Scooby Gang

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The Scooby Gang, or "Scoobies", are a group of characters in the cult television series and comic book Buffy the Vampire Slayer who battle the supernatural forces of evil. The team consists of Buffy Summers and her friends and colleagues who assist her in her duties as the Slayer. First forming in the Season One episode "The Harvest" to prevent The Master from opening a portal to hell, the line-up of the group varied from year to year, but the core that remained intact throughout the series' run was Buffy herself and her best friends, Xander Harris and Willow Rosenberg. Most argue Rupert Giles, Buffy's Watcher, to be the fourth member, and he is widely accepted as being so, despite his absences in the later seasons.

The group was first referred to as the Scooby Gang by Xander in the Season Two episode "What's My Line, Part One" as a reference to the group of ghost-hunting teenagers from the cartoon Scooby-Doo. Coincidentally, Sarah Michelle Gellar, the actress who plays Buffy on the show, has also appeared as Daphne Blake in the films Scooby-Doo and Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed.

The Scooby Gang usually take an unimpressed, flippant attitude towards extraordinary events and supernatural occurrences. Originally a group of teenage friends attending Sunnydale High in a town built on top of a Hellmouth, the group gradually expanded, eventually merging with the Watchers' Council to become a global organization dealing with demonic threats worldwide and training thousands of Slayers. In the beginning, Buffy often had to protect her friends from monsters, but over the course of the series most of them gained superpowers and fighting skills of their own, with Xander the only notable member with no mystical abilities or connection to the supernatural. Due to the show's strong themes of female empowerment, the most powerful members of the team are often female (Buffy and Willow), while the men play passive roles such as that of father-figure (Giles) and supportive best friend (Xander). Also, in keeping with the show's themes of redemption and moral ambiguity, many of the Scoobies have at some point in their lives been evil and even murdered people before but are now fighting on the side of good.

At least initially, in Season Eight, the Scoobies are scattered across the world. In addition to the primary gang, there are short of 2000 Slayers, many of whom work with the expanded organization in addition to witches, psychics and other staff. The core Scoobies now each act as important figures in the new Watcher's Council and maintain a role of leadership and authority amongst the Slayers they employ. With the group scattered, communication is maintained primarily through phone calls, and the group leaders (in particular the core three) now assume more superheroic positions and parallels than in previous seasons. Former allies in Season 7 such as Andrew and Rona now lead squads of their own.

Alternative Names

The group is also sometimes referred to as the "Slayerettes," mostly in early episodes or later in the scene descriptions to refer to the Potentials, but mostly it didn't catch on with fans. Both Willow (in the season one episode "Witch") and Spike (in the season four episodes "The I in Team" and "The Yoko Factor") have used the term in the show on different occasions.

Scooby Gang members

(In order of length of membership)

