SPOILER Just to clear something up… During the outro, when I repeatedly talked about my doubts that Buffy was dead, I was talking about her being dead from the SHOW, not that I doubted she’d actually died in this episode - obviously, she had died; we saw her body and she was buried. I didn’t doubt for a second that she’d actually died, only that it wasn’t going to be a ‘lasting’ death. Every time I mentioned it I was referring to her leaving the show entirely; that’s what I had trouble believing. When they showed the gravestone, they were suggesting that was the end of the character, and that’s what I wasn’t buying. When I later said that I didn’t believe that she was dead, that it was too abrupt, that there wasn’t a funeral etc., it was under the assumption that I’d already made it clear that I was referring to her completely leaving the show. From the way I worded it (during the first part of the outro), maybe that won’t be clear for some people, but it was crystal clear to me. That said, I could’ve been clearer as to what exactly I was referring to.
"Death is your gift." There's always that moment, in every reaction video, where the reactor realizes what those words meant. And it's always heartbreaking to see Spike, that soulless monster, breaking down at the sight of Buffy's body.
@@theprodigal mourning a death is never pathetic, whether you like the character or not. plus the main part is the way James Marsters sells it so realistically breaking down- it is heartbreaking.
And the series ended. 😁 No, it really just changed networks - from The WB to UPN both defunct now (both Networks combined to created The CW) - didn't mean people were any less confused when S6 was announced for another Network, though. Especially when The WB advertised it as the last episode intending it to mean their last episode, but just causing more confusion.
Besides the last episode for wb, like others already explained, this was the ep 100... so I love the special "previously". I think this episode really connects well certain things showed throughout the season. Dagon sphere. Buffybot. Troll hammer. The slayer gift. The blood line between Buffy and Dawn. Giles killing Ben always give me chills.
We didn't know at the time. This was written as the finale of the show because they didn't know if they were going to get a season six at the time they made this!
That makes sense. It kinda felt weird, knowing that there are 2 more seasons. I will say that I wasn't 100% sure if she was gonna be in the next 2 seasons, but I was maybe 99% sure, haha.
That's not quite accurate: there was a dispute between the WB and UPN over who would take the next season, which was already in development. It ended up moving to UPN while Angel stayed on the WB.
By the time the finale aired one the WB, UPN had already picked it up. Even during the production of the finale they knew it was very unlikely to be the final season. It was just a matter of coming to an agreement with the new network. Still, it would have been a satisfying series finale.
@@liteflightify I disagree on the last bit; I think that, thematically, this would have been a very unsatisfying finale. But I won't say more to avoid spoilers.
"Kill the man, kill the god." I thought that statement by Giles was extremely insightful. If religion is a construct of man, then that's how it would work.
I think it was Restless where Tara tells Buffy “Be back before dawn”. People often assume this refers to Dawn.. but that would reduce it to a play on words. There was no need for Buffy to be back anywhere before Dawn was suddenly introduced. IMO it refers to this moment here: 26:26 . This is where Buffy had to be, 730 days after she spoke to Faith in that dream at the end of s4, and this is the moment she understands “death is your gift” and probably all the other prophetic clues.
I think this too. when I was a kid and watching,I thought it meant Dawn, but upon my multiple watches as I grew up, I realized she was talking about her sacrifice. along with the robot gf saying "Its always darkest before the Dawn" ( though she gets cut off due to her battery dying right before she says 'dawn'.). also,I think you meant to say the dream Faith convo was in season 3, right after Faith got put into a coma and Buffy was in the hospital, unconscious from helping Angel. She not only helps her by telling her to use the Mayor's weakness, but she also says that '730' quote.
The Night of Nights. At the time I had no idea if the show was continuing and FELT it. The tone of the show was getting darker and more doom filled throughout and really took a turn in "Restless" with the First Slayer seemingly awakening something in Buffy. "Fool for Love" revealed Spike's harsh insight into the endlessness of a Slayer's nightmarish life. Then "Death is your Gift"...and the hopelessness of "Spiral" and "The Weight of the World". The finale gave the rest of the characters resolutions: Dawn saved, Xander marrying Anya, Willow and Tara back together, Spike at peace with his love for Buffy and Giles doing his Duty as a Watcher. I was well convinced that she was dead and the series had ended.
If the writers and producers knew the show wasn't going to be renewed, or there was a good chance it wouldn't be, they had to have a final ending that wrapped the series up. I'm glad they did it this way. SO tired of getting invested in a series and then having it cancelled before a series finale. I need a decent wrap up and I'm looking at you, Killing Eve!
Killing Eve didn't get a good ending? That's a shame. I reacted to the other seasons and I had wondered why nobody had inquired about the final season. I thought it was me, haha. Nice to know that it was perhaps only 50% me. 😂
@@jaypeakay5864 OK, just went back and checked--when I was watching next to last season, I read somewhere that Killing Eve had been cancelled, so I thought that was the last season. I was wrong and just finished the season finale. I thought it was ok, but still left some questions unanswered. If I watched the entire thing again, I still prob wouldn't understand enough to have my questions answered.
When I watched this live the first time it aired I had no idea there was going to be anymore seasons. I cried so unbelievably hard that night. I started watching at 10years old. Movie on VHS and then at 12years old when the first season started. That show helped me get through my depression some days. It made me believe in magic for a moment. It gave me hope for the future, that it was possible life would be better one day. ✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨ When it ended, it was hard for me. I can’t remember if it was 2 months, 3 - six before I heard it was coming back. I couldn’t wrap my head around how. I can tell you I was glued to the tv every week like all seasons before.
That's sweet. Totally understandable; I knew it was coming back before the episode had even started, and by the end of it, even I couldn't get my head around how. 😂
BTW did anyone ever notice on the gravestone it gave Buffy's dates under BUFFY ANNE SUMMERS 1981-2001, However in S1 E8 I Robot You Jane, it gave Buffy's date of Birth on the computer screen scene as 24th October 1980. Just saying this seems to be a major continuity error.
Talking of the sphere, I was under the impression that its role was to 'repel' Glory, but then I noticed in the edit that she seemed to have some kind of reaction when she caught it. Is that right?
The night this episode aired, i cried my eyes out. We all expected this to be the end. Its the best ending episode in my opinion. This entire season, they all took it seriously, and the writing, directing, acting, all of it was top tier story telling and television. It all holds up today. By the way Buffy IS dead. That much is true lol.
At the time this episode aired, The WB network announced this episode as the "series finale", not the "season finale". Many of us thought this episode was the end, and it nearly was: the WB had cancelled the show, but the UPN network picked up Buffy for two more seasons at the last minute (after filming had wrapped), but many viewers weren't even aware of the change of networks until months later.
