I thought the prediction came true in The Yoko Factor.

A Meta-Note on comments:

Spoiler comment for Empty Places:

Et tu Brute?

Ok, I went back and reposted all the ones I could see that were missing. I think I started regular posts at the beginning of S5, but there were a few S5 episodes where I either didn't write anything or neglected to save them. Of course, the restored ones are out of order….

Grave is the only finale which was not written by Joss and the only one to end on a cliffhanger (pun intended). For these reasons and others, I’ve come to think of seasons 6 and 7 as an extended two-year arc which comes to completion only with Chosen. That makes Grave less a conclusion than a transition. If you look…

Let’s say this right upfront: Giles’ entry into the Magic Box is one of the great moments of the series. Maybe not quite as good as Buffy’s “Me.” in Becoming 2, but still damn fine.

“Rage – Goddess, sing the rage of Peleus’ son Achilles…”

The Sociology of Buffy and Seeing Red
 

Another outstanding episode, part of a very good run from NA through Villains. The Spike/Anya scenes are just terrific; JM and EC first demonstrated their chemistry in WTWTA and they steal the show in Entropy.

Normal Again is one of the reasons I think S6, at its best, is brilliant. It’s a Top Ten episode for me, one of at least 4 this season (along with OMWF, Smashed, and Dead Things). I think of it as Buffy’s last temptation before her incarnation as an adult who accepts her responsibilities. And yeah, I’m using that…

Metaphorically, Xander couldn’t marry Anya. He’s Buffy’s “heart”, and this season her heart is unsure, conflicted. We’ve seen that uncertainty in her half-hearted pursuit of the Trio and in her relationship with Spike. We’ll know Buffy has recovered from her malaise when her heart is sure again. And vice versa.

Anyone who’s so obsessive as to rank all 144 episodes (ahem) will, necessarily, have one which finishes dead last at No. 144. For me, that episode is As You Were, one of only 2 episodes I actually dislike (the other is Dead Man’s Party). Here’s a partial list of reasons:

I think this episode is extremely well constructed – the demon trapped in the sword, the gang trapped in the house. And Buffy feeling trapped in her life.

If a darker, more disturbing episode has ever been shown on American TV, I’m certainly unaware of it. From the infamous “Bronze beta” scene to Katrina bringing the nerds up short with her rape accusation to her murder to the haunting chords and matching lyrics of Bush while Buffy and Spike sense each other’s presence…

I’m reliably informed that people who’ve worked in the fast food industry find this episode funny.

If one is really depressed, I guess it can seem like a good idea to take a free pass from adulthood. Like the Trio (and Warren emphasizes it by telling Jonathan and Andrew “You guys are so immature!”), Buffy’s entire goal in this episode is to do juvenile things while avoiding responsibility. Her conversation with…

This episode added a lot of fuel to the fires of controversy over S6. The string of episodes from Wrecked through Seeing Red is surely the most controversial stretch in the show’s history. I think it’s fair to say that the majority of fans of the show didn’t like the magic/drugs metaphor, meaning that Willow’s story…

Smashed was very controversial when it aired, mostly because of the fact that Buffy and Spike went All The Way, and judging from both Noel’s reaction and previous comments here it remains that way today. Given that, I might as well say up front that I think it’s brilliant – as in top 15 brilliant – and mostly because…

Because it comes right after the astonishing OMWF, it’s easy to overlook just how good Tabula Rasa is. I’d say it’s RRK’s best work, and it’s the last episode of S6 before the controversy begins.