• Xander Harris — The most consistent and reliable member of the Scoobies, the wise-cracking Xander is notable for being one of the few characters in the show with no "superpowers". Instead, his insight, compassion, and support is how he helps his friends in the battle against evil; for example, he brings Willow back from the brink of darkness with his unconditional love in Season Six. Xander also possesses some knowledge of military combat and weapons after being turned into a real soldier in a Halloween episode.
• Buffy Summers — As the Slayer, Buffy possesses enhanced abilities that enable her to battle the forces of darkness. She is the focal point of the Scooby Gang, as the team initially formed around her responsibilities as the Chosen One, and she is very close to most of its members. Buffy is often reluctant to accept her destiny and leadership position but is forced to train her fellow Slayers in the fight against evil.
• Willow Rosenberg — Willow's abilities as a witch make her the most powerful member of the Scooby Gang. She sometimes resents being known as a "sidekick", leading the team during Buffy's temporary death between Seasons Five and Six. Willow frequently struggles to control her own immense power but is responsible for magically activating all of the Potential Slayers in the world. In the earlier seasons, she uses her knowledge of technology to help the gang.
• Rupert Giles — Originally Buffy's Watcher, Giles acts as a father-figure and mentor to most of the other Scoobies. Giles is a founding member of the team before returning to England in Season Six so that Buffy will take responsibility for her own life. He returns to the Scoobies on several occasions in times of need and now trains a squad of Slayers.
• Anya Jenkins — A millennia-old vengeance demon who becomes mortal and falls in love with Xander. Anya struggles to understand human conventions and often offends people due to her frank honesty and literal approach to speech. Initially very selfish, she eventually comes to respect humans and proves her loyalty to the team many times. She was killed by a Bringer in the battle in the series finale.
• Dawn Summers — Buffy's younger sister, Dawn, is actually a mystical orb of energy who was turned into human form by monks and given false memories. Dawn suffers from abandonment issues due to her traumatic life; she considers the Scooby Gang to be her surrogate family and is very close to them.
• Spike — Formerly an enemy of the Scoobies, this punk vampire switches sides when he is fitted with a microchip that prevents him from harming humans. Spike eventually falls in love with Buffy and becomes a true hero, seeking out his soul in order to prove his worth. Nevertheless, Xander and Giles remain openly hostile and distrustful towards him; the other Scoobies with the exception of Buffy and Dawn are not genuinely friendly towards him either, although they show this far less often than Xander and Giles. In the series Angel, Spike asks the name of Angel's team and states that he hoped it wasn't "the Scoobies."
• Tara Maclay — Willow's girlfriend and soulmate. Although she is a powerful witch, Tara rarely performs offensive magic, except in extreme circumstances when her friends are in danger. Initially very shy (she has a stutter, which went away after she gained self-confidence), Tara is somewhat of an outcast among the Scoobies, who aren't sure what to make of her. However, she eventually forms strong friendships with most of them, in particular Buffy and Dawn, and Anya to a lesser extent. Tara was killed when Warren Mears accidentally shot her.
• Cordelia Chase — A snobby cheerleader at Sunnydale High, Cordelia looks down on the Scoobies, who she considers unpopular and therefore beneath her. However, she often finds herself in perilous situations and relies on Buffy to save her. In Season Two, Cordelia becomes Xander's girlfriend and an official member of the Scooby Gang until she leaves for Los Angeles and joins Angel Investigations.
• Angel — Buffy's vampire lover throughout Seasons One to Three. Angel rarely socializes with the other Scoobies, contacting them only when necessary. His relationship with the group is irrevocably damaged when he turns evil and murders Giles' girlfriend, and he eventually leaves for Los Angeles where he and Cordelia form their own group, Angel Investigations.
• Daniel "Oz" Osbourne — Willow's boyfriend throughout Seasons Two to Four, Oz is a werewolf and the guitarist for local band Dingoes Ate My Baby. With his stoic sense of humor, Oz is a loyal and popular member of the Scoobies, maintaining a good friendship with Xander. He leaves the group in Season Four to learn how to control his wolf side.
• Andrew Wells — Another former villain, Andrew is an immature nerd who the Scoobies hold hostage in Buffy's house. He soon shows remorse for his past crimes and tries to join the team, but the other Scoobies find him irritating and often mock him. After surviving the Hellmouth battle in Season Seven, Andrew trains to be a Watcher and leads a group of Slayers in Italy.
• Riley Finn — Buffy's college boyfriend, Riley is a soldier for government demon-hunting operation the Initiative. When he learns that the institute he was working for was corrupt, Riley joins the Scoobies instead. While on good terms with Buffy's friends, his relationship with Buffy disintegrates, and he leaves to join another army unit.
• Faith Lehane - A troubled Slayer, and often called "Rogue Slayer", Faith has had her evil moments and is considered to be the anti-Buffy. She arrives in Sunnydale in Season 3 after her Watcher is killed and works as an ally for the Scooby Gang until she accidentally kills a man, leading her to join up with Mayor Richard Wilkins. In Season Four she flees to LA, where she is helped by Angel and turns herself in to the police, and later becomes a full Scooby member in Season 7. As of Season Eight, she and Giles have decided to partner together in a "Slayer social worker" program to keep Slayers from going to the dark side.

Team variations

Season 1

• Buffy Summers
• Xander Harris
• Willow Rosenberg
• Rupert Giles
• Angel
• Allies:
  • Jenny Calendar, from around the episode "I Robot, You Jane"
  • Cordelia Chase, from around the episode "Out of Mind, Out of Sight"

Season 2

• Buffy Summers, until she leaves at the end of "Becoming"
• Xander Harris
• Willow Rosenberg
• Cordelia Chase
• Rupert Giles
• Angel, until he loses his soul and becomes Angelus in "Innocence" (he returns in Becoming, Part Two), but Buffy kills him and sends him to Acathla's hell.
• Allies:
  • Jenny Calendar, until she was murdered by Angelus in "Passion"
  • Daniel "Oz" Osbourne, from around the episode "Surprise".
  • Kendra Young, from episode "What's My Line", until she is killed by Drusilla in "Becoming"

Season 3

• Buffy Summers, from the episode "Dead Man's Party"
• Xander Harris
• Willow Rosenberg
• Daniel "Oz" Osbourne
• Rupert Giles
• Cordelia Chase. Her relationship with the others is conflicted after she discovers Xander cheating on her in "Lovers Walk". After the season, she leaves for Los Angeles.
• Angel
• Allies:
  • Faith Lehane, until she turns to the dark side and begins working for The Mayor in "Consequences". She is later put in a coma in part two of "Graduation Day"
  • Joyce Summers, who learned the truth about Buffy at the end of season two and whose home becomes a battleground in several episodes this season.
  • Wesley Wyndam-Pryce, from the episode "Bad Girls" until Buffy quits the Watchers' Council and the Mayor's ascension is prevented in "Graduation Day".. After this season, he leaves town.

