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The seventh season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer originally aired on UPN from September 24, 2002 to May 20, 2003, premiering earlier, but ending later, than the fourth season of Angel. It was the last Buffy season before the series continuation in comic form.

Synopsis

As Buffy accompanies Dawn on her first day at the new Sunnydale High, Giles continues Willow's magic education in England. But while Buffy is surprised to be offered a guidance counselor job, Willow is shocked to experience a horrific future vision of the Hellmouth. Willow returns to Sunnydale and Giles soon follows with word that the Watcher's Council has been destroyed. Determined to make one last stand, Buffy and her allies gather for the upcoming battle, yet nothing can prepare them for the First and his robed Bringers, who are killing all the Potential Slayers — and anyone else who gets in their way.

Summary

Buffy's final season revolved around the First Evil, which can appear in the incorporeal form of any dead person. It is more determined than when it tried to convince Angel to kill Buffy and commit suicide in Season Three. A number of young girls who are Potential Slayers are gathered by Giles with the help of seers after the Watchers Council is destroyed. They live in fear of the Bringers, mute wielders of deadly swords who have been killing Potentials around the world. Much of the story takes place at the newly reconstructed Sunnydale High School, bringing the series and its characters back to their roots: the Hellmouth.

Spike now lives with the remorse of a soul. He begins the season driven insane by the First and secluding himself in the school basement. The First also develops a hypnotic trigger for him allowing him to hurt people again. He has both his chip and trigger removed eventually.

It is revealed that the army of feral, primitive vampires known as Turok-Han are much more powerful and violent than the part-human variety. The First Evil attempts to use the imbalance created by Buffy's return to amass an army of vampires in the Hellmouth. When that army outnumbers humans on Earth, the First Evil would take corporeal form.

In the end, Buffy brings the war to the Hellmouth itself. Willow invokes a magical spell that activates all potential Slayers in the world. With her army of girls now endowed with full Slayer power, they manage to contain the army of vampires long enough for a powerful amulet worn by Spike to take effect. It vaporizes the Hellmouth and sacrifices Spike in the process. However, the vampire returns in the Buffy spin-off Angel, absorbed by the amulet. During the battle, Anya is killed by a Bringer. The empty town of Sunnydale is sucked into a huge crater. "The Hellmouth is officially closed for business," and Buffy is no longer one girl in all the world.

The main antagonist of this season was the First Evil.

Cast

Principal cast

In order of character appearances:

Recurring cast

In order of character appearances:

