Character History
Television
During the Dark Ages in Sweden a young woman named Aud comes to the attention of D'Hoffryn. Aud has recently used magic to turn her cheating boyfriend into a troll. (The character Aud is recognizable as Anya; her name is pronounced "odd"—this is a play on the fact that people are always telling Anya she is odd.) Impressed by her imaginative revenge, D'Hoffryn offers her a position as a vengeance demon, and she becomes "Anyanka," an avenger of scorned women. When Anyanka, under the guise of Anya, is robbed of her powers by Giles while attempting to exact vengeance on behalf of Cordelia, D'Hoffryn refuses to help her, leaving Anya stuck in a teenage body. In season four, D'Hoffryn attempts to convince Willow to become a vengeance demon after Oz leaves her and a spell she casts goes awry, resulting in a series of disasters for her friends which D'Hoffryn assumes she has done on purpose. She declines, but D'Hoffryn leaves his talisman (a tool to summon him) in case she changes her mind.
In season six, D'Hoffryn is a guest at the failed wedding of Anya and Xander. [1] After Xander leaves Anya at the altar, D'Hoffryn reinstates her powers and the grief-stricken Anya once again becomes a vengeance demon.
Anya's second stint as a vengeance demon in season seven proves short-lived, and after wreaking a terrible vengeance on several college males using a spider-like Grimslaw demon, Buffy confronts and fights her. Willow uses the talisman D'Hoffryn had given her to summon him, asking him to help put a stop to the fighting. D'Hoffryn asks Anya what she wants, and she says that she wants to reverse the vengeance she had done. D'Hoffryn grants her wish, telling her that it'll require the sacrifice of a vengeance demon's body and soul. Believing she is about to die, Anya is resigned to her fate only to watch helplessly as D'Hoffryn summons her friend Halfrek - another vengeance demon whose specialty is granting the wishes of unhappy children - and incinerates her instead. D'Hoffryn then leaves, disgusted with Anya. Episodes later, D'Hoffryn sends at least two demons to kill Anya, but they are both thwarted.
Literature
D'Hoffryn returns in Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Nine as a member of Illyria's magic council bent on protecting whatever remains of magic following the destruction of the Seed of Wonder last season.
D'Hoffryn returns in Season Ten as the season's Big Bad. He starts working alongside the Scoobies to help facilitate the new rules of magic only to double-cross them in favour of keeping the Slayer Handbook for himself. Empowered by the Slayer Handbook, D'Hoffryn annihilates the demon lords opposing Buffy in addition to other members of the magic council, removing his rivals for conquest of the world. He is assisted by the resurrected Anya and Jonathan Levinson which he transformed into a Vengeance demon before leading an attack on the Scooby Gang. However, Anya betrays D'Hoffryn to save Xander, and is then killed by D'Hoffryn, at which point Jonathan and the other vengeance demons abandon him to be slain by Buffy.
Buffy Anne Summers is the title character of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer franchise. She first appeared in the 1992 film Buffy the Vampire Slayer before going on to appear in The WB/UPN 1997–2003 television series and subsequent 1998–2018 Dark Horse and 2019–present Boom! Studios comic series of the same name. The character has also appeared in the spin-off series Angel, as well as numerous expanded universe materials such as novels and video games. Buffy was portrayed by Kristy Swanson in the film and by Sarah Michelle Gellar in the television series. Giselle Loren has lent her voice to the character in both the Buffy video games and an unproduced animated series, while Kelly Albanese lent her voice to the character in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight motion comics.
Rupert Giles is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The character is portrayed by Anthony Stewart Head. He serves as Buffy Summers' mentor and surrogate father figure. The character proved popular with viewers, and Head's performance in the role was well received. Following Buffy's run, Whedon intended to launch a television spin-off focused on the character, but rights issues prevented the project from developing. Outside of the television series, the character has appeared substantially in Expanded Universe material such as novels, comic books, and short stories.
Anyanka Christina Emmanuella "Anya" Jenkins is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. She also appears in the comic book series based on the television show. Portrayed by Emma Caulfield, the character appears as a recurring star in the third and fourth seasons of the show before becoming a series regular in the show's fifth, sixth, and seventh seasons. The character made her last television appearance in 2003, appearing in the series finale of the show that aired on May 20, 2003.
Alexander Lavelle Harris is a fictional character created for the action-horror/fantasy television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997–2003). He was developed by Joss Whedon and portrayed throughout the television series by Nicholas Brendon and in two episodes by his twin brother, Kelly Donovan. He was conceived as an everyman and a male character for series heroine Buffy Summers to interact with, and to provide comic relief in the series. Xander is one of several friends of Buffy who assist her in saving the world against numerous supernatural events that plague Sunnydale, California, a town built over a doorway to hell.
"Doppelgangland" is the sixteenth episode of the third season of the fantasy television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997–2003). It was written and directed by the show's creator, Joss Whedon, and originally aired on The WB in the United States on February 23, 1999. The episode's title is derived from the term "Doppelgänger", a German word for a lookalike or double of a living person.
"Tabula Rasa" is the eighth episode of season 6 of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode aired on November 13, 2001 on UPN. It explores the characters not as they are, but as they could be, after they lose their memory to a spell gone awry.
"The Wish" is the ninth episode of season three of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It was written by Marti Noxon, directed by David Greenwalt, and first broadcast on The WB on December 8, 1998.
Halfrek or Hallie is a recurring fictional character on the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. She appears as a vengeance demon in seasons 6 and 7, and has previously appeared as Cecily in season 5. She is played by actress Kali Rocha.
"Selfless" is the fifth episode of the seventh and final season of television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode aired on October 22, 2002 on UPN. The story revolves around Anya and her sense of self.
"Hell's Bells" is the 16th episode of season 6 of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode aired on March 5, 2002 on UPN.
"Same Time, Same Place" is the third episode of the seventh and final season of the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode aired on October 8, 2002 on UPN.
"Grave" is the sixth-season finale of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode aired on May 21, 2002, on UPN. This episode is the second highest rated Buffy episode ever to air in the United Kingdom. Sky One aired the episode, which reached 1.22 million viewers on its original airing.
"Something Blue" is the 9th episode of season 4 of the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Written by Tracey Forbes and directed by Nick Marck, it originally aired on November 30, 1999 on The WB. In "Something Blue", a spell by Willow goes awry, blinding Giles, making Xander a literal demon magnet, and causing Buffy and Spike to fall in love and get engaged.
"Villains" is the 20th episode of season 6 of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode aired on May 14, 2002 on UPN.
"The Weight of the World" is episode 21 of season 5 of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode aired on May 15, 2001 on The WB.
"After Life" is the third episode of season 6 of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and the 103rd episode of the series. It was written by Jane Espenson and directed by David Solomon, and aired on October 9, 2001 on UPN.
"Entropy" is the 18th episode of season 6 of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode aired on April 30, 2002 on UPN.
"Bargaining" is the two-part season premiere of season 6 of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, consisting of the first and second episodes. They are also the 101st and 102nd episodes of the show overall. The two constituent episodes were both aired on October 2, 2001 on UPN. The episodes were written by Marti Noxon and David Fury and directed by David Grossman.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Ten is the sequel to the Season Nine comic book series, a canonical continuation of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The series is published by Dark Horse Comics and ran from March 2014 to August 2016.
