History
Professor Maggie Walsh is introduced in season 4, as Buffy's psychology professor at the University of California, Sunnydale, but is later revealed as the leader of the government-controlled Initiative, a military project intent on capturing, studying, and modifying the behavior of various demons. Unknown to many in the Initiative, Walsh is also involved in Project 314, a secret program within the Initiative that is creating a hybrid demon-humanoid-mechanoid (demonoid) known as Adam. Various creatures captured by the Initiative were dissected to provide the parts for Adam.
Maggie maintains a close relationship with Riley Finn (Marc Blucas), who is her favorite soldier; she appears to think of him as a son. After Riley learns that Buffy is the Slayer, they inform Walsh of her role. Walsh initially thinks that Buffy can be a useful ally to the Initiative, but soon takes a dislike to her unpredictability and unwelcome curiosity, especially regarding the "314 Project". Cameras installed in Riley's room allow her to spy on Buffy and Riley while they have sex, and later to hear Buffy ask Riley about the 314 Project. Perceiving that Buffy poses a risk to the project, Walsh tries to kill Buffy by sending her on a mission on which she is ambushed by two demons released from the Initiative's holding cells. Buffy defeats the demons and appears on the monitors after Walsh has prematurely announced Buffy's death to Riley, who walks out. Walsh retreats to the labs of Project 314, where she plots how to use Adam to defeat Buffy. However, Adam awakens and impales Walsh, killing her, and escapes from the Initiative.
Walsh appears in the penultimate episode of season 4, "Primeval," as a zombie, working under Adam along with others Adam has killed. Attempting to finish off Project 314, begun by Walsh, Adam has his workers manufacturing more creatures like himself; part demon, human, and machine combined. Adam activates the chip Walsh had inserted into Riley's heart, making him biddable to Adam's command. Zombie Walsh attacks Buffy when she comes to Riley's rescue, but Buffy knocks her down and defeats her, and with some help from the Scooby-Gang of Willow, Xander, and Giles, she defeats Adam as well. The Initiative project is shut down permanently.
Writing and acting
Crouse viewed her character "no nonsense, and she seems to be a real teacher. She's like a President. She really would like to fashion the world in her image. She's not a mean person, she's just a straight-out scientist." [1]
In a gender studies text, Jowett includes a section on the character, and argues the character is "masculinized by her roles as professor, scientist and leader." [2]
Crouse has explained how her character was initially explained to her, "Joss tried to explain to me who this character was. He said that she was a scientist, and that she was going to be doing research and eventually, she might hatch an evil plot, but her front was being a psychology teacher." [3]
Crouse gave some insight into her view on her character, "She's such an extremist. She has a vision of what she wants to do. She feels like she's testing the boundaries of something, and any human being always feels important no matter who they are. I'm sure she admires Dr. Frankenstein - or Einstein. She's probably a mix of those two. I like her caustic nature, because she's not a mean person. I have always imagined that Maggie treats people like grown-ups. That she doesn't want to live in a world of babies. She doesn't have the time for it. The Initiative is her baby." [4]
Crouse outlined her view of Maggie's relationships with Riley and Buffy, "Her teaching assistant Riley is really the child she never had, and there's probably confusion there that he's a potential something for her that's slightly out of her reach, but she's willing to prevent anyone else from being interested in him. I think she feels she's in direct competition with Buffy. The most complicated situation for her is having Riley fall in love with Buffy. Finding out that Buffy is the Slayer is a kind of a gas, and it's nervous-making and exciting to have good people on her team; she's like a president - she wants a great cabinet underneath her. I think she'd like to fashion the world in her image, but Buffy puts a wrench in the works". [5]
Buffy writer David Fury said in an interview, "I don't think Joss had envisioned Maggie Walsh as being entirely villainous. As opposed to just sort of misguided." [6]
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.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer is an American supernatural drama television series created by writer and director Joss Whedon. The concept is based on the 1992 film, also written by Whedon, although they are separate and unrelated productions. Whedon served as executive producer and showrunner of the series under his production tag Mutant Enemy Productions. It premiered on March 10, 1997, on The WB and concluded on May 20, 2003, on UPN.
William "Spike" Pratt, played by James Marsters, is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. Spike is a vampire and played various roles on the shows, including villain, anti-hero, trickster and romantic interest. For Marsters, the role as Spike began a career in science fiction television, becoming "the obvious go-to guy for US cult [television]." For creator Whedon, Spike is the "most fully developed" of his characters. The character was intended to be a brief villain, with Whedon originally adamant to not have another major "romantic vampire" character like Angel. Marsters says "Spike was supposed to be dirty and evil, punk rock, and then dead." However, the character ended up staying through the second season, and then returning in the fourth to replace Cordelia as "the character who told Buffy she was stupid and about to die."
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.
Jenny Calendar is a fictional character in the fantasy television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997–2003). Played by Robia LaMorte, Jenny is the computer teacher at Sunnydale High School. Unbeknownst to Buffy or anyone else, Jenny has been sent to Sunnydale to keep an eye on Angel.