At the time WB aired a really mean add calling this "The WB series finale". Lots of people thought it was the end of the show. Honestly it would be a great finale and make a lot of sense. Glad its not though
It would've been even more impactful if people thought it was the end. FWIW, having now seen some of the next season, I'm glad it wasn't the end too. 👍
Hi J, I saw this episode when it aired originally and at that time (although some people knew I guess) it WASN'T common knowledge that a new contract from a new network would resurrect the show for another two seasons. The WB network was done with the show and the news that UPN wanted to revive it came as an eventual surprise. I cried for about 3 days and eventually accepted what happened (from a storytelling point of view) as an ending worthy of a hero. When the news eventually broke that the show would go on, I felt the way you felt about Joyce coming back. Disappointed, in a way, because I had already grieved and accepted her death for nothing. I feel a bit silly, of course, sharing this. It is after all a fictional story not based in reality. Just goes to show you how good the people involved were at their craft Cheers, mate!
Haha, not silly at all. I've felt that way about TV shows before. Buffy's resurrection did feel weird, but from what you said about where the show was, it makes more sense.
BTW- I remember in a previous episode, something about the monks having made Dawn out of Buffy, so I took it they somehow used Buffy's DNA. I didn't really question it; I just went with it. Glory was weakened by a combination of things: Willow's spell, the dagonsphere, Thor's hammer, and the wrecking ball--all in addition to the barrier between her and human Ben becoming so iffy. So when she changed back into Ben, Giles took his chance to get rid of her forever. And there was a funeral for Buffy, the show just didn't show it. She's dead.
I meant that because they hadn't _shown_ us the funeral, the likelihood of her coming back was extremely high. If she'd left the show for good, they wouldn't have skipped over it. Hope that makes sense.
Honestly it took everything they had to put Glory down. The hammer was probably the most effective, but Willow’s spell, dagonsphere etc all chipped away at her. Had Giles not done what he did - I don’t think they would have lived very long the next season.
For me, believable that Glory isn't up to speed: She is not, in fact, at full strength but under strain from fading barriers between her and Ben. Yes, she was thrown off balance by Willow. Immediately thrown further by the sphere, though minimally. Thereafter given no time to recover fully between attacks until ultimately forced back into Ben. And that is the end of that.
@@jaypeakay5864 Interesting detail I missed when the show first came on is that Tara points at Giles and says "You're a killer." What others have said is true, when the episode first aired, it wasn't clear that there would be another season and I remember there was an end-title card thanking the viewers for five wonderful years or something like that.
@@melenatorr Right?! 😂I saw it, but I thought it was just one of her random outbursts, and I totally forgot about it. Only during the edit did it hit me, haha. Wow, they thanked viewers for watching the show? That must've been gut-wrenching.
Contrary to popular myth, this was NOT a possible series finale and we did know there was going to be a 6th and 7th seasons well in advance of this episode airing. It was announced in January that the the series was switching networks to UPN for 2 seasons, S6 & S7, before episodes 17-22 even aired. In fact, Ep 22 hadn’t even started production yet when the news was published in Variety and The New York Times. You can still find those articles online. This was the original 5 year plan Joss Whedon created at the start of the series, but because it was such a massive hit, they knew before even starting production on S5 that there would be a S6. The only question was whether The WB would renew their contract or if 20th Century Fox would shop it to another network. But Fox and The WB had a very nasty, public back and forth throughout the first half of S5; with The WB lowballing the negotiations and downplaying the success of the series to the network. That realiy insulted Fox and Whedon, leading them to make a deal with UPN for 2 seasons. UPN also promised the show could go darker during those 2 seasons. Sarah even weighed in, publicly stating she would not continue the show if it moved from The WB, but Fox reminded her publicly that she had already renwed her contract and she WOULD indeed be expected to honor it and continue with the series and she promptly backed down, stating she was just reiterating her gratitude to The WB for giving them a chance to begin with. So, yes, we knew there would be 2 more seasons of Buffy a few months before this episode aired. Although I know a lot of people may not have heard about it if they didn’t read the papers at the time.
My friends and I thought this was the end. Back then in North Texas there was one newspaper, with little entertainment news other than movies, a very young and not dominant internet, and BTVS was involved in a bidding war between 2 networks. I understand now that people in California and New York knew ahead that there would be a Season 6. But not us and did not know for nearly 2 weeks. So for viewers and reactors now they can not comprehend how we felt. To this day I return to that disbelief and shock when I see Buffy start to run to the end of the platform…. the Swan Dive…. Spike breaking down… and that damm tombstone. Yes it was worse than Miss Callender on Giles bed, Angel with a sword in his gut going to hell, and even Joyce on the sofa. It was Buffy. She beat a God, saved Dawn ,and then gave herself to save the world…. And just like that is was over. Being so abrupt made it more shocking and real. No mourning, no process, just she saved the world a lot now carry on. So that’s how I felt and my friends all felt the gut punch of The Gift. Thankfully for new viewers you will not have the anguish but also not have the great news there will be a Season 6. Thank you for your wonderful reactions and get ready to belt yourself in for the ride of the final 44 episodes. For some the next 2 seasons are difficult but take the time and you will view what I think are the 2 best seasons in television history.
Thanks for the comment. I wish I didn't know there were two more seasons but it what it is. I'm so thrilled you've said that the next two seasons are gold. It seems like opinions about them have been mixed opinions. I've really enjoyed what I've seen so far of S6. Thanks again. 🙂
@@jaypeakay5864 Taking chances and changing expectations is always fought by those desiring comfort.That is the opposite of the next 2 seasons. You will see topics and characters arcs like no other attempted in a teen drama much less any show in history. Just get ready for an entertaining adventure that will stimulate your adrenaline, your mind, and give ethical moral choices that are unexpected. After you finish Season 6 it is a good time to rewatch Restless. Then ponder the entire series after the final 2 episodes of Season 2… yes that far back… and realize the show has been an extremely well constructed set of stories like an epic novel. This will get you ready for Season 7. I enjoy your reactions and enjoy the journey.
I was amused by all the "obviously she's not dead," I know you meant "not permanently dead," but you kept say "because we know there are two more seasons." YOU know there are two more seasons, but as many have pointed out, most of us watching as it aired did not know for sure whether there would be any additional seasons. Tsk tsk... 😉
You've done a great job keeping up with Buffy. Season 5 is so dramatic. It's always interesting to see people's reaction to Dawn and the emerging storyline in the beginning of the season.@@jaypeakay5864
If you think about the blood thing too much it doesn't make sense. Buffy's blood stopped but if Dawn has the same blood she's still up there dripping all over the place. But it's easy enough to come up with an explanation.
There are hints in the previous episodes that Buffy is depressed and exhausted and not seeing a way forward in life. Becoming an adult so quickly is hard, in addition to all her slayer responsibilities. So if she can save Dawn and the world, she seems just as glad to give up a life she doesn't value so much at the moment.
This was advertised as the last episode. I remember finding out about the network switch after this aired. Remember when Dawn went to the demon guy for the spell to bring Joyce back? He snatches a hair off Dawns head and remarks about how strong her mother's genes are? He was speaking about Buffy. The monks made Dawn from Buffy's DNA
The WB network wouldn't renew it. So Joss wrote it as the end of the series. It was the most perfect, most beautiful, most heartbreaking end to a series I had ever seen and remains so to this day. And I grieved Buffy so hard. And when they started airing commercials on a different network for the return of Buffy I could barely believe it was true. UPN had bought Buffy and we got 2 more seasons.
