Unlike Season 6, which at times was a bit up and down and didn't seem to have any clear master plan; Season 7 had some real direction right from the first few episodes. All the potential slayers staying with Buffy, Willow dealing with her magic problems, the loss of Tara and moving on, Spike having a soul, Anya and Xander still ruffling each others feathers, Giles being more forceful and serious than ever, Faith back on the right side but still with her classic attitude, the addition of the son of a former slayer....the list goes on.
The "big bad" really is something to behold. "The First" offered so many fascinating story twists, appearing to people in various guises and allowing the viewer to see what was really going on inside the characters, and at the same time not exactly knowing how on earth Buffy and the gang could do anything about it.
Nathan Fillon as the creepy preacher guy Caleb, vessel of the First, was superb....he so provoked the viewer to hate him!!
The inclusion of Andrew as the only "trio" member left was obviously the comic relief character for the series, and although very irritating in the beginning, he becomes quite watchable.
When first viewing this series on TV, some of the episodes seemed to be just fill-ins until the storyline could move on, so it felt like it wasn't going anywhere. But watching the episodes close together as a whole on DVD, it all made sense and doesn't feel so frustrating.
The final episode is pure joy....and sadness. Amazing action and an excellent music score to express it. Every character played their part. Ultimately it's very sad....this is really the end of Buffy. What a way to go out though!
This DVD set has the usual good special features. Interesting commentaries, a couple of featurettes on the fandom of Buffy, and some outtakes...although again the outtakes only last 3 minutes and are a bit disappointing.
All in all, a superb and fitting finale season to Buffy!