Riley Finn is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Portrayed by Marc Blucas, Riley was introduced in the 1999 season 4premiere episode, "The Freshman", and Blucas was part of the series credited cast for the second part of season 4and the first part of season 5. Most notably, Riley is one of three long-term romantic interests for series' heroine Buffy Summers.
Harmony Kendall is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spin-off Angel. The character is portrayed by Mercedes McNab. Originally cast as a minor character, McNab's credited status elevated to guest star and ultimately series regular over the course of her tenure in Buffy and Angel.
The Master is a fictional character on the action-horror/fantasy television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997–2003). He is a centuries-old vampire portrayed by Mark Metcalf, determined to open the portal to hell below Sunnydale High School in the fictional town of Sunnydale where the main character Buffy Summers lives. The premise of the series is that Buffy is a Slayer, a teenage girl endowed with superhuman strength and other powers, which she uses to kill vampires and other evil beings. Each season of the series Buffy and the small group of family and friends who work with her, nicknamed the Scooby Gang, must defeat an evil force referred to as the Big Bad; the villain is usually trying to bring on an apocalypse. The Master is the first season's Big Bad.
Adam is a fictional character in the fourth season of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, serving as that season's primary antagonists. Introduced in the episode "The I in Team," Adam is a cybernetic demonoid created from human, demon, and technological components by Dr. Maggie Walsh, head of The Initiative—a military organization studying demon behavior. After gaining consciousness, Adam kills Walsh and escapes containment. He then sets in motion plans to stage a demon and human massacre; Adam hopes that, in the aftermath of the battle, he will be able use the carnage to create an army of undead demonoids like himself. The character is ultimately defeated by Buffy, a Slayer with superhuman strength, and her friends in the season's penultimate episode "Primeval".
Richard Wilkins III is a fictional character in the fantasy television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997–2003). Portrayed by Harry Groener, he is the mayor of Sunnydale, a fictional town rife with vampires and demons in which the main character, Buffy Summers lives. The premise of the series is that Buffy is a Slayer, a young girl endowed with superhuman powers to fight evil, which she accomplishes with the help of a small group of friends and family, called the Scooby Gang. During the show's second season, it becomes apparent that local authorities are aware of the endemic evil in the town, and either ignore it or are complicit in making it worse. The third season reveals that the Mayor is behind this conspiracy to hide and worsen Sunnydale's supernatural phenomena, as part of his century-long plot to take over the world, making him the season's primary villain, or Big Bad. His genial demeanor, promotion of family values, casual phobia of germs, and dislike of swearing belie his evil nature. The series regularly employs monsters and elements of horror to symbolize real problems, and the abuse of power in relation to the forces of darkness is a repeated theme throughout the series, as well as in its spin-off Angel.
"Restless" is the 22nd episode and season finale of season four of the supernatural drama television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997–2003), and the 78th episode of the series overall. The episode was written and directed by the show's creator Joss Whedon and originally aired on The WB in the United States on May 23, 2000.
Joyce Summers is a fictional character in the action-horror television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997–2003). Played by Kristine Sutherland, Joyce is the mother of the main character, Buffy Summers, and appears in 58 of the 144 episodes.
"The Initiative" is the seventh episode of season 4 of the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Written by Doug Petrie and directed by James A. Contner, it originally aired on November 16, 1999 on the WB network.
"The Killer in Me" is the 13th episode of the seventh and final season of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode aired on February 4, 2003 on UPN.
"The I in Team" is the 13th episode of season 4 of the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode aired on The WB on February 8, 2000.
"Goodbye Iowa" is the 14th episode of season 4 of the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The episode aired on The WB on February 15, 2000.
"This Year's Girl" is the fifteenth episode of the fourth season of the American supernatural drama television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Written by Doug Petrie and directed by Michael Gershman, it originally aired on The WB on February 22, 2000. In the series, Buffy Summers is a Slayer, a teenage girl endowed with superhuman powers to fight evil forces. "This Year's Girl" is the first half of a two-part story arc featuring the return of the rogue Slayer Faith, who Buffy put into a coma in the season three finale. In this episode, Faith wakes up to find that months have passed and the Mayor is dead. She then exacts revenge by swapping bodies with Buffy in a cliffhanger ending.
"Who Are You?" is the sixteenth episode of the fourth season of the American supernatural drama television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It was written and directed by series creator Joss Whedon and originally aired on The WB on February 29, 2000.
The fourth season of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer premiered on October 5, 1999, on The WB and concluded its 22-episode season on May 23, 2000. It maintained its previous timeslot, airing Tuesdays at 8:00 pm ET. Beginning with this season, the character of Angel was given his own series, which aired on The WB following Buffy. Various Buffy characters made appearances in Angel, including Buffy herself; Cordelia Chase, formerly a regular in Buffy, and Wesley Wyndam-Pryce, who appeared in Buffy season three.
