from TVGuide, May '05

Talk about the end of 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' and Sarah Michelle Gellar goes into denial. "To be honest, I'm not even sure if it's really hit me yet," she says, calling from the set of "Scooby-Doo 2" in Vancouver. "It's sort of like the end of high school. You're excited to see what comes next, but you're really scared about it." Gellar admits that on her last day on the set, she cried. "And I don't want to make [series creator Joss Whedon] look less manly," she adds," but I think he did too."

They aren't the only ones grieving. For legions of 'Buffy' fans, hearing the words "series finale" is like getting a stake through the heart. For seven seasons (five on WB and the last two on UPN), the ambitious, unpredictable show masterfully juggled drama, comedy, romance and horror - usually within the same episode. And while it never became a mainstream hit, 'Buffy' basked in critical aclaim, spawned a 1999 spin-off (WB's 'Angel') and amassed one of the most fervent cult followings in TV history.

In the process, its vamp-dusting, butt-kicking heroine, played by Gellar, became a pop-culture icon and paved the way for such disparate characterizations of female empowerment as the Powerpuff Girls and 'Alias' superspy Sydney Bristow. "Joss should be getting residual checks on certain shows," jokes Alyson Hannigan, who has portraryed Buffy's best friend, Willow. The show's impact, she says, has "gone beyond anything I can fathom."

So why put a nail in the series' coffin now? For one thing, its ratings have lost some bite - down 17 percent from last year's average of 4.5 million viewers. But more important, both Gellar and Whedon decided the seventh season would be their last. "It was like that thing when two people want to say something but neither one wants to be the first to say it," says Gellar, whose contract expired after seven seasons. "It was always important that we went out on top, and it seemed like this might be the place." Whedon also felt he needed a break after working nonstop on 'Buffy', 'Angel', and the short-lived Fox series 'Firefly'. "Either one of us could have suddenly gone, 'No! Wait! More!'" he says. "But I think we both knew we weren't going to."

Once the decision was made, Whedon began plotting a proper send-off. Just try to drag any details out of the writer or his cast, though, and they turn coy. Eliza Dushku, who played reformed slayer Faith, finally manages: "I thought I was going to cry when I read the [finale]. It was so perfect for what is going on in the world now."

Here's what we know: Buffy shares a passionate reunion with her true love, Angel (David Boreanaz). The Slayer and her Scooby Gang also engage in a final showdown against the "Big Bad" forces of evil in which at least one major character dies - but Buffy herself won't bite the dust. There will be special effects, sword fights, tears and witty wordplay. Fans will get their rewards, says Whedon: "We're going out with a bang. The final episode has the closure and grandeur for the end of the series, but there are questions [that will be left] unanswered."

All the better to revisit the franchise. In fact, 'Buffy' alums could cross over to 'Angel', provided it gets renewed. There was no final decision on that at press time, but Gellar says she'd "absolutely" consider a guest appearance and offers, "We've already talked about one for next year, [but] everything is a matter of timing and story."

Whedon says there's also "enormous potential" for a new 'Buffy' spin-off featuring one or more of the show's core characters, though any plans for that will have to wait since many of the actors already have commitments: Hannigan will be promoting "American Wedding" (a second sequel to "American Pie") and planning her own nuptials to Alexis Denisof (Angel's Wesley). And Dushku and Nicholas Brendon (Xander) will star in separate Fox pilots for fall. James Marsters (Spike) is going on tour with his rock band, Ghost of the Robot, and Michelle Trachtenberg (Dawn) is shooting the film "Ugly Americans" in Prague. Emma Caulfield (Anya), who's been reading other scripts, admits, "The level of excellence 'Buffy' attained is [going to be] difficult to surpass."

Then there's Gellar, who had only one day off before reporting to the set of "Scooby-Doo 2," which she's starring in with husband Freddie Prinze Jr. "It's nice to be working not only in the same city, but together," she says. "We haven't really been able to spend that much time together [recently]." Gellar now plans to focus on feature films - just don't count on a 'Buffy' film to be among her new projects. ('Buffy' originated as a 1992 movie starring Kristy Swanson.) "Sarah has no interest in it now," Whedon says. "That could change in time, or it could not. Obviously, I wouldn't do it without her."

Whatever incarnation 'Buffy' takes in the future, it may be a while before its actors fully accept the show's demise. "In some says, I'm not admitting it to myself," Marsters says. "I actually went back the other day to look at the empty sound-stages. There was a haunting kind of pride standing there, remembering how many worlds were made in those spaces. And now there's just dust."

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