I think I agree with Hec, now. I didn't want to commit till I'd seen everything, but...a definite narrative and casting high point.

See, I'm the opposite because I've always had S3 as my top BtVS season, but I've been watching S2 in reruns on tv (poor, DVD-less me) and marveling at how good it was. Dru/Spike/Angelus rocked hard.

S3's virtues include: Best cast of regulars and semi-regs (including Faith, Oz, Cordy and Angel - though Angel was problematic to the narrative).

Best batting average: least amount of mediocre (much less bad shows) of any season. Surprisingly high level all season long.

Vamp Willow. Twice.

Last season it had Joss' full attention. He was peaking.

Best Villain: The Mayor.

drawbacks to S3? Really only that it's season arc is not as strong as S2, and anything after Becoming part two was going to look lesser. Also, Angel hanging around was a narrative deadweight.

I'm split. S2 had higher highs, but S3 was more consistently great.

I'm not quite sure how to say this -- I think S2 is the best season emotionally, but S3 is the best season in terms of sheer good television.

[edit: Or maybe Hec and Jess said it better, because that's pretty much what I mean.]

And I watched about 5 or 6 episodes of S1 yesterday, and -- having *not* watched it from the start -- I was wondering: for those of you who DID watch Buffy from S1, did you have the sense that you were watching something unprecedented?

I'm with Hec on why Sesaon 3 rules. After that it's a waffle between 2 and 4 whose virtues were almost diametrically opposed (i.e. 2 - best arc / sucky stand-alones vs. 4 - sucky arc / best stand alones), and I usually end up favoring whichever one I'm rewatching at the moment.

Also, as his deathmatch proved, Riley had some pretty good moments, and almost all of them were season 4.

did you have the sense that you were watching something unprecedented?

I started with Episode 6 of S2 (Halloween) and I absolutely felt that I was was watching not just something unprecedented but that someone had reached into my brain and grabbed everything I thought was funny, poignant and emotionally riveting and had cast the perfect actors to portray it all and then put it on TV. Never ever having been a cult fan of any TV show, I thought I was losing my mind when it became all I could think about on some days. I told everyone who would listen and lots of those who wouldn't. And NO ONE watched it.

I didn't start converting people until well into S4 when it was clear that it was getting a lot of critical praise. Stoopid friends.

I went to dinner with my sisters on Saturday night and after listening to me talk about Buffy for years one of them finally watched two eps. The Body and Intervention. My sister's comment was "I didn't really like the one where her mom died...I mean, isn't she supposed to have superpowers - she just seemed like a normal kid."

I was all "What? But the whole point is that it doesn't matter if you have super powers....bahhhh nevermind."

cereal:

The Body- disliking sister did enjoy the Buffybot though and agreed that JM was indeed hotter than a hot thing. So I guess I will continue to return her calls.

I guess...but only just. My brother hates Xander. I wanna say "Dude, you are Xander."

I'm not sure which is my favorite. Probably goes something like S3/S4/S6, S2, S5, S7/S1. I can't pick between my top 3.