Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season Five

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season Five, 2000-2001. The vampire-hunter inexplicably has a little sister.

Created by Joss Whedon. Directed by David Solomon (4 episodes), David Grossman (3), James A. Contner (3), Whedon (3), Nick Marck (2), Dan Attias (2), Marti Noxon (2), Michael Gershman (2), & Christopher Hibler (1). Written by Jane Espenson (5 episodes), Douglas Petrie (4), Noxon (3), David Fury (3), Rebecca Rand Kirshner (3), Whedon (3), & Steven S. DeKnight (2). Starring Sarah Michelle Gellar, with Nicholas Brendon, Alyson Hannigan, Marc Blucas, Emma Caulfield, James Marsters, Michelle Trachtenberg, & Anthony Stewart Head.

Concept: B
Story: B
Characters: A
Dialog: A
Pacing: B
Cinematography: C
Special effects/design: C
Acting: Gellar is great. B
Music: Bonus points for silence. B
Enjoyment: It's as if time-travelling Joss Whedon read my complaints about previous seasons' moping/brooding, and adjusted the show accordingly. About halfway through the season, the boring boyfriend character is cut, and suddenly they have room to focus on telling great stories. And boy howdy they take advantage of it. A

GPA: 3.1/4