In honor of Joss Whedon’s recent birthday, we’ve compiled a list of the Top Ten best episodes of his most famous pop culture contribution, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Having been off the air for ten years this past May, Buffy still maintains a strong cult following. The show centered on a young blonde girl who fought off the forces of evil AND had to attend high school. We’re not really sure which seems more daunting. Buffy helped pave the way for things like the Twilight series, The Vampire Diaries, Teen Wolf, and Supernatural. It was a show drenched in girl power. Here are our choices for the ten best Buffy episodes.
10. “Chosen” (Season 7, Episode 22): The show’s series finale deserves a definite spot on this list. Buffy and company close Sunnydale’s hellmouth, all potential slayers are given slayer powers, and Spike dies (sort of) saving the world. While the episode wasn’t perfect, it included a subtle scene which brought full circle a series which began with a watcher, a slayer, and her two best friends.
9. “School Hard” (Season 2, Episode 3): The introduction of two of the series’ greatest characters, Spike and Drusilla. The “Sid and Nancy” of Vampires, this pair helps make Season 2 the best BtVS season of all.
8. “Amends” (Season 3, Episode 10): It’s Christmastime in Sunnydale, and souled vampire Angel is being plagued by visions of his former kills. “Amends” earns its spot on this list because of an intensely emotional exchange between lovers Buffy and Angel (“It’s not the demon in me that needs killing, Buffy. It’s the man.”). Also, does anyone else watch this episode every Holiday season?
7. “Angel” (Season 1, Episode 7): “Angel” shocked viewers by depicting a romance between a human vampire slayer and a vampire. Buffy and Angel were the original Bell and Edward. Take that, Twilight.
6. “The Gift” (Season 5, Episode 22): The last episode to air on the WB network (now CW) before the show’s move to UPN, this episode could have been the series finale. Some argue that it should have been the series finale. It neared perfection. In Buffy Summers second death of the series, (yes, second) she saved the world. A lot.
5. “Becoming Part 2” (Season 2, Episode 22 ): In which Buffy must kill the love of her life in order to save the world. We can’t listen to Sarah McLachlan’s “Full of Grace” the same way again. Tears. Tears everywhere.
4. “The Body” (Season 5, Episode 16): Buffy’s mother Joyce dies, and by natural causes. In a show where supernatural forces are around every corner, having the protagonist’s mother die of a brain tumor was truly frightening. The episode was brilliantly directed and written, depicting each character dealing with their grief perfectly. “The Body” is haunting and heart wrenching.
3. “Once More, With Feeling” (Season 6, Episode 7): Also known as “the musical episode,” OMWF is a fan favorite. It somehow made a random musical in the middle of a supernatural series seem normal. Xander decides it would be fun to summon a demon that makes everyone spontaneously break into song and dance, however the gang ends up revealing their deepest secrets along the way. The episode boasts a catchy soundtrack and surprised fans with some great performances from BtVS actors with real singing talent (Anthony Stewart Head, Amber Benson, James Marsters). It also featured some not-so-great singing talent (we’re looking at you, Sarah Michelle Gellar). In the end, it was the plot that really stole the show. Buffy reveals that she was, in fact, in Heaven between season’s 5 and 6, and the episode closes on a kiss between Spike and Buffy that began a serious fan debate. Buffy/Angel, or Buffy/Spike?
2. “Hush” (Season 4, Episode 10): A bright spot in an otherwise mostly dull season, “Hush” is by far one of the best Buffy episodes ever. It is unique in that only 17 out of the 44 minutes of the episode feature dialogue; the rest of the episode features characters miming their words in an eerie silence. “Hush” has possibly the creepiest villain of the series, “The Gentleman,” who still haunt our nightmares. It also is the only BtVS episode to be nominated for a writing Emmy.
1. “Passion” (Season 2, Episode 17): The best episode of an amazing season and of the series itself. “Passion” features Buffy’s former lover Angel (in his evil form Angelus) on a vengeful rampage. Angelus, out to hurt Buffy by going after those closest to her (and sometimes their pets) builds up his menace slowly. He eventually kills Jenny Calendar, the woman who was on her way to restoring his soul, and who Buffy’s watcher Giles was falling in love with. Several scenes in “Passion” give us chills: Angelus snapping Jenny’s neck; Giles finding her dead body in his bed surrounded by roses; Willow’s heartbreak at her death. The episode ends with perfect foreshadowing, both at Buffy’s promise to kill Angelus the next time they meet and the possibility that his soul could still be restored after all.