Buffy the Vampire Slayer Review

Greetings! 

Before we start, let me thank all of you for your sweet comments on my last post. They meant a lot to me. 

Okay, on to today's post, which is a review of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. 

Usually, I don't do two reviews so close to each other, but I felt like I needed to do a Buffy review, and, since I don't really have a blogging schedule, I just go wherever the inspiration tells me to. I finished Buffy back in February, but I haven't really found a way to put my thoughts into words until now. 

Anyway, onto the actual review.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer was created by Joss Whedon, and stars Sarah Michelle Geller, Nicholas Brendon, Alyson Hannigan, Anthony Stewart Head, James Marsters, David Boreanaz, Emma Caulfield-Ford, Charisma Carpenter, Michelle Trachtenberg, Amber Benson, Seth Green, Marc Blucas, and Kristine Sutherland. 

Summary: Buffy Summers is your typical girl in most ways. Except for one thing----she's the Slayer, meaning that she's destined to fight and kill vampires, demons and the other forces of darkness. With the help of her friends, she must learn how to balance fighting evil with school, romance, and life in general.

My Thoughts: 

This is why Giles is the best.

Do you ever come across those shows or books or movies that feel like they were made just for you? 

That's how Buffy is for me [especially the earlier seasons]. I have a few issues with it, but it's one of my favorite shows, and probably always will be. 

I don't think I'm giving any spoilers in this review, but there might be a few small ones that I missed.

What I Liked:

-The characters

And this surprises absolutely nobody. I have some issues with some of the choices that a few characters made, but, in general, most of them were interesting, well-developed characters, and I got very, very emotionally invested in their stories [you'll get to hear more about them in the characters section]. I say that everybody is my favorite, and it's true. Also, the villains [except Adam] are so good too!

-The dialogue

I love witty dialogue and some good, old-fashioned banter, and Buffy has plenty of both. I don't feel like I can explain it anymore, so here are some of my favorite quotes [besides the one above].

-''I may be dead, but I'm still pretty.''

-''Hey, Mr. Beech. I was just wondering if you were planning on killing a bunch of people tomorrow. Oh, it's for the yearbook.''

-''We attack the mayor with hummus.''

-''Xander, stop taunting the fear demon.''

-''I mock you with my monkey pants.''

-''I wear the cheese. It does not wear me.''

-''Xander, don't speak Latin in front of the books.''

-''You know I don't like that kind of language, Faith. I'm a family man. Now, let's kill your little friend.''

-The mish-mash of genres

I love how Buffy is never predictable. Most episodes have a hints of action, fantasy, comedy, drama, and occasionally even horror and musical. Also, storylines are rarely repeated, which I think is great.

-The fight scenes

Sure, in some of them it's really obvious that they're using a stuntperson, but most of the fight scenes are really well-choreographed, and they're so much fun to watch!

-All the supernatural stuff

I loooove fantasy and most supernatural things in fiction, so I loved that element. I've always liked vampires, so that was icing on the cake. Although the show is called Buffy the Vampire Slayer, there are more than just vampires in it. There are werewolves, witches, demons, and lots more. 

What I Didn't Like

-There were a few episodes that were just kind of lackluster. I'm not sure what it was, but they just didn't do it for me. 

-Also, Season Six isn't my favorite. There were some good episodes, I love the Trio, and I don't think I'd skip it on a re-watch, but I had a lot of problems with that season.

-The other thing is that there were some characters who shouldn't have been killed off or just taken off the show. That might just be a personal preference, though. 

Characters

Buffy Summers

Buffy is a good example of the Chosen One done well. Being the Slayer, she's way stronger than most people, but she isn't perfect, which is part of what makes her a good character. She's smart and she's strong, but she makes mistakes and has her flaws, like everyone else. Also, for those of you who want more feminine heroes in sci-fi/fantasy, Buffy is your girl. She's very feminine and fashionable, and that's never treated as a weakness. What I like most about her is that, no matter how much she whined or complained or was against the idea, she always came through in the end. 

Willow Rosenberg

Willow is Buffy's best friend, and she worked really well as a foil to her. She also had, I think, the best character development of the four original Scooby Gang members [up until Season Six, that is]. She starts out being a very shy, very timid nerd, and she becomes a much more confident, outgoing and powerful witch, but without losing her dorky side. Again, she's flawed, which is part of what makes her a great character. 

