1. Bargaining Part 1
(Oct. 2, 2001)
Several months have passed since Buffy sacrificed herself to save Dawn, her friends and the world. The Slayerettes are doing their best to keep the demon population down and Willow has repaired the Buffybot so the world remains unaware of the Slayers death. Unfortunately a vamp discovers the truth and escapes to tell his friends. With no Slayer to watch, Giles makes preparations to return to England and leaves Anya in charge of the magic shop. Willow, Tara, Anya and Xander secretly perform a powerful spell at Buffy's gravesite to resurrect the Slayer, but the spell is interfered with by a group of demon bikers and the Slayerettes flee, not knowing if the spell worked or not.
2. Bargaining Part 2
(Oct. 2, 2001)
The Scooby Gang run from Buffy's gravesite and her resurrection goes unnoticed. When she does get back above ground, she is confused and disoriented and wanders around looking at the carnage caused by the demon gang. The demons damage the Buffybot badly and notice the real Buffy wandering around. They chase her and she eventually runs into the Slayerettes, who realise that she has been traumatised by having to dig out of her own grave. When the demons arrive for a final fight, Buffy, still very confused, returns to her Slayer ways and defeats them all; but runs away from her friends after. The Buffybot stays "alive" long enough to tell Dawn of the real Buffy's return. Dawn finds Buffy at Glory's tower, and she wants to jump off again. As the tower begins to collapse Dawn manages to coax Buffy down and they land just as the tower crumbles around them. Buffy and Dawn hug, but the Slayer is still not herself.
3. Afterlife
(Oct. 9, 2001)
The first repercussions of the resurrection spell has the Scoobies battling with a demon ghost and Buffy realizes she was happier with the peace of the afterlife but cannot bring herself to tell her friends. She finds a sympathetic ear in someone else who knows a little about an afterlife: Spike.
4. Flooded
(Oct. 16, 2001)
With Joyce gone, Buffy finds herself trying to contend with burst pipes and home-improvement loans. She seeks out the advice of a just-returned Giles who expresses his concern over Willow's attitude toward bringing Buffy back. While trying to get a loan, Buffy's meeting is crashed by a demon, dispatched by a trio of bored, twentysomething would-be sorcerers who want to cause mischief. The demon makes its way to the Slayers home and Buffy begs him not to break anything, and winds up drowning him in a pool of water formed by her plumbing leak.
5. Life Serial
(Oct. 23, 2001)
As Buffy tries to 'normalise' her new life as a parent and return to college and attempt numerous jobs, she again comes up against the Troika, a group of would-be sorcerers, who test the Slayer by casting spells on her which make her experience time distortions, magically appearing demons and a strange Groundhog Day time loop.
6. All The Way
(Oct. 30, 2001)
Dawn lies to Buffy and spends Halloween night joyriding and partying with her friend Janice and two older boys. She develops a crush on one of the boys, Justin, and receives her first real kiss. When the boys reveal themselves to be vampires Dawn stakes Justin and is devastated. Buffy decides Dawn needs a serious grown-up talk but she hands the task over to Giles, who is not at all happy about the way Buffy is depending on him so much. Meanwhile, after Willow and Tara have a fight about Willow's abuse of magic, Willow casts a spell on Tara to make her forget the fight.
7. Once More, With Feeling
(Nov. 6, 2001)
A mysterious force causes everyone in Sunnydale to reveal all of their innermost thoughts and feelings in song. Buffy tells the gang the truth about where she was when she was dead and they are devastated, none more than Willow. Tara sings a love song to Willow professing all her love, but does Willow feel the same way? Dawn confesses that she has been stealing, and finally, Giles reveals his belief that Buffy is never going to learn to survive on her own with him around and decides to return to England for good.
8. Tabula Rasa
(Nov. 13, 2001)
After the gang finds out about Buffy's true afterlife, Willow does a spell to make her forget that she was actually in heaven, despite Tara's pleas for her to slow down with magick. Unfortunately the spell goes awry and the gang all wake up with amnesia, forgetting everything about their lives including the existence of vampires and the Slayer. Because of their British accents, Giles and Spike think they are father and son, Giles and Anya think they are engaged, Willow and "Alex" think they are dating, and due to the absence of ID, Buffy names herself Joan. When a demon loan shark comes to collect a long overdue loan from Spike, "Joan" and "Randy" discover their true nature when they are forced to fight, while Dawn, Willow, Tara and "Alex" head out to try and restore their memories. At episodes end when they get their memories back the gang goes through some changes, with Tara breaking up with Willow and Giles finally leaving Sunnydale behind forever.