Jay man I love your reactions, but really the BLOOD! was foreshadowed right through the series and especially in S5 5E13 Blood Ties, when Buffy says to Dawn 'it's Summers Blood, just like mine' As Spike said 'there's always got to be blood'. Buffy's blood is Dawns blood, so she could sacrifice herself as her blood was the same as Dawn's blood. Just go back and watch the end of that episode.
Right, I just didn't understand _how_ they shared the same blood, and _how_ they'd made her 'out of' Buffy. I thought Buffy had said, "it's the same as mine" because she was trying to make Dawn feel like her true sister, which was why she'd done the whole 'blood brothers (sisters)' thing.
it wasn't made clear at all that Dawn was made from buffys blood and was a common criticism back on the buffy message boards back in the day. So dont blame J forf not picking up on that.
This was suppose to be the last episode of the series, but another channel picked them up. just think if they hadn't that this is how it would have all ended. If you didnt know this fact already you should try rewatching it keeping that in mind.
Really great finale it is like a movie The show has the best finales and fights against villains of any fantasy tv show. Even if this episode is less impactful now people know there are 7 seasons while we didn't know when it was aired if it was the last season or not. And because season 6 is so audacious and went far about characters development and it is so deep and clever.
Remember at the time it was written, this was the final episode. As far as we knew, it was. It had been pulled from the original network and sold to another network via shady business interations and shares and ownerships. We had no idea if there'd ever be more. Thankfully there is, but you'll see (and season 6 gets a lot of flak, but it's my favourite).
This was the original ending…they thought they were being cancelled at the end of season 5. In fact, they *were* cancelled, but another network picked them up, which was how and why we got the last two seasons. So Joss Whedon had to figure out a new plan. Re the blood, I guess you can think of it as taking (somehow) some of Buffy’s blood/DNA to make a body for Dawn when they turned her human. So they were genetically sisters (or even twins). So Buffy’s blood was essentially the same as Dawn’s.
Negotiations broke down between producers FOX and the network that carried both Buffy and Angel, the WB for season six onwards. After the episode, The network placed a placard thanking Buffy for the 5 seasons it ran, so it had a series finale feel. Season six resumed on the UPN with a two hour premiere that resolved Buffy’s demise.
Watching it live when I was a kid, it was promoted as the series finale. I didn’t have access to internet or much production information, so as a natural audience it was devastating watching it thinking it was over.
Okay what I think you're asking is how they made Dawn out of Buffy. It should work similarly with the way DNA. Building the body by protein coding and cell replication. So Dawn's blood is the key to the key,and even though Buffy's blood can't do that. Portal will recognize Buffy's blood as an equivalent. Blood flows, when our heart stops our blood stops flowing. The reason that Buffy was able to defeat Glori isn't due to trucks, hammer, bot, or brick layer. Glory didn't really want to win anymore. She lost, because she lost her will. Remember earlier when Glori was saying, " I got everything I want, so how come I'm not happy." So... the real reason Buffy beat big G is that Glory let her.
Wow, that last part is interesting. 🤔 That hadn't even occurred to me TBH. Is that your own theory or is it generally accepted? Either way, that'd be a great little twist. 👏The DNA thing was only confusing because I didn't know how they'd done it. I don't remember it being shown to us? I guess we're to imagine it happened, which is fine. The blood 'flows' thing confused me a little because stopping the 'flow' of blood usually (if not always) refers to stopping a wound from bleeding. If they'd used 'circulation' or 'pumping', it would've been a little clearer. Again, it's fine, I'm just trying to explain what I was thinking. 😁
@@jaypeakay5864 what's cleaver about blood flow 🔁 circulation, cutting yourself and having to apply pressure until blood coagulate etc etc. Is that either way, if the heart stops, then blood pressure stops, and bleeding ends. Although a flow can be constant, it is often rhythm that's considered a flow. So it was supposed to be a little bit hard to conceptualize, at least hard enough to pass for cleaver television. As far as Glory loosing her will to fight, I don't know if it is a generally accepted synopsis or not. It seemed Glo was just having a time of it, she was wrestling with Ben about having him help her to complete the task, but it was more like she just didn't really know what else to do with herself. She made this off comment to Dawn, that" people" where screwing their brains out because they didn't want them anymore. I thought that it was actually her internalizing everything. Glory never had feeling or consideration. She said that she was going to cram it all down where it belongs. I don't think she was successful and experiencing human thing's really brought her down and did a number on her. Although that could have just been my take, I might relate to that my self a little too well.
Personally I think this was the greatest episode of the entire BTVS series ( but not the Buffyverse, Angel S5 E22 was the ultimate). You must realise people watching and reacting to this now do know that S6 and S7 are to follow, but at the time many of us did not know this. The fact that Buffy realised 'Death is your gift' was her own death was brilliantly revealed at the end, and that she was prepared to lay down her own life to save all others proving she was the ultimate hero. Giles knew Buffy couldn't kill Ben as he was an innocent and she could not take a life, his alter ego Ripper comes back here to finish the job, kill Ben, and therefore denying Glory from ever re-emerging. It was brilliant writing to tie the whole series together and was a fantastic finale only equalled in the S5 finale of spinoff show Angel, I believe the greatest of all episodes in The Buffyverse. You must remember when this was originally shown many did not know the show would be back, you will see that once they switched to UPN Network for S6 and S7 how very different and adult the show becomes. Reactors of course know there are two more Seasons so this is not a spoiler. Even though people now watching this know Buffy will be back, it is still heart breaking and hard hitting drama, it was a brilliant episode. Indeed Buffy was right 'the hardest thing in this world is to live in it' the greatest of all quotes from the series.
by "Stoppping the flow of blood" it means death. Not actually stopping. The blood is the key. The key closes the portal when the life force of the blood is gone.
Yeah, it took me a while to realise that because 'stopping the flow' when referring to blood, usually (if not always) means to stop a wound from bleeding.
It makes sense. I thought it's pupose was to 'repel' but I guess it was more than that. She did appear to have a physical reaction after catching it. I only noticed that in the edit.
Plus, Glory got hit with the god’s hammer, and mind-robbed by Willow, who took Tara’s mind energy away from Glory, further weakening her. She was also physically attacked by the Buffy bot, by Buffy herself, and by Xander’s wrecking ball. So she was weakened enough for Ben to re-emerge. When the group pool their talents, it’s usually enough to defeat whatever Big Bad they are facing.
Yes, this was written as THE finale. When it aired, they already knew there was going to be another season, so they changed little things in the script, like Anya's death. Yes, she too was going to die from the fallen debries at the end. An interesting fact: comatose Faith (in Buffy's dream) prophetised Buffy's death. Faith says "little Ms. Muffet, counting down from 7-3-0": according to Joss Whedon himself, it was a foreshadowing of this episode, numbered 730.
