Season 6, Episode 16 | Aired: 5 March 2002 | Written by: Rebecca Rand Kirshner | Directed by: David Solomon
Xander and Anya’s wedding. Everything goes wrong. A demon shows Xander a vision of their future marriage — miserable, destructive, Anya turned back to demonhood — and he leaves her at the altar. The vision was fabricated by a man Anya wronged as a vengeance demon centuries ago. Xander, who didn’t know this, made his decision out of his own fear. Anya is left in her wedding dress. The episode is one of the saddest in the series.
What Happens
The wedding is chaotic — Xander’s family is drunk and unpleasant; Anya’s demon friends are attempting to pass as human with limited success. D’Hoffryn officiates. Xander is shown the false future by Doris (the demon formerly known as Stewart, Anya’s victim). He breaks. He goes to Anya and says he can’t do it. He’s not wrong that he has fear about his parents’ marriage — but the vision was a lie, and he doesn’t know that yet. Anya stands in the reception hall alone.
Key Moments
Anya in the white dress, after. The show holds the image. Emma Caulfield is given a scene of pure grief with no comedy wrapper and she is devastating in it. D’Hoffryn arrives and offers her a position as a vengeance demon again. She accepts.
Monster / Villain
Doris — a human wronged by Anya who has been waiting for this specific revenge. Also Xander’s fear, which is the episode’s real antagonist.
Notable Quote
“I need you to be sure.” — Anya, giving Xander one last chance before the ceremony. He says he is. He is not.
Where It Fits
Hell’s Bells is the Season 6 event that puts Anya back on the other side — as a vengeance demon again, doing harm in pain. The Xander/Anya relationship will not recover. What follows for Anya is darker than what came before.