The Buffy Re-Watch Project Part 1:My Ranking Of Season One

 Hi! I hope you're all having a good day, and, if not, may I offer you virtual hugs and cake?

Recently, I was re-watching season one of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and I thought it would be fun to do a ranking. 

I've talked about Buffy before, but, basically, what you need to know about the show is that it's about a teenage girl named Buffy who's destiny is to slay vampires, demons and the forces of darkness. 

So, let's get into the ranking. 

Oh, and huge spoiler warning. If you don't want to read spoilers, maybe skip this post.
#12: Teacher's Pet

Summary [taken from IMDB}: Buffy's biology teacher is killed by a giant praying mantis that assumes the form of a beautiful substitute teacher. 

My Thoughts: *sighs* Teacher's Pet isn't a horrible episode, but it falls squarely in the ''meh'' category for me. I just don't find the plot terribly compelling. Ms. French isn't a particularly interesting villain, in my opinion, and it feels like it was really obvious that she was a praying mantis, and I was surprised that nobody besides Buffy was really suspicious of her. 

There are a few good moments in this episode. I liked that Dr. Gregory knew Buffy was smart and that she could do well in school. Cordelia's moment talking to the guidance councilor is absolutely hilarious as well.

#11: Never Kill A Boy On The First Date

Summary [taken from IMDB]: While Buffy is preoccupied by her date with Owen, Giles is trapped by a group of vampires seeking to raise their powerful leader. 

My Thoughts: There isn't anything that I think is bad about this episode. It fits squarely into the ''meh'' category for me. I did like seeing Buffy trying to live a ''normal life'', and Owen seems like a genuinely nice guy. I didn't think that the villains in this episode were all that memorable and the plot wasn't super memorable either. It's not bad, but it's definitely not one of my favorites.

#10: I, Robot......You Jane

Summary [from IMDB]: Willow's new Internet chat buddy turns out to be a powerful demon electronically unleashed from a centuries-old, newly digitized book. 

My Thoughts: I, Robot.....You Jane is pretty cheesy, but not in a cheesy-but-still-fun way. The ''don't trust strangers on the Internet'' moral feels shoved in and it's not done in a great way. The villain is also pretty ridiculous. However, we do get to see Jenny Calender for the first time, and she's a really cool character and I like her interactions with Giles.

#9: The Pack

Summary: Xander and several other students are possessed by the spirit of a demonic breed of hyenas that wreak havoc at a high school. 

My Thoughts: This episode is pretty good. The show does a great job of showing what a Hyena-like person would act like. The way they act is downright disturbing at times [like eating a pig and a man alive. That bit just disturbs me], and the villain is better than the villains in the past few episodes, but he still isn't that great, which is why this episode is #9 on the list.

#8: The Puppet Show

Summary: Buffy suspects that a ventriloqist's dummy may be harvesting organs from classmates performing in a talent show. 

My Thoughts: This episode is a great mix between creepy and funny. I liked that the dummy actually isn't the villain, but is, instead, a demon hunter who was going after Buffy because he thought that she was a demon because of her strength. I also like the end of the episode where Buffy, Willow and Xander have to put on a performance for the talent show. Cordelia remains hilarious throughout this episode and I like the introduction of Principal Snyder.

#7: Angel

Summary: Buffy discovers Angel's dark secret and hesitates to do anything about it, which could spell danger for someone she loves. 

My Thoughts: This one is really good! This is the first episode where we get to know that Angel is a vampire. We get to know a little bit about his backstory, and we get to see more of Darla, who is a fantastic villain. There's also a lot of good tension in this episode. It's not my favorite, but it's a good episode.

#6: Nightmares

Summary: A series of strange occurrences lead Buffy and her friends to discover that their worst nightmares have become reality.

My Thoughts: This episode is pretty good. I like getting to see each of the character's individual fears, which range from silly [Cordelia's worst nightmare being having a bad hair day] to scary [Buffy's fears include being turned into a vampire and being buried alive]. The villain in this episode is pretty interesting, and this episode does a great job of mixing comedy with drama.

#5: Welcome to the Hellmouth

Summary: When teen vampire slayer Buffy tries to start a new life at Sunnydale High, she discovers that the school sits atop a demonic dimensional portal. 

My Thoughts: Welcome to the Hellmouth is a great introduction to the show. You get a good sense of all of the main characters from the start, and it sets up a lot of interesting conflicts and characters. It also ends with an epic cliffhanger, which is a good way to get people to watch the next episode when it aired. It's a solid pilot, which I respect, since it's hard to write beginnings.

#4: The Harvest

Summary: Buffy and her friends encounter a powerful vampire bent on opening a portal to a dimension inhabited by demons. 

My Thoughts: Even though the title isn't actually ''Welcome to the Hellmouth Part 2'' it's basically part 2 of the pilot. It finishes up some loose ends from part 1 while setting up a season-long story arc. It's a solid episode. Like the first episode, it sets up what the show is going to be, and it does a good job with that, which is why it's one of my favorite season one episodes.

#3: Witch

Summary: Buffy suspects she has a witch on her hands when the cheerleading squad falls victim to sudden blindness and spontaneous combustion. 

My Thoughts: Witch is an episode that's pretty fun. It has its cheesy moments, but I think it's still a good episode. It introduces witchcraft to the Buffyverse and it also plays more on Buffy's desire for a normal life. The plot is pretty interesting and it has some funny moments as well. Also, after seeing Amy in more episodes later, it's so weird to see her as a character who was probably intended to only be in this episode.

#2: Out Of Mind, Out of Sight

Summary: When an invisible menace starts attacking students and faculty at Sunnydale High, the Scooby Gang traces the problem back to Cordelia. 

My Thoughts: This episode is really good! My favorite part of this episode is that Cordelia gets more depth and sort of becomes a member of the Scooby Gang. I love getting to see another side of her. The plot of this episode is also really interesting, and the villain is one of the best. At first she seems sympathetic [she turned invisible because she was ignored so much] but then we find out that there's definitely something wrong with her. She's downright scary at moments. The actress who plays her, Clea Duvall, does a great job with her character. 

#1: Prophecy Girl

Summary: Giles discovers an ancient book foretelling Buffy's death at the hands of the Master. 

My Thoughts: Prophecy Girl is a great episode. Sarah Michelle Gellar gets some great acting moments in this episode [I mean, she's always great, but she gets some awesome emotional scenes in this episode], and it does a great job wrapping up the season-long story arc with the Master. This episode has some great emotional moments from multiple characters, which is great. I love how Buffy goes from quitting being the Slayer, due to not wanting to die to fighting the Master. Also, her prom dress is great. 

So, that's my ranking for season one. Which episodes do you like best? Which episodes do you like least? What's your favorite thing about season one?