Rupert Giles
Rupert Giles | |
| |
Portrayed by | Anthony Stewart Head |
Sex | Male |
Age | Middle Aged |
Rupert Giles is the Watcher of Buffy Summers. It takes them a little while to get on the same page but when they do, they have a close relationship, similar to a father/daughter one. His protectiveness toward her is the reason he's fired by the Watcher's Council in Season 3. He remains the school librarian, however, and still helps Buffy. He also has a friendship with Willow Rosenberg and Xander Harris.
In Season 2, Jenny Calendar is his love interest and despite her betrayal, he's still already fallen for her. Her death by the hands of Angelus causes Giles to go after the vampire but Buffy saves him before he can be killed. It also comes out in The Dark Age that he has a bit of a dark past. Giles was studying history was Oxford at 21 and had come across the occult. He went to London after dropping out to try to escape his destiny of becoming a Watcher and found people to practice magic with, including Ethan Rayne, which lead to the debacle with Eyghon. His nickname back then was Ripper.
In the beginning, he comes off as very formal and proper, but as time goes on, Giles relaxes a bit and develops more of a sense of humor. He's very knowledgeable due to all his years of studying to become a Watcher and can speak multiple languages. He's not an all around experienced fighter but can hold his own at times, and is pretty good as sword fighting.
In Season 6, Giles confronts Willow about her use of magic, afraid of where she's heading. He also leaves Sunnydale for good (so he thinks) because he thinks it's what's best for Buffy. She needs to be able to handle things on her own without knowing he's there to pick up the slack. He comes back at the end of the season, however, when he learns of what's going on with Willow. Giles ultimately helps stop her and then assists her in getting better.
In Season 7, Giles brings potential slayers to Sunnydale and helps with the fight against The First, although he and Buffy are somewhat at odds a couple of times. He survives the series finale.