Recently I had decided to re-watch the Buffy the Vampire Slayer TV series. I know it's not the best television show, but there are also elements that I do enjoy. The first time I watched Buffy I was of the target age group for which it was aimed. I didn't see every episode, even missing huge chunks of it. I have seen it from start to finish only once since. This time round I'm trying to figure out why I like it and what my favourite bits are, so I have decided to write about some episodes and characters.
For those unfamiliar with Buffy, the show focuses around Buffy Summers, a young High School student who also happens to be a Vampire Slayer, charged with protecting the world from Vampires and Demons and endowed with super powers. The show starts with her and her mother (recently divorced) moving to the town of Sunnydale to start afresh. She is guided by a middle-aged, English librarian named Rupert Giles who is her Watcher. She also becomes friends with Xander Harris and Willow Rosenberg, two unpopular students at Sunnydale High. The school they go to happens to be on top of a Hellmouth which attracts an abnormal amount of demonic and supernatural goings on. The is also a love interest for Buffy in the form of the vampire with a soul, Angel.
The first season of Buffy was quite weak, mainly because there were only 12 episodes as opposed to the 22 of subsequent seasons. The main core of characters are being established along with the set-up. There are many poor jokes being made about juvenile problems. The main theme of Buffy was initially "High School is Hell". The demons being fought were metaphors for the personal demons and obstacles we face, in this case, as adolescence. This is not subtly done and not a reason why I watch the show now. When I first watched it I could identify more as I was closer to the age of the most of the main characters. The earlier seasons have the show trying to find its feet and establish itself, like many other TV shows.
My pick of the first season is the episode Nightmares. As the title may suggest, this episode focuses on the characters having to confront their fears. I like this sort of exploration, where nightmares get manifested literally, mainly because I am very interested in dreams (specifically my own, but maybe that's another article all in itself). There's not a great deal more that can be said for it. Like much of the first season, it's just a bit of fun.
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