Buffy the Vampire Slayer will change. Your. Life.
Many dismiss the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer because of the campy movie of the same name that preceded the series, or even for the ridiculous-sounding title and the name of the central character.
However, fans of the cult show understand that there are few examples of such a well-executed mixture of genres (which, in the hands of almost any producer other than Joss Whedon, should really have nothing to do with one another). Drama, comedy, action, horror—all these apply to and fail to define Buffy.
Some of the pithiest, best-written lines I’ve ever encountered, along with the (occasionally excessive) tasteful sexual content, make Buffy the greatest guilty pleasure in the history of guilty pleasures. But that’s not enough to say that something will change your life, especially when I would nerdily maintain that this show helped shape me as I am today—even though it has been off the air since 2003, a full five years before I downloaded the first episode from iTunes.
Watching Buffy and her geeky-but-loyal Scooby Gang fighting vampires and other “big bads” while navigating the social landscape of high school and then college inspired me at a time when I found myself having to undergo similar rigors during my own second year of high school. Of course, I grappled with understanding my math homework rather than staking vampires on a nightly basis, but the sentiment behind that sometimes dark, sometimes dazzlingly beautiful pubescent world that Joss Whedon created in Buffy rang true all the same.
I would also argue that the supernatural angle to the show, far from beating the viewer over the head with the “high school is hell!” metaphor, serves to elevate the stakes of coming-of-age situations that, to a high school or college student, might truly feel life-or-death. Losing your virginity only to discover your partner has transformed in his or her attitude towards you, for example, becomes in Buffy’s world her vampire lover losing his soul after the moment of “perfect happiness” that is his sexual release. As the show progresses in seasons, Buffy and the gang’s non-supernatural problems mature alongside them.
Life-changer rating: 7/10
I’m not sure I would go so far as to say that Buffy completely transformed my worldview, but it is something I come back to when I find myself feeling sluggish, unmotivated, or sad. It is a show that energizes and inspires by virtue of the way it implicates the fully invested viewer in every scene, and I believe it deserves far more recognition for its artistic merit than it has received.
Put aside your preconceived notions—and your cheesiness filter, because most of the show aired during the ‘90s, after all—and watch just the first episode. I can almost guarantee you’ll be crying at the series finale in no time.But for how long, exactly, will Buffy the Vampire Slayer change your life? A couple of months, which is the length of time you will lose whatever semblance of a social life you have to watch all seven seasons of the show in quick succession.
There are people who don’t like Buffy?!?!
Finally an article that makes sense. I totally understand how you feel. It has a powerful essence of strength, courage and bravery that encourages you to see the world from a different perspective, in which you understand more about life in a deeper, analytical meaning. – if that makes sense. It’s vast story-lines and the many obstacles and decisions the Scooby gang make throughout the six seasons really teach you what it’s like to be human and how we have to deal with the world everyday, regardless of its fictional genre. Long live Buffy!
James, I couldn’t agree more and I’m so glad other people feel as passionately about the show as I do. It could have been a typo but I noticed you said six seasons — if you haven’t seen the seventh and last season I strongly encourage you to watch it straight through right this minute!
Its nice to see there are a bunch of Buffy fans out there, this was my most fav show when it first started, watched it every tuesday @ 8pm, i never finished the show back in the day so 2 months ago i decided to watch it from the very beginning. I forgot how great this show was. I laughed i cried the whole sha bang and earlier tonight i watched the final episode and cried like a complete baby! Im sad that i finished it all and am debating wheather to start watching it all over again, you just dont find shows this awesome anymore, i think the acting played a big role, the scooby gang always held it together even if part of the time they were trying to kill eachother against their own free will.but what got me was it was always about true friendship, and thats what made the show completely amazing.
Everyone that loves Buffy also needs to watch the five seasons of Angel! It’s also a pretty epic show. Just wanted everyone to know that.
I meant seven seasons! THAT IS A TYPO I SHOULD HAVE NEVER MADE I AM A DEVOTED FAN. Oh my god. I don’t think Angel is the same as Buffy. It just doesn’t have that originality and the sense of being in a city makes it feel more like CSI than a supernatural drama in a suburban village.
didn’t everyone already realize this in middle school?
Buffy is sick
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