Season 7: The Weaker Season?

[benboy606]

By many it's been claimed as the weakest season, minus Season 1 because of loss of Core 4 interaction and good plots. What do you think? Do you agree?

I think it's a weaker season, yes. The first seven episodes were fantastic, two of them being in my top 15. "Lessons" was a great season opener, one of the best. "Beneath You" featured that amazing scene at the end. "Same Time, Same Place" had a totally gross and creepy MOTW. "Help" was very emotional and Azura Ray (or whatever) is awesome. "Selfless" goes in depth into one of the best characters in the Jossverse, imo. "Him" is just funny. And "Conversations With Dead People" is just creepy, amazingly well written, and a totally unique idea. And Xander wasn't even it! But it still ruled!

Then, imo, The First became lackluster. Like, it's not corporeal. What can it do? Oh, yeah. Taunt. It was stupid and lame. Plus, plot holes wrecked the whole thing, and the Potentials were annoying and destroyed character interaction. They brought all the characters down, except Anya and Dawn, who shined through, imo. Spike got too much screentime and him and the Potentials took away from the characters we were grown with and loved. Not too mention, it changed them....for the worse. See "Get It Done" for the girl who was taunted (looks like The First can ACTUALLY do something)! Buffy called her a pathetic loser. What the hell?

Any other opinions? Cause I just ranted :p :lmao:

[GATEGOD]

No it isn't the worst season. haha I just made this YouTube - Best of Buffy - Final Season (http://youtube.com/watch?v=E_5Dz6ljj0k)

With those scenes, It can't be called the worst... can it ?

[Keanoite]

I agree about what you said of the first half of the season...I was so excited by what was happening, I felt like it was getting back to the heights of seasons 2 and 3, but then we started getting potentials and everything went to hell.

I think the idea of the First and the potentials was fantastic but very poorly executed. I mean they all didn't have to be annoying, they could have been written better. The fractures and disunity in the scooby gang personally ruined it for me, there were so many issues coming to a head in this season and it just didn't feel like they were dealt with right.

I do however love how it finshed, that felt right...its the middle that I have issue with. In a season that was dedcated to 'Potential', it never seemed to live up to it's own.

[benboy606]

I think the idea of the First and the potentials was fantastic but very poorly executed. I mean they all didn't have to be annoying, they could have been written better. The fractures and disunity in the scooby gang personally ruined it for me, there were so many issues coming to a head in this season and it just didn't feel like they were dealt with right.

Agreed. The First needed to be changed. It needed to have a purpose. On another forum, we actually had a thread talking about how we could change Season 7 and make it better. The First needed a motive, needed better lackeys, and most importantly, it needed to be corporeal. Also, the scoobies have to be closure, yep :D The Potentials, imo, were a bad idea from the start, mainly because they were boring and took away my favorite characters screen time :(

I do however love how it finshed, that felt right...its the middle that I have issue with. In a season that was dedcated to 'Potential', it never seemed to live up to it's own.

I thought Dirty Girls was great, though. As was End of Days. Touched was okay, but I really didn't like Chosen. I think it didn't do the series justice ::huh1::

Agreed, and nice pun :p

Nice vid, GateGod!

[GATEGOD]

This season had a lot of pretty good episodes. Lessons, Selfless , Conversations With Dead People , The Killer In Me, Storyteller, Lies My Parents Told Me, Touched

All of those were amazing episodes So I can't say the season sucked ^_^, maybe I'm biased after just watching it though

[benboy606]

I didn't think it sucked, at all. Just worse than the rest and could have been dealt with better.

I actually hate The Killer In Me and Lies My Parents Told Me. Like, really hate. And Touched was okay, imo.

But, I loved Lessons, Help, Selfless, Conversations With Dead People, Storyteller, and Dirty Girls.

[Edmund Blackadder]

There was so much going on in this season that I felt a little overwhelmed.
I have to say that the 'First' was a very interesting idea and I loved the Turok Han in it's first appearance, then it seemed to get easier to kill than the Borg!!!
Caleb however, he was the HIGHLIGHT of the season. When he joined, The First 'got good' again. I loved the interaction here and Nathan did a grand job.

I think that the Potentials were needed too. I recently rewatched '7' and found them to be ok. I even liked Kennedy alot more and Rona.
I wish we could have had more time with them and maybe explored more than just two of them(Kennedy and Amanda).

Wood got on my tits immensely (and its can't be DB Woodsides fault because he's ace in 24). I felt this was out of place for me. The whole 'my mother was a Slayer' storyline would have been better served in season 5 when Buffy wanted to know more about the Slayer, but then we couldn't have really had the same resolution to the Spike/Wood/Buffy thing, could we?

Willow's 'love affair' should have been stripped away. Not because I hate Kenny and love Tara, but because it didn't feel right at all so close after losing Tara.

Selfless was a great episode but the problem with Anya and Xander this season was that they didn't get married in Hells Bells. Honestly, I think it would have made for a better story for them and a better dynamic. I got kinda bored with the 'will they/won't they' of the season.

Dawn, well Dawn should have evolved and I don't just mean into a woman. I wanted some residual 'Key' thing. I wanted something marvellous.

I also think that Spikes 'soul' was too much. Its not that I didn't want Spike with a soul, its just that it was another thing not really allowed to be explored because so much is going on.

Faith near the end was genius, Giles was actually great this season even though I hated him for his part in Buffy being evicted HOWEVER that wasn't out of character.

Andrew was brilliant too, a wonderful addition to the season.

[benboy606]

There was so much going on in this season that I felt a little overwhelmed.
I have to say that the 'First' was a very interesting idea and I loved the Turok Han in it's first appearance, then it seemed to get easier to kill than the Borg!!!
Caleb however, he was the HIGHLIGHT of the season. When he joined, The First 'got good' again. I loved the interaction here and Nathan did a grand job.

I think that the Potentials were needed too. I recently rewatched '7' and found them to be ok. I even liked Kennedy alot more and Rona.
I wish we could have had more time with them and maybe explored more than just two of them(Kennedy and Amanda).

I loved Caleb, too! :D But, I didn't like Kennedy. She was really bratty, imo.

Wood got on my tits immensely (and its can't be DB Woodsides fault because he's ace in 24). I felt this was out of place for me. The whole 'my mother was a Slayer' storyline would have been better served in season 5 when Buffy wanted to know more about the Slayer, but then we couldn't have really had the same resolution to the Spike/Wood/Buffy thing, could we?

Willow's 'love affair' should have been stripped away. Not because I hate Kenny and love Tara, but because it didn't feel right at all so close after losing Tara.

