Prophecy Girls: A Buffy Rewatch Podcast

After the revelation of her vampire therapist, Buffy swaps her stake for a stake-out—of Spike. She tails him and confronts him about her suspicions that he is feeding off humans again. At first, Spike protests his innocence and reminds her of his new soul. Yet as the evidence mounts, no one, not even Aimee Mann, is prepared for the truth.   The hosts of Left of Skeptic , Kala Moria and Brittany Li...

Date: November 12, 2002. Time: 8:01 pm. Location: A cemetery. The Summers house. The UC Sunnydale library. Buffy thought vampires were bad enough when they wanted to kill her. Now she’s got one psychoanalyzing her. Dawn’s marshmallow microwave fun is interrupted when she starts to hear her mom’s voice. Willow’s late-night study session is derailed by a dead teenager bearing a message from Tara. No...

Razorbacks, Razorbacks, we’re gonna play! We got a secret weapon, and his name is RJ! He’s so dreamy; he’s so cool. He’s OURS, and you can’t have it. Neither can Buffy, or Willow, or Anya, or even Dawn. Hands off our RJ.   Hear us discuss… Buffy, RJ would be a better roommate for Xander than Spike Who looks better in a letterman jacket (it’s RJ) Dawn’s obsession with RJ is cringey but understandab...

Anya starts to question if she still wants to be evil. She experiences flashbacks showing how she got to this point. When Buffy learns about Anya’s latest trip across the line, she decides it’s time for the slayer to intervene. Xander is suddenly less interested in Buffy kicking someone’s ass when it’s his former-lover-turned-murderer doing the slaughtering.   Special guest Rickey Z joins us for t...

Cassie, a student at Sunnydale High, confides in Buffy that she has foreseen her own death. Everyone has a theory: Dawn blames Baby Mitch, Buffy and Xander shake down a deadbeat dad, and Anya would likely say it’s bunnies, but no one asked her.   Hear us discuss… Missed opportunities to process Willow’s grief Nice to see the gang back together doing research Cassie is genuinely so kind, RIP Kara m...

Willow returns to Sunnydale, unsure of what reception awaits. She finds … nothing. No one waits for her. The Scoobies are equally perplexed when Willow doesn’t arrive. When a flayed youth is found on Xander’s watch, Willow becomes the prime suspect before quickly becoming the prime prey.   Hear us discus… Dawn’s sass levels are over 9000 Willow should practise giving a fuck about Anya for once Gna...

A disturbing, subterranean monster besets a young woman. But enough about Spike. When Xander runs into a woman running for her life after something ate her dog, the trail leads the Scoobies to none other than his ex. Anya is firmly back in the vengeance demon camp, even if that puts her in the slayer’s sights.   Hear us discuss… Principal Wood is a REALLY good principal Dawnifer, please follow thr...

Buffy, Dawn, and Xander are all attending the opening of Sunnydale High, and that’s not the only thing coming back from the dead. Has a summer of training by her slayer sister prepared Dawn for her greatest challenge yet? Is the new principal friend or foe? Will someone please take Spike to a hair salon?   Hear us discuss… Daddy Giles IS ON A HORSIE Steph’s thirst for Robin Wood might be unquencha...

Buffy the Vampire Slayer has rightfully garnered a sustained, international following of devoted fans. Within any such community, there can be a lot of love, as well as toxicity and harm. Is the Buffy fandom OK? It’s back-to-back trials as the Prophecy Girls weigh the evidence against the fandom itself. Ian Carlos Crawford of Slayerfest ’98 joins as a guest judge.   Hear us discuss… Origins of fan...

Hear ye, hear ye, all rise for the Honourable Judges Chow and Babcock: court is now in session. The defendant: Willow Rosenberg, once a model student, friend, and Wicca, now Sunnydale’s most wanted. The charges? Everything from wanton destruction of a yellow crayon to near-destruction of the world.   Hear us discuss… What is Willow’s worst crime and why is it the pink, fluffy sweater? Is Willow’s...

An unexpected resurrection. An unchecked addiction. An unhealthy obsession. An unwelcome advance. An unworthy death. Season 6: the hits just kept coming. We review the season in its entirety.   Hear us discuss… The best episodes of this bad season Did the writers go too far? Missed opportunities with Xander and Anya Why we critique from a 21st-century POV What we’re looking forward to from the fin...

After Willow suckjobs the borrowed magicks out of Giles, her ambitions grow from ending Jonathan and Andrew to ending the entire world. With Buffy and Dawn otherwise distracted and Anya tending to Giles, it looks like it’s finally Xander’s time to shine. To quote Giles from Season 1, “The Earth is doomed.”   Hear us discuss… We let out a breath we didn’t realize we’ve been holding since Giles left...

