Every "genre" show has an episode that I consider "the show that launched a thousand fanfics", and this is definitely one of Buffy's. (Buffy has several, which is both a symptom of and a cause of its enduring fan base.) "Dopplegangland" has hilarious lines of dialog which comes thick and fast, and the comic timing is excellent on the part of everyone - but who could lose with those witty lines? An atmosphere of strange kink runs through it, used to great comic effect, as well as displaying secret, hidden sides to characters in subtle moments and reactions that only become apparent later in the season, or in the series as a whole. It threatens to get too silly at times, but it never does; the laughs are too smart and too genuine. This is Joss Whedon at the top of his game as both scriptwriter and director, and is the episode that made me into a fan of Whedon - and Buffy.
