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Revision as of 23:39, 12 October 2012
Template:SPOILERS
- “I'm Buffy. The Vampire Slayer. And you are...?”
- ―Buffy Summers[src]
Buffy Anne Summers was a Slayer that was activated in the late 20th century. Born in 1981, she was called to be the Slayer in 1996 at the age of fifteen. She was originally based in Los Angeles, but, due to an incident involving a gang of vampires at Hemery High School there, she later moved to Sunnydale. There, she acted as guardian of the Hellmouth for seven years before the town's destruction in 2003. Initially a reluctant hero who constantly wished for nothing more than a normal life, Buffy eventually grew to embrace her destiny. Buffy is unique as a Slayer in many ways; she refuses to sacrifice her ordinary life for her supernatural destiny, often operates as part of a team with her friends the "Scooby Gang," and has maintained several romantic relationships, two of which were with notorious vampires Angel and Spike.
Buffy is one of the longest-lived Slayers, and has returned from death not once, but twice, an act which disrupted the magic surrounding the traditional Slayer line. During their war with the First Evil, Buffy enacted a plan to activate all the Potential Slayers of the world, abolishing the traditional line of "Chosen Ones," before dedicating herself to tracking and training the Slayers she was responsible for creating.
In early 2005, Buffy, along with Angel, was involved in an ancient prophecy that would bring about the sentient "Twilight" dimension, destroying the Earth in the process. When Angel, possessed by Twilight, murdered her beloved Watcher and father figure, Rupert Giles, Buffy, enraged and grief-stricken, destroyed the Seed of Wonder, thus bringing about the end of magic on Earth. Now considered a pariah amongst the remaining Slayers, Buffy has since established herself in San Francisco, where she continues her Slayer duties.
Biography
Los Angeles
A young Buffy helplessly watching her cousin's murder
Buffy was born to Hank and Joyce Summers on January 19th 1981, in Los Angeles, California. At the age of eight, Buffy was close friends with her cousin Celia, and enjoyed playing superhero with her. Buffy looked on helplessly as Celia was murdered in her hospital bed by Der Kindestod, a demon that killed sick children and was only visible to those who were ill, an experience which instilled in Buffy a fear of hospitals.[7] Growing up, Buffy came to idolize Olympic ice skater Dorothy Hamill as she learned the sport herself.[10] In fifth grade, she developed a crush on sixth grader Billy Fordham; although the two were friends, he never returned her feelings.[11] Buffy started attending Hemery High School in 1995; during her time there she became a popular cheerleader and was elected both Prom Princess and Fiesta Queen.[12][13]
- “I've got a few things the other girls didn't have. For one thing, there's my keen fashion sense...”
- ―Buffy identifies her strengths as a Slayer.[src]
Buffy's carefree youth was cut dramatically short
At the age of fifteen, Buffy started having violent dreams about women from different periods of history slaying monsters. It was all explained to her when she was approached by Merrick, a mysterious man who revealed her destiny as the Chosen One and became her first Watcher.[14] Buffy and Merrick initially butted heads due to his intolerance of her teenage-girlishness. However, the pair eventually gained a mutual fondness as he trained her for battle against the vampire king Lothos. As Buffy's increasingly strange behavior alienated her from her peers, including her boyfriend Jeffrey, she befriended fellow social outcast Pike, relying on him for support after Merrick sacrificed himself to protect her from Lothos. Despite little training, Buffy managed to defeat Lothos and his minions at her school dance. Unfortunately, she burnt down the high school gym in the process, for which she was subsequently expelled. Shortly after her expulsion, Buffy and Pike took an impromptu trip to Las Vegas to hunt vampires.[15] Upon her return, Buffy told her parents what had happened at Hemery and about her destiny as the Slayer. They refused to believe her, thinking instead that she was losing her mind. They made the decision to commit her to an insane asylum. Shortly after her arrival, Buffy realized that it was better not to perpetuate her story and was released after a few short weeks. Buffy and her parents never spoke of it again.[16]
Sunnydale High
At Sunnydale High, Buffy becomes best friends with Xander and Willow, who aid her in her Slayer duties
Sophomore
- “It's my first day! I was afraid that I was gonna be behind in all my classes, that I wouldn't make any friends, that I would have last month's hair. I didn't think there'd be vampires on campus.”
- ―Buffy is unable to escape her destiny as the Slayer[src]
Buffy's parents, who had been experiencing marital troubles for years, finally divorced, and Buffy moved with her mother to 1630 Revello Drive in Sunnydale, a small town in California. Little did they know that the town was located on a Hellmouth, and that Buffy's presence there was predestined. Buffy enrolled at Sunnydale High, where she became friends with Xander Harris and Willow Rosenberg, as well as her new Watcher, Rupert Giles. She also met Cordelia Chase, a superficial cheerleader reminiscent of Buffy before she became the Slayer, and Angel, a mysterious and handsome stranger who aided Buffy with cryptic advice.[17] Though initially trying for a normal life without slaying, she was forced to except her duties and successfully stopped the vampire ritual known as the Harvest by the Order of Aurelius, a vampire cult under the rule of ancient and power vampire the Master, who was trapped underground in Sunnydale. Together, Buffy, Xander, Willow, and Giles formed the "core four" of the "Scooby Gang" and continued to investigate the various supernatural mysteries that occurred on the Hellmouth.[18] Wishing to have a social life separate from her Slayer duties, Buffy tried out for the cheerleading squad and briefly dated fellow student Owen Thurman, but these attempts at normalcy were quickly thwarted by supernatural activity.[12][19]
Buffy was shocked that Angel was a vampire
Buffy gradually developed an attraction to Angel, and was horrified when she came to realize that he was a vampire. Though initially reluctant to slay him, she ultimately decided to do so when it appeared that Angel had attacked her mother. She relented upon discovering that he had a human soul as a result of being cursed by a Gypsy clan as punishment for his vicious crimes. Additionally, she found out that Angel had in fact been set up by the vampire Darla of the Order of Aurelius, Angel's sire and Joyce's true attacker, who was staked by Angel in the ensuing confrontation.[20]
Buffy faces the Master
When people's nightmares began coming true in Sunnydale, Buffy's guilt over her parents' divorce manifested and she was briefly transformed into a vampire.[21] When a string of odd occurrences started, making what was believed to be the oncoming apocalypse, Giles warned Buffy that she would eventually be forced to battle the Master as the Hellmouth would open.
- “Giles, I'm sixteen years old. I don't wanna die.”
- ―Buffy upon learning of her prophesied death[src]
Upon learning that the infallible Pergamum Codex prophesied her death at the hands of the Master, a saddened and fearfully Buffy temporarily quit being the Slayer and contemplated leaving town, but accepted her fate after Willow discovered bodies of their classmates slaughtered inside the school. Armed with a crossbow and wearing a prom dress, Buffy decended down the sewers to confront the Master at his lair. Buffy was overpowered and bitten once, discovering it was her that would set the Master free as her Slayer blood gave him the power to do so. The Master then left Buffy to drown in a pool of water in the Master's dwellings, but Xander resuscitated her, Awakening, Buffy felt more strong and confronfed the Master once more, managing to defeat him and effectively closing the Hellmouth.[22]
First love
- “I love you. I don't know if I trust you.”
- ―Buffy to Angel[src]
Buffy confronts her newest enemy
Buffy spent her summer with her father in Los Angeles. During her time she didn't slay a single vampire, though, after her fatal experience she suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and would take it out by lavishing on clothes while remaining distant from others. Returning to Sunnydale, her situation showed by her behavior such as using her slaying to wield her anger and acting rudely to her friends. She finally recovered emotionally when she destroyed the Master's skeleton herself when his remaining followers attempted to resurrect him by offering her friends.[23] In her junior year of high school, she came into conflict with Spike and Drusilla, a vampire couple and Angel's former partners-in-crime,[24] who were intent on wreaking havoc in Sunnydale and in particular for Spike, to kill Buffy, having killed two slayers previously.
