I never cry over "BTVS", except for "The Gift"; it gets me every time.

I quite glibly chose The Prom without thinking and then I read the responses and I thought, "Of course! How could I have not chosen Becoming Pt. 2?!" It is a great episode, but I gotta admit that it's only when Full of Grace starts playing that I lose it, and mostly because it has perfect resonance for me in my own life. It just makes me feel hollow. I think The Prom is it for me because it's one of those episodes that covers so many points it feels a week long. It starts out happy and touches on all the the questions I'd had. How could Buffy ever stay happy with Angel? He'll never be able to give her half of what anyone needs in a relationship. How did the other students not notice all the weird shit that was going on? How could Joyce not have thought about Buffy's choice of boyfriend? Must have been easier for her knowing there was no sex going on. Snerk. When would Xander and Cordelia stop sniping at eachother?

I loved Joyce's visit to the mansion. I loved the sacrifice Angel made, wanting to be with her but forcing her away. I loved the total trust Buffy's friends had that she wouldn't let them down. I loved that Oz and Willow were still happy. Aw. Sniff. I loved that Xander and Cordelia had resolution, even if her chest did look a little bony in that dress. I loved Giles' little "stop fluttering about" speech to Wesley. I loved that Buffy was acknowledged by her classmates. I loved that even though she's totally self-involved (like all teenagers, heck, like a lot of adults) she was shocked and grateful for the recognition. I loved that Angel did "get" the prom and came despite everything. I loved that Buffy knew his decision was the right one. It wasn't gut-wrenching apocalypse drama. Most of it was generic, every day, every day people drama, and so much was resolved. It was the smoothness, the acceptance of everything that did it for me, as if a weight was lifted off the season, with a minimum of carnage. Like a really good professional massage. :-)

But I do sniffle just thinking about Anya's confusion in The Body and the crying of both Spike and Willow at the end of The Gift.

Damn, this is hard...all episodes are gutwrenching in their way.

Innocence I don't actually CRY watching this episode...but I do feel like I've been sucker-punched in the gut during the scene in Angel's apartment, Buffy crying in her room, and the final scenes with Buffy/Giles and Buffy/Joyce. Just OUCH. Must be the episode in which I wince the most, and spend the most time feeling bad after watching it.

Passion I love this episode. LOVE it. Again, not so much crying as the "sucker-punched" feeling when Giles fins Jenny and Buffy and Willow get the news. Though the scene between Buffy/Giles DOES bring out my...uh...allergies.

Becoming 2 Oh, man! It has two of the saddest mamonets ever of the show. Xander and Willow in the hospital gets me misty-eyed...and the final Buffy and Angel scene? With "Close your eyes" (both the line and the theme-music) and the "Full of Grace" playing? Uh, yeah...allergies again. Props to ALL actors in this episode, especially SMG. Despite the fact that I wasn't as upset as EVERYONE I KNOW about the end of B/A in s3 - please, it was obvious it wouldn't work, why dwell on it, when you were now getting TWO shows? - the acting from these two in their scenes together, neither of them have pulled of with any other love inerest. You actually BELIEVED they truly loved each other.

The Prom Word to everything said about it. It's just, Buffy FINALLY gets her moment, and the episode is just so bittersweet - partly because of B/A - but honestly, we all knew that had to end, and it was a poignant ending. Mostly, though, because (now) you know as hard as Buffy's life had been, it was not about to get any easier. Also, again with the darn sad music. I'm teary-eyed during the speech, and when "Wild Horses" starts playing, I'm reaching for my kleenexes...eh...I my allergy-medicin.

The Body The first time I watched this episode I didn't cry. I just sat. Stared at the screen. The second time I watched it, I bawled and went to hug my mommy. This episode also is also sort of sadder now when you know how much Buffy (and Dawn) will need Joyce (with the post-ressurection depression). Again, props to the cast, mostly SMG ("Mommy?" *shudder*)

The Gift Again, an episode made sadder in retrospect. First time I watched it I only got mildly teary-eyed because I thought it was a perfect end for Buffy and because I knew she would be back. But when I saw the episode again not to long ago, I actually got misty-eyed during her initial conversation with Giles, and her final speech about how "the hardest thing in this world is to live in it" and the Scoobies' reactions (especially AH and JM - well done). I got so sad, because Buffy was ready to go, she was peaceful and her smile to Dawn where she tells her to "live" was actually, in lack of better words (my English fails me), optimistic and hopeful. Knowing that peace would be forcefully taken from her made the episode sadder. Despite the stupid plot-holes.