Noooooooooo, Anya was meant to die? That would've sUcked. Oh, that's good. I knew about that being about Dawn's arrival; I didn't know it was also about Buffy. I'm not sure what you mean by it being numbered 730 though?
@@jaypeakay5864 my bad. Faith said that in the 22nd episode of season 3. According to the network schedule, this episode (the 22nd of season 5) was supposed to air exactly 730 days after that one. So the "counting down from 7-3-0" was a literal countdown to death.
I'm partial to the theory that the Dracula episode was actually a ruse and the blood he drew from her is what they used to "make Dawn" -- and her appearance is shown to be abrupt just after Dracula disappears.
I’ve waiting for someone to bring this theory! (Till now it would’ve been a spoiler). Because at first, Dracula as one off villain was so random. But when you look at as how the monks “got” Buffy’s blood. Dracula was either send by the monks or some other mystical force (maybe another big evil?) to lure Buffy in and get the blood to make Dawn. Maybe they needed it to make the “key” into flesh. Dracula also sends Buffy on her journey to see the first slayer. It’s poetic with Buffy saying it’s “Summer’s blood” after losing her only blood connection.
Yeah, I was one of them. I was really depressed and sad for a while. And anytime I thought about it again, I would feel sad. Like it was real grief. Same thing when I thought Angel died at the end of Season 2. I had real grief for him, but not as bad as when I thought Buffy really died and the series was over.@@jaypeakay5864
Season 5 was the planned end of the series. Another network stepped in and picked it up for seasons 6 and 7. I don’t think viewers knew there was going to be another season. Can’t wait to continue into to season 6 with you! ❤ The portal was already open so Dawn’s blood was no longer required. The portal was going to stay opened until someone closed it letting more and more demons into our world. The only way to close the portal was the sacrifice of the person the blood came from. Since Dawn was created literally from Buffy, their blood was the same. So Buffy’s sacrifice closed the portal. Hope that makes sense. It took a rewatch of the series to sort that out in my mind. The reason Glory got hurt when hit with the wrecking ball, at least in my mind, was Willow. When Willow restored Tara she took back Tara’s energy which Glory feeds on. She even says she needs another brain after Willow hit her with that spell. There was no time for her to restore her energy as Buffybot entered the scene. So Glory was weakened throughout the fight. I think maybe that is why Ben was able to resurface and hold Glory off there at the end. Only to have Giles end it. Giles is definitely a badass. I don’t think Spike will ever truly get over Buffy. His love for her is genuine. Do we ever get over the loss of someone we love?
Thanks. Yeah, the portal thing was something I eventually understood, I worked through it between the outro and the edit. I think my confusion was two fold: Firstly, how Buffy had the exact same blood Dawn has, and secondly, how it was supposed to be closed. I was under the impression that stopping the 'flow' of blood meant stopping the wound from bleeding, otherwise I would've expected it to have been to stop the 'circulation' or the 'pumping' of blood. I feel like stopping the 'flow' is usually used when talking about stopping a wound from bleeding. Pedantic maybe, but that's what I had in my head, haha. Spike was _definitely_ the most heartbroken. It seemed that way in the next couple of episodes too. 😲
OK. I'll be honest, I know very little about gods, from _any_ culture. I think I just assumed they were all-powerful, and nothing or nobody could defeat them, other than perhaps other gods.
@@jaypeakay5864 Reading and learning about how different cultures see their deities is really interesting and sometimes fun - the Greeks weren't so afraid of theirs that they couldn't poke a fun: Aphrodite gets her hand hurt by a warrior in the "Iliad" and goes crying home to Zeus; Sisyphus ties up the personification of Death; Aristophanes was downright farcical in his treatment of the Immortals. Yes, you're right, mostly any damage to a god is from another god, but every once in a while....
That would make sense. I don't remember seeing how they got hold of her blood. If they didn't show that then it's all good. I wondered whether I'd missed them showing that, or some kind of mention of it.
@@jaypeakay5864 they never showed it, but there is a fan theory that in Ep 1 of Season 5, Dracula might have been sent by the Order of Dagon to obtain Buffy's blood in order to create Dawn. I don't know if I believe that, but Buffy seems convinced that she and Dawn shares the same blood, so I can't think of any other explanation for how the monks did it.
Hi, I'm only doing select reactions to Angel. I'm watching the rest off camera. It's a time thing. The next Angel reactions to be uploaded are 13 and 16 of S3.
In conclusion: Spike is useless. And Dawn is lucky. If I were Buffy, I would have pushed her XD I would joke that the next two seasons are all about the Buffybot, but I'm sure you're quite a few episodes ahead already. In any case, I'll be honest, I don't like that she dies again and comes back again. Once was more than enough. But I guess we wouldn't get all the crazy drama in season 6 otherwise, so...
Jesus, haha. I was willing her on to do exactly that when the portal first opened. Haha, you joke about that but before the opening credits, I genuinely thought it might have been all Buffybot from here on. 😂 I actually completely agree with you - I didn't like it either. When the resurrection was mentioned, I was happy that she was coming back, but I didn't like that they'd killed her only to bring her back, _again._ I'm over it now though, and I'm glad we get her for another couple of seasons. 😂
SPOILER
Just to clear something up… During the outro, when I repeatedly talked about my doubts that Buffy was dead, I was talking about her being dead from the SHOW, not that I doubted she’d actually died in this episode - obviously, she had died; we saw her body and she was buried. I didn’t doubt for a second that she’d actually died, only that it wasn’t going to be a ‘lasting’ death. Every time I mentioned it I was referring to her leaving the show entirely; that’s what I had trouble believing. When they showed the gravestone, they were suggesting that was the end of the character, and that’s what I wasn’t buying.
When I later said that I didn’t believe that she was dead, that it was too abrupt, that there wasn’t a funeral etc., it was under the assumption that I’d already made it clear that I was referring to her completely leaving the show. From the way I worded it (during the first part of the outro), maybe that won’t be clear for some people, but it was crystal clear to me. That said, I could’ve been clearer as to what exactly I was referring to.
"Death is your gift."
There's always that moment, in every reaction video, where the reactor realizes what those words meant.
And it's always heartbreaking to see Spike, that soulless monster, breaking down at the sight of Buffy's body.
you say heartbreak, i say pathetic and typical obsessive stalker behaviour.
@@theprodigal mourning a death is never pathetic, whether you like the character or not. plus the main part is the way James Marsters sells it so realistically breaking down- it is heartbreaking.
@@theprodigal you're entitled to your opinion. I disagree.
@@HelloXrancidkitteh So an obsessed stalker crying that his object of lust is dead isn't pathetic? Literally so twisted.
And the series ended. 😁
No, it really just changed networks - from The WB to UPN both defunct now (both Networks combined to created The CW) - didn't mean people were any less confused when S6 was announced for another Network, though. Especially when The WB advertised it as the last episode intending it to mean their last episode, but just causing more confusion.
The denial is STRONG 😂 We all had a hard time with it too, don’t worry.
