Warning--there will be some spoilers in this review. I'll try to keep them under control.

Nine months ago, I first met Buffy Summers, AKA the Vampire Slayer. She lives in Sunnydale, California, and has a bunch of buddies that helps her Slay the bad guys. They call themselves "the Scooby Gang," and what was originally a core group of Buffy, her geeky gal pal Willow, and the clownish Xander (all under the mentoring eye of Rupert Giles) has by Season Five doubled in size to include many others. There's still a heart in the series in the friendship of Buffy and her friends, but the additional characters have opened up opportunities and storylines that didn't exist in Season One.

And this brings good and bad elements with it. Season Five is an uneven season, carrying some of the baggage of Season Four with it, and seeds are planted that I assume come to fruition later in the series. We still get a few crossover appearances from Angel, visiting from his own series set in Los Angeles, but Buffy and the Scoobies are the focus of this series.

My biggest problem with Season Four was that I didn't like Riley Finn. He was Buffy's boyfriend, and I just never believed the character. Too whitebread (and this is coming from the whitest guy since that Wonder Bread and Mayo samwich I had, washed down with 2% milk, with no crusts) for my taste, he never fit in with the Scooby Gang, and was more of a divider in the group than a team player. Buffy and her friends grew apart in Season Four, as we often do in college, and were reunited in spirit and deed in the closing episodes of that season.

Season Five doesn't have as much group conflict as the previous season did, and that's a good thing. It's more fun as a viewer, and makes for simpler storylines, with less soap opera dramatics. Which isn't to say there's no soap here. There are several Big Events in Season Five, including a character with a brain tumor, another character who's debilitated by an encounter with the Big Bad of the season, and a core character dies. Out of the blue. Which shocked me enough that I actually shed some tears over it.

The biggest soap opera moment for me is the introduction of Dawn, Buffy's "suddenly sister." Because...she was an only child for Seasons One through Four, and then, out of nowhere, here's "Dawn." She's in junior high, she's brunette, and Buffy (and everyone else in Dawn's life) has had her memories altered so she remembers Dawn as always being around...for the last 14 years. This...this was a hard one to swallow for me. Even after watching 22 episodes with Dawn, I don't feel like she belongs there, and she feels more like a character brought in out of a dearth of ideas. Cousin Oliver from The Brady Bunch...the new Huxtable kids on The Cosby Show...it just seems...so NOT "Buffy," and not Joss Whedon, creator of the show. Which isn't to say it's not handled well. The way she's introduced and is gradually explained was creative and interesting, and different from what I had seen before. The storylines she's in are good, and some are very poignant. But...she still doesn't feel like part of the gang.

There are other additions to the Scoobies as well, who are cemented as part of the Gang this season. Tara, Willow's lesbian girlfriend, is in nearly every episode...and I'm still not her fan. Is it my own experience with a red-headed lesbian doing that to me? Who knows. Tara still seems stuttery and mopey and "slow" in many ways...I just don't get her character. I do like the other additions, like Anya, an ex-demon and currently Xander's main squeeze...and Spike, a vampire himself who we find out has a big thing for Buffy this season. Both are semi-regular members of the Scooby Gang now, and both bring a lot of humor and some interesting situations with them.

There are three big threats this season to Buffy's peaceful life in Sunnydale: Glory, Drusilla, and the Tumor. Glory is the nickname of "Glorificus," who's a fallen god who's trying to find her way back home. Her earthly form is a hot but vapid woman who needs to feed on human brains every so often to maintain her sanity. She's stronger and faster than Buffy, and causes problems from the time she arrives in Sunnydale. She's looking for a "key" that will get her back to her own dimension, and that key happens to be Buffy's Brand New Sister, Dawn. All of this unfolds over the course of many episodes, and for much of the season, I was wondering when Glory was going to DO something. She's funny, she's cute, but she's not much of a real threat until she finally gets moving in the last few episodes of the season. I don't think she's as threatening or scary a villain as other "Big Bads" have been...combining the airheadedness with the comedy may have watered her down somewhat.