I voted for The Body because it makes me cry like Becoming 2 and the final scene in The Gift, but also has that "sucker-punched" feeling of Innocence. Also, BRILLIANT.

I voted for Becoming Part ll. I remember those few years ago when I first viewed this episode. Never in a million years did I expect that kind of ending, hence when the sword got shoved through Angel's abdomen, my mouth fell to the floor, my hands flew to my face, then the beginnings of "Full of Grace" enters my ears, I then see that injured, tortured agonizing look on Buffy's face as she realizes what she's done and what it means, and as soon as she lets go, I let go and I'm crying like I've never cried before. "Full of Grace" continues its melody, the words enter my mind...

The winter here's cold, and bitter
it's chilled us to the bone
I haven't seen the sun for weeks
too long too far from home
I feel just like I'm sinking
and I claw for solid ground
I'm pulled down by the undertow
I never thought I could feel so low
Oh....darkness I feel like letting go


... then we see tiny fragile looking Buffy in those long baggy overalls, the wind blowing her hair as she watches her friends. Then we see the gang and hear what they say. Their optomistic outlook that Angel regained his soul and he and Buffy are off somewhere taking time to compose and cherish each other all the while "Full of Grace" continues to play

If all of the strength
and all of the courage
come and lift me from this place
I know I could love you much better than this
full of grace
I know I could love you much better than this

It's better this way

Buffy's on the bus, Joyce finds the letter and it's read, then we see the sign, and I'm just Inconsolable. The tears are just flowing, the episode has ended, the Grrr Arrrgg has been said, and I'm still crying.

Thinking back to that moment now is making me all teary eyed.

I admit to voting without having seen all the eps in question, but I certainly hope none of them top The Body. The whole episode...it was so quiet and just about every sound there was was sad-making. Anya's speech in the dorm room was the clincher of course.

I think that the saddest scenes for me are when Willow is dealing with loss and pain. Damn Aly's good. The two scenes when she says good-bye to Oz in Wild at Heart and New Moon Rising. When she collapses at Buffy's house on hearing that Jenny has been murdered. Her face(and Spike) at the end of The Gift. That was really quick but their reactions are heartbreaking. When Tara is comforting her in The Body. I loved the interplay between those two in The Body. When Tara leaves her in Tabula Rasa and she's in the bathroom crying and when she visits Tara's grave site in S7 . She just runs her fingers over Tara's name on the grave stone.

Had to go with Becoming part 2. I was totally unspoiled for it, even though I saw it 3 years after it ran, and it just floored me. I sat there in my living room bawling. It still gets me every time.

I voted for the Prom, because just like others have said before, I've never cried because I was HAPPY for a fictional character before. It's just way too easy to make someone cry when someone dies.

Though I do agree, I could start crying just watching AH cry.

I went with Becoming II because of the guilty crying principle.

With The Body I feel like it's *allowed* to cry. The emotions are so raw & realistic. Joyce is dead. She is never gonna come back. Really, really dead. Really, most sincerely dead. The whole cast's reactions are so believable as they try to cope.

Becoming II on the other hand...I know Angel isn't really dead. I know he comes back. I know Buffy comes back. I know they get together again. I know that Xander is there for Willow in the future after Oz has gone. It all gets resolved. I know this....and still I boo-hoo. I feel guilty for crying when I know it's gonna be okay later, but I still cry anyway. (Kinda like the end of The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert Heinlein...it's on my recommended reading list). I think it is knowing that I am being manipulated to cry & still being unable to resist that pushed this one over the top for me.

One common thread of tear jerkiness for me is the incredible power of AH's eyes. Seriously, i don't know why she wants to go into comedy. In sitcoms she will never be able to employ her big sad eyes of doom. Her eyes go big and teary, and I lose it every time. It also works when she's happy, as in Innocence.

I voted for The Body. I have seen the ep countless times and I am absolutely convinced that it is the best episode of television ever produced. I probably cry the most during the Dawn section, because I have a weakness for sisterly interaction. However, the whole thing, from the first line, to the final shot had me nearly blind from the tears the first time I watched it.

Hard poll! Every single ep here makes me cry at least once.
Innocence ~ When she takes off her ring and starts shaking
Passion ~ Buffy at her toughest, yet most helpless. And Giles should never, ever be sad.
Becoming 2 ~ Cried just THINKING about the ending today.
The Prom ~ "I can't breathe, Will." Awww.
The Gift ~ Her speech to Giles, and of course the end. Spike crying, after all the times we'd seen him relish a death.
The Body ~ The winner for me, because it's unrelentless. I love the no-music thing. And exhausted Willow desperately looking for her blue shirt.

Wow. Hard choices. I wept after "Becoming 2", "The Prom" and "The Body".

But every time I watch the end of Becoming 2, I tend to get misty so I picked that. It's probably the music, but everything in Buffy's life just goes to Hell, literally and figuratively. Besides, it's my all-time favorite episode ever.

The Body The first time I really flashed back to my own mother's death. It was almost too hard to watch. But now, I tend to get that numb feeling that Buffy had throughout the episode. Been there, and can relate.

Innocence hurt to watch (that scene in the Apartment) but ended up on a more positive note with Buffy destroying the Judge and kicking Angelus in his... ego.

The Gift I found oddly uplifting ( I'm weird, I guess) because she went out like a real hero, plus I knew it wasn't the end.

Passion was more shocking than sad for me. One of my favorite episodes.

The Prom my daughter tends to get goofy when we watch this so, I never get a chance to get misty about it anymore, but that scene with Buffy and Willow "I can't breath, Will..." Gah!!!

Well, I got a littly teary at every episode mentioned-(except "The Gift", which I feel is over-rated) despite this, no episode for me can capture the perfection of Passion. Not the episode in its entirity, but from the moment Giles walks into his apartment, joy and anticipation on his face, and the audience knowing what he'll find, was, for me, the most heartbreaking and moving, and in so many ways, perfect capture of emotion the show has ever achieved(In my own opinion, of course). So it came as no surprise to me that as soon as Willow started crying, I bawled like an itty-bitty baby. No episide since has had that kind of reaction from me since, so I hold "Passion" in very high regard.

To amend my previous post, I've finally seen all the eps listed; the last one was The Prom, and it sure gives The Body a run for its money in the tears department. Especially because there's room for both happy and sad crying. Buffy loses her boyfriend AND has to fight hellhounds to get to her own prom...finally makes it there alone....finds out in her aloneness that her classmates do actually value her...and then Angel turns up. I'm not what you'd call a B/A fan at all, but, *sigh*.

ETA: Since I only get one vote, it still goes to The Body, but I've now found a very close second.

Popping my twop cherry, and I guess it is fitting that is in the Buffy forum. sigh.

My vote went for The Prom. Like most of you, each and all of these 'sodes have made me cry repeatedly, but The Prom just hit too close to home the first time I saw it (oh jerk-hole highschool boyfriends) and that same feeling comes back every time I see it. I am also a hard-core Angel/Buffy shipper so that factors in too. Which would also make Becoming 2 my second choice, oh, and the ending of the Gift always gets me too. I don't think I've cared so much about tv characters as much as I care about the scoobs.

(Refraining from turning this into a rant against the WB and it's bastard programmers. What will we do with a Joss-less universe?!!)

Had to go with Becoming 2 . SMG belts this one out of the park. The astonishing range of emotions on her face, very subtly changing so that you feel one emotion slide into another. The desperation on Buffy's face as she duels with Angelus (kick-ass fight scene, btw). The pain on her face at the unholy glee on his. Angelus: "...take all that away and what have you got left?" Lunges for the kill. Buffy: Catching the sword blade with her bare hands, eyes closed ..."Me."
The absolute melting relief, and love, and joy when she realizes Angel is back. The look of dawning horror as she sees the maelstrom open behind him. The way her lips flatten with repressed pain as she realizes what she has to do. The way her voice shakes when she whispers "Shhh...Close your eyes." Her detachment as she watches the Scoobies from afar. And, it's not just SMG-the raw agony on Joyce's face when she finds the note. And, oh yeah, that song! Definitely the "waterworks winner" for me.

The Body all the way. I love that episode so much. They actually made me care about Buffy and Dawn. Anya's speech was great and Buffy's fantasy about her mom coming to life again compared to harsh reality made me cry.
Innocence was second. That scene in the apartment was amazing. And Willow crying to Xander was heartwreching too.

Had to go with The Body, because I saw it shortly after my dad died and so I'll always cry like a baby from the last few minutes of the episode before it straight through the episode following it.
But, everytime I hear Sarah McLachlan's Full of Grace, I tear up, so Becoming Part 2 deserves an honorable mention.

I voted for The Body, for all of the reasons that have already been so eloquently stated here. One of the best hours of television ever. Becoming Part 2 and The Gift can also, depending on my mood, produce tears, but The Body never leaves me dry-eyed.

But the only other ep that unfailingly produces tears wasn't on the list. It's Graduation Day part 2. For some reason, every time all those kids pull out their weapons, I start to get choked up, and then when Larry dies, the floodgates open.

I know, I'm a freak.

You're not a freak. I always tear up at the exact same moment. I'm so proud of them all at that point.

The Body. It aired not too long after my own mother's untimely passing. Nothing else to say.

I voted a long time ago, and honestly can't remember which I voted for.
All of the above can usually get a tear or two out of me, but extra props go to The Body, Wild at Heart, and of course The Prom.
And also, a WORD to Unusual Suspect and a2zmom (from a while back) on Prophecy Girl - that whole Giles/Angel/Buffy scene in the library scene gets me, especially when Buffy starts throwing things at Giles.

But nothing can compare to Becoming, Part 2. When you can rewind the last 5 or 6 minutes of an episode and cry every single time, you know you’ve got something good. And that’s just the Buffy/Angel ending. The Willow/Xander scene in the hospital gets to me to… especially when Xander tells her he loves her, and then she wakes up and asks for Oz… :(

Okay, need some laughs now… over to the Friends Quotes thread I go.

Tough call. Innocence is my favourite of these episodes, and I also really enjoy Passion as well. To answer the question, though, Innocence has never made me cry so my vote went to The Gift which did.

My top 3 aren't even on there. That's okay, though. I'll talk about them anyways. Wild At Heart tore me up the first time I watched it back when it first aired. I totally didn't see it coming. I loved Oz. I loved Willow. I loved Oz/Willow. Then at the end, where he looks back to the house and doesn't start the van... geez, thanks for making me feel even worse, Marti. Then, second, there's Hell's Bells. I'm one of those rare people that actually liked this episode. Once again, I loved Xander. I loved Anya the most out of any character in the Buffyverse. I loved Xander/Anya. I always thought they were the best couple on the show (screw Tara and Willow). The speech at the end, when Anya is basically begging Xander to stay... when she's only been comedic in her 3 years on the show (except for say, The Body)... it killed me. Third, there's Seeing Red. I started to really like Tara in S5 and S6. Then, they frickin' show her in the credits before the show. WAY TO GO, JOSS, YOU ASS.

But, my fourth option is on the list--The Gift. It wouldn't have been so bad if it wasn't for that damn music. Oh geez... that killed me. I was more sad that Dawn wasn't dead, though, not that Buffy was dead. Still, JM and AH's reactions at the end... oh man. Aly's eyes can just render you helpless, eh?

Innocence never got me weepy. I'm usually just smiling cause I love Angelus so much compared to Angel. I wasn't a big B/A fan, so that one and Becoming Pt. 2 didn't really mess with me. The Prom sucks. The Body just really freaked me out... I never cried over it. Passion gets me a little teary, but not weeping like some of the others.

Also, another one that got me a little teary was Normal Again, one of my favorites. When Xander says "Buffy help! I need my hands!" I don't know why but it kills me.

All are some of the best BTVS eps but the only real contenders for me were Becoming Pt 2, The Body, and The Gift. I think I cry all the way through the Body whereas the other two I cry at particular parts. I get chills when watching the closing scene in The Gift. Just watched it the other day right before I started my Season 6 DVDs.

I chose Becomming 2. It's from when the show was still pretty good. Plus, I was/am a sucker for the angst. I still can't hear Full of Grace without feeling all meloncholy.

I voted for The Prom mainly because I saw it for the first time yesterday (doing a weekend Buffy-thon with the DVDs) and I bawled during the Willow/Buffy scene and then again when Bangel danced to "Wild Horses."

Becoming, Part II... well, I cry from the opening scene until the closing scene because I had read spoilers before viewing it the first time and now I definitely know what is coming.

i actually cried in all the episodes except for The Prom which was just sweet. I also cried in Chosen but that was mainly because i didn't want the show to end and i thought it could have been better, but that's not what we're talking about here.