Alexander 'Xander' Harris

Apparently, people on the Internet really hate Xander and I'm not sure why. I've always liked him. After all, he's more than just being Willow's funny best friend. Sure, he's not a genius, a Slayer, a vampire, or a former demon....he's just an average guy, and the heart of the Scoobies. 

Rupert Giles

I think Giles gets the title of best fictional librarian, hands down. He's a bookish, British, and Buffy's Watcher [Watchers are meant to oversee the Slayers, and make sure they're doing their job right]. He's very wise, and is provides lots of logic to the Scoobies [so, basically, he's a Ravenclaw]. Also, I love how he's like a father figure to Buffy.

Angel

Ah, Angel. He's a vampire, and dates Buffy in the earlier seasons. I did like him, although I like him better on Angel, his spin-off show. Here he's kind of limited to being Buffy's broody and mysterious vampire boyfriend. I do still love him, though, and I was so excited to see him in the spotlight on Angel.

Cordelia Chase

Cordelia starts off as your typical mean popular girl, but she gets A LOT of character development. Sure, she's still blunt and shallow, but she's also a lot smarter and more resourceful than she seems, and she has her moments of being kind. I actually really liked Cordy, and I'm glad to see her again on Angel.

Daniel 'Oz' Osbourne 

Oz is Willow's boyfriend in Seasons Two and Three. He's a genius, although he's kind of lazy, a guitar played in a band, and a werewolf. He's also very, very, very chill, and pretty quiet. I really like Oz, but I don't love him, and I'm not totally sure why people do. So, if you do, why is that? I'm not trying to be rude, I'm just trying to understand why he's a fan-favorite. 

Anya

Anya was another one of my favorites. She's a former vengeance demon and an exceptional businesswoman with no social skills, and a fear of bunnies. How much more entertaining could you be? I wish Anya had more development, aside from just being comic relief, but I do really like her, and I think she's fantastic.

Spike

Spike is another fan-favorite. He's a vampire and he was one of the big bads in Season Two, and he was so popular he kept being brought back. I completely understand why he was so popular, and I love him. He's funny, he has great character development [again, except for Season Six], and he made a really great addition to the team. He's another one of my favorites.

Riley Finn

Riley was introduced in Season Four. He's sort of a soldier, and the most ''normal'' guy Buffy dates. *sighs* Look, I tried to like Riley. I really did. I just.....don't. He started out as just being boring to me, but then, towards the end of his time on the show, he started to get worse and worse. I'm not going to spoil anything, but, let's just say, I didn't like how his story ended. 

Tara Maclay

Tara! I really loved Tara [I have a weakness for shy, sweet characters as well as morally grey or evil characters. Ooh, someone should combine both. That'd make my dream character]. She's a shy and sweet witch [actually, personality-wise, she kind of reminds me of Fanny Price from Mansfield Park]. I actually think she developed more in Season Six, as opposed to everyone else. She started to get a personality besides just being a love interest.

Dawn Summers

Dawn is Buffy's little sister, introduced in Season Five [yes, Season Five. It's complicated]. A lot of people hated her, but I actually liked her. I didn't love her, but I definitely didn't hate her. Yes, she can be whiny, but she's also brave, smart, resourceful, and lots of other great things.

Andrew Wells

Andrew was a villain in Season Six, but he became part of the Scooby Gang in Season Seven. Again, he wasn't my favorite, but he was funny, and I liked his dynamic with the rest of the team. 

Faith Lehane

Okay, so Faith wasn't really part of the Scooby Gang, but she was there for about half of Season Three, so I'm gonna say that she counts, anyway, plus she's another one of my favorites. She's sort of like the anti-Buffy. She's a bit of a bad girl, and she doesn't always make the best choices, but she's such an interesting character, and I love her [it probably doesn't help that Eliza Dushku is gorgeous but we'll pretend that I'm not shallow for just a minute, okay?].

Content: Even though it's a supernatural show, I don't think it's that scary. The only two episodes that I think are actually scary are ''Hush'' and ''Killed by Death.'' There is some violence, but, again, there's only a few instances where it's really violent [the episode with the skin-eating demon, the one where a villain pokes someone's eye out, and another one where someone's skin gets ripped off]. There is some sex and swearing, but not that much. 

So, if you haven't seen Buffy, do you want to? And, if you have, let's talk about. What did you like? What didn't you like? Who are your favorite characters? Favorite ships? Favorite seasons and episodes?