Buffy still tried to up the level of normalcy in her life during the stress of being the Slayer by lying to Giles so she could attend a frat-boy party, though it came out when her life was put into danger again by supernatural activity. After this, Buffy's relationship with Angel heated up and the pair began officially dating.[25] During a school career fair, Buffy was confirmed qualified for law enforcement. Around this time, Buffy was targeted by the Order of Taraka, an order of assassins hired by Spike to kill her so she wouldn't interrupt an ritual to heal a sickly and weak Drusilla. While taking hiding in Angel's apartment, Buffy met Kendra Young, a second Slayer who had been mystically activated when Buffy drowned. The two quickly proved to be near-polar opposites, with Kendra's complete devotion to her Slayer duties contrasting to Buffy's emotions and loyalty to her friends and family. They eventually became friends and Kendra helped Buffy rescue Angel after he was kidnapped to complete Drusilla's healing, his life for hers. From this, Kendra taught Butty to appreciate that being a Slayer was part of who she was, and not just a burden. [10][26]
On the night of her seventeenth birthday, Buffy lost her virginity to Angel.[27] By causing Angel to experience a moment of true and utter happiness, she unknowingly lifted the curse placed on him a century earlier, causing him to lose his soul and revert to the evil Angelus, the most notoriously evil vampire in recorded history.[28]
Buffy's relationship with vampire Angel results in disaster when he loses his soul and becomes evil.
Angelus became obsessed with destroying Buffy's life and joined Spike and a restored Drusilla, who had reconstructed an invincible demon called the Judge to destroy humanity. Buffy managed to defeat the Judge with a stolen rocket launcher, but Angelus' pathological abuse continued to take a heavy toll on Buffy and her friends over the months through the form of creepy letters and threatening to endanger her friends and family. He even revealed their intimate night together to her mother, forcing Buffy to go through "the talk" with her, though came to an understanding as Joyce was as nervous as she was. It climaxed when he murdered the Scoobies' ally and Giles' love interest, Jenny Calendar. This put Giles in danger when he tried to kill Angelus in retribution, nearly getting killed before Buffy saved him, not wanting to lose him, especially at a time as this.[29] When faced with Angelus's subsequent plan to destroy the world, Buffy was fully willing to kill him but also relied on Willow to re-ensoul as a last resort after they discovered the spell to do so in Jenny's office. Challenged to a duel with Angelus, Buffy was tricked again when he staged an attack against Willow and the others which culminated to the death of Kendra at the hands of Drusilla. Coming to the scene of the crime, Buffy was suspected for Kendra's murder and resisted arrest, making her a target to the Sunnydale police force.
- “Do you think I chose to be like this? Do you have any idea how lonely it is? How dangerous? I would love to be upstairs watching TV or gossiping about boys or... God, even studying! But I have to save the world. Again.”
- ―Buffy comes out to her mother about being the Slayer[src]
Buffy leaves Sunnydale
She reluctantly accepted an alliance with Spike, who had become tired of Angelus' presence and had no desire to see the world end. When returning home with Spike, she killed a vampire in front of Joyce so she was forced to reveal her identity as the Slayer. Joyce reacted badly to the news and in a fight of confusion and disagreements, Buffy was thrown out by her own accord. She returned to the library where the murder had happened to acquire a mystical sword given to her by Kendra prior to her death. When this happened the school's unpleasant Principal Snyder arrived and expelled her.
Buffy confronted Angelus and tried to prevent him from opening a vortex to a hell dimension, while Willow worked a spell to return Angel's soul. Though the spell was successful, Angelus had already begun to open the vortex, and Buffy was forced to drive the sword through the re-ensouled Angel's chest, sending him through the vortex to the hell dimension before he could even remember Angelus' siege against Sunnydale. Traumatized and alone, Buffy then boarded a bus out of Sunnydale and escaped to Los Angeles.[30]
Return to Sunnydale
- Wesley: “The Council's orders are to concentrate on...”
- Buffy: “I don't think I'm gonna be taking any more orders. Not from you, not from them.”
- — Buffy's "graduation" from the Watchers' Council[src]
While in L.A., Buffy spent the summer waiting tables in a diner under a false identity (her middle name, Anne), trying to turn her back on her destiny. However, after rescuing a runaway from a hell dimension which struck her into battle mode, Buffy returned to Sunnydale to face her own demons.[31]
Buffy returns to Sunnydale and reunites with her mother
After a few difficulties, namely being caught trying to run away once more during her welcome back party that was then attacked by zombies, Buffy reconciled with her friends and family.[32] Dropped from her charges, Buffy was let back into Sunnydale High even though Snyder initially prevented her return from happening to his own pleasure, but he was overruled by the School Board.
At school Buffy was required to improve her grades by doing several makeup tests, obtain a recommendation from a member of the school staff that wasn't an "english librarian" and received counseling for a small time. She also started a relationship with normal schoolmate Scott Hope which ended shortly after a number of weeks. On the other hand, she discovered Angel had been returned from his hell dimension in a feral state.[33] She secretly rehabilitated him at his mansion, helping him heal while still finding herself greatly drawn to him.
When the Scoobies discovered this, they were disgusted, confused, and furious, though they begrudgingly accepted him back into the team when he saved Willow from being killed by a corrupt ex-Watcher.[34]
In her Senior Year, Buffy finds a new friend in another Slayer, Faith
Meanwhile, a rebellious new Slayer, Faith Lehane, arrived in town, immediately winning over Buffy's friends and family and providing Buffy with a new ally. Contrary to Kendra who was the model slayer, Faith was a fun-loving brawler that threw responsibility more so than Buffy did. Buffy discovered that under her facade of enthusiasm of the kill was fear, having escaped from Sunnydale after the vampire Kakistos killed her Watcher and threatened to come after her. After averting the problem by slaying the vampire, Buffy and Faith started a complicated sisterly relationship of learning each others' strengths and weaknesses.[35]
Though Buffy and Angel attempted to simply be friends and nothing more, they eventually continued dating, though they took great care to keep their relationship celibate.[36]
Shortly before her eighteenth birthday, Buffy was de-powered in preparation for her Cruciamentum, a Slayer rite of passage organized by the Watchers' Council meant to test the Slayer's practical capabilities. This pitted her against a vampire manic which she initially avoided though packed the courage to take him on when held her mother hostage and she ended victorious. Giles' reluctance to see Buffy hurt and subsequent interference in the test led to him being fired as her official Watcher and replaced with Wesley Wyndam-Pryce, though Buffy quickly rebelled against Wesley and refused to take him seriously when he turned out to be little more than a bumbling idiot and a coward.[37]
Eventually, Faith led Buffy on a rebellious tour of her side of Slaying, which did entice Buffy to some degree. This however proved disastrous when Faith accidentally killed the Deputy Mayor and refused to take responsibility for her actions.[38] Buffy tried to make her own up, but was shot down and Faith herself tried to frame Buffy for her crime by lying to Giles, though he saw through this. Buffy and Faith's relationship would be then changed from that point on.[39]
Buffy named "Class Protector" by her grateful classmates.
As the Senior Prom was closing in, Buffy expressed excitement in having her prefect high school experience with Angel as her date. However, realizing he could never give her a normal life, Angel broke up with Buffy the day before. Despite being extremely saddened, Buffy still made it her duty that she and her friends enjoy themselves at the event. She went forth and killed a number of hellhounds released by a dateless nerd and attended prom dressed in formal wear. To her surprise, she was presented with an award, acknowledging the countless times she saved the student body. Just as it couldn't get better, Angel arrived in a tuxedo, not wanting to take her back but give her the slow dance she desired.[40]
Buffy uses Faith's knife to anger the Mayor
Increasingly alienated from the Scoobies, Faith found a friend in the affable yet sinister Mayor of Sunnydale,[39] who was preparing to become a pure-blood demon on the Sunnydale High Graduation Day and devour the student body.[41] As the Mayor relied on Faith to help him prepare for his ascension, Buffy worked first to thwart his plans, then to organize a resistance. Faith impeded these efforts by poisoning Angel, leaving him on the verge of death; when the Watchers' Council refused to help on the grounds that Angel was a vampire, a furious and disgusted Buffy chose to stop following the Council's orders altogether, severing all ties with them. When the Scoobies learned that only the blood of a Slayer could save Angel's life, Buffy attempted to sacrifice Faith to save him, willing to kill a human in this case.[41] Their battle left Faith in a seemingly permanent coma, and Buffy ultimately saved Angel with her own blood which also put her the hospital, though she quickly recovered.