I just think Wood didn't fit into the story. I don't know. Also, Spike's grudge was never explored, other than in "Lies My Parents Told Me", where it was done poorly and where Giles betrayed Buffy. I can understand him wanting to kill Spike, though. I mean, I wanted to all season! :p

I didn't like Willow and Kennedy because Willow would never go for Kennedy. Kennedy and Willow are not alike one bit and it was OOC for her to go out with her, imo.

Selfless was a great episode but the problem with Anya and Xander this season was that they didn't get married in Hells Bells. Honestly, I think it would have made for a better story for them and a better dynamic. I got kinda bored with the 'will they/won't they' of the season.

Dawn, well Dawn should have evolved and I don't just mean into a woman. I wanted some residual 'Key' thing. I wanted something marvellous.

I loved Selfless, too. In my top 15 :heart: And I actually liked the decision that Xander made, and I don't think it was wrong of him to make that decision, just wrong that he walked out on her. I liked a lot of what they did in the season, like the talk in "Storyteller" and the make out session between them in "Touched". It was nice, imo.

Dawn was one of my favorite things of the season, actually. I know there wasn't a lot of plot growth for her, but character growth? Hell yeah! She wasn't a stupid, whinny little kid anymore. She was actually cool!

I also think that Spikes 'soul' was too much. Its not that I didn't want Spike with a soul, its just that it was another thing not really allowed to be explored because so much is going on.

Faith near the end was genius, Giles was actually great this season even though I hated him for his part in Buffy being evicted HOWEVER that wasn't out of character.

Andrew was brilliant too, a wonderful addition to the season.

Well, I kinda thought the soul thing was repetitive and I didn't like Crazy Spike in the beginning, although James Marsters sure did a good job. The thing is, Spike didn't act totally different from Chipped Spike, other than him not trying to rape Buffy :lmao:

I loved Faith too :heart:

Andrew was okay. His best moment was in "Get It Done" where he walked out with his oven mits! LOL!

[Keanoite]

It's basically back to the same answer everytime...they tried to do to much and at times it imploded (no pun inteneded)

[Edmund Blackadder]

But, I didn't like Kennedy. She was really bratty, imo.

Can you really use it against a character that they were what they were supposed to be. Isn't hating Kennedy because she was bratty like hating Buffy because she was the Slayer?

I began to like Kennedy after the fourth time watching BUT I still hate her and Willow together, it just doesn't work after Wills loss.

I loved Selfless, too. In my top 15 And I actually liked the decision that Xander made, and I don't think it was wrong of him to make that decision, just wrong that he walked out on her. I liked a lot of what they did in the season, like the talk in "Storyteller" and the make out session between them in "Touched". It was nice, imo.

They became so boring and repetitive. If season 7 showed us anything its that Xander made a mistake and they certainly didn't deal with that. Xander so so poorly used in the season that he isn't even in one episode and you don't notice his absense, in fact on first viewing of the entire season you'd be forgiven for not pin pointing which episode he isn't in.

Dawn was one of my favorite things of the season, actually. I know there wasn't a lot of plot growth for her, but character growth? Hell yeah! She wasn't a stupid, whinny little kid anymore. She was actually cool!

The only character that had some true growth in the season but even that lacked something. She needed a power. OK we'd not have had Xanders moment of what his 'power' is in potential, but still, I wanted this chica to be someone formidable.

Well, I kinda thought the soul thing was repetitive and I didn't like Crazy Spike in the beginning, although James Marsters sure did a good job. The thing is, Spike didn't act totally different from Chipped Spike, other than him not trying to rape Buffy

I don't think it was repetitive, on the contrary when it began it was a polar opposite to the story we knew of Angel not better not worse. I just wanted more.
Also, i'm pleased you can 'lol' at the attempted rape scene and mock, i'm sure thats what the intention of that was:)

[TabulaRasa]

I really love season 7 and I don't feel it was the weaker season at all.

[Keanoite]

I really love season 7 and I don't feel it was the weaker season at all.

'Splainy?????????????????

[benboy606]

Can you really use it against a character that they were what they were supposed to be. Isn't hating Kennedy because she was bratty like hating Buffy because she was the Slayer?

I began to like Kennedy after the fourth time watching BUT I still hate her and Willow together, it just doesn't work after Wills loss.

Just because a character is supposed to be something doesn't mean you have to like it because of that. Bratty is a character trait while a slayer is a position. Character traits are what make people good or bad in peoples eyes so if you give a character a bad character trait, you can expect them to react negatively.

They became so boring and repetitive. If season 7 showed us anything its that Xander made a mistake and they certainly didn't deal with that. Xander so so poorly used in the season that he isn't even in one episode and you don't notice his absense, in fact on first viewing of the entire season you'd be forgiven for not pin pointing which episode he isn't in.

He didn't need to be in "CWDP", though. He could've seen Jess, but he did not NEED that. Jess would not have helped the Anya issue, either.

The only character that had some true growth in the season but even that lacked something. She needed a power. OK we'd not have had Xanders moment of what his 'power' is in potential, but still, I wanted this chica to be someone formidable.

I don't dislike Dawn for not having a power, because not everyone has to have one. We have a house full of powers from witches, to potentials, to vamps, to slayers. We don't need more super powered people.

Also, i'm pleased you can 'lol' at the attempted rape scene and mock, i'm sure thats what the intention of that was:)

I was trying to say how little Spike changed from Season 6, and that was the only thing, and it's an absolutely horrible thing. I wasn't trying to say it's funny or anything ::huh1::

[Black Eye Guy]

I don't think Season 7 was weaker, I liked the story they had going and I don't see the flaws as that big, if people watched more closely there are a good few explanations in there. I could have down with a little less screen time for Spike, like the episode where he gets his chip out, I know it shows Buffy trusts him, but we already knew that, that could have been brought up at a later time.

I also really liked the potentials, I dare anyone to be put in their situation and not moan, you don't have super powers, your destined to maybe have them in the future, and you have the one person in the world (If you ignore faith) barking commands at you, I know I would have moaned allot more then they would have, I also would have shoved Buffy through the door so fast it would have left her head spinning, They had no reason to trust her, they had only met her, who gives their life over so easily to someone you just met!

Definitely could have done without Robin, I'd agree with BoTD, not the actor as he's awesome in 24, but he could have been left out.

[tommy]

I would have to watch all the seasons again to put them in any order. Some episodes I haven't watched in a long time.

The important thing is that every season was excellent and not one of them was far worse than the others. They were just different.

