The non-broadcast pilot episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer was produced by 20th Century Fox in 1996 to pitch a series to networks. The twenty-five-and-a-half-minute production was written and directed by Buffy creator Joss Whedon, and was expanded upon and re-shot for the first episode of the series. It is notable for featuring a different actress in the role of Willow, Sunnydale High is Berryman High and a different actor as Principal Flutie.

After having burned down her school gym and been expelled from a school in L.A., Buffy Summers has moved to Sunnydale with her mother. Buffy goes to school for the first time at Sunnydale High and meets new people: Cordelia, Willow, and Xander. Willow is lured by a vampire into a trap. Buffy shows up with Xander and kills all the vampires except one; the surviving vampire reports the incident back to The Master.

When teen vampire slayer Buffy tries to start a new life at Sunnydale High, she discovers that the school sits atop a demonic dimensional portal.

Buffy and her friends encounter a powerful vampire bent on opening a portal to a dimension inhabited by demons.

Buffy suspects she has a witch on her hands when the cheerleading squad falls victim to sudden blindness and spontaneous combustion.

Buffy's biology teacher is killed by a giant praying mantis that assumes the form of a beautiful substitute teacher.

With Buffy preoccupied by her date with Owen, Giles is trapped by a group of vampires seeking to raise a powerful leader.

Xander and several other students are possessed by the spirit of a demonic breed of hyenas that wreak havoc at the high school.

Buffy discovers Angel's dark secret and hesitates to do anything about it, which could spell danger for someone she loves.

Willow's new Internet chat buddy turns out to be a powerful demon electronically unleashed from a centuries-old, newly digitized book.

Buffy suspects that a ventriloquist's dummy may be harvesting organs from classmates performing in a talent show.

A series of strange occurrences lead Buffy and her friends to discover that their worst nightmares have literally become reality.

When an invisible menace starts attacking students and faculty at Sunnydale High, the Scooby Gang traces the problem back to Cordelia.

Buffy's life may hang in the balance as Giles uncovers an ancient book that foretells not only her death, but also the end of the world.

Buffy returns from summer vacation sporting an attitude and suffers from recurring nightmares involving the Master. Meanwhile, the Anointed One and his followers plot their revenge.

Two science club nerds use body parts to create the "perfect girlfriend" for a teenager who has been brought back from the dead.

Buffy's mother and friends become trapped inside Sunnydale High School when a vampire named Spike launches an attack against the Slayer on Parent-Teacher night.

An Incan Princess mummy is reanimated in Sunnydale where she sucks the life force from others in order to stay alive.

Buffy and Cordelia inadvertently attend a frat party hosted by a murderous cult.

On Halloween, Buffy and her friends patronize an unusual costume shop where customers turn into whatever costume they are wearing.

Buffy is lured into a trap by a group of undead wannabes who hope that Spike will make them vampires in exchange for giving him the Slayer.

Giles' past comes back to haunt him as a demon he and Ethan Rayne summoned in their wild youth seeks them out in Sunnydale.

Spike brings in three professional bounty hunters to eliminate Buffy while she ponders on what her profession might be if her fate wasn't already sealed.

Buffy joins forces with another Slayer in hopes of saving Angel from the clutches of Spike and Drusilla.

Buffy's mom introduces her new boyfriend, who charms everyone except Buffy. When she confronts his dark side, she is left questioning her actions.

Buffy and her friends are given eggs to take care of for a health class assignment, but aren't prepared for what hatches.

To give Buffy a surprise on her 17th birthday, Drusilla and Spike bring together the body parts of a dismembered demon who cannot be killed.

Buffy and her friends battle the Judge and face unexpected danger from Angel, who has lost his soul after experiencing a moment of true happiness.

Buffy and her friends discover secrets about themselves as they battle a werewolf, its hunter, and their own emotions.

As Valentine's Day approaches, Xander tries to improve his love life through witchcraft and finds himself with too much of a good thing.

Angel steps up his torment of Buffy and her friends as Jenny searches for a way to restore his soul.

While hospitalized with a severe case of the flu, Buffy investigates the young patients' fear that Death is stalking the children's ward.

Sunnydale High School is haunted by the ghosts of a former student and teacher who reenact their tragic romance through the bodies of the school's current inhabitants.

Members of the Sunnydale swim team are killed by a gill monster of unknown origins.

Angel plots to revive an ancient demon bent on sweeping everything on earth into hell itself.

Spike strikes an unlikely alliance with Buffy to keep Angel from destroying the world.

Buffy -- living on her own in a big city -- assists a girl whose boyfriend has mysteriously vanished. Back in Sunnydale, Buffy's friends do their best to battle the forces of evil without her.

A Nigerian mask reanimates the dead, forcing Buffy to battle a horde of zombies.

A charismatic Slayer visits Sunnydale and wins over many of Buffy's friends. Meanwhile, two powerful vampires plot an attack.

Oz becomes the prime suspect when a series of animal-like attacks occur in Sunnydale.

As Buffy and Cordelia vie for Homecoming Queen, a group of killers gather to participate in SlayerFest '98.

Mr Trick enlists Giles' old buddy Ethan Rayne to manufacture and distribute boxes of candy which turn the adult population into uninhibited, irresponsible teenagers to keep them out of the way while the mysterious Mayor Wilkins pays a tribute to a demon.

With some help from Faith's new watcher, Buffy seeks to destroy a weapon-like glove before it falls into the hands of a demon.

