The Watcher's Guide, Volume 1 (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) (Paperback)

~ Christopher Golden (Author), Nancy Holder (Author) "Don't you get the feeling that the Watcher Rupert Giles knows an awful lot more than he's telling "The Harvest," part two of the two-hour..." (more)
Key Phrases: beauty makeup, other distinguishing marks, robot body, What's My Line, Jenny Calendar, Joss Whedon (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

One of TV's best shows now has a superb tie-in book--and this watcher's guide is even better than the one for The Simpsons. For novices, the title is a pun: Buffy, an ordinary high school girl with all the normal problems, also must spend her nights battling vampires and demons, supervised by her "Watcher," who poses as the school's librarian.

But the book serves novices and obsessive Buffy fans equally well. Each episode of the first two seasons gets a snappy yet learned summary, including a "Quote of the Week," a quick recap of each love entanglement and relationship switcheroo (and no soap opera is tanglier than Buffy), a "Pop-Culture IQ" guide (when Oz hunts for Buffy--who's been turned into a rat--that's Michael Jackson's "Ben" he's singing), countless pop-up balloons of fun facts (Buffy was turned into a rat in order to free up her schedule to host Saturday Night Live), and a catalog of "Buffy's Bag of Tricks"--her weapons, plus all the spells, chants, incantations, and previously incomprehensible rock-band lyrics on the show.

There's way more than we can list here. Not only do we get an ample sample of dialogue nearly as clever as Seinfeld's, there are scenes from the original scripts that were cut for length and cast interviews. Every single vampire, demon, witch, zombie, mummy, werewolf, shape shifter, ghost, reanimated cadaver, invisible killer, prehistoric parasite, monster puppet, and psychotic robot on Buffy's acrobatic dance card gets its due.

Get this book, then send one as a gift. Friends don't let friends miss out on Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Product Description

As long as there have been vampires, there has been the Slayer. One girl in all the world, to find them where they gather and to stop the spread of their evil and the swell of their members. She is the Slayer.

Exclusive Interviews, Totally Pointy Profiles, Behind-the-Scenes Info, and Other Buff-stuff About the Hit Show.

Sarah Michelle Gellar, David Boreanaz, Nicholas Brendon, Charisma Carpenter, Seth Green, Alyson Hannigan, Anthony Stewart Head, James Marsters, Juliet Landau, Mark Metcalf, Robia La Morte, Armin Shimerman, Joss Whedon, and more!

Love Bytes: Boy meets Girl, Girl meets Monster: does anyone live?
A Walking Tour of Sunnydale's Hot Spots (both of them)
The Slayer Handbook (according to Buffy Summers)
Character Guide -- who knew what and when?
Monster Guide -- vampires vs. Bezoars: who's deadlier?
Special Guest Stars -- John Ritter?!
Playlist -- what song did Buffy and Xander slow dance to?
Don't Try This at Home -- an interview with the show's stunt coordinator!
Bonus! Never-filmed dialogue from the original scripts!
Never-seen, behind-the-scenes photos -- Seth Green in makeup, Xander's closet, those icky fish guys!

The Monsters, The Mythology, The Villains, The Victims, The Fashion

Don't be caught dead without The Watcher's Guide.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Simon Spotlight Entertainment (October 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671024337
• ISBN-13: 978-0671024338
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (108 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #314,787 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars First Watcher's Guide in a Must Have Series for Buffy Fans, September 24, 2000

By	Lawrance M. Bernabo (The Zenith City, Duluth, Minnesota) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)

In "The Watcher's Guide," authors Christopher Golden and Nancy Holder, along with Keith R. A. DeCandido, have put together an "Official Companion" for the first two seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer that is a template of how such books should be done. Golden and Holder have already cut their teeth on the series, writing novelizations of episodes as well as original books individually and together, so they are perfect candidates for the job. This book is not one of those attempts to cash in on the success of the television show, thrown together as quick as possible and slapped with a cute title before appearing in a bookstore near you. This is a thoughtful effort by and for people who celebrate one of the best shows on television, a series that combines exciting action sequences with caustic wit and exquisite teenage pathos.

