10 Most Underrated Buffy The Vampire Slayer Scenes
3. The Knights Of Byzantium Attack The Caravan (Season 5, Episode 20)
Towards the end of Season 5, the Scooby Gang are forced to leave Sunnydale when Glory learns that Dawn is the Key. Unfortunately, Glory isn’t the only one who’s interested in Dawn. Hellbent on destroying the Key before Glory can get to it, the Knights of Byzantium pursue the gang away from Sunnydale, which leads to one of the best action sequences in the entire show.
What’s great about this scene is how relentlessly intense it is. From the moment the knights make an appearance, the gang are placed under a terrifying amount of pressure. Spike – unable to expose himself to the sunlight – is forced to stay inside the caravan, leaving Buffy to do most of the fighting on her own. Giles, meanwhile, does his best to ram the caravan into their attackers while the others try to remain hidden.
The gang’s sense of desperation is wonderfully balanced with patches of humour – Anya whacking one of the knights with a frying pan is particularly amusing. And then, just when you think they're safe, Giles is hit by a spear, causing the caravan to crash in the middle of the road. It’s a fitting end to a terrific action sequence that deserves as much – if not more – recognition than some of the season finales.