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The Scooby Gang in Buffy the Vampire Slayer is one of the most beloved teams of heroes in any television series. While its roster fluctuates over the course of seven seasons, nearly every character who joins Buffy Summers in her crusade against evil is an absolute fan-favorite. The biggest exception to this, of course, is the series' infamous male lead, Xander Harris.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer fans hate Xander Harris, and there are plenty of characters who deserved to be in the Scooby Gang more. Some characters are more deserving because of greater likability and popularity, while others simply would have been more useful. While Xander is selfish, mean, cruel, misogynistic, and all-around useless, these characters would all have brought something special to the Scoobies.

Faith Lehane Stands Alongside the Main Cast in the Final Scene of the Series For a Reason

Faith Lehane is one of the most popular...

Audiences can be very quick to judge TV characters, to the point that their first impression can often turn out to be entirely wrong, with the realization that they were great all along. This can easily happen to characters who oppose the protagonist in some way, as viewers naturally root for the lead and see anyone who is blocking their goals as a threat. However, as the characters' motivations become clearer, everyone soon comes to the realization that they harshly and unfairly judged them.

Many of the best TV characters ever started off unpopular yet managed to redeem themselves throughout the series. In some cases, annoying TV characters managed to become fan favorites as viewers got to know and understand their backstories, motivations, and likable characteristics. The long-form nature of television has allowed for more nuanced portrayals of complex characters whose likable nature and positive traits only reveal themselves over...

Buffy the Vampire Slayer ran between 1997 and 2003 but its impact transcends the two decades that passed since. The actors also formed strong bonds and often showed support for one another, and Sarah Michelle Gellar just reacted to the Trio's reunion.

Tom Lenk, who played Andrew Wells on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, posted a photo on Instagram with the other two members of the villainous Trio group, Adam Busch's Warren Mears and Danny Strong's Jonathan Levinson. The photo of their reunion photo invited fans to "caption this photo." Among several creative answers was also Buffy actor Sarah Michelle Gellar.

View this post on InstagramA post shared by Tom Lenk (@tommylenk)

Related Fans of Buffy Need to Watch This Forgotten Horror Series

Buffy the Vampire Slayer changed television history, but another nostalgic horror series provided the truth about the creatures of the night.

Gellar hopped in the comment section and...

Buffy the Vampire Slayer has a complex legacy. The shocking allegations of misconduct made against series creator Joss Whedon during the production of the series have made it a difficult show to rewatch for many fans. However, it’s important to remember that the legacy of Buffy the Vampire Slayer doesn’t just belong to Whedon; the series’ excellent cast, writers, and fans are equally responsible for making Buffy a modern feminist icon. Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s early seasons represented the best of what young adult genre entertainment could be, even if some of its characters were failed by the lackluster later seasons. Although there are more than a few characters that were taken in disappointing directions, no one had an arc that was quite as confusing as Jonathan Levinson (Danny Strong). One of the show’s most inspiring characters went from being a hero to a villain before he was completely forgotten about.

Sarah Michelle Gellar's absence from Slayers: A Buffyverse Story is disappointing for fans who hoped to hear her voice Buffy again. Michelle Trachtenberg will not reprise her role as Dawn in the audio series, likely due to her character's connection to Buffy and the alternate reality storyline. Alyson Hannigan's absence as Willow is also disheartening, but the presence of Amber Benson as Tara hints at a mention of Willow in the audio series.

The Buffy the Vampire Slayer cast is reuniting to create a special project 20 years following the show's series finale. Still, a handful of essential stars from the original television show will not be returning. Audible, an audiobook and podcast service, announced in September 2023 that it is producing a Buffy sequel series titled Slayers: A Buffyverse Story, which will revolve around Spike, played by James Marsters, and set in the present day. It will tell the...

The plot twist is a very common device in storytelling. Audiences love being surprised and seeing a movie get flipped on its head. The twists at the end of The Sixth Sense and Fight Club, for instance, are iconic because audiences did not see them coming, and they completely change how one views the movies. Other twists, however, don’t work. Some don’t work because they are too obvious, others don’t land because they aren’t alluded to enough, and others simply don’t make any sense.

Many TV shows feature plot twists as well; some twists affect the show’s entire arc, while others are isolated to one episode. Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 3, Episode 18, “Earshot” is a monster-of-the-week episode, and it contains a prime example of a plot twist done right. The twist involves a dynamic red herring, an evil lunch lady with a thirst for revenge and a meaningful lesson.

From Cordelia and Xander to Clem and Spike, Buffy the Vampire Slayer was not without its curious friendships. It was not until the comics, however, that fans truly experienced some of the strangest Buffyverse friendships. Though the original Buffy comics, running from 1998 to 2004, sought to mirror the style and relationships outlined in the show, the series' canonical continuation starting with Dark Horse’s 2007 Season 8 took many creative liberties.

