The Mayor of Sunnydale continues magical rituals to prepare his Ascension to become a mighty demon, and the Scoobies do what they can to prevent it.
The Box of Gavrok is due to arrive by courier at the airport; the Mayor offers Faith a knife in return for intercepting it.
Buffy continues to fret about her future with Angel, while struggling to decide between going to college at Northwestern University in Illinois or studying closer to home at UC Sunnydale.
In the library, a heated discussion ensues on whether Willow's life is worth many thousands who could be saved if the box is destroyed.
Late at night, Buffy and Angel try to reassure each other that they could have a future together despite the Mayor's warnings, but both secretly remain unconvinced.
But still: Putting a lot of emphasis on the characters' college choices is a bit of false drama, simply because we know that if the show is to continue, they'll all end up at the same school.
Club described "Choices" as "an exciting episode, marked by an especially rousing score and some of the best fight scenes I've yet seen on the show".
He went on to praise Willow's character development, and the way the episode "reinforced its theme in nearly every plot point, line of dialogue and set dressing".
[3] A review for the BBC criticised the plot, particularly Willow being kidnapped and staying to read the Books of Ascension rather than escaping, but praised the character interactions and Alyson Hannigan's performance.