Season 4

• Buffy Summers
• Xander Harris
• Willow Rosenberg
• Rupert Giles
• Daniel "Oz" Osbourne, until he leaves town in "Wild at Heart"
• Allies:
  • Anya Jenkins, from around the episode "Fear, Itself"
  • Spike, reluctantly and unreliably from the episode "Pangs" until the episode "The Yoko Factor" when he is working for Adam.
  • Riley Finn, from the episode "Doomed"
  • Tara Maclay, from the episode "Who Are You"
  • Angel, appeared in episodes "Pangs" and "The Yoko Factor".

Season 5

• Buffy Summers, until her death at the end of " The Gift"
• Xander Harris
• Willow Rosenberg
• Anya Jenkins
• Rupert Giles
• Tara Maclay, finally becoming a member of the inner circle after the Gang stands up to her father and brother in the episode "Family"
• Riley Finn, until he leaves town in "Into the Woods"
• Allies:
  • Spike, unreliable until the end of "Out of My Mind" when he realizes he is in love with Buffy. His relationship with the others remains strained and conflicted.
  • Dawn Summers, arguably from episode "Real Me"
  • Joyce Summers, until her death at the end of "I Was Made to Love You"

Season 6

• Buffy Summers, from "Bargaining" onwards.
• Xander Harris
• Willow Rosenberg, until the episode "Seeing Red"
• Rupert Giles, until the episode "Tabula Rasa"
• Tara Maclay, until her death in "Seeing Red"
• Dawn Summers
• Anya Jenkins, until her relationship with Xander ends in "Hell's Bells"
• Spike, until he leaves for Africa in "Seeing Red". Again, his relationship with the others remains strained and conflicted.

Season 7

• Buffy Summers
• Xander Harris
• Dawn Summers
• Willow Rosenberg, rejoins the group in "Same Time, Same Place"
• Anya Jenkins, from the episode "Selfless" until she is killed in "Chosen"
• Rupert Giles, from the episode "Bring on the Night"
• Spike, his relationship with all except Buffy remains strained and conflicted even with his soul.
• Faith Lehane, from the episode "Dirty Girls" and from the end of "Empty Places" to the middle of "End of Days" takes command after the disastrous raid on the vineyard
• Allies:
  • Andrew Wells, reluctantly from around the episode "Never Leave Me"
  • Robin Wood, from the episode "First Date"
  • The ever-increasing number of Potential Slayers, beginning with "Bring on the Night"
  • Angel, appeared in "End of Days" to give Buffy the amulet that helped the gang to close the Hellmouth.

Season 8

The core group of Buffy, Xander, Dawn and Willow is centered in Scotland. Various Scoobies lead Slayer cells in other worldwide locations, and the group remain in contact via phone and occasionally travel to other bases.

• Buffy Summers (Scotland)
• Xander Harris (Scotland)
• Willow Rosenberg, rejoins the group in "The Long Way Home, Part 2" (Brazil, later Scotland)
• Daniel "Oz" Osbourne, rejoins the group in "Retreat, Part 1" (Tibet)
• Dawn Summers, relationship with Buffy remains strained and conflicted since the events of "Chosen" (Scotland)
• Andrew Wells, now fully respected and trusted by Buffy and peers; Buffy addresses him as one of the family in "Predators and Prey" (Italy, occasionally Scotland)

• Allies:
  • Satsu (Scotland, later Tokyo)
  • Rupert Giles, relationship with Buffy remains strained and conflicted since the events of "No Future For You, Part 4" (England, later travelling)
  • Renée, until her death in "Wolves at the Gate, Part 4" (Scotland)
  • Faith Lehane, relationship with Buffy remains strained and conflicted. (Cleveland, later traveling)
  • Kennedy (Brazil, later new York)
  • Riley Finn (New York); triple agent loyal to Twilight

Headquarters

Along with variations in the team roster, the place which serves as a sort of "headquarters" for the Scooby Gang has also changed a few times over the series. The most notable of these headquarters, before its explosion in the Season Three finale, is the Sunnydale High School library. However, after the events of the series finale, the Scoobies have, as stated above, been spread across the world, with Buffy and Xander maintaining a "command center" in Scotland.

To the crew of Buffy, the headquarters was the set where the most exposition writing of the show took place, and thus was the most used and most hated of the Buffy sets. ^[1]

Seasons 1 - 3

• Sunnydale High School library^[1]

Season 4

• Giles' apartment

Seasons 5 - 6

• The Magic Box^[1], under the ownership of Giles in Season 5, and later Anya's ownership in Season 6, with Giles as a silent partner.

Season 7

• Summers Residence^[1]

Season 8

• Scattered across the world with separate offices in different countries, all led by a command center in Scotland under Buffy and Xander.

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} "Lessons" DVD Commentary - Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Seven Box Set, disc one

See also