Unaired Pilot 

Buffy Summers arrives for her first day at a new school, and already weird things are happening. She investigates a dead body that is found in the girls' locker room, and, with the help of ... See full summary »

Director:

Joss Whedon

Writer:

Joss Whedon

Stars:

Sarah Michelle Gellar, Nicholas Brendon, Riff Regan

Cast

Episode cast overview:
Sarah Michelle Gellar	...	Buffy Summers
Nicholas Brendon	...	Xander Harris
Riff Regan	...	Willow
Charisma Carpenter	...	Cordelia Chase
Anthony Head	...	Rupert Giles (as Anthony Stewart Head)
Mercedes McNab	...	Harmony Kendall
Danny Strong	...	Jonathan Levinson
Julie Benz	...	Darla
Stephen Tobolowsky	...	Principal Flutie
Amy Chance	...	Aphrodesia
Persia White	...	Aura
Nicole Bilderback	...	Cordette

Storyline

Buffy Summers arrives for her first day at a new school, and already weird things are happening. She investigates a dead body that is found in the girls' locker room, and, with the help of her new friends Willow and Xander, she fights a gang of vampires. Also, she meets Cordelia and her friends, and Giles, her new Watcher, tells her more about her destiny.

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Plot Keywords:

reference to home depot | reference to martha stewart | unaired tv series pilot | 

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Genres:

Action | Drama | Fantasy | Romance

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

June 2003 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Torrance High School - 2200 W. Carson Street, Torrance, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mutant Enemy

Technical Specs

Runtime:

25 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Principal Flutie mistakenly refers to Buffy as "Bunny." Willow's mother Sheila Rosenberg would later do the same thing in Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Gingerbread (1999).

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Quotes

Aphrodesia: I mean, what kind of name is "Buffy"?
Cordette: Hi Aphrodesia!

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Connections

References How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966)

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Soundtracks

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Theme
Written by Nerf Herder
Performed by Brandon K. Verrett

User Reviews

Miracles happen

So the only real difference between this and the series debut "Welcome To The Hellmouth" was the time format. This pilot, which never made it to the TV screen, is only roughly 24 minutes long, and this is it's main downfall. Things kind of just... happen, and the set up really isn't there. The 44 minute episode format which the show adopted after it was picked up for production works much better in a universe in which there is a lot of explaining to do. Obviously re-casting the role of Willow was a good step, as Riff Regans acting ability was very, very underdeveloped when this pilot was made. One thing I wish the production team had kept was the original library set from this episode. Through the course of the first three years of "Buffy" the main characters tackle many hours of lengthly exposition in the school library, and the grand set from this episode would have allowed for some more interesting visual combinations in the familiar space. Totally worth watching, despite the "incomplete" feel of the editing. After watching this, it's kind of a miracle the show got made. A beautiful miracle.