Episodes

No. Image Title Air date
01 Lessons Buffy Dawn "Lessons" September 24, 2002
Writer: Joss Whedon Director: David Solomon
Dawn starts school at the newly rebuilt Sunnydale High, while Buffy patrols the new campus on the look out for anything out of the ordinary — and for good reason. Dead people hunt Dawn and Buffy, Spike reappears, and there's a new principal at school. In England, Giles helps Willow to learn to control her power and begin to forgive herself for her actions in Sunnydale.
02 Beneath You Giles Willow "Beneath You" October 1, 2002
Writer: Douglas Petrie Director: Nick Marck
There's a giant worm on the loose in Sunnydale, and Spike's back to help (or maybe it's to hinder). Willow prepares to head home from England, though reluctantly. Buffy starts her new job at Sunnydale High, Xander is having trouble getting back onto the dating scene, and Anya's back to her old vengeance game.
03 B7x03 Same Time Same Place "Same Time, Same Place" October 8, 2002
Writer: Jane Espenson Director: James A. Contner
Willow arrives home, and the gang's waiting for her, but they can't seem to see each other. Meanwhile, a skin-eating demon is making the rounds in Sunnydale, and leaving victims that look quite like Warren did, leading Buffy, Dawn and Xander, and even Willow to wonder if she's connected to the killings.
04 Help Buffy 05 "Help" October 15, 2002
Writer: Rebecca Rand Kirshner Director: Rick Rosenthal
Buffy starts her first week counseling students at Sunnydale High and meets a teen named Cassie, who somehow knows her own death will occur in just a few days. Buffy, along with the help of the gang, rushes to find out the circumstances of Cassie's death and how to prevent it. Willow begins to make peace and settle back into Sunnydale life.
05 705 Selfless2 "Selfless" October 22, 2002
Writer: Drew Goddard Director: Drew Goddard
Anya seeks vengeance for a wronged college girl, and her spell ends in the death of several frat boys. As Anya reconsiders her actions, Buffy realizes she has to take her stand as the slayer against Anya, much to the chagrin of Xander. Willow re-enrolls at UC Sunnydale and tries to find a more peaceful solution to the Anya situation.
06 7x06 Him "Him" November 5, 2002
Writer: Drew Z. Greenberg Director: Michael Gershman
Dawn falls under the spell (literally) of a boy at school. Problems ensue when Buffy becomes a victim of the same spell and the sisters begin competing for the boy toy. It's up to Xander and Spike, who've just become roommates, to solve the mystery and save the day.
07 Conversations with Dead People "Conversations with Dead People" November 12, 2002
Writers: Jane Espenson, Drew Goddard Director: Nick Marck
While hunting for vampires at the cemetery, Buffy runs into a former classmate-turned-vampire and ends up turning to him for therapy. Meanwhile, Willow is interrupted at the library by the recently dead Cassie (or some form of her) who claims to have a message for Willow from Tara. Dawn returns home to find Joyce attempting to reach her from beyond, but some force prevents her from doing so.
08 Sleeper Spike 01 "Sleeper" November 19, 2002
Writers: David Fury, Jane Espenson Director: Alan J. Levi
Buffy discovers that Spike is feeding off humans again, and siring vampires. She and the gang attempt to find proof of Spike's actions as Spike begins to remember what may or may not have happened. Off in England, another young girl is murdered by the cloaked figures and Giles arrives too late to help her.
09 709 NeverLeaveMe1 "Never Leave Me" November 26, 2002
Writer: Drew Goddard Director: David Solomon
Spike is kept tied up in the Summers' house as Buffy attempts to interrogate him. Willow bumps into Andrew, now the remaining member of the Trio and drags him back to the house for his own interrogation session, run by Anya and Xander. Off in England, the Watcher's Council seems to be falling apart and no one knows where Giles is.
10 710 BOTN "Bring on the Night" December 17, 2002
Writers: Marti Noxon, Douglas Petrie Director: David Grossman
Giles returns to Sunnydale, bringing three slayers-in-training with him. Meanwhile, Buffy and the gang try to discover more about the First, but don't find much to work with. Spike remains a prisoner of the First and is tortured by the newly arrived Ubervamp, who then brings the havoc to Buffy.
11 Showtime Buffy Turok-Han 03 "Showtime" January 7, 2003
Writer: David Fury Director: Michael Grossman
More potential slayers arrive in Sunnydale and Buffy's house is overrun with visitors. Meanwhile, the Ubervamp becomes more of a worry for Buffy as he is still guarding the caves where Spike is kept captive, and it becomes apparent the Ubervamp will be coming after the young slayer-wannabes at the bidding of the First Evil. Anya and Giles visit an oracle of sorts who they hope will provide them with information on the First and how to defeat it.
12 Potential Molly Spike Buffy Rona Kennedy 02 "Potential" January 21, 2003
Writer: Rebecca Rand Kirshner Director: James A. Contner
With the First taking time to regroup since the slaying of the Ubervamp, Buffy and Spike take on the task of training all the potential slayers. The coven in England discovers another slayer-in-waiting already living in Sunnydale, and Willow attempts a locator spell to find out who the girl is before the Bringers are able to get to her. However, the spell leads the gang to a surprising conclusion.
13 B7x13 Willow 03 "The Killer in Me" February 4, 2003
Writer: Drew Z. Greenberg Director: David Solomon
Spike's chip is malfunctioning, prompting to Buffy to search for a way to fix it. Meanwhile, a kiss with Kennedy turns Willow into Warren, and Kennedy races to help Willow find a solution before she becomes Warren permanently. Giles takes the rest of the potentials on a quest in the desert, while Xander and the others get a call from England, which leads them to believe Giles may not be Giles.
14 First Date Lissa 03 "First Date" February 11, 2003
Writer: Jane Espenson Director: David Grossman
Principal Wood asks Buffy out on a date, arousing her suspicions and peeking her curiousity, and a secret about the principal's past is revealed. Xander has a date of his own - with a strange woman he met buying rope. Anya's jealous side rears it's ugly head at the idea of Xander dating someone else. Meanwhile, the First is back in the game, this time focusing on Andrew.
