Ultimate Buffyverse Episode Ranking: #254 – #226

#254-
‘ The Pack ‘, Buffy Season One, Episode 6

The Worst episode of Buffy in my opinion and I know that many out there will disagree. This episode brings nothing to the table both for the series overall and for any of the characters. The only good thing I can think of is Giles line about having to kill Xander since he’s turned into a mean 16 year-old boy. The plot is amongst the most stupid plotlines in the Buffyverse. A Hyena possession is very, very silly and was not well thought out with the only merit coming from making Xander a victim of the possession. The eating of Principal Flutie was not only stupid but unfortunate because I found his character quite charming, although it did allow for Snyder which was a admirable replacment. I also found Buffy to be very ineffective throughout the episode. And lastly, the whole climax involving Giles being subdued by a zoo trainer responsible for the possessions before finally being killed by Buffy is not only crap but doesn’t match with the non-human killing principles established by the show later. Thankfully, this is one of only 4 episodes that I believe are pure bad in the whole of each series.

#253-
‘ Doublemeat Palace ‘, Buffy Season Six, Episode 12

Poor plot, lack of character development, painfully slow pacing & a very poor villain. Buffyverse episodes aren’t perfect, we all know this but virtually all episodes provide something which make it good fun to watch, whether that be a decent plot, some nice humour or, in most cases, just the pleasure of watching the characters. Unfortunately, there is little to none of these redeeming qualities. To be honest, I can’t remember much of this episode, I watched it twice and that was enough. The whole ‘fast food is bad’ message also seemed poorly executed. On the whole, lacklustre, to the extreme.

#252-
‘ The Bachelor Party ‘, Angel Season One, Episode 7

The worst of the Angel episodes which is unfortunate because I really liked Doyle and one of his critical background episodes is a stinker. The main letdown is a very slow and poor plotline which turned just a little two weird. The parts involving Doyle’s past and his continuing relationship with Cordelia provide some positives but not enough to make the episode salvagable.  The whole bachelor party part of the episode is boring and lacked any of the usual punch. Angel is also very subdued and provides little apart from a bit of a fight scene in the end.

#251-
‘ All The Way ‘, Buffy Season Six, Episode 6

The last of what I consider to be the worst of the Buffyverse episodes. All The Way focused on Dawn and she doesn’t quite provide the same importance or interest as other characters. For the most part it’s a basic, “I’m a teenager and I’m rebelling.”, plot. There is some nice character stuff though. Willow’s magic abuse becomes more apparent to Tara and Xander announces his engagement to Anya. Buffy is also a little more fun which I like but not enough to save an episode that for the majority of the time is fairly boring.

#250-
‘ Wrecked ‘, Buffy Season Six, Episode 10

A critical episode in the development of Willow’s abuse of power storyline, well, at least it should of been. Instead, we had a drug addiction storyline that felt cheap in comparison. Now, don’t misunderstand, I thought Alyson Hannigan performed quite admirably. But her storyline just wasn’t as good as it potentially could have been. I would have rathered a more subtle addiction device or the continued use of power corruption. Unfortunately, the drug storyline used is very unsubtle and the use of a secret, magical drug den filled with magic addicts and a dealer who is just plain bad makes me cringe. Thankfully, we do get a few redeeming moments. The morning after with Buffy and Spike is very amusing and Willow’s regret at the end is quite strong.

#249-
‘ Reprise ‘, Angel Season Two, Episode 15

I will definetly be in the minority here but I never liked this episode. I can’t put my figure on why I don’t like it either. It has some very critical moments for the season and series. Kate & Angel finally hit rock-bottom and both seek comfort which is not good for them, drugs and Darla respectively. It all sounds great but it never grabs me. Throughout the episode all I can think about is how I want the next episode to come. I just don’t get held by it’s storyline. The best part is when Holland Manners explains to Angel that the home office is actually Earth. I know I should feel something for the storyline but I don’t, and I’m sorry for people who find this episode great but I just can’t see it.

#248-
‘ She ‘, Angel Season One, Episode 13

The worst of the run of pretty basic case-of-the-week episodes that Angel ran during that first season. The basic concept in this one is women’s rights which is a good concept but just fails a little in the execution. Bai Ling appears as a guest star but doesn’t click with David Boreanaz which breaks one of the basic plotlines of the episode, the attraction between the two characters. The villains didn’t come across as all that powerful and the pacing for the episode is basic and lacks punch. The best part is the start of the episode where we get to see Angel and Wesley dance, hilariously mind you. That in itself is worth watching the episode.