Drusilla comes back to Sunnydale to revisit Spike and try to "convert" him back to his evil bloodsucking ways...and it turns out that Spike's love for Buffy means that he turns his back on Dru and that whole sucky lifestyle. It's an interesting change for Spike, and Drusilla leaves to go visit Angel in Los Angeles...making for a more interesting arc on "Angel" than it was on "Buffy." I don't always like Drusilla, but here she was very effective.

The third big villain doesn't have a face or a name, it's simply a tumor that makes Buffy's mom sick. I like Kristine Sutherland as Joyce Summers, and I was worried she'd succumb to the tumor. It's a solid set of episodes in the middle of the season, and was an unexpected turn. We see how complicated life can be when you're a Slayer, and it was touching to see her letting go of the Slaying to support her family when they needed her most--even if her younger sister "really" isn't part of the family and is some sort of metaphysical construct meant to bring on the apocalypse. The episodes were well-written and acted, and were just solid all the way around.

Later in the season, there are some casualties among the Scooby Gang--one is left a mental vegetable, one is killed (seemingly permanently...so far...and I cried...) and another is killed in the final episode, but I'm assuming that character will be back. The actual death was handled very well, and was quite touching--the pair of episodes dealing most directly with that character's death were heartbreaking. It was a real contrast with how the deaths of other characters have been portrayed, and the writing, cinematography, and acting were all incredible. On a series where death is often handled lightly, it was good to see that treatment.

All in all I liked the Fifth Season more than the fourth, although I still don't think they're as good in many respects as the high school episodes of the first three seasons. Something I do enjoy is the growth in several characters. Giles finally gets out of his apartment and finds new purpose when he buys the Magic Shop in Sunnydale--that was a welcome change, and gives the Scoobies someplace to call an HQ. Spike's arc is delightful, and the other characters find out that he's in love with Buffy...and it really hits the fan then. Sometimes Spike is tough to read, but that's part of the inexplicable charm of the character. Xander finally moves out of his parent's basement, and there's a very good episode that plays on the "evil twin" storyline so often repeated in these genre shows...when the episode started, I thought it would be ridiculous, but by the end of the episode I was impressed at the message, and the necessary solution to Xander's problem. Xander's relationship with Anya also deepens, and we see more of both characters--the class clown ending up with one of the most mature relationships in the series is a great arc for him. Willow and Tara...well, I already said I still don't like Tara, but we do see the deeper parts of their relationship too. I've always liked Willow, and don't feel like she got as much to do this season, but we do see her power growing stronger, and her role is still good as "Buffy's Best Friend."

There's growth in Buffy herself, as she explores her various roles as daughter, older sister, Slayer, and friend...and she recommits herself to all of these. She realizes that she's not a great girlfriend right now, and stays out of that relationship for most of the season...which was a good move for the season. One episode that I thought was quite impressive was one where she was fighting an android girlfriend...and instead of just killing her, the two ended up having a conversation on a playground swingset, talking about the various problems of love. It was a touching moment, which made me think, "dude, you're such a woman...this is so girly..." but despite that, it was very good. There are also several conflicts between Buffy and her pals, making the series more "real," and she has to reassert a few times that she's The Slayer, and they're not...even when she'd like to quit, she doesn't get to.

In all, this is a good season of episodes. I've enjoyed watching it on DVD, and if you've seen the earlier seasons, this one will play well. The more "soapy" improbable moments, like the sudden appearance of Dawn, and the whole Tumor storyline, are handled well...but they're still soapy. The most significant event this season was the death of a major character late in the season, and it could just be where I'm at personally, but I thought it was handled very well, and in a more...artistic way than many episodes of this fine series are. If you haven't discovered "Buffy" yet...well, there's still hope. Check them out starting with Season One, and get on board...you've got quite the journey ahead of you.

MORE BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
Buffy Season One http://www.epinions.com/content_148969197188

Buffy Season Two http://www.epinions.com/content_158297394820

Buffy Season Three http://www.epinions.com/content_161138445956

Buffy Season Four http://www.epinions.com/content_173637602948





Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD