- The only thing I dislike about this episode is the lack of Spike. Other than that, it's perfect.

- Isn't it interesting that this episode has no background music, I didn't notice it while re-watching, only when I read the transcript for it.

- Theme of the season: Family. Even though Buffy's parents are divorced, she still has the most stable homelife out of her friends. Her mother doesn't travel as much as Willow's parents and isn't as academic demanding either. Her mother isn't alcoholic as Xander's parents or abusive as Tara's.

- It's nice to see Buffy and Joyce open their house to Giles who's lonely, Willow who's Jewish, Xander and Tara who aren't celebrating holidays with their abusive parents and Anya who doesn't have parents. They're all one big family.

- Xander appreciates Anya as an ex-vengeance demon because she gives valuable information about Santa's existence. :D

- BUFFY: As long as you two stay away from the band candy, I'm cool with anything.

Bad Buffy for embarrassing Joyce and Giles like that. :D

- SMG's performance in this episode is perfect. The numb state she was in, the throwing up, the way she stared at her backyard, how she realized that her mother died when she screamed, "We're not supposed to move the body."

- Buffy cracking a bone while she gives her mother CPR, a reminder of her slayer strength I think.

- I love that Giles was the first person Buffy called. This season just shows how close these two are. IMO, S5 is the closest Buffy and Giles ever were.

- I wonder how Kirsty, Dawn's classmate, learned about Dawn cutting herself.

- It's cute that Dawn considers Buffy beating the crap out of Kirsty. I'm not sure she'd go for it though, knowing teenagers, they rather take the beating and insults than involve someone from their family to save them. Or at least that's how I remember it when I was still in school.

- I wish they had Dawn dating Kevin for awhile, not because he's cute, but as a way to deal with her mom's death. Perhaps it would've helped her if he gave her some attention and started treating her like someone special. It would have created a conflict with Buffy… guess they had no time for such a storyline.

- While Buffy's scenes earlier filled me with sadness and sorrow, I only started to cry when Dawn learned about her mom's death. Wonderful performance by both actresses.

- That snoopy teacher, she should have kept the students away from the classroom window. Let the sisters have some privacy.

- Willow's panic about what to wear is so close to life. She's the one I related to the most, I had the same clothes crisis when my grandmother had died.

- I thought Willow and Tara became roommates after Buffy left the dorm. Apparently they aren’t.

- WILLOW: God, why do all my shirts have such stupid things on them? (tosses it back down) Why can't I just dress like a grownup? Can't I be a grownup?

I guess this is the breaking point for Willow, because I don't remember her wearing something child-like and silly in S6, she's gonna start wearing more grown-up clothes from now on.

- Xander not feeling like answering Anya's questions, I can relate. I also think he doesn't have an answer to every question Anya asks.

- When Xander and Willow hugged while Tara and Anya stood in the back looking awkward, that scene shows that Tara and Anya are still the girlfriends… or probably, they just don't know Joyce that well. They're grieving way less than Xander and Willow, who probably consider Joyce some sort of a mother-figure.

- Xander's need to place the blame on someone when there's no one to blame. It just happens. Then he bursts into an anger fest. It's how he deals… when he's in pain, he gets angry or cracks a joke. I love how Tara looks concerned –she understands how he feels- love how Anya looks confused –she doesn't understand how he feels.

- But Willow is the only one who gets Xander, the only one who knew how to calm him down, I loved when he kissed her forehead in appreciation. I love their strong friendship.

- Anya's increasing questions started to get under Xander and Willow's skin. Both of them are trying to be patient with her. Xander succeeds, being her boyfriend he's more used to her. Willow, however, fails to patient and snaps at Anya to shut up.

- While Anya's speech hurts, it's weird that she doesn't understand death, hadn't she been causing it for centuries? Sure, she may freak over dying since she used to be an immortal for so long, not understand grief since she hadn't lost someone close yet, not to understand how to react to someone close dying, but death itself? I don't see why it confuses her.

- The good thing about her speech is that it made Xander and Willow sympathize with her and feel guilty over being impatient with her. Both trying to soothe her, Xander by tenderly touching her and Willow by gently explaining things to her.

- Xander deciding to blame the wall was another good scene, especially that we didn't see it, it made Willow and Anya hurry up to him, forgetting for a second about their grief.

- Loved that small moment between Xander and Tara. I hate that they don't have a lot of scenes together, they could've bonded over their abusive families.

- Awww, loved the hugs between the Scoobies, especially Xander and Giles' hug, enough of that macho handshake.

- I've noticed hints of Tara and Dawn's closeness –or foreshadowing to their closeness- for awhile. Not with big scenes but with small gestures. Last episode Dawn was hiding behind Tara when Spike came into the Magic Box. Also Tara was protectively shielding Dawn from Spike. In this episode, Dawn is only shown to be hugged by Tara, not Willow or Xander were shown to be hugging Dawn.  

- Anya's awkwardly hugging Giles was adorable. :D

- Love how Buffy's mind wanders as the doctor talks, very human. How she pictures herself preventing her mother's death, how she picture the doctor saying that he's lying about her mother not experiencing lots of pain to make her feel better.

- Poor Anya trying to comfort Buffy in her awkward, obnoxious way… which makes Xander embarrassed. I'm glad Buffy appreciated Anya's effort to be nice.

- Nice scene with Buffy and Tara bonding over their dead mothers.

- The last scene with the vampire distracted the realism of the episode but I understand the message. Life goes on. It's the same with Xander getting a ticket over double-parking. Life doesn't cut you any slack even if you're grieving.

I love this episode for so many reasons, one of which is how it always makes me cry. I watched it on DVD first, with no commercial interruptions, and it was so real and heartbreaking. Everyone's grief is shown so starkly and the different ways they feel it. After Anya's young and lost speech that asks the questions everyone really feels, notice how she finds the blue sweater Willow has been so desperately looking for and just puts it in a drawer. At the morgue, notice how the Scoobies come back loaded with food, trying to do what they can to help and needing to do something.I don't know how Joss does it, but this episode was real and terrible and poignant with funny moments and a vampire fight scene and just average, boring moments, like looking out the window to see Xander's car getting a ticket, but somehow it all fit together and never let you forget the raw loss of losing Joyce.

I thought the silences, the lack of soundtrack for songs during the ep made it hurt much more. The songs would have distanced the audience from what the characters are going through and tell us how we are supposed to feel, but we need to see how slow and quiet everything is, without guidance. The last shot, panning across Buffy and then Dawn, and then Joyce, and Dawn asks "where'd she go?", is so beautiful.