#247-
‘ Bad Eggs ‘, Buffy Season Two, Episode 12

Much like She, this episode is the worst of the monster-of-the-week episodes during season two. There’s not much to say about this episode. The plot is bad, there’s less than great character moments and the episode on the whole is just poor. The vampire brother’s Lyle and Tector are fairly interesting but badly cliched. Thankfully, there’s a couple of character interactions that are fun watch.

#246-
‘ The House Always Wins ‘, Angel Season Four, Episode 3

A very average episode which focuses on Lorne and being a slave to the poker machines. The Lorne side is mildly interesting but the gambling side in which Angel get’s his destiny taken from him is silly and a little boring. Lacks some consistent humour and any real exciting action.

#245–
‘ I Fall To Pieces’, Angel Season One, Episode 4

An episode with fairly average concepts and moments. Nothing great to report and nothing much to dwell on. Just a basic case-based episode.

#244-
‘ Out Of Mind, Out Of Sight ‘, Buffy Season One, Episode 11

A poor episode based around an invisible girl terrorising Sunnydale high, particularly Cordelia. Much like many of these bottom ranked episodes there’s not much to talk about. The plot is unspectacular and there’s a lack of great character interaction. Cordelia does have a nice moment where we see a different side of her character which is nice.

#243-
‘ Go Fish ‘, Buffy Season Two, Episode 20

More silliness. The fish storyline is very average. There is some humour which makes the episode a bit of fun but doesn’t make it a good episode. The ending is also fairly unsatisfying. Once again, I find when Buffy tries to intergrate a message or moral into it’s story things go down the drain, in this episode, it’s about steroid abuse with athletes. Thankfully, this is one of the last pure monster-of-the-week episodes for series which is a good.

#242-
‘ That Old Gang Of Mine ‘, Angel Season Three, Episode 3

Something of a polarised episode. I fall on the side that doesn’t like it. The episode has some decent concepts and some decent action but just lacks the punch of the better episodes on this list. Also, the character of Gio is very unlikable, but maybe that’s his purpose. I feel sorry for Lorne as his Caritas gets shot up quite badly this episode.

#241-
‘ Habeas Corpses ‘, Angel Season Four, Episode 8

Not the best of episodes. Wolfram & Heart finds itself completely and utterly destroyed by The Beast. Connor also finds himself trapped within. Things aren’t too bad until all of a sudden, the victims turn into zombies, for no apparent reason. That’s the biggest downfall of this episode, well, aside from the average quality of everything else.

#240-
‘ Goodbye Iowa ‘, Buffy Season Four, Episode 14

A Riley-based episode in which he finds himself torn between his duty & honour as a soldier and his love for Buffy. Things just don’t seem to click for me this episode. I’m unsure about Adam and wasn’t very impressed by his character. Riley, while troubled, was sort of annoying throughout the episode as well. Buffy and the gang had some nice moments but for the most part, this episode is just a little too weak.

#239-
‘ Double Or Nothing ‘, Angel Season Three, Episode 18

There’s something about Las Vegas and Angel that doesn’t seem to sit to well with me. While I prefer this episode to the other Vegas-based episode, The House Always Wins (see #246) I still find it quite average. The relationship between Gunn and Fred has developed quite strongly and gets tested during the episode so that side of the plot is fairly interesting but the character of Jenoff is sorta boring. Also, the episode just feels like a break from the overall story arc of this season.

#238-
‘ Some Assembly Required ‘, Buffy Season Two, Episode 2

An episode wrecked by an unfortunate plot. The one-episode character’s of Daryl & Eric are just a little too cliched, and even Chris, the younger brother who your supposed to sympathise with isn’t likable enough. One of my pet peeves early on in the show is when, for the sake of action, they pit Buffy against a foe who is clearly no match for her. In this episode, Daryl, who’s virtually a zombie, manages to pretty much defeat Buffy and til this day I still don’t understand how.  On a positive note, I think Giles is absolutely hilarious in this episode, so watch the episode for him.

#237-
‘ Him ‘, Buffy Season Seven, Episode 6

An unfortunate episode at the start of a pretty strong last season. As a humourous episode, it manages to be fairly funny but Dawn’s whining throughout is just too annoying.

