It's like Sunnydale, but in the Fediverse! Just without all the mysterious deaths and snake demons and magic!
A community for all things Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Sure, and Angel, too, why not, we have room.
Community Rules:
1: Don't be a jerk. Engage in civil discussion or you will be cursed.
2: Keep posts on topic for Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, related media.
3: Do not summon demons with trinkets you found at the Magic Box.
The show is a very loose sequel to the 1992 Kristy Swanson film of the same name. It's not critical to watch by any means, and plenty of details are ret-conned, but the first couple episodes of the show do make passing references to the film.
The film has a very different tone than the show, but it's got a stellar cast and I've always thought it was a lot of fun.
Release order is fine. I wouldn't worry about the Angel crossovers, you're not missing anything critical by not watching it. I'd feel free to skip the first season as well if you're not feeling it, the show really only kicks into gear in its second season.
There are some Angel crossovers that are literally one episode across two shows. It might be a bit jarring to watch those separately. I believe they only lasted one or two season before buffy moved networks though.
You should watch in the standard release order. When mixing in Angel, there is a recommended order I currently follow in my rewatch, as it helps keeping crossovers in sync: http://josswhedon.blogspot.com/2012/04/buffy-and-angel-episode-viewing-order.html
Came here to post this exact same link.
The spouse and I watched in this order, and you get more out of both shows like this. Neither of us loved Angel as a show or a character (Angelus is a hilarious dickbag, though), so adding in the direct connections to Buffy was the only way we would get through Angel. That and Lorne. And Skip, Skip is the best.
Angel has its highlights too, like Smile Time (season 5 episode 14)
At some point you'll have to start watching Angel, the spinoff that aired right after it.
Because Buffy has part 1 of a two parter, and Angel would then immediately air part 2
So for modern streaming it sucks, but it made sense back in the day
There is many episodes especially in the first two seasons when they fight one specific situation. So you can start one of them. However it is much more interesting watch in the right order.
It is Kind of a monster of the week series, but has an overarching story as well and lots of character development. Strict viewing order should be recommended.
I feel like it is balance enough to allow both but you really want to get into the show, you have to view it in order.
The passion of the nerd has a great episode guide.
https://youtube.com/@passionofthenerd
If he says watch it, stop the video and watch the episode. If he says skip it, go ahead and just watch his summary of the episode. I thoroughly recommend watching his summaries and analysis after each episode so you can get the most out of what the show is really about.
And miss the hilarious 90's cheese of the Technodemon? For shame!
For new people? Maybe on their second watch through.