Rupert Giles from Buffy the Vampire Slayer is the most badass librarian to hit our television screens. As Buffy Summers’ Watcher, Giles guided the Slayer as she faced vampires, demons, and the forces of darkness. By day, he served as the high school librarian, teaching a generation of viewers that knowledge and research can save the world.
Played by Anthony Stewart Head, the character did wonders for the library profession. He defied stereotypes of timid, stern, and punitive librarians hell-bent on shushing their patrons into oblivion. Instead, he’s intelligent and sexy, with a touch of darkness. As the resident “expert on weird,” Giles is not only a master researcher of the occult but a kick-ass warrior and wise mentor.1 If it sounds like I’m fangirling, it’s because I am. This is a Giles appreciation post, from the perspective of a professional librarian and life-long Buffy fan. Let’s take a deep dive into this cultural icon.
Who is Rupert Giles?
Rupert Giles is the Watcher of Buffy Summers, a vampire slayer. As we learn in the first episode, “Into each generation a Slayer is born. One girl in all the world, a chosen one. One born with the strength and skill to hunt the vampires. To stop the spread of their evil, blah, blah, blah.”2
Luckily, the Slayer isn’t alone in her battle against the forces of darkness. She has a Watcher who trains, prepares, and guides her. Like Slayers, Watchers don’t exactly have a say in their fate. When 10-year-old Giles learned he was destined to be a Watcher, he was pissed because he wanted to be a fighter pilot. Alas, ‘twas not meant to be.
By the age of 21, he was studying history and the occult at Oxford University. While that seems like an absolute dream to me, young Giles hated it. The overwhelming pressure to become a Watcher turned him into a rebellious dropout with a knack for practicing dark magic and summoning demons. He earned the nickname Ripper, and this bit of darkness stayed with him throughout his life. In the episode Band Candy, we get a peek at Ripper in action when cursed chocolate bars transform him back into his younger self.3
As we know, Giles came back to the fold when duty called, ultimately embracing his destiny as a Watcher.
School Librarian
In the first three seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Giles moonlights as Sunnydale High’s librarian. As Buffy astutely tells Giles, “Being a watcher and librarian go together—no one blinks an eye if you want to spend all day with your books.”4 And spend all day with his books, he does. But they’re not just any books; they’re weapons in the fight against evil that save the world on a weekly basis.
Research, Research, Research
Giles’ library collection is a sight to behold, with tomes on vampires, demonology, the occult, and witchcraft. These books live in the high school library, at the ready whenever evil is afoot. Need to know about an ancient prophecy foretelling the end of the world? How about a reversal for a love spell gone awry? Or how to kill an enormous snake that used to be Sunnydale’s Mayor? Information is key and can be found through extensive research.
When evil comes knocking, Giles consults his books and “looks stuff up.”5 His expert research skills save the day again and again, providing Buffy with the information she needs to defeat the bad guys. And the show makes it clear that research is no easy task. When Willow Rosenberg asks Giles, “How is it you always know this stuff? You always know what’s going on. I never know what’s going on.” Giles responds, “Well, you weren’t here from midnight until six researching it.”6 Touché.
As the seasons progress, however, Giles isn’t the only one conducting research. He’s a true librarian in that he teaches Buffy, her friends, and the show’s viewers the importance of research and information literacy skills.
Information Literacy
Thanks to Giles, Buffy and her friends—known as the Scooby Gang—become whizzes at research themselves. The information literacy skills Giles imparts on his protegees come in handy throughout the series and even save his own ass on more than one occasion. For example, in The Dark Age, our favorite librarian is hunted by a demon he summoned in his youth.7 When he is losing his shit, the gang gets together and uses his books to figure out how to kill the demon.
Another example can be found in Season 4, when Giles turns into a fyarl demon and goes on a rampage. Although their mentor is missing, the Scooby Gang knows the best course of action to save him is research.
Through Giles, the Scooby Gang discovers the power of information and knowledge. As Xander Harris says to Willow (albeit in a slightly disparaging tone), “[Giles] is like Super Librarian. Everyone forgets, Willow, that knowledge is the ultimate weapon.”8
Later in the series, Xander once again demonstrates this insight when he visits the bar owned by Willy the Snitch and says, “Let me get a double shot of–of information, pal.”9 Like the Scooby Gang, viewers of Buffy the Vampire Slayer quickly learn that knowledge is power.
The Library as Command Central
As we can see, Sunnydale Library acts as command central. It’s where Buffy, Giles, and her friends meet, research, formulate plans, and kick-ass. Despite being directly above the Hellmouth, the library is a safe and intimate space.10 For the Scooby Gang, anyway. Not so much for other Sunnydale High students.
While Giles has an impressive array of occult tomes, he also has run-of-the-mill books more appropriate for a high school collection. In Never Kill a Boy on the First Date, Owen comes into the library while Buffy and Giles are researching a vampire. Giles looks up, annoyed, asking, “What do you want?” Owen replies, “A book.” Buffy chimes in, “See, this is a school. And we have students. And they check out books. And then they learn things.” Giles retorts, “I was beginning to suspect that was a myth,” before sending Owen to the poetry section to pick up a copy of Emily Dickinson.11
Another rare instance of students using the library is in Season 3. Jonathan Levinson walks in, interrupting a serious Scooby discussion. Xander says, “Hello? Excuse me, but have you ever heard of knocking?” Jonathan states that he needs books on Stalin. Xander retorts, “Does this look like a Barnes and Noble?” Giles coolly responds, “This is a school library, Xander.”
