Spoiler Slayer

I've done the final updates to the Buffy Formula and the Spoiler Slayer pages for the season. The only real change to the Buffy Formula, was moving Warren to 'Little Bad' status instead of the Troika. Just as Dr. Walsh was the central 'Little Bad' of the Initiative, the Troika itself was mainly Warren's creation. The final list of False Spoilage for Season Six is complete, and I've also adjusted the rankings to reflect the final stats. Congrats to Hercules and Angel X for not only providing over 100 spoilers between themselves, but maintaining a 100% ranking throughout the Season. Kudos to Wendy and Sweetie as well, for also providing very accurate spoilage. I've got much more to say about the Spoiler Sources for this season, but that will be one of the first posts when I get back from hiatus.

My thoughts on the finale are going to be brief, not because I don't have things to say about it, but much of this will tie in with tomorrow's Season Wrap-Up update. I just wanted to split my thoughts on the finale from the season itself.

Overall, the finale completely rocked. What I really enjoyed is that the three characters that you would expect to have been central (Buffy, Willow, Spike), took a back seat in a way to the others (Anya, Dawn, Xander). Last night, we saw Anya and Dawn in a completely new light, and it was extremely refreshing for a change. Especially when it came to Dawn, as even Willow herself echoed what most of us have been thinking for the past two seasons (hey, I'm a Dawn fan, but even I was getting a bit tired of the bratty kid sister routine). I certainly see big things, even if they aren't slayer-related, for her character in the future. The same holds true with Anya, though I hope she neither leaves the show or loses her demony powers. Even with them, she still cares about all the Scoobies and doing the right thing. Though jumping back to 'Tabula Rasa', one has to wonder if she might be paired with Giles in the future (not romantically, but it's hard to deny that much like Cordelia, she might make a move to the 'Ripper' spin-off).

As for Xander, I'm confused by his portrayal in the finale. Of all the characters this season, I'm liking his the least. That wasn't helped by his continued self-absorbed attitude throughout much of the finale. While I definitely agree that he needed to be the one to talk Willow down, I'm still bothered by the use of his character this season. They spent all last season showing us that he's more than just a loveable loser, this season they seemed to have enjoyed negating all of the positives steps that had been taken.

While the finale was practically Spike-free, they saved the best for last. While not a complete cliffhanger, we're going to spend most of the summer wondering exactly how Spike will return, and exactly what he will be. BTW, the wording was slightly different in the closed-captioning. Instead of matching what was said, "We will return your soul", the CC has it being "Your soul is returned to you." It might not mean anything, but the soul can mean many things (more on this later)

I never thought anything would be more satisfying than a Slayer vs. Slayer throwdown, but after seeing Buffy and Willow go at it in the finale, I've changed my mind. It wasn't just the physical action, it was the verbal sparring, especially on the part of Willow. I know that many had doubts about the dialogue when they saw it on paper, or in the wildfeed. However, the delivery is what made it work. There were a few moments that seemed a bit out of place, including the scene in the training room between Buffy and Giles, but I think it served to remind us that this is what the show is about. I think that sometimes that we forget that this isn't a strict comedy or drama or even action series. It's a wonderful mix of all three.

That's what I love about the show, the writers, and the actors. They can mix both drama and comedy within a ten-minute segment, then launch into the action without missing a beat. All the actors deserve props for the performances that they turned in, and all the writers and staff really need to be congratulated for making it completely believable and true to the show. It was a fitting end to the season (and that's all I can say right now without launching into tomorrow's update).

Speaking of 'souls', Joss posted at the UPN Bronze. He has some very interesting comments, not only about Spike, but about the season and Tara's character as well.