Related: 5 Great Comic Book Continuations Of Canceled TV Shows (& 5 That Deserve One)

From unexpected lovers to even stranger friends, the comics continuously surprised fans. Whether it was turning two uniquely different characters into friends, like Harmoney and Clem, or bringing back those who fans thought were gone, like Dracula and Jonathan Levinson, all bets were off. Though it is not always a crowd-pleaser, this trend has continued with the 2019 Boom Studios! Buffy reboot.

Andrew Wells appeared in the sixth season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. He represented one-third of the main villains for the season, known as The Trio. Members included Warren Meers and Jonathan Levinson, who both appeared in the show previously.

Related: Buffy The Vampire Slayer: 5 Villains The Slayer Could Have Hooked Up With (& 5 That Would Never Work)

Andrew followed Warren thoughtlessly and often did not think about the repercussions of his actions. The seventh season gave way for Andrew's redemption. His actions were divisive, despite ending up on the correct side. Here are five ways Andrew made bad decisions and five ways that he was redeemed.

Jonathan Levinson was a bit of an odd character on Buffy The Vampire Slayer. During the second and third seasons, he was more of a background player; always there but never part of the main storyline. He eventually had a pivotal role near the end of Season 3 in the episode "Earshot."

Related: Alyson Hannigan's Best Performances, Ranked By Rotten Tomatoes

After that, Jonathan became a Buffy mainstay, appearing in the fourth, sixth and final seasons of the show. While he was essentially a decent person, Jonathan was hurt a lot by his peers and his friends. However, he also gave as good as he got, which caused him to appear slightly antagonistic on occasion. For every sympathetic moment he had, Jonathan had an unsavory one.

“Buffy the Vampire Slayer” alum Danny Strong is a true superstar — unlike his Joss Whedon-created alter ego, Jonathan Levinson, who could only pull off that level of success in Hollywood if he cast another spell.

But while the Emmy winner and “Empire” co-creator has his hands full with his own TV series nowadays, Strong told TheWrap during the Television Critics Association press tour he would be happy to reprise his role for the recently-announced reboot.

“I would appear on it as Jonathan if they wanted Jonathan,” Strong told TheWrap, while promoting his upcoming Fox drama “Proven Innocent.” “Poor, poor, Jonathan. I don’t think Jonathan made it, though. So it might be tricky.”

Also Read: 'Buffy' Reboot Showrunner Reassures Fans Amid Backlash: 'There Is Only One Buffy'

Strong is right, Jonathan did not make it. The former Trio member was murdered by his best friend Andrew (Tom Lenk), who...

"We're your arch nemesis-es!" Buffy the Vampire Slayer's trio reunited! Ok, not Buffy, Xander and Willow, but the Other trio: Warren Mears, Andrew Wells and Jonathan Levinson! Adam Busch, Tom Lenk and Danny Strong, aka the group of actors that made up one of the beloved WB series' big bads, got together on Sunday, July 30, for a mini BtVS reunion. Cue all the feels.  "Trio reunion at @Dannystrong's Mewvie #RebelintheRye and its soooo Gewd!!" Lenk captioned a photo he posted on Twitter. Strong, who won an Oscar for Lee Daniel's The Butler and co-created Fox's hit drama Empire, also posted the photo, adding, "Evil returns! Loved seeing my #Buffy...

Fox has given a put-pilot commitment to a new Civil Rights legal drama from Danny Strong and Jessica Sharzer. Deadline reports, "...the untitled project centers on a team of civil rights lawyers who take on the most newsworthy cases of our time, balancing the high stress of their jobs with sex, drugs and assorted other vices."Strong got his start on Saved By the Bell: The New Class. As an actor, he really broke out as Jonathan Levinson, on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. A talented writer too, Strong created Empire with Lee Daniels. He also wrote Daniels' film, The Butler, as well as the HBO movie, Game Change. Read More…...

Before he became the co-creator of Fox's breakout hit Empire, alongside Lee Daniels, Danny Strong was an actor, probably best known for his role as the nebbishy Jonathan Levinson on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Realizing there are limits to the careers of Jonathan Levinson types, Strong turned to screenwriting, beginning with Recount, an HBO movie about what went down in Florida after the 2000 presidential election. Today he’s become one of the most successful writers in Hollywood (see his Emmy for Game Change and his credits on the final two Hunger Games movies), and now he’s directing episodes of Empire, too. Strong spoke to Vulture about addressing social issues through television, how Game of Thrones has influenced Empire, and why Cookie is like Kramer.Did you grow up watching Dynasty?No ... I think what drew Lee [Daniels] to it was that I really hit that the middle son who’s...

Perhaps the only real problem with Earshot is that it misses a blindingly obvious trick. On today of all days, Buffy – having been infected by some demon mind-reading gunk – can't mentally earwig on the thoughts of The Mayor and Faith. She could don one of her brilliant disguises (as seen in I Robot...You Jane) and then show up to The Mayor's pristine office while camouflaged as a postie or a pizza delivery girl or a double glazing sales rep. It's odd that Buffy doesn't attempt this, given that it could be the ideal opportunity to throw some more light on this Ascension business.

