Favourite Giles moments:
Innocence:
GILES: I know you loved him. And he proved more than once that he loved you too. You couldn't have known what would happen. The next few months are going to be hard, I suspect on all of us, but if it's guilt you're looking for Buffy I am not your man. All you will get from me is my support, and my respect.
I adore this scene. Both SMG and ASH are so good in it and I love the aesthetics (the rain drops on the windows, Giles' beatdown car, the frost on the glass, the slow rollup to the front of Buffy's home) and the quiet, understated acting. He tells her everything a good father-figure should say but I also love the scene for it's painful foreshadowing ("I suspect on all of us").
Passion:
Giles launching a Molotov Cocktail and then wielding a flaming baseball bat will never be the epitome of badass. ASH plays his entrance so well as he lights the bat on fire without taking his eyes off Angel for a second and then beating the holy sh*t out of him.
Amends:
GILES: Come in
ANGEL: I.. ah.. can't come in unless you invite me
GILES: (reveals the crossbow and aims it directly at Angel) I'm aware of that. Come in.
This is such a great scene in general. Angel's guilt and discomfort at going to Giles for help, Giles' expression when he opens the door and sees Angel for the first time since knowing he's back, Angel's uneasiness at having to "remind" Giles to invite him in, Giles fetching the crossbow... it's so brilliant. I also love that Giles can't help but be concerned and intrigued despite his feelings about Angel. And on a purely shallow note, ASH/Giles looks really attractive in that striped Ralph Polo shirt.
A New Man:
GILES: Maybe we should have invited Professor Walsh to the party
BUFFY: Oh nah she's, like, forty. She's got better things to do then hang out with a bunch of kids!
Giles has a lot of great moments throughout this episode but I always feel for Giles in this scene in particular. The writing does a brilliant job of having the characters take "digs" at Giles that don't feel unintentionally nasty, forced or uncharacteristic. And ASH does a fantastic job of showing Giles' discomfort throughout the party and he feels more out of place with each passing hour. I really feel for him that every time he tries to relate to one of the Scoobies ("there's a lot of new faces here aren't they?") they're too engrossed in their new college lives to relate or even pick up on how estranged Giles is feeling. And I appreciate any episodes the highlight the significant age gap between Giles and the other Scoobies and how he understandably struggles with hits.
The Gift:
GILES: Can you move?
BEN: Need a med... She could've killed me
GILES: No she couldn't. And sooner or later Glory will reemerge and make Buffy pay for that mercy and the world with her. And still she couldn't take a human life. She's a hero, you see. She's not like us.
BEN: Us?
*Giles smothers Ben*
A lot of people refer to this moment as Giles' "Ripper-side" coming out, but I'd disagree. Ripper was chaotic, irresponsible and unruly. In this scene Giles is certainly ruthless but he's doing what he feels needs to be done for the sake of the world and for Buffy and he believes it's his responsibility and his duty to do so ("I swore to protect this sorry world and sometimes that means doing and saying what other's cant. They shouldn't have to"). ASH plays it so perfectly and Whedon's dialogue is superb.
Halloween:
ETHAN: And you said the Ripper was long gone...
GILES: (kicks Ethan in the stomach and rubs the blood off his fingers) Tell me how to break the spell
One of the most pivotal scenes in Giles' story as his "Ripper" side and dark past is revealed. But I'm always particularly amazed by ASH's acting in this scene and how his entire body language changes whilst he's attacking Ethan and showcases a completely different side of his character that we've not yet seen. His posture and stance is completely different and the brutality and physicality of his attacks on Ethan are drastically different from the almost "fumbling" way Giles has carried himself thus far.
Honourable Mentions:
Helpless: The moment Giles tends to Buffy's wound with the wet cloth ("You have a father's love for the child and that is useless to the cause")
Spiral: The Buffy/Giles heart-to-heart as he lays wounded ("I'm so proud of you. You've come so far. You're everything a Watcher - everything I could have hoped for")
Graduation Day I: Giles' fierce protectiveness of Buffy as The Mayor threatens her and Giles plunges the sword into his heart ("I'm going to eat her")
I Was Made to Love You: Giles threatening Spike in the Magic Box and shocking even Spike ("We are not your way to Buffy. There is no way to Buffy. Spike, this thing, it ends now. Move the hell on")
Prophecy Girl: Giles gearing up to fight The Master himself instead of Buffy ("Buffy, you were right. I've waded around in these old books for so long I've forgotten what the real world is like. It's time I found out")
Becoming II: Withstanding Angel's torture and being sassy as hell in the process ("You must perform the ritual... in a tutu. Pelic")
I adore Giles.