Buffy episodes are covered in a very comprehensive but quite user friendly format. The plot summaries are fairly brief, serving more as reminders for those who have seen that particular episode rather than a more detailed description of what has happened for those who had the misfortune of missing the program (but if you need more you can certainly find it on-line at several excellent Buffy sites). However, there are several running categories for each episode: Quote of the Week with the episode's most memorable line; Love, Slayer Style which keeps track on the romantic developments in the series; Pop-Culture I.Q. to translate the arcane references; and Continuity to cover references to past episodes or highlight what is down the road. Sometimes we are treated to scenes/dialogue cut from the original teleplay and/or Buffy's Bag of Tricks, which keeps track of her expanding repertoire of weaponry. You will usually find a couple of trivia boxes containing interesting tidbits about a particular episode.

The other significant strength of this collection is the hundred pages of Behind the Scenes material, consisting mostly of in-depth interviews with Joss Whedon along with the entire cast and crew. Other choice items dispersed throughout the pages are the Song Lists for the first two seasons; a list of spells, chants, and incantations not to try at home; and quips and quotations organized on a thematic basis. What impresses me is that every step of the way this book provides something more. There are the expected color photographs of the cast, but there are also color costume drawings. Along with the interview with stunt coordinator Jeff Pruitt there are sample story boards for several fight sequences.

"The Watcher's Guide" is obviously the first in a series of must have referenced materials for Buffy devotees. The Monster Guide section has been expanded in the recently released Buffy the Vampire "Monster Book" and this Halloween the second Watcher's Guide, covering the third and fourth seasons of the show, is being released. It should not be surprising that as much care and effort has gone into these volumes as has gone into the production of the show. I am sure that next year we will be treated to the first such book for the Angel series as well.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hanging out in the Library, January 22, 2003

By	Marc Ruby™ "The Noh Hare™" (Warren, MI USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)

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For several years now, I have avoided buying this Watcher's Guide and its companion volume for seasons three and four. I'm not quite sure why - perhaps it was a last ditch effort to avoid the admission that I am an unregenerate Willow-holic. "After all," thinks me, "I have the DVD's, so who needs another reprise of the episodes?"

Surprisingly enough, the descriptions of the episodes take only 40 pages out of 298 dedicated completely to the ground Buffy walks on and the air that Willow breathes. And everything else seasons one and twoish. There's intro to Buffy 101, a guide to living in Sunnydale, character, and monster guides, and a section on being in love on the Hellmouth.

The section I like best is a series of articles and reviews on the cast, creative staff and crew. Until I saw the extras on the DVD's I somehow believed that Joss Whedon waved a magic wand and a new episode popped fully formed from his forehead. It's quite a revelation to understand the colossal effort it takes to create each Buffy episode. From research and writing to make-up and stunts, every one has to be at their peak during a rushed and grueling shooting schedule.

Chock full of enough facts and quotes, this is the book to make you into a walking Buffy-pedia. The perfect tool to impress your friends and dash the hopes of your competition. Even if you feel you have been deserted for a werewolf. This is a fun book, put together by Christopher Golden and Nancy Holder, the reigning king and queen of Buffy literature. A tiny but slapdash, but full of enthusiasm for the surprising success of a show about people who have all the issues of growing up absurd AND have to deal with a continuous flow of the creepies.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THE BUFFY UNIVERSE IN A GREAT BOOK!, September 8, 2001

By	Mpols (La Plata, Buenos Aires Argentina) - See all my reviews

This is the best Buffy book ever! Personally, I haven't seen the entire first and second seasons, so this book was great for me. After I read it I felt like I had really seen all the episodes. The book is divided into different sections:
The mythology of Buffy:Basically it gets you started on what being the Slayer really means using extracts of dialogues from the original episodes.
Sunnydale Guidebook: It includes a review of all the places to go in Sunnydale presented like a real advise.
Character Guide: The acting start of all the actors, and the development of their characters. The lines from each one are hilarious!
Episode Guide: A short review of each episode + a great quote + Love, Slayer style:How the relationships are in that episode + Buffy's bag of tricks: her weapons every time + Pop-culture IQ: references made to the pop culture + the continuity with the other episodes + excerpts from the original script.
Monster guide: A guide with the most important monsters, vampires and witches that have appeared in the show.
Bloodlust: Every relationship that has ever taken place, with great tidbits of dialogue between the lovers.
Behind the scenes: Lots of goodies from behind the scenes of Buffy, as well as interviews with the whole cast, producer, make-up artist, etc., etc., etc. Basically every person involved in the making of the show.
Music: A complete list with the most important songs played in each episode.
This book is one of the most complete I have ever read, and I have nothing but compliments for it. Golden and Holder did a wonderful job together like always, and I recommend this book to every Buffy-watcher, wheter it's die-hard or not. The book is great, and it includes everything you could possibly want to know, so I say, go for it!