Mystical Death Vs. Natural Death

[buffynerd]

So, this idea popped into my head while reading the Season 8 thread about whether Tara should come back or not. Lots of arguement was made that Tara shouldn't come back because she died naturally but it was ok that Buffy came back because her death was mystical.

Here's my question, was Buffy's death actually mystical?

The thing is, it could be natural. She essentially did a belly flop on concrete after jumping off a high tower. Yeah, she stopped for a few seconds to close the rift but then, ultimately, she just fell really really far. Slayer strength aside, could a slayer really live through a fall like that?

What do you think mystical or no?

[artiswar]

Mystical. Buffy was dead by the time she hit the pavement.

[alycat7]

yeah, i doubt the pavement was what killed her. Cuz in Bargaining part 2, she fell off the same tower with Dawn and she was ok.

[Wyndam]

It was mystical. You more or less see her die when she is passing through the gate/portal/energy thing. Besides, that actually slowed her down so even if she had survived passing through it, she may not have died when she hit the pavement.

[snizapman6294]

you bring up a really good point... i mean technically, she jumped, but it does seem that she was killed by the magics inside the portal... also, i never understood how Osiris couldn't bring back Tara... i understand that it would be kinda wierd if it was like OH NO SHE GOT SHOT!!! oh, wait, she's back, it's okay everyone!!!

[dane5by5]

She was killed by the mystical portal, the whole idea of the "key" opening the door to the other dimension, and once Dawn's blood stopped flowing, which was the actual key (her essence) the dimensional rift would close. Buffy sacrificed herself by jumping into the energy (which killed her) and that closed the rift as they shared the same blood.

[Greer]

The whole idea of the portal opening and closing was related to the blood flowing. The portal would've never closed if Buffy's blood didn't stop flowing. I could never be sure if that great of a fall could kill her, that's just something we'd have to leave up to speculation. She did fall about halfway off the tower while fighting with Glory and she got right back up.

[Skytteflickan88]

It might not have been the blood flowing, just that she died that closed the portal. It all depends on how and how much we think that Buffy & Dawn are connected.

But the blood-stoped-flowing-due-to-heart-stopped-ticking is the easiest explanation.

[XanderHarris]

I think it went like that:

- time period of blood-flow of the Key = time period of dimensional walls torn down
- as long as the Key is alive, the portals are open
- as Buffy and Dawn share the same blood, Buffy = the Key
- by the time Buffy jumped off the tower and into the portal, she died while falling through the portal ---> lightnings and so on that destroy the City Hall and the Main Street that indicate that the portal was opened for an instant

And, when I recall correctly, we see her actually die or at least loose consciousness before hitting ground.

[Tyler Austin "tiewashere"]

They show her die while she's inside the energy rift thing.