I had to go with The Body because unlike the other options i didn't cry at just one sad moment. The last time i watched it i cried 5 times. I know some may say a little over the top but...that's me.

I know it's not on the list but i have also been known to cry in Prophecy Girl when Buffy gives that speech, the 'Giles i'm 16 years old, i don't wana die,' which SMG did so brilliantly.

Amen, sister! That and Willow's shirt, which loosens my tear ducts for the events ahead. I have to say, though, that "Grave" was a glaring omission. It was the first time I'd seen it in a while, and the Xander-Willow moment (like I need to point it out) had me crying. So, yeah, that would've been my vote.

The part on Passions where Willow gets the news of Jenny's death by telephone always makes me lose it. AH sure can act.

Edited to say that if Graduation Day Part2 had been a choice, it would have gotten my vote for the scene where Angel walks away. DB so owned that scene. It was just beautifully done.

Why does Joss rip my heart out of my chest and feed it to his dog? Why do I let him?

I have to agree with those who go for the Willow waterworks. Everytime I see Wild at Heart I break down. Then New Moon Rising makes me cry as well. The whole thing reminds me of a similar situation I had...minus the new girlfriend...and the werewolf...
Anyway...then of course the Prom and the fabulous Class Protector.

I'd have to say the Body, for the sheer force of my sobs whenever I see Bufy realize she just called her mother "The Body" and, as others have said, for Anya's speech. EC knocked that out of the park.

But the others all get me misty as well.

-The Gift, because I've got a sister and I really would jump off a tall building for her, and also because Spike's sobbing is truly gut-wrenching.
-Innocence, because who among us has not been in that position? SMG plays the heartbreak really well.
-Passion, because I love Jenny and AH sobbing will always get to me.
-Becoming 2. Wow. Every time I watch that I cry. Every single time.
"Close your eyes" Aw, man. Here I go again.
-The Prom. Again, I always cry. But it has little to do with B/A breaking up. It's all about Jonathan giving her the class protector award.

I went for The Body, mainly just the Anya bit actually.
I don't get the fuss over Becoming, I don't even think its that sad. Probably 'cos at that point I could give a toss about Angel. I disliked him almost as much as I dislike Angelus.

The most I've ever cried over a TV show was after the last episode Chosen. To be fair, it was probably a culmination of the entire series and not that specific ep that did it.

I have to add a vote for The Gift - every time I watch it, it leaves me feeling so hollow and empty, with the gravestone as such a bittersweet image. I love The Prom - so many good things in it, it's definitely one of my favourite episodes, but it doesn't make me sad. I actually find parts of The Wish really heartbreaking - the idea of Buffy dusting Xander without even flinching gets me every time, even if it's not 'real'. The end of Tabula Rasa always reminds me exactly how bad breakups feel.

I Only Have Eyes For You- B&A getting possesed by the spirits of the dead teacher and her student/lover. The fact that Buffy was the student/guy and Angel the teacher/girl was even more genious. But the emotion that DB and SMG displayed in that scene and the amazing monologue SMG delivered just killed me. ALWAYS makes me cry.

The Body was complete genius. It was a post death episode done right, I total rarity on TV, especially in the Whedonverse. In the Whedonverse, post-death episodes have usually screwed up somehow:
-After Tara's death, they used the aftermath to create the EvilWillow plotline that was VERY widely disliked
-After Cordy's death on Angel, no one shed a tear, no one mourned, no one even mentioned it, and instead we got a stupid World War II flashback episode where Cordy's name was never even mentioned.
-After Fred's death on Angel, it was melodramtic and everyone on the show cried and got upset, Angel and Spike desperately looked for a way to bring her back, and all the characters were still making sad-comments about her death up until the finale, which was especially frustrating since Fred, a character many, many people disliked and had only been on for two years, got seven episodes of grieving plus a long, drawn-out death episode, which was made frustrating since all Cordy, a loved character who had been a part of the two shows for seven years, got was a last minute "Oh, and by the way, she's dead." in the last five seconds of the 100th episode and absolutely no grieving at all.

