What are your 'essential' Buffy episodes?

[gloominous]

I watched Buffy during its original run and have always been a big fan but my best friend has never seen it. All the episodes are currently on Prime and she mentioned the other night that she'd be amenable to a 'highlights' version.

Obviously I have my own favourite episodes which I've returned to (many, many times) over the years but I've never rewatched all seven seasons in chronological order. So I wondered what everyone else would consider to be the essential episodes of each season that would give a complete newbie a sense of the overall story?

Obviously the ideal scenario is that she'll love it so much that she binges the whole thing without me but I like to be prepared

I also don't like Buffy/Spike. It's a toxic relationship

But only in the last 2 series - one of the many things that I hated about them. Before that, the dynamic between them is great and light-hearted.

The one where she finds her mum dead. As someone who has lost both parents, I actually found it the only artistic representation of what it feels like . And I really didn't expect it too. I mean, it's Buffy, for heaven's sake. Great performance.

Another one for Hush. Also, Becoming (1&2). Could happily skip most of Season 7 except "Help"

It's better not to watch Buffy at all than to dip into selected episodes. She will miss all of the character development.

That said, I'm gonna add the Buffy/Angel crossover episode called 'I will remember you'. I cried bucket loads.

You have to watch them all to get it.Anything with faith or angel won't make sense. Then there is the tara relationship the jonathon warren and andrew. Season 4 riley leads to why season 5 riley is all stroppy and leaves. Joyces death the whole Dawn thing the robot everything feeds into each other. Even once more with feeling the songs are all about whats been going on.

We are rewatching them now with ds 15 who is loving it.
We watched hush last night he was completely not freaked out at all i was so disappointed. We have a new man coming up in a couple of episodes and thats one of my favourites.

bellinisurge completely agree. It felt very real indeed, as it was supposed to, and captured the first minutes, hours and days after very well indeed. No noise or drama, just that enormous void and overwhelming sense of loss.
I can't watch it since I lost my Mum, it's way too close to home for me yet.

Superstar - where Jonathon is a weird god like character and they all adore him!

We watched hush last night he was completely not freaked out at all i was so disappointed

I remember the adverts for Hush playing in the breaks during the Simpsons the night it first aired. It looked so creepy I made my sister come down and watch it with me. For days afterwards, if I was ever alone in a room, I would start talking to myself to check I still had my voice...

... Then I got the season 4 VHS over the summer and was just ... wtf? This isn't scary at all! There are things I love about that episode (Giles' presentation to danse macabre!) but the creep factor did not hold up even to the second viewing for me.

Apart from Once More, the episode I have watched the most often is Intervention. I think it’s hilarious (“I am not having sex with Spike! But I’m starting to think you might be.” “He’s evil. But you should see him naked!”) and I like the Spike/ Buffy interaction.

I love Intervention! And Crush - I can talk along with that one. I love creepy stalker Spike - even though he is obviously very problematic from a real world pov

Orangeday 10IAR

According to IMDB, Kelly Donovan stood in for Nicholas in the episode Intervention, as Nicolas was sick, as well as starring in The Replacement. It doesn't say which episodes he was a body double in, but it says he was a set dresser for Buffy.

Whenever people ask that question my first instinct is always to say The Body, Hush, Normal Again and possibly Once More With Feeling (extended cut obv) but that one is trickier as an introductory episode. Normal again is also a bit pointless to watch first without having become invested in the show already, but I loved it. It has the whole solution - it was all a dream and in the end that is the only explanation that makes sense since the Buffyverse isn't logical within itself. The Body was great television, although I've always thought they should have had the guts to skip the vampire fight at the end.

I really love the dark, neggy feeling of season 1, even though I don't like The Master much as a villain. It has some of the best stories really, real after school special plots with a twist. Ted is a great episode, and one of the few episodes that manages to be quite genuinely feminist and not just Whedon's cute girl version of it (he doesn't impress me much in the long run).

Angel is an annoying drip, but I would prob have loved him if they'd chosen an actual Irish actor. The fact that he was fake Irish with the most terrible accent ever ruined a lot for me. Spike was miles better, and luckily I'm not English so if his accent is a bit shoddy he passes for me. Anyway, James M is a better actor and played the part of being torn between good and evil so much better. He got a better character to play with all in all of course.

Love the idea of Dawn, hate the execution of it, she could have done with being less whiney. Loved Glory!

Nabootique thanks! It was an interview with Joss Whedon for Dollhouse where he mentioned the body double thing.

I feel awful sad about how Nicholas Brendon has struggled so much since Buffy ended.

Angel is an annoying drip, but I would prob have loved him if they'd chosen an actual Irish actor. The fact that he was fake Irish with the most terrible accent ever ruined a lot for me

In fairness to Angel - he very rarely does the Irish accent - only ever in flashbacks. You can probably count the number of times he does it on both hands. Most of the time he's just standard American. I don't think they'd really thought through his entire backstory when they cast DB as 'mysterious handsome guy' in a mid season replacement show which didn't expect to get past the first 12 episodes. An Irish actor wouldn't have been deemed necessary until it was already too late. (plus - is there anyone more perfect for the role of 'mysterious handsome guy' than beautiful beautiful season 1 David Boreanaz? The beauty doesn't last - but they couldn't have known that at the time)
I heard the original idea for Angel was that he was going to be Hispanic - but he got whitewashed.

JM's British accent starts terrible but gets better. But it is always sexy as hell - so it doesn't matter that it is bad.

They do dvds for each character, with 3 or so highlight episodes; Buffy, Spike, Willow etc.

I love the episode when Buffy is working in the burger shop and Riley is waiting in line. Her facial expressions are amazing, when Buffy is clearly hoping Riley is back for her and will sweep her off her feet and take her away from her shit life, and then she realises he is married. Sarah Michelle is a very underrated actress.
"I have a cow on my hat"

Cba to go through the whole post. But my fave is Fear Itself. Amongst many many episodes.

I read somewhere that David boreanez (sp?) wasn’t even an actor before buffy. I swear I remember reading that the female producer or something... Jane? Lived near him and saw him walking his dog, possibly called Blue or Bertha or something along those lines, and asked him to audition

I bet I’ve just made that up

I love buffy so much. When I was a student, I bought myself the box set of a season each time I got the next instalment of my student loan.

I agree with posters saying she needs to watch them all. I also need to watch them all again.

He was an actor but had done very little (there is an episode of married with children somewhere on youtube - he goes out with the daughter - and then dumps her.)
But he wasn't up to audition. It was the casting director's dentist that used to see this guy walking his dog and told her that he had seen someone perfect for what she was looking for. The rest is history.

Ah I do know that the Irish was an afterthought but that in itself annoys me a bit. Also he’s a poor actor really but I have to say i was alright with him most of the time, the emo shite just got to me.

Oooo remembered - love the episode when Giles and Joyce become teens again. That bit when he’s playing records and being an utter shit is so brilliant.

The whole of season 1 and 2 were the best! I love the first ever episode

Hush
Dopplegangland
Graduation day parts 1 & 2
The wish
Chosen
Prophecy girl
Helpless
The gift
Once more with feeling
Phases
These aren't in the right order just as they came to me.

My Dad will only watch episodes with either Spike, Anya or Oz in He used to binge watch them with me years ago (16 years ago to be exact blush]) and whenever I visit we crack out my DVDs and pick a few, scoff Chilli Doritos and drink Vanilla Coke like we used to when I was a teen.

Oooo remembered - love the episode when Giles and Joyce become teens again. That bit when he’s playing records

The night of Joyce's funeral he sits alone in his apartment listening to that same record

Band candy I think it's called.