10 Most Satisfying Buffy The Vampire Slayer Moments
3. Spike Beats Principal Wood And Overcomes The First Evil (Season 7, Episode 17)
Throughout the final season, the gang are haunted by the First Evil, a villainous entity that shapeshifts into the dead and manipulates the living. Using the folk song, ‘Early One Morning’ as a trigger, the First brings out Spike’s aggression by reminding him of his mother’s final words.
In 'Lies My Parents Told Me’, Principal Wood attempts to kill Spike in order to avenge his mother, Nikki Wood, a Slayer who was killed by the blonde-haired vampire back in 1977. Spike manages to win the battle, but he also has an epiphany about his past:
“I loved my mother… I turned her into a vampire, so we could be together forever… I set loose a demon, and it tore into me. But it was a demon talking, not her. I realise that now. My mother loved me with all her heart.”
As thrilling as it is to witness Spike’s physical victory, it’s his internal triumph that makes this moment so satisfying. After living with the burden of his mother’s final words for over a century, he’s finally able to move on and reject the influence of the First.