Buffy: Season One Overview

BUFFY-
Season Appearances- 12 (B101 +10, B102 +9, B103 +8, B104 +9, B105 +7, B106 +1, B107 +9, B108 +5, B109 +6, B110 +2, B111 +2, B112 +12)
Season Score- +80 (Average: +6.66)
Overall Appearances- 12
Overall Score- +80 (Average: +6.66)

Buffy has a very strong season, which could be attributed to the fact that she’s the main character, but more likely a tribute to the great character that Whedon has created. She has quite a few great episodes mixed with some very decent ones. The first half of the season, virtually up to The Pack is awesome, dominating until she has a slight drop off near the end, where she doesn’t slay quite as much and plays something of a back-up role to another character. Her best episode is the season finale in which you see Buffy become the Slayer she will become, managing the most points of anyone this season, and the most points so far. She shows all sides of her character this season: a dangerous slayer; a brave warrior; a good friend; a rebel & a strong willed girl. She’s at her best when interacting with the other Scoobies and when slaying the vamps of Sunnydale. An awesome season to which all other characters can aim up to.

XANDER-
Season Appearances- 12 (B101 +3, B102 0, B103 +9, B104 +8, B105 +4, B106 -7, B107 +1, B108 +7, B109 +5, B110 +5, B111 +2, B112 +7)
Season Score- +44 (Average: +3.66)
Overall Appearances- 12
Overall Score- +44 (Average: +3.66)

Xander has a pretty good opening season, with his performance in The Pack being a real let-down as her could have had over 50 points. He has a slow start before having a good set of episodes in The Witch and Teacher’s Pet. He then ends up being consistent with some strong performances at the end. His best stuff comes from his humour and his exchanges with Willow or his pining for Buffy. He does though show some of his bad side which is his stubborness and hate for Angel.

WILLOW-
Season Appearances- 12 (B101 +2, B102 +4, B103 +2, B104 +4, B105 +1, B106 +1, B107 +5, B108 +6, B109 +5, B110 +4, B111 +3, B112 +5)
Season Score- +42 (Average: +3.5)
Overall Appearances- 12
Overall Score- +42 (Average: +3.5)

Willow is consistently good for most of of the season, she never really stands out above the others but is always near the top. Her best episode is the one that centres on her, I Robot…You, Jane, but she provided crucial back up for many other episodes. Her best stuff comes from her interactions with Buffy and Xander as well some fantastic character moments, such as her stage fright.

GILES-
Season Appearances- 12 (B101 +3, B102 +2, B103 +2, B104 +4, B105 +3, B106 +2, B107 +1, B108 +8, B109 +2, B110 +3, B111 +2, B112 +4)
Season Score- +36 (Average: +3)
Overall Appearances- 12
Overall Score- +36 (Average: +3)

Giles plays a supporting role for most of the series acting as the adult figure and expositional master.  He consistently manages only a few points in each episode. He does manage to have a stand out episode in I Robot..You, Jane. His points came from his humour and ability to provide Buffy with the stability she needs. Also, his interactions with the Scoobies and Ms. Calender are great.

ANGEL-
Season Appearances- 7 (B101 +2, B102 +1,  B104 +1, B105 +1, B107 +8, B111 +2, B112 +4)
Season Score- +19 (Average: +2.7)
Overall Appearances- 7
Overall Score- +19 (Average: +2.7)

Angel really only plays bit parts for most of the season, with the one big episode, Angel. He did manage to snag himself a point for each appearance which is quite good for the amount of screen time he had in this scene. His points mainly came from his interactions with Buffy, as that is who he mainly spent time with, although he has a moment with Giles near the end.

CORDELIA-
Season Appearances- 10 (B101 +1, B102 +1, B103 +2, B104 +1, B105 +1,  B107 -1,  B109 +3, B110 +3, B111 +4, B112 +4)
Season Score- +19 (Average: +1.9)
Overall Appearances- 10
Overall Score- +19 (Average: +1.9)

Cordelia has a strange opening season. Her first half is filled with small point counts, where she mainly has funny lines. But in the last 4 episodes, she grows as a character and manages not just funny lines, but some deep stuff as well and manages to be a more important character in the battle against the Master. This season gives us an idea of what she will become in next season.

