Credits. Aw. Now I'm blinking a lot. I do find it a little strange even now, though, that the credits this season end on a shot of First Buffy, rather than real Buffy.

Buffy swings The Little Red Axe That Could at Caleb. He blocks with Bast. Buffy does a backwards somersault. More axe swinging, more cat-blocking. Caleb gets frustrated, throws the statue at Buffy, and misses. Hee! They face off and exchange non-quippage. Caleb still has pudding dribbling out of his eyes and mouth as he works up to giving Buffy a real good chidin' about what a weakling she is. Buffy makes a succinct rejoinder -- in the form of an axe to his groinal region. She lodges the axe but good and then jerks it upwards, cutting him in half. Not that impressed with the Little Red Axe. I mean, how hard is it to cut up a straw man? We get a sound effect indicating that the two halves of Caleb have dropped to the ground, but no visual. CGI budget all spent on the Hellmouth blue-screen at the end, or grisly effect nixed by UPN's supposedly non-existent Standards and Practices department? Your choice. I remember a nice splitting effect on the Mayor's head in Season Three and I thought we might see something like that here. I know, I know, I complain about the violence on the show and then whine when I can't see the bodies. So inconsistent. I just think it would've been a mite more satisfying to see Dead Caleb. Although, of course, I'm snorting at the idea that defeating misogyny could ever be that simple.

Angel pops up, all pissed and ready to rumble, demanding, "Where is he?" Buffy does a dramatic eye-roll to the left and a dramatic eye-roll to the right and quips, "He had to split!" I perform an eye-roll of my own, but I must admit that it's a slightly amused one. Buffy giggles at her stupid joke. Oh, look! Spike's still sulking in the shadows. The First taunts him, but this whole plot amounts to nothing, so I'm just cruising on by. Angel retrieves his file folder from a corner and then pulls the Amulet of Assitude (tm Strega) out of his pocket. Buffy jokes, "I can already tell you, I have nothing that goes with that!" I think my six-year-old neighbor has one of those in her My Pretty Princess kit, though. In any case, that thing is a truly, truly, truly outrageous gem. Still holding the amulet up in the air, Angel explains that he doesn't know much about it, but it does "have purifying power, a cleansing power, and possibly…scrubbing bubbles." See, he had Wes do the translation, so he's just not sure what the damn amulet really does. And isn't Angel awfully chipper for a guy who just slashed his only son's throat? Hmm -- I'm making a connection here. Ah, yes -- like me, Angel must've vowed to just try to enjoy this moment and not be all burdened by the bitterness of past events and wasted potential. He's pulling it off better than I am, but forget I said anything about him killing Connor, 'kay? We're all very happy here. In addition to the cleansing powers, the Pretty Princess Pendant also gives the wearer strength, and, very, very conveniently, should only be worn by "someone ensouled, but stronger than human." Wow, it's like whoever made it knew Angel and Spike personally! Angel continues that the wearer should be "a champion." Shudder. Not the "c" word. Please, not the "c" word! I got this far without it and was getting a little cocky that it'd be stuck in Strega's realm forever, and then they hit me with it in the final hour. Anyway, it turns out that we're a tad short on champions on this show -- which explains why Spike ends up wearing it. Sigh. Angel wants to wear the Pretty Princess Pendant and says it's too risky for Buffy. Hey, Angel just referred to Buffy's weapon as an axe, not a scythe. Remind me why I ever thought he was stupid? While they're discussing weapons and jewelry, Spike sulks out of the crypt without either of our two heroes noticing. For a second, Buffy seems happy to think that Angel will be fighting beside her, but then she tells him he has to leave, because the WB only authorized him for an afternoon of shooting, not a whole week. Wait, I guess I misheard. She wants him to leave and establish a second front in Los Angeles in case she can't beat The First.