The Gift (Buffy episode)
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"The Gift" is Episode 22 in Season 5 of the TV show Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It was the last episode to air on The WB Network and therefore, the network called it the series finale. The TV Series moved to rival UPN .
Plot synopsis
Summary
Buffy faces Glory as the ritual commences.
Expanded overview
Buffy slays a vampire to save a teenage boy in an alley. The Scooby Gang, knowing that Glory has the advantage over them, make plans to try to avert the apocalypse that will result if her plans succeed. None of them have any ideas apart from killing Buffy's sister Dawn, which Buffy refuses to consider. In the end Anya suggests the use of two items that had been found earlier in the series: the Dagon Sphere, which is supposed to repel Glory, and the hammer of Olaf the Troll God. They then try to find out where Glory's plan might be occurring, but Tara, who had been made insane by Glory in a previous episode, tries to lead them there saying that she has a big day and needs to be somewhere. All of Glory's victims who had been turned insane instinctively knew where Glory's base was. Dawn is tied up at the top of a tower that Glory's minions have constructed for the ritual to open the gates between dimensions, allowing Glory to return home but setting all hell loose on Earth in the process.
The group prepare to leave, waiting until sundown with the aim of delaying the ritual that will dissolve the barriers between dimensions long enough for Glory's window of opportunity to pass, if not to kill her. As Tara arrives at the tower, she is accosted by Glory who demands to know what she is doing there. Glory is then ambushed by Willow, who performs some sort of spell that restores Tara's sanity, confuses and dazes Glory and throws all three of them backwards violently. Glory, still dazed, decides that she need a brain to psychically feed on and sees Buffy. She tells her minions to guard the path up the tower.
Buffy brandishes the Dagon Sphere and tosses it to Glory, who is obviously in pain holding it. Glory manages to crush it in her hands. In this time Buffy runs up and attacks her, initially gaining the upper hand. Giles, Spike and Anya attack the minions at the base of the tower, with the hope of breaking through to rescue Dawn. Glory regains her senses during the fight with Buffy and throws a punch that is hard enough to knock Buffy's head off, revealing that she was actually fighting the Buffy-Bot that had been constructed earlier in the season. The real Buffy sneaks up behind Glory and strikes her with the hammer. Glory is thrown backwards into a wall by the force of it. Buffy then forces her way past Glory's minions and attempts to climb the tower. However, Glory again regains her senses and fast catches up with her. They fight on the path up the tower and Buffy desperately tries to climb higher, hindered by Glory eventually resulting in both of them falling off the tower path to the ground. The hammer lands several feet away from Buffy and Glory confronts her before she can retrieve it. Glory is knocked off her feet, however, by a wrecking ball that Xander is using. Buffy picks up the hammer and sets about beating a dazed Glory repeatedly with it. Glory quickly reverts back to the form of the mortal Ben, and Buffy tells him to leave Sunnydale and never return. She then leaves to try and rescue Dawn. Giles approaches a panting Ben and suffocates him to prevent Glory ever returning.
At the top of the tower, Dawn is nervously watching the battle raging below. She is surprised to see Doc at the top of the tower and, unaware that he is working for Glory, cries to him for help. He instead pulls out a knife and advances on her.
Giles, Anya and Spike are not making any progress through the minions and fall back, until Spike notices that there is someone at the top of the tower along with Dawn. Willow communicates telepathically with him and tells him to run to the top of the tower and rescue Dawn, and then she and Tara use magic to knock all the minions down. Spike sprints to the top of the tower and when Dawn sees him she calls to him. Doc turns round and Spike advances on him. The fight is short-lived however, as Doc proves to be far stronger than suspected and throws Spike from the tower, giving himself time to initiate the ritual. He makes shallow cuts on Dawn's stomach.
Buffy runs to the top of the tower and pushes Doc from the top of it. She unties Dawn but some of her blood has already dripped into the air and the portal has been created. It expands and all manner of demons emerge from it around Sunnydale. Dawn attempts to jump into it to close it but Buffy stops her. She suddenly has a flashback of several points in the season---telling Dawn they both shared "Summers blood," her earlier proclamation that "the monks made [Dawn] out of me," and most significantly, when she met the spirit guide who told her that "Death was [her] gift." Buffy realises that she and Dawn share similar blood, throws herself into the portal, closing it and dying. Her battered body falling to the bottom of the tower.
All of her friends grieve and the last scene of the episode is Buffy's grave bearing the epitaph 'Devoted Sister, Beloved Friend. She saved the world a lot.'
Writing and acting
Production details
Music
- Christophe Beck - "Sacrifice"
Quotes and trivia
- This is the last episode that would be aired on the WB.
- The "Previously on..." portion of this episode included clips from every previous season of the show.
- Originally Sunnydale was supposed to be destroyed by the Hellmouth in this episode but it was decided to save the idea for the series finale, "Chosen".
- Anya originally was supposed to die in this episode.
- This episodes marks the first episode where Rupert Giles kills an innocent.
- Giles would later confess himself killing Ben in Season 7, "Lies My Parents Told Me", but the scene was cut right before it aired.
