Board 8 > Best & Worst Episode: Buffy the Vampire Slayer

(+) Yeah! (+)

Had an idea for a topic series where we say what we think the best and worst episodes of a show are, I was originally just going to do worst but felt like both just means more discussion.

Might as well start with one of my favorite shows that definitely has some very good and very bad episodes.

What do you think is the best and worst episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer?

Feel free to nominate future shows to do.

For me the worst episode is easy the best is much tougher.

Worst: Where the Wild Things Are (season 4 ep 18). Buffy and Riley can't stop having sex and it makes vines grow and will eventually kill them from exhaustion. Its being caused by a frat house haunted by kids from the 50s. The premise? Horrible. The execution? Bad. The villain/solution? Stupid. I don't know if the writers were trying to be funny or sexy or have a message but it didn't work and the episode is just boring and awful. Its so bad that Joss apologized for it on the Season 4 DVD insert.

Best episode: Graduation Day Part 2. I have a lot of favorite episodes, most of them comedy based ones but this was just an awesome finale and I think it would be my choice for overall best episode.

Worst: Beer Bad
Best: Once More With Feeling

Both excellent choices. What genius to come up with the concept of "beer makes people stupid" and then do a whole episode on it.

Best - Hush (amazing antagonists, one of the scariest ever committed to TV)
Worst - Well, Beer Bad and Where The Wild Things Are are already the best answers, I'll second the latter though

Nominate - The X-Files

TotallyNotMI posted...

Worst: Beer Bad
Best: Once More With Feeling

I'd probably go with this, though Passion is the first episode I really remember considering my favorite for a time.

Obligatory nomination of Game of Thrones

Nominate Bob's Burgers

Best: Once More With Feeling
Worst: Where the Wild Things Are sounds like a strong contender; can't remember any clearly worse ones off the top of my head.

Maniac64 posted...

Both excellent choices. What genius to come up with the concept of "beer makes people stupid" and then do a whole episode on it.

The motivation was apparently this (from wikipedia):

This plot was written with the plan to take advantage of funds from the Office of National Drug Control Policy available to shows that promoted an anti-drug message.[9] Funding was rejected for the episode because "[d]rugs were an issue, but ... [it] was otherworldly nonsense, very abstract and not like real-life kids taking drugs. Viewers wouldn't make the link to [the ONDCP's] message."[10]

I can't at the moment think of a worse episode than "Where the Wild Things Are." Partly because I do enjoy some parts of "I Robot, You Jane" and "Bad Eggs" and give some leeway to early episode growing pains. I thought about "Wild at Heart" because it left some wreckage, but "Something Blue" and "New Moon Rising" were great follow-ups and the opening to "Wild at Heart" is absolutely hilarious and one of the top Buffy cold opens. Then with seasons 5, 6, and 7... nothing really stands out as worse than others. There are some bad streaks of episodes for sure, but nothing discerning enough to single them as outliers. "Wild at Heart" is a terrible episode sandwiched between two great ones and there's little to no progress on the Initiative/Adam/Riley story, and the relationship stuff is done better in other episodes. Even worse, the amazing scene of the gang finding Giles singing at a cafe is stuck in the middle and cannot be enjoyed in another episode.

As for best....

Much, much more difficult. "Passion," "The Wish," "Graduation Day Part II," "Hush," "Restless," "The Body," "The Gift," "Once More With Feeling," "Chosen..."

I've watched "Passion" the most of any.
I've related to "Graduation Part II" the most.
"The Body" is the episode I reflect on most.
"Once More With Feeling" is all earworms.
"The Gift" is the culmination of the series, before life and before the end game. It's the best of the finales, it pays off so many moments and so many characters and so many stories from the past few years. It's beautiful. If Buffy didn't continue (outside characters showing up in Angel or other possible spinoffs), this would be a wonderful ending. I'm glad it wasn't. I can argue others being better in some respects, but "The Gift" harnesses the magic of the show in full.

Worst: "Where the Wild Things Are"
Best: "The Gift"

Nominations:
Lost
Angel
Community

Best: The Body
Worst: Doublemeat Palace

A few bad episodes to choose from tbh, but Buffy is still a Top 3 show for me.

Nominate: Supernatural.

Mega Mana posted...

Even worse, the amazing scene of the gang finding Giles singing at a cafe is stuck in the middle and cannot be enjoyed in another episode.

Oh yeah, Giles singing Behind Blue Eyes might save it from last place...

Worst: Wrecked, I think? The one where Willow gets addicted to magic. Good god that was stupid. Other episodes were dumb (especially early S4), but there weren't any others I hated liked this one.

Best: Probably Once More with Feeling, yeah. Godlike episode.

It's been like 20 years since I watched Buffy but I like the singing episode (Once More With Feeling). I don't remember disliking any episodes though

Nominate
Friends
How I Met Your Mother
Full House

worst: where the wild things are seems like a fine pick

i loved doublemeat palace and beer bad - laughed so much during them

best - maybe hush? but there are so many classics, and so many good faith episodes in S3, and the story arcs in S2 and S6 are fantastic too - harder to isolate the best singles

LordoftheMorons posted...

The motivation was apparently this (from wikipedia):

Hahaha

Nominate:

Breaking Bad
Fresh Prince of Bel Air

Worst: Think Im gonna have to go with Where the Wild Things Are. Honorable (or dishonorable) mention to Hells Bells, which would absolutely be near the top of my wifes list and halted our watchthrough with our kids for months because she didnt want to go through it again.

Best: Tough choice, but I think Im going to land on The Gift. All the others mentioned are also strong contenders though.

Best: The Body

Worst: Something Red

JonThePenguin posted...

Honorable (or dishonorable) mention to Hells Bells, which would absolutely be near the top of my wifes list and halted our watchthrough with our kids for months because she didnt want to go through it again.

man, i really liked this one. hit hard.

Bump

Still thinking about this topic. Might do by season later. For fun.

BEST
1. Prophecy Girl
2. Passion
3. Graduation Day Part 2
4. Restless
5. The Gift
6. Once More With Feeling
7. Chosen

WORST
1. I Robot... You Jane
2. Reptile Boy
3. Beauty and the Beasts
4. Where the Wild Things Are
5. Listening to Fear*
-This was toughest. There's really no bad episodes in Season 5.
6. Wrecked
7. The Killer in Me

* - It took me at least two hours to choose, and unfortunately this page refreshed while hunting Season 7 episodes and I completely forgot which I finally settled on and why.

Actually, Once More With Feeling was the reason I started the show in the first place! I watched it because I saw it listed as one of the best tv musical episodes, and liked it enough to start the show from the beginning. Luckily I was missing enough context for the spoilers to really stick!

That's awesome!

I'll start a new topic tomorrow so get your nominations in.

Star Trek: The Next Generation

No new topic?

I completely forgot about this. I will get a new topic posted tonight or tomorrow.

Yaaaaay!