Buffy then led her classmates in a climactic battle against the transformed Mayor and his minions, which culminated in an explosion that destroyed the Mayor as well as Sunnydale Highschool. After the smoke cleared, Angel left for Los Angeles so that Buffy could try to have a more normal life without him.[42]
U.C. Sunnydale
Buffy was disconcerted when she was thrust into the new environment of U.C. Sunnydale
After the explosive events of her graduation from Sunnydale High, Buffy initially experienced some difficulty adjusting to life as a college freshman at U.C. Sunnydale. She encountered a group of on-campus vampires and got her arm injured while battling their leader. [43] She came off as insane to her friends when she suspected that her overly compulsive roomate Kathy was a demon, only to be proven correct[44] Her freshman problems were made even harder by her Slayer duties and her separation from Angel. After sharing what she believed to be a night of emotional intimacy with fellow student Parker Abrams only weeks after meeting him in desperation for a relationship, she became depressed when he neglected to contact her afterward and brushed her off.[45]
Buffy and Angel realize they cannot have a life together, even if he's human
While determined to have a safe and normal dinner at Thanksgiving, Buffy was forced to deal with Hus, a Native American vengeance spirit accidentally released by Xander's construction crew. Buffy was secretly helped by Angel, who had returned to town after one of his new friends had a vision that she was in danger, though he made his presence known only to the other Scoobies under the belief that he would distract and endanger Buffy if she knew that he was back in Sunnydale.[46] After Xander accidentally let it slip that Angel was in town, Buffy (hurt that he let everyone but her know he was back) immediately traveled to Los Angeles and confronted Angel in his office while also visiting her father. Buffy and Angel agreed to just stay away from one another for the time being. Just as she was about to leave however, the two were attacked by a Mohra Demon. Though the duo succeeded in wounding it, the Mohra escaped, and Buffy and Angel tracked it down in the sewers. The two became separated, and Angel seemingly killed the demon himself, though its blood mixed with his own and turned him human again. The two reveled in finally being able to be happy together, but Angel soon discovered that The Powers That Be had not yet offered him forgiveness. When Angel was nearly killed by the regenerated Mohra, Buffy managed to slay it with his help. Upon discovering that Buffy would die much sooner if he was to remain human, Angel had the Oracles rewind time to reverse his transformation into a human, leaving no one but himself with any memory of the incident.[47]
Buffy proves both interesting yet annoying to the Initiative
Back at Sunnydale, Buffy eventually attracted the sincere attention of teacher's assistant Riley Finn, and began to wonder how she would balance her Slayer duties while dating a seemingly-normal guy. While fighting the Gentlemen, however, she discovered that Riley had a secret of his own; he was in fact a member of The Initiative, a U.S. government task force created to research mystical and demonic creatures led by Buffy's psychology professor Maggie Walsh.[48] Buffy briefly joined forces with the Initiative, but her relentless questioning of the Initiative's plans and motivations, as well as her relationship with Riley, began to unsettle Professor Walsh, who tried to dispose of her by having her killed in action.[49] Afterward, Walsh was murdered by her own creation, a monstrous half-human/half-demon cyborg named Adam, who subsequently escaped and began his plan to create an army of similar super soldiers.[50]
Buffy, in Faith's body
Meanwhile Faith, having awakened from her coma, used a mystical device left to her by the Mayor to switch bodies with Buffy.[51] In Faith's body, Buffy was taken into custody by the Watchers Council Special Operations Team. She managed to escape and convince Giles of her true identity. With the help of Willow and Tara Maclay, Buffy reversed the body swap .[5]
Upon discovering that Faith had traveled to Los Angeles and was attempting to kill Angel, a furious Buffy used saving Angel as an excuse to go to L.A. for vengeance, only to discover that Faith had become remorseful for her crimes. This put Buffy into direct conflict with Angel, who insisted that Faith could be rehabilitated.
Even after all the trouble she's caused, Buffy agrees to help her
Though understandably unwilling or unable to believe that Faith was capable of redemption, Buffy ultimately had no choice but to work together with her to fight back against the Watchers Council Special Operations Team. Faith subsequently surrendered herself to the L.A.P.D., and Buffy got into a heated exchange with Angel, climaxing when she used her relationship with Riley to put Angel on the defensive, who then harshly ordered her to go back to Sunnydale after reminding her that he himself could not move on from their relationship.[52] Angel subsequently returned to Sunnydale to apologize, and after running afoul of the Initiative in the process, succeeded in mending things with Buffy, with both sides admitting that they were wrong.[53]
Buffy, in her dream space
Riley, who had been torn between the Scooby Gang and the Initiative for some time, eventually turned his back on the corrupt organization to join Buffy after helping them save Oz from the Initiative complex.[54] Having been drifting apart for the previous year, the existing tensions between Buffy, Giles, Willow, and Xander reached their boiling point when Spike, who had been rendered unable to harm humans due to experiments by the Initiative, exploited them to turn the gang against each other as part of his new ally Adam's plan.[53] When Spike let too much information about the plot slip during a subsequent encounter, however, the Scoobies reconciled and combined their essences within Buffy's body, allowing her to destroy Adam. The Scoobies, helped by Riley and Spike, subsequently helped save the Initiative's soldiers from the rampaging demon hordes within the complex; the Initiative was subsequently closed down by the U.S. government, and Riley was honorably discharged from the military.[55] The four were later attacked in their dreams by the First Slayer, who was offended by their use of the adjoining spell to defeat Adam; Buffy promptly rejected the First Slayer's insistence that the Slayer work alone without friends.[56]
Sisterhood
- “I need to know more. About where I come from, about the other Slayers. I mean, maybe... maybe if I learn to control this thing, I could be stronger, I could be better.”
- ―Buffy embraces her role as the Slayer.[src]
Buffy meets one of her most powerful foes
Following her confrontation with the First Slayer, Buffy encountered the famous vampire Dracula who traveled to Sunnydale intent on making the legendary warrior as his bride. Buffy was at first left powerless to the count's "thrall" but managed to overcome his control and make him leave Sunnydale. From her encounter, Buffy began to fully accept her duty as the Slayer for the first time in her life and had Giles train her more extensively, both physically and mentally .[57] A younger sister, Dawn, mysteriously appeared in Buffy's household, her existence seamlessly integrated with the memories of Buffy, her mother, and the Scoobies.[58] Buffy discovered that Dawn wasn't her sister, but rather a ball of mystical energy known as the Key that could open interdimensional portals. A group of monks transformed the Key into human form to hide it from a mentally unstable and extremely dangerous being known as Glory, choosing the Slayer to protect it because they knew she would protect her sister with her life.[59] Initially regarding Dawn as little more than a burden forced on her against her will, Buffy eventually accepted her role as Dawn's protector. Buffy's relationship with Riley began to deteriorate as she failed to give him the emotional intimacy he craved. Riley began visiting vampire brothels where he would allow himself to be bitten, and when Buffy discovered this, they finally broke up and Riley returned to the military.[60] Returning to the issue of Glory, the Watcher's Council offered some vital information on her if she passed a test to she if she could be trusted with it. As Buffy failed to meet standards, a visit from Glory within her house gave her the confidence to stick up to the Council, believing their deal was so that they would get her help rather than vice versa. Through a rousing speech, she convinced them to give her the information then and there as well as reemploy Giles. She then learned that Glory wasn't a demon, but a god. As Buffy recovered her break up with Riley, she was disgusted to learn that Spike had fallen in love with her. Upon discovering the full extent of his obsession, she had Willow revoke Spike's invitation to her house and personally alienated him from the Scoobies.[61] Despite being depressed over having had two failed relationships, Buffy, after an encounter with April, a robot created by her former Sunnydale High classmate Warren Mears, realized that she was overly dependent on men and decided to simply be by herself for the time being. This proved to be greatly fortunate as it made her reject the advances of Ben Wilkinson, a handsome medic who was actually the human counterpart of Glory, as she would change into him and him into her from time to time.[62]
Together, Buffy and Dawn mourn their loss
Buffy was devastated when her mother, who had been experiencing health problems for months and only recently received surgery for a brain tumor, died unexpected from an aneurysm.[63] Taking up the role of Dawn's legal guardian, Buffy was forced to drop out of college to look after her sister, though she began facing continuing problems due to Dawn's increasingly rebellious behavior.[64] As she struggled to fully understand what being the Slayer meant, Giles took Buffy on a vision quest, where the Guide told her that death was her gift, a message she found confusing and hurtful so soon after her mother's death. Upon her return, Buffy discovered that Spike had forced Warren to build a sex-bot in her likeness, and it had resulted in him getting captured by Glory's minions, who believed him to be the Key. Despite her understandable rage and disgust over the robot, Buffy saved Spike and subsequently discovered that he had endured intense torture at the hands of Glory rather than reveal the identity of the Key, nearly choosing death to protect Dawn. Moved by this, Buffy rewarded Spike with a kiss and reconciled with him, welcoming him back to the fold.[65]
Buffy and finds a robot of her identical image
When Glory finally discovered that Dawn was the Key, Buffy immediately had her and the gang rushed out of Sunnydale in a Winnebago, having no other option. This attempt was shortly shot down when the Knights of Byzantium attacked her, a militia intent on killing the Key to stop Glory. Ben, who was called in to treat Giles who was injured in the attack, unwillingly turned into Glory and she took Dawn away from them. Believing she failed, Buffy retreated into her subconscious, where she battled with the guilt of failing to protect her sister.[8] Via magic, Willow successfully drew Buffy back out into consciousness. Even though it was told that Dawn's death would destroy Glory's plan, Buffy refused kill her sister and had the Scoobies attacked Glory's stronghold in full force. Willow weakened Glory's mentality, Xander hit her with a wrecking ball and Buffy beat her repeatedly with a mystical troll god's hammer before she reverted to Ben. Not wanting to kill an innocent human, Buffy allowed Ben to live, warning him not to go after Dawn again which he complied. Giles, however, knew Glory would rise again and killed Ben with his own hands, thus destroying her.
