With an exasperated sigh and a grumpy cleaning of his glasses, Rupert Giles dispensed advice to the Chosen One and the Scooby Gang, and even though a reboot of Buffy the Vampire Slayer is struggling, it couldn't be made without The Slayer's faithful Watcher. As the voice of reason among the young members of his cohort, Giles always did his best to be a mentor and authority figure, and failing that, he was a good friend and cocoa maker.While many fans identify with the more boisterous members of the group, at one time or another they all can relate to rolling their eyes at the teenage angst around them, and for that they celebrate Giles. Whether it's his sarcastic wit, fatherly wisdom, or unwavering dedication to research, these memes perfectly capture what makes Giles so special.
He Was Always Supportive Of Buffy
Giles might not always agree with everything that Buffy does, but even when he doesn't support her decisions he still supports her right to make them. He learned early on that trying to meddle too much in slayer affairs put him on the receiving end of a battle-ax. Part of learning to work with Buffy effectively as her watcher was knowing when to let her exercise her own executive function.
The relationship between Giles and Buffy had growing pains, especially since she was reluctant to accept her position as the Chosen One and had a tendency to love vampires, but he saw her inherent power and didn't try to control it. Because he saw her as a person capable of making her own decisions, he built an incredibly solid foundation of trust, so that even when she acted rashly, he never made her feel guilty.
He Hated Hearing Xander's Stories
Giles was often depicted as the only rational adult in a situation heavily influenced by hormone and/or sugar fueled teenagers, but no one bothered him quite as much as Xander. While well-intentioned with his stories, Xander babbled inane things until Giles gave him a mission or a tome to shut him up.
To Giles, the stories Xander told rarely had anything to do with the Big Bad at hand, no matter how much Xander's anecdotes made him feel useful. As the only person without super strength or an affinity for magic, Xander often tried to help in any way he could, which according to this meme, meant Giles had to indulge him.
Everyone Thought He Had Everything Figured Out (But He Didn't)
Even though he was a Watcher and famous magician, Giles still didn't have everything in life figured out. The trust the Scoobies placed in him meant that he had to do the best he could, and sometimes alter the truth just enough to protect their optimism and their innocence while not sugar-coating certain grim realities of fighting supernatural villains.
As the demons, vampires, and other creatures often represented the horrors of adolescent life in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the advice Giles gave to their demise also ended up including parables to particular problems about homework, first love, and life after high school. Giles was as fallible as anyone, but he was also one of the bravest characters in the series and chose to lead by example.
He Was A Skilled Librarian
Giles was one of the best TV librarians because not only did he preside over his stacks and shelves of books with care, he also provided a bastion for students who felt like they had nowhere else to go. Students like Oz or Willow who didn't quite feel connected to their peers for being a little too sensitive or a little too brainy.
Giles also didn't have a great love for computers, despite all their organizational abilities, due to their inability to be "smelly." Whereas books used for research used smell to make learning tangible and transport readers with a memory, Giles found computers soulless and unappealing.
He Could Never Get Buffy To Put In The Research
A lot of the time Buffy just wanted to slay first and ask questions later, until she realized that her super strength alone wasn't going to win every fight. Giles had to work hard to instill a love of searching into the Scooby Gang and even then, they still didn't take to it (except Willow).
From their very first interaction, when Giles was only too excited to place the giant book of Vampyr on his counter and start Buffy's education as the Chosen One, she made a bee-line right for the exit. Luckily, future visits proved a little more fruitful.
He Stood Up Against The Watcher Council Hypocrisy
At times, Giles was the go-between Buffy and the Watcher Council, who often had antiquated ideas about her role as The Slayer. The Council often blamed their decisions on reactionary measures to Buffy's "reckless" behavior, which Giles had to defend.
As this meme suggests, the Watcher Council often blamed their increasing lack of humanity on Buffy's actions, when in reality it was a convenient excuse. If it wasn't for Giles, Buffy would have probably gotten pushed around even more than she already was.
He Has A Snarky Attitude
For the first two seasons of the series, Giles played the part of the stuffy librarian until Wesley promptly came into the picture and fit the archetype, leaving Giles free to explore his character a little more. Even with greater character development, he remained as caustic as ever, with a certain biting humor reflected in his quips about the Scooby Gang and their activities.
Giles represented the audience's point of view in many situations, with his thoughts and opinions standing in for the incredulity and exasperation fans might feel at the extraordinary circumstances experienced by the Scoobies.
Giles Sometimes Got Blamed For Things He Didn't Do
When something happened to Buffy, Giles was held responsible as her Watcher, but he couldn't control every aspect of her life as a high school student. When Joyce finally learned the truth about her daughter's status as the Chosen One, they got into plenty of rows about Buffy's safety that Giles had to mediate.
This meme serves as a reminder that Giles often inhabited a thankless role, whose influence and usefulness weren't fully appreciated until he left Sunnydale. He may have felt he'd outgrown his purpose, but it was hard to see a good character do a bad deed, such as leaving Buffy at her lowest point. But when things got terrible, he returned when he was most needed again.
Giles Had Two Modes: Ripper & Rupert
At one point Buffy and the Scoobies learned that Giles earned the nickname "Ripper" from a secret past he managed to keep hidden. So why was Giles named Ripper? Long before he was the tweed-wearing and punctilious librarian at Sunnydale High, he was a magician with a fascination with the dark arts.
When the Scoobies had to handle a demon named Eyghon that Giles had never successfully exorcised, it gave Rupert the opportunity to become Ripper if only for a few hours. This persona came out every time Giles felt a certain drive towards aggression, such as confronting Angelus or Glory, but he mostly kept himself docile, afraid that whatever lurked within him would affect his ability to properly mentor the Chosen One.
He Hated Seeing Teenagers Neglected
Since Harry Summers wasn't involved very much in Buffy's life, Giles became like a step-father to her, and in truth somewhat came to feel like all the Scoobies were his wards. Since protecting Sunnydale was such a big part of their lives, all of them needed guidance balancing their duties with their school work, it often fell to Giles to make sure they didn't get overwhelmed.
Since Giles came from a family of Watchers and a calling he tried to turn his back on, he understood the enormous responsibility Buffy and her friends faced. He also knew what being an obstinate teenager was like, and was uniquely qualified to make sure they were supported in both areas.