Halloween may have traditionally been a night of quiescence for vampires and demons in Sunnydale, butanything could happen to the Slayer and the Scooby Gang. Halloween episodes on Buffy the Vampire Slayerwere always notorious for spooky shenanigans, whether they involved the Scoobies getting possessed by their costumes, or just trying to find enough pocket space for their candy and their slaying weapons.

While the Scooby Gang never approached Halloween without a wary eye for supernatural mischief, their costumes ranged from incredibly elaborate, like Buffy's 18th century noblewoman ensemble, to as simple as Willow's sheet ghost. The gang proved that even keeping Sunnydale safe from the forces of darkness wasn't going to ruin their holiday spirit.

10 Worst: Xander As An Army Man

"Halloween" in Season 2 remains a fan-favorite episode for many reasons. Dressing as a soldier wasn't particularly imaginative on Xander's part, considering all he did was stroll into Ethan's Costume Shop and find a toy gun to pair with his fatigues.

The only reason Xander's costume isn't as dull as a dud hand grenade is because he eventually becomes possessed by it on Halloween, and starts running around throwing hand signals and trying to perform drills.

9 Best: Xander As James Bond

In Season 4, after having previously been possessed by his costume two years prior, Xander decided that he wouldn't take any chances, and decided to go as James Bond. If he was going to turn into anyone, it might as well be someone handsome, highly trained, and popular with women.

Not only did Xander manage to look quite dashing, but he was conveying a highly practical side of his goofy personality. However, Buffy had the last laugh when she explained that he'd most likely turn into, "cool head waiter guy" if another curse happened.

8 Worst: Willow As A Ghost

In an effort to boost Willow's confidence, Buffy encouraged her to wear a revealing black skirt and crop top for Halloween, but Willow quickly threw a sheet over her head in embarrassment, opting to hide out as a non-descript ghost.

The episode "Halloween" never explained what — or who — Willow was supposed to be based on her amalgamation of garments, but it did represent a change in her character that continued over the course of the series as she gained more self-esteem, eventually shedding the sheet and capturing the attention of Oz.

7 Best: Buffy As An 18th Century Noblewoman

In an effort to impress Angel on Halloween, Buffy decided to dress up as an 18th century noblewoman. She wore a brunette wig (beautifully fashioned in curls, completely disheveled by the end of the night) and a pink satin dress with plenty of fancy lace and ribbon.

The costume was stunning (if impractical for a Slayer), and Buffy looked the part of a duchess in it, but found that Angel wasn't interested in her looking like the women from his past. He confided in her that he actually hated the aristocratic women of his youth, and liked Buffy for who she is.

6 Worst: Giles As A Walking Stereotype

In the Season 4 episode "Fear, Itself", the stiffest Englishman to ever clean his glasses decided to greet trick-or treaters as a Mexican stereotype by throwing on a poncho and a sombrero to pass out candy — when he wasn't eating it all himself.

While fans might have been willing to give Giles credit for stepping outside his comfort zone, he should really have had his candy taken away from him for being so obviously insensitive and culturally inappropriate.

5 Best: Willow As Joan Of Arc

Willow dressing as a strong-willed woman notoriously burned at the stake was a meta-message that fans found apropos, especially since Willow had begun to experiment with darker magic in Season 4. The reference to witchcraft wasn't lost on Willow, who seemed to revel in wearing something more clothed for once on Halloween.

It was an interesting holiday for her and Oz, considering that it was her outfit as a "skimpy ghost" that got his attention before they officially met in Season 2, and by Season 4 they were well on their way to no longer being together, no matter how many cute jokes Will made about Oz dressing up as God.

4 Worst: Oz As God

Oz's lazy costume was literally a shirt with a nametag that read, "Hello, My Name Is" with "God" written into the blank. It was ironic that while setting up the sound system for the Alpha Delta fraternity, Oz accidentally "sacrificed himself" by cutting his hand and letting blood drop onto the cursed symbol. But really, he could have putsomeeffort into a costume.

3 Best: Buffy As Little Red Riding Hood

Buffy's Little Red Riding Hood outfit has retained a special place in fans' hearts because Joyce Summers made it for Buffy. It also set up one of the most hilarious jokes in the season when Buffy gets asked, "Whatcha got in the basket little girl?" and she responds, "Weapons."

The combination of sweetness and the Slayer's potent acridity when dealing with all manner of ghouls on Halloween night made this costume a fan favorite.

2 Worst: Giles As A Magician

Giles only marginally improved over his walking stereotype costume from seasons past by throwing a starred table cloth over himself and adding a dunce hat. He was supposed to be a magician which, considering he owned the Magic Box, was about as inventive as Giles could get with his ensemble.

By Season 6, Giles didn't have a lot of purpose in Sunnydale or in the series, and would leave for England in a few episodes, so his lack of commitment to All Hallows' Eve should have been a tip-off to the Scoobies.

1 Best: Anya As A Bunny

Not only is the bunny costume of excellent quality, it's actually terrifying — at least, for the person wearing it. One ofBuffy'sinside jokes concerns Anya and her irrational fear of things that go hop in the night, and the first representation of that phobia occurs via the meta-humor surrounding the Season 4 episode "Fear, Itself."

Anya in her bunny costume inspired many more moments around the fear of "floppy ears and twitching little noses," especially in the famous musical episode "Once More With Feeling," and made Anya more of an endearing character to fans.

NEXT: The Office: 10 Best Costumes From The Halloween Episodes

Next Obi-Wan Kenobi: The Worst Scenes That Don't Hold Up

About The Author

Kayleena Pierce-Bohen (1395 Articles Published)

Kayleena has been raised on Star Wars and Indiana Jones from the crib. A film buff, she has a Western collection of 250+ titles and counting that she's particularly proud of. When she isn't writing for ScreenRant, CBR, or The Gamer, she's working on her fiction novel, lifting weights, going to synthwave concerts, or cosplaying. With degrees in anthropology and archaeology, she plans to continue pretending to be Lara Croft as long as she can.

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