The Best Episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 5
Every episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 5 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 5!
Into every generation a slayer is born: one girl in all the world, a chosen one. She alone will wield the strength and skill to fight the vampires, demons, and the forces of darkness; to stop the spread of their evil and the swell of their number. She is the Slayer.
Season 5 Ratings Summary
The best episode of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" season 5 is "Buffy vs. Dracula", rated 7.6/10 from 3544 user votes. It was directed by David Solomon and written by Marti Noxon. "Buffy vs. Dracula" aired on 9/26/2000 and is rated 0.2 point(s) higher than the second highest rated, "Real Me".
7.6/10 3,544 votes#1 - Buffy vs. Dracula
Season 5 Episode 1 - Aired 9/26/2000
The one-and-only Dracula makes his way to Sunnydale and immediately has everyone enchanted. Even Buffy might not be able to resist his charms.
Director: David Solomon
Writer: Marti Noxon
7.4/10 2,958 votes#2 - Real Me
Season 5 Episode 2 - Aired 10/3/2000
As Harmony and her vampire gang plot Buffy's demise, Dawn adjusts to life with a Slayer.
Director: David Grossman
Writer: David Fury
8.0/10 3,201 votes#3 - The Replacement
Season 5 Episode 3 - Aired 10/10/2000
When a demon creates a Xander double, the real Xander must convince his friends of his true identity.
Director: James A. Contner
Writer: Jane Espenson
7.5/10 2,984 votes#4 - Out of My Mind
Season 5 Episode 4 - Aired 10/17/2000
While Riley's health begins to deteriorate, Spike and Harmony force a surgeon to remove the behavior modification chip embedded in Spike's brain.
Director: David Grossman
Writer: Rebecca Rand Kirshner
8.1/10 2,931 votes#5 - No Place Like Home
Season 5 Episode 5 - Aired 10/24/2000
Buffy learns more about Dawn after she discovers a mysterious orb linked to a group of monks being pursued by an incredibly powerful force.
Director: David Solomon
Writer: Douglas Petrie
8.1/10 3,175 votes#6 - Family
Season 5 Episode 6 - Aired 11/7/2000
When relatives arrive in Sunnydale, to celebrate her birthday, Tara uses a magic spell on her friends to keep them from learning her "secret." Meanwhile, Glory unleashes a hoard of demons to hunt down Buffy.
Director: Joss Whedon
Writer: Joss Whedon
9.1/10 4,094 votes#7 - Fool for Love
Season 5 Episode 7 - Aired 11/14/2000
After being bested in a fight by an ordinary vampire, Buffy asks Spike to explain how he killed two Slayers many years earlier.
Director: Nick Marck
Writer: Douglas Petrie
7.3/10 2,746 votes#8 - Shadow
Season 5 Episode 8 - Aired 11/21/2000
Glory transforms a snake into a terrifying monster in her quest to find the Key; Joyce is hospitalized after being diagnosed with an illness.
Director: Daniel Attias
Writer: David Fury
7.0/10 2,830 votes#9 - Listening to Fear
Season 5 Episode 9 - Aired 11/28/2000
As Joyce's sickness makes her begin doing odd things, a demon emerges from a meteorite and begins killing the mentally ill.
Director: David Solomon
Writer: Rebecca Rand Kirshner
7.3/10 3,001 votes#10 - Into the Woods
Season 5 Episode 10 - Aired 12/19/2000
After Buffy catches Riley in the clutches of a vampire-junkie, Riley makes an important decision regarding their relationship.
Director: Marti Noxon
Writer: Marti Noxon
7.6/10 2,960 votes#11 - Triangle
Season 5 Episode 11 - Aired 1/9/2001
While Giles is in England meeting with the Watcher Council, a bickering Anya and Willow mind the magic store and inadvertently conjure up a fearsome troll.
Director: Christopher Hibler
Writer: Jane Espenson
8.3/10 3,079 votes#12 - Checkpoint
Season 5 Episode 12 - Aired 1/23/2001
The Watcher Council travels to Sunnydale to review Buffy's skills as a Slayer; meanwhile, Glory puts her search for the Key into high gear.
Director: Nick Marck
Writer: Douglas Petrie, Jane Espenson
8.2/10 2,985 votes#13 - Blood Ties
Season 5 Episode 13 - Aired 2/6/2001
When Dawn learns her true identity, she runs away - only to encounter Glory.
Director: Michael Gershman
Writer: Steven S. DeKnight
8.4/10 3,177 votes#14 - Crush
Season 5 Episode 14 - Aired 2/13/2001
Buffy learns that Spike has a crush on her - a situation made all the more dangerous by Drusilla's return to Sunnydale.
Director: Daniel Attias
Writer: David Fury
7.4/10 2,921 votes#15 - I Was Made to Love You
Season 5 Episode 15 - Aired 2/20/2001
Buffy and her friends encounter an incredibly strong female robot with only one thing on its mind - love.
Director: James A. Contner
Writer: Jane Espenson
9.7/10 7,818 votes#16 - The Body
Season 5 Episode 16 - Aired 2/27/2001
Buffy, Dawn, and their friends deal with the aftermath of Joyce's death.
Director: Joss Whedon
Writer: Joss Whedon
8.0/10 3,150 votes#17 - Forever
Season 5 Episode 17 - Aired 4/17/2001
With some help from Spike, Dawn attempts to bring Joyce back from the dead.
Director: Marti Noxon
Writer: Marti Noxon
8.6/10 3,182 votes#18 - Intervention
Season 5 Episode 18 - Aired 4/24/2001
A weary Buffy seeks to regain focus by embarking on a quest with the First Slayer; Spike cavorts with his very own "Buffybot" and Glory instructs her minions to spy on Buffy's friends in the hopes of ascertaining the Key's true identity.
Director: Michael Gershman
Writer: Jane Espenson
8.1/10 2,811 votes#19 - Tough Love
Season 5 Episode 19 - Aired 5/1/2001
When Tara falls victim to Glory's incredible power, Willow embraces dark magic and launches a counterattack.
Director: David Grossman
Writer: Rebecca Rand Kirshner
8.2/10 2,863 votes#20 - Spiral
Season 5 Episode 20 - Aired 5/8/2001
Realizing they may never be able to vanquish Glory, Buffy and the gang decide to flee Sunnydale in Spike's R.V. to protect Dawn.
Director: James A. Contner
Writer: Steven S. DeKnight
7.9/10 2,799 votes#21 - The Weight of the World
Season 5 Episode 21 - Aired 5/15/2001
When Buffy lapses into a catatonic state, Willow uses magic to find out why; a tug-of-war erupts between Glory and Ben over Dawn's ultimate fate.
Director: David Solomon
Writer: Douglas Petrie
9.5/10 5,082 votes#22 - The Gift
Season 5 Episode 22 - Aired 5/22/2001
As Glory prepares Dawn for a bloodletting ritual that will open a portal to another dimension, Buffy and her friends prepare for battle.
Director: Joss Whedon
Writer: Joss Whedon