Ranking The Major Buffy The Vampire Slayer Villains From Worst To Best
They were mean, powerful and most importantly sassy, but only one can reign supreme.
It's often said that heroes can only be defined by their villains, and in the case of walking wit-machine, and super-powered vampire slayer Buffy Summers it's entirely true. Her rogue's gallery is teeming with powerful foes that mirror many different facets of her ever-developing personality.
From ancient vampire overlords to sassy, fashion-conscious hell goddesses, Buffy has stared down the barrel of numerous insanely powerful foes and bested every single one of them. Proving not only to herself but the whole world that she's - quite literally - The Chosen One to end all Chosen Ones.
However, not all of her foes have been complete showstoppers, and we're here today to rank all of her major adversaries from worst to best. Numerous factors will be taken into account, such as their relative power in comparison to the Slayer, as well the impact or fallout of their actions, and their ongoing dynamic with The Scooby Gang.
This applies to any villains that were season mainstays or managed to last beyond a simple two-parter episode that the early seasons were so fond of. Long-running adversaries may only apply, so let's see who can really take the crown as Buffy's greatest nemesis.
Warning: SPOILERS AHEAD!
21. Honourable Mention: Anyanka
Before she danced the dance of capitalist superiority or screamed at the sight of bunnies, Anya was a semi-recurring villain that played an integral role in two of season three's best episodes - The Wish and Doppelgangland.
She eventually became a much-beloved member of the Scooby Gang, but lest we forget that Anya was, and for a brief time returned to being, an incredibly powerful and brutal vengeance demon who was feared in many circles. Her appearances as a villain in the show's plot were sporadic and short-lived, but she never failed to make a great impact on those around her.
She even managed to go toe-to-toe with Buffy in combat and live to tell the tale - which is more than can be said for many other demons that reside in Sunnydale.
The reason why she gets an honourary mention though is that her villainous past is so integral to the character she eventually becomes. Few characters in all of fiction embody the 'fish out of water' trope in the many marvelous ways that Anya does once she becomes a core member of Scooby Gang, and for that, we're saluting Anyaka as both one of Buffy's best foes, and most adored characters.