9. Smashed
(Nov. 20, 2001)
After breaking up with Tara, Willow successfully de-rats Amy and the two witches begin hanging out and having fun with magick, drawing Willow further into her growing addiction. Meanwhile, Spike notices that his chip doesn't kick in when he hits Buffy but it only works with her, leading him to believe that she is not entirely human anymore.
10. Wrecked
(Nov. 27, 2001)
When they finally return home from their nights out, Buffy is ashamed of having slept with Spike and Willow is exhausted from casting spells all night. Amy takes Willow to a warlock whose particular brand of magick quickly has Willow hooked. While looking after Dawn, Willow decides to get another quick fix and leaves the warlock's place looking very high and not at all in control of herself. To escape a demon Willow and Dawn steal a car but Willow seems it better to drive using magick, not her hands, resulting in them crashing. Willow breaks down and seems truly sorry for what she has done, but her actions further enrage Buffy who is now convinced that Willow is completely out of control and may need to get help.
11. Gone
(Jan. 8, 2002)
Buffy and Dawn clear the house of magic items to help Willow and Buffy has a surprise visit from a social worker checking on Dawn's home life. The meeting doesn't go well and in a fit of rage afterwards, Buffy cuts off her hair. Meanwhile, the Geek Trio have built an invisibility ray and accidentally hit Buffy with it, who takes advantage of her new situation by paying Spike a visit and messing with (deserving) people. Willow is really trying to stay away from magic but Xander confronts her, assuming she has cast an invisibility spell on Buffy, leaving her even more upset. The Trio realise that the invisible objects are rapidly breaking down structurally and they kidnap Willow to force Buffy into the open. Buffy and the Geeks have an invisible fight in an arcade until Willow returns them to normal and Buffy finally discovers who they are, before they make a hasty escape.
12. DoubleMeat Palace
(Jan. 29, 2002)
Starved for cash, Buffy gets a job in a fast food resturant where the weird manager and high turnover of employees has her more than a little suspicious. When co-workers start ending up in pieces, the mystery behind the "secret ingredient" comes into question. Willow works on staying clear of magic, but Amy gives her an unwanted gift and Willow is forced to make a big decision. A vengeance demon friend of Anya's visits and questions her relationship with Xander, leaving Anya doubtful about their soon-to-be-married life together.
13. Dead Things
(Feb. 5, 2002)
The Troika's latest escapade to make Warren's ex-girlfriend Katrina their willing slave goes horribly wrong when she is accidentally killed. The trio use magical and demonic forces to make Buffy think that she has killed Katrina - and it works. With finding out the truth about her resurrection and believing she killed an innocent girl, Buffy's world begins to fall apart.
14. Older and Far Away
(Feb. 12, 2002)
Old and new friends gather at the Summers home for Buffy's 21st birthday party and it goes off without a hitch - mostly. Feeling neglected by Buffy and the Scoobys, Dawn's wish to keep people from leaving her is answered by Anya's demon friend Halfrek, who binds the attendees of the party to the house. When Tara tries a spell to free them, she only makes the situation worse by accidentally releasing a demon trapped inside a sword.
15. As You Were
(Feb. 26, 2002)
Riley pursues a demon to Sunnydale and seeks Buffy's help in killing it. He also comes with a surprise... he is married. His wife, fellow demon hunter Sam, befriends the enitre Scooby Gang and gets along quite well with all of them, but Buffy's own relationship with Spike comes intoquestion when her ex's perfect romance shows her just what she doesn't have.
16. Hell's Bell's
(Mar. 5, 2002)
The day of the wedding has finally come and Xander and Anya are preparing for the hoards of guests to arrive. While Xander's screwed up human family go head to head with Anya's mostly non-human friends, a special guest approaches Xander to warn him that his life with Anya may not turn out to be the married bliss he has hoped for.
