Buffy The Vampire Slayer gave us seven incredible seasons during its run from 1996 to 2003, which was filled with tons of action, adventure, heartbreak, and of course, drama. The show followed high schooler Buffy Summers as she realized her calling as a vampire slayer. And with the help of her trusted friends and supernatural sidekicks, she saved the world. A lot.

Arguably one of the best things about was the array of interesting and dynamic characters that we grew attached to during the show’s run. Joss Whedon has a penchant for making characters who are relatable and witty yet also flawed and complex. Given that the show is about a vampire slayer, it goes without saying that many of these characters were vampires. There was always a vamp hiding around each corner waiting to try their hand at the slayer, but Buffy and the Scoobies always ended up successful. Some of these vampire foes even became their friends (and lovers - well if you’re Buffy).

That’s why we’ve compiled a list of the most powerful vampires from the show. Whether they almost took down the world or just took down another character with their witty comments, we bet you’ll be surprised as to which vampires come out on the top and which ones we consider a flop.

10. The Anointed One

We think Spike got it right when he referred to this child vampire as ‘The Annoying One’ rather than ‘The Anointed One.’ Viewers were led to believe this kid was going to be one of the Big Bads of the season and that he was going to pose a serious challenge for Buffy and the Scoobies.

Granted, the kids did lead Buffy to The Master, but that wasn’t the hardest task. In the end, all it took to destroy this vampire was Spike exposing him to direct sunlight, which was a pretty lacklustre way to go, in the grand scheme of themes. It didn’t help that the child acting was pretty cringe-worthy, which is just another reason this vampire was more annoying than powerful.

9. Harmony Kendall

Granted, Harmony wasn’t a vampire when we met her. She was sort of like a Regina George knock-off but with half the brains. And while fans may have thought transforming into a vampire at graduation would’ve made Harmony more vicious, she was still pretty much the same Valley Girl afterwards.

There was never a moment that Harmony was truly scary or posed a huge challenge to Buffy and her gang. Instead, even as a vampire, Harmony was more concerned about her looks and her dating life - any vampire that refers to Spike as ‘Blondie Bear’ can’t be too dangerous, right?

Although Harmony may not be the most powerful vampire in the Buffyverse, she’s definitely still one of our favorites, especially thanks to her redeeming arc on Angel.

8. Anne Pratt

Don’t remember this character? Well, Anne Pratt was the mother of William Pratt, who hard-core fans will recognize as the human version of Spike.

In the sixth season of Buffy, we learn that Spike adored his mother so much that he transformed her into a vampire after he becomes one so that they can be together eternally. However, things go awry quickly. His mom actually starts trying to come onto him in a weird Freudian-inspired way.

Spike quickly realizes it’s the evil of the vampire talking to him, not his actual mom, so he stakes her. Although Mrs. Pratt may not have been the most powerful in the physical sense, that whole scene between her and Spike still leaves our stomachs churned, which is this vampire makes our list.

7. Vampire Willow

Fans got insight into what Willow would be like as a vampire during the episodes “The Wish” and “Doppelganger.” Unlike the real Willow, her vampire twin cares next to nothing about anyone. Vampire Willow isn’t afraid to cause chaos wherever she goes and she wasn’t half bad at it, which is why she ends up at #6 on this list.

However, even Vampire Willow wasn’t half as bad as Evil Willow, who the Scoobies come face-to-face with in season five. She almost destroys the world because she’s so heartbroken after the death of Tara (and who can blame her - we’re still not over that!). Many fans believe that Vampire Willow foreshadowed what Willow would later turn into.

6. Darla

Darla was one of the oldest vampires on the show, having turned Angel who later turned Drusilla who then transformed Spike.

Being the oldest of their group means that she had the most time to hone her skills, which is likely why she was so conniving and evil. With that being said, she never seemed to have much of a chance against Buffy and friends, which is likely why Darla kept running away only to reappear at inopportune times.

Granted, many fans found Darla to be cooler during her stint on Angel, but cooler doesn’t necessarily translate into more powerful.

5. The Master

The Master’s best quality was probably his sharp-witted humor. That could cut a person down to size in an instant - metaphorically speaking. But along with his fruit punch mouth, The Master was also pretty scary and powerful.

Throughout the first season, we were led to believe he was going to fulfill an ancient prophecy and kill the vampire slayer. And technically he did do that. Buffy was dead when Xander and Angel got to her after her run-in with The Master, and it was only because of Xander’s quick-thinking (well, and CPR) that she survived.

Had The Master stuck around to make sure he definitely got rid of Buffy then maybe he would have had a higher ranking on this list. But in the end, this was another Big Bad that Buffy had the final say with.

4. Drusilla

Drusilla was a special brand of crazy, which is what helped her seem so frightening. She had an incredible gift of foresight, allowing her to see things before they happened. But she wasn’t the greatest at communicating, so it was hard to tell if she was hallucinating or not.

Her irrationality is what made her so evil. She never had a second thought while causing mayhem - to her it was just a game. She always had inventive ideas for how to cause misery and would throw a tantrum if she didn’t get her way. Plus, she was brilliant in Angel.

Still, Dru’s one weakness was men. She loved both Spike and Angel, which drove her even crazier and ended up foiling most of her plans. Although, we would’ve loved to see more screen time between her and Spike since their banter was next level.

3. Turok-Han

The Turok-Han weren’t your average vampires. Rather, we were introduced to these hybrid uber-vamps in season seven when the First Evil was preparing an army filled with them. At first, it appeared almost impossible to kill one of these guys. Buff had a hard time taking on only one of them, which is what made The First’s army of them seem so overwhelming.

However, in the end, it appears the Turok-Han weren’t as powerful as we thought. By the end of season seven, the gang had figured out how to take on these bad boys. While trying to close the hellmouth in the last episode, even the humans with no slayer-abilities were able to off the Turok-Hans left and right, proving they weren’t as powerful as we once thought.

Fans have actually expressed disappointment over the inconsistency concerning the Turok-Hans powers. But we’re just glad the team was able to close the hellmouth!

2. Angel

Oh, Angel. When he was good, he was good. But when he was bad, he was really, really bad.

Not only could this vampire be violent and ruthless, but he was also an expert at emotional torture. It drove fans insane seeing the ways he tormented Buffy in season three after he lost his soul. Heck, he literally almost caused the end of the world that season.

Angel went on to do great things on his own spin-off show, proving he’s one of the most powerful and developed vampires in the Buffy verse. Still, move on to our last entry to see why we think Angel deserves spot #2, rather than #1 (sorry, not sorry!).

1. Spike

We know that Team Angel fans are probably screaming at their computers right now, but hear us out.

There are plenty of reasons Spike was the most powerful vampire in the Buffyverse. First of all, he was just diabolical in general. When he put his mind to something, he did it. Just think about how he beat The Anointed One with just the snap of a finger, and all the crazy things he and Dru plotted against Buffy. But Spike really began showing how powerful he was later on in the seasons.

He fell for Buffy without having a soul and then went through hell to get it back just for her. Then, it was revealed he was the only one who could wear the amulet, thus sacrificing himself to save the world. Angel originally thought he would be the champion to wear the amulet, but in the end, Spike was the chosen one and he willfully took on the responsibility. And that’s why he’s the most powerful in our books.

Plus, it helps that he’s pretty awesome during his time on Angel, too.