Agreed. I can't believe Joss chose that avenue. Although in the end he does try to keep you confused, but come on.

So, since the spoilers don't really tell you anything in this area, what do you think the chances are that Xander and Anya will get back together?

Well, I don't want to talk about the spoilers on here at all, but the x/a thing -- I think they really will be the light at the end of the Tunnel that is the last 4 episodes.

No spoilers, got it boss!!!

It was very St. Elsewhere-ish, something that should have been reserved for a season/series finale, not the middle of the 6th season.

And I also am of the hope and belief that X/A will reconcile things.

humor me-

is it possible that the episode in question was not about 'dream states' or mental sickness as much as it was about 'alternate realities'?

I take this from the following:
1. Spike blathers mid-way thru plot about alternate realities (Joss is giving us a retro-hint)
2. BtVS has dealt with alt realities in several episodes already (vamp Willow et al)
3. the demon toxin was selected by the Dim Troika to 'mess with' the Slayer and keep her out of the way, but there isn't the feeling that they think it will keep her away forever, or that they don't need to find another solution.

I think the ending-- ie continuing to invest in the "hallucination" past Buffy's "cure" is a curve ball, not a cop out

Yeah, I realized later that I could have been misunderstood -- the only part of the episode I didn't like was the 'continuing to invest in the hallucination past the cure' part.

I wanted the dream to end then. I didn't want it to be invested with a reality of it's own, separate from Buffy's attention to it. Bothered me. Annoyed me, still does.

Not a cop out, I guess. I just didn't like it.

yeah- I agree
my immediate reaction and my continuing reaction is that it was...

...unnerving.

It made the whole story even MORE disturbing than it already was.

Which, I admit, is one of the things I like about Buffy-- the stories will sometimes upset me.