Then, there's this: An episode that's emotional, without being depressing. An episode that anyone who has lost someone or has had a friend who has can relate to: the awkwardness, the reminiscing, the familial comfort. The scoobies represented the basic circle of family and friends that everyone has when a loved one dies: Buffy and Dawn are the ones hit hardest that everyone feels sorry for. Xander's the one angry at fate or whatnot that deals with it by doing things like putting their fist through the wall. Tara's the friend-of-a-friend that you don't have a real strong bond with yet that you find comfort in because they've had first-hand experience with what you're going through. Anya's that toddler cousin of yours who hasn't yet grasped the concept of death. Giles is like your nice old uncle. Willow's that best friend whose trying their damndest to comfort you. That's the genius of the episode: it basically says that it doesn't matter if you're band of demon-and-vampire-slaying fighters or just the boring, American, every-family, everyone grieves the same way.

Caffiene Jolt: I'm just trying to be helpful, so that the mods don't hunt you down. But talk about Angel should go here.

Oh, and I agree that The Body is awsome.

Having just watched season 6 on DVD, I have to add Tabula Rasa to the list. Yeah, it was funny for most of the episode, but the look on everyone's faces when they suddenly remember all the crap they're going through, well...as Eddy says on AbFab, "squish, squish!"

The Body. Buffy says one word, and I cry:

"mommy?"


waterworks.

I always cry at the Prom too, when Giles looks up and I know Angel is walking in.....ok, pass the hankies.

So I picked Becoming 2. I don't remember The Gift or Prom very well, and of course I cried during the Body. I think the main reason I say Becoming 2 is because it's the episode that I remember most. It was one of the first I saw, and I cried even then, not really knowing the back story and all (maybe because I cry at everything)....plus one of my coworkers is just getting into Buffy and we've been watching the DVD's at work, and today we just watched Surprise and Innocence. I started crying during Surprise, and I was bawling by Innocence when Angel was talking to Buffy that way.....one, cuz that was just harsh, but also cuz I know what's gonna happen....

"Becoming 2"... because it is still the only one that makes me teary-eyed after repeated viewings, even though I got weepy at various points in other episodes... For example, the scene where Buffy cries in Willow's lap "I can't breathe Will" in "The Prom", the post-altercation (with Angelus) scene where Buffy cries alone in her bedroom in "Innocence" all effected me but Becoming 2 still gets me every time I watch it.

"The Body" was an absolutely brilliant episode in ever respect, one of my all time BEEs but I felt numb rather than weepy - it made me reflect back on the feelings I had when my own mother died. Kind of like Buffy - I felt like I was in a daze and going through the motions - like shock I guess. I did, however, get a bit teary in "Forever" when they were at Joyce's funeral for the same reason.

I thought Buffy's sacrifice in "The Gift" was profound but not as sad as I would have expected, perhaps because I knew there would be another season of the show with character so it wasn't a permanent thing. I'm not sure. But I didn't cry.

Oh one more moment, in "Passion"... Buffy (to Giles): "Don't leave me. I can't do this without you."... and Giles breaking down in her arms... gah!

I chose Innocence because it just hurt so much. I don't think I have ever actually cried during BtVS, but I have hurt and felt emotional agony many times. Her expression during Angelus' dismissal just makes me want to jump into the TV-set and hug her. And punch his lights out.

Buffy: "I—I don't understand. Was it me? Was I not good?"
Angel: "You were great. Really. I thought you were a pro."

Oh, the pain, oh the agony!

The Body never did much anything for me, save Anya's excellent speech. She really nailed the feeling of losing someone. "I was having fruit punch and I realised that Joyce would never be having fruit punch again."

Wild at Heart is another one where tears are close. I felt so deeply for both Willow and Oz in that episode. I always adored both of them and seeing both in such pain was just too much.

The Prom, with the scene where Buffy tells Willow that she just wants to keep from dying. I wanted to become Buffy's older sister at that point and just hug her tightly. My poor girl. Sob. ;-(

All of those make me cry, but "The Body" the most. I watched "The Prom" for the millionth time a couple of weeks ago, and it was the first time I didn't cry at "Buffy Summers, Class Protector."

Oh dang. I voted for The Gift because of the Scoobies reaction to Buffy's death but then I think about the other episodes and shun myself for voting for it.
I think I would've voted for "The Body" because of how distressed Willow is and then Anya's heartbreaking "Why?" speech. It also didn't help that after I watched it, I got a nightmare that my Mom had died. I think this is a really good episode if you like tearjerkers.
"Passion" would have to come next. When Buffy hands the Willow the phone, tears in her eyes and melts down. Then when Willow starts to cry gets me almost every time.
Next would have to come "Becoming Part 2". When I first saw it I didn't quite understand it because it was one of my first episodes and I didn't get why Buffy was so upset about killing a bad guy. But I watched the first two seasons and when the episode came rolling over again I was bawling.
The other two episodes, "Innocence" and "The Prom" didn't get me much. I felt tears coming on when Buffy got the Class Protecter award in "The Prom" but that was about it.

