable beginnings, his redemptive arc post Initiative chip, and the dynamic love-hate relationship he has with Buffy, almost every Spike scene ends up a testament not only to the impeccable acting of James Marsters but to how great the character writing was on this show. It’s an episode all about Spike, his past, and his future with Buffy, capped off by an incredibly surprising ending that shows the humanity of one of the show’s most inhuman villains.
Surprise/Innocence
I know, I know, it’s cheating to pick two, but they’re inseparable. Innocence has a particularly special place in my heart as it’s the first episode that I ever watched. And what a confusing gut punch to start on! Arguably the best two-parter in the series, this is the apex of the show’s romantic drama with Buffy and Angel’s love being torn apart following their lovemaking and the resurgence of the Angelus persona. The triple threat of Angel, Drusilla, and the Judge is short-lived if not incredibly fun, and leads to one of the show’s most memorable deaths (“What’s that do?”).
Once More, With Feeling
What is definitively the best musical episode in television history also turns out to be one of the show’s most wonderful; a show-tune singing demon comes to Sunnydale and enchants everyone into singing and dancing. We get surprisingly good vocal performances from the entire cast, with guest star Hinton Battle and series regulars bringing serious vocal work. Not to mention the insane reveal by song as Buffy confesses to her friends that Willow bringing her back was more of a curse than a blessing. What could have been a disaster execution-wise ends up a masterpiece that doesn’t go even slightly off-key.
Graduation Day, Parts I & II
Originally, I was going to say that the Season 3 opener Anne had the best fight in the series. My editor kindly reminded me of how wrong I was with Graduation Day, arguably the best two-parter in the series. Take your pick of reasons why it’s so good: it might be that it has the show’s best choreography and stunt work with Buffy and Faith’s knockout slayer duel. It could be Buffy risking her life to save Angel. The student body banding together and fighting vampires to save the day, maybe? Or it could just be Principal Snyder lecturing to his grisly demise and Mayor Wilkin’s comically explosive death. Whatever reason it is, you’re sure to have a lot of fun rewatching.
SOME FINAL WORDS
The allegations of Joss Whedon’s reprehensible abuses of power are intolerable to all of us here at Horror Press; that being said, it’s a heavy disservice in my eyes to allow one man’s transgressions to tarnish something so much larger than him. Joss Whedon did not make Buffy alone. The dozens of other directors and writers that collaborated on the show also made Buffy. The set designers, the SFX people, the makeup and wardrobe teams that worked aesthetic miracles weekly made Buffy. And most importantly, the incredible acting of cast members like Sarah Michelle Gellar, Charisma Carpenter, Allyson Hanigan, and David Boreanaz (to name only a few) made Buffy.
On this 25th anniversary of Buffy, its important to remember: the show, and the love of that show do not belong to one person. And we don’t have to leave the hard work of all the other wonderful contributors in the past.
So, to all the wonderful cast and crew who made Buffy spectacular, I and everyone at Horror Press like to say thank you for all the memories!