Season 1, Episode 1
Written by Joss Whedon
Directed by Charles Martin Smith
Original Airdate: 10 March 1997
“Don’t you have an elsewhere to be?”
Cordelia Chase
REGULAR CAST
- Sarah Michelle Gellar as Buffy Summers
- Nicholas Brendon as Xander Harris
- Alyson Hannigan as Willow Rosenberg
- Charisma Carpenter as Cordelia Chase
- Anthony Stewart Head as Rupert Giles
GUEST CAST
- Mark Metcalf as The Master
- Brian Thompson as Luke
- David Boreanaz as Angel
- Ken Lerner as Principal Bob Flutie
- Kristine Sutherland as Joyce Summers
- Julie Benz as Darla
- J. Patrick Lawlor as Thomas
- Eric Balfour as Jesse McNally
CO-STARRING
- Natalie Strauss as Teacher
- Carmine D. Giovinazzo as Boy
- Amy Chance as Girl #1
- Tupelo Jereme as Girl #2
- Persia White as Girl #3
SYNOPSIS
Buffy Summers, a 16-year-old girl, moves to Sunnydale, CA from LA with her mom. On the first day of school, Cordelia Chase, the popular girl, inducts Buffy into the cool crowd despite Buffy’s attempts to be friends with three other students: Xander Harris, Willow Rosenberg and Jesse McNally. At the library to get some textbooks, she meets Rupert Giles, the new school librarian and Buffy’s new Watcher. He presents a book with ‘Vampyr’ on the cover which scares her off. When a dead body is found on campus, Buffy goes to investigate and finds that the body was killed by vampires.
When she goes to inform Giles about the body, she also tells him she no longer wants to be a Slayer and hoped that she left that life back in LA. He tells her she has no choice in the matter and that her living in Sunnydale was no coincidence since it is where mystical events centre. As Buffy leaves, Giles follows to try and make her understand what is going on. They leave and Xander pops his head out from behind one of the shelves unsure what to make of their discussion.
At home, Buffy prepares for her night out to the ‘Bronze,’ Sunnydale’s only night club. Her mom thinks that everything is going to work out in Sunnydale and that they will be able to have a happy life there. On her way to the Bronze, Buffy senses she is being followed and heads into a alleyway. A tall, gorgeous guy comes out of the shadows searching for her. She swings down from a handstand she was holding on a bar above him and knocks him to the ground. He claims not to bite and that he just wants to help her. He warns her of the Harvest and tells her about the Hellmouth. Later at the Bronze, Buffy chats with Willow about boys. She tries to inspire Willow to stop waiting and to ‘seize the day.’ Buffy spots Giles upstairs and goes up to talk to him. He continues to tell her she is the Slayer and has no choice in the matter.
Buffy spots a vampire in the crowd below them and then realizes he’s talking to Willow. The guy leaves with Willow as Buffy goes searching for him. She mistakenly attacks Cordelia and then pretty much ruins her chances for popularity. As Buffy leaves, she runs into Xander and asks him where Willow may have gone or else there will be one more dead body tomorrow. The vampire manages to lead Willow into the cemetery where he throws her into a Mausoleum. As she tries to escape, Darla arrives with Jesse. Buffy and Xander show up and Buffy kills one of the vampires and then fights with Darla as Xander gets Willow and Jesse out to safety. Luke, a monstrous vampire, shows up and fights with Buffy. While they are fighting, Darla escapes to get Jesse, Xander and Willow. Luke throws Buffy into a coffin where he jumps in and leans in to bite.
TRIVIA
This episode, as well as the next one The Harvest, originally aired as a two-hour movie on the WB. On all subsequent showings, as well as its international airings, the movie is split into two separate episodes.
This episode has an unique set of opening titles: as the shrill pierces the air and the logo forms, there’s an extra bar of music that is removed from the regular titles.
On it’s original airing this episode had a short trailer that talked about two other Slayers, one being recurring comic character Lucy Hannover, who appears in Nancy Holder’s novel Book of Fours.
The trailer was as follows: “Virginia, 1866. The disappearance of local Civil War widows shocked an already devastated community. These events ended when Lucy Hanover arrived in town. Chicago, May, 1927: Forty-one bodies were found near Union Station. Shortly after the arrival of this young woman, the mysterious murders stopped. Now, in 1997, it’s starting all over again.” This trailer has never been seen since.
