Buffy the Vampire Slayer began airing as a midseason replacement in the winter of 1997. After three seasons, Angel was spun off. Angel initially aired directly after Buffy on Tuesday nights, which made it my favorite night of television for quite awhile, and there were several crossovers. When Buffy the Vampire Slayer ended, one of the Buffy cast moved over to Angel for its fifth and final season.
This little article is intended to help new viewers figure out when to watch what. I'll try to keep the spoilers to a minimum, but a little bit of spoileryness cannot be helped.
To lessen the confusion of the show names and the character names being the same, I'll refer to the show Buffy the Vampire Slayer as BtVS, and the show Angel as AtS (Angel, the series). Plus I am only counting crossovers when actors appear. If I counted every mention, this would be really, really long.
The seasons ran as follows:
BtVS 1 (1997)
BtVS 2 (1997-1998)
BtVS 3 (1998-1999)
BtVS 4 — AtS 1 (1999-2000)
BtVS 5 — AtS 2 (2000-2001)
BtVS 6 — AtS 3 (2001-2002)
BtVS 7 — AtS 4 (2002-2003)
AtS 5 (2003-2004)
And here we go!
BtVS season four, AtS season one
BtVS 4.1 "The Freshman"
AtS 1.1 "City Of"
Angel calls Buffy on the phone, but hangs up without saying anything. We see Buffy's side of the phone call on BtVS, and Angel's on AtS.
BtVS 4.3 "The Harsh Light of Day"
AtS 1.3 "In the Dark"
Two-part story about the gem of Amarra that begins on BtVS and ends on AtS. Oz and Spike cross over to AtS.
BtVS 4.8 "Pangs"
AtS 1.8 "I Will Remember You"
In "Pangs," Angel arrives in Sunnydale, but stays in the background; Buffy doesn't know he was there until the last moment of the episode. In "I Will Remember You," Buffy goes to Los Angeles and confronts Angel. (If you're just watching BtVS, you don't want to miss "I Will Remember You.")
AtS 1.10 "Parting Gifts"
Wesley Wyndam-Pryce from BtVS season three arrives at Angel's office in Los Angeles and becomes a cast member on AtS.
AtS 1.15 "The Prodigal"
Includes flashbacks of Darla.
BtVS 4.15 "This Year's Girl"
BtVS 4.16 "Who Are You?"
AtS 1.18 "Five by Five"
AtS 1.19 "Sanctuary"
Faith returns for a four part cross-over that begins with a two-part story ("This Year's Girl" and "Who Are You?") on BtVS and ends after skipping an episode with a two-part story on AtS ("Five by Five" and "Sanctuary"). Darla appears in flashback in "Five by Five." Buffy appears in "Sanctuary."
BtVS 4.20 "The Yoko Factor"
Angel comes to Sunnydale to argue with Buffy about what happened in "Sanctuary" and has a delightful encounter with Riley.
AtS 1.22 "To Shanshu In L.A."
Darla returns.
BtVS season five, AtS season two
BtVS characters Darla and Drusilla are prominent continuing characters on season two of AtS. Darla is in nine episodes (2.3-2.5, 2.7, 2.9-2.11, 2.15-2.16), and Drusilla is in four (2.5, 2.9-2.11).
AtS 2.1 "Judgment"
Faith appears briefly.
BtVS 5.7 "Fool for Love"
AtS 2.7 "Darla"
"Fool for Love" and "Darla" are my favorite crossover episodes, with many shared scenes and flashbacks, plus all five of the Buffyverse's most popular vampires: Angel, Darla, Drusilla, Spike, and the Master. "Fool for Love" is Spike's backstory, and "Darla" is Darla's.
AtS 2.12 "Blood Money"
AtS 2.14 "The Thin, Dead Line"
Chanterelle/Lily/Anne (played by Julia Lee), who appeared in the BtVS episodes "Lie to Me" and "Anne," appears on AtS.
BtVS 5.17 "Forever"
Angel visits Buffy in Sunnydale.
AtS 2.17 "Disharmony"
Harmony visits Cordelia in Los Angeles. Cordelia and Willow talk on the phone.
AtS 2.22 "There's No Place Like Plrtz Glrb"
Willow stops by to give Angel some news.
