Bargaining Parts 1 & 2

In "Bargaining Part 1", with Buffy recently deceased, the Scoobies have taken on her Slayer duties along with the Buffybot. Giles, his Watcher duties completed, leaves for England but he might have stayed had he known about Willow's plan to resurrect Buffy. Meanwhile, when Hanson's #1 fan damages the Buffybot, he reports the unprotected Hellmouth to a gang of biker demons. The gang arrives in town just in time to ruin Willow's spell... or do they? Kristen and Mike discuss the ethics of Dawn's guardianship, and Willow's traumatic encounter with a deer.

In "Bargaining Part 2" - Buffy. Is. Back!  But unfortunately,after crawling out of her own grave, she wanders the streets, unable to help with the demon hoard destroying Sunnydale. While the Scoobies regroup, Buffy witnesses the bikers 'kill" the Buffybot and the sight drives her to run literally into the Scoobies.  While Buffy's heroic instincts kick in enough for her save her friends, she's still disoriented. She escapes to the Tower of Terror, but Dawn is able to talk her down. Kristen and Mike discuss Willow's reaction to death throughout the series, and Anya's compulsion to talk about her engagement.

PLUS! Buffy's off Netflix - now what? and Stacker Surprise - your Sunnydale Tourism Slogans! 

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The Weight of the World / The Gift

With "The Weight of the World" on Buffy's shoulders (see what I did there?), her mind takes a break. Willow steps into a leadership role and directs the Scoobies to help Giles and surveil Glory. She then steps into Buffy's brain to see if she can't guide her back to reality. Meanwhile, Glory prepares Dawn for the ritual and Ben must choose between the light and dark sides of the force. Kristen and Mike discuss Ben - his background, character, and morality. And we debate the efficacy of Buffy's mind-loop.

To celebrate the season and network finale "The Gift", we share your Stacker Stories about watching the episode for the first time!

In the ep, Buffy makes it clear to the Scoobies that even if it saves the world. no harm shall come to Dawn.  Motivated and peppy, Anya cheerleads the "how to we stop Glory" plan.  With the Dagon Sphere, troll hammer, and Buffybot in tow, the gang follows Tara to the Tower of Terror. They launch an all-out well-calculated seige on Glory. But Doc's presence throws their plans out the window, and the walls between dimensions break down. We examine Dawn's growth over this season, and Giles' solution to the Ben problem. And we bemoan the exasperating ways networks can ruin an amazing season finale.

PLUS! Season 5 Yearbook Awards and Stacker Surprise - help Jinxy worship Glorificus! 

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Tough Love / Spiral

In "Tough Love", Dawn's delinquency necessitates her big sister dropping out of school and transforming herself into a strict disciplinarian. Meanwhile, after a particularly bad argument with Willow, Tara storms off to the World Culture Fair alone where Glory attacks her. Hell-bent on revenge, Willow unleashes her magical rage upon the Hell-God. Kristen and Mike debate the efficacy of acting out geometry problems, and point out some problems with the super normal World Culture Fair.

In "Spiral", Buffy and Dawn are able to flee Glory long enough for a tanker truck to slow down the Hell-God. With no other way to protect her little sister, the Slayer packs the gang into an RV and goes on the run. But it's not long before they're intercepted by The Knights of Byzantine and forced to hide out in a gas station. Giles is hurt, and Buffy calls the only doctor they know. We berate Ben for his lack of a backbone, and the Knights for their failure to compromise.

PLUS! We answer Dustin's question: Who in the Buffy gang would you bang, marry, and kill?

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Forever / Intervention

In "Forever", the Scoobies continue to mourn Joyce. While Angel arrives to comfort Buffy, Dawn refuses to accept the loss of her mother. Aided by a very sneaky Willow, Dawn plans a resurrection spell. Spike acts as chaperone as they gather the various necessary ingredients. Kristen and Mike discuss Spike's motivation to assist Dawn, and Willow's imprudence.

In "Intervention", Buffy leaves town on a quest to rediscover her humanity as the Slayer. Meanwhile, Spike is enjoying his new toy - the Buffy Bot. The Scoobies are quickly fooled by the double - and plan an intervention. But first they have to stop a kidnapped Spike from telling Glory about Dawn. Kristen and Mike discuss the purpose of the vision quest, and speculate about a robot's capacity for pleasure.

PLUS! You name your "blood bag delivery" companies! 

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I Was Made To Love You / The Body

In "I Was Made to Love You", Buffy reels from her recent imprisonment at the hands of Spike. Meanwhile, another petite ultra-strong girl arrives in Sunnydale looking for her boyfriend, Warren. The gang immediately draws the only conclusion one can from a pretty, socially awkward girl with super strength - robot. As Buffy tracks down the elusive boyfriend/manufacturer, April accesses her "combat mode" file. Megan from Chaotic Neutral Adventures joins us to discuss the gang's immediate prognosis of "robot", what metaphor the writers are trying to make here, and April's yucky yucky programming.

"The Body" easily ranks among the saddest hours of television history. After Buffy finds her mother's lifeless body, the entire gang must go through the excruciating process of mourning and caring for the deceased. Our favorite characters must all mourn in their own way - from shock, to anger, to confusion, and denial. We discuss the last of a score, the ultra-realistic cinematography, and the purpose of the final vamp battle.

PLUS! Which DC character should the Scoobies recruit? 

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