This year's season finale of "Buffy The Vampire Slayer" will be a momentous occasion for the cast and crew.

The May 22 episode will be the last time "Buffy" airs on The WB before the show moves to rival UPN next season. It will also be the series' 100th episode.

On top of that, Joss Whedon, the show's creator, is promising a highly emotional finale. He's comparing this year's big ending to the fan-favourite episode in which Buffy had to slay her vampire boyfriend Angel.

Rumours that an important character will be killed off are flying around the Internet. E! Online's TV column "Watch With Wanda" reports that a Scooby death is a certainty.

"It's big, it's heartbreaking, it's a Scooby, it's not Xander, and it's not Riley," Wanda writes.

The columnist goes on to say that during the finale, Buffy is told she must kill her "sister" Dawn to save the world. Then, at the last minute, she realizes she can kill one of her other friends instead.

"She's faced with choosing between two people she loves -- and does kill one of them," writes Wanda.

But Whedon told TV Guide that the show won't be all about tears, promising that the finale will be full of "Buffy" action.

"Saving the world is what we do here at Buffy Entertainment," Whedon said, "so there's going to be some punching and some death, too."