I definitely voted for "The Body". It's all about the scene where Giles comes into the house and Buffy says "We're not supposed to move the body!", and then realizes what she just said.
Also, the much commented upon "Fruit punch" scene has to be one of my all time favorite Buffy scenes-it made me even like Anya for a few minutes.

I voted for "Passion", which co-incidentally was on Sky this morning, because that scene where Willow gets the news of Jenny's death and just sobs, contrasted with Buffy's numbness and the complete shock of Giles just a few seconds before, is incredibly powerful for me. Alyson Hannigan is feckin incredible.

The Body is too real for me to be properly affected by it - it makes me feel sick and depressed, but no actual tears. Innocence/The Prom/Becoming, I like them all, but I'm not huge on the Bangel melodrama so I don't get that worked up over them (although every time the Sarah McLachlan kicks in I come close) The Gift is OK, but the first time I saw it I was too busy being a) pissed at the Sun for spoiling me and b) pissed at how stupid the storyline was to actually be sad, which has sorta tainted later showings. So Passion gets my vote, no question.

For me, it came down to "The Body" or "The Prom." One episode about tears of pain and loss and one about tears of joy, of happiness. I went with "The Body" because nothing can top Buffy's child-like cry of "Mommy?" in the teaser. However, my choice for Buffy's top tearjerker would be "Normal Again," because I think it's SMG's most affecting performance in the entire series. The scenes with Buffy and Joyce, when she tells Willow about her commitment at age 15--it's just painful to watch.

Tough... Let's break it down:

Innocence I really think of this as a high point of sorts. It's got it all... It's a thrill ride. Still, not the biggest tearjerker for me. Sure, it gets me a little misty, but mostly I'm just going, "Man, is this show fantastic..."

Passion Same as above, pretty much. I don't think it's quite as good as Innocence, but it ups the ante and lets us know that we're in for a hell of a finale...

Becoming We. Have. A. Winner. I get all trembly inside just thinking about the poetry of the title. "Becoming" -- Shyeah.
Probably the most relentless Buffy episode. It never lets up.

And, um, let me tell you a funny story!
When I saw it the first time I was completely unspoiled, save for something I had read here on TWoP about another episode - I don't remember which -- where the recapper complained about the characters in later seasons being hollow ghost versions of themselves or somesuch. Stupid as I can be, I took this literally, so a moment before Acathla's mouth opened and Buffy kissed Angel, I figured out the ending!

Acathla would swallow the world and everyone would die. Later on, to continue the series, the world would be restored, but everyone would be some kind of ghost version of themselves and things would not quite be the same.

This was such a beautiful, tragic ending that I immediately turned into a sobbing heap. When it did not play out as I had foreseen, I was slightly disappointed. The disappointed quickly subsided to make room for an empty, empty sadness. Now leaving Sunnydale, huh? *sniff*. My favourite episode.

The Prom Touching, yes, but no, never cried to this one. The thing I love about it is how it kind of ties up all the loose ends so that in GD1&2 it's just about the final fight.

The Body The last Buffy ever where everything is just awesome. I'm no huge fan of the fruit punch speech myself, but what gets me is the short "dukes up" moment between Xander and Willow.

The Gift I agree with what a lot of people complain about in the Season 5 thread, and that takes away from the "Bawl your eyes out" portion of the whole thing. Plus, I don't like the first half of the ep at all, really. But as soon as Buff gets up in that tower, it's ON! Same feeling you get from watching End of Evangelion, for all you anime boy/gals out there... A hero's journey, a hero's closure - sure, not perfect, but of course you got to cry.

For me it's The Prom. The Prom is the ONLY TV episode ever to cause me to actually cry (rather than just feeling choked up, as I did during The Body, or depressed, as I did during Becoming, and pretty much the entire second half of season 2). It's the scene where Buffy tells Willow that she can't breathe that starts me crying, and that just sets me off and I just pretty much sniffle through the whole thing.