Top 10 Buffy The Vampire Slayer Episodes

Buffy the Vampire Slayer is now 20 years old. The show debuted five years after the the theatrical version, which was not well-received or considered canon. The changes made for the TV version were enough to allow the show to air for seven seasons. Full of witty dialogue and heart-breaking scenes, it became a cult classic that produced collectibles, several comic book series, and almost spawned an animated series.

We revisited the show, re-watched several key episodes, and selected the ten best ones to watch.

Season 4, Episode 22

The fourth season finale written and directed by Joss Whedon. Buffy, Willow, Xander, and Giles have a relaxing night after their recent victory against Adam. Watching a movie, they fall asleep and have strange dreams that gives insight into the characters and hints at what themes may come in their future. And of course, the Cheese Man's appearance added to the bizarre situations each character finds themselves in. The cause of the dreams are a result of the spell they used during their last battle.

Season 7, Episode 22

The final episode of the series. It's the last battle between the army of potential slayers and the First Evil. Angel returns to help in the fight, but Buffy sends him off, in case she falls. She prepares to enter the Hellmouth, and a spell is cast to make it so every girl that could be a slayer can be one, instead of there just being one. It's a brutal fight with sacrifices and deaths. The final scene leaves the future open for those that survived.

Season 3, Episode 9

Xander and Cordelia are dealing with their break up. Cordelia figures her problems started when Buffy arrived. Anya, a former vengeance demon, gives Cordy a necklace that grants her wish that Buffy never moved to Sunnydale. That means there's no slayer in town and vampires have taken over. Xander and Willow have been killed and turned into vampires. Things really become hopeless and you wonder how they'll change things back.

Season 3, Episodes 21 & 22

The evil Mayor of Sunnydale is preparing to unleash the Ascension on Graduation Day in order to become a pure demon. He's been able to get Faith to help carry out his dastardly plans and she poisons Angel to distract Buffy. The only way to cure him is to drain the blood of a slayer. Buffy plans on using Faith's blood. It's a brutal fight with Buffy stabbing Faith in the stomach. Faith still manages to escape. With no other cure, Buffy forces Angel to drink her blood, leaving her in a coma. She recovers and battles the Mayor along with her classmates after his transformation.

Season 5, Episode 22

Glory, the powerful hell dimension goddess, was banished on Earth from her dimension. Her goal for several episodes was to find the "Key," in order to return home. It turns out the Key was transformed into the human guise of Dawn, Buffy's sister. Dawn's blood would have to be used to close the portal Glory would open that would unleash hell on Earth. Because Dawn was created from Buffy's essence, the Slayer was able to sacrifice herself in order to save her sister and the world.

Season 2, Episodes 13 & 14

It's Buffy's birthday. Drusilla and Spike plot revenge against Buffy and Angel. After an inense battle, Angel confesses his love for Buffy, and the two share an intimate moment. This results in the Gypsy curse turning him evil after he achieved true happiness. With his soul taken away, Angel is now back as the evil Angelus. He teams up with Spike and Drusilla, leaving Buffy's heart broken when Angel treats her like dirt after their night together. Once she finds out all the details and has time to process everything, she knows she has to kill him. It's a roller coaster ride of emotions.

Season 6, Episode 7

Everyone discovers they cannot help suddenly breaking into song and dance. The problem is they're also revealing their deepest, darkest secrets. The episode was groundbreaking for the time. There's been other series that have done the musical number episode as a result. It was a risky move and had a successful payout. The show wasn't just lighthearted singing and dancing. Buffy was also struggling with her return from the dead (from the Season 5 finale, "The Gift") and dropped a bombshell on her friends and loved ones. Buffy and Spike also come to a new understanding.

Season 4, Episode 10

Buffy has a strange dream during class and Giles hears about a group called The Gentlemen. A quarter of the way through the episode, everyone's voice is taken during the night when a box is opened. The entire town wakes up to discover they cannot talk. Because the show usually is full of witty dialogue and banter, new ways of communication are needed to deliver those funny moments. The whole town is at a loss and fear the "end" is coming. The Gentlemen are creepy old smiling dudes in suits that can float with two others shambling around in straightjackets. The Scooby Gang needs to figure how they can defeat them without the use of their voices.

Season 5, Episode 16

Buffy and her friends deal with death all the time. When her mother has a natural death, none of her training and experience can prepare her. The music-free episode really cranked up the emotions as death was really looked at. You see the shock and realization as Buffy finally registers what happened. Other tough moments include Buffy having to tell Dawn, Willow not knowing what to wear or how to handle the death, and Anya, as a former demon, trying to understand death and mortality.

Season 2, Episodes 21 & 22

We get flashbacks to Angel becoming a vampire. With his return to evil in "Surprise," can Angel's soul be restored? Should he be killed? As Buffy struggles with putting a stop to Angel, her mom finds out she's a slayer. Willow casts spell to restore Angel's soul in the middle of the final fight. Angel returns but the hell portal he summoned is open. Buffy stabs him to close the portal. Buffy then leaves Sunnydale, only leaving a note for her mom.

There's our Top Ten. Let us know what you think, and which is your favorite episode.