Spike returns to Sunnydale and kidnaps Willow in hopes of creating a magic spell that will make Drusilla love him again.

Cordelia's wish for a Buffy-free Sunnydale comes true, plunging her into a world where vampires have control of the town.

As the Christmas holiday approaches, Angel is tormented by evil apparitions who want him to eliminate Buffy.

After discovering the corpses of two young children bearing a symbol linked to the occult, Joyce spearheads a campaign to rid Sunnydale of witches.

As her birthday approaches, Buffy loses her slayer powers and must do battle with a vampire who is not only extremely powerful but also quite mad.

Feeling useless due to his lack of supernatural powers, Xander becomes obsessed with becoming cool and falls in with a dangerous crowd. Meanwhile, the rest of the gang race to prepare for the Hellmouth to reopen.

Faith convinces Buffy to live on the wild side, with fatal consequences.

A homicide detective closes in on Buffy and Faith as he investigates the deputy mayor's death.

While casting a magic spell, Anya and Willow accidentally summon Willow's evil double from an alternate universe.

As Faith attempts to seduce Angel and steal his soul, the Mayor summons a dark-magic demon to finish the job.

The Mayor takes Willow prisoner after Buffy and her friends steal away a box containing demonic energy needed for Ascension Day.

After Angel breaks off their relationship, Buffy single-handedly battles three fearsome hell hounds so that her classmates can enjoy their senior prom.

In an effort to distract Buffy from the Ascension, the mayor instructs Faith to poison Angel.

On Ascension Day, Buffy and her friends prepare for the ultimate battle as they face off againstthe mayor and a horde of vampires.

A mouthless demon infects Buffy with the ability to hear everyone's thoughts, but what starts out as a useful power soon turns into a curse.

Sunnydale High is re-opened, with a new designed campus and a new principal, Robin Wood. It is Dawn's first day at school there and Buffy accompanies her to class, only to discover evil spirits lurking in the basement.

The gang meet a young woman who is being chased by a giant worm.

Willow returns to Sunnydale, but fears her friends have abandoned her when she finds herself completely unable to perceive them. Meanwhile, the rest of the gang don’t see Willow either, but fear she is involved when a body turns up without its skin.

Buffy begins a new job as school counsellor at Sunnydale High. On her first day she encounters a troubled young girl who is convinced she is about to die.

Anya's violent and deadly act of vengeance leaves everyone stunned. Buffy must put aside her feelings and take action before more people die.

Xander and Spike search for the source of a spell that has bewitched the girls into competing for the affections of the high school quarterback.

Buffy talks through her troubles with an old high school classmate who has recently become a vampire. Cassie, the late student Buffy tried to help, appears to Willow with a posthumous message from Tara. Dawn experiences a terrifying haunting. And Andrew and Jonathan return to Sunnydale High on a mission.

Buffy and her friends fear Spike may be to blame when a number of people around town mysteriously disappear.

Buffy and the gang capture and interrogate Spike and Andrew.

Giles returns to Sunnydale with three potential slayers, whom Buffy must protect from The First. Meanwhile, a ferocious Uber-vampire is released from the Hellmouth and Buffy must kill it before it kills one of the potentials.

Buffy has to keep the ever increasing number of potential Slayers from panicking while Giles and Anya seek answers from the Beljoxa's Eye.

Buffy takes the Potentials to a demon bar and then to Spike's crypt, in order to teach them the art of slaying. When Willow casts a spell to seek out the next Potential, the spell leads them to believe that Dawn may be a future slayer.

Kennedy, a potential Slayer, takes Willow on a date, which is interrupted when Willow finds herself transformed into Warren. The other Potentials go on a retreat with Giles, who the gang realize may have been replaced by the First. Spike's chip is having agonizing malfunctions, and he and Buffy return to the Initiative to search for a fix.

Buffy accepts a dinner invitation from Principal Wood, and tries to figure out his true intentions. Xander goes out with a girl from the hardware store. The First tries to convince Andrew to murder the potential Slayers. Giles returns from China with a new Potential, but struggles with the language barrier.

Buffy introduces Principal Wood to the rest of the team. He brings an artifact that transports Buffy to see the origin of the Slayer, but the others must face a powerful demon to bring her back.

Andrew creates a documentary called "Buffy, Slayer of the Vampyres", a record of the current situation in Sunnydale to show to future generations. He manages to capture many important moments, and to annoy almost everyone in the house. But Buffy needs to tear him away from his filmmaking because the Seal of Danzalthar is active and Andrew may hold the key to closing it before it destroys the town.

Robin Wood seeks revenge on Spike for killing his mother nearly 30 years ago, whilst everyone else tries to find out how The First has control over him.

Faith returns to Sunnydale just as a new villain, Caleb, arrives and sends Buffy a message in the form of a badly beaten Potential. Buffy leads the rest of the girls to Caleb and The First's lair, with devastating consequences.

After their horrifying loss at the vineyard, the gang turn against Buffy and begin to follow Faith instead. Meanwhile, Spike and Andrew travel to an old church to question a priest about Caleb.

After being ousted from the group, Buffy tries to figure out how to move forward. Faith and the Potentials plan to interrogate a Bringer for information on Caleb and the First. Many people turn to each other for comfort in the face of the impending apocalypse.

Buffy has a powerful new weapon, but the gang cannot find any information about the origins of the mysterious scythe. Eventually the Slayer goes herself in search of knowledge, and finds a new ally, an old friend, and great danger.

Buffy conceives a plan to defeat the First once and for all.