Before anything else I HAVE to say that the two aspects that would have elevated this book to a full 5-stars would be:
1- Katz not writing the entire thing like it was one big gossip piece for "People" magazine. It was SO gossipy and name-drop-y that I had to read in small chunks to not get annoyed with the writing style. He also lets a incredible amount of his personal bias pour into the book; it would have been much stronger writing if he had been able to set aside his many, many, MANY, MANYYYY opinions on "Buffy" and just focus on research instead.
2- Editing. There is literally no reason there should just be PARAGRAPHS of word-for-for dialogue from the show slapped onto the page. When recapping all 7 seasons, Katz would have been better off just taking smaller pieces and examining them rather than dumping half an episode's script on the reader.
Okay, that aside: this was actually a decent look at both "Buffy" the show, Buffy the character, and "Buffy"/Buffy's long-lasting legacy. Katz did a strong job of examining these things in different (albeit biased) lights, from the writing to the fashion, the actors to the controversies. I especially enjoyed how there were plenty of interviews with not just cast members but also "Buffy" fans, researchers, podcasters, etc. It offered up a very genuine and heartfelt look at the show, one that I think fans both old and new would enjoy reading! ( )

I was so happy when I saw this book on the New Books shelf at our library! A fan book on Buffy! I’m almost 70 but damn I love Buffy. But the book was not what I expected. I’m not sure what I expected, really, perhaps a look at how Buffy changed the TV world, how it changed its audience, something about the themes. That’s…. not what I got. The first part of the book is several chapters describing the seasons. This takes up a lot of space. Then he goes to some interviews, of cast and crew. Sadly, many of the main characters declined to be interviewed, so there is a lot of space given to interviews with secondary characters. Not that I mind knowing about the experience those actors had, I just thought it would have been nice to have a lot more about the leads. There is a chapter about the wardrobe, mainly Buffy’s, and of course a good deal of space is given to what a turd Joss Whedon turned out to be, and the paradox of him creating a cast with strong female leads, empowered to the max, and then being an abusive ass in real life, to the point that he wasn’t allowed to be alone in a room with Michelle Trachtenberg. Parts of the book are his personal memoir, slipped in there here and there. He’s definitely team Angel/Buffy, and down on people who are team Spike/Buffy because he found out that James Marsters used the style of a predatory man in a bar when Spike first started stalking Buffy. He seems to think that is Marsters personal way of living his life. Can you spell “acting”, Mr. Katz?

I was fairly disappointed. Parts of the book had me overwhelmed with details about things that weren’t central to what I thought the book would be about, while I was sad that there wasn’t more about the central cast. Sad that he never touches on how Buffy probably opened the way for other TV shows to give their female leads more empowerment. He writes about how he doesn’t think queer relationships are given enough screen time; for instance, how Willow and Tara don’t share a kiss until very late in the relationship. Meanwhile he sort of ignores how Willow and Tara are pretty much the first queer relationship on American TV (Queer as Folk notwithstanding).

I personally feel that Buffy went a good ways to normalize queer relationships on American TV, while Spike’s character proves that people- even those without a soul- can grow and change, just as Cordelia did earlier in the series. I loved that the primary cast were women who had male colleagues but not male saviors- they all saved each other.

The book needed a good edit. Not just for grammatical errors, but to reel in the sprawl of a book that went in multiple directions at once. I’ll give it four stars, I suppose, because while it was rough going it did deal with subjects I was passionate about. ( )

Not only is this a great companion for Buffy fans, but this book helped direct my course on writing a piece for my capstone thesis. There is much to read in this book for long time fans and even new fans. If you want something that mixes praise and criticism then this book is for you. ( )

So I started watching Buffy with repeats the summer before season 4 started (1999) and discovered fandom in late 2001, and I loved this. The author is a true fanboy who gives a comprehensive overview of the show’s history, but he also focuses on the (alleged) awfulness of Joss Whedon. I’m amazed at all the interviews he conducted, and it was wild to learn more. I have a feeling though that he never got into the fanfic because his shipping views were off to me. ( )

Written by a superfan of the show who interviewed a ton of cast members and other fans, this was great fun to read. It very much put me in the mood for a rewatch! The author doesn’t shy away from the controversy around Joss Whedon (whom he emailed to request an interview and never heard back) and criticisms of the show itself, but it’s mostly a total lovefest. I already thought Sarah Michelle Gellar was pretty great, but I like her even more after reading this.
It’s inspiring how much the show meant to people and still does 25 years later. It may sound like hyperbole, but many of them say the show saved them during dark or lonely times in their lives. It was neat to read how much of an impact it made, how people saw themselves reflected in the characters and stories.
The author is thorough about citing his sources, which fill the last five percent of the book. I appreciate how he tried to get as many insider stories as possible, and it’s too bad some of the interview subjects pulled out because of the Whedon bombshells. Still, lots of the stars and other actors and show personnel did give interviews, including Charisma Carpenter and Sarah Michelle Gellar. Notably absent were David Boreanaz, Alyson Hannigan, and Joss Whedon.
Recommended if you love Buffy and still can’t get enough of the show. ( )