Well, I wasn't wrong TBF, she came back! 😁
Besides the last episode for wb, like others already explained, this was the ep 100... so I love the special "previously".
I think this episode really connects well certain things showed throughout the season.
Dagon sphere. Buffybot. Troll hammer. The slayer gift. The blood line between Buffy and Dawn.
Giles killing Ben always give me chills.
I'll never forget how Giles went about that. 😬
We didn't know at the time. This was written as the finale of the show because they didn't know if they were going to get a season six at the time they made this!
That makes sense. It kinda felt weird, knowing that there are 2 more seasons. I will say that I wasn't 100% sure if she was gonna be in the next 2 seasons, but I was maybe 99% sure, haha.
That's not quite accurate: there was a dispute between the WB and UPN over who would take the next season, which was already in development. It ended up moving to UPN while Angel stayed on the WB.
By the time the finale aired one the WB, UPN had already picked it up. Even during the production of the finale they knew it was very unlikely to be the final season. It was just a matter of coming to an agreement with the new network. Still, it would have been a satisfying series finale.
They always worked with S6 in mind. Joss enlisted Marti as new Executive Producer for S6 in Feb 2001.
@@liteflightify I disagree on the last bit; I think that, thematically, this would have been a very unsatisfying finale. But I won't say more to avoid spoilers.
"Kill the man, kill the god." I thought that statement by Giles was extremely insightful. If religion is a construct of man, then that's how it would work.
I think it was Restless where Tara tells Buffy “Be back before dawn”. People often assume this refers to Dawn.. but that would reduce it to a play on words. There was no need for Buffy to be back anywhere before Dawn was suddenly introduced.
IMO it refers to this moment here: 26:26 . This is where Buffy had to be, 730 days after she spoke to Faith in that dream at the end of s4, and this is the moment she understands “death is your gift” and probably all the other prophetic clues.
I think this too. when I was a kid and watching,I thought it meant Dawn, but upon my multiple watches as I grew up, I realized she was talking about her sacrifice. along with the robot gf saying "Its always darkest before the Dawn" ( though she gets cut off due to her battery dying right before she says 'dawn'.). also,I think you meant to say the dream Faith convo was in season 3, right after Faith got put into a coma and Buffy was in the hospital, unconscious from helping Angel. She not only helps her by telling her to use the Mayor's weakness, but she also says that '730' quote.
Wow, that's interesting. So well planned out this show. 👏
The Night of Nights.
At the time I had no idea if the show was continuing and FELT it.
The tone of the show was getting darker and more doom filled throughout and really took a turn in "Restless" with the First Slayer seemingly awakening something in Buffy.
"Fool for Love" revealed Spike's harsh insight into the endlessness of a Slayer's nightmarish life. Then "Death is your Gift"...and the hopelessness of "Spiral" and "The Weight of the World".
The finale gave the rest of the characters resolutions: Dawn saved, Xander marrying Anya, Willow and Tara back together, Spike at peace with his love for Buffy and Giles doing his Duty as a Watcher.
I was well convinced that she was dead and the series had ended.
I can imagine. If I didn't already know there were two more seasons, I'd have assumed the same thing. It definitely felt like a show ending episode.
If the writers and producers knew the show wasn't going to be renewed, or there was a good chance it wouldn't be, they had to have a final ending that wrapped the series up. I'm glad they did it this way. SO tired of getting invested in a series and then having it cancelled before a series finale. I need a decent wrap up and I'm looking at you, Killing Eve!
Killing Eve didn't get a good ending? That's a shame. I reacted to the other seasons and I had wondered why nobody had inquired about the final season. I thought it was me, haha. Nice to know that it was perhaps only 50% me. 😂
@@jaypeakay5864 OK, just went back and checked--when I was watching next to last season, I read somewhere that Killing Eve had been cancelled, so I thought that was the last season. I was wrong and just finished the season finale. I thought it was ok, but still left some questions unanswered. If I watched the entire thing again, I still prob wouldn't understand enough to have my questions answered.
When I watched this live the first time it aired I had no idea there was going to be anymore seasons. I cried so unbelievably hard that night. I started watching at 10years old. Movie on VHS and then at 12years old when the first season started.
That show helped me get through my depression some days. It made me believe in magic for a moment. It gave me hope for the future, that it was possible life would be better one day.
✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨
When it ended, it was hard for me. I can’t remember if it was 2 months, 3 - six before I heard it was coming back. I couldn’t wrap my head around how. I can tell you I was glued to the tv every week like all seasons before.
That's sweet. Totally understandable; I knew it was coming back before the episode had even started, and by the end of it, even I couldn't get my head around how. 😂
❤️🩹
BTW did anyone ever notice on the gravestone it gave Buffy's dates under BUFFY ANNE SUMMERS 1981-2001, However in S1 E8 I Robot You Jane, it gave Buffy's date of Birth on the computer screen scene as 24th October 1980. Just saying this seems to be a major continuity error.
Willow's magic + Dagon Sphere + Troll God Enchanted Hammer + Buffy = weakened Glorificus
Talking of the sphere, I was under the impression that its role was to 'repel' Glory, but then I noticed in the edit that she seemed to have some kind of reaction when she caught it. Is that right?
Yes. It's her 'kryptonite"
@@ms.rockscientist5915 So it did something else to her? OK. It didn't seem to do much 'repelling.' I guess it weakened her instead. 🤔
Also Buffybot wearing her down a bit more before real Buffy stepped in.
The night this episode aired, i cried my eyes out. We all expected this to be the end. Its the best ending episode in my opinion. This entire season, they all took it seriously, and the writing, directing, acting, all of it was top tier story telling and television. It all holds up today. By the way Buffy IS dead. That much is true lol.
Yeah, I wish I didn't already know there were two more seasons. I knew she was dead BTW. 👍
At the time this episode aired, The WB network announced this episode as the "series finale", not the "season finale". Many of us thought this episode was the end, and it nearly was: the WB had cancelled the show, but the UPN network picked up Buffy for two more seasons at the last minute (after filming had wrapped), but many viewers weren't even aware of the change of networks until months later.
That's funny because 'series' here (in the UK) means 'season', haha.
@@jaypeakay5864 yeah, we know the series/season confusion over here (in the US) as well.
At the time WB aired a really mean add calling this "The WB series finale". Lots of people thought it was the end of the show. Honestly it would be a great finale and make a lot of sense. Glad its not though
It would've been even more impactful if people thought it was the end. FWIW, having now seen some of the next season, I'm glad it wasn't the end too. 👍
Hi J,
I saw this episode when it aired originally and at that time (although some people knew I guess) it WASN'T common knowledge that a new contract from a new network would resurrect the show for another two seasons. The WB network was done with the show and the news that UPN wanted to revive it came as an eventual surprise. I cried for about 3 days and eventually accepted what happened (from a storytelling point of view) as an ending worthy of a hero.
When the news eventually broke that the show would go on, I felt the way you felt about Joyce coming back. Disappointed, in a way, because I had already grieved and accepted her death for nothing.