- “Dawn, the hardest thing in this world is to live in it. Be brave. Live. For me.”
- ―Buffy's dying message to her sister.[src]
Despite everyone's efforts, Dawn's blood was already used to open the interdimensional portal and chaos reigned on Earth.
Finally understanding the cryptic message "death is your gift", Buffy sacrificed herself to save the world and her sister
Buffy realizing the meaning of the Gift
Buffy ascended up the tower where Dawn was kept and killed Doc who preformed the ritual to open the portal. Dawn offered to have herself killed so her the blood would no longer spill. It was at that moment that Buffy finally understood the meaning of the message from the First Slayer. Being Dawn's sister and sharing the same blood, she sacrificed her own life, leaping into the portal, using her own blood to close it so Dawn wouldn't have to. Afterward, Buffy was buried on the outskirts of Sunnydale with the epitaph, "She saved the world. A lot."[66] Finally able to rest, she ascended to heaven and found peace.[67]
Back from the grave
Buffy experiencing difficulty adjusting to life after being brought back from the grave
- “Everything here is... hard, and bright, and violent. Everything I feel, everything I touch.... this is hell. Just getting through the next moment, and the one after that... knowing what I've lost...”
- ―Buffy after being pulled out of heaven.[src]
Months later, Buffy was resurrected by her friends, who feared that her spirit may have been trapped in a hellish dimension due to the mystical circumstances of her death.[68]
Buffy finds comfort in Spike
Buffy's transition back to her life was difficult; she experienced an overwhelming sense of loss after being ripped from heaven, as well as the added everyday responsibilities of raising Dawn and paying bills. She attempted to keep her problems secret from her friends, not wanting them to share in her grief, and confided only to Spike that she had in fact been at peace while dead,[67] though the truth ultimately came out.[69] Buffy's depression worsened when Giles left Sunnydale and returned to England when she became overly dependent on him.[70] Struggling to feel alive and seeking someone who understood her, she began a violent sexual relationship with Spike which left neither of them satisfied, keeping it secret from everyone but Tara out of fear of their reaction.[71] At the same time, she was forced to both fight Sunnydale's demon population and become somewhat of a vigilante crime-fighter when faced with the ongoing efforts of the Trio, a group of nerds she went to high school with who had decided to take over Sunnydale, though taking down Buffy, the Slayer, was their top priority. In order to deal with her increasing financial problems, Buffy started working at local burger bar the Doublemeat Palace, a job she found degrading and disturbingly mundane.[72] With all of these problems, Buffy sank into severe depression and self-loathing.
Buffy, over the counter at Doublemeat palace
Meanwhile, Willow, proceeding Buffy's resurrection, developed an addiction to magic and began to use it excessively, which Buffy, faced with her own problems, failed to notice and largely ignored at first, even when confronted with evidence by Anya and Xander.[71] This climaxed when a spell cast by Willow went awry and erased all of the memories of the Scooby Gang; when the spell was ended, Tara dumped Willow, which immediately caused Willow's addiction to spiral out of control.[70] Buffy finally became aware of the full extent of Willow's addiction when she and Amy Madison, having been transformed into a rat for three years only to be finally changed back, began making regular visits to the home of Rack, a shady sorcery dealer, who only worsened Willow's condition. When Willow made another trip to Rack's place with Dawn in tow, the two were attacked by a demon that Willow unwittingly summoned during her high, and Willow's carelessness caused a car accident that left Dawn severely injured. Buffy and Spike arrived in time to save them and, despite being understandably furious with Willow, relented slightly when Willow desperately begged her for help. With Buffy's help, Willow renounced the usage of her magic altogether and was put on the road to recovery.[73]
Buffy sets Willow on the path to rehabilitation
In contrast to the ruthless hell-god Buffy faced the year before, her newest "nemesises" consisted of her old nerdy classmates that formed a group called the "Trio", with the intent of committing crimes and obtaining women. Seeing Buffy as a foil in their plans they proceeded with several minor annoyances against her and she never had the interest in directly stopping them. One of their games was accidentally turning Buffy invisible. At first Buffy enjoyed this new power by tricking the mentality of a social worker that was unimpressed by Buffy's ability as Dawn's guardian, and by desperately going to Spike for sex. Upon learning that if she were to continue being invisible for an extended period her molecule structure would break down, Buffy still sought to stop the Trio and made herself visible, not wanting to die despite her current grime state of life. The Trio's scheme's finally reached breaking point when their leader, Warren Meers accidentally killed his ex-girlfriend Katrinia after a mystical date rape attempt. With the use of magics of Jonathan Levinson and demon summoning from Andrew Wells, he manipulated events to make Buffy think she killed Katrinia. Convinced, Buffy was ready to confess to the police though this was thwarted when Spike dumped the body to save her. In an encounter of grief and denial in her relationship with Spike, Buffy beat him severely. Luckily for her, Buffy discovered that she wasn't actually the perpetrator of the crime and the death was ruled as a suicide; nonetheless, Buffy realized that the Trio were becoming too dangerous for her to ignore and resolved to bring them to justice.
Buffy is struck with shock from a bullet
A brief reunion with Riley shocked Buffy into finally breaking up with Spike, admitting to him that she was just using him and it was killing her.[74] Confused and angry, Spike later got drunk with Anya, who had recently been left at the altar by Xander, and the two had sex in the Magic Box, which the Scoobies discovered through bugs that the Trio had planted in the Bronze, the Magic Box, and Buffy's house. Xander subsequently attempted to kill Spike in a jealous rage, but Buffy intervened, revealing her secret relationship with Spike in the process; though Willow, Dawn, and Anya accepted it with relative grace, understanding what Buffy had been going through, Xander reacted exactly as Buffy feared, though he eventually realized why Buffy had kept it secret and apologized. Spike subsequently cornered her in the bathroom and tried to rape her; Buffy fought him off, and Spike fled Sunnydale, horrified by his own actions.[75]
Buffy promises Dawn to show her the world
When Warren accidentally killed Tara in an attempt to kill Buffy, Willow, enraged and grief-stricken, suffered a relapse and exacted bloody revenge against him, flaying him alive before the eyes of her horrified friends.[76] Unable to condone Willow's actions, Buffy battled her best friend to stop her from committing more murders, but was promptly defeated before Giles came to her rescue.[77] Willow then tried to destroy the whole world to end everybody's pain, leaving Buffy and Dawn trapped underground. Xander eventually got through to Willow in the end. The trauma of Tara's death and Willow nearly destroying the world finally snapped Buffy out of her depression and forced her to realize that life was worth living, and she promised to stop her self-destructive behavior to be there for Dawn; with this crisis resolved, Buffy was finally ready to live again.[78]
Leader to the Potentials
- “So I say we change the rule. I say my power... should be our power.”
