Why Willow Rosenberg is the best character in Buffy the Vampire Slayer

When you initially think of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, you’ll immediately think of the titular character. However, Willow stands out as the best character.

Sure, Buffy Summers was certainly the physically strongest character on the series. Okay, Faith was also just as physically strong, and then eventually all the Potentials became Slayers, but that doesn’t take away from Buffy being the physically strongest character in Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

That doesn’t mean she was the best. She wouldn’t have been what she was without her friends. Willow and Xander quickly made up the Scooby Gang, and eventually, others joined.

Arguably, if it wasn’t for Willow, Buffy and her friends would have been dead a million times over. It was her skills that helped get to the bottom of the monster and even save the day time and time again.

Why Willow Rosenberg is the ultimate character on Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Let’s just start with her brain. Willow is the smartest character on the series, often even beating Giles’s smarts. She can track anything online, helping her get to the bottom of a lot of situations in Sunnydale.

She didn’t let her nerdiness get in the way of being a great friend or even from saving the city. She would try to physically take care of the monsters even when she knew it would potentially get her killed. This was a woman with a lot of heart.

Eventually, Willow realized that she could be more. She turned to magic to help deal with various supernatural beings in Sunnydale, even becoming the Big Bad of Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 6. And yet, she was never truly evil. She just struggled with the darkness of the magic.

In fact, Willow’s storyline here could be connected to real problems. Magic became her “drug of choice” to cope. At first, she dabbled for fun, then she realized she was potentially becoming addicted, her friends and Tara worried about her, and then she gave into the addiction to deal with the grief of losing Tara. We went through this emotional rollercoaster with her, getting to see her work through that grief in a healthy way in Season 7.

Granted, she ended up still using magic, which wouldn’t be the case with a drug, but she was able to come full circle to use magic in a good way to help save the world. She knew it could be a sacrifice, and she was willing to make it for the sake of the world.

And let’s not forget that she went through a sexual identity storyline. For the ‘90s and early ‘00s, Willow’s connection to Tara was a big deal. She helped many of us struggling with our own sexual identity connect to a character on screen. It was a chance to see how friends should react and support, but yes, I’m still salty at the way Tara’s exit was handled.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer has a dark cloud over the top of it with recent revelations. That doesn’t stop us from loving Alyson Hannigan and her portrayal of Willow Rosenberg.

Who was your favorite character on Buffy the Vampire Slayer? What did you think of Willow’s character growth? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer is currently streaming on Hulu.