I feel a bit silly, of course, sharing this. It is after all a fictional story not based in reality. Just goes to show you how good the people involved were at their craft
Cheers, mate!
Haha, not silly at all. I've felt that way about TV shows before. Buffy's resurrection did feel weird, but from what you said about where the show was, it makes more sense.
BTW- I remember in a previous episode, something about the monks having made Dawn out of Buffy, so I took it they somehow used Buffy's DNA. I didn't really question it; I just went with it. Glory was weakened by a combination of things: Willow's spell, the dagonsphere, Thor's hammer, and the wrecking ball--all in addition to the barrier between her and human Ben becoming so iffy. So when she changed back into Ben, Giles took his chance to get rid of her forever. And there was a funeral for Buffy, the show just didn't show it. She's dead.
I meant that because they hadn't _shown_ us the funeral, the likelihood of her coming back was extremely high. If she'd left the show for good, they wouldn't have skipped over it. Hope that makes sense.
Honestly it took everything they had to put Glory down. The hammer was probably the most effective, but Willow’s spell, dagonsphere etc all chipped away at her. Had Giles not done what he did - I don’t think they would have lived very long the next season.
Not to mention the Buffybot softening her up a bit more, the warmup before the real Buffy stepped in. :) Two Buffies, b!tch!
I really like seasons 6 and 7 but in my opinion this would make the perfect series finale. The ending never fails to bring me to tears.
So funny the way you're like "No, I'm not having this" :D
For me, believable that Glory isn't up to speed:
She is not, in fact, at full strength but under strain from fading barriers between her and Ben.
Yes, she was thrown off balance by Willow.
Immediately thrown further by the sphere, though minimally.
Thereafter given no time to recover fully between attacks until
ultimately forced back into Ben.
And that is the end of that.
Haha, that was definitely the end of that. We've seen Giles get kinda dark at times but I wasn't expecting that. 🫢
@@jaypeakay5864 Interesting detail I missed when the show first came on is that Tara points at Giles and says "You're a killer."
What others have said is true, when the episode first aired, it wasn't clear that there would be another season and I remember there was an end-title card thanking the viewers for five wonderful years or something like that.
@@melenatorr Right?! 😂I saw it, but I thought it was just one of her random outbursts, and I totally forgot about it. Only during the edit did it hit me, haha.
Wow, they thanked viewers for watching the show? That must've been gut-wrenching.
Contrary to popular myth, this was NOT a possible series finale and we did know there was going to be a 6th and 7th seasons well in advance of this episode airing. It was announced in January that the the series was switching networks to UPN for 2 seasons, S6 & S7, before episodes 17-22 even aired. In fact, Ep 22 hadn’t even started production yet when the news was published in Variety and The New York Times. You can still find those articles online.
This was the original 5 year plan Joss Whedon created at the start of the series, but because it was such a massive hit, they knew before even starting production on S5 that there would be a S6. The only question was whether The WB would renew their contract or if 20th Century Fox would shop it to another network. But Fox and The WB had a very nasty, public back and forth throughout the first half of S5; with The WB lowballing the negotiations and downplaying the success of the series to the network. That realiy insulted Fox and Whedon, leading them to make a deal with UPN for 2 seasons. UPN also promised the show could go darker during those 2 seasons. Sarah even weighed in, publicly stating she would not continue the show if it moved from The WB, but Fox reminded her publicly that she had already renwed her contract and she WOULD indeed be expected to honor it and continue with the series and she promptly backed down, stating she was just reiterating her gratitude to The WB for giving them a chance to begin with. So, yes, we knew there would be 2 more seasons of Buffy a few months before this episode aired. Although I know a lot of people may not have heard about it if they didn’t read the papers at the time.
My friends and I thought this was the end. Back then in North Texas there was one newspaper, with little entertainment news other than movies, a very young and not dominant internet, and BTVS was involved in a bidding war between 2 networks. I understand now that people in California and New York knew ahead that there would be a Season 6. But not us and did not know for nearly 2 weeks. So for viewers and reactors now they can not comprehend how we felt. To this day I return to that disbelief and shock when I see Buffy start to run to the end of the platform…. the Swan Dive…. Spike breaking down… and that damm tombstone. Yes it was worse than Miss Callender on Giles bed, Angel with a sword in his gut going to hell, and even Joyce on the sofa. It was Buffy. She beat a God, saved Dawn ,and then gave herself to save the world…. And just like that is was over. Being so abrupt made it more shocking and real. No mourning, no process, just she saved the world a lot now carry on. So that’s how I felt and my friends all felt the gut punch of The Gift. Thankfully for new viewers you will not have the anguish but also not have the great news there will be a Season 6. Thank you for your wonderful reactions and get ready to belt yourself in for the ride of the final 44 episodes. For some the next 2 seasons are difficult but take the time and you will view what I think are the 2 best seasons in television history.
Thanks for the comment. I wish I didn't know there were two more seasons but it what it is. I'm so thrilled you've said that the next two seasons are gold. It seems like opinions about them have been mixed opinions. I've really enjoyed what I've seen so far of S6. Thanks again. 🙂
@@jaypeakay5864 Taking chances and changing expectations is always fought by those desiring comfort.That is the opposite of the next 2 seasons. You will see topics and characters arcs like no other attempted in a teen drama much less any show in history. Just get ready for an entertaining adventure that will stimulate your adrenaline, your mind, and give ethical moral choices that are unexpected. After you finish Season 6 it is a good time to rewatch Restless. Then ponder the entire series after the final 2 episodes of Season 2… yes that far back… and realize the show has been an extremely well constructed set of stories like an epic novel. This will get you ready for Season 7. I enjoy your reactions and enjoy the journey.
I was amused by all the "obviously she's not dead," I know you meant "not permanently dead," but you kept say "because we know there are two more seasons." YOU know there are two more seasons, but as many have pointed out, most of us watching as it aired did not know for sure whether there would be any additional seasons. Tsk tsk... 😉
Incredible episode! Maybe the troll hammer was a warhammer + 1, double damage against deities and demigods.
Haha, maybe. I wondered if there was some kind of mythology about a troll hammer being lethal to gods that I was missing.
You've done a great job keeping up with Buffy. Season 5 is so dramatic. It's always interesting to see people's reaction to Dawn and the emerging storyline in the beginning of the season.@@jaypeakay5864
If you think about the blood thing too much it doesn't make sense. Buffy's blood stopped but if Dawn has the same blood she's still up there dripping all over the place. But it's easy enough to come up with an explanation.
There are hints in the previous episodes that Buffy is depressed and exhausted and not seeing a way forward in life. Becoming an adult so quickly is hard, in addition to all her slayer responsibilities. So if she can save Dawn and the world, she seems just as glad to give up a life she doesn't value so much at the moment.
This was advertised as the last episode. I remember finding out about the network switch after this aired.
Remember when Dawn went to the demon guy for the spell to bring Joyce back? He snatches a hair off Dawns head and remarks about how strong her mother's genes are? He was speaking about Buffy. The monks made Dawn from Buffy's DNA
Wow. Now you mention it, I do remember him referring to her 'strong genes.'