As Jonathan looks up books on Stalin, the Scooby Gang stares at each other, marveling at the novelty of a student looking for books. They promptly leave to continue their discussion in the hallway.12
The End of Sunnydale Library
I don’t know about you, but if my high school library had Giles’ collection, I probably would’ve spent more time there. Principal Snyder wholeheartedly disagrees with me, however, because he let censors loose on the library in Gingerbread. A literal witch hunt is afoot, and Snyder gleefully confiscates Giles’ books, saying, “I love the smell of desperate librarian in the morning.” He grabs a book and asks, “Just how is Blood Rites and Sacrifices appropriate material for a public-school library. Chess club branching out?”13 I hate to admit it, but Snyder may be right on this one.
Giles gets his collection back by the end of the episode, but the library meets its end in Season 3. In the finale, Buffy and Giles blow up the library to kill Mayor Wilkins, who has transcended into the pure demonic form of a big-ass snake. Don’t worry, though. The Scooby Gang removes all of the books before they send the library to the heavens. The books live in Giles’ apartment in Season 4 and in the Magic Box for the rest of the series.
Embrace Your Inner Tweed
In the beginning of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Giles is a bit awkward and proper, although that could just be because he’s British. He wears tweed, admonishes the Slayer for enslaving herself to the cult of cheerleading, and doesn’t get pop culture references. He’s always taking off his glasses when he discovers something important or cleans them when he doesn’t want to see what the teenagers are doing.
Like many old-fashioned bibliophiles, Rupert Giles hates technology. We see him yelling at a computer when he’s trying to use it for research, calling it a “fad.” He fights with Jenny Calendar, a computer science teacher and technopagan, arguing that technology will destroy our society. He tells her that computers don’t smell, and that’s a problem. Smell is the best trigger for memory. Books smell because they’re musty and rich. According to Giles, gaining knowledge should be a tangible process; it should be a smelly process.
Yet despite his hatred of technology, he works with Jenny to banish a demon from the Internet. He even falls in love with her. Through her eyes, we get to see how Giles is actually a “sexy fuddy duddy.”14 He really is a cool guy underneath that tweed.
Giles breaks down librarian stereotypes because he’s a well-rounded person. Over the course of the series, we see he’s intelligent and wise. He speaks 5 languages, including ancient Sumerian. He can play the guitar and sing. As per Oz, he has a badass record collection. Giles is also a kickass warrior who trains Buffy in combat techniques and fights alongside her with weapons and magic. He’s so much more than the stereotypical timid, stern, and stuffy librarian that we see in pop culture.
Rupert Giles, Abuser of Sarcasm
Additionally, Giles is sarcastic and funny as hell. This is not usually a trait attributed to librarians, although it should be. We’re a hilarious bunch, dammit.
Throughout Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Giles delivers amusing lines with such sass that Buffy tells him, “Okay, at this point, you’re abusing sarcasm.”15 Some of my favorites are when he tells Wesley Wyndam-Price that he has the emotional maturity of a blueberry scone and when he admonishes Xander to stop speaking Latin in front of the books because they burst into flames.
Another favorite is when he’s drunk and tells Buffy that Adam—the Frankenstein-esque Big Bad—is going to kick her ass because she never trains with him anymore.
This YouTube video has a great compilation of Giles’ sass, so enjoy!
Rupert Giles is a Role Model
Most importantly, Giles was the best role model for Buffy and her friends. As one of the only adults in the show, he was the voice of reason and wisdom. His role in Buffy’s life extended beyond mentor into father figure. Buffy was an unconventional Slayer, and rather than forcing her to adhere to the rigid standards of the Watchers Council, he threw out the handbook and let her be herself. When the Council dismissed him from his role as Watcher, he continued to support and respect her, remaining loyal to his Slayer.
At heart, Buffy the Vampire Slayer is a show about surviving the horrors of coming of age. The monsters Buffy faces are metaphors for the adversity we all experience in life, especially as we grow up. Life is the real Big Bad, and there are many lessons to be learned. Giles often imparts these lessons to Buffy and, as a result, the viewers. In a way, Rupert Giles was our mentor, our Watcher, our librarian. I often reflect on Giles’ words of wisdom and apply them in my life. Two of my favorites are below.
“To forgive is an act of compassion, Buffy. It’s not done because people deserve it. It’s done because they need it.”16
“Sometimes the most adult thing you can do is ask for help when you need it.”17
Rest in Peace, Anthony Head. 6/1/2026.
If you’re a fan of Buffy, share your favorite Rupert Giles quote in the comments.
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Footnotes
- S1, E6, The Pack. ↩︎
- S1, E1, Welcome to the Hellmouth. ↩︎
- S3, E6, Band Candy. ↩︎
- S2, E9, What’s My Line (Part 1). ↩︎
- S1, E6, The Pack. ↩︎
- S1, E7, Angel. ↩︎
- S2, E8, The Dark Age. ↩︎
- S1, E5, Never Kill a Boy on the First Date. ↩︎
- S3, E10, Amends. ↩︎
- The hellmouth is exactly what it sounds like. It’s a center of mystical convergence as well as a portal/entrance. ↩︎
- S1, E5, Never Kill a Boy on the First Date. ↩︎
- S2, E17, Passion. ↩︎
- S3, 11, Gingerbread. ↩︎
- S2, E8, The Dark Age. ↩︎
- S1, E5, Never Kills a Boy on the First Date. ↩︎
- S2, E19, I Only Have Eyes For You. ↩︎
- S6, E22 Grave. ↩︎
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