This is a part 1 of 3 of the FAQ for alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer. (Last updated on 3/9/98) The preface, contents, and sections 1 and 2 are in part 1, sections 3 and 4 are in part 2, and sections 5 through 8 are in part 3. We will try to answer some of the recurring questions on the newsgroup, but refer other general show questions to sites devoted to the show. We'll abbreviate Buffy the Vampire Slayer as BTVS herein. Where possible, we'll cite the episode from which the given answer was derived. Episode titles will also be abbreviated as given in the episode listing. Quotes given are from Domain of the Slain. THIS IS YOUR SPOILER WARNING! Answers include plot information up to and including that revealed in Killed by Death. If you aren't up to date, be warned. Thanks to , who provided some starter questions, to Joshua Wilhoyte , who provided some answers to them, and to everybody on the newsgroup who provided us with much of the information/speculation contained herein. Buffy the Vampire Slayer is created by Joss Whedon and belongs, in various degrees, to Mutant Enemy, Kuzui/Sandollar Productions, and 20th Century Fox. No copyright infringement is intended. This document is copyright (c) 1997 by Eric Nehrlich and Jason Bucy. All rights reserved. It may not be reproduced or reposted by any means, electronic or otherwise, in part or in whole, without prior permission from one of the authors. Implicit permission is granted to those who quote from it on the newsgroup. Eric Nehrlich http://phone-home.stanford.edu/~nehrlich Jason Bucy http://sub-zero.mit.edu/bakunin ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Frequently Asked Questions answered in this document: 1) For starters: 1.1) What is alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer? 1.2) What is the purpose of this FAQ? 1.3) Where is this FAQ posted? How often? 1.4) Where can I find this FAQ on the World Wide Web? 1.5) Who are you and why are you doing this FAQ? 2) About the television show: 2.1) What is Buffy the Vampire Slayer? 2.2) Say, wasn't that a movie? 2.3) When/where is BTVS broadcast? 2.4) What are the episodes? 2.5) I missed an episode! How can I get a videotape? 2.6) Has the show been picked up for syndication? 3) About the newsgroup: 3.1) What do people talk about here? 3.2) *IMPORTANT* If you're posting about the most recent episode. 3.3) *IMPORTANT* Before you ask questions/post answers. 3.4) *IMPORTANT* General USENET etiquette. 3.5) What do people mean by ? 3.6) Should I post fanfic here? Where should I post it? 3.7) Should I post binaries (pictures) here? 4) About the plot (or, What in the Hellmouth is going on?): 4.1) Why is Buffy THE Slayer? 4.2) Why were there two Slayers? 4.3) What is the Hellmouth? 4.4) Hey! That isn't how the movie ended! 4.4a) What happened to Buffy's vampire sense? 4.5) How old/what year are Buffy et. al.? 4.6) What happened to Jesse? 4.7) What happened to Principal Flutie? 4.8) What has happened to Angel? Who is Angelus? 4.9) What happened to Darla? 4.10) What happened to the Master? 4.11) What happened to the Anointed One? 4.12) Who are Spike and Drusilla? 4.13) Who is/what happened to Dalton/the bookworm vampire? 4.14) Doesn't anyone else know what's going on? Like Buffy's mom? 4.15) Who is Ethan? 4.16) Who is "Ripper"? 4.17) Who is the Scooby gang? the Slayerettes? 4.18) Why aren't the assassins still after Buffy? 4.19) What's up with Ms. Calendar? 4.20) What's the deal with Oz? How come he wasn't in this episode? 4.21) Who is Jonathan? 4.22) What's with gangs on PCP and gas leaks? 4.23) How the heck many things are under Sunnydale High? 4.24) What all is in Sunnydale? 4.25) Omigod, is going to hook up with ? 5) About the cast and crew: 5.1) Who plays ? 5.2) What else has been in? 5.3) What else has Joss Whedon done? 5.4) Is quitting Buffy? 5.5) Wow! Who is SMG's stunt double? 5.6) Who is Jeff Pruitt? 5.7) Are Seth Green and Bruce Seth Green related/the same person? 5.8) Is Principal Snyder played by Quark? 5.9) Hey, was played by Traci Lords? 6) About the vampires: 6.1) Hey! Vampires don't , can't , wouldn't ! (or, Welcome to the Buffyverse) 6.2) Oh. Well, what ARE vampires in the Buffyverse? 6.3) Well, then how could Angel possibly have been a good vampire? 6.3a) Was Dru the gypsy girl in question? 6.4) How do you slay a vampire? 6.5) How can Xander/Willow/Giles slay a vampire - I thought only the slayer could? 6.6) How does one become a vampire? 6.7) What's a sire? 6.8) How does a vampire enter someone's house/the school? 6.8a) What about the vampire in Halloween? or Angel in Reptile Boy? 6.8b) What about Angel's quote in Passion about the school? 6.9) If vampires don't have breath, how do they talk/smoke/whistle? 6.10) If vampires have no reflection, how can they be videotaped? 6.11) Do only Christian relics work on vampires? 7) Other Frequently Asked Questions: 7.1) Did you know BTVS is filmed at the same high school as 90210? 7.2) Where can I find nude pictures of SMG? 7.3) Dude, what is this about monkey pants? 7.4) What the heck is the PETW? 7.5) What are/who wrote the Buffy books? 8) Finding more information: 8.1) Where is the official Buffy website? 8.2) What are good web sites to learn more about the show? Where can I find episode summaries/transcripts? Where can I find quote lists? Who did that song? 8.3) Where can I find out about upcoming shows? 8.4) Can I get Buffy merchandise? 8.5) Is there a Buffy soundtrack? ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1) For starters: 1.1) What is alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer? alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer is an unmoderated USENET newsgroup devoted to the discussion of the television series "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," herein abbreviated as BTVS. An associated group, alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer.creative, is available for those who wish to exchange fanfic (see 3.6). 1.2) What is the purpose of this FAQ? This document provides answers to questions which are frequently asked on the newsgroup. If you have a question, now you can check the FAQ for an answer before you ask the whole group! This isn't intended to be comprehensive; it's just to address the most frequently asked questions. 1.3) Where is this FAQ posted? How often? This FAQ will be posted to alt.tv.buffy-v-slayer and news.answers semimonthly (biweekly) on Tuesday mornings so that people responding to the episode of the week may read it before posting. Since we currently (3/8/98) have a big influx of newcomers, we'll be posting once a week for the time being. 1.4) Where can I find this FAQ on the World Wide Web? A plain text version can be found at: http://phone-home.stanford.edu/~nehrlich/buffyfaq An HTML version is at: http://sub-zero.mit.edu/bakunin/altbuffyfaq.html People are free to link to those URLs. Please do not redistribute this FAQ or copy it onto your own web pages. We would like to retain control of it as long as our names are associated with it. 1.5) Who are you and why are you doing this FAQ? Eric: I really like the show, I've seen all the episodes (Jason has them all on tape), I discuss the show with my friends, I've read every post of the newsgroup, and thus feel as qualified as anybody else to write a FAQ. I get annoyed at the questions repeated over and over again on the group and hope that this FAQ will start to cut that down in the hopes that the newsgroup will become less repetitive. Jason: I love the show, I ARCHIVE it, ferchrissakes, and I love discussing the show. One of the Best Things about Buffy is that if you get a friend to watch it once, they're hooked. But it seems like the same questions keep coming up on the newsgroup, along with the same sets of answers, some thoughtful or perceptive, some spurious. I've wanted to compile the more reasoned and plausible answers into a FAQ for a while. There are also a lot of questions about the NEWSGROUP, not the show, that need answers. Besides, people on the group asked for a FAQ! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2) About the television show: 2.1) What is Buffy the Vampire Slayer? Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Buffy, BTVS) is a one-hour weekly drama series broadcast by the Warner Brothers network (the WB). It contains violence and occasional teenage hormonal themes. BTVS stars Emmy winner Sarah Michelle Gellar and was created by Joss Whedon. 2.2) Say, wasn't that a movie? You are correct, sir. _Buffy_the_Vampire_Slayer_ was a 1992 movie starring Kristy Swanson and Luke Perry, with Rutger Hauer and Paul Reubens (Pee-Wee Herman), written by Joss Whedon. There is some debate about whether the series picks up where the movie left off or not, and the implications of that. 2.3) When/where is BTVS broadcast? Tuesday nights at 8 pm Eastern/Pacific on the WB (Warner Brothers) channel. If you get WGN from your cable provider, it is broadcast Tuesdays at 8 pm Eastern (7 Central), so do the math if you live out West. In Canada, it's available on YTV on 7:30 pm Fridays and 7 pm Saturdays. Two other WB superstations (WPIX New York and KTLA Los Angeles) also carry it Tuesday nights at 8 pm locally (EST and PST respectively). In Ontario, CKVR Barrie and CFPL London currently carry it on Mondays at 9 pm EST (whether they change in January is unknown). 2.4) What are the episodes? The abbrevations used in the newsgroup are included - some episode titles are short enough to have no useful abbreviation. First season: Welcome to the Hellmouth & The Harvest (2 hour premiere) (WTTH) The Witch Teacher's Pet (TP) Never kill a Boy on the First Date (NKABOTFD) The Pack Angel I, Robot -- You, Jane (IRYJ) The Puppet Show (TPS) Nightmares Invisible Girl (IG) (aka Out of Mind, Out of Sight (OOMOOS)) Prophecy Girl (PG) Second season (so far...): When She was Bad (WSWB) Some Assembly Required (SAR) School Hard (SH) Inca Mummy Girl (IMG) Reptile Boy (RB) Halloween Lie to Me (LTM) The Dark Age (TDA) What's My Line (Parts 1 and 2) (WML) Ted Bad Eggs Surprise (Part 1) Innocence (Part 2) Phases Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered (BBB) Passion Killed by Death (KBD) I Only Have Eyes For You (IOHEFY?) Go Fish (GF) Becoming (2 parter season finale) 2.5) I missed an episode! How can I get a videotape? There is a BTVS Tape Trade page on the web at http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Boulevard/7594/index.html The old one at erols.com is apparently cancelled. I have not used this service myself, but it looks pretty straightforward - it's a posting board where people can list the episodes they have or need. Occasionally, people on the newsgroup will offer to dub episodes as well. The WB has made no indication that it will release videos, a la The X-files, but hey, the show's only been on for about a year. 2.6) Has the show been picked up for syndication? Variety reports that Fox has bought the syndication rights (at $600,000 an episode!!), and syndication reruns are expected to happen on FX in 2001 (after 5 seasons of Buffy). ------------------------------------------------------------------------