#236-
‘ The Cautionary Tale Of Numero Cinco ‘, Angel Season Five, Episode 6

Probably the most boring episode. I never liked this episode and watching it seems something of a waste. Mexican wrestlers, while colourful and talented, don’t seem to fit the universe. Lack of any decent character moments also drag it down.

#235-
‘ Billy ‘, Angel Season Three, Episode 6

Another episode with a strong message laid into it, this time, violence against women. It’s a fairly interesting concept involving a male who,by touch, can make other men irrationally violent. It makes for a nice in-house chase scene between Fred and Wes, who by the way is surprisingly scary. The downfall comes from the weakness of the pacing for the most part and the lack of subtlety in it’s message.

#234-
‘ War Zone ‘, Angel Season One, Episode 20

The introductory episode for Gunn. I think the main letdown is that the episode focuses too largely on Gunn and his life. While it’s mildly interesting and does have a personal moment that goes with it, it’s just a little too dull. There’s just not enough Angel, Cordy & Wes. Lack of major villain hurts too.

#233-
‘ The Harvest ‘, Buffy Season One, Episode 2

The second part of the Buffy opener and unfortunately, it doesn’t quite live up to the first part. There’s some nice moments, for example, the explanation of vamps to Willow and Xander and the aftermath of the harvest. But, those moments are overshadowed by the lamish plot, slowish pacing and lacklustre battle at the end. Thankfully, the show was finding it’s feet so it’s pretty forgivable.

#232-
‘ Gingerbread ‘, Buffy Season Three, Episode 11

A blemish in the incredibly strong season three. Once again, the moral of this story is about the mob mentality taking over a town.  In this case, the mob is against magic. Now, there’s some merit in this episode, the idea of Sunnydale trying to rise against the strangeness brought on by the hellmouth is quite logical. The downfall comes when the two murdered kids who started the uprising are found out to be a very crappy demon. It just sorta sucks. There is a lack of nice character interaction as well which dents the episode as well.

#231-
‘ Why We Fight ‘, Angel Season Five, Episode 13

Suffers from the same problems as the previous Angel season five episode on this list (see #236), just a little too boring and slow. The idea of a vampire sired from Angel since he got his soul is interesting but the rest of the plot involving a submarine and the like is just too weak. It’s also very weird to see Spike with black hair.

#230-
‘ Untouched ‘, Angel Season Two, Episode 4

A very strange episode. To be honest, it’s just very boring. Lilah gets a little more face time but is nowhere near her best. Everything else is pretty basic. The character of Bethany is also unlikable and I feel no remorse for her which hurts the episode the most.

#229-
‘ The Thin Dead Line ‘, Angel Season Two, Episode 14

A part of the middle season slump that happens during Angel season two. This episode features zombie cops who are incredibly brutal which is an obviously based on police brutality. For the most part it’s a weak episode. Angel is still all lonesome, and Anne get’s a reappearance which is nice. The best part is when Wesley gets shot, not because I don’t like Wes, quite the contrary, rather it’s the worry the episode makes you feel for his life. Still, it’s not enough to save this episode.

#228-
‘ The I In Team ‘, Buffy Season Four, Episode 13

I’m unsure why I don’t like this episode. Buffy’s entrance into the Intiative is quite funny and the betrayal by Walsh is interesting. Maybe because there’s a major lack of character interaction which is what I tend to enjoy most. Just an average episode.

#227-
‘ Forgiving ‘, Angel Season Three, Episode 17

Let’s make it known now, I’m not a big fan of Wesley’s betrayal storyline. I like the consequences which turn Wesley into an awesome dark rogue. The whole stealing Connor situation is very suspect for me and I prefer the other storylines in other seasons. This episode deals largly with the immediate response to Wes’s betrayal and Holtz’s abduction of Connor. Angel is understandably pissed and that’s all good but I just think maybe things could have been executed better. I’m sure there’s fans out there that will completely disagree, but that’s what makes opinions so great.

#226-
‘ Blind Date ‘, Angel Season One, Episode 21

Another average episode, mainly because Angel and co. get less screen time than usual. Lindsey gets that extra time and while it’s mildly interesting it ultimately means nothing because he ends up back at Wolfram & Hart anyway. Holland Manners is introduced and he’s quite cool but on the whole it’s just an average episode.