This should be the perfect ending fot buffy 😭
The WB network wouldn't renew it. So Joss wrote it as the end of the series. It was the most perfect, most beautiful, most heartbreaking end to a series I had ever seen and remains so to this day. And I grieved Buffy so hard. And when they started airing commercials on a different network for the return of Buffy I could barely believe it was true. UPN had bought Buffy and we got 2 more seasons.
Well that's the end of SMG's involvement in BTVS. Expect Dawn and Willow to carry the story in the final 2 seasons...
Honestly, there was about 5% of me that was thinking that. 🤦♂️
Jay man I love your reactions, but really the BLOOD! was foreshadowed right through the series and especially in S5 5E13 Blood Ties, when Buffy says to Dawn 'it's Summers Blood, just like mine' As Spike said 'there's always got to be blood'. Buffy's blood is Dawns blood, so she could sacrifice herself as her blood was the same as Dawn's blood. Just go back and watch the end of that episode.
Right, I just didn't understand _how_ they shared the same blood, and _how_ they'd made her 'out of' Buffy. I thought Buffy had said, "it's the same as mine" because she was trying to make Dawn feel like her true sister, which was why she'd done the whole 'blood brothers (sisters)' thing.
I didn’t catch on to that either first time through season 5. Guess I’m a bit slow. 😂😂
it wasn't made clear at all that Dawn was made from buffys blood and was a common criticism back on the buffy message boards back in the day. So dont blame J forf not picking up on that.
This was suppose to be the last episode of the series, but another channel picked them up. just think if they hadn't that this is how it would have all ended. If you didnt know this fact already you should try rewatching it keeping that in mind.
I wish I hadn't known there were two more seasons; it would definitely be a different watch. 😲
Really great finale it is like a movie
The show has the best finales and fights against villains of any fantasy tv show. Even if this episode is less impactful now people know there are 7 seasons while we didn't know when it was aired if it was the last season or not. And because season 6 is so audacious and went far about characters development and it is so deep and clever.
Remember at the time it was written, this was the final episode. As far as we knew, it was. It had been pulled from the original network and sold to another network via shady business interations and shares and ownerships. We had no idea if there'd ever be more.
Thankfully there is, but you'll see (and season 6 gets a lot of flak, but it's my favourite).
This was the original ending…they thought they were being cancelled at the end of season 5. In fact, they *were* cancelled, but another network picked them up, which was how and why we got the last two seasons. So Joss Whedon had to figure out a new plan. Re the blood, I guess you can think of it as taking (somehow) some of Buffy’s blood/DNA to make a body for Dawn when they turned her human. So they were genetically sisters (or even twins). So Buffy’s blood was essentially the same as Dawn’s.
I'm right there with you, how did Buffy come to that conclusion?
Right?! 🤔
Negotiations broke down between producers FOX and the network that carried both Buffy and Angel, the WB for season six onwards. After the episode, The network placed a placard thanking Buffy for the 5 seasons it ran, so it had a series finale feel. Season six resumed on the UPN with a two hour premiere that resolved Buffy’s demise.
I loved next season more than this one. So many things in store next season. it's a whirlwind.
It's been great so far! I have no idea where it's heading at the moment, but the episodes I've seen have mostly been excellent!
Watching it live when I was a kid, it was promoted as the series finale. I didn’t have access to internet or much production information, so as a natural audience it was devastating watching it thinking it was over.
Okay what I think you're asking is how they made Dawn out of Buffy. It should work similarly with the way DNA. Building the body by protein coding and cell replication. So Dawn's blood is the key to the key,and even though Buffy's blood can't do that. Portal will recognize Buffy's blood as an equivalent. Blood flows, when our heart stops our blood stops flowing.
The reason that Buffy was able to defeat Glori isn't due to trucks, hammer, bot, or brick layer. Glory didn't really want to win anymore. She lost, because she lost her will. Remember earlier when Glori was saying, " I got everything I want, so how come I'm not happy." So... the real reason Buffy beat big G is that Glory let her.
Wow, that last part is interesting. 🤔 That hadn't even occurred to me TBH. Is that your own theory or is it generally accepted? Either way, that'd be a great little twist. 👏The DNA thing was only confusing because I didn't know how they'd done it. I don't remember it being shown to us? I guess we're to imagine it happened, which is fine. The blood 'flows' thing confused me a little because stopping the 'flow' of blood usually (if not always) refers to stopping a wound from bleeding. If they'd used 'circulation' or 'pumping', it would've been a little clearer. Again, it's fine, I'm just trying to explain what I was thinking. 😁
@@jaypeakay5864 what's cleaver about blood flow 🔁 circulation, cutting yourself and having to apply pressure until blood coagulate etc etc. Is that either way, if the heart stops, then blood pressure stops, and bleeding ends. Although a flow can be constant, it is often rhythm that's considered a flow. So it was supposed to be a little bit hard to conceptualize, at least hard enough to pass for cleaver television. As far as Glory loosing her will to fight, I don't know if it is a generally accepted synopsis or not. It seemed Glo was just having a time of it, she was wrestling with Ben about having him help her to complete the task, but it was more like she just didn't really know what else to do with herself. She made this off comment to Dawn, that" people" where screwing their brains out because they didn't want them anymore. I thought that it was actually her internalizing everything. Glory never had feeling or consideration. She said that she was going to cram it all down where it belongs. I don't think she was successful and experiencing human thing's really brought her down and did a number on her. Although that could have just been my take, I might relate to that my self a little too well.
Personally I think this was the greatest episode of the entire BTVS series ( but not the Buffyverse, Angel S5 E22 was the ultimate). You must realise people watching and reacting to this now do know that S6 and S7 are to follow, but at the time many of us did not know this. The fact that Buffy realised 'Death is your gift' was her own death was brilliantly revealed at the end, and that she was prepared to lay down her own life to save all others proving she was the ultimate hero. Giles knew Buffy couldn't kill Ben as he was an innocent and she could not take a life, his alter ego Ripper comes back here to finish the job, kill Ben, and therefore denying Glory from ever re-emerging. It was brilliant writing to tie the whole series together and was a fantastic finale only equalled in the S5 finale of spinoff show Angel, I believe the greatest of all episodes in The Buffyverse. You must remember when this was originally shown many did not know the show would be back, you will see that once they switched to UPN Network for S6 and S7 how very different and adult the show becomes. Reactors of course know there are two more Seasons so this is not a spoiler. Even though people now watching this know Buffy will be back, it is still heart breaking and hard hitting drama, it was a brilliant episode. Indeed Buffy was right 'the hardest thing in this world is to live in it' the greatest of all quotes from the series.
by "Stoppping the flow of blood" it means death. Not actually stopping. The blood is the key. The key closes the portal when the life force of the blood is gone.
Yeah, it took me a while to realise that because 'stopping the flow' when referring to blood, usually (if not always) means to stop a wound from bleeding.
Glory touching the dagon sphere weakened her a lot. I think it's why she was able to bleed.
