From its charming and angst-ridden first season to the darker, apocalyptic final one, Buffy the Vampire Slayer succeeds on many levels, and in a fresher and more authentic way than the shows that came before or after it. How lucky, then, that with the release of its boxed set of seasons 1-7, you can have the estimable pleasure of watching a near-decade of Buffy in any order you choose. (And we have some ideas about how that should be done.)

First: rest assured that there's no shame in coming to Buffy late, even if you initially turned your nose up at the winsome Sarah Michelle Gellar kicking the hell out of vampires (in Buffy-lingo, vamps), demons, and other evil-doers. Perhaps you did so because, well, it looked sort of science-fiction-like with all that monster latex. Start with season 3 and see that Buffy offers something for everyone, and the sooner you succumb to it, the quicker you'll appreciate how textured and riveting a drama it is.

Why season 3? Because it offers you a winning cast of characters who have fallen from innocence: their hearts have been broken, their egos trampled in typically vicious high-school style, and as a result, they've begun to realize how fallible they are. As much as they try, there are always more monsters, or a bigger evil. Despite this, or perhaps because of it, the core crew remains something of a unit--there's the smart girl, Willow (Alyson Hannigan) who dreams of saving the day by downloading the plans to City Hall's sewer tunnels and mapping a route to safety. There are the ne'r do wells--the vampire Spike (James Marsters), who both clashes with and aspires to love Buffy; the tortured and torturing Angel (David Boreanz); the pretty, popular girl with an empty heart (Charisma Carpenter); and the teenage everyman, Xander (Nicholas Brendon).

Then there's Buffy herself, who in the course of seven seasons morphs from a sarcastic teenager in a minidress to a heroine whose tragic flaw is an abiding desire to be a "normal" girl. On a lesser note, with the boxed set you can watch the fashion transformation of Buffy from mall rat to Prada-wearing, kickboxing diva with enviable highlights. (There was the unfortunate bob of season 2, but it's a forgivable lapse.) At least the storyline merits the transformations: every time Buffy has to end a relationship she cuts her hair, shedding both the pain and her vulnerability.

Omigod

Being one of extremely slow people who didn't "get" Buffy until early in the 6th season, I compensated for my slowness by falling hard, fast and loyal to this show. Being a television geek as well, knowing just enough about television production to make me dangerous to be around, the luxury of being able to watch and listen to the commentaries and interviews as well as review every single nuance of every single show is now crucial to the maintenance of my sanity. The product is well worth every cent because if you are any kind of Buffy fan at all,(and maybe even if you aren't) you owe it to yourself to get the complete series. Nothing else should satisfy.

happy birthday chelsea

have i seen every single episode before? yes.
do i love my buffy box? yes!
i bought this for me. yes i know tis the season, blah blah blah. i bought this for ME. me me me!

I waited for a full box set and was not disappointed...

When I started watching Buffy I was 9 years old. So, obviously I didn't have the money to buy DVD box sets for a long time. Bully for me, since by the time I went back to buy all the seasons this handy box set was out. I bought mine from Target, and had absolutely no problems! I especially appreciated the extra DVD with features not included in the individual season box sets. All in all, I love the set and would definitely buy it again. As for the show itself, all one has to do is watch a few key episodes to experience the true mastery that is Buffy the Vampire Slayer. If Buffy was so awful (as so many people like to think) it would not be the Holy Grail of university scholars, as it certainly is and will be for a long time.

Wonderful show, wonderful cast, wonderful writing and production. And those are vast understatements.