About Season 7, I don't recall how The First was destroyed. Spike's amulet channelled a huge pillar of light and Sunnydale collapsed. Was the first evil vanquished along with the hellmouth and ubervamps?

[Keanoite]

Thats what we are trying to figure out on another thread! The First isn't defeated in the same way the Mayor or Adam was. It always exist, but it was weakened by the Sunnydale implosion and if it wants to attack again it will have to wait for another opening, which could be never. So it's more dormant than defeated.

[sosa lola]

What I would change about season 7 to make me enjoy it:

1- Make it into two seasons:

There was so much happening that 22 episodes weren't enough to cover.

2- Re-write Angel coming over.

He acted stupidly. And seriously, he shouldn't be there.

3- No amulet.

Stupid, stupid, last minute thought idea.

4- The Scythe.

I think it's a cool weapon. But I'd re-write that story one more time.

5- No new romance for Willow.

I think it wasn't needed. Willow could have gained her confidence with the help of Xander or Dawn. Simply to the those two more screen time. I'd love if it was Dawn. She showed obvious distrust toward Willow in Same Time, Same Place. I wish they kept that going, then had her be the one to help Willow out in The Killer in Me.

If S7 was two seasons, I would have liked the Willow/Kennedy ship, it just needed more time to develop.

6- No The First Giles stupid sub-plot.

Because it was wasted and stupid.

7- An explanation to Giles' weird behavior.

I understand why people call him PodGiles, however, his actions could be in character if the writers gave us a reason why he acted like that.

[benboy606]

I would have to watch all the seasons again to put them in any order. Some episodes I haven't watched in a long time.

The important thing is that every season was excellent and not one of them was far worse than the others. They were just different.

About Season 7, I don't recall how The First was destroyed. Spike's amulet channelled a huge pillar of light and Sunnydale collapsed. Was the first evil vanquished along with the hellmouth and ubervamps?

Nope, not at all. It's army was destroyed, weakening it's plan but The First is just there....taunting or boring people to death.....

[GATEGOD]

lol Boring people to death :lmao: I'd love to see that episode!

[benboy606]

lol Boring people to death :lmao: I'd love to see that episode!

Oh, you did. It's called "Get It Done".

[GATEGOD]

lol!!!!!! oh I must have forgotten it :lmao:

[benboy606]

lol!!!!!! oh I must have forgotten it :lmao:

It's okay, people usually forget about it after they sleep through the second half.

No, but Sosa Lola, great points! I would add "Core 4 Interaction" and "Plot Done Better".

[sosa lola]

You're right, S7 surely needed more Core 4 interaction. Maybe a rewrite to Empty Places, or actually showing the aftermath. We only saw Buffy making peace with Xander, but not the other characters, which sucks.

[Alfie]

Personally, I think Season 7 was a weak Season of the show, but only because we were so used to getting structured storylines that were going to be coming out over time, we were almost 'disorientated' because so much was happening at one time. Every episode you'd have something new happen, you'd have something new take place & at points, it was hard to keep track, especially the first time you're watching through. It wasn't bad television, it was poorly delivered good television.

[TabulaRasa]

To me a weak seasons shows no growth, no change etc. Season 7 provided us with a lot.
Dawn grew up, she became a woman, she was strong and much more intelligent. She proved there was more to her than a green ball of light turned annoying teen. She was a junior watcher, helping out.
Buffy, she grew also. She learned what it meant to truly lead. She found strength in herself she didn't know was there, I don't believe anyways. When she stood up to the first at the very end, told the first to get out of her face. It was like she finally got it. Finally knew who she was.
Willow. Finally figured out how to harness her power from the light instead of the darkness.
Giles, realized he was needed, but not the way he thought anymore. He was able to grow too, let go a little.
Xander. Figured out what his gift was. Became a man, saved the world with one eye, lol.
Spike, savior of the world. He found his calling.
Faith. She was a lot wiser in this season. She was healing and she was on the side of good.

There's always more, but it's season 7 that so much growth and change happened. For this reason I cannot call this the weaker season. I think it's a very strong, positive season.

[Alfie]

To me a weak seasons shows no growth, no change etc. Season 7 provided us with a lot.
Dawn grew up, she became a woman, she was strong and much more intelligent. She proved there was more to her than a green ball of light turned annoying teen. She was a junior watcher, helping out.
Buffy, she grew also. She learned what it meant to truly lead. She found strength in herself she didn't know was there, I don't believe anyways. When she stood up to the first at the very end, told the first to get out of her face. It was like she finally got it. Finally knew who she was.
Willow. Finally figured out how to harness her power from the light instead of the darkness.
Giles, realized he was needed, but not the way he thought anymore. He was able to grow too, let go a little.
Xander. Figured out what his gift was. Became a man, saved the world with one eye, lol.
Spike, savior of the world. He found his calling.
Faith. She was a lot wiser in this season. She was healing and she was on the side of good.

There's always more, but it's season 7 that so much growth and change happened. For this reason I cannot call this the weaker season. I think it's a very strong, positive season.

You make a good point about growth, but I think alot of people (including myself) regard it as the weaker season because we knew it was the last. They were going to set out to give it everything they had & I think alot of things got lost in the shuffle. In terms of character development, sure there was alot, but I think personally, in terms of story & structure, it was lacking.

[benboy606]

To me a weak seasons shows no growth, no change etc. Season 7 provided us with a lot.
Dawn grew up, she became a woman, she was strong and much more intelligent. She proved there was more to her than a green ball of light turned annoying teen. She was a junior watcher, helping out.
Buffy, she grew also. She learned what it meant to truly lead. She found strength in herself she didn't know was there, I don't believe anyways. When she stood up to the first at the very end, told the first to get out of her face. It was like she finally got it. Finally knew who she was.
Willow. Finally figured out how to harness her power from the light instead of the darkness.
Giles, realized he was needed, but not the way he thought anymore. He was able to grow too, let go a little.
Xander. Figured out what his gift was. Became a man, saved the world with one eye, lol.
Spike, savior of the world. He found his calling.
Faith. She was a lot wiser in this season. She was healing and she was on the side of good.

There's always more, but it's season 7 that so much growth and change happened. For this reason I cannot call this the weaker season. I think it's a very strong, positive season.

I disagree with the growth. Xander knew this already. Willow did her "growth" in one episode: the last. But, she shouldn't be able to do as much magic as she wants with no consequences. That's stupid. Spike got better, yes. Faith did that in Angel Season 4. Giles didn't do that, imo. He just came back, people thought he was the First, he tried to kill Spike, and he thought Buffy's insane and idiotic plan was a good one. Agreeing about Dawn and Buffy, though.

