First, the big news:  Buffy star Sarah Michelle Gellar and series creator Joss Whedon have both publicly stated that this will be their final season with the series, effectively squashing any rumors that UPN might ride in with a huge paycheck to keep both of them on the series.  UPN has no contract with 20th Century Fox, Buffy's producers, for any spin-off series.  This means that the current storyline will be the series' last and the series will wrap in May with a one-hour episode titled "Chosen," written and directed by Whedon.

UPN wouldn't be in much of a position to toss more money into the kitty for the show anyway.  The highly publicized purchase of the series put the network in a financial squeeze.  The terrible performance of most of the rest of the UPN lineup, including the under-achieving Enterprise, has cost the network millions in ad revenue that Buffy hasn't been able to make up on its own.  A recent announcement that the network may be cutting back its programming time may result in UPN's exclusion from the regular Nielsen ratings, which would further impact the advertising revenue.  As much as UPN would probably like to keep Buffy, the network simply couldn't afford it if it were offered to them.

Meanwhile, over at the WB, nothing definitive is being said about the fate of Angel.  While the series still hits some of the demographics that the network tries to cater to, the ratings haven't lived up to expectations.  A move to Sundays at the start of the season with fellow fantasy series Charmed failed to create the hoped-for "magic block" of programming but did give Charmed a much needed ratings boost.  Angel, on the other hand, continued to slide, prompting the series' most recent move.  A WB executive has been quoted in the press as saying that he was "hopeful" the series would return but there hadn't been a decision yet.  Translated from TV executive speak: if we launch anything that looks like it'll do better, this show is toast.  Fortunately, two of the shows the network had in development to possibly take the place of Angel crashed and burned spectacularly.  Birds of Prey failed to take flight, resulting in a cancellation after 13 episodes while the pilot movie for The Lone Ranger looks to be that series' lone episode.  The more new series that fail, the better the chances are that WB will just renew Angel rather than roll the dice on another "sure thing" that tanks in the ratings.

	-The WB The cast of Angel

While there used to be a deal for Angel to move to UPN should the WB cancel the series, that deal has expired, leaving the series without any definite place to land should it be cancelled.  The series is set to get its first exposure on UPN, however, during the Buffy finale.  A guest cast list for Buffy's final episode included the entire cast of Angel and there will be a mention of the First Evil, the current Buffy "big bad," on Angel by the end of the season.

The rumors surrounding a possible new spin-off featuring Eliza Dushku as fellow Slayer Faith took a hit earlier this week when her involvement with another television series was announced. Dushku will be starring in Heroine, a potential series for FOX being produced by Rob Cohen (xXx) and Jon Feldman (American Dreams).  Described as a cross between Run Lola Run and Groundhog Day, Dushku will play a a woman who discovers that she has the ability to save lives by changing events that have already happened.  FOX is very enthusiastic about the series, having already commissioned a number of scripts, not just a pilot.  So don't count on Faith to have a huge part, if any part at all, in a Buffy spin-off, although she will play a large part in the final episodes of the series, starting with a highly promoted return to Angel next week.

So just where does that leave the Buffy-verse at this point?  Somewhere between a rock and a hard place, taking all of the information at face value.  There is some good news, however.

The TNT cable network has announced that repeats of Angel's early season will begin running on the network, joining fellow WB series Charmed in the lineup.  The sales of both the Buffy and Angel DVD sets have been encouraging and Buffy continues to perform well in syndication so don't expect the Slayer to just disappear once the series ceases production.  And don't give up on a new spin-off just yet.  Industry newspaper Variety talked with Joss Whedon this week about the possibility of a new series based on the Buffy-verse and the outlook wasn't as dire as originally thought.

	-UPN The cast of Buffy

"We're not going to end it by saying, 'There can be no Buffy no more,'" Whedon said. "But (the last episode, "Chosen") definitely has a message of emotional and thematic closure that's as important as anything we've said."

Whedon also told Variety that UPN has shown an interest in a new series but wouldn't commit to any kind of a time table for a new spinoff.