17. Normal Again
(Mar. 12, 2002)
After being poisoned by a demon, Buffy comes to believe that she is confined to a mental hospital, her mother is alive and her parents are still together and that her life as a Slayer was all an hallucination for the past six years. Deciding that she prefers this 'normal' life with her parents a whole lot more, Buffy attempts to kill the things that tether her to the 'fantasy' life of the Slayer: the Scoobies.
18. Entropy
(April 30, 2002)
The gang discover that the Troika have been watching their every move with hidden cameras. The cameras are traced to the trio's lair and what is seen on video proves to be devastating for all of them. Xander, Buffy, Willow, and Dawn see Anya and Spike have sex in the Magic Box. Spike lets his secret relationship with Buffy come out.
19. Seeing Red
(May 7, 2002)
Willow and Tara are well on the road to recovery but love lives are not as good for Xander and Anya or Buffy and Spike. The Troika move full swing into their biggest plan ever, stealing a pair of mystical orbs which imbue the bearer with super strength and invulnerability. They attempt to rob an armoured van but Buffy crashes the party resulting in a battle between her and Super Warren. Buffy is all but finished until Jonathan reveals the secret to Warren's power. Buffy manages to defeat him but he escapes by use of a rocket pack and Jonathan and Andrew are arrested. Spike almosts rapes Buffy. After that he heads to Africa for help to get the chip out of his head. Xander and Buffy make amends. Warren, mad and angry, pulls a gun out on Buffy at her home. Buffy gets shot in the chest. Tara also gets shot and dies.
20. Villains
(May 14, 2002)
Willow tries to bring Tara back to life, but it wont work because its a natural death. Angry that she died, runs to the magic shop and draws the dark power from the books into her, causing her hair and eyes to turn black. She goes to the hospital and removes the bullet from Buffy, saving her life. Willow tells Xander and Buffy they have to find Warren and make him pay. She finds him on a bus only its a robot Warren. Then she finally tells Buffy & Xander about him killing Tara. Buffy wont let Willow kill a human and searches for her to stop her. Buffy, Xander, and Anya find Willow in the woods. Only its to late for Warren, because Willow killed him by ripping his skin off and setting him on fire! She then says "One Down"
21. Two To Go
(May 21, 2002)
In the 2 hour season finale, after Willow exacting revenge on Warren for Tara's death, an extremely powerful and vengeful Willow now vows to go after the other two members of the trio, Jonathan and Andrew, forcing Buffy into the unlikely role of nerd-villain protector. After freeing the Duo from jail and escaping from Willow, the expanded group runs to the Magic Box to find a protection spell. Willow gets drained from her power and goes to Rack for more. She kills him and sucks his power. Dawn arrives to find a black hair and eyed Willow with black vanes on her face. Willow threatens to turn Dawn back into the power she was before coming human. Buffy arrives to stop it from happening and the two face off in a fighting battle.
22. Grave
(May 21, 2002)
As the 2 hour season finale concludes, Giles arrives to stop Willow. Xander, Dawn, Andrew, and Jonathan run from Willow. Willow breaks loose from a binding spell Giles put on her and the two fight leaving the Magic Box in a mess. Willow angry at Buffy for saving Giles from one of her attacks, sends a fire ball to kill Andrew and Jonathan and those who are with him, Xander and Dawn. Buffy leaves to save Xander and Dawn. Willow drains Giles of his magic and leaving Willow to feel everyones pain and decides to end it by destroying the world. Anya helps a dying Giles and learns of Willow's plan and heads to find Buffy, who is still stuck in the hole caused by the fire ball. Willow communicates with Buffy telepathically and wants her to die fighting and makes a group of zombies appear in the hole. Buffy is hopelessly outnumbered and asks Dawn to help. Dawn kills a zombie and shows off some Slaying moves very similar to her sister. Xander heads to Willow to stop her. He starts to talk to Willow and appeal to her emotions by reminding her of her past and telling her that he loves her. She uses magic to physically wound him until the emotions drain her of her powers. Willow tearfully breaks down in Xander's arms as the magic drains from her and she returns to her usual red hair appearance. Giles recovers and tells Anya that his power was the key to stopping Willow, by tapping into her emotions so Xander could reach her remaining humanity. As Xander comforts Willow on the cliff, Spike is informed that he has completed the test and has won the right to his prize. The demon places his hand on the vampires chest and restores his soul.