[Tomp]

The first half is up there with the highs of seasons 3 and 5.

[definition of insane]

I don't necessarily consider it the "weakest" season...I'd probably put it on the same standing as season 5, but I do think it was a case of too many stories and not enough time.

[Randy Giles]

The seventh season is in no way a weak season, or the weakest season of the show. It is, in fact, my favorite, tied with the sixth season.

I thought the season was exciting and cool, the Potentials were a very necessary addition to the series and I did not find them annoying at all, they all acted exactly how I'd expect people to act in their situation. Faith's return was amazing. Anya and Andrew got to shine. There were tons of references to the beginning of the series. The new high school rocked. The First was the ultimate villain.

But overall I thought it was an excellently structured season, it felt very solid and planned out, and to me was easily the most engaging.

And I'm also very happy that Willow moved on from Tara.

[Tranquillity]

Hafta say i love season seven too. I don't think its weak at all. Sure, there is a lot going on but it is the one season in which i never skip any episodes and i don't mind the altered interactions between the 'core 4'. I always feel that this is a natural consequence of the events of the six previous seasons.

[Randy Giles]

Yes! Thank you! In reality a group of friends will never ALWAYS stay super close, and the point the Scoobies are at in season 7 makes perfect sense with what they've dealt with. And it's not like they're no longer friends, it's just different.

[sosa lola]

For me, S7 is weak because there's so much going on, so many rushed storylines, favorite characters like Xander and Willow pushed to the background (especially in the last four episodes), so many plot holes.

I think the season would have been great if it was made into two seasons so storylines won't be jammed in together.

[UlaGan]

Just watching Season 7 now, still don't like it as much as previous ones.
Don't want Buffy to end? Maybe that's the reason. :)
Though I feel like all these Potentials together in one place, Everyone's a Slayer Now were bit of too much for single season and whole story...

[codyw1]

There IS too much going on in 7, no doubt about it. Robin Wood was pretty superfluous and probably one thread too many. I think the problem with Willow and Kennedy's relationship is down to too much going on, too. It's building up quite nicely by Killer In Me, but they barely get any screen time together after that (and then it's usually physical). We don't get any time to see them actually getting close and really falling in love. It's just "they're a couple now" and we're just supposed to accept it without really SEEING it.
There's also way too much Spike, and he's becoming a bit annoying by this stage too (though thankfully he was on top form again in season 5 of Angel).
After her bizarre behaviour in season 6, it's rather unfortunate that season 7 also sees Buffy basically losing it as well (albeit in a different way and for different reasons). She's pretty hard to like after season 5, it has to be said.


All this said, though, and while it is probably my least favourite season, it's still brilliant, way above the first 3 seasons of Angel and practically everything else on tv. ;)

[Randy Giles]

Perhaps the Wood storyline was a little unnecessarily. But I can't believe people are complaining that too much happened, in most shows the problem is too little happens, lol.

Better than the first three seasons of Angel...? One, definitely. But Angel seasons 2-5 totally pwned the entirety of Buffy. :D

(I cannot believe I used the word pwned.)

[Rowan Hawthorn]

But Angel seasons 2-5 totally pwned the entirety of Buffy. :D

(I cannot believe I used the word pwned.)

If you think any part of "Angel" was better than "Buffy", I can believe you used it... :nana:

[Randy Giles]

On my list of all-time favorite shows, Angel is #2. Buffy is either #3 or #4. :) One of the only spin-offs to surpass its parent series for muah (except for L&O: SVU).

[sosa lola]

Too little happening and too much happening are both bad in my book. A show must be balanced. Too little happening will make us bored. Too much happening will make us confused and bored.

That's what I felt anyway.

[Aussie]

Well I havent read the whole thread (can ya blame me, its 3 pages long and I have the attention span of fly) but I just wanted to put my two cents worth in.
To me season 7 seemed like a comic put on to screen. I havent read any of the season 8 comics and have never really been a fan of comics (note attention span! so much easier to watch than read) The first time I watched season 7 it really felt like a comic to me? hard to explain. I did enjoy it but it was really different to the other seasons. Unfortunatly I also felt it was rushed. I agree with previous posts about "lessons" being the best season opener, I even got my step mum to watch it (she had a mag infront of her face but I knew she was peeking coz she'll usually leave the room if Im watching something scary in her opinion!)
Conversations with dead people and same time, same place were two of the scariest episodes!
And who can fault "chosen" with that music going its impossible not to enjoy it!

[LadyLavinia]

Season Seven is my second or third favorite season of the series. To me, it is the ultimate expression of the old adage -"You are your own worst enemy". And the First Evil came dangerously close to proving just that. It's a pity that most of the fans were incapable of understanding this.

As for the loss of the Core 4 . . . it was about time. I find it ridiculous that the fans wanted the Scoobies to stay together . . . forever. I find that immature. They have to grow. They can't stick together . . . always. How on earth are they going to form their own lives? I was happy when Andrew told Spike that the Scoobies had separated, but remained friends. It told me that they were finally growing up. Then Whedon ruined it by bringing them back together for the comics. Now, they'll probably stagnate for the rest of their adult lives . . . like the "Fang Gang" on ANGEL.

[yosaffbridge]

i don't feel that season seven was the weakest season at all. i loved season 7. were there episodes that just blew me away at how ridiculous they were? yes. did each episode pretty much give me at least one satisfying moment? yes. i think that season seven had it's ups and downs, but nothing that you could argue wasn't in previous seasons.

i think s7 just makes the series complete. it was frakking awesome. everytime, i swear, i can't help but cry at the end of empty places. heartbreaking. s7 ranks very high for me opposed to other seaosns who had just as many "bad" episodes or worse. i honestly am not a fan of bangel and season 2, especially. and any episode that has some sort of crappy reptile, insect thing...

[Elithustra]

I'm on the fence about Season 7. Whereas it had it's good moments and bad moments, I think overall there were some things that just didn't sit well with me within Buffyverse, y'know? Like all these darned potentials! Too many characters to keep track of. The only one I really remembered was Kennedy, for obvious reasons.

I think also with S7, it was like we all knew it would be the last season and I for one was prepared to judge it pretty harshly. I think that going into something like the potentials was just... it could have been done sooner, maybe that would have led up to S7 being a bit better. And I'm still just ticked off that Tara never made it to S7!

Edit:

Oh! And I really would have liked to have seen them do another series, in non-comic book form!

[WatcherByBirthright]

I think the main problem with season seven is that Whedon & co. were just bending over backwards as they raced towards the pre-determined, grand epic ending that much of the eps in the middle sufferred as a result. (And not leaving a lot of room for stand-alone episodes).

