"Buffy-vivor": Pick the ultimate Buffy episode! (Come vote in the finals!)

[ShaggySpellsword]

So...I had to reread the instructions on this thread. They distinctly said FAVORITE episode of Buffy. I don't think I can honestly say that "The Body" was my favorite episode. The best episode? Of the series maybe. The only episode to make me cry on every occasion I've watched it (except the time I watched it with commentary...that's the only time I can make it through.) SMG's best acting in the entire series? Emma's best acting?

However, when I decide it's time to watch season five, and I go for my favorite episode...I never grab The Body. It makes me sad. I grab my vote for season five favorite "Fool for Love" . It is the episode where I started rooting for Spike to turn good-guy completely. The episode where I started, somewhere in the back of my mind, realising that Chipped-Spike wasn't, in fact, LAME, but has distinct possibilities over the course of the series. Add to that the Angel sister episode, "Darla", and they are two VERY good episodes of TV.

Speaking of which, can we have an Angel-vivor next? And then pit the winners of the two series against each other? Smile Time will clearly win, but I'd like to make it official (giggle)

 

[AuroraGyps]

The Gift... more of Doc (Joel Gray's so cool), Giles killing Ben, Spike crouched on the ground crying at the end... a lot of pieces made up this great 100th episode.

 

[DM_Matt]

The Gift.

 

[Cor Azer]

Well, here we go with Season 5...

Family: Aired Nov. 07, 2000
The Body: Aired Feb. 27, 2001

Tough choice for me between these two...

Can I give a half vote for each?

 

[John Crichton]

The last great season of The Slayer. *pause of reverence*

Not as strong as 2 or 3 but great TV. So many awesome moments. It really felt like the end. So much death. So much loss.

Without question, the best ep was The Body.

Other episodes had better singular moments (see: the last 15 minutes of The Gift) but this one had perfect pitch and tone throughout. The DVD commentary made it even better. Whedon knows his craft and he knows it well. Who would have guessed that such awesome humanity could be produced by a show called, "Buffy, the Vampire Slayer."

I felt numb the entire time watching the episode and then on the repeat viewing. For any who have lost a loved one, there aren't many cathartic moments found in TV or on film and this was one of them. Captured it perfectly. And for any fan of the show, the abrupt loss of Joyce Summers was a painful one. And you actually felt it. That's hard to do. A sucker-punch, right through the cathode ray tube of your TV.

*bam*

Then nothing.

 

[Cthulhu's Librarian]

For any who have lost a loved one, there aren't many cathartic moments found in TV or on film and this was one of them.

You've got that right. Watching The Body brought back many feelings I had after my fathers death 10 years ago, and really made me think about what I went through at the time. I've never had a reaction to a tv show or movie on such a personal level. Joss and cast were able to take something that almost everyone has to deal with at some time in their life and make an episode mean something personally.

 

[ShadowDenizen]

Hmm. Interestingly, we have a tie!
The winners are:
The Gift and The Body with a total of 8 votes each.
They will move on to join past season winners in the finals.

Trailing behind, with one vote each, were:
Buffy vs. Dracula,
Into the Woods, and
Fool for Love.

Season 6 coming up!

 

[ShadowDenizen]

Well, we're down to the final two seasons!
So far, we have confirmed that Prophecy Girl, Passion, The Zeppo, Hush, The Gift and The Body are all in the finals!
Let's move on to Season 6.


Bargaining Aired Oct. 02, 2001
After Life Aired Oct. 09, 2001
Flooded Aired Oct. 16, 2001
Life Serial Aired Oct. 23, 2001
All the Way Aired Oct. 30, 2001
Once More with Feeling Aired Nov. 6, 2001
Tabula Rasa Aired Nov. 13, 2001
Smashed Aired Nov. 20, 2001
Wrecked Aired Nov. 27, 2001
Gone Aired Jan. 08, 2002
Doublemeat Palace Aired Jan. 29, 2002
Dead Thing Aired Feb. 5, 2002
Older and Far Away Aired Feb. 12, 2002
As You Were Aired Feb. 26, 2002
Hell's Bells Aired March 05, 2002
Normal Again Aired March 12, 2002
Entropy Aired April 30, 2002
Seeing Red Aired May 07, 2002
Villains Aired May 14, 2002
Two to Go (Part 1 of 2) Aired May 21, 2002
Grave (Part 2 of 2) Aired May 21, 2002

 

[Crothian]

Once More with Feeling

Well written, well acted, and it had a lot of good plot points in it really advancing the season.

 

[ShadowDenizen]

Hmm.
Well, I enjoyed OMWF, but my vote has to go to "Tabula Rasa": it's one of the few Buffy eps where I atually laughed out loud.