Continuity
Arc significance
Crossover with Angel: Willow goes to Los Angeles to give Angel the bad news in "There's No Place Like Plrtz Glrb".The show continued its emphasis on the consequences of actions, such as that of murder. Although many may decide that Ben's death was well justified in the cause of saving the world, Buffy did not let herself be tempted to deal with its aftermath. Giles had caused death before and might arguably be better positioned to do so, and he took it upon himself to save Buffy and the world.
Timing
- Stories that take place around the same time in the Buffyverse:
| Location, time (if known) | Buffyverse chronology: January 2001 - Spring 2001 (non-canon = italic) |
|---|---|
| Sunnydale, 2001 | B5.12 Checkpoint (Buffy episode)>Checkpoint |
| L.A., 2001 | A2.12 Blood Money (Angel episode)>Blood Money |
| L.A., 2001 | A2.13 Happy Anniversary (Angel episode)>Happy Anniversary |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | B5.13 Blood Ties (Buffy episode)>Blood Ties |
| L.A., 2001 | A2.14 The Thin Dead Line (Angel episode)>The Thin Dead Line |
| L.A., 2001 | A2.15 Reprise (Angel episode)>Reprise |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | B5.14 Crush (Buffy episode)>Crush |
| L.A., 2001 | A2.16 Epiphany (Angel episode)>Epiphany |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | Buffy book: Wisdom of War (Buffy novel)>Wisdom of War |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | B5.15 I Was Made to Love You (Buffy episode)>I Was Made to Love You |
| L.A., 2001 | A2.17 Disharmony (Angel episode)>Disharmony |
| L.A., 2001 | Angel book: Vengeance (Angel novel)>Vengeance |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | B5.16 The Body (Buffy episode)>The Body |
| L.A., 2001 | A2.18 Dead End (Angel episode)>Dead End |
| L.A., 2001 | Angel book: Haunted (Angel novel)>Haunted |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | B5.17 Forever (Buffy episode)>Forever |
| L.A., 2001 | A2.19 Belonging (Angel episode)>Belonging |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | Buffy graphic novel: Ugly Little Monsters (Buffy comic)>Ugly Little Monsters |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | Buffy comic: |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | Buffy video game: |
| L.A., 2001 | |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | B5.18 Intervention (Buffy episode)>Intervention |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | Buffy book: Tempted Champions (Buffy novel)>Tempted Champions |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | Buffy book: Little Things (Buffy novel)>Little Things |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | Buffy book: Crossings (Buffy novel)>Crossings |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | Buffy book: Sweet Sixteen (Buffy novel)>Sweet Sixteen |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | B5.19 Tough Love (Buffy episode)>Tough Love |
| L.A., 2001 | A2.20 Over the Rainbow (Angel episode)>Over the Rainbow |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | B5.20 Spiral (Buffy episode)>Spiral |
| L.A., 2001 | A2.21 Through the Looking Glass (Angel episode)>Through the Looking Glass |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | B5.21 The Weight of the World (Buffy episode)>The Weight of the World |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | B5.22 The Gift (Buffy episode)>The Gift |
| L.A., 2001 | A2.22 There's No Place Like Plrtz Glrb (Angel episode)>There's No Place Like Plrtz Glrb |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | Buffy graphic novel: |
| Sunnydale, 2001 | Buffy graphic novel: Death of Buffy (Buffy comic)#Death of Buffy’>Death of Buffy |
External links
| Buffyverse | ||
| Main | Canon | Index Chronology: Ancient | Modern | BS1 | BS2 | BS3 | BS4/AS1 | BS5/AS2 | BS6/AS3 | BS7/AS4 | AS5 | Future | Flashbacks | |
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| Angel | Characters (main) | Characters (minor) | Episodes | Plot | | |
| Spin-offs | Comics | Fan made productions | Fray | Novels | Spike movie | Undeveloped productions Buffy Animated | Card Game | RPGs | Tales of Slayer (prose) | Tales of Slayers | Tales of Vampires | Toys | Video Games Upcoming: Blackout | | | | | | Portal Through Time | Spike vs Dracula | | |
| Powers | Angel Investigations | Circle of the Black Thorn | Order of Aurelius | The First Evil | The Initiative | Monsters | Old Ones | The Powers That Be | Ra-Tet | Scooby Gang | Senior Partners | Watchers' Council | Wolfram & Hart | |
| People | Adam | Amy | Andrew | Angel | Anya | Buffy | Caleb | Connor | Cordelia | Dawn | Darla | Doyle | Dru | Eve | Faith | Fred | Giles | Glory | Gunn | Harmony | Holtz | Illyria | Jasmine | Jenny | Joyce | Jonathan | Kate | Kennedy | Lilah | Lindsey | Lorne | The Master | Mayor Wilkins | Oz | Professor Walsh | Riley | Spike | Tara | Warren | Wesley | Willow | Xander | |
| Places | L.A. | Sunnydale Bronze | Caritas | Hellmouth | Hyperion | Library | Magic Box | Pylea | Sunnydale High | |
| Music | Complete Tracklist | Use of Music in Buffy & Angel | Dingoes Ate My Baby | Film | | | Once More, With Feeling | |
| Key Terminology | "Demon" | "Slayer" | "Vampire" | "Watcher" | "Werewolf" | "Witch" "Child of Senior Partners" | Shanshu | Sunnydale Syndrome | Tro-Clon | |
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