Personally, I would have severely reduced the number of Potentials in Buffy's care (keep Amanda, Rona, Vi, Kennedy and two or three others with a more international flavour). Hence, as they Potentials get picked off, it really looks possible the Bringers might succeed - plus it helps develop these Potential Slayers as characters more. Between the regulars, Giles, Faith, and new recurring characters like Wood and Andrew, there is simply too many characters crammed into the plot as it is.

And the whole plot of the First constantly taunting the Scoobies becomes ridiuclously overdone. (Not to mention lacking in tension when it's copped it is the First). And for God's sake more villains then just Caleb, the Bringers and the Uber-vamps! And what's the harm in more Clem, would have loved to seen him develop more as comic relief then Andrew.

Also, it would have been worth it to see Faith come in earlier and struggle to win back the trust of Buffy and co. Plus, it would have been interesting to see the ending play out with Buffy becoming normal, sacrificing her powers for Willow's spell - and now most definitely having the chance to live out a normal life. And with Faith finding her place training the Potentials alongside Wood, would have left it open for a most awesome spin-off. :)

[Primal Slayer]

I dont think Season7 was the weakest season either, I liked the majority of it. The main problem is that they were trying to wrap up a lot of things in Season7 and there just wasnt enough time to do that.

[GATEGOD]

omg I can't believe I never said this "Season 7 was the weakest because it killed off Anya." but then again I can't say that because in season 1 there wasn't even an Anya... so still Season 7 isn't the weakest season. Kennedy which all you hate, I loved. The Killer in me was perfection. I don't even think this is the second weakest season. Maybe the third?

[LadyLavinia]

For me, it was one of the more stronger and more fascinating seasons for me. Mind you, I think that unlike ANGEL . . . BUFFY's seasons have been consistently first-rate, even if one might be better than another.

[BuffyBloke]

I love season 7, I felt the writing and the performances and the actual storyline archs to be strong, simple and top knotch. It had a spark that the show lost in season 4, 5 & 6, and was immediately retained with the First.

It explored the different emotional issues with each character, explored the different narcasitc evilness that I have never seen in the show not since "Druscilla" lol

It was a dark season, it went back to the beginning of all evil, The First, and had many charming/sad storyarchs along the way.

The one thing I never got was how the heck The First got to be the shape and form of Buffy... Was that because she died twice?.. I never got that. lol

[kanani]

The one thing I never got was how the heck The First got to be the shape and form of Buffy... Was that because she died twice?.. I never got that. lol


Not only did The First get to "be" Buffy because she had died (2x), but thanks to the 'bringing back' of Buffy in S:6 The First found it's loophole to work it's First-y Like Things and "be" Buffy at all.

[BuffyBloke]

Ahhh right.... now that makes sense. Thanks for clearing that up for me Kanani :)

[CharmedSlayer85]

I always thought Season Seven was the weakest season because you could almost tell that they were trying to wrap up too many storylines all at once and it made many things left WIDE open. For example the whole issue of Dawn finally growing up and patrolling and joining the Scobby gang, really aside from the first episode Dawn's training was ignored. Xander and Anya were just there for the most part this season. I mean I think before the potential slayers arrived Season Seven was looking to be the best, but then the potentials showed up and all the focus went to them instead of the core characters that made us tune in every week.

It's Buffy, Dawn, Willow, Xander, and Anya in the opening credits not Buffy and the other slayers.

[VisionGuy]

I agree that season 7 was looking great until the potentials showed up. I still can't get over that. They should have only had one or two potentials show up in Sunnydale instead of turning the Summer's home into an orphanage. It was still an okay season but it could have been a lot better if the potentials were kept to a minimum instead of being made the focus of the season.

[palabravampiress]

I pretty much agree with the majority and think season 7 was weakened by the amount of material and number of characters that it tried to not only include, but "wrap up," as well. I'd rate it as the second weakest season. Season 1 is, I think, the weakest.

[BuffyBloke]

I do think alot of the time was spend way too much on the Potentials. I also thought Willow/Kennedy's pairing up was quite fast actually. It just went by me so quick.. lol. I know Willow was probably to ready to move on still but it seemed that Kennedy was doing the fast track pursuing in that particular new relationship.

The more the potenials arrived and also died.. the focus went on the first and on the potentials. I really think there should have been some sort of time spent on the scoobies too, I mean it was pointed out Dawn's growing up was acknwoledged but apart from that she was ignored in terms of becoming apart of the gang and helping out in patrols.

There was alot of things that needed to be cleared up but it was never cleared up. However still though season 7 is my favourite season nonetheless. :)

[PhenixRising]

I am attempting to watch season 7 straight through for the first time. I really do not know what the writers were thinking during this season and I will blame that on Marti instead of Joss.

Why is Andrew in the season? Why is he taking screen time away from Xander? He is an accessory to murder, rape, armed/magical robbery, and o yea his best friend killed Tara. Tell me again why I should like him.

What happened to Willow? O yea that idiotic drug metaphor nerfs her ability through most of the season. I haven't watched the episodes with her and Kennedy but from what I can see it'll be a purely physical relationship. I'll still watch the show if I'm supposed to think that there is a deeper connection than pure physical attraction but I'll mutter to myself that the writers are even worse than I thought.

O and Buffy, its a shame that she is not even likable anymore. When did this show become about a solo slayer that begrudgingly asks her 'friends' for help. For the longest time this show was about how Buffy remained alive because of her connections to this world but suddenly that doesn't matter. Her victory over the Turok-Han in the construction site was ridiculous on so many levels. And when did she decide that trapping people with a Vampire was a good idea. Wasn't she morally outraged when the council did something similar to her? When did she develop the ability to use telepathy? And could she get anymore self involved as a counselor? I'm talking about her meeting w/ the potential where she talks about her relationship with Spike.

Grr, this could have been a great season but the writing was just pathetic. I am at the Killer in Me and the last two episodes left me with my mouth wide open in disgust and at times indifference. I've watched bits and pieces of the other episodes. I always tried to watch it when it was on originally but I'd change the channel with commercials and end up missing a good portion of the episode or finding something else on tv. I know it won't stop but a little less exposition would help. It wouldn't have hurt to have some actual dialog instead of speeches too.
I wish Xander or Willow would have brought up Adam during one of Buffy's speeches about how great and powerful she is.

[Hello Cutie]

Watch the whole of the season, then come back and try again. Don't judge something you haven't watched the whole way through.

And, in case you hadn't noticed, Buffy doesn't have telepathic powers, Willow does. Hence how Willow can hear Buffy's thoughts, and call Xander into the kitchen with them.. Buffy doesn't call him, Willow does- its THE WITCH that has the telepathic powers. Obviously.

