Richard Wilkins (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)
| The Mayor | |
|---|---|
| Buffy the Vampire Slayer character | |
 |
|
| First appearance | "Homecoming" (1998) |
| Created by | Joss Whedon, David Greenwalt |
| Portrayed by | Harry Groener |
| Information | |
| Classification | Mayor of Sunnydale |
| Notable powers |
Sorcery, immortality; superhuman attributes in demon form |
Richard Wilkins III (commonly referred to as The Mayor) is a fictional character in the fantasy television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997–2003). Portrayed by Harry Groener, he is the mayor of Sunnydale, a fictional town rife with vampires and demons in which the main character, Buffy Summers (Sarah Michelle Gellar) lives. The premise of the series is that Buffy is a Slayer, a young girl endowed with superhuman powers to fight evil, which she accomplishes with the help of a small group of friends and family, called the Scooby Gang. During the second season it becomes apparent that local authorities are aware of the endemic evil in the town, and either ignore it or are complicit in making it worse. The series regularly employs monsters and elements of horror to symbolize real problems, and the abuse of power in relation to the forces of darkness is a repeated theme throughout the series, as well as in its spin-off Angel. The third season reveals that the Mayor is involved in many of the evil occurrences and he becomes the primary villain, or Big Bad. His genial demeanor, promotion of family values, casual phobia of germs, and dislike of swearing belie his evil nature.
This season also marks Buffy's and her friends' last year in high school, and introduces a long-running character named Faith (Eliza Dushku), who is also a Slayer. After many months of fighting alongside Buffy and being under the authority of Buffy's Watcher, Giles, Faith becomes estranged from Buffy and aligns herself with the Mayor, who both employs her as an assassin and becomes a father figure to her while preparing to become a powerful demon that will destroy the town.
In planning for the third season, series creator Joss Whedon and the team of writers for the show sought to explore the issues of the abuse of power, and the choices people in or with power make. Veteran stage actor Harry Groener was cast in the role of the Mayor of Sunnydale, the embodiment of a quintessential American politician. In the second season, it becomes clear that the authorities at Sunnydale High School — under which a portal to hell called a Hellmouth is situated — are aware of the perpetual influence of evil at the school and have been reporting events to the Mayor's office. While there are scenes in season two which indicate that the Mayor is a fear-inspiring figure, he is not seen until the third season.
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