10 Buffy The Vampire Slayer Episodes That Changed Everything

6. Restless

Beyond bizarre, in a format that should not have worked on television - that's the best way to describe season four's finale, Restless. "You think you know what's to come, what you are. You haven't even begun." That quote, care of Tara in a dream of Buffy's, is just one of many hidden references foreshadowing the coming years of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. In fact, the entire episode, which features the dreams of each of the show's main characters, is riddled with clues to the future of the Slayer and her pals. Plus a guy who keeps showing up with cheese. It's almost unheard of that a television show would plan episodes that far ahead, especially on network TV where the axe of cancellation can swing swiftly down at any given moment, but Buffy did just that - plan plot points years in advance. Restless also features a clock alluding to Buffy's death the following season, and the line "Be back before Dawn" - a reference to the arrival of her sister, which had been planned since at least the third season (as had Buffy's death). It featured additional references to happenings as late as the seventh season, however - and set the bar for foreshadowing and plotting in advance for all shows.