Andrew was an interesting twist in the story- he might be an accessory, but he's also a pawn, but an unwilling one, which makes it more interesting. Andrew as a character is also extremely funny to watch.. he tries to integrate himself into Slayer Central, but it doesn't really work. He's not a threat, so he's allowed to be.

Willow and Kennedy I disliked, but that's because I didn't think enough time had feasibly passed for Willow to be entering a new relationship- its a personal thing. And have you ever been addicted to anything?? It's exactly right that you wouldn't be able to do it/use it/whatever if you were recovering from an addiction. I think that was portrayed perfectly- if you're an addict, you have to abstain, even if it's hard- and that's exactly what Willow was doing- what did you want, for her to miraculously get over it and be fine and carry using magic as though season 6 hadn't happened? Because no-one would have a problem with Willow coming back rehabilitated and back to normal, as it's such a normal thing to happen after a few months!

Buffy isn't talking about how great and powerful 'she' is, per se, more the 'slayer' is. Which could be any of the girls if she dies. And as she says herself, she's got a wicca who won't-a, and no-one else with any sort of power... it is all about her, especially now. What is everyone else going to do?? She's the one who has to stop it, and I'm sure she feels more than partially responsible for everything considering it's the fact that she lives that's the catalyst for all this.

And as for the turok han part, I think what she did was brilliant. There was dissension in the ranks, and the best thing she could do was to unite them all. They thought that if Buffy couldn't defeat the thing, what chance would they all have? So she showed them just what it means to be the slayer, she showed them that it was just like any other vampire and it could be beaten- it's called giving them hope, resolve and something to fight for. It was a great idea.
Comparing that to the Cruciamentum is just laughable. That was a psychotic vampire she was trapped ALONE with, while it held her mother hostage and she had NO powers. It's a completely different situation- in this case, Buffy has power, there are dozens of people, they are far enough away from the Turok Han to be out of danger and if worst came to worst, I'm sure Willow would break from her recovery to sort it out... Buffy isn't stupid, it wasn't a rash decision but a carefully calculated one that was extremely successful.

Edit:

Quote: Bored of the Dead- 'You were expecting something else. PR went in expecting to be disappointed, so he was. There is no way Season 7 would have been good enough for him. He isn't a proper fan of Buffy, he should be removed from BB and the world'

*snorts* Of course, what WAS I thinking?? It's simple fact!

But I just don't understand how someone can be so unbelievably critical of something they haven't seen all the way through!!! Watch it, then come back and criticise it, and we might, just might, take something you say with more than a gain of salt (maybe a pinch even, if you're lucky).

[PhenixRising]

Watch the whole of the season, then come back and try again. Don't judge something you haven't watched the whole way through.

And, in case you hadn't noticed, Buffy doesn't have telepathic powers, Willow does. Hence how Willow can hear Buffy's thoughts, and call Xander into the kitchen with them.. Buffy doesn't call him, Willow does- its THE WITCH that has the telepathic powers. Obviously.

Andrew was an interesting twist in the story- he might be an accessory, but he's also a pawn, but an unwilling one, which makes it more interesting. Andrew as a character is also extremely funny to watch.. he tries to integrate himself into Slayer Central, but it doesn't really work. He's not a threat, so he's allowed to be.

Willow and Kennedy I disliked, but that's because I didn't think enough time had feasibly passed for Willow to be entering a new relationship- its a personal thing. And have you ever been addicted to anything?? It's exactly right that you wouldn't be able to do it/use it/whatever if you were recovering from an addiction. I think that was portrayed perfectly- if you're an addict, you have to abstain, even if it's hard- and that's exactly what Willow was doing- what did you want, for her to miraculously get over it and be fine and carry using magic as though season 6 hadn't happened? Because no-one would have a problem with Willow coming back rehabilitated and back to normal, as it's such a normal thing to happen after a few months!

Buffy isn't talking about how great and powerful 'she' is, per se, more the 'slayer' is. Which could be any of the girls if she dies. And as she says herself, she's got a wicca who won't-a, and no-one else with any sort of power... it is all about her, especially now. What is everyone else going to do?? She's the one who has to stop it, and I'm sure she feels more than partially responsible for everything considering it's the fact that she lives that's the catalyst for all this.

And as for the turok han part, I think what she did was brilliant. There was dissension in the ranks, and the best thing she could do was to unite them all. They thought that if Buffy couldn't defeat the thing, what chance would they all have? So she showed them just what it means to be the slayer, she showed them that it was just like any other vampire and it could be beaten- it's called giving them hope, resolve and something to fight for. It was a great idea.
Comparing that to the Cruciamentum is just laughable. That was a psychotic vampire she was trapped ALONE with, while it held her mother hostage and she had NO powers. It's a completely different situation- in this case, Buffy has power, there are dozens of people, they are far enough away from the Turok Han to be out of danger and if worst came to worst, I'm sure Willow would break from her recovery to sort it out... Buffy isn't stupid, it wasn't a rash decision but a carefully calculated one that was extremely successful.

Edit:

Quote: Bored of the Dead- 'You were expecting something else. PR went in expecting to be disappointed, so he was. There is no way Season 7 would have been good enough for him. He isn't a proper fan of Buffy, he should be removed from BB and the world'

*snorts* Of course, what WAS I thinking?? It's simple fact!

But I just don't understand how someone can be so unbelievably critical of something they haven't seen all the way through!!! Watch it, then come back and criticise it, and we might, just might, take something you say with more than a gain of salt (maybe a pinch even, if you're lucky).

Every complaint I've made about this season has been stated time and again. If there was a episode section I'd air my complaints in that section. I just resurrected this thread since I figured it'd be a better place instead of messing up the board w/ separate threads about the episodes I did or didn't like. And I'm really just venting. I'd rather do it here. My friends think I'm nuts for watching and usually enjoying everything the Whedon clan puts on television.

I'm in the process of wrapping up my Buffy marathon. I've re-watched season 1-7 (ep 17 as of now) over the past couple months. I'm not a big fan of anything out on TV because I just hate commercials so I've been watching my old favorites. I didn't know a thing about season 6 before I watched other than Willow is the Big Bad and Spike gets his soul back. As for season 7 I knew pretty much all the details from both spoilers and flipping the channels. Wow, thats some useless info.