Newly minted murderess Willow Rosenberg pursues the surviving two members of the Trio. When a pitstop to top-up her magicks at Rack’s inadvertently puts Dawn squarely in Willow’s sights, Buffy’s intervention becomes all the more urgent. But no amount of Sumerian spellwork or slayer smackdown seems capable of stopping Dark Willow. If only there were a librarian in the house.   Hear us discuss… Wher...

Willow decides her answer to the age-old question of “Am I the bad guy?” is yes as she embarks on a magicks-fuelled rampage of revenge for the death of Tara. No Warren is safe. Buffy, back on her feet, has to act fast to prevent Willow from doing something she might come to regret. Xander is also there.   Hear us discuss… This episode is far too similar to “The Body,” especially for Dawn How did S...

News of Willow and Tara’s glowy-O reunion spreads through the Summers residence to popular acclaim. This contentment is shattered, however, by misbehaving men: Xander’s petulant antics, Spike committing an unforgivable act, and Warren refusing to believe he can be defeated by a woman. It’s misogyny o’clock, and we all lose as a result of it.   Bathroom scene discussion: 42:45–1:16:30 The Tara disc...

Buffy does her best to move on from Spike. Xander tries to make amends to Anya, who is having none of it. Instead, spurred on by Halfrek, she seeks solace in the messiest of places. Willow hacks a cameras only to accidentally get a camshow.   Hear us discuss… Xander needs to learn that he can’t apologize his way out of this Stop trying to make the Trio a thing, Gretchen Anya needs her own friends,...

While searching for the Trio’s new lair, Buffy receives a dose of demon venom that gives her visions of an alternate world where she’s a patient in a psychiatric facility. In this world, Joyce is alive, Hank actually cares about being a father, and Buffy has a chance at normal life. She just has to kill her friends.   Hear us discuss… Arm needles are back in this season We have mixed thoughts abou...

Xander and Anya’s special day is threatened on multiple fronts. A mysterious old man with a glowy orb. Family squabbles and anti-demon racism. Dereliction of duty by the best man. And just terrible, terrible bridesmaid dresses. It’s a wedding on the Hellmouth, and we are all invited!   Hear us discuss… Worse ways to leave someone on their wedding day We are here for Buffy lying to Spike Xander had...

Buffy’s life has settled into a comfortable tedium of Doublemeat Medleys and nights with Spike. Then Riley, Buffy’s six-foot-two hunk of dried paint ex-boyfriend, returns to Sunnydale seeking her help. As they fight demons side-by-side like the good ol’ days, Buffy is forced to confront what has been in front of her all along.   Special guest Ryan B Talks TV joins us for this recap. Follow him on...

Dawn, frustrated that no one wants to pay attention to her on the eve of Buffy’s birthday, makes a wish in front of the wrong person, trapping all the guests at Buffy’s party in the Summers residence. Tempers fray, accusations fly, sick burns unto Spike are delivered by Tara, and secrets are revealed. The party is just getting started.   Hear us discuss… Everyone is suddenly 30 years old and no fu...

Buffy asks Tara to help her figure out why Spike can hurt her. The Trio’s test of a mind control device goes fatally awry, and Warren resolves to frame the slayer. Now under the impression that she has killed an innocent woman, Buffy rushes to submit to human justice when Spike would prefer she submit to him.   Hear us discuss… The Trio were trash even before they crossed this line Bizarrely, Xand...

Buffy finally decides to pull herself up by her bootstraps via a minimum wage job at a fast-food restaurant. Feeling almost as soulless as the vampire she’s sleeping with, Buffy battles grease, her tyrannical manager, and the ongoing gaslighting of her Scooby pals. Something is wrong at the Doublemeat Palace, and she’s going to stop it.   Hear us discuss… Technical difficulties made us feel like w...

From child services to her platinum-haired loverboy, it seems like everyone wants a piece of ol’ Buffy right now. So she turns to a girl’s favourite outlet in times of crisis: new hair. But the Trio’s latest scheme unintentionally spills over to Buffy, giving her a unique opportunity to channel her inner Marcie and make with the mischief all around town.   Hear us discuss… Kara changes her mind ab...

The rubble of a house. Burnt pancakes. A hidden den of magic. Missed movie trailers. The hits just keep coming. Last week, Buffy and Willow both fucked around. This week, they find out.   Hear us discuss… We are so relieved to hear this was definitely a one-night stand! Will someone other than Tara please take care of Dawn? Xander, shut up and do something *useful* for once Willow’s addiction to m...

Tara’s abrupt departure leaves Willow looking for magical comfort from an unlikely source. Buffy looks for physical comfort from an uncouth source. Everyone forgets about Dawn.   Hear us discuss… Is rat prison the punishment of the future? Dawn deserves even more milkshake Kara, a secret Spike apologist?? With Giles gone, Tara is the last adult standing Not how we hoped Buffy would bring the house...