I watched it back when it was in first-run. Its companion series, Angel, was also great. Note that there is a Buffy the Vampire Slayer movie that starred Kristy Swanson. The movie and TV show are not connected in any way. The film had a cast loaded with great talent (some future A-listers), but the direction and writing were just... bad. Awful, really. Swanson was good, but Paul Reubens—better known as Pee-Wee Herman—stole the show. However, even their performances and the gravitas of famed screen villain Rutger Hauer could not overcome the movie's many shortcomings. The film was such absolute trash that its events were never mentioned in the TV series.