Summary
- Foreshadowing played a significant role in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, with major plot points hinted at in advance, from relationships to character deaths and twists.
- The supernatural theme of the show served as a metaphor for real-life teenage struggles, making it relatable and engaging for viewers.
- Key moments of foreshadowing occurred throughout the series, sometimes seasons in advance, highlighting the attention to detail that contributed to the show's enduring legacy.
During its seven-season run, Buffy the Vampire Slayer foreshadowed some of its most significant future plot points. Some major Buffy the Vampire Slayer deaths, twists, and reveals were hinted at before they happened, from Easter eggs to overlooked one-liners. And, while some moments of foreshadowing occur seasons before the event, some take place in the same episode. This showcases the attention to detail that contributed to the enduring legacy of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer follows Buffy Summers (Sarah Michelle Gellar), a teenage girl who attempts to live a normal life while embracing her responsibilities as a hunter of vampires and demons. The series used this supernatural framework as a metaphor for adolescence. For example, the Buffy the Vampire Slayer villains represented something that real teenagers deal with every day. Case in point, Sunnydale High is literally the Hellmouth, the epicenter of all evil, taking the term "surviving high school" to a whole new level. These parallels, combined with how Buffy would often foreshadow key events, are one of the reasons why Buffy the Vampire Slayer was so engaging.
10 Buffy Season 4, Episode 1 Foreshadowed The Rest Of The Season
During a graveside conversation with Willow (Alyson Hannigan) in the season 4 premiere, Buffy predicts the rest of the season. While waiting for a vampire to appear, Buffy and Willow are discussing their first day of college. Buffy says, "I’m psyched about college (...) I just can’t let it take the edge off my slaying." As she's talking, a vampire creeps up behind her, sees her slaying equipment, and runs away without her noticing. This foreshadows how Buffy’s relationship with Riley (Marc Blucas) and the influence of Professor Walsh (Lindsay Crouse) would distract her from her true duties as the slayer.
9 Buffy Predicted Her Mom’s Death
Joyce Summers' death in Buffy the Vampire Slayer season 5, episode 16, "The Body" is one of the most shocking and upsetting deaths in the show. However, Joyce's death was actually foreshadowed in the previous season. In season 4, episode 1, "The Freshman" Buffy goes to the college library for the first time to get the books she needs for her chosen classes. While shopping, Buffy jokes, "I can’t wait until Mom gets the bill for these books. I hope it’s a funny aneurysm.” Joyce does in fact die from an aneurysm.
8 Faith’s Quips Foreshadow Dawn’s Arrival
Faith (Eliza Dushku) predicts Dawn's (Michelle Trachtenberg) arrival twice. In season 3, episode 21, "Graduation Day Part 1," just before a fight between Faith and Buffy, Faith quips, "Well look at you all dressed up in big sister’s clothes." Dawn's arrival is foreshadowed again in season 4, episode 15, "This Year's Girl." This moment of foreshadowing is decidedly more blatant. In a dream sequence, Buffy and Faith are making a bed and Faith says, "Little sis coming. I know. So much to do before she gets here.” This moment predicts the arrival of Dawn Summers in Buffy the Vampire Slayer season 5, episode 1, "Buffy Vs. Dracula."
7 Willow’s Heartbroken Spiel Predicts The Course Of Riley & Buffy’s Relationship
In season 4, episode 7, "The Initiative," Riley asks Willow for help in asking out Buffy. In her heartbroken state, Willow responds, "Okay say that I help. You start a conversation. It goes great. You like Buffy, she likes you. You spend time together, things grow deeper. And one day without even realizing it, you find you're in love. Time stops, and it feels like the whole world's made for you two, and you two alone. Until the day one of you leaves and rips the still beating heart from the other, who's now a broken, hollow mockery of the human condition." This predicts how Buffy and Riley's relationship plays out over the next two seasons, as Riley would eventually leave Buffy.
6 Vampire Willow Signals Willow’s Future Sexuality
In season 3, episode 16, "Doppelgangland," Willow and Anya accidentally summon Willow's evil, vampire twin from another universe. During her appearance, Vampire Willow flirts with Willow so much that Willow herself even remarks, “It’s horrible. That’s me as a vampire? I’m so evil, and skanky. And I think I’m kinda gay.” This predicts Willow's future character development. Willow meets Tara (Amber Benson) in the following season, and quickly falls in love with her. Buffy's Willow and Tara's sapphic relationship becomes one of the most stable and loving relationships in Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
5 Giles’s Warning Predicts Willow’s Descent Into Darkness
In season 2, episode 21, "Becoming Part 1," Willow suggests using the black arts to defeat Angelus, saying "Well, I've been going through her files and researching the black arts for fun...educational fun...and I may be able to work this." Giles (Anthony Head) replies with a warning, saying, "Willow, channeling such potent magics through yourself, it could open a door that you may never be able to close." This warning predicts the events of season 6 when Willow, consumed with grief, becomes Dark Willow and almost loses herself to dark magic.
4 Vampire Willow Foreshadows Dark Willow
Vampire Willow foreshadows Willow's eventual spiral into darkness. Her first line when she appears in season 3, episode 9, "The Wish," is "Bored now... this is the less fun part. When there isn't any screaming." She then repeats this line when she returns in season 3, episode 16, "Dopplegangland." She says, "bored now," before throwing a young man across the bar at the Bronze. This is the exact phrase Dark Willow says right before she kills Warren in season 6, episode 20, "Villians."
3 Tara’s Outburst Predicts Giles Killing Ben
When the Hell God Glory (Clare Kramer) feeds on Tara's brain in season 5, episode 19, "Tough Love," she absorbs her sanity, causing her to babble incoherently. However, upon reflection, her babbling is actually predicting the coming events. In season 5, episode 22, "The Gift," she points to Giles and says, “You’re a killer.” This foreshadows a moment later in the episode when Giles kills the innocent Ben to stop Glory from reemerging.
2 Buffy Foreshadows Switching Bodies With Faith While Venting To Joyce
When Faith first arrives in Sunnydale in season 3, episode 3, "Faith, Hope & Trick," she quickly wins over Buffy's friends and family. This irritates Buffy, who vents her feelings to her mother. When Joyce is less than sympathetic, Buffy remarks, "You're not the one being single, white, female here." This comment predicts Faith using magic to swap bodies with Buffy in season 4, episode 16, "Who Are You."
1 The First Slayer Predicts Buffy’s Death
The first slayer in Buffy the Vampire Slayer foretold Buffy's imminent death in season 5. In episode 18, "Restless," Buffy goes on a vision quest to the desert to meet the first slayer. There, the first slayer gives her a number of cryptic messages, most notably saying, "Love will bring you to your gift...death is your gift." Buffy initially interprets this as killing is her gift, but she soon realizes its true meaning.
In season 5, episode 22, "The Gift," Buffy recalls this statement before sacrificing herself, so Dawn can live. After Dawn's blood is used to open the portal to alternate dimensions, her blood is needed to close the portal. As they are sisters, and therefore, have the same blood, Buffy realizes she can die in Dawn's place. Her love for Dawn makes her sacrifice herself, thus completing the first slayer's prophecy in Buffy the Vampire Slayer's final moments.