I even find myself liking a few of the episodes in season 7. I wouldn't put any of them into my top 10 but they've been interesting. I've even liked how they've developed Spike even though I don't agree w/ his existence in the buffyverse. As for Andrew I figure the police might want to arrest a guy who is wanted for robbing an armored car. I honestly see no point to his existence other than Marti or Joss feel the need for a closeted gay character. Or maybe the writers just like the actor. Who really knows their reasoning? You all might.

Anyway, the Giles subplot through out the first half of the season was pretty much worthless. Is he dead or not? Are we supposed to be shocked that he's not the First? I did however love his dry humor about touching young girls. Were these people living in the same house? And how could no one sit down and eat with him or hug or do anything that'd prove that they're not the First. You'd think by now that they'd shake hands or hug at every discussion.

As for MAJOR plot holes. Season 4 finale the Initiative is buried in concrete. Damn there were a few more in that very episode but they all related to the Initiative. If I ever re-watch season 7 I'll let you know. As for Clem, he would have been insulted by Buffy stating that his skin looked toned. He doesn't like how humans look so why would he smile at that remark? Another thing, could someone tell Buffy that the Slayer line runs through Faith now? Or is there a third activated slayer roaming the Earth? I don't write down all the things that make me shake my head but those stood out for some reason. O and how didn't Buffy figure out that Spike killed Wood's mom when he first mentioned his mother? Is it that hard for her to do math?

And about the vampire trap. I was referring to the episode where Buffy and Spike leave the girls alone in a crypt with a newly sired Vampire. In case I'm missing something these potentials are just regular girls with heightened reflexes. One, two, three or all of them could have been injured or killed while fighting that Vampire.

About that Turok-Han fight. Obviously, the Turok-Han wiped the floor with Buffy in previous fights. I'm not exactly sure what strategic advantage she would gain by fighting it in front of the potentials other than to get another beat down. When did she figure out that holy water had any effect or was that a guess? (yea I miss the research scenes) If it doesn't work then thats the end of Buffy. In the actual fight scene she is getting demolished until she can suddenly deal with its punches. Up until that point she was tossed around like a rag doll and could never deal with its strength. I understand that in Buffyverse Buffy gains power after a 'little bad' tosses her around a couple times BUT if I was a writer I would have had the other characters help kill the Turok-Han to demonstrate AND reinforce that the Slayer will die if she is left on her own. Wasn't that the reason why Buffy was such a formidable opponent? And why Faith went to the dark side. Buffy's friends were capable of helping her win etc etc.

And the telepathy. You're right it was silly of me not to realize that it was Willow's power but is it a passive or active power? If its passive then you'd think that Kennedy and her would have telepathic convo's through out the day. Or would Willow mistakenly hear her thoughts etc etc. That scene would have worked just fine if the three adults leave the house and talk about whats going to happen. It wouldn't have taken much of the suspense out of the episode.

I've probably wrote a lot here and I apologize for any major grammatical mistakes or typos. I just think that season 7 had a lot of potential but so far it hasn't been realized because IMO the writers are flat out lazy. Maybe its because Marti has a greater say in the show. Or they are just trying to cram as much info into one season as possible. It's probably a mixture of all three.

And I believe I stated in the first post that I hated the drug metaphor. I know about addiction especially alcoholism. The magic as a drug came out of nowhere.

[IdiotJed]

^Good points. I didn't hate the season, but rather, just a little disappointed. Mostly due to the cut back on the core four. Not interaction, just the characters entirely. When the first visits Willow and Dawn, how come it didn't visit anyone else? Xander, okay, I can understand why to a point, but there would've been ways if the writers would've cared to be creative and include him. However, Giles doesn't get a visit from the first. Yet, Dawn does? Never really panned out for me. It just seemed they left the witty and creative writing in, but took storyline for granted. It had great potiential to be the best season, but a lot of what the show was about got lost in this final season.

[Crazy Flakes]

I didn't hate season 7. As LadyLavinia said, every season of Buffy is amazing, even if some are better than others. I still have to say that season 1 was the worst because it mainly consisted of standalones and wasn't nearly as mature as the other seasons. Still, I have to say that season 7 was my second least favorite.

I'm not sure why I didn't like season 7 as much as the others. I won't blame it on Marti, since I think she did a fantastic job with season 6. The main reason certainly wasn't because of Andrew, since, well, I LOVE Andrew! It's definitely because of the Potentials. The other seasons circled around a group of very likable characters that we all got to know and love, and we just wanted to see them interact and deal with the crisis themselves. Then, they threw the not-so-likable Potentials into the mix. As someone said before, if there had only been a couple Potentials, it wouldn't have been as bad...but they shifted the main focus of the show away from Buffy and the Scoobies and towards this army of girls who really did nothing but complain. Also, I wasn't a fan of Spike in this season. He lacked the trademark wit that he had in the previous seasons. And, of course, I hate the Willow/Kennedy relationship, but I admit, it's mostly because she's so different from Willow and, more importantly, Tara.

All in all, season 7 was great, just not quite as good as seasons 2-6.

[Five]

I like Season 7.

Of course, there are some bad stuff about it.
The main problem, to me, is, as many have said before me, the lack of real screentime for Willow and Xander. That's an absolute shame - I mean it, the writers should be ashamed! lol All for what? Spike. Spike again, and again. Why did we get to see SO MUCH Spike ? Well, because James is cute and had his lady-fans who watched just for his sweet face, abs and ass. Seriously. And I think that reason's just disappointing. More Willow, especially, was needed. Xand and she were just, like, in the background. Baaaaaaaaad idea. And so much Spike ? I don't have anything against him... nor have I anything for him, but, it was just too much. Who cared enough about him for enjoying one entire episode, just at the end of the whole SERIES, exclusively devoted to Spike ? I mean, come on. We GET it, we had gotten it since like the very beginning of the season.

Another thing, but that's just me, is the whole Kennedy thing. Actually... It's just Kennedy. Annoying. Not in the "boring" sense, more in the "please let the Ubervamps feed off her and kick her against a wall" sense. I think it's an insult for the whole Willow/Tara histoy to have given a new girlfriend to Willow that quick. I understand they wanted to show her more or less happy at the end of the season, but she didn't need that. As someone said, it would have been really more interesting to see her interact with Xander and Dawn. Those three characters were used spontaneously, like when you needed someone to say something, and had like one episode for each of them and that's it. Absolute shame.

However, I agree with the fact that this season was just so greatly built, it was like watching a movie. It was very interesting for a last season. I mean, it had obviously been thought through before the beginning, and prepared, and developped, and that was great.