The mind-reading staple's another cliché of stock fantasy and sci-fi, but what Earshot does is to carefully look at the up and down sides of this condition. It's an extra sense that I bet people would think about having. It's the sort of thing that would...

Every new season on Buffy the Vampire Slayer brought the promise of a fresh Big Bad, a major enemy that would crop up to make life Hell, literally and figuratively, for our heroes. Usually, Big Bads were mythical sorts — sadistic vampires, demonic government officials, omnipotent gods. But for the sixth season, which brought the show to Upn in 2001 after a nearly perfect run on the WB, Joss Whedon and his team of writers encountered a different challenge. Since Buffy had died in the season-five finale and was therefore being brought back from the dead — from heaven, no less — the show was beginning from a dark spot and therefore needed a lighter Bad, as it were. So the show’s writers hit on the idea to have three social misfits from Buffy’s high-school days — previously-seen characters Jonathan Levinson and Warren Mears, along with Andrew Wells, the younger...

Director: Lee Daniels; Screenwriter: Danny Strong; Starring: Forest Whitaker, Oprah Winfrey, John Cusack, David Oyelowo, Robin Williams, Alan Rickman, James Marsden, Mariah Carey, Vanessa Redgrave; Running time: 132 mins; Certificate: 12A

An emotive yet understated lead performance by Forest Whitaker bolsters this tale of a man's rise from plantation slave to revered White House butler. The good-natured intentions and powerful historical framing of Lee Daniels' movie manage to transcend the dramatic contrivances and distracting casting choices.

The Butler's storytelling scope is expansive if not consistently engrossing, charting the rise of black Americans during the 20th Century through the interconnecting fortunes of Whitaker's Cecil Gaines – based on real-life butler Eugene Allen. The civil rights movement, the black panthers and the Vietnam War all take their toll on Cecil and his family, while the plight to gain equality with white staff in the White House leads to much frustration. But can...

Usually once or twice during the big Summer movie season, the Hollywood studios release a film that’s a bit more serious than the action, science fiction, fantasy comedy blockbusters that normally populate the multiplex during those balmy months. Bypassing the Oscar-bait year-end log jam this time is Lee Daniels’ The Butler. Like the recent independent feature Fruitvale Station, it concerns a hot-button topic from recent headlines: race relations. While Station told the story of a fairly recent true-life incident, the new film spans several decades with special emphasis on the tumultuous 1960′s much like the Summer drama of 2011 The Help (which later did take home some Oscar gold). So, are movie audiences ready to take a break from the car chases and explosions, and embark on a trip through some dark moments of America’s recent history? And will Academy voters remember this drama when they begin filling out...

Danny Strong has gone from science-fiction to politics and back to science-fiction again. And he's picked up a writing Emmy along the way. But don't look at Strong as the geeky Jonathan Levinson in "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," or even the awkward Danny Siegel in "Mad Men." Instead, see him as the new writer for the final two films in the Hunger Games series "Mockingjay." He will replace Oscar-winning writer Simon Beaufoy who is writing the second installment, "Catching Fire." Although Strong might be best known for his political writing in the form of "Recount" in 2008 and "Game Change" in 2012, which he won the Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Miniseries or Movie, he also is currently working on the latest adaptation of Dan Brown's book "The Lost Symbol," which is a sequel to "The ...

After The Hunger Games' huge success at the box office earlier this year, Lionsgate have wasted no time working on adapting the rest of the futuristic young adult novel series written by Suzanne Collins. Catching Fire is currently undergoing production for a release date of November 22nd, 2013, with director Francis Lawrence (I Am Legend) behind the camera. Previously, Lionsgate confirmed that they will adapt the final novel, Mockingjay, in two films (a la Harry Potter and Twilight). Now, Variety reports that actor-turned-writer Danny Strong - who previously played Jonathan Levinson in Buffy The Vampire Slayer and recently won two Emmys for writing and co-executive producing HBO's Game Change - has signed on to write the two-part film adaptation of The Hunger Games: Mockingjay. Strong also recently wrote Lee Daniels' historical drama The Butler. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1 is set to hit theaters November 21st, 2014; Part...

Congratulations to Danny Strong, who picked up his very first Emmy for writing HBO's 2008 election drama "Game Change." But as the accomplished writer approached the stage, most of us recognized him from his other career as an actor. 

The big question: Which of his most famous roles is the one you recognize him from? Srong has appeared most recently on "Mad Men," but he is likely best known from the seminal WB teen dramas "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "Gilmore Girls."

Photos: 2012 Emmy Awards red carpet arrivals

As suicidal teen Jonathan Levinson on "Buffy," Strong was both enemy and ally to the titular vampire slayer (Sarah Michelle Gellar). As Doyle McMaster, Strong was Rory's (Alexis Bledel) editor at the Yale Daily News and Paris' (Liza Weil) boyfriend.

So, which show do you recognize him from: "Buffy" or "Gilmore Girls"? This probably says something about you and your character, but we're not quite sure what.