- ―Buffy chooses to share her power with the Potentials.[src]
Buffy the School Councillor
As Dawn enrolled in the recently rebuilt Sunnydale High, Buffy was offered a job as guidance counselor by Principal Robin Wood, which she gratefully accepted.[79] Though initially she found it to be an unfulfilling experience as she was unable to connect with any of the students that came to while others had trivial reasons, she became concerned when a girl with psychic powers, Cassie Newton who claimed she would soon die. Buffy at first thought she was suicidal, after learning it was upcoming indefinite event she saved her from being sacrificed by a group of demon-worshiping students, she discovered it was actually due to congenital heart condition that Cassie would die from. While Cassie was alive, she revealed several cryptic samples of Buffy's near future.[80]
Seven years as the Slayer, Buffy meets a vampire like no other
Spike returned to Sunnydale after regaining his soul in an attempt to prove himself to Buffy. Buffy recognized the difference in him, and even when it seemed he may revert to a dangerous killer, she assured him that she believed in him. In case it happened, Buffy had Spike tied to a chair in her room and later chained in her basement when he frenzied and attacked Andrew Wells. It was in the basement he was kidnapped by the agents of The First Evil, the Bringers[81] These Bringers began tracking down and killing Potential Slayers in an attempt to wipe out the entire Slayer line. These Potentials traveled to Sunnydale to receive her protection and training at her home which quickly filled up with teenage Potentials. Andrew, who had been under the influence of the First and put in the Scoobies custardy, led them to the area of focus, the Seal of Danzalthar, gateway to the hellmouth which the First used Spike's blood to open. Investigating what had been released, Buffy encountered one of an ancient and powerful vampire race known as the Turok-Han. Due to its superior abilities along with her recent lack of rest, the vampire beat Buffy to a pulp on two occasions where she was given no other option but to escape. [82] Buffy eventually stepped into a leadership role to the girls and worked to ready them as anyone of them could follow her foot steps if she were to die. One of these methods was by battling the Turok-Han vampire and after a vicious battle, killing it in front of the potentials as a way of both protection and education. After this, Buffy went into the First's lair where she rescued Spike who was tortured by the First and the Turok-Han vampire.[83]
The Shadow men try to force darkness into Buffy
She later used the Slayer Emergency Kit given to her by Robin, whose mother was a Slayer herself. She used this to contact the the Shadow Men for assistance. In response they took her into another dimension and offered to increase her strength via the essence of a demon. Buffy refused, unwilling to sacrifice her humanity in exchange for power.[84]
Meanwhile, a reformed Faith, having escaped from prison to help Angel, traveled to Sunnydale to aid the Scoobies in the battle. Upon learning that the First's minion Caleb had something of hers, Buffy led the Potentials into battle at a Vineyard to retrieve it, which resulted in the loss of several girls as well as Xander's eye.[85] With this, the Scoobies and Potentials, having been losing confidence in Buffy's leadership skills and methods for quite some time, held a mutiny, appointing a reluctant Faith their leader and forcing Buffy out of the house.[86] Alone, she briefly resided in a house that was just abandoned by it's owner.
Over time, Buffy's destructive relationship with her former enemy, Spike, evolved into genuine feelings of care and love.
Only Spike remained loyal to her and found her at the house. It was through him, Buffy, depressed and about to give up, found the strength that she needed to keep fighting.[87] Through quick maneuvers and witty remarks, Buffy found the object Caleb was keeping from her—an ancient Slayer Scythe—and saved the Potentials and Faith after the latter led them into a trap,[88] earning back the gang's loyalty and finally making peace with Faith before revealing her plan to share her power with the other Potentials. Also, with the help of Angel, Buffy finally defeated Caleb and killed him by cutting him in half, killing the First's leading enforcer and one of her greatest foes. The First confronted her once more. From the rantings on how there was only one Slayer, Buffy realized her revolutionary idea.
Buffy wields the Scythe against the First's army
Willow used the Scythe to perform a spell which activated Slayers all around the world. This happened just as Buffy led an army of Slayers down the to the Hellmouth through the Seal of Danzalthar in the now abandoned Sunnydale High. A huge battle was then waged between the Slayers and the Turok-Han Vampires. During the fight, Buffy was struck down with a sword through her stomach and was taunted by the First while witnessing the loss of several new slayers. Buffy then got up and continued fighting. Just after, Spike sacrificed himself to close the Hellmouth once and for all. Before he crumbled to dust, Buffy finally confessed that she loved him to a unconvinced Spike, before escaping the ruins of Sunnydale with the other survivors.[89]
Post-Sunnydale
A new world
- “The thing about changing the world... once you do it, the world's all different. Everybody calls me "ma'am" these days.”
- ―Buffy reflects on her new role.[src]
After activating every Potential around the world, Buffy became the general of a global Slayer army
Following the destruction of Sunnydale, the Scooby Gang scattered around the world to locate and train newly-activated Slayers. When Angel and his team took over the L.A. branch of the demonic law firm Wolfram & Hart, Buffy and the Scoobies began to lose trust in them;[90] when Angel contacted them for help to contain the psychotic Slayer Dana, Buffy sent Andrew to help apprehend her, but refused to leave Dana in Angel's care, sending a sizable squad of Slayers with him and personally ordering Andrew to bring Dana back with him by any means necessary.[90] When Xander once again fell under the thrall of Dracula and went to live with him as his manservant, Buffy was forced to break into the vampire's castle and convince Dracula to let Xander go.[91] Encompassing mystics and a wide technological armory,[92] the Scoobies expanded to keep on top of demonic threats on a more global level. Buffy funded this organization by robbing a Swiss bank with the help of other Slayers, which she reasoned was a "victimless crime" due to the bank's insurance.[93] As the Scoobies and the Slayers had been declared terrorists in the wake of Sunnydale's destruction, decoy Slayers were set up to divert enemy attention for Buffy's protection, one in Rome, who was supposedly dating the Immortal, and the other underground; not even former allies like Angel were aware of her true location.[94] Buffy, Dawn, and Xander eventually set their base in a Scottish castle, with Buffy training a squad of new Slayers, including Satsu, Rowena, and Leah.[92] However, she failed to experience the feelings of connection that the other Slayers did,[95] and began to employ ruthlessly aggressive tactics against the Slayers' enemies, demon and human alike.[96][97] At some point, Buffy learned that Spike had been resurrected in L.A., but could not find the time to get in contact with him.[98]
Transported through time, Buffy battled future Slayer Melaka Fray
Over a year after Sunnydale's destruction, Buffy investigated signs of an attack from a new enemy known as Twilight and her team came under fire from the United States military; General Voll informed Buffy she was at war with the human race.[96] Soon afterward, Buffy's relationship with Giles suffered when she discovered he had secretly recruited Faith to assassinate rogue Slayer Genevieve Savidge, who was planning to usurp Buffy's place in the Slayer hierarchy.[99] In her first encounter with Twilight, Buffy was warned that her decision to activate the Slayers had been a mistake, and she began to question her own actions.[95] Feeling lonely, Buffy shared a one-night-stand with Satsu,[100] but her inability to return Satsu's feelings caused the other Slayer to leave the squad.[100] On a mission to New York, Buffy was transported several centuries into the future, where she discovered that the thousands of Slayers had been reduced to one individual, Melaka Fray.[101][102][103] Fray and a future version of Willow tried to prevent her from returning home, prompting Buffy to kill future Willow just as present Willow brought her back to her own time.[104] When Buffy later told her of these events, Willow assured her that the future was not set in stone.
Against humanity
Buffy was granted new powers by the mysterious "Twilight", including the ability to fly
Over time, various factors—including Simone Doffler's rogue Slayers, Harmony Kendall's pro-vampire reality show, and the machinations of Twilight—caused the existence of the supernatural to become public knowledge and public opinion towards Slayers to turn hostile.[105] Buffy herself became a public hate figure in the media, at one point being branded the "Worst Person in the World". The Scooby Gang fled to Tibet, where old friend and werewolf Oz taught them to suppress their magical powers in order to hide from Twilight.[106] When Twilight found them anyway, the Slayers were forced to fight a human war against the military, with casualties incurred on both sides. Buffy found herself suddenly and inexplicably imbued with new powers, including flight, super speed, and even greater strength than before; she quickly used these abilities to contain three wrathful goddesses that had been unleashed during the battle. She also confessed to Xander that she had developed romantic feelings for him, but acknowledged that she was too late as he had already fallen in love with Dawn.
During their second confrontation, Buffy was horrified when Twilight unmasked himself as Angel; he had created the Twilight persona to unite the various anti-Slayer forces and minimize the destruction they would cause. It was revealed that Buffy and Angel were actually prophesied to bring about an apocalyptic event which would destroy Earth and create the sentient Twilight dimension in its place. Being separated from each other for a long time, despite Angel's actions as Twilight, Buffy and Angel succumbed to their passions and engaged in an act of passionate airborne sex. After that, they found themselves in the new twilight dimension. Despite the prospect of eternal happiness with Angel in the new paradise dimension, Buffy started questioning the reality, especially after observing that her friends were fighting the demons on earth unleashed by the creation of the new dimension. She decided to return to Earth to help her friends in the resulting apocalypse and, with brief hesitation, Angel following suit. Amidst this chaos, Spike returned to inform Buffy about the Seed of Wonder, the source of magic on Earth and the secret to defeating Twilight. The Scooby Gang traveled to the ruins of Sunnydale, where they were confronted by the Master, resurrected and protecting the Seed. Taking possession of Angel, Twilight killed the Master, battled Buffy, and murdered Giles to prevent him from destroying the Seed; however, a grief-stricken Buffy succeeded where Giles had failed and smashed the Seed, defeating Twilight and putting an end to magic on Earth.