15 Get It Done Robin Buffy 02 "Get It Done" February 18, 2003
Writer: Douglas Petrie Director: Douglas Petrie
Buffy introduces Principal Wood to the Slayer headquarters and he gives her a slayer hand-me-down in return. When the First brings about a death amongst the potentials, Buffy and friends turn to Principal Wood's gift for help. But help is not necessarily what it will bring when Buffy is sent back in time and a demon is let loose in Sunnydale in her place.
16 Storyteller Andrew 04 "Storyteller" February 25, 2003
Writer: Jane Espenson Director: Marita Grabiak
Andrew attempts to document the life and work of Buffy, Slayer of the vampires, much to the annoyance of Buffy. Meanwhile, students at Sunnydale High begin exhibiting the signs of going to school above the Hellmouth — signs Buffy has seen before, but not all at once like this. Buffy and Principal Wood discover the Seal of Danthalzar is cause and set out to find a way to stop it.
17 Lies My Parents Told Me Spike "Lies My Parents Told Me" March 25, 2003
Writer: David Fury, Drew Goddard Director: David Fury
Giles returns to Sunnydale with a possible solution to the trigger in Spike used by the First. Unfortunately, Spike is not overly willing to revisit his memories in order to find the trigger's origin and why it affects him so much, leaving Giles and Wood to come up with an alternative plan of their own. While Giles distracts Buffy, Wood takes on Spike and prepares to revenge the death of his mother.
18 Dirty Girls Caleb 01 "Dirty Girls" April 15, 2003
Writer: Drew Goddard Director: Michael Gershman
Willow brings Faith back to Sunnydale, just in time for the arrival of Caleb, a misogynist preacher who has aligned himself with the First. Caleb sends a message to Buffy in the form of an almost dead potential slayer, claiming to have something of Buffy's, prompting her to prepare her army of girls for an attack against him to reclaim her possession.
19 Empty Places Buffy "Empty Places" April 29, 2003
Writer: Drew Z. Greenberg Director: James A. Contner
Buffy and the gang attempt to recover from the results of their attack on Caleb in various ways. Faith takes the potentials out for a night at the Bronze, much to the chagrin of Buffy. Giles and Willow hunt down information on Caleb that sends Spike and Andrew on a road trip to find out more abou the strangely powerful preacher. And Buffy has another meeting with Caleb that leads her to want to make another attack against him, but dissension is among the ranks.
20 Touched Faith Wilkins 02 "Touched" May 6, 2003
Writer: Rebecca Rand Kirshner Director: David Solomon
Faith claims leadership of the Scoobies and the potentials as Buffy wanders the now deserted Sunnydale in search of a place to stay. Spike and Andrew return from their trip to the mission with news that Caleb may indeed have something of Buffy's — most likely a weapon. Faith and the others kidnap a Bringer and based on his information, plan an attack on the Bringers arsenal. After admonishing the gang for their treatment of Buffy, Spike sets off to find her.
21 End of Days Buffy 02 "End of Days" May 13, 2003
Writers: Jane Espenson, Douglas Petrie Director: Marita Grabiak
As Buffy takes the scythe from Caleb and the First, the potentials and Faith suffer losses from the bomb trap left for them. With Faith knocked unconscious, it's up to the girls to make their way out of the sewers, but thankfully Buffy arrives in time to save them from attacking Ubervamps and reclaim her role as leader. Willow and Giles attempt to find more about the origins of the scythe and Buffy has a mission involving Dawn for Xander. Andrew and Anya head to the now deserted hospital to pick up medical supplies for the wounded SiTs, and Caleb merges with the First to refresh his source of power.
22 Chosen Buffy "Chosen" May 20, 2003
Writer: Joss Whedon Director: Joss Whedon
After finishing off Caleb and sending Angel off with thanks for the amulet he delivered, Buffy returns home to find Dawn back, despite her best efforts at shipping her off to safety. Spike confronts Buffy on her kissing of Angel and after reconciling, she is visited by the First, whose taunts give Buffy an idea of how she and her army can defeat the First's Ubervamp minions. After informing everyone of the plan to enter the Hellmouth and finish the war against the First once and for all, a sleepless night is ahead before the new day arrives.

Behind the scenes

  • Joss Whedon has discussed about this season: "We had a few things in mind with season seven. One, everybody was tired of being depressed, including us. Two, this was the last season. Three, let's get back to where we started. Let's go back to the beginning. Not the word, not the bang, but the real beginning. And the real beginning is girl power. The real beginning is what does it mean to be a Slayer? And not to feel guilty about the power, but having seen the dark side of it, to find the light again. To explore the idea of the Slayer fully and perhaps to see a very grown up and romantic and confusing relationship that isn't about power, but is actually genuinely beautiful between two people in the form of Buffy and Spike. I feel that I wrote the perfect ending for the show and wrapped everything up exactly the way it should be. We wanted to hit the final chord of a beautiful symphony. That, unfortunately, was in season five. So with season seven, I sort of had to shut the door on the idea that this was the last episode a little bit, because the weight of that was crushing me. I was terrified. But I so very specifically knew what I needed to say and what I needed to have happen. That was all in there. But when you get into actually writing it, you're just, like, 'Oh, God, it's not good enough.' Then you're, like, 'Dude, you've got to chill,' because it's unbearable pressure. You want the last episode to mean something that no other episode has. And it is large. It was so hard to shoot. So we went out with a bang and hopefully an emotional one."[1]

References

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