Breathtaking. It's like somebody slaughtered an Abercrombe and Fitch catalogue. - D'Hoffryn, commenting on a dozen dead frat boys.

Last night's Buffy, "Selfless" was both fun and sad. Fun with the peeks into Anya's past, including OMWF Revisited; sad in Anya's lonliness and confusion about who, if anyone, she is now.

All summer long, ME said that this season would be lighter than last, a return to Buffy: Season One. I think a lot of people expected it to be mostly good times and happy, triumphant endings (or "Oh, the high school's back. More high school stories!"). So far, there has been some of that, but it's been thoroughly mixed with dealing with the consequences of last season.

That's a good thing. I wouldn't want for Willow to be completely over Tara's death, the flaying of Warren or almost destroying the world. I don't want Spike and Buffy to be over Spike's attempted rape of Buffy. I don't want Buffy to get off scot-free for being so dead last season, even if it's understandable. I don't want Anya to take up Vengeance Demoning again without four years of regained humanity and her near-marriage to Xander having some effect on her conscience and heart. I don't want Dawn to be completely absolved of her incredible self-centeredness, uncompassionate behavior toward her dealing-with-resurrection sister, and general rebelliousness. (In)Actions have consequences, and sometimes those consequences last a long time.

The first season wasn't about high school. High school was the setting and the spark for Buffy and co.'s adventures, but a lot of what the first season was about was the gang beginning to establish who they were, getting to know each other and how they fit in together. The seventh season will be doing the same.

Things have changed, not only the changes that go along with moving into adulthood, but as a consequence of the last few years, particularly the last two. The gang is working on discovering who they are in the post-Joyce-Giles-Tara-Resurrection Sunnydale, they have to rediscover how they relate to each other (by dealing, finally, with lies and things overlooked in past seasons) and how or whether they can be a gang again. Last season was "Growing Up." This season is "Growing Pains." There's been a lot of pain lately, and this season is going to take care of it. If this is indeed the last season, this will be the way to end it, with their friendships smoothed out and reestablished (even if there's a big Apocalypse that kills everyone) and the Scoobies going on in a world without us watching.