Buffy destroyed the Seed of Wonder and banished magic from Earth
With magic cut off from Earth, the Slayer organization disbanded and Buffy returned to relative civilian life. The government continued to monitor the remaining Slayers, although most of them no longer identified as such. Giles left the majority of his assets to Faith in his will; Buffy's only inheritance was Vampyr, the book he presented her with on their first meeting. Faith interpreted this as Giles' belief that Buffy was the one and only Slayer. Four months after the destruction of the Seed, Buffy was a guest in Xander and Dawn's San Francisco apartment and working as a waitress at the coffee shop Pick Me Up. Willow told Buffy she had robbed the Earth of its heart by destroying the Seed; however, Spike assured her that nobody else could have acted better under the circumstances. When confronted with three Slayers angry at her for betraying the cause, Buffy asserted herself and focused on her mission, hoping that she had still managed to make some positive change to the world.
- “The trouble with changing the world is... you don’t. Not all at once. You just inch it forward, a bit at a time, and watch it slip back, like the Greek guy with the rock. And you hope that when you’re done, you’ve moved it up a little, changed it just enough. You hope. Let’s go to work.”
- ―Buffy comes to terms with the apparent failure of her Slayer army[src]
San Francisco
Eventually, Buffy moved out of Xander and Dawn's apartment and into another one, sharing it with two roommates, Anaheed and Tumble. During her housewarming party, Buffy had a very wild, drunken night that she tried to piece together the next day. During this time, Spike continuously warned Buffy that something or someone was coming after her, while Willow attempted to make Buffy realize the consequences of destroying the Earth's "spark of creation." Buffy was then approached by a demon who instead of attacking her, demanded that she pay her student loans. Buffy withdrew money from an ATM, but it wasn't nearly enough to satisfy the demon.
Later, when Buffy staked a vampire that was attacking a young man, she was arrested by San Francisco police detectives Robert Dowling and Cheung, who had discovered a large amount of dead bodies and theorized that the bodies belonged to vampires. Just as they resolved not to let Buffy go until they got some answers, Buffy escaped police custody, becoming a fugitive from the law.
After a talk with Spike, Buffy came across Severin, the same man she saved earlier, who revealed himself to have the power to drain the energy of mystical beings. Buffy also discovered one of the consequences of the Seed that Willow tried to warn her about: all new vampires that have been sired since the destruction of the Seed have risen mindless and feral. After consulting the other Scoobies, Buffy left with Severin to take out a vampire nest, only for Severin to turn on her when they came across a warehouse filled with dead bodies.
In the ensuing fight, Severin told Buffy that he had to kill all those vampires because Buffy destroyed the Seed and that she didn't deserve her power. When Severin shrugged off a stake to the heart because of the energy he had absorbed, Buffy resolved to simply wait him out until he used up all of his energy, but that plan backfired when she discovered that Severin had imprisoned numerous vampires in the basement as a power source.
Eventually, Severin overpowered Buffy and began to drain her powers, as well as Spike's when he arrived to help her, but just before he could drain the two completely, Detective Dowling, having been anonymously tipped off, arrived and made the save by shooting Severin four times in the chest. Having discovered that Severin was the real culprit, Buffy was subsequently cleared of all charges. Buffy was subsequently approached by Willow, who admitted that she was never angry because she lost her powers while Buffy got to keep her own, and Buffy promised Willow that they would solve the magic problem.[107]
Buffy makes a big decision
Proceeding this, Buffy began to suffer from strange dreams involving the First Slayer and a mysterious fairy, along with frequent bouts of vomiting and morning sickness. After a few talks with Willow, Buffy encountered the fairy, who told her that the First Slayer wanted her to "unlock the key", but this was in fact Willow's job. When Buffy awoke, she discovered both Willow and the Scythe missing; according to her dream, the Scythe was the key to restoring magic, and that she had to go. On top of all this, Buffy was shocked to discover that she was pregnant.[108] Despite advice and encouragement from Robin Wood, Buffy came to the decision that she was not ready to be a mother and asked Spike to come with her to get an abortion.[109] However, this planned abortion was interrupted when, while helping Spike tackle a group of zompires, Buffy sustained injuries that revealed that she was actually a Buffybot.
Confronting Andrew, Buffy and Spike learned that she was actually Buffy's mind transferred into a robotic body; based on Warren's notes, Andrew had transferred Buffy's mind into the robot in order to help her escape a rumored assassination attempt, while leaving her body living a civilian life in another part of the country. However, as Andrew, Spike and Buffy went to retrieve Buffy's body, which was captured by Simone.Once the ordeal was over, Spike left San Francisco and Buffy, much to her disappointment and sadness. Buffy then appeared to turn in her resignation to her boss,.[110]
Following quitting her job as a waitress, she began to try something newer. Buffy was forced to take orders from fellow slayer Kennedy, under the profession of being a bodyguard in Deepscan. However, she struggled with shutting off her slayer instincts, much to Kennedy's annoyance who could do so easily. Nevertheless, she recieved a client named Theo Daniels who revealed he is being hunted by Wolfram and Hart.[111] Acknowledging the seriousness of the situation, Buffy sought out Koh for his help only to have him betray her trust and his code, reasoning to Buffy that vengence towards the demon that imprisioned him was much more important than honor, much to her shock. [112]
After her client was kidnapped, Buffy and Kennedy come up with a plan of attack due to the information that Koh would not get what he wanted right away. After some clashes with Kennedy over Giles's death, they sneaked underground and arrived before Eldre Koh could find out the information he was after from them over who imprisioned him. Once Kennedy saved Theo, Buffy faced off against Koh only for him to escape with his life. With TinCan destroyed and her misson complete, Buffy originally believed she'd get punished but instead received praise and a promotion, given a check for her efforts. Despite the prospect of money, Buffy declined the offer, coming to an epiphany that she had to do this by herself.[113]
- “You were right. Sometimes I keep trying to save the world when sometimes I should just save a single person. It was different when I was younger. Something changed. But I don't think that's a bad thing.”
- ― Buffy's epiphany, reflecting on Kennedy's words[src]
Personality
- “I love what you are. What you do, how you try. I've seen your kindness and your strength. I've seen the best and the worst of you and I understand with perfect clarity exactly what you are. You're a hell of a woman.”
- ―Spike[src]
Before becoming the Slayer, Buffy's personality was that of a superficial blonde valley girl; she herself claimed that even Cordelia "looked like a classical philosopher next to me".[37] Initially snobby towards people of a lower social class such as Pike,[15] the isolation she experienced from her popular friends at Hemery High gave her new-found empathy towards outcasts like Willow and Xander.[17] Nevertheless, Buffy was something of a rebel who did not conform to traditional Slayer conventions; Rupert Giles once admitted that "some flexibility is required" when it came to being Buffy's Watcher.[26] Buffy also tended to venture out of the Slayer's typically supernatural jurisdiction, often fighting crazed robots and even human criminals. Buffy is unique as a Slayer in that she refuses to give up her "normal" life for her destiny and works with a group of close friends who know her identity. The spirit of the First Slayer once insisted to Buffy that the Slayer must work alone, a belief which Buffy promptly rejected.[56] Kendra, who had been trained as a Slayer from early childhood, told Buffy that a Slayer did not have the luxury of emotions. Buffy responded that her emotions gave her power and she considered them "total assets".[26] Spike once stated that Buffy's improvisational fighting style was much like that of Nikki Wood, the second Slayer he killed.[114]
Additionally, Buffy frequently showed a sarcastic streak, and has been known to constantly taunt and crack jokes or puns about her opponents, even in the midst of battle (though not to the extent of Xander). When vampires don't react to her puns, she seems to get annoyed over it. Buffy has a tendency to be overconfident when she faces her enemies, but this probably comes from her Slayer strength. Buffy was also very stubborn and a natural leader, very commanding and even called "bossy" by Dawn.[115] Buffy has been accused of being violent following her calling as a Slayer. Buffy denied that she was but when questioning Xander of this, he said "The important thing is, you believe that.", implying that she is violent. [116]. She's also somewhat short-tempered in nature, as it never takes very much to irritate her. Buffy once described herself as " I am capable of awesome. I'm usually super reliable and conscientious and according to popular report, a little tightly wound." [117]
Throughout the series, Buffy functioned as a reluctant hero. She constantly wished for nothing more than a normal life, an attitude that was particularly prevalent in the early seasons. However, as time moved on, Buffy slowly became more accepting of her Slayer duties, particularly after Kendra helped her to understand that being the Slayer was part of who she was and not simply a burden forced upon her shoulders against her will. By the opening of Season Five, Buffy had embraced her calling, and was completely devoted to it by Season Eight. Despite her ever-present reluctance to be the Slayer even in her later years, Buffy has been depicted as having a incredibly strong sense of responsibility with the people she saved and the world as well. This was shown in her disagreements over Faith's impulsive and careless atitude and her self-righteous stance on many other things. Because of her powerful feelings of responsibility for those around her, it was easy for Buffy to blame herself harshly for failures or misfortunes for those she cared for.