I loved the ending. I just thought it was so clever (especially from Buff :p) to give the Slayer power (no, I did not say "Flower Power", pay attention!) to every Potential... It was, to me, the perfect ending I would never have thought about. And that goes for the whole godessy-Willow thing, and the back-to-basis thing with "The Earth is definitely doomed" and each character leaving Buffy in the opposite order they had met...
Anya's death was really hard for me, but I think it was good and realistic, even though I miss her terribly in Season 8 (as I still miss Tara) : I mean, in a battle like this, you just HAD, at ONE time, to have someone dying during the fight. Xander's luck is too good to be true, so someone had to pay.

Imo, Andrew was useless but I liked his episode.

Something I didn't like was also the lack of explanations : the whole Joyce appearance thing, the ubervamps-are-so-strong-Buffy-has-a-hard-time-killing-one-but-after-that-everyone-succeeds-in-killing-a-whole-bunch-of-them thing. I mean, I force myself to think of it like this : by killing one, Buffy has learnt much stuff, research could be more specific and ended up letting Anya teach the Potential about it (and her sex life); and so, it was easier to just kill them, like happy, floppy bunnies.

All in all, I really liked that season. To me, it's just apart, not like the other ones. It's about growth; something has changed, they all began to become adults in S6: now they're more confident. I loved it, actually, but some things are just regrettable.

[LadyLavinia]

And I'm still just ticked off that Tara never made it to S7!


Why? Tara wasn't needed. I liked her, but she was not missed. At least by me. It was time for Willow to move on.

[Lauryn Summers]

Season 7,while intense, wasn't my favorite, nor do I think it was the strongest season. To me, it seemed the overall writing dropped. Here's what I wrote last night about the finale after I finished the season:

"Chosen" Good title, first of all...Just kinda melodramatic. Good action and such, but poor writing and I think the writers/Joss W. were afraid to have anything sad happen to anchor the finale. Sure Spike's sacrafice was sad. But it would have been more sad and better (in my opinion) to have a lead die. Granted I am one who does that in her stories...but if Buffy/Willow/Xandar/Giles/even Dawn had died, then it would have been sad enough to be memorable. Like the Alias series finale...whcih I won't mention in case you watch it!!

Season 7 sure did pull me in, and kept me watching, but the last couple of episodes kind of fell, incomparison to other episodes that is. I still enjoyed it and I don't think it was the weakest. But in my opinion I don't think it was the strongest either.

[spark]

even though it wasn't my favourite, i still loved season 7. yeah, it seemed like something was missing and the writing wasn't as sharp but it kept me watching. the last few episodes were a disappointment, i'm not sure how i wanted/expected it to end but it wasn't as good as it could have been. i know it was all about buffy and the new slayers but xander and willow barely seemed part of it all... and as much as i love spike, his screen time could have been cut. i did like andrew and thought he had some ace lines - i actually really enjoyed his episode. as for the ending, i think anya dying was a bit lame - it would have had more impact if someone like dawn had died. but thats just me...

[UnKle]

I know I enjoyed S7 a lot. For me, though, the high point of the series was around S4-S6. S7 was slower, somehow. Which isn't bad - it definitely needed careful pacing and the season itself was obviously all dovetailing to a single story about closing the Hellmouth (but oops, there's another in Cleveland).

But there was a lot of material to cover, and I think I felt at some point that Spike's story was moving just a little too slowly, and possessing too much of the overall season. Maybe it was a bit too finessed. But after he attacked Buffy in S6, it's hard to say how long his transformation, and Buffy's figuring out how to trust him again, should have taken. So... I guess the pacing was alright in that aspect, but a bit of the other could have been done with a shade more haste, I guess.

S7 was definitely the darker season. Someday when I have all the time in the world on my hands, I want to go through all the seasons and tally up how many scenes were in sunlight and how many were in darkness. Coz I think S7 took place at night, moreso than the other seasons. I'm sure that had an effect on my perception of the story itself being more dark and more deliberately paced. Plus, what with the power going out in the city near the end of the season, there just wasn't much light going on after that. And again, I'm sure that was a device to move the story forward, to the big final battle which took place, surely not by accident, in the daytime. And it's kind of nice that Buffy is a creature of the dark, and the final scene is of her in the sunlight.

There were a couple of eps in S7 that just didn't do it for me. But I think overall the season was good, but as a send-off for Buffy, for me, it still left a feeling of incompleteness... like there was a bit more story left that should be told. But I'm sure Joss & Co. had their limits with budget, timing, and the schedules of the cast and such. You do what you can, and try to get the best you can with what you have. I'm glad there's a S8, though, even if it's in comics. :)

[NCFan]

The ending is growing on me, but still I don't know...the ending wasn't as strong like the Season 5 finale was. I have now watched the finale of S7 about 3 times on dvd, but still think that Season 5 is the better ending. It was sad to see though some peole get hurt or killed. Notably Anya. That sword through the body thing was shocking. But I did love how Andrew told Xander that she died protecting him (or something like that).

[pernilleborup]

The 7th season was defiantely a weak one.

It seemed like the creators were a bit stuck in some point. They had left us with a lot of questions from season 6, and they felt tehy needed to answer them. but they needed a new story, and a new big bad. So they made up "the potentials", and then chose to kill over half of them. They gave us some great episodes(everybody has their bright moments) and a creepy priest (who could have pulled the role as the big bad without the first), and at last: They gave us Ubervamps. Grey-ish vamps who lived under the school, making smoars over bonfires. (no sing-a-longs!)

I think they should have stopped. The 7th season wasn't too good, and imo they could easily have left us at the season 6 finale. It would give us things to think about. Spike having a soul...Wonder how it would be, Willow's future after nearly destroying the world, Dawn and Buffy leaving to explore the world. It could have left us with a good finale, with lots of stuff to speculate about, but they chose to make season 7...not the brightest season.

[Fake Shemp]

i always think of it as the weakest.. and then it comes to watching it and i love it all... weird... maybe it hasnt been in my conciousness as long as the rest to fully appreciate it yet

[DarkAvenger]

i always think of it as the weakest.. and then it comes to watching it and i love it all... weird... maybe it hasnt been in my conciousness as long as the rest to fully appreciate it yet

omg that happened to me! When i was re-watching the episodes 2 months ago, when I started season 7 I thought "Ahh i'm already in season 07, which it's not a very good season" but then I loved it! And i still love it now. So I don't think it was the weaker season, OR a weak season. It's not my favourite, it's not BUT I do think it's a great season. ;)

[LadyLavinia]

Actually, I have always considered S1-S2 as the weakest period. It's only natural, since the series was just getting started. Granted, S2 had some memorable episodes. But for me, the overall story arc had some major weaknesses and disappointments. S1 struck me as a mere ghost of what was to come.