BtVS season six, AtS season three
BtVS 6.4 "Flooded"
AtS 3.5 "Fredless"
Buffy and Angel meet off camera in between these two episodes. Not much of a crossover, and that's it for BtVS season six/AtS season three.
BtVS season seven, AtS season four
The final season of BtVS and penultimate season of AtS include a Firefly-ish crossover, with Nathan Fillion in the final five episodes of BtVS (7.18-7.22) and Gina Torres in five episodes of AtS (4.18-4.22).
Faith returns for three episodes of AtS starting with "Salvage" (4.13), and then returns to Sunnydale for the final five episodes of BtVS. Willow appears in "Orpheus" (AtS 4.15).
The producers of the two series wanted Angel to crossover for the final two episodes of BtVS, so AtS's season concluded first. It gets confusing. You can watch in any order up to BtVs "Lies My Parents Told Me" (7.17) and AtS "Orpheus" (4.15). The best way to watch after that is by air date.
AtS 4.13 "Salvage"
The first of three AtS episodes with Faith.
AtS 4.14 "Release"
Second episode with Faith.
BtVS 7.17 "Lies My Parents Told Me"
Fred calls Willow on the phone; we don't actually see Fred.
AtS 4.15 "Orpheus"
Third episode with Faith. Willow appears.
AtS 4.16 "Players"
AtS 4.17 "Inside Out"
AtS 4.18 "Shiny Happy People"
Gina Torres as Jasmine for the final five episodes.
BtVS 7.18 "Dirty Girls"
Faith arrives for the final five episodes. Nathan Fillion as Caleb for the final five episodes.
AtS 4.19 "The Magic Bullet"
AtS 4.20 "Sacrifice"
BtVS 7.19 "Empty Places"
AtS 4.21 "Peace Out"
BtVS 7.20 "Touched"
AtS 4.22 "Home"
BtVS 7.21 "End of Days"
Angel visits Sunnydale.
BtVS 7.22 "Chosen"
Angel in Sunnydale.
AtS season five
The entire fifth season of AtS includes Spike as a cast member and Harmony as a recurring character. Adam Baldwin, who played Jayne in Firefly, appears in five AtS episodes: 5.17-5.19, and 5.21-5.22.
AtS 5.11 "Damage"
A visit from BtVS character Andrew.
AtS 5.16 "Shells"
Angel calls Giles on the phone; we don't see Giles.
AtS 5.20 "The Girl in Question"
Buffy is supposedly in this episode, but we never see her face and Sarah Michelle Gellar does not appear. Unfortunately.
AtS 5.22 "Not Fade Away"
Chanterelle/Lily/Anne appears.
And that's it. People have written and asked me for something like this several times, and now it's finally done. And all revisions mentioned in the comments are now included.
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Billie Doux loves good television and spends way too much time writing about it.
Great article, Billie.
ReplyDeleteMy memory is fuzzy on this, but didn't Willow also appear briefly in 'Disharmony'?
Absolutely right. Hilarious phone conversation. I'll add it. Thanks, Mark.
ReplyDeleteGreat crossover-guide Billie!
ReplyDeleteA small continuation of Pangs/I will remember you...in B4.9 Something blue Buffy tells Willow in the beginning that she visited Angel for a few minutes. We, of course, know that she was there much longer.
And I can't remember in which episode Angel calls Giles (and throws the phone) - was it in Five by Five?? - or was it in a S5-Angel-episode??
Hi, TJ -- yes, there's a Giles phone call in there somewhere. I just don't remember when. Maybe someone else knows? The early Buffy and Angel reviews were my first and some were a bit shorter than the reviews I write today.
ReplyDeleteAngel calls Giles trying to getting Willow's help in AtS 5x16 "Shells"
ReplyDeleteThat's it, Doubleplays. Thanks. I added it. Wow, my memory is crap.
ReplyDeleteBlind Date Angel season 1..Cordelia calls Willow to help them hack the records that they stole from Wolfram & Hart.
ReplyDeleteOh, and I just remembered that the reason why Angel shows up in B4x08 Pangs, starts already in A1x07 Bachelor Party, where Doyle sees a picture of Buffy and gets a vision that she's in trouble.
ReplyDeleteAnd about Drusilla.