Buffy's personality and character developed a much darker and self-destructive persona after being brought back from Heaven. She had hated living and the harshness of everything her life had, even attempting to commit suicide at one point until stopped by Spike.[118] Due to her depression and self-loathing, she had sought out a violent sexual relationship with Spike, later admitting that she didn't love him and was just using him to feel something.[119] However, she eventually found the strength to stop herself and returned to her normal self (more or less).
While Buffy acknowledged that humans can be just as bad as demons, if not even worse, she largely refused to kill humans under any circumstances, insisting that the Slayer did not have a license to kill, which occasionally put her into conflict with her less-merciful teammates. She held great disgust and hatred of collateral damage as she had always tried to save as many people as she could by any means necessary even if a solution to save the world was killing someone innocent (A striking difference from her ex-boyfriend Angel). For example, she spared Ben's life after Glory was defeated despite full knowledge that Glory would eventually resurface and get revenge on her, which resulted in Giles doing so instead, and flat-out refused to consider killing Dawn to save the world [66]. Additionally, she refused to kill Warren Mears despite his vicious crimes, preferring to let him face human justice, whereas Xander and Dawn were so disgusted and furious with him that they fully supported Willow's plans to kill him until the moment she actually did so [76]. However, she had made exceptions to that rule on numerous occasions: she was perfectly willing to kill Faith to save Angel's life [41], killed several members of the Knights of Byzantium to protect Dawn,[120] and bisected Caleb with the Scythe [89]. Nonetheless, she has made it a rule in the Slayer Organization to "go for the wound" with their human enemies [96].
Though she was normally quite aware socially, Buffy had proven to have a few lapses in judgment that cost her and others as well. Her destructive relationship with Spike, for example, was attributed to her own feelings of vulnerability, self-loathing, and unworthiness after the death of her mother as well as her abrupt descent from heaven. Buffy also appeared to have an inferiority and superiority complex,[121] as she feels like she's worse than everyone or that there's something wrong with her, and that even though her friends and former boyfriends think the opposite, their opinions don't mean anything. She can also be surprisingly rather negative at times and suffers from occasional abandonment issues[95] since almost all her friends and boyfriends had left her at some point. She suffers from loneliness at times, especially since she feels the burden of being the Slayer is something no one can understand or share with her.[88] When her intelligence or abilities have been put into question, as when she was under investigation by the Watchers' Council,[122] Buffy responded poorly to authority and was mostly unable to complete any of the tasks given. She would almost appear as the "dumb blonde" stereotype, but in her confrontation with the Council, when things were on her terms, Buffy appeared to have a relatively advanced sense of awareness that wasn't accessed through many traditional methods. However, Willow did admit that Buffy wasn't always very smart("You know Buffy. Sweet girl, not very bright.")[89] The strength in her personality sometimes made it hard for her to relinquish control.
One of Buffy's most defining personality traits was her tendency to keep things secret from the rest of the Scooby Gang, which came back to haunt her more than once. Such secrets included Angel's resurrection [34], Dawn's identity as The Key,[123] her relationship with Spike,[124] and her sighting of Spike in the basement of the new Sunnydale High.[125] Buffy has also been shown to have a usually forgiving nature, the only exception possibly being Faith to an extent.
She had a tendency to mangle the names of vampires and demon species, much to Giles' constant irritation. For example, "Bezoar" became "Bozo", "Morgala" became ""Morgan Freeman", "Kakistos" became "Kissing Toast", "Taquitos", and "Khaki Trousers", "Acathla" became "Alfalfa" and "Al Franken", "Beljoxa's Eye" becomes "Botox's Eye", and "Turok-Han" became "Chaka Khan". Even some normal words she has been shown to mispronounce, such as "Haperdashery" became "Haerbradasgrening", "Habbledaspery", and "Have-a-dash-of-tea." [126]
She often displayed poor driving skills. She repeatedly asked her mother if she could take lessons, to little avail. When she finally did get behind the wheel, she didn't know what the hand brake was for.[127] She later admitted that "cars and Buffy are unmixy things."[128] She also drove while in Faith's body, again badly (although this could be because she was being chased by assassins at the time and was trying to get away).[5] Still later, she was shown to still have possession of Joyce's SUV, but was still characteristically terrible at driving and parking it.[129] Strangely, however, she was shown driving at one point and did so perfectly.[130]
Buffy also tended to unconsciously babble out almost senseless sentences when she was emotional or nervous (much to the dismay, amusement or confusion of others). Angel and Willow had fondly discussed this aspect of hers, both agreeing that when Buffy was emotionally excited or worked up, it's hard to get a word in.[131]Giles also has once described Buffy as willful, insolent, and that she abused the English language terribly[38]( Buffy later admitted this trait, when briefly transported to the future[132]). Buffy also spoke in strange phrases and tangents, similar to Willow, which could confuse others, especially Giles at one point.
Buffy had a strong distaste towards the use of conventional firearms largely to their ineffectiveness against most demons. When a police officer intervened while she fought a M'Fashnik demon, Buffy chucked his pistol away, telling him "These things, never helpful'.[133] Months later when given a machine gun and was unable the aim it properly, Buffy rephrase what she said instead saying guns weren't useful instead of helpful.[74] Even during a war against human soldiers, Buffy still stuck by her "slayers don't use guns" philosophy after Giles brought her a Chinese assault rifle.[134] Despite this, Buffy still employed the use of a tranquilizer rifle to sedate Oz while he was in wolf-form [135][136]
Appearance
- “The part that gets me, though, is where Buffy is the Vampire Slayer. She's so little.”
- ―Jenny Calendar[src]
Early in the television series, make-up supervisor Todd McIntosh was instructed to make Buffy "a soft and sort of earthy character." He gave Gellar a soft, muted green make-up and kept her look very natural. However, it was later decided that this was inappropriate for the character, and that Buffy needed to look more like a valley girl. McIntosh switched her make-up around, giving her frosted eyeshadow and lip colors, bright turquoise and aqua marines, bubblegum colored nails, and bleach-blonde hair, causing the character to "blossom."
In attempts to preserve the seriousness of her character, Buffy's clothing became increasingly less frilly and started to give off the appearance of a tougher, feminine, mature character. Since the very beginning of the series she shows a fondness for leather coats, an aspect of her character played up in the episode "Prophecy Girl" where she wears a prom dress with a leather coat while wielding a crossbow, this idea of femininity mixed with militaristic undertones is frequently used in later seasons. By season 3 Buffy is rarely seen wearing short skirts (partially at Sarah Michelle Gellar's request) and is instead seen wearing either longer skirts or pants while still maintaining a youthful sexiness that usually comes out in her choice of tops and the fit of her jeans. Buffy also was shown to have abandoned the bleach blonde look sometime during seasons 5 and 6 where she was shown to have darker highlights mixed in with a honey blonde color. In season 6 she even cuts her hair relatively short in a fit of anxiety and is shown to have almost a reddish tint to her hair color. Though in both seasons she eventually is seen as having gone blonde again, possibly just to reinforce her recognizable and iconic blonde image.
Buffy's distinguishing features include a bite-mark scar on the right side of her neck. She originally received this scar from the Master, but has been bitten by other vampires: Angel[42] and Dracula.[57] Buffy received a tattoo of the Mark of Eyghon from Ethan Rayne, but later spent her allowance to have it removed.[137]
Powers and Abilities
Slayer powers
- See Slayer
Buffy was arguably the most powerful and successful Slayer to have existed, as seen through her long-Slayer lived-life and numerous victories.
As a Slayer, Buffy had the normal powers that came with the role:superhuman strength, speed, agility, reflexes, durability, accelerated healing, a limited ability to sense supernatural activity, the collective memories of all past Slayers, and precognitive dreams, the last of which allowed her to foresee events such as such as her temporary death at the hands of the Master,[22] Angel's transformation into Angelus,[28] and the arrival of the Gentlemen.[48] Additionally, Buffy never fully developed the Slayer power to sense supernatural activity and normally relied on her wits to discern demons and vampires from humans. Buffy also possessed a natural proficiency with virtually all forms of weaponry and unarmed combat styles.
