5 best Buffy the Vampire Slayer quotes in How to Slay the Buffy Way

Although not all of the quotations that appear in How to Slay the Buffy Way fit the theme, there are some generally good ones.

Not every piece of dialogue from Buffy the Vampire Slayer holds up after over a decade off the air, and nor should it, really. If TV were still what it was when Buffy reigned, then that’d frankly be boring. But some lines do still work today.

Fortunately, How to Slay the Buffy Way, sent to us here at Culturess by Dey St. Books, does contain some of those particularly meaningful quotes. It does also have some completely out-there additions. For example, Riley, Buffy’s not-Spike-or-Angel beau, gets two mentions in the very short collection. Moreover, the design is very ’90s in its drawings over pictures and so on, which fits the series but doesn’t quite fit with the idea that this book is meant to contain “killer advice.”

Whether or not you end up picking up the collection, which should appeal to fans of the series, here are some of the quotes you can expect to find.

“Without passion, we’d be truly dead.”

Episode: “Passion”

Wherever you fall in the great Angel or Spike debate as to who’s the best undead partner for Buffy, Angel definitely wins in the moody, yet meaningful lines category. (Spike’s just too snarky, sorry.)

Granted, it’s not actually Angel that speaks this line — it’s Angelus, the soulless version — but the core concept remains the same. Passion provides that spark that we all need.

“The hardest thing in this world is to live in it. Be brave. Live.”

Episode: “The Gift”

There is some deep irony in Buffy saying this in an episode where she ends up dying anyway, but, to be fair, she’s saying it to Dawn. However, the quote itself is true. Living is hard. (One has to wonder if Lin-Manuel Miranda had this in mind when writing “Right-Hand Man” for Hamilton.)

“You wanna surprise the enemy? Surprise yourselves. Force yourself to do what can’t be done.”

Episode: “Get It Done”

Buffy doesn’t need flowery words to tell you to get yourself in gear. She’s said things are hard. She knows it’s hard — she’s the Slayer — but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t push herself to greater heights to get the drop on her foes.

“You have a plan?” / “I am the plan.”

Episode: “The Initiative”

Season 4 of Buffy may not be the greatest, but any season that provides Buffy with the opportunity to casually announce that the plan is to let her do her thing is a season that’s at least worth respecting a little bit. Unsurprisingly, Giles is the one who asks the question.

“If the apocalypse comes, beep me.”

Episode: “Never Kill a Boy on the First Date”

Okay, it might not be the most inspirational thing out there, and not just because beepers aren’t what they used to be, but let’s face it: even Buffy knows that you have to take your downtime when you can get it.

All of these lines and more are in How to Slay the Buffy Way, out Sept. 4.