Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Wow, I almost didn't realize that it was time for a new show. Thankfully, Chris updated his site with his music of the month (good band, check them out), which reminded me.

I decided to go back to a solid favorite for a couple of reasons. The first is that none of my friends have ever really watched Buffy, and it's a fairly important series. Not just important, but also good. It artfully combines horror, science fiction, sarcasm, and even a little bit of drama in a way that hasn't been done, well, ever. The second is that Jessica told me about this, which is very exciting, and I have to go to it.

There are a lot of reasons that Buffy is important, even beyond the fact that it's great television. Joss Whedon has gone on to do more great things (can anyone say "Firefly?"), a large number of the writers have gone on to either create or write for other great shows. Another huge thing Buffy brought us was the idea of a self-contained season, meaning that each season has a plot and conclusion, and while they all tie together, each one can exist on their own.

But Buffy also paved the way for shows like Alias and Veronica Mars (and a handful of other shows that I don't watch), in that Buffy had a strong central female character. This really hadn't been done before Buffy. It also showed that supernatural and occult ideas and concepts wouldn't flop on television, and we've since had far too many shows go from there for me to list.

I own Seasons 1, 3, 6, and 7, which are the four best and most important seasons in the series. Four and Five I try to pretend don't exist. Here's a breakdown of each season (with a few spoilers, so beware).

Season 1: There's a new slayer in town, and her name is.... Buffy? While the name sounds like she should be a cheerleader, Buffy soon tells the demons of Sunnydale that there's a new sheriff in town. Has one of the best evil demons of the show, The Master (even if the name wasn't original, he's still pretty cool).

Season 2: Lame because it focuses on the Buffy-Angel romance, which I never really cared for. Angel wasn't my favorite character, and I can't say I was disappointed when he died (great ending for the season, though).

Season 3: Has the introduction of a new slayer (Faith) for Buffy to compete with. Also has The Mayor, who's the big bad for the season, and is a great character. Buffy manages to graduate from high school, and promptly blows the place up. Go her.

Season 4: Buffy goes to college and meets Riley (one of the few good things in the season - the actor, not the character). There's a new team trying to play the game, but Buffy soon shows them who's boss.

Season 5: Buffy has a new little sister, and she's a teenager? Um, okay. We'll just try to forget that this one exists as Buffy has to battle a goddess who, in her free time, is a male hospital intern. Riiiight.

Season 6: A return to form for the Scooby-team. Buffy is brought back to life by some bad-ass magic, and Willow turns evil. Also has the best trio of villains ever, who are complete nerds, and allow Joss to input all the geek-pop culture references he could want. (The van that they use as a mobile headquarter plays the Imperial March as it's horn). Of course, one of the main characters bites the bullet, and Willow goes mental and fillets a guy. Which is pretty sweet.

Season 7: The final season, and the show goes out with a bang. The Watchers (stupid British pricks) are blown up (woohoo!) and Buffy has to bring all sorts of would-be slayers under her wing in Sunnydale. Cue Caleb (Nathan Fillion, my hero), "The Preacher," who takes his cue from Robert Mitchum in "The Night of the Hunter" and is incredibly creepy, and it's a quality season. One of the best, in fact.