Although she was sometimes considered a dumb blonde by herself and others, Buffy frequently showed herself to be quite intelligent, possessing strong leadership skills and having a natural flair for tactical planning. Prominent examples of Buffy's intelligence included her near-perfect S.A.T. score,[138] her defeat of Zachary Kralik by using his dependency on anti-psychotic medication against him,[37] her quick deduction of the Buffybot's true nature,[65] her rapid deduction of Riley's affiliation to the Initiative based on weeks of evidence,[139] and her immediate realization of Katrina Silber's true murderer upon hearing her name at the police station.[140]
Near the end of the Twilight crisis, Buffy gained new special powers. Her strength, speed, agility, stamina, and reflexes were enhanced to vastly superior levels. Her new powers included flight, superhuman hearing, telescopic vision and a level of near-invulnerability. Willow claimed that the source of these new powers was that Buffy has been absorbing the collective powers of all the Slayers that died while they had suppressed their powers, though Angel claimed that they were in fact a reward.[141] According to the higher power that instructed Angel in the use of his new powers, Buffy's powers could only be activated if she was completely focused on her goal, resulting in Angel assuming the disguise of the villainous Twilight in order to provide an enemy for Buffy to fight to trigger her "evolution".[115]
Other powers
In addition to the common Slayer powers, Buffy has gained other abilities through spells:
- Mystical protection — After becoming leader to the activated Slayers, Xander comments that Buffy has some degree of mystical protection over her now, at least while she sleeps. To that end, her protection means even daggers split apart so as not to pierce her skin.[142]
- Mystical link with Willow — Buffy's connection to Willow is now so strong, that even when unconscious, Willow's consciousness can at will channel an amount of her power through Buffy.[96]
Temporary Powers
Buffy has had possession of other abilities for brief periods of time:
- Telepathy — In high school, Buffy received an aspect of a demon that she killed, and gained the ability to hear the thoughts of others (although not vampires, which leave no reflection in the mind). She became unable to control all of the thoughts in her head, so Angel killed a second demon of this type and fed her a potion containing the demon's heart, stopping the ability altogether.[143]
- Super-Slayer — In order to defeat Adam, Buffy became the focus of a complex spell that drew on the pure source of the Slayer's power and briefly gave her the combined abilities of Xander, Willow, and Giles. Her original Slayer powers were increased to far greater levels, gained incredibly potent magical abilities, and had access to Giles' extensive knowledge of hand to hand combat and spells. For example, she telekinetically stopped Adam's bullets in the air and turned a missile into a dove. She was able to punch through Adam's armored hide and rip out his radioactive uranium power core without ill effects. Immediately after Buffy defeated the nearly invincible Adam, the spell faded.[55]
- Invisibility — Shortly after her resurrection, Buffy was accidentally rendered invisible by the Trio. At first, she enjoyed her new ability, before she learned that her life was in danger. Willow reverses the effects when she gets a hold of the Trio's gun.[130]
- Twilight's "Evolution" — Near the end of the Twilight crisis, Buffy gained a multitude of new powers: her strength, speed, agility, and reflexes were greatly enhanced, and she developed telescopic vision, superhuman hearing, flight, and a level of invulnerability. Willow initially theorized that these powers were a result of Buffy unwittingly absorbing the collective powers of all of the Slayers who had died since they began the Slayer Organization, but it was later discovered that these abilities were granted to her by the Universe as a reward for changing the world and the balance of the grand design.[141] According to the higher power that instructed Angel in the use of his new powers, Buffy's powers could only be activated if she was completely focused on her goal, resulting in Angel assuming the disguise of the villainous Twilight in order to provide an enemy for Buffy to fight to trigger her "evolution".[98] Buffy returned to her original power levels and limitations after the destruction of the Seed.
Deaths
Buffy's tombstone, after her second death jumping into Glory's portal
- “Hey, I've died twice.”
- ―Buffy Summers[src]
Buffy died at the age of sixteen after being bitten and drowned by the Master.[22] This was a clinical death, in which the heart stops beating, but there is still brain activity. People who experience clinical deaths have often been revived. This death activated Kendra Young as the Slayer.[10]
Buffy's second death occurred when she was twenty years old, when she sacrificed herself to save Dawn and the world by hurling herself off a tower and using her own body to close a mystical portal. She was buried in a Sunnydale cemetery,[66] where her body rested for 147 days until Willow, Xander, Tara, and Anya resurrected her.[68]
When Buffy was shot by Warren Mears, she briefly flatlined in the hospital before being saved by Willow, who removed the bullet via telekinesis. It is never acknowledged by Buffy or anyone else whether this constituted a third death.[76] Buffy's nightmare came true when she was turned into a vampire by the Master because a comatose Billy Palmer was inadvertently merging the line between reality and dreams; this death was quickly reversed when Billy woke up.[21] An alternate version of Buffy also died at the hands of the Master, who snapped her neck, but this timeline was erased by the alternate Giles.[144]
Relationships
Buffy's most significant romances in her life were with the vampires Angel and Spike. Angel was her high school sweetheart and first love, but he eventually left her because his immortality and vampiric nature meant their relationship was doomed. Spike was initially her enemy, but he fell in love with her and the pair eventually formed a meaningful connection. Buffy continued to dream about both men, often together, long after the respective relationships ended. She appears to still love both vampires. Giles even made a comment of her truest loves being Angel and Spike.[141] Many of her friends and the fans joke that Buffy has 'a thing for strong vampires'. In one of these dreams, Spike commented that she could no longer tell them apart.[145]
Other important relationships of Buffy's have included Pike, Parker, Riley Finn, and Satsu. Pike was her friend and love interest when she first began her journey as the Slayer, but the pair broke up before she came to Sunnydale. In college, she dated Riley in the hopes of having a "normal" relationship, only to discover he was an Initiative soldier. Satsu was Buffy's fellow Slayer, as well as her first and only homosexual liaison.
Gallery
Behind the Scenes
- Buffy Summers was portrayed by Sarah Michelle Gellar
- Buffy first appeared in the 1992 Buffy the Vampire Slayer movie, but the later television series marked her first canonical appearance in 1997. Since then, she has been featured in spin-off series Angel as well as various expanded universe material. In 2007, the character's history was continued in the comic book series Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight. Buffy was played by actress Kristy Swanson in the movie, but Sarah Michelle Gellar portrays her on television and is more closely associated with the role.
- Joss Whedon chose the name Buffy because, "It was the name that I could think of that I took the least seriously. There is no way you could hear the name Buffy and think, "This is an important person." To juxtapose that with Vampire Slayer, just felt like that kind of thing – a B movie. But a B movie that had something more going on. That was my dream." Whedon went on to say that, "The network begged me to change the title. I was like, "You don't understand. It has to be this. This is what it is." To this day, everyone says, "Oh, the title kept it from being taken seriously." I'm like, "Well, f*** them. It's a B movie, and if you don't love B movies, then I won't let you play in my clubhouse."
- Buffy, as a character, is largely based on Kitty Pryde, a character in the X-Men comic books.
- Buffy was originally going to appear in the Angel fifth season episode "You're Welcome" as the one who reminded Angel of his purpose and helped him get back on track. Though Sarah Michelle Gellar was willing to appear, she was forced to turn it down due to scheduling conflicts and family problems; thus, the episode was rewritten to center around Cordelia, also the writes hoped to get Buffy to appear in the penultimate episode "Power Play", but Buffy didn't appeared since Sarah Michelle Gellar was away filming The Grudge.
- Katie Holmes and Selma Blair were originally in the running for the role of Buffy in 1996. Holmes was Joss’s first choice for Buffy but she was turned down as she was deemed too young for the role. Others who auditioned for Buffy and got other roles include Charisma Carpenter (Cordelia Chase), Julie Benz (Darla), Elizabeth Anne Allen (Amy Madison), Julia Lee (Anne Steele), and Mercedes McNab (Harmony Kendall).
- Along with Willow, Giles, Xander and Angel, she is one of only five characters to appear in both the pilot and series finale of Buffy: "Welcome to the Hellmouth" and "Chosen".
- Buffy appears in a total of 146 episodes of the Buffyverse (150 if counting archive footage). The only characters to appear in more episodes are Angel (167) and Willow (147).
- If counting archive footage as an appearance. Buffy, Cordelia and Angel are the only characters that appear in both the first and final seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel.
Appearances
CanonicalThe following appearances are considered canonical and form Buffy's official biography.
OtherAs the main character in the franchise, Buffy has also appeared in the majority of Buffy expanded universe material.
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See Also
External Links
- Buffy Summers at Wikipedia
- Buffy Summers at Dark Horse Database
- Template:IMDb character
- Buffy Summers at Comic Book DB
- Buffy-Summers.com
- Buffy at BuffyGuide.com
- Buffy at BBC.co.uk