The first time I took on Joss Whedon’s small screen version of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, my expectations weren’t altogether high. While I dug the silly movie with Kristy Swanson, I figured the series would maybe offer a couple of funny moments but little else. I was wrong. I was instantly hooked by this funny, scary, smart and daring television show. Sarah Michelle Gellar was perfection as the chosen one, the girl who must fight the vampires and demons. She handled the humor and heart of the character brilliantly. And with Joss and his group of talented writers and directors on-hand, the series offered up some of the best television had to offer.
Since its final season, and the satisfying finale entitled “Chosen,” the series has remained one of the finest examples of genre television. While the characters have lived on via comics and of course through modern day fandom, there has always been talk about a return. And hey, we’ve seen a number of classic television shows find new life over the past few years. The X-Files, Will and Grace, Fuller House, Twin Peaks and a number of others have brought back the original actors to give fans a healthy dose of nostalgia driven entertainment. And that doesn't include the many other revamps with a brand new cast including Hawaii Five-O and the upcoming Magnum PI. Strangely enough, for this fan, the magic tends to disappear with most of the reunions. I still appreciate Twin Peaks and the first few seasons of The X-Files, but somehow felt a disconnect with the current editions.
That begs the question, is there a need for a revamped Buffy? Well, as much as I appreciate the original cast, a teenage girl killing vampires really wouldn’t work with the exact same characters. However, what about a brand new story with a brand new slayer? Now that could bring out my curiosity. And that appears to be what we are going to get. A few days ago, it was announced that 20th Century Fox was working on a series reboot that will be written by Monica Owusu-Breen (Midnight, Texas). And yes, Joss Whedon will be back as an executive producer. And when I say brand new, we will be seeing a fresh face wielding a stake, as well as a few other appropriate weapons. The question is, will it deliver, or will it be a cold and unnecessary reboot.
Little is known about the plans for the new series, and my man Kevin Fraser did a hell of a job discussing what we currently know. The current plan is to keep the series diverse and topical. However, wasn’t the series always topical? Didn’t it deal with modern issues in an inventive way? It did all that and more. Frankly, what Whedon did with the classic program was make something ahead of its time. It was a near perfect show for many fans, and you can name several episodes that stood far above what you normally would see on television – and yes, even by today’s standards I would say that that was still very true.
Needless to say, I have a ton of mixed feelings. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll give it a chance. I’m mostly relieved that they are telling a brand new story. And happily it appears that we will not be watching the old cast trying to bring new life to their old characters. Yet I don’t know if I want to see another “Buffy,” but I certainly don’t think the whole “Scooby Gang” appeal will still be there with the original actors who are mostly well into their 40’s – give or take. Perhaps a mix of both worlds? Bring some of the characters back, yet offer up a new leading character. Of course, that leads to the question, is there another teenage girl named Buffy that happens to battle the undead? Or just bring Sarah Michelle Gellar back as a sort of Slayer supervisor… can an old slayer be a watcher if they make it through all the slayage? It’s too early to know, but I just hope that this one doesn’t suck, and we aren’t going to get an overload of useless sentimentality for an old series.
Maybe it’s the booze talkin’, but do we really need a new Buffy the Vampire Slayer? I’m a huge fan of this series. In fact, it is still probably my favorite, or at least in the top three. So you’d think I’d be thrilled at the news of an upcoming reboot. I guess I’m cautious about what this new series will be. Sarah Michelle Gellar, Alyson Hannigan, Nicholas Brendon, Anthony Head and the rest of the original cast helped make the series perfect for me. So much so that I’m not sure that any attempt to reignite the Buffy fandom will result in anything more than a greedy and soulless cash-in on the current nostalgia craze. That said, I’m an unabashed fan, and am very likely to tune in for (at the very least) the pilot episode. Who knows, maybe it will turn into something special. Only time will tell whether that old Buffy flame can truly be reignited and we can once again walk through the fire.