Armin Shimerman auditioned for the role of Principal Flutie, but lost out to Ken Lerner. He later got the role of Principal Snyder in The Puppet Show.
Joss Whedon wanted to place Eric Balfour on the opening credits to lull the audience into thinking he was going to survive. He found it too costly however to create another set of credits. He planned to do the same to Kristine Sutherland in The Body, but he was halted then as well. He eventually did the trick with Amber Benson in Seeing Red.
In the unaired pilot presentation to the WB, actress Riff Regan played Willow, but it was felt that she was wrong for the part. She was replaced by Alyson Hannigan when the series was commissioned. The unaired pilot also featured Danny Strong and Mercedes McNab, who didn’t appear until later in the series’ run. Stephen Tobolowsky originally played Principal Flutie, until Ken Lerner took the part. The unaired pilot also did not feature Angel or the Master.
Sarah Michelle Gellar auditioned for the roles of Buffy and Cordelia. She won the role of Cordelia, but then auditioned seventeen times for the role of Buffy when the part was still uncast. Charisma Carpenter, Julie Benz, Elizabeth Anne Allen and Mercedes McNab all auditioned for the role of Buffy, and all received other roles. They became important characters to the show as a result.
Bianca Lawson, who would play Kendra in season two, originally won the role of Cordelia, but left due to a commitment to another series, Goode Behaviour.
Sunnydale High School is actually Torrance High School, which was also the school used in Beverly Hills 90210.
Mutant Enemy, Joss Whedon’s Production Company was the name that Joss gave to his typewriter when he was fifteen. The logo for the episode was created within twenty minutes of Joss finding out he needed one. Joss is also the voice of the ‘Grrr Arrgh!’ monster that appears over the logo at the end of every episode.
The band Nerf Herder perform the opening theme to the series. They got their name from an insult Leia yells at Han Solo in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back.
Although established as a separate continuity from the 1992 movie, there are several allusions to Buffy burning down the Hemery High gymnasium, which does not appear in the movie, but does appear in the original script. Various actors who didn’t appear in the series, but appeared in the film were Kristy Swanson who played Buffy, Candy Clarke, who played a very different ‘Buffy’s Mom,’ and James Paradise, who appeared briefly as ‘Buffy’s Dad.’
When asked about the movie, Joss had this to say: “It wasn’t really my idea. After the première of the movie, my wife said, “You know, honey, maybe a few years from now, you’ll get to make it again, the way you want to make it!” [Broad, condescending voice.] “Ha ha ha, you little naïve fool. It doesn’t work that way. That’ll never happen.” And then it was three years later, and Gail Berman actually had the idea. Sandollar Television had the property, and Gail thought it would make a good TV series. They called me up out of contractual obligation: “Call the writer, have him pass.” And I was like, “Well, that sounds cool.” So, to my agent’s surprise and chagrin, I said, “Yeah, I could do that. I think I get it. It could be a high-school horror movie. It’d be a metaphor for how lousy my high-school years were.” So I hadn’t had the original idea, I just developed it”.
CONTINUITY
The cross that Angel gives Buffy during this episode can be seen in several further episodes.
The Illuminata, which is the diamond that the Trio stole from Sunnydale’s museum in Smashed, was on loan from the British Museum, which Willow mentions in this episode when she says that Giles’ could have been the British Museum’s curator.
Buffy’s dream in the first moments of the episode show clips from the already shot episodes of season one.
Cordelia tells Buffy that she would ‘kill to live in LA, that close to that many shoes.’ Cordelia moves to Los Angeles after the third season finale.
GOOFS
When Buffy goes back to the library and she and Giles are arguing about her being the Slayer, Giles hands her some books. When he gives them to her the spines of the books are facing one way and when she gives them back to him they are facing the other way. They alternate like that a few times before they are finally put down.
When Xander sees Buffy drop her purse on the floor, there’s a girl in the background walking down the hall. In the next shot the same girl is walking down the hall but in the opposite direction.
When Buffy stakes Thomas, the stake doesn’t go anywhere near his heart.
In the opening sequence, Darla’s top button on her shirt is done up but when she vamps, the shirt is totally buttoned up.
When Buffy is looking for Willow in the Bronze, she snaps off a stool leg to use as a weapon. In the next shot, it has become a regular stake.
WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?
— / The Harvest
The Watcher's Guide 