Buffy finale! (spoilers obv)

The best part for me was the Strong Bad "Trogdor The Burninator" reference during the Giles-playing-D&D scene. That shit made me feel ridiculous.

Hmm. I dunno. I wasn't expecting anything revelatory and I've basically been in a "let's get this over with" mood since the beginning of the season, which this, you know, did. And not too horribly, and with some of the dialogue way less rocky than over the rest of the season. (Although what was up with sudden jive-turkey Faith? How long did she spend in L.A., anyway?)

I dunno about "no-brainer," either: I certainly wouldn't have expected that particular confluence of winning the battle and winning the Slayer-as-loner war. It was pat, but sort of pleasantly so. I agree about the rooftops thing, of course: I mean, usually the arc goes (a) mortal wound, (b) collapse, (c) narrative point leads to sudden summoning of strength to defeat enemy, and then (d) collapse again and get dragged to safety by others, not leap over rooftops and then trot happily around the roadside, right? (Unless I missed something while I was changing my IV?)

Anyway. Ah. Not worth bitching about, I don't think. It ended it capably; it didn't sell anything out easy; I found the formal trick with going back to reveal the plan / "choice" really quite effective; its ending to the overarching concerns of the series were even better than I expected and sweet in a way I could completely go for -- I even went for the little girl at bat. It was nice. I'll admit, I was hoping for more of a bittersweet dark-Romantic surprise like the fight with Glory -- the whole speech-to-Dawn and slow-mo running-off-the-tower shot still feels to me like it'd have been a more glorious (hahaha) end to the whole thing than this standard-heroism thing. (Come to think of it, the end of Season 6 does, too.) But eh, it was fine.

Nabisco summed up my feelings about the rest of the episode pretty well, and Millar is right that it was a definite winding down. "The Gift" was much more of a true finale not only for the ending, but also the beginning: the "previously..." with that builds through rapid cuts of at least one frame from all 99 previous episodes, into a classic "Buffy saves the poor innocent boy" confrontation (with better dialogue). Actually every season finale except the first was better than this. I'm glad it's over.

Not that I expect any hanky panky in the back of the bus. But Andrew got (trying to think of a non-innuendoish word, failing) shafted: it's not his fault there were no other ambiguously gay characters in Sunnydale. Maybe they'll head north.

All series finales blow; this was better than the XFiles and Seinfeld, not as good as Twin Peaks.

Ginger Willow did go all blonde and shiny in the end...

Xander = the Village Person who never went west (though in a male bonding rather than sexual way).

Anthony Spike is supposed to be a regular on Angel starting next year.

I've noticed that for several episodes lately, there have been moments where the writing was as good as the first three seasons. Joss Whedon inserts? I'm thinking of the Buffy-Angel dialogue outside, some of Anya's lines.

Best moment of the season - next-to-last episode where Anya's treating the wounded, and takes a slug of scotch.

I see yr point, but the finales for seasons 5 and 6 were so spectacular that there really wasn't much hope of equalling them. I think this was the best possible way for the series to end. I was too relieved that the original Scoobies (and Andrew!) survived to get weepy over the casualties. Spike's self-sacrifice would have had more impact if we didn't all know he was gonna be brought back next year, and Anya's death deserved more than a one line epitaph (even if it was delivered by Xander). Angel's appearance was pretty arbitrary. Still, I liked the elegiac "winding down" feel of this episode, and the hopeful openness of the ending: it was a relief after the almost unrelieved gloominess of this season.

also: the last episode of Seinfeld = the most unfairly criticized and misunderstood work of art in recent memory.

No, the prophecy said that a "vampire with a soul" would be fighting with Buffy, so Spike would fit the bill. Will he turn human now (per the prophecy)? That would be hilarious, because it would make Angel bitter and he'd probably turn to the butter churn more than he already has.

I'm kind of ambivalent on the ending -- there were good parts and craptastic parts, but it could have been much, much worse.

You are kidding about the Twin Peaks part, right?

having said that i do think seasons 6/7 are mostly pretty crap in comparison to 2/3/4/5, particularly 4 & 5. and the scythe was a crap subsitute for the hammer.

Oh, and Spike's dead. I'm actually hoping that whole thing about Marsters going to Angel is a mislead, since I just don't see what he can possibly bring to that show. I really love Spike, but I think the character has run its course.

Spike's hand catching fire when Buffy hugs it is like the "I am the same blood as Dawn" from Season 5: makes no sense but feels absolutely perfectly right.

I didn't know Spike was coming back. I feel sad now.

The mortal wound => leaping buildings was bullshit. Joss Whedon should be ashamed of himself.

I did like that the episode was funny. I think. And that no-one really got spared the funny except Willow.

I look forward to seeing SMG again in the Angel series finale.

Gee, I hadn't even realised, cultural retard that I am!

But on the whole, making the whole seven years the preamble to "of course, there's another one in Cleveland" = hero.

I get the impression that if I knew more, the rotating camera "so what do you guys want to do tomorrow?" bit would have my hair standing on end. It's a visual quotation from Episode 1, yes? Though still not as cool as The Gift's "Previously on Buffy..."

Thankfully, only a very small part.

Though this season had The Xander Moment, where he comforts Dawn because she's not a potential.

Also I respect the fact that it can get me to type "reclaiming their power" without wincing. Much.