MS.CALENDER-
Season Appearances- 2 (B108 +5, B112 +2)
Season Score- +7 (Average: +3.5)
Overall Appearances- 2
Overall Score- +7 (Average: +3.5)

Ms. Calender only has two appearances and does pretty well to make her mark on them. Her introduction, I Robot..You, Jane is great for her fighting with Giles. We get to see more of her next season.

THE MASTER-
Season Appearances- 6 (B101 /, B102 +1, B105 +1, B107 +1, B110 +1, B112 +2)
Season Score- +6 (Average: +1)
Overall Appearances- 6
Overall Score- +6 (Average: +1)

The big bad of season one has a pretty limited role. Even though he manages to kill Buffy, you never get that feeling that he is a huge danger. And as you can see, his appearances aren’t altogether that memorable, only managing a point an episode for the most part.

PRINCIPAL FLUTIE-
Season Appearances- 4 (B101 +2, B102 /, B104 +3,  B106 +1)
Season Score- +6 (Average: +1.5)
Overall Appearances- 4
Overall Score- +6 (Average: +1.5)

Flutie is fairly memorable for such a small time in the series. He has some fantastic lines and is a wonderful character. He probably couldn’t last though, so his death is for the best.

PRINCIPAL SNYDER-
Season Appearances- 2 (B109 +2, B111 +2)
Season Score- +4 (Average: +2)
Overall Appearances- 2
Overall Score- +4 (Average: +2)

Sunnydale High’s second principal is a total contrast to it’s first. He does however manage a similar points tally, which can be attributed to his some strong lines and interactions with the Scoobies.

JOYCE-
Season Appearances- 7 (B101 +1, B102 -1, B103 +1, B107 /, B109 /, B110 +1, B112 +1)
Season Score- +3 (Average: +0.42)
Overall Appearances- 7
Overall Score- +3 (Average: +0.42)

Joyce only has small parts in the episodes she appears in, so lots of points would be hard but she manages at least to net one point most most of the time. Her points come from trying to mother Buffy…something of a hard task.

AMY-
Season Appearances- 1(B103 +2)
Season Score- +2 (Average: +2)
Overall Appearances- 1
Overall Score- +2 (Average: +2)

Only the one episode for Amy, which is a pretty decent one. She has a fairly typical high school character but manages to seperate herself enough.

HARMONY-
Season Appearances- 2 (B102 +1, B111 /)
Season Score- +1 (Average: +0.5)
Overall Appearances- 2
Overall Score- +1 (Average: +0.5)

Very small parts for Harmony, but you see a small amount of what she will become later on.

DARLA-
Season Appearances- 3 (B101 0, B102 -1, B107 -2)
Season Score- -3 (Average: -1)
Overall Appearances- 3
Overall Score- -3 (Average: -1)

The Darla that appears in this series is not the one that we will see in the future. She has has some things that just don’t seem Darla-ish, that being the use of guns and generally the way she acts…lacks presence.

EPISODE RANKING-
These rankings are based on total character points for each episode, this doesn’t reflect which episode is the best, although it gives you an indication.

1. B112 Prophecy Girl +41
2. B108 I Robot…You, Jane +31
3. B104 Teacher’s Pet +30
4. B105 The Witch +26
5. B101 Welcome To The Hellmouth +24
6. B109 The Puppet Show +24
7. B107 Angel +22
8. B110 Nightmares +19
9. B105 Never Kill A Boy On The First Date +18
10. B102 The Harvest +17
11. B111 Out Of Mind, Out Of Sight +16
12. B106 The Pack -2

EPISODE THOUGHT RECOUNT (out of 100)-
B101: 81
B102: 66
B103: 81
B104: 73
B105: 72
B106: 52
B107: 84.5
B108: 69
B109: 74
B110: 72.5
B111: 62.5
B112: 93

Season Score- 75 (not an average)

SEASON THOUGHTS-
A very solid starting season the Buffy. You can tell the showmakers were still ironing out the kinks but for the most part the show established what it set out do, be entertaining, funny, emotional & action-packed. This season does only have the one classic episode which is Prophecy Girl, but episodes like Angel and Welcome To The Hellmouth also show how strong the show can be. Unfortunately, most of the other episodes were fairly average, moster-of-the-week types in which the character’s had to make up for the generally weakish plots. Also, this season contains most least favourite episode ever, The Pack, so makes this season is a little worse because of that but overall the season is solid.