ReplyDeleteFor the first time since B2x22 Becoming Part 2, Dru turns up in LA in A2x09 The Trial, working for Wolfram & Hart to revamp Darla. After A2x11 Redefinition, she leaves LA and turns up in Sunnydale in B5x14 Crush, to visit Spike. She tells him what she and Darla has been up to with Angel.
This is the last time we see Drusilla in real-time. Later appearances are all flashbacks, or as the First Evil.
Oh yeah, it sucks that Drusilla left the Buffyverse so early on, flashbacks just arent the same.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great guide Billie! Wow, so many wonderful memories. I can't believe I had forgotten I Will Remember You. So intense. I completely didn't twig about the end of Firefly and Nathan's and Gina's appearances in the respective Whedonverse shows, what a doofus.
And talking about Firefly, we can't ignore Adam Baldwin, who appeared in Angel 5x17 till the end...
ReplyDeleteWhat about "Anne" (Lilly / Chantarelle)?
ReplyDeleteEverybody should check out the 2 Faith episodes from Angel's first season on Hulu, because their previouslies include scenes from Buffy and Angel.
Billie,
ReplyDeleteThanks for taking the time to put together this great crossover reference. It will definitely come in handy when I want to locate some of my favorite episodes for rewatching.
Thanks for all of the comments. I might wait a bit before making any changes, in case there are more. TJ, I did mention that Darla and Drusilla were continuing characters for AtS season two. Thanks for all of your suggestions.
ReplyDeleteYes, Billie. I see now that you indeed mentioned Darla and Dru's story arc in Angel season 2. Sorry.
ReplyDeleteAnd the fact that Dru shows up in B5x14 Crush isn't really a continuation of that story arc from Angel.
A question about a tiny Buffy-crossover in A5x10 Soul Purpose. Angel has hallucinations of Spike making love to Buffy (we only see a blonde girl so it's not SMG). But the dialogue is definitely SMG's. She is saying something about the prom. Is that from the B3x20 episode The Prom??
That's the "I kill my goldfish" line, right? I think that is from "Prom." Buffy originally says it to Angel when they're in the Sunnydale sewers.
ReplyDeleteI've been thinking about this, and the best solution might be to consider it a crossover if an actor actually appears. For instance, Anthony Stewart Head isn't credited with a single episode of Angel. So even if someone held a phone conversation with him, if we didn't see him or hear him, it doesn't count. We see Buffy at the end of the "Bachelor Party" episode because Quinn has a vision about her, but it's all clips and Sarah Michelle Gellar doesn't appear.
ReplyDeleteThank you again, everyone, for your comments -- both the posted comments, the posts on the BtVS list, and the emails I received. I very much appreciate the help.
Thanks Josie! Yes, it was The Prom! I just had to check it out and as you said it's the conversation from the sewers.
ReplyDelete"Every time I say the word prom you get grouchy. Can you say jump the gun, I kill my goldfish."
Another question about the vision Doyle has at the end of A2x07 Bachelor Party.
This was the vision that triggered Angel to go to Sunnydale in Pangs (fighting those Native American Spirits). We clearly see Buffy in the vision fighting two guys, but they don't look Native American, they just look like two teenage vamps.
This must be some old Buffy footage fight from...what? Anyone recognize the fight?
I agree Billie. The best thing is probably to make out some ground rules in a crossover guide.
ReplyDeleteAll the examples I've stated is more of a reference to the other show, not really a crossover.
Both shows talks about each other all the time...if all these references are included in a crossover guide it would probably be huge and hard to digest.
A crossover guide should perhaps focus on the timeline? For example see first B7x17, when Willow gets the call for help from Fred, and then see A4x15 Orpheus when Willow actually turns up and help the gang. (This wasn't the originally air order).
I don't know, I have been babbling about this a lot...maybe because it's my two fave shows of all time:)
You've been a huge help, TJ. Talking about it has helped define the parameters. And they're my favorite shows of all time, too. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Billie! This is a very handy guide.
ReplyDeleteYOu've missed Buffy S5E14 Crush when Drusilla comes back to Sunndale shortly after being burned by Angel.
ReplyDeleteWell, technically, Drusilla is a Buffy actor. I mentioned that she crossed over to Angel several times that season.
ReplyDelete