It makes sense. I thought it's pupose was to 'repel' but I guess it was more than that. She did appear to have a physical reaction after catching it. I only noticed that in the edit.
Plus, Glory got hit with the god’s hammer, and mind-robbed by Willow, who took Tara’s mind energy away from Glory, further weakening her. She was also physically attacked by the Buffy bot, by Buffy herself, and by Xander’s wrecking ball. So she was weakened enough for Ben to re-emerge. When the group pool their talents, it’s usually enough to defeat whatever Big Bad they are facing.
Yes, this was written as THE finale. When it aired, they already knew there was going to be another season, so they changed little things in the script, like Anya's death. Yes, she too was going to die from the fallen debries at the end. An interesting fact: comatose Faith (in Buffy's dream) prophetised Buffy's death. Faith says "little Ms. Muffet, counting down from 7-3-0": according to Joss Whedon himself, it was a foreshadowing of this episode, numbered 730.
Noooooooooo, Anya was meant to die? That would've sUcked.
Oh, that's good. I knew about that being about Dawn's arrival; I didn't know it was also about Buffy. I'm not sure what you mean by it being numbered 730 though?
@@jaypeakay5864 my bad. Faith said that in the 22nd episode of season 3. According to the network schedule, this episode (the 22nd of season 5) was supposed to air exactly 730 days after that one. So the "counting down from 7-3-0" was a literal countdown to death.
@@mimmo4762 Ah, I see. That's pretty cool.
I'm partial to the theory that the Dracula episode was actually a ruse and the blood he drew from her is what they used to "make Dawn" -- and her appearance is shown to be abrupt just after Dracula disappears.
I’ve waiting for someone to bring this theory! (Till now it would’ve been a spoiler). Because at first, Dracula as one off villain was so random. But when you look at as how the monks “got” Buffy’s blood. Dracula was either send by the monks or some other mystical force (maybe another big evil?) to lure Buffy in and get the blood to make Dawn. Maybe they needed it to make the “key” into flesh.
Dracula also sends Buffy on her journey to see the first slayer.
It’s poetic with Buffy saying it’s “Summer’s blood” after losing her only blood connection.
this wrecked people back in the day when it first aired.
I can imagine. 😲
Yeah, I was one of them. I was really depressed and sad for a while. And anytime I thought about it again, I would feel sad. Like it was real grief. Same thing when I thought Angel died at the end of Season 2. I had real grief for him, but not as bad as when I thought Buffy really died and the series was over.@@jaypeakay5864
Season 5 was the planned end of the series. Another network stepped in and picked it up for seasons 6 and 7. I don’t think viewers knew there was going to be another season. Can’t wait to continue into to season 6 with you! ❤
The portal was already open so Dawn’s blood was no longer required. The portal was going to stay opened until someone closed it letting more and more demons into our world. The only way to close the portal was the sacrifice of the person the blood came from. Since Dawn was created literally from Buffy, their blood was the same. So Buffy’s sacrifice closed the portal. Hope that makes sense. It took a rewatch of the series to sort that out in my mind.
The reason Glory got hurt when hit with the wrecking ball, at least in my mind, was Willow. When Willow restored Tara she took back Tara’s energy which Glory feeds on. She even says she needs another brain after Willow hit her with that spell. There was no time for her to restore her energy as Buffybot entered the scene. So Glory was weakened throughout the fight. I think maybe that is why Ben was able to resurface and hold Glory off there at the end. Only to have Giles end it. Giles is definitely a badass.
I don’t think Spike will ever truly get over Buffy. His love for her is genuine. Do we ever get over the loss of someone we love?
Thanks. Yeah, the portal thing was something I eventually understood, I worked through it between the outro and the edit. I think my confusion was two fold: Firstly, how Buffy had the exact same blood Dawn has, and secondly, how it was supposed to be closed. I was under the impression that stopping the 'flow' of blood meant stopping the wound from bleeding, otherwise I would've expected it to have been to stop the 'circulation' or the 'pumping' of blood. I feel like stopping the 'flow' is usually used when talking about stopping a wound from bleeding. Pedantic maybe, but that's what I had in my head, haha.
Spike was _definitely_ the most heartbroken. It seemed that way in the next couple of episodes too. 😲
As for killing a god, it depends: Greek and Roman gods no. But Norse gods yes. So it depends.
OK. I'll be honest, I know very little about gods, from _any_ culture. I think I just assumed they were all-powerful, and nothing or nobody could defeat them, other than perhaps other gods.
@@jaypeakay5864 Reading and learning about how different cultures see their deities is really interesting and sometimes fun - the Greeks weren't so afraid of theirs that they couldn't poke a fun: Aphrodite gets her hand hurt by a warrior in the "Iliad" and goes crying home to Zeus; Sisyphus ties up the personification of Death; Aristophanes was downright farcical in his treatment of the Immortals.
Yes, you're right, mostly any damage to a god is from another god, but every once in a while....
@@melenatorr Haha. Yeah, every once in a while... someone shows up with a troll hammer. 😁
@@jaypeakay5864 You hit the nail on the head with that one!
Egyptian deities could die as well, and I think so could Babylonian/Sumerian gods...
When Buffy said that "the monks made her out of me" she meant that the monks used some of Buffy's blood to make Dawn.
That would make sense. I don't remember seeing how they got hold of her blood. If they didn't show that then it's all good. I wondered whether I'd missed them showing that, or some kind of mention of it.
@@jaypeakay5864 they never showed it, but there is a fan theory that in Ep 1 of Season 5, Dracula might have been sent by the Order of Dagon to obtain Buffy's blood in order to create Dawn. I don't know if I believe that, but Buffy seems convinced that she and Dawn shares the same blood, so I can't think of any other explanation for how the monks did it.
@@maruskaehrensdorfer 👍
I was looking through your Patreon and I don't see Angel. Have you stopped reacting to Angel?
Hi, I'm only doing select reactions to Angel. I'm watching the rest off camera. It's a time thing. The next Angel reactions to be uploaded are 13 and 16 of S3.
@@jaypeakay5864 oh bullocks time is just an illusion. 🎬🎥
In conclusion: Spike is useless.
And Dawn is lucky. If I were Buffy, I would have pushed her XD
I would joke that the next two seasons are all about the Buffybot, but I'm sure you're quite a few episodes ahead already.
In any case, I'll be honest, I don't like that she dies again and comes back again. Once was more than enough. But I guess we wouldn't get all the crazy drama in season 6 otherwise, so...
Jesus, haha. I was willing her on to do exactly that when the portal first opened.
Haha, you joke about that but before the opening credits, I genuinely thought it might have been all Buffybot from here on. 😂
I actually completely agree with you - I didn't like it either. When the resurrection was mentioned, I was happy that she was coming back, but I didn't like that they'd killed her only to bring her back, _again._ I'm over it now though, and I'm glad we get her for another couple of seasons. 😂
You don't say anything constructive
@@alooncnej4696 Meanwhile, you have already cured cancer and ended world hunger!