Season synopsis
Contains spoilers for this season and earlier seasons.
The First Evil begins a campaign against the Slayer line, hunting Potential Slayers and using the Bringers to prepare an army of ancient vampires beneath Sunnydale. Buffy returns to work at the rebuilt high school, while the Potentials gather at her home and train for the coming fight. Willow tries to recover from Tara’s death and starts a relationship with Kennedy; Spike, back with a soul, suffers from guilt and is sometimes controlled by the First. The First manipulates Andrew into helping open the Seal of Danzalthar, and Jonathan dies as a result. Later, Caleb, a preacher serving the First, attacks Buffy’s group. His assault kills several Potentials and costs Xander an eye, causing the others to remove Buffy from command and choose Faith instead.
Spike stays loyal to Buffy after her removal. She returns to confront Caleb and finds the Scythe, a weapon made for the Slayer, while Faith’s group is caught in a bomb trap in the sewers. The survivors reunite, and the remaining people prepare for a last stand as Sunnydale empties. Angel brings Buffy an amulet, then leaves to organise a second line of defence. Buffy gives the amulet to Spike and leads the Potentials and her friends into the Hellmouth. Willow uses the Scythe to activate every Potential around the world as a Slayer, and the newly empowered fighters face the vampire army. Anya and some Slayers die in the battle; Spike’s amulet releases sunlight that destroys the vampires and consumes him